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And Baby- Ch. 6And Baby Makes Four By Samantha Quinn Rating: PG-13 **** Part Six The Future Emergerges “Hail them, Hoshi. Tell them to back off the Gabbaccian ship or we’ll open fire,” Captain Archer instructed. “Aye, sir.” There was a momentary pause during which the aliens communicated with each other. //It is agreed then, that we shall take the security officer and the science officer?// inquired Nantuck. //I believe them to be the most qualified for our purposes, Captain.// responded his security officer. //Indeed. Note the dedication to their posts.// agreed Lyceum. //And the lieutenant has expressed the thought that we are moving too slow.// Jennair confirmed. //Indeed?// asked Nantuck. //Yes. His exact thought was ‘Why hail them? We already know their intentions.’// Jennair mused. “There is no response to our hails, Captain,” Hoshi informed Archer. “Shall I fire weapons now, Captain?” asked Malcolm. //A bit hasty, isn’t he?// asked Lyceum. //Yes, but the Vulcan’s slower methodology will help to curb his hastiness.// Nantuck argued. //Besides, a killer has to be decisive in his actions, Commander.//
*A warning shot? Bugger. It’s the Suliban, for bloody goodness’ sakes.* Malcolm groaned inwardly, but followed Archer’s orders. “Direct hit, sir,” Malcolm reported.
The female Captain paced anxiously on the bridge of her battle weary ship. “Damage report, Lieutenant,” she instructed the only other still standing senior officer. The Gabbaccian science officer shook his head. “Warp drive is off line, as is impulse power. Shields are inoperable. All decks report heavy casualties, life support is down to 25 percent, neither long nor short range sensors are functioning.” “In short, we’re dead in the water,” the Captain finished. “More appropriately, dead in space.” “Damn it! We were so close to stopping them.” The frustration in the Captain’s voice was not appropriate for a commanding officer but her science officer overlooked her lack of professionalism. Given the circumstances, it was certainly understandable. “I still am uncertain why we are worried about the Suliban, Captain. After all, it was the Gabbaccians that-“ began a nervous helmsman as he struggled off the floor and back onto his post. The Captain waved off her helmsman’s complaint. “I’m well aware of the role the Gabbaccians have played, Ensign. I do not need to be reminded. It was Suliban interference that led Archer to allow T’Pol, Reed, and Tucker to go onto the foreign ship. Besides, you know how heavily guarded the Gabbaccian sector of the quadrant is. There’s no way we could have gotten through their defenses.” She paused before continuing.“We believed stopping the Gabbaccians’ co-conspirators to be a better option.” “There is another alternative, Captain,” spoke up Lt. Leland. The Captain turned to face her Gabbaccian science officer. “I’m all ears, Lieutenant.” “We go back in time to stop them.” “How do you propose we do that? We can’t even move foreword in our own time,” The Captain snapped. “The damages are fixable,” the Gabbaccian replied calmly. “But how long will that take?” “That is irrelevant. Regardless of how long it may take us, we can still go backward in time to the exact moment of contact between the Gabbaccians, Suliban andEnterprise,” Leland pointed out. “Of course, time travel by Earth vessels is punishable by death,” the Captain mused. “If we are successful, Captain, then the event that lead to that law will not occur,” Leland reminded her. The Captain nodded and headed towards the turbo lift. “I’m going to the engine room. Leland, you get the weapons back on line and I’ll worry about the warp core.” She flashed them a grin. “Don’t worry, gentlemen. I come from the very best stock of engineers.” After she was gone, the helmsman turned to look at the science officer. “She does realize that if we’re successful, she’ll cease to exist?” he asked timidly. Leland sighed. “Yes, Ensign, she understands that perfectly. It’s a sacrifice she’s willing to make.”
“The Suliban are retreating, Captain,” Malcolm informed the Captain. “Most intriguing. It is not like them to retreat so easily,” remarked T’Pol. Archer cocked his head and grinned at his science officer. “I’m not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Sub-Commander. While I do appreciate their leaving, they didn’t exit before getting in a parting shot at our friends. Hoshi, hail the Gabbaccians to inquire what type of assistance they require.” “There’s no response, Captain. Their comm. system seems to be down.” “I believe it safe to depart now, Captain Archer. I thank you for your hospitality but I must get back to my ship to see how badly damaged it is,” Nantuck spoke up. Archer nodded. “Please let us know if you need further assistance. Be it either personnel or supplies.” Nantuck nodded. “I shall, my friends, I shall.” “I’ll escort you to the launching bay,” Archer said amicably.
The crew had been reduced to less than 50, making the necessary repairs seemingly futile. Still, the Captain pressed on. Too much was at stake to quit now. The Quadruple Alliance, as led by T’Vel, had successfully destroyed an entire planet. It was hard to believe that Vulcan was gone. Her partial home world wiped from the face of existence. Earth would be next. Not that its current state was much better. Still, its complete destruction . . . Alanna would not allow it.
“We’re being hailed, sir, by the Gabbaccians. Audio only.” Hoshi told the Captain. “Put it through, Ensign.” “Captain Archer, this is Captain Nantuck. Our science, engineering, and security systems are in dire need of repairs. Our crew has been reduced by nearly a third. If you could spare perhaps Lt. Reed, Sub-Commander T’Pol and Lt. Cmdr. Tucker, we would be greatly appreciative.” “Hoshi, send a reply that they’re on their way,” Archer told her.
“Yes. I am putting them into the ship’s computers now,” came the reply. The Captain turned to look at her science officer, hearing the sadness in his voice. Leland may have been a traitor to his people, but the Captain knew he was as loyal as they came to her and her ship. “It’s for the best, Leland,” she told him softly. “You know what your father said about T’Vel and my birth.” “Yes,” the Gabbaccian nodded. “Neither was supposed to happen.” The Captain turned and looked at the screen in front of her. “And we are going to right that wrong. Regardless of the price we may pay for it.”
As T’Pol, Trip, and Malcolm descended from their shuttlepod, they were greeted with a flash of phaser fire. Jennair smiled to himself. *Your security protocol didn’t quite prepare you for that, did it, Lt. Reed?* he smirked as he instructed his own security force to remove the Enterprise crew members to separate holding cells. //I still do not understand why we needed to bring the insufferable Commander Tucker along as well.// stated his companion, Sodan. //He is the weak spot// replied Jennair. //And we need a weak spot why?// //The Sub-Commander and Lt. Reed are very resourceful individuals. Their struggles to escape will be sufficiently less if we have him sufficiently in harm’s way.// Sodan mentally smiled. //There will be torture involved?// Jennair chuckled. //Perhaps. // //I wish to be involved in such activities.// “Nantuck to Jennair.” “Jennair here. The mission was successful, Captain.” “Good work, Lieutenant. Next on your list of things to do should be to rid ourselves of Lyceum, for his indiscretion on the enemy’s ship.” “Understood. Jennair out.” Captain Nantuck turned towards his helmsman. “You have the coordinates, Ensign. Get us out of here. Warp 10.”
Captain Archer stared at the screen for a moment, still not believing what his crew had told him. “Warp 10? That’s impossible. Our sensors indicated they had similar warp capabilities as our own.” “Apparently, our sensors were wrong,” replied Travis. Archer chose to ignore that comment and asked instead, “Travis, do you have any idea where they are headed?” “Aye, sir. We can follow their trail, but at Warp 10 . . .” The Ensign didn’t have to continue. Archer knew the unfinished truth. *We’ll never see them again.* Guilt washed over him in waves. Malcolm’s unheeded warnings echoed in his head, alongside of T’Pol’s disapproval. *They were right* the Captain realized sorrowfully. And then there was Trip. *My best friend. I’ll never see him again.* The thought was too much for the Captain to bear. Stumbling, he made his way to his chair. His body fell into the seat, without a conscious effort on Archer’s behalf. Ensign Cromwell, who was filling in for T’Pol, perhaps permanently, broke Archer’s reverie. “Captain, sensors indicate a ship approaching. Bearing-“ “Is it the Gabbaccians?” Archer demanded. “No, sir. It appears to be . . . similar in design to the Enterprise.” “That’s what we thought about the Gabbaccians, too,” Archer snapped. *Really, Jon, don’t take it out on the Ensign. Your poor command decisions weren’t his fault.* he chided himself. “No, sir. I don’t mean they have similar functions. I mean the actual design . . . The ship itself is nearly a replica of the Enterprise’s design,” the Ensign replied. “Sir, they’re hailing us,” Hoshi Sato chimed in. “On screen,” the Captain said wearily. Archer wasn’t certain, but he could have sworn the woman who materialized in front of him was the spitting image of Trip. The minor difference were her eyes, which were dark brown instead of Trip’s bright blue. *Of course, maybe it’s just my wishful thinking,* Archer reflected. “Greetings, Captain Archer,” the woman began. “How do you know who I am?” the Captain demanded. “We do not have time to discuss that. Have you encountered the Gabbaccians yet?” asked the woman. Archer stood up. “Yes, we have. They’ve kidnapped three of my crew. Do you know of them?” In reply, the screen went black, signifying ending of the transmission. Within moments after ending the transmission, the new ship headed off in the same direction as the Gabbaccians just a moment before. “Travis, lay in a course to follow those ships,” Archer instructed. “Aye, sir.” *I only hope they slow down eventually. Otherwise, we’ll never see them again.* Archer thought.
Alanna sat in her ready room, staring at two holopictures. One was of a man she had never met yet owed her life to. The other was a man she owed her life to, and had lost many years ago. One had her very familiar features, the other shared the same features as Alanna’s science officer. Both, she knew, had been selfless and sacrificing. One had died protecting his fellow crewmembers, the other had been tortured for treason so that she and his son could escape Gabbaccian imprisionment. