Fragile-Part 12

Fragile Universe
An "Enterprise" story

Written by Alison M. DOBELL

RATING: PG-13
ARCHIVE: Yes. Just let me know where.
FEEDBACK: Welcomed
EMAIL: AlisonMDobell@aol.com
WEBSITE: http://carlajane.50megs.com/Ali00.html
SUMMARY: "Sub-Commander T'Pol finds herself in enemy hands. Trip learns about Koss. As more news filters through they discover none of it is good."
DISCLAIMER: The usual disclaimers apply. The characters and 'Enterprise' are the property of Paramount. No infringement of copyright is intended.

Part 12

"BEYOND ALL ENDURING"

* * * * *

Captain Benmar ordered his men not to resist. The Vulcan's words were rolling around inside his head making him feel uncomfortable. Yet he had to acknowledge the sense of her words. This was a transport ship not a battle cruiser. The few armaments it did have had been knocked out in the opening salvos of the attack. Listing without engines and without even thrusters they were lucky not be in an even worse state. It was only the fact that the pirates wanted something that kept them in one piece. Nervously he waited. They did not have to wait long. Dozens of well armed aliens flooded the ship. To the Captain's surprise they appeared to have no single target. They wanted *all* the passengers.

The alien in charge quickly divined that he was the Captain and gave terse terms. "We will take the passengers. You will not resist or speak. Any deviation and we will destroy this vessel and your crew with it."

The Captain just stared at him. Within minutes it was all over. His passengers herded like animals onto the pirate ship. Then it was pulling away. He gave a huge sigh. Part relief, part sorrow that he could not do anything. He had never felt so helpless. He switched to the exterior viewcam and watched the vessel leaving. It did not go straight to warp and he idly wondered why it was taking its time going. Surely they had everything they wanted. Didn't they?

* * * * *

Sub-Commander T'Pol had been surprised when they were all rounded up and taken aboard the other vessel. Perhaps she had been wrong after all. She watched the impassive faces of their captors trying to place their species. They looked and acted like Nausicaans though she had very little knowledge of them. As the pirate ship left the Argon, T'Pol silently prayed the pirates would not destroy the other vessel. It carried her one ray of hope though she did not assume it would be enough.

When they were a thousand or more meters from the Argon the pirate ship came to a stop. Confused, the passengers looked up then at each other. What was going on? Why had they stopped? T'Pol noticed the passengers were a wide mix of alien species but she was the only Vulcan. After waiting for a few minutes there was a muttering through the captors as the pirates waded through the passengers, taking their first good look at their catch. T'Pol tried not to make eye contact yet still watch what they were doing. The men seemed to be searching for something or someone specific, making only cursory checks among those taken. Until they came to her. The Nausicaan male that stopped in front of her tilted his head slowly and jerked his head up. Said something in his own tongue and the search stopped. T'Pol realised her heart was beating erratically. They *had* been looking for her after all. She was dragged away from the rest and pushed out into the corridor. Her hands were quickly tied. An order was barked and as T'Pol was pushed along the corridor she glimpsed the others being pushed in the other direction. She frowned then realised what was happening. Her eyes widened in horror.

"You cannot do that...."

She was shoved roughly and a gun pushed in her face. "Do not talk. Move!"

* * * * *

Lt. Malcolm Reed had only one word for the chaos that greeted them on their arrival aboard Enterprise. His eyes widened. *Shit*. Any hopes he may have had of spiriting Trip away to Sickbay vanished the moment they exited the Shuttlepod. Grinning like a Cheshire cat the Captain was in his element. Banners, balloons, streamers - all decorated the corridors as he led them towards an equally festooned mess hall. Trip's face was a picture and Malcolm saw him deliberately catch his eye with a silent warning to say nothing. He swallowed. Annoyed and frustrated but realising there was not a lot he could do right now except try to make sure things did not get too out of hand. Jonathan Archer was a great Captain even if he did have a unique style of command. His friendship was the no-hold's-barred type. And he had certainly gone all out to make sure the Commander's return had all the bells and whistles of a ship-wide celebration. He shook his head. Amazing. It would take the crew weeks to clean up all the mess afterwards.

He glanced at his friend and saw that tired as he was Trip was grinning. It was infectious and before long Malcolm had given in and was grinning back. Stupid damn Yanks. But it felt so good, too. He realised that the Captain had been right. How could they pass up the opportunity to welcome back their friend in style? After all it was not only the Captain who had missed his best friend. Lost his Chief Engineer. The whole ship had gone into mourning. The only good news was that nobody had died. Everybody wanted to be at the party so the Captain had Lt. Hess set up a roster so that the working crews could be rotated every two hours to enable everyone who wanted to join in to be there. Naturally, being manned by the gregarious Americans no one even thought of refusing. It amused Malcolm and was also oddly affecting.

Hoshi pushed her way through and flung her arms around the Commander. Malcolm resisted the urge to ease her back and let the man breathe. Trip seemed to be enjoying the attention though his face was paler than his friend liked. Captain Archer got everybody a drink. A pineapple crush with vodka for Malcolm and beer for the others. He stared at the fruit loop and frowned into his glass. Someone had stuck one of those little paper and wood umbrellas in the top and finished it off with a cherry. He was not sure whether to be offended or laugh. Trip saw his face and grinned as he raised his beer. "Happy Homecoming, Malcolm!"

"I did not go anywhere, Commander - but," He raised his ridiculous glass. "Happy Homecoming - Trip!"

That made the Commander grin. Fruit punch was passed to Kai and Sarsa. Sar looked at what Malcolm was drinking and shook his head. An-aga was bolder, she took a little sip, then smiled in delight. Relieved, Malcolm gallantly gave her his drink and went to get a beer. Sar decided to join him. There was something he wanted to say to the Lieutenant out of the earshot of the others.

"Lt. Reed?"

"Please, call me Malcolm."

He paused and considered the man for a moment. "Malcolm."

He nodded. "That's right. As Trip would say this is a party."

"Malcolm, I do not understand why there are festivities. The Commander needs to rest."

The Lieutenant's eyes were steady. He took two beers and handed one to Sar. "I agree with you unfortunately Trip says this is the Captain's way of apologising for what happened."

He frowned. "What happened was not the Captain's fault."

"I know that, you know that and so does Trip. Try telling the Captain. He's been blaming himself ever since it happened." He paused, took a sip of his beer and fell silent for a moment. "Don't worry, Sar, as soon as Trip's had a chance to say hello to everybody and can make a move to leave I'll personally guide him to Sickbay. I want our doctor, Dr Phlox, to check him over. That puncture wound in his lung worries me."

Sar nodded slowly. Decided he liked Trip's friend very much. He was level headed and not afraid to make unwelcome decisions if it was in his friend's interests. They headed back, stopped every few paces by one or other of the crew wanting to know who Sar was and what had happened on Volara. When they got back to Trip they found him sitting at a table with the biggest catfish they had ever seen. It dwarfed the plate and made even a good old southern boy feel like he was taking on more than he could chew. "Cap'n, where in hell did Chef get this monster? I swear, I don't know a protein resequencer that'd be big enough to produce somethin' this size."

A truly beautiful smile swallowed up all the Captain's worries and negative thinking. Happiness and a kind of smug contentment oozed out of every pore. "That's because it didn't come out of a resequencer, Trip."

Trip stared at him. Clearly dumbfounded. "It didn't?"

"Nope."

He appeared to be having trouble making sense of what the Captain was saying. "Are ya sayin'...that this is a REAL honest to God catfish, Cap'n?"

Captain Archer laughed. Kai was sitting next to Trip and grinning from ear to ear. Sarsa sat next to him with her hand in his. They were sucking on their crushed fruit drinks through great fat straws. "It is that, Trip."

"But how...?" His voice trailed off in stunned shock. He looked down at the catfish then back at his best friend.

"I had it put in the deep freeze when we first came aboard. I was saving it for a special occasion."

Trip's mood became more subdued. His voice almost hushed. "An' this is a special occasion?"

The Captain grinned. "You bet your life it is. Not only are you back where you belong but you've brought your son with you and some friends. I'd say that calls for a celebration, don't you?"

He tried to hold back the tears. Travis patted him on the shoulder and drank to his health. Lt. Hess pushed her way through and gave him a stern look. "Are you going to stare at that catfish or eat it, Commander?"

He smiled. "Hey, Anna, wanna help me with this monster?"

She laughed. "Thought you'd never ask!"

Trip insisted everybody had to have a bite. It was his catfish which meant it was up to him what he did with it. Captain Archer watched him stand up and carefully begin to cut it into small pieces so everyone could have a taste. He was so proud of his friend. Even now he wanted to share the things he loved with his friends. No wonder he drew people to him. If the piece he gave Kai was a little larger than everybody else's, no one mentioned it. Hoshi hurried to get extra side plates and helped dish the delicacy out. Trip straining to look over the smiling heads that were bobbing and wishing him well. At last he could stand it no more. He turned his head and looked at the Captain. A faint look of hurt in his eyes.

"Don't tell me she wouldn't come?"

For a second he was puzzled. "Who?"

"T'Pol. Bet she insisted on stayin' at her post."

The Captain swallowed and felt suddenly uncomfortable. Was it Trip's imagination or had the room gone a little quiet?

"Cap'n? Jon? Where's T'Pol?"

"Trip, enjoy the party..."

He shook his head. Even more sure now that something was wrong. In fact now he came to think about it he realised he had not heard T'Pol over the com either. It was almost as if she was not even on the ship. His heart missed a beat. No. He had to be letting his imagination run away with him. She had to be here. Where else would she be? Perhaps she had got sick? A look of alarm settled on his face. "Is she all right, Jon? Don't tell me she got sick?"

The Captain shook his head. Behind him, Malcolm Reed looked worried. Trip frowned. No longer in a party mood. "Jon, I think I wanna know what's goin' on and I wanna know *now*."

His quiet but firm tone made the Captain wince. *Oh hell. You have lousy timing, Trip.* Trip whispered something to Kai and kissed the top of his head, smiled at Sarsa and had a couple of words with Sar and An-aga. Then he was moving closer to the Captain and Malcolm, steering them both towards the exit. The Captain tried to get him to stay a little longer but Lt. Reed shook his head.

"No, Captain. Trip has a right to know and to know now."

The Captain frowned, a look on the verge of anger settling on his suddenly stern face. Trip was not having any of that. "Don't be mad at Malcolm, Jon. He's right and ya know it. If somethin' bad needs sayin' let's find somewhere away from this circus an' get it said 'cause I'm not backin' down till I know."

Seeing his Chief Engineer's look of stubborn determination the Captain sighed, nodded and took them outside into the corridor. He paused then urged them to follow him. The corridor was nowhere near private enough to have this kind of conversation. To Malcolm's surprise they headed for Sickbay. Once inside, Trip could hold his patience no longer. "Okay, Jon, out with it! Where's T'Pol?"

"She's not here, Trip."

"I can see that."

Malcolm gently touched Trip's arm. A looked passed between them and Trip nodded, took a few breaths to steady himself. "Just tell me what happened."

The Captain nodded and told him everything. From the arrival of the Sh'tok to T'Pol's meeting with Koss. He saw what little colour the Commander had drain out of his face. Shock and horror dissolving into a keen distress. The Captain was alarmed. What the hell was going on? Malcolm got a chair and made Trip sit in it. Confused by the Lieutenant's actions he wondered if he was the one in the dark not Trip. But that was ridiculous, wasn't it?

"Ya let that scum sucking bastard take T'Pol?"

Malcolm put a hand on Trip's shoulder and left it there. His eyes filled with concern and not about the Sub-Commander either. The Captain wondered what was going on. "Trip, I didn't have any choice. T'Pol explained that they had been betrothed. Apparently she didn't get around to getting an annulment to cancel the arranged marriage."

"That *man* should be hung, drawn and quartered, Cap'n." Seethed Trip, his heart rate speeding up.

"According to T'Pol, Koss had little choice."

Trip could hardly believe what he was hearing. This was just getting worse and worse.

"You see Koss had gone into something called the Pon Farr and according to T'Pol because their marriage was never annulled and she had stood him up, he was entitled to insist she..."

Trip jumped to his feet. "The dirty filthy bastard! If he's so much as touched a hair on her head, I swear..." He broke off. His breathing ragged. Pain shooting through him. His legs hardly able to hold him upright. Malcolm caught him gently and instead of sitting him back down looked at the Captain. "Help me lay him down, Captain."

The Captain's eyes were wide. Finding it hard to take in that something was obviously wrong with Trip. Something Malcolm knew about but he did not. He recovered quickly and between them they lifted Trip on to a biobed. Trip was breathing harshly now. Thick beads of perspiration on his face, matting his hair. Eyes wide and fastened on the Captain. "Where is she, Jon?" He moaned softly. The pain in his voice sending a shiver of fear down the Captain's spine.

"She went with Koss. Back to the Vulcan home world."

Trip closed his eyes. His hands closing in slow tight fists. His heart aching for her, his voice choked off with tears. Lt. Reed was beyond anxious now. His head twisting and turning. "Where the hell is that bloody doctor?"

"He's at the party, Malcolm."

When Lt. Reed glared at the Captain he shrugged awkwardly. "I insisted."

Lt. Reed wished he could find something nice and heavy to hit the Captain over the head with but he could not really blame him. He should have told the Captain as soon as he knew of Trip's condition. But his friend had already been through so much and wanted so badly to let the Captain do this for him. It had all become a tangled mess of good intentions. Just then the door swished open to reveal Sar escorting a very concerned looking Denobulan. With a sigh of relief, Malcolm realised the Volaran had used his own initiative to make sure their friend got the help he needed. The Captain gave the doctor a nod.

"Doctor, am I glad to see you!"

"What appears to be the problem? Apparently something about a collapsed lung?"

The Captain went pale. Malcolm nodded and looked at Sar. "Perhaps it would be best if you explained while the doctor examines him?"

Sar nodded. Malcolm got a chair and eased the shocked Captain into it. Dr. Phlox's expression became more serious as he listened to the description of the vicious beating administered to the Chief Engineer in the mine. Iron bars, lengths of wood, fists, feet and then the thrust with the knife puncturing a lung. His hands gently checked the Commander over while he took readings of all his vital signs and set up the scanner as Sar finished talking. He administered a hypospray to calm Trip down. As he began to lose consciousness the man was still trying to weakly get up, mumbling over and over about having to help T'Pol. A tense little silence engulfed them when he finally lost the battle to stay conscious and passed out.

It was some time before Sar broke the silence. His sad eyes lifting from Trip's face to focus on them. "Who is T'Pol?"

* * * * *

Tears of rage and sorrow ran down Captain Benmar's face. He had thought they were pirates. He was wrong. They were nothing short of cold blooded murderers. What he could not fathom out was why. The fate of his passengers had been a crude mass execution. Stunned. Shocked. Horrified. He had wanted to close his eyes but could not. Realised now why the pirate vessel had simply moved to distance itself from them but not gone to warp. The sick bastards wanted him to watch. The bodies turning over and over in grotesque slow motion as they spewed out of the airlock. Tiny little struggles weakening as they chewed vacuum. Clawing at the cold empty heart of space. The struggles stopped. The slow spinning motion did not. A grim parody of life in the unfeeling face of a dispassionate universe. Finally he gave into his grief and howled. The pirate ship did not hear him. It had already gone to warp.

* * * * *

Sar stayed with him. Refused to leave Sickbay no matter who or what threatened him. The Volaran showed a calm stony face to them. His place was by his Senisa's side. The only way they would remove him was by force of arms and Lt. Reed would not allow the Captain or the Doctor to harry him. Captain Archer took the Lieutenant to one side, a wary eye still on the Volaran standing like some sentinel over his friend. A strong, silent, protective presence.

"Malcolm, what on earth is going on between Trip and Sar?"

The Lieutenant looked at him in surprise. "What are you talking about, sir?"

"You know what I mean." Snapped the Captain.

Lt. Reed watched him closely. Understanding dawning on him. He was careful in his response. "Captain, Sar and the Commander are friends."

"Yes, but what *kind* of friends?"

"The best kind. I confess I don't know the whole story yet but I know that they have saved each other's lives. I also know that they have been through the kind of hell I would not wish on my worst enemy. I for one am glad the Commander found such a loyal friend. I have no doubt Captain that had he not done so Commander Tucker would not have survived to be with us today."

The Captain sucked in a sharp breath. Eyes glued to his Armoury Officer. A man he had come to equate with the very essence of truth in its' purest unadulterated form. If Malcolm said they were friends they were friends. So why did he feel so jealous? Why did it feel such an intimate thing lay between these two men? He tried to batten down the turmoil he was feeling. As if suddenly discovering the ground beneath his feet was quicksand. Sar was married. Had a daughter. So what was it he wanted from Trip? Was it simply friendship? A bond of loyalty that could not be broken? Why did he feel so threatened? He did not like the way his thoughts were going. What it said about his own screwed up insecurities. Was ashamed of himself for thinking this way but could not stop himself. He hated everything the two had shared that he had not. A thought disturbed him further. Trip and Malcolm had obviously discussed what had happened down on the planet. Why had his best friend not turned to him? Why had he confided in Malcolm? Did he blame him for what happened on Volara? Did he think the Captain had willingly abandoned him to his fate? Left him to die in his place? Tears pricked his eyes but he did not let them fall. He realised his true fear was not that Trip had made friends outside the charmed circle. Not even that they had shared things he could not be part of. He was afraid he would lose him. That as the years unfolded he would become excluded from a friendship that was precious to him.

His thoughts made him feel ashamed. Weak. Pathetic. They also made him realise just how much he had come to rely upon this one man. He was more than his friend. He was family. His conscience. The one person who knew him better than anybody else. With a bitter sting he realised he had been using Trip as an emotional crutch. He was being selfish but had not meant to be. Did not want to monoplise his friend's time or dictate who his friends should be. He did not know these people. They were strangers to him and that was the rub. As the realisation took root his look sharpened. A flicker of hope and challenge pushed away his dark musings. That was the answer. He needed to get to know these people. Not stand out on the edge and wonder why there was this distance between them. A self conscious smile at last dusted his lips. His intellect slowly leading him back towards the light. He tilted his head at Malcolm. "Sorry. I was being an ass. I am grateful Sar was there for Trip, it's just hard to share him with a stranger after coming so close to losing him."

Lt. Reed nodded. Surprised the Captain could be so open about it. That was something he admired about Captain Archer. No matter what happened he always strived to do the best for his people and that was the quality that would serve him best now. He did not judge the Captain. No one did a harsher job in that regard than the man himself. He approved the introspection. Was glad the man had a generous enough soul to realise there was always room for improvement. A chance to learn a different perspective. To widen the path of wisdom. He smiled slowly back. "Come on, sir. What do you say I treat you to a pot of tea?"

"Make it strong black coffee and you've got a deal."

Just before they left Sickbay the Captain had a word with Dr Phlox. The Denobulan discussing the Commander's condition. The Captain looked anxious. "Can you fix it?"

"Yes, Captain, but I want him to get a full night's rest before operating on the lung. The stronger he is the better his recovery will be. He has had enough shocks and the news about the Sub-Commander was the last thing he needed to hear."

The Captain nodded. Worried. "I wish I'd known about Koss."

"Captain, the Sub-Commander would have told you had she thought it necessary. The appearance of her former betrothed must have been a tremendous shock."

He nodded then wished the doctor and Sar goodnight. Lt Reed gave the Volaran a nod and for a moment their eyes met in complete understanding. The Lieutenant watched his Captain's face as he fell into step beside him. "You know sir, I can think of someone else who would benefit from a good night's sleep."

"I'll sleep once I know all my people are all right."

"Then they won't be, Captain."

Startled he looked at the Lieutenant. "What do you mean?"

"You are an intrinsic part of this crew Captain. If you are waiting for everybody to be alright then that must include yourself. Ergo. 'You need to get a good night's sleep'. Quote, unquote."

The Captain laughed in surprise. "My God Malcolm did anyone ever tell you that you'd make one hell of a shrink?"

For a moment the Armoury Officer simply looked at him. His expression unreadable. Captain Archer found himself holding his breath. Hoping he had not offended him. At last Lt. Reed spoke. "Just be grateful I do not charge by the hour, Captain."

* * * * *

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Four of you have made comments

I'm with Malocolm. Let's get something nice and heavy and commense beating *several* people over the head in this story. ;)

The tension builds. . . waiting patiently for more.

I agree, John is being an ass! But I can understand his jealousy in being excluded from Trip's circle of new friends. We've all been there, suddenly discovering we're on the outside...

So what's in store for T'Pol? Nothing good, I imagine. Do I scent a confrontation between Trip and Koss?

Great work, keep going, thanks.

Great !!! wonderfulcharacter`s development. Can`t wait to read more. Thanks for not let us hanging to long. PLease continue soon!!!

trip has got to kick some serious ass, at least once!
artemis moonshine