Chivalry is Dead - Chapter 8

Chivalry Is Dead, Chapter 8

By Peter Simons

Author's Note: I'd like to express my gratitude to Triplover and Coconut for their spectacular beta jobs on this chapter.

Slowly Trip found his way back into the real world. Blackness had engulfed him for what seemed like an eternity. He had drifted in and out of consciousness, but it all had felt so surreal. He hadn't been able to feel his body or use his eyes. He hadn't known where he was. The only thing he could remember clearly was that Seri had been there. He remembered a wonderful feeling of warmth when she had touched him.

With great effort he opened his eyes. He was in Sickbay, he realized. He recognized the room even though the image was unfocused. He lay on a bio bed, he concluded. What had happened to him?

The last thing he remembered was setting up the equipment that would change the Trellium-D into its liquid state so that they could mine it … then there was nothing. Suddenly, a wave of pain swept over him and his head began to spin. He shivered and closed his eyes as the dizziness set in.

Just out of spite he tried to sit up, but he had barely managed to lift his shoulders off the bed an inch when nausea hit him. He groaned and fell back on the bed.

For a while he just lay there and suffered; then slowly thoughts of Seri filtered into his mind and replaced any awareness he had of the pain.

She had saved his life! Just yesterday, they had watched that movie together — and the next thing he knew was that she had rescued his life. The coincidence baffled him. He had been reluctant to open up to her. He had been afraid that he wouldn't be able to see her, that he would just see T'Pol's sister the whole time. He had been afraid that his feelings wouldn't be for real, that he would subconsciously use Seri to get over T'Pol.

He remembered how weary he had been when they had stood in his quarters together last night, but they had simply connected! His worries had just been gone. Without knowing it he had grown to like her. He felt good in her company. She made him laugh!

Now, not only had she saved his life, but she had stood by his bed and had cried for him — a Vulcan!

Suddenly he wondered: what was so wrong about her being T'Pol's little sister? So what if it was a little awkward? Wasn't a relationship between a Human and a Vulcan awkward to begin with? Why should he stay away from her just because he had slept with T'Pol before? T'Pol certainly wouldn't care.

Bitterness washed over him.

He tried to fight the feeling by thinking about Seri again, about how he had felt when she had lain her hand over his chest. He realized, he really had been injured: T'Pol had left a deep cut in his heart, and it had not yet healed. In that moment last night, he had felt cared-for. Just for once, someone had felt for him, and it had been wonderful. He had missed this feeling for so long that he craved it now.

He decided to give it a chance. What did he have to lose?

First of all, Seri had to know that he had been intimate with her sister. This was the only problem that really was awkward. He had to tell her, but he had no idea how she would react. Nonetheless, he had to tell her. And while he was at it, he could as well tell her about the attraction he felt. He knew she would understand him. She would certainly not jerk him around like T'Pol had.

If he was lucky, for a change, then she would feel the same way about him! There were some indications she did, to put it carefully.

He realized, he didn't feel so bad after all.

Seri paced restlessly in Commander Tucker's quarters. She was deeply unsettled. In the last 18 hours she had lived through far more than she had been prepared for. Abruptly, she stopped pacing and threw her hands up in frustration. She wanted to scream!

It just wasn't fair. No matter where she went, T'Pol had always been there first! And no matter how hard she struggled, it would NEVER change. For her entire life it had been like this, she thought with bitterness. »Here, Seri, you can have the geometry book T'Pol does not need anymore.« — »Why do you need new robes for your school enrollment? T'Pol's will fit you by then.« — »Look, Seri, T'Pol is a disciplined Vulcan now, but you are still too young, you are still only a child!«

When it occurred to her that she and Trip had made the room soundproof, she gave in and did yell out with anger.

She looked at the technical equipment they had assembled together. It had been so stimulating to work with him; she had felt so good in his company! So much even, that she had stood up to T'Pol and had fought for him!

Then all her anger just collapsed and she felt nothing but misery. Slowly she sunk down on the spot and covered her face with her hands.

She had been utterly defeated.

She probably wouldn't have stood a chance in battle with T'Pol, but with emotions this powerful she simply could not compete. Until 18 hours ago, she hadn't even known anything this painful could exist. She had no idea how T'Pol had managed to stand upright and breathe while she had felt like this.

She began to sob. She accepted the conclusion: there was no way she could allow her sister to feel this pain. She had lost him.

At last, the tears began to fall. She wept silently while sitting on the floor. She struggled hard with the implications.

She would have to give him up. She had found a male who made her feel wonderful, and now she would have to suppress those exact feelings. She would have to move out of these quarters and stay away from him for the rest of their journey.

Seri looked up again and her eyes widened with fear: How could she possibly explain this to Trip? As if it weren't difficult enough already, she had given T'Pol her word she would not interfere. She could not tell him what she had learned on the surface!

It was a nightmare.

Suddenly she snapped back into focus, stood up, and straightened herself. She realized that whatever she would do, she had to do it right now. This nightmare had to end soon or her resolve would waver.

A soft swoosh caught Trip's attention. He knew someone had entered Sickbay and he struggled to turn onto his side so that he could see who it was. When he could, his heart jumped and began to race frantically: It was her!

»Hi.« he said weakly and smiled at her with genuine happiness.

Seri didn't answer. She had been headed into his direction, but suddenly stopped walking and stood at least five meters away from him. Then she turned to the side and began to pace the room.

Trip was confused. »Seri?« he asked. »Are you all right?«

There was no indication she had even heard him. This was odd.

»Seri?« he asked again.

She stopped pacing and just stood there again. The lights in Sickbay were dimmed in the early morning hours, so he could not see her face clearly. Just when he was about to become really worried, he heard her mutter something in Vulcan, and then she walked over to his bed at last.

»Trip,« she said, »I have to speak with you.«

She grabbed a chair, pulled it over, and sat down next to his bed. He could see her face now. He could see that she was very emotional. Her voice had been thick. »She's nervous!« he thought.

Before he could say or do anything, Seri suddenly blurted out: »I thought you were dead!«

Then all her control was gone. Her upper body fell forward as if all life had left her in this instant. She buried her face in her arms on the bed and began to sob uncontrollably. She cried so horribly right next to him that it almost broke his heart. He had had no idea how much his accident had affected her!

Tears formed in his eyes too, and he had to swallow. He forgot his own pain completely and suffered just with her. He unwrapped his right arm from under the sheets and stroked her head tenderly with his hand. He spoke to her in a soft voice trying to comfort her by repeating over and over again what he had told her only hours ago.

»Don't be sad, Seri. Everything will be alright.«

For a long time she just cried. She didn't even seem to hear him. It was unsettling to see her like this.

»Seri, why do you cry? I'm alive. There's nothing to worry about.«

At last she looked up. »No,« she croaked, »you misunderstand. When you were buried under all that rock, Trip, I thought you were dead. I gave up on you!«

Trip was baffled. That didn't make any sense.

»I don't know what you're talking about, Seri. You saved my life on that planet.«

»No, I thought I had lost you, Trip, and the emotions completely overwhelmed me! I just stood there and did nothing. I was useless! Only after T'Pol and the ENTERPRISE crew had discovered your location did I manage to recover. You owe your life to T'Pol, not to me.«

Trip closed his eyes and leaned back on the bed. He was tempted to laugh because of how completely Seri misjudged the situation. She felt so strongly for him that it had overwhelmed her in a situation of crisis — and now she thought he would be disappointed because of it! Weren't it for her heartfelt misery, he probably would have laughed.

He looked at her again.

»Seri, T'Pol and the others have handled situations like this dozens of times before, but you haven't. You were in shock. That's nothing to be ashamed of. You were the one who found me—«

»I would never have searched for you, Trip, weren't it for T'Pol.«

»So what? You were affected by emotions and T'Pol was not! That shouldn't bother you — it's only logical.«

All Trip wanted to do was to hug her, hold her in his arms, comfort her, and make her happy. He just couldn't deal with seeing her so sad. It was so unnecessary! He reached for her hand, but she leaned back and avoided him. For an instant her face looked terribly conflicted, but then it changed. A calm overtook her and she was once again in complete control.

»Trip,« she began, »you misunderstand. Vulcans feel very strongly — far stronger than Humans do. When a Vulcan chooses a mate out of love, it is for life. One would unconditionally give his life for the other. It has always been like this and there is no other way for us. My emotions for you were tested on that planet, Trip, and they failed.«

He had no idea what to think. She had flat out told him that she considered him for a mate — which was good. So why didn't he like the sound of this then?

»Seri—« he spoke up, but she silenced him by placing her outstretched index and middle finger on his brow; then she slowly moved her fingertips down along the side of his face. Her touch felt powerfully intimate and very, very sad at the same time. When her fingers had reached his chin, her hand just dropped away.

»Trip, I know it with all my heart and all my logic that I am not a worthy mate for you.«

Then she stood up. »I apologize.«

She reached for his face again, but stopped herself half-way between them. She pulled her hand back and repeated her words.

»I apologize.«

Before Trip could say anything, she turned around and left Sickbay without looking back.

For a long time Trip hadn't been certain how to feel. By now he knew: He hated them both.

T'Pol had no problem mating with him, but she wouldn't feel anything all the while. Seri, on the other hand, apparently felt something for him, but refused to mate. In a way, it made perfect sense. Weren't it for the minor detail that his heart had been ripped out and spit on twice in a row, he would probably have found it amusing.

Actually, the only person he hated even more than these two insane Vulcans was himself. He was an idiot. He had known all along that T'Pol suppressed her emotions — he had known it. So why the hell had he thought she would make an exception for him? He had been so stupid to sleep with her. He had been even dumber to fall in love with her. And when she finally rejected him — like knew all along that she would —, what had he done next?

He turned to her sister!

Who — surprise! — had rejected him too.

His head throbbed with pain. He couldn't even feel his body; all he felt was an overpowering sensation in his temples that shadowed everything else.

He could not fathom how immature he had been. He shouldn't have gone near either of them. He should never have allowed himself to feel anything for a colleague in the first place. This was a starship — not a pleasure cruise, god-dammit!

Suddenly his anger was replaced by an indescribable sense of loss. He could not push away the memory of how he had felt when Seri had touched him last night. How intimate it had been. How wonderful it had felt. He could not get the thought of out his mind. Now he fully understood that he would never feel that way again — and the realization hurt him so much that he feared for his sanity.

T'Pol sat in her quarters in front of her bed in the dark. She hadn't moved for several hours. Normally, she would have been able to tell how long it had been, but she had stopped caring. What did it matter?

She had thought about doing something useful instead of just sitting there. Only, there wasn't anything useful to do. What could possibly be done?

Everybody on this ship had company right now except her. She was utterly alone. She felt like a ghost.

When she heard the door chime, it took her ages to react. »Come in.« she said at last.

She was surprised to find that her visitor turned out to be Seri. T'Pol certainly hadn't expected her. She just looked at her sister and was quiet. She had no idea what to say.

Seri didn't say anything either. She just stepped into the room and waited for the door to close behind her. Once it had, the room was dark again.

Seri stood there silently for a long moment, before she walked up to T'Pol and sat down gracefully right in front of her. T'Pol noticed that Seri's presence belied her calm and controlled surface. When she spoke at last, T'Pol could tell by her voice that her sister's distress equaled her own.

»Do you remember the day our sehlat died, T'Pol?«

»Of course.«

»I was deeply affected by the loss.«

»We both were very fond of it.«

»I was still a child at the time, T'Pol, but you had already learned how to suppress the pain.«

»I remember.«

»You chose not to, T'Pol. You chose to feel the pain just so that you could mourn with me.«

»It helped us both.«

Seri extended her hands towards her sister with her palms facing upwards.

»Will you mourn with me again, T'Pol?«

Without hesitation T'Pol reached for her sister's hands with her own and placed her fingers over the contact points.

She had wanted to say something, but once their minds touched she couldn't. Waves of impossible sadness hit her instantly; regret and pain poured into her mind and resonated inside of her until the powerful emotions washed her control away. She gave in. They both gave in. They shared everything. They knelt before each other in the darkness, completely silent, sitting perfectly still, and wept bitter tears together for an eternity.

Captain Thornbow had assembled his entire crew in the small cargo bay where they kept the Betazoid females. They had reached Orion moments ago. Now all they had to do was to open the airlock, step through it, and walk into the slave market. They had waited for this moment for so long … Now it had come!

The tall Nausicaans fidgeted around slightly because of their nervousness and excitement. Thornbow studied them with pride. They were pirates now! Bad-ass pirates, to be precise.

»Nausicaans!« he yelled into the room, standing right next to the airlock that led to their future. »The moment of truth has come: We are now PIRATES!«

A thundering choir of voices answered him: »Hurrah!«

Thornbow wiped a few tears out of the corner of his eyes. Then he saw his first officer do the same … and so did the chief engineer! Before he knew it, his entire crew cried tears of happiness — so he gave in, too. Together the Nausicaans stood before the airlock and cried while savoring the moment. They had been through so much to see this dream come true.

For several minutes the Nausicaan crew was unable to contain themselves, but at last Thornbow regained his composture.

»Let's go sell some slaves, pirates!« he yelled out and yanked the chain that interconnected the shackles around the females' necks.

»Hurrah!«

He pushed the button to open the airlock, stepped through it, and led his crew and 42 butt naked Betazoid females into their respective new futures.

They walked slowly and consciously through the corridors that would bring them into the market complex. They enjoyed every step. Thornbow watched with satisfaction how several other traders jumped aside to make room when they saw them coming.

After a short while they arrived at the main entry. A huge green Orion guarded the doors. Thornbow made it a point to not even notice him. He was far to bad-ass to deal with guards. He continued to walk towards the door unmoved, looking straight through the alien male, refusing any eye contact.

»Wait a second,« the Orion addressed him, »I don't know you.«

Thornbow walked up to the doors until he stood right in front of him, only inches away. He looked at a spot on the wall, next to the guard's head, and just stood there for a moment. At last he turned his face a bit and stared straight into the Orion's eyes.

»Business? Or trouble? It's your choice, Orion.« he spit out.

The other man hesitated and looked at the group of females the Nausicaans had brought with them. Then he nodded, stepped aside, and pushed a button on the wall.

When the doors swung open, they revealed a huge hall filled with aliens from worlds all over the galaxy. They hurried around in the room and checked out the slaves that waited in cages to be sold. Thornbow reveled in the sight. He stood in the door for a moment longer, then inconspicuously wiped another tear from his eye, and finally began to walk into the room. He headed towards the main processing desk.

The room grew quiet out of the sudden. The other aliens had noticed them and moved out of the way. Thornbow loved it! He and his men crossed the hall to arrive at the processing desk where another huge, green Orion stood and watched them.

Thornbow came to stand right in front of him and erected his body threateningly. He stared into the other man's face and snarled at him through clenched teeth.

»50,000 Credits, Orion, and these females are yours.«

The other man studied him for a moment, then he studied the naked females the Nausicaans had brought with them.

»We don't do business that way, Nausicaan. You'll have to auction the—«

Thornbow interrupted him with a cold, unfriendly laugh completely devoid of any humor.

»Do we look like people who auction, dumb-ass? 50,000 Credits, take it or leave it.«

The Orion had definitely noticed the insult but he didn't dare to call him on it, Thornbow thought smugly. God, being a bad-ass pirate was great!

It took a while before the other man replied.

»That's too much, Nausicaan. They aren't worth—«

Thornbow interrupted him again with another laugh.

»You really have no fucking idea, do you?«

He glared at the Orion for a moment, then muttered »Alright.« and turned to his first officer: »Why don't you bring Diana? Let's show the Orion what these girls can do.«

His first officer nodded and headed towards a particularly cute Betazoid female. He unlocked her from the chain and led her back to the processing desk. Both Nausicaans could tell immediately that the Orion liked her. She was naked, naturally, had long dark hair, huge black eyes, and a curvy, extraordinarily feminine body. Her sensuous movements captivated the Orion as she walked up to the desk.

Thornbow allowed himself a grin, leaned closer, and whispered encouragingly into the female's ear: »Diana, why don't you show this nice Orion trader what you can do?«

She looked at him for a moment, nodded with an air of innocence, then turned her face to the Orion. She watched him with intensity, closed her eyes, and spoke in a dreamy voice …

»I sense that you are aroused and especially intrigued by my presence.«

»Hurrah! Hurrah!«

The Nausicaans yelled and cried and jumped around happily outside of the market complex. They threw the heavy coins into the air, then stilled themselves so that they could hear the sounds the coins made when they rained back down on them. They took turns hugging their captain who just stood there, deeply moved by the moment.

They followed an impulse and took each other by the hands. They stood in a circle and squeezed each other's hands as if to confirm that they weren't dreaming, and then they yelled out once more.

»We are pirates!« they screamed, only to add a moment later: »Bad-ass pirates!«

For an eternity they celebrated.

At last Thornbow wiped the tears from his face. He picked up one of the coins and bit down on it playfully.

»You know what we are going to do next, pirates?«

They were quiet and looked at him intently.

»We'll buy some real bad-ass clothes.«

Captain Archer, Doctor Phlox, and Subcommander T'Pol had withdrawn to the other side of Sickbay in order to discuss the progress of Commander Tucker's health. He had been conscious the entire day so far, but he was still very weak and needed to rest, so they didn't want to disturb him.

The discussion had been surprisingly passionate, Archer thought with a grin. It appeared that his first officer was a lot more concerned for the health of Commander Tucker than the ship's physician was.

»Doctor, I understand there were traces of Trellium-D in his bloodstream. Have you ascertained whether he will experience any adverse effects as a result?«

»It was a miniscule amount, T'Pol. His immune system dealt with that hours ago.«

»Are you certain?«

»Yes, I am certain.«

Archer decided to interrupt their bickering: »Doctor, please give us an estimate. How long until Trip will be fit for duty?«

»Four to five days, Captain, depending on how coopera—«

»Four days?« T'Pol interrupted him.

»If he is cooperative, Subcommander.«

»That is a rather optimistic estimate, Doctor.« she dead-panned.

Archer looked at Phlox for a moment, met his gaze, and they both grinned. Then he turned his head back to T'Pol — and was startled to find that his first officer had suddenly disappeared!

Trip thought it was annoying that Jonathan, T'Pol, and Phlox discussed his health among each other while he was lying in the room. Granted, he was irritable to begin with, but it was just damn impolite to treat him as if the matter of his recovery didn't concern him. They treated him like a little boy!

He always felt like this in Sickbay.

Once more he tried to sit up out of spite, and this time it had worked, although his head began to throb angrily from the sudden movement. He sat there and rested for a moment, then swung his legs to the side of the bed. He knew what he would do. He would walk right over there and ask whether he could join the discussion. That would shut them up.

He supported his weight with his arms, slid forward off the bed, and tried to lower his feet to the ground slowly — but suddenly his right arm trembled from a sharp pain in his shoulder … then all strength just left him. When his feet hit the ground forcefully, the pain in his legs was mind-blowing. He barely registered how his knees gave in: all he saw was blackness. He lost his balance and fell.

Suddenly his descent was stopped by another person. Someone had caught him! Two strong arms wrapped around his torso and put him back upright, then continued to hold him. He was so shocked and dizzy he just clung to whoever it was for support and fought against the darkness that surrounded him.

After a prolonged moment, Trip finally regained some sense of balance. He didn't dare open his eyes yet because he feared the nausea would return. He didn't need his eyes though to tell it was a women who was holding him. She had embraced him tightly. The way she steadied him with her body gave him an incredible feeling of safety. He knew instinctively he would not fall while she held him.

His heart raced in his chest from the shock, it beat powerfully and flooded his body with warmth. He could feel her heart beat too, and it raced in the same quick pace. He could hear her breathing right next to his ear; her breath was warm on his skin. She was warm in his arms.

Phlox and Archer studied their fellow officers from the other side of the room for a moment. They waited patiently for any indication that either Trip or T'Pol would let go, but there was none. This could take a while.

»Doctor,« Archer said in a low voice, »perhaps we should continue our discussion outside.«

Trip was completely lost in the sensations. She no longer supported him with her arms — she held him possessively. He could feel her breasts move on his chest when she breathed. Her breathe hit his neck while her cheek was lightly pressed against his. Instinctively, he leaned in and hugged her back even more tightly than he had before.

He was overwhelmed by the unexpected intimacy. Whoever it was, it seemed as if their bodies had been made specifically to fit together like this.

Which led him to wonder … wait a minute … the only woman in the room had been … !!!

Abruptly he opened his eyes, pulled his head back, and found himself looking straight into her face. She returned his gaze with an unfocused expression, as if he had woken her up in the middle of the night.

»T'Pol?« he asked in disbelief.

She blinked, then her face flushed dark green. Instantly she let go of him and took a step back. An angry tirade rained down on him.

»Why did you attempt to stand? Your legs were broken less than 28 hours ago. Do you enjoy causing yourself further harm? Are you risking your life on purpose?«

Trip was too stunned to react. »I …« he began, but she just interrupted him.

»Because if you are doing it on purpose, Commander Tucker, then you should better NOT count on me being there EVERY TIME to rescue you from your FOOLISHNESS!«

She looked at him with so much burning intensity that it physically hurt him for a moment, then she turned around and stormed out of Sickbay.

Trip was numb. He had no idea what had just happened.

»T'Pol!« he shouted and took a step forward in an attempt to follow her. Instantly his knees gave in. The last thing he saw was the floor racing towards him, then darkness engulfed him once more …

Captain Thornbow sat in the command chair and felt wicked. He saw his crew work on the bridge with deep satisfaction, they all smiled continuously. Seriously, you wouldn't believe what a difference cool outfits made! They had spent almost half of their earnings on new clothes, personal weapons, and toys; but it had been well worth it. Being a pirate rocked.

If only his father could see him now!

He shook his head and swallowed. This whole emotionalism would have to stop eventually, he realized.

»Captain,« one of his men addressed him, »I see a blip on sensors. I'm not sure what it is, but given its velocity, I'd say it's a starship.«

»How big is this blip?«

»There's no way to tell. If it is a ship, then it is cloaked: we can't get accurate readings.«

»Well … if it is a cloaked ship, then chances are there's sophisticated technology on board. Alter course, head straight towards it.«

»Aye, Captain.«

The Klingon captain had been aware of the Nausicaan cruiser for a while, but now he knew they were aware of him, too. They had altered course.

»Graaach!« he uttered angrily, then turned to his first officer. »Disengage the cloak. We won't hide like cowards.«

Captain Thornbow clapped his hands together happily and yelled out with enthusiasm. »A Bird of Prey! I can't believe it … we are so lucky!«

The voice of his armory officer could be heard from the back of the bridge.

»They are equipped with 8 independent disruptor banks, 4 torpedo launchers in the front, 4 additional aft launchers, dozens of phase cannons distributed all over the hull …«

Thornbow interrupted him with another yell: »We are so friggin' lucky! This ship rocks.«

He grinned at his first officer, then hit the button that would activate the PA system.

»Attention all hands: We are about to upgrade to a new ship courtesy of the Klingon Empire. I suggest everybody dresses up in the new outfits and then we meet by the airlock in … uh … 5 minutes? Wait, let's make that 10 minutes. I'll have to fetch some toys from my quarters. Alright. Cargo bay, by the airlock, in 10 minutes. Don't be late: we'll run out of Klingons fast!«

»They hailed us?«

»Yes, Captain.«

»What a shame. I just hope they don't want to surrender! Put it on the screen.«

A moment later the image on the view screen was replaced by the one of a rather tall Nausicaan. The Klingon captain hated him instantly. His grin was unnerving, he thought.

»Greetings, Klingon ship.« the Nausicaan offered.

The Klingon barked back at him angrily.

»Surrender or you'll be destroyed, Nausicaan scum—«

»We'll surrender.«

»What?«

»We'll surrender. Why don't you come aboard and kill us in hand-to-hand combat? We really wouldn't want you to waste any of those torpedos for scum like us.«

»Uh …«

»Listen, we'll need a moment to gather the crew, but if you could just dock with us, then it would be a great honor for us to be defeated with … what do you call them … bat'leths?«

»Why should I bother, Nausicaan?« He reached for the weapons console. »I'll just destroy you!«

»Coward.« the Nausicaan mumbled.

»What did you say?«

»Nothing.« Now he smiled that unnerving, annoying smile again.

The Klingon snarled his reply at the view screen through clenched teeth.

»Prepare to be boarded.«

»Wonderful! See you in a minute then.«

»In a minute, Nausicaan, you'll wish you had never been bo—«

He stopped in midsentence and stared at the view screen wide-eyed: the Nausicaan ship had simply cut-off the transmission.

»Graaach!« he yelled out. He would make those scum-bags pay!

The Klingons waited impatiently in front of the airlock for the docking clamps to engage. They had raged and yelled, and pushed and shoved each other around until they were in the mood for battle. Or rather: Until they were even more in the mood for battle than they usually were. Their bat'leths shone dangerously in the semi-lit room. Soon the weapons would taste enemy blood, like they were meant to!

The prospect of slaughtering a bunch of Nausicaans was very appealing. Nausicaans were scum, naturally, but at least they were physically able, tall, and strong. They were somewhat worthy opponents to a Klingon … the emphasis being on somewhat.

A loud THUD could be heard when the two ships docked with each other. Instantly the Klingon crew began to yell and roar with anger. »Death!« they shouted over and over again.

At last the airlock sprung open and revealed the small corridor that led into the Nausicaan ship.

»Graaach!« the Klingon captain shouted and stormed into the opening, leading his crew into battle himself. He would crush these impertinent Nausicaans like they deserved.

The airlock at the other end had opened already, and the Klingon crew stormed through it and into the cargo bay of the other ship. Once they had entered the room, however, their attack was brought to a screeching halt.

To their surprise, only a handful of Nausicaans waited calmly for them. They formed a half-circle around the airlock, standing about 10 meters from the entrance. They stood perfectly still, completely motionless; they gave no indication that a deadly battle was about to commence. They didn't even seem to breathe! They all were clad in black leather with long black leather coats that went down to their ankles. Most of them had their arms crossed before their chests as they studied the Klingons with an impassionate, almost pitiful expression. Although one couldn't be certain what they thought, because dark sunglasses hid their eyes.

The air stood still. The atmosphere in the room was eerie. Although the Klingons had rushed in angrily, the room seemed to be terribly silent. They had all stopped dead in their tracks and simply stared at the Nausicaans. They were uncertain what to expect: this scum didn't react to them like they were supposed to!

The Klingon captain swallowed and assessed his options. Just as he was about to speak, one of the Nausicaans turned slightly and took a step forward in one swift motion. His long coat swung open to reveal a collection of excessive weaponry tucked into his belt, trousers, and pockets. He wore at least 8 different guns in various shoulder holsters, the inside of his coat stored dozens of knifes and entire coils of ammunition.

An ice-cold current of air blew into the Klingons' faces when the tall Nausicaan came to a stand mere inches away. He calmly reached for his sunglasses, took them off, then folded them and neatly tucked them into a pocket of his leather coat.

He studied the Klingon captain for a moment. Slowly, a threatening grin formed on his face while he looked straight into the other man's eyes. When he finally addressed him in Klingon, his enunciation was perfect.

»Captain,« he said, »we meet at last.«

»Phlox, I am serious: You gotta let me out of Sickbay. I'll go nuts if I have to stay here any longer!«

»Commander, the problem is that if I allow you to leave Sickbay, you'll invariably do something foolish that will endanger your healing process.«

»Come on, Doc. I'm not a kid, you know?«

»That's not what I observed.«

Trip groaned.

»Listen, I'm sorry I tried to stand up a few hours ago. I was confused. I hadn't realized—«

»Then why did you stand up again only minutes later?«

»I did not!«

»I found you on the floor.«

»I told you, Phlox: T'Pol dropped me.«

»I find that very hard to believe.«

»Still, it's the truth.«

This time Phlox groaned.

»Fine! We'll give it a try, Commander. You may leave Sickbay for one hour. Go to the Mess Hall, eat something, and if you manage to return undamaged, then I'll consider releasing you to your quarters.«

»Great! Thanks, Doc.«

»Give me a moment, Commander. I'll find a pair of crutches for you …«

»Crutches?«

»Commander?«

»Um … well, crutches would be great! Better safe than sorry, right?«

»Exactly, Commander.«

The instant Trip had left Sickbay, he felt better. He didn't appreciate hospitals at all — especially not when he was the patient. He was on his way to the Mess Hall now, and he was so relieved that he didn't even mind the humiliation of walking on crutches. Frankly, they were completely unnecessary and pointless, but if using them made Phlox happy, then so be it.

He realized that he was in an exceptionally bad mood. Who could blame him? He had been blown up emotionally, physically, and emotionally again. What he really needed was distraction. Like pie, for example! He had no idea what had happened between T'Pol and him a few hours ago, but he had to get his mind off it. He had to get his mind off her. He had to get his mind off women altogether and think about something useful for a change, like starship engines!

Seriously, he needed to put some distance between him and these recent events. He had to let it go! Why was this difficult?

Trip sighed when he arrived at the Mess Hall. He had some difficulties pressing the door opener while walking on crutches, but with a twist and a few awkward shuffles he succeeded and hobbled in.

Mess Hall was quiet. Most of the crew probably had eaten already; only a few crewmen were here at this time. Trip looked around in the room and spotted T'Pol sitting alone at a table near the window. She looked pale and withdrawn. She wasn't reading, or working on a PADD, or doing something productive like she normally would. She just sat there and stared at her salad. She had barely touched it. Something wasn't right. He was worried about her.

He made his way to her table, but she didn't notice him until he stood practically right in front of her.

»T'Pol?« he asked.

She jumped slightly. For an instant she looked almost shocked, but she recovered quickly.

»Commander Tucker, I wouldn't have thought Doctor Phlox would allow you to leave Sickbay so soon.«

»Well, I bugged him for almost two hours continuously before he agreed.«

For a moment they just looked at each other. It felt odd. This silence was uncomfortable. Neither of them knew what to say next.

»May I join you?« Trip asked at last.

T'Pol looked away and said nothing for a moment, then she turned her face back to him.

»Please.«

With some effort Trip managed to sit down. He put the crutches away and looked at T'Pol. Something was definitely not right about her.

»What happened to your hand?« he asked.

T'Pol appeared to be caught off guard for a moment. She looked at her bandaged hand as if she hadn't even known it was injured.

»Nothing serious, Commander. I accidentally hurt it down on the planet. A few bones are broken, but there is no permanent damage.«

»I would have thought that would heal quicker.«

»I beg your pardon?«

»Normally your physiology heals much faster than a Human's does. I would have thought a few broken bones would have healed by now, T'Pol.«

She looked at him with an unreadable expression.

»It will heal, Commander.«

Trip nodded towards her untouched salad.

»You would recover faster if you'd eat something.«

»I am not hungry.«

»Maybe you should eat something nonetheless, T'Pol? I'm serious.«

She leaned back in her chair and eyed him suspiciously.

»I do not see you eating anything either, Commander.«

»I was about to get something.«

He turned in his chair and looked at the buffet for a moment. A pie would really hit the spot, he thought, but carrying it over while walking on crutches would be difficult. Perhaps if he used only one of the pair—

»What would you like?«

»Excuse me?«

»You can't carry the dish while walking on crutches, Commander. What would you like?«

Now it was Trip's turn to eye her suspiciously.

»What I'd really like to have is a pecan pie, actually.«

He fully expected her to lecture him on malnutrition now.

»I'll see whether there is any.«

They had eaten together in silence. Trip had watched her the entire time. He really was worried about her. Thank god her spirits seemed to have returned somewhat by now, but she looked thin and strangely lifeless.

»Are you all right, T'Pol?«

»Why do you ask?«

»I am worried about you.«

»I am somewhat … exhausted, Commander. The last few days have been taxing.«

»Yes, they have.« Trip sighed.

»How about you? You look very tired as well.«

»I am, in a way.«

For a moment T'Pol averted her eyes. She seemed to consider what to say next. Then she looked at him again.

»My sister has informed me of … um, of your recent discussion.«

Trip momentarily felt a flash of pain and anger.

»Has she?«

»Yes. I would like to express my sympathy, Commander. Her decision must have hurt you a great deal.«

Now he was dumbfounded.

»You'd like to do what?«

»I thought it was grossly irresponsible of her to compromise your health by hurting you emotionally as she did.«

He searched her face for clues that there was a double meaning to her words, but he didn't find any. She sounded completely sincere! He shook his head in disbelief. Was he dreaming?

»Thank you, T'Pol. I … um, I have to admit I'm pretty surprised you see it that way.«

»I understand very well how much it hurts to be rejected, Commander.«

For a moment she looked at him with the strangest expression before turning her face away.

Trip was baffled. If he hadn't known any better, he would have thought she was struggling for composture. He could see her swallow, and then she faced him again.

»I realize this may sound odd coming from me, but if you want to talk to someone … or need anything …«

She looked away once more and left the sentence hanging in the air open-ended. Trip was overwhelmed by her unexpected empathy. Her offer genuinely moved him. He followed an impulse and reached for her uninjured hand. When he squeezed it gently, she looked at him again.

»Thank you, T'Pol.« he managed to say, but his voice was suddenly thick with emotions.

Then they both were silent for a long time. It was a companionable silence. Like so often in the last few days, Trip had no idea what exactly had happened, but a heavy weight had fallen off of him moments ago. He drifted in thoughts — pleasant ones, for a change. It felt like they both had begun to heal. It felt good.

They both sat in contemplation like this for almost half an hour, seemingly oblivious to the fact that their hands were touching the entire time.

»Is this ship great or what?« Captain Thornbow asked into the direction of his first officer.

»I just wish the inscriptions weren't in Klingon.«

Thornbow looked over the other man's shoulder and studied the console he was working on. By now, his crew had figured out what most of the buttons did and they were busy sticking neat little paper labels over the original texts.

Thornbow pointed at one of the visually more interesting buttons which had no new inscription yet.

»Did you find what this one does?«

»No. I think it will vent all atmosphere, but I'm not certain.«

»Should be simple enough to verify!«

Before Thornbow could do something foolish, however, a blinking red light indicated that sensors had picked up another vessel.

After a moment, another Nausicaan's voice could be heard from the back of the bridge.

»Captain, I think we're about to encounter the Humans' ship again.«

»Human?«

»You know … the one we saw on our, um, last mission for the Betazoids.«

»Right! Do we have visuals?«

»We are in range.«

»Put it on screen.«

For a moment the Nausicaans silently watched the ENTERPRISE travel through space at high warp. Then Captain Thornbow spoke again.

»You now what? Let's say hello to them.«

T'Pol paced in her quarters and reflected on the recent events. Actually, she had reached a conclusion long ago — she only struggled to accept it.

The truth was: There was no way she could be on this starship with Trip and pretend it wouldn't affect her. The emotions were too strong.

Her sister had retreated — she had done it for her. T'Pol shook her head in disbelief at her selfless act. She had touched Seri's mind and had seen how much the sacrifice had cost her. In a way, she had an obligation to make up with him now. She simply could not allow her sister's sacrifice to have been in vain.

She had to get him back! She wanted him back.

A few hours ago she had gotten a glimpse at what she had once felt in his company, at what she had so foolishly denied. Her actions had been grossly illogical. The solution was not to suppress the emotions, the solution was to act on them. For millennia, Vulcan females had felt these emotions. She should consider herself fortunate that she had found a male who not only made her feel this way, but who also encouraged those feelings to grow. She had dreamed about him, she had fantasized about him, she desired him. There! She had admitted it.

Why had this to be so difficult?

Of course she knew the answer. What stood in her way was quite simply another emotion: pride.

This was the emotion she would have to suppress. She would have to swallow her pride. She would have to admit to everything. She had to apologize. There was no alternative. If she would have to humiliate herself to get him back, then so be it.

She could only hope he would understand her, because if he did not, if he refused her apology …

She swallowed.

She realized that she had been standing in front of the door for a minute already. T'Pol closed her eyes and breathed deeply. She realized that whatever she would do, she had to do it right now, or her resolve would waver.

Without opening her eyes she hit the door button and stormed out of her quarters with determination.

Trip stood in front of T'Pol's quarters and tried to act inconspicuously. He tried to convince himself that he had come here by coincidence, but he knew better than that. The truth was: he was exhausted and tired and lonely. He needed her right now.

He shook his head in disbelief at how immaturely he had behaved. He had convinced himself that she didn't care for him, even though she clearly did. In their last conversation in Mess Hell, he had brushed her off when she had tried to be nice to him just because he hadn't wanted to hear it. He had wanted her love, and when he realized that she could not love him the way that he wanted her to, he had rejected her altogether. He felt like an ass. What kind of friend would do that? For 542 days they knew each other — that was almost one and a half years! — and he had thrown it all away the moment her sister had appeared.

He closed his eyes and breathed deeply.

She hadn't stopped caring for him. In fact, she had offered him her unconditional support. He was the one who had taken their affection away. In a way, he thought with bitterness, he didn't even deserve to be her friend.

Now he stood in front of her quarters and was too scared to knock. He was scared that his emotions would resurface the moment he saw her. He was scared that he would act like a fool again. But most of all, he was scared that she would hurt him again. Frankly, he didn't know whether he could take it.

He realized he couldn't do it.

He opened his eyes and looked at her door for a brief moment. He knew this was ridiculous, but he just couldn't do it.

Sadness washed over him as he turned around slowly and struggled with the crutches. He heard a soft swoosh, then someone crashed into him and knocked him to the floor.

Trip fought against the nausea. His body ached all over from slamming into the floor. He felt dizzy. He knew his head had hit the wall on the other side of the corridor. All he saw was blackness.

»Trip? Trip! Are you all right? Please say something!«

He could hear the voice only from a great distance. His blood rushed in his ears, and the noise drowned out everything else.

»Trip, I am so sorry!«

He tried to move, but couldn't manage it. Just as he felt his consciousness drifting away there was a distinct warmth in his chest that kept him awake. Suddenly he was acutely aware of his heartbeat. BOOM, his heart beat powerfully and flooded his body with warmth. It felt wonderful! He could feel a soft hand touch his face, then someone pulled him into a sitting position and spoke to him in a low voice. He couldn't understand what the voice said. He was so lost in the sensation of his heart beating that he forgot everything else for a moment.

His breathing slowly calmed down and the pain just vanished. He gave in to the unexpected intimacy and just lay there. In a way, he suddenly wished the moment would never end.

»Trip, please say something! Are you all right?«

Ever so slowly he opened his eyes and looked into T'Pol's face. Her eyes were wide open. He furrowed his brow and angled his head forward a bit so that he could see his chest. He could see her bandaged hand rest on his chest, right over his heart. It felt as if she could reach past all skin and bones; as if she could touch his beating heart with her hand.

»I'm fine.« he managed to bring out.

For a long moment they stayed like this. Once his strength had returned a bit, though, he was thoroughly confused. He could tell that an insight was forming in the back of his mind. It felt so real that he could almost see it in his mind's eye.

He shook his head slightly to clear his vision, then looked into T'Pol's face again. It was dark green. When she suddenly pulled her hand back, he felt an overwhelming sense of loss.

»You called me Trip.« he stated, more for his own benefit than for hers.

»I apologize, Commander.« she said.

He nodded, unconvinced.

Suddenly she looked at him expectantly.

»You came to see me?«

»Yeah … I mean, well, I was passing by your quarters anyway, so …«

There was a long and eerie silence between them. At last, T'Pol blinked forcefully.

»I will help you up.«

»Are you certain you are not injured, Commander? I really cannot explain how this has happened … I was just …« T'Pol said, but trailed off.

»No, I'm fine, don't worry about it.«

All the while they stood in the corridor, his mind yelled at him in his head: »Do it, god-dammit!

»Actually,« he began, »sitting down for a moment might not be such a bad idea.«

»Why don't you come in?« she offered instantly.

T'Pol experienced great conflict. A part of her mind yelled at her in her head: »Apologize! In the name of Surak, do it!«

They stood in her quarters awkwardly and for the longest time neither of them had spoken. T'Pol just knew that if she didn't say what she had wanted to now, she probably never would.

Her control lay in tatters. He had to be blind not to notice how she struggled with herself. It was pointless to hesitate. For all she knew, he could see her emotions written all over her face in this very moment. She opened her mouth …

Something was wrong. Trip could tell something wasn't right with T'Pol. Seeing her like this hurt him profoundly. Honestly, if she looked at him like this for one more second, he feared his heart would break.

He couldn't stand it any longer and reached for her hand in an attempt to comfort her. She didn't even seem to notice; she was withdrawn from the world. He squeezed her hand affectionately to rise her attention … and when he did, she jerked powerfully.

In shock he looked at her bandaged hand. Shit! He had hurt—

Wait a second.

A memory sprung into his mind. He remembered the voice of the woman who had cried by his bed last night: »How do you know I am not T'Pol?«

T'Pol stared at her hand lying in his. Then she looked at his face. It took on a series of bewildered expressions in rapid succession, then his hand let go of hers and covered his open mouth.

He had seen through her before she had had the chance to apologize!

Now he understood how she had deceived him. Now he realized how she had recklessly toyed with his feelings and had ultimately hurt him. Powerful emotions played across his face. He would act by instinct now, she knew, and every single living being reacted the same way in this situation: She had hurt him — and now he would hurt her back.

She watched him intently like a cornered animal. She realized she had no way to defend herself. What could she possibly say to explain her mistake? What could she do if he would laugh about her feelings now and would tell her it was too late? If he would accuse her of dishonesty and would end their friendship right now? He had every right to react this way.

T'Pol stared at him helplessly. Then she looked at the door and considered fleeing him, but he stood between her and her escape route. Even if she could flee, there was nowhere she could go.

She saw him erect his body threateningly. Suddenly he could stand without the crutches just fine. He looked straight into her eyes. He faced her frontal.

»Where have you been yesterday night, T'Pol?«

Instinctively she took a step back, away from him, but he followed her immediately. She knew he would play with her first. Humans were cruel.

»You haven't been in Sickbay, by any chance?«

Ever so slowly did he come closer. She fell back in panic, until her retreat was brought to a sudden halt by the wall. She looked left and right and wondered where to go, but there was nowhere to go. She was trapped.

He stood only inches away from her now and his facial expression changed. He grinned at her menacingly: He had bared his teeth.

T'Pol closed her eyes and pressed her back against the wall. Soon he would tire of taunting her, and then he would lash out. She had no idea what he would do to her, but she knew that she had been pushed to the limit too often. She knew no matter how minor the blow would be, she would not be able to stand it.

She could feel his breath hit her face. She was paralyzed with fear when she felt him lean in; he brought his mouth right next to her ear and whispered into it.

»You have saved my life, T'Pol …«

Suddenly his lips gently touched hers. His face was unshaven. The stubble tickled her skin and set off fireworks in her mind. In this moment, it was the most unraveling sensation she had ever felt. In breathtaking detail, she could feel a thousand tiny itches and scratches on her mouth. His lips grew rough and strong, they commanded her entire focus, everything else just ceased to exist. A swarm of butterflies had been set free in her stomach, and her knees threatened to give in; but the mere touch of his lips forced her to stand upright, forced her on her toes just to increase the pressure of the touch. Without knowing it, her lips parted and instantly she could taste his breath in her mouth. His breath was hot, virile, and incredibly arousing. Her heart raced in her chest, and when his tongue touched hers, she thought she would explode.

Still she was trapped with her back against the wall; his body pressed against hers and held her in place. When their tongues touched again she moaned with her mouth wide open; then his tongue licked over hers and she saw blinding white light for a moment. All her tension burst into desire, and her entire body sprung to life demanding to feel him. Her arms flew around his neck, she pressed herself against him forcefully; clutched to him as if she feared to drown in the mind-blowing, moist intimacy of their kiss.

When they parted at last, her cheeks burned with heat. She knew her face was flushed!

T'Pol opened her eyes and looked at him.

»… thank you.« he completed his sentence with a grin.

»You are welcome.« she said.

Their faces lingered close to each other. T'Pol was wide awake. She felt like she had slept her entire life until now!

Just as she was about to kiss him again, the ship altered course so abruptly that the inertial dampeners failed to compensate and the movement practically ripped them out of each other's embrace.

They both struggled for balance. T'Pol barely managed to grab his arm to prevent Trip from falling to the floor again, and then the klaxon signifying a red alert sprung to life.

Instantly the voice of Ensign Maywheather could be heard through the PA system.

»Senior officers to the bridge! A Klingon Bird of Prey has appeared directly in our flight path out of nowhere!«

For a moment they both were too stunned to react. T'Pol held his arm like a vice. At last she managed to regain her control somewhat.

»Are you alright?« she asked.

Trip nodded. »Go to the bridge. I'll be fine.«

Reluctantly T'Pol let go of him. With an immense effort, she took several steps into the direction of the door. Then she hesitated for a another moment and turned around to face him again.

»Would you care to … um, would you care to have dinner in my quarters later?«

His face was bright red, she noticed.

»I'd love to.«

T'Pol nodded, then forced herself to turn around with an inhuman effort. When she stepped through the door, she thought: »The Klingons better have a damn good reason for showing up, or they will regret this dearly.«

Continue to Chapter 9

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A whole mess of folks have made comments

ABSOLUTELY GREAT!!! Peter make them pay dearly for interupting pleeeeassseee!!!!! Love how you brought this round full circle. Good work. Can't wait for the next chapter :-)

OK, LOVE the Naussicans! Tearing up with joy about becoming 'bad ass' pirates. Had me tearing up with mirth! Thanks Peter. Can't imagine how the two threads are going to work together but this story sure is a heck of a good time!! but grrr. still no actual conversation between our two. grrr. I'm sure it'll happen soon. Looking forward to the next bit!

I looked at the fiction page today and Yea! a new chapter :o)
I love the humor in the "bad-ass" pirate scenes - its a great way to break up the deliciously horrible angst you've been putting us through.
Okay...I'm good for a few days...after that I'll need more!!!!

I really enjoyed this chapter. You did a good job with Seri and T'Pol coming to terms with how they felt and how Seri never had the emotional fortitude to stick by Trip.

I look forward to the next chapter.

Yay! No more of this Seri business. Trip, you should have known better.

Thank goodness they've 'got together' at last - looking forward to the next chapter! Loved Trip backing her into a corner...

Great story, the "bad-ass" pirates are hilarious.

FINALLY!!! Thank you very much!

What a wonderful - emotional rollercoaster - chapter!

wow, fantastic story, great, Thank you!

Please don't make us wait too much longer!!

come on hurry up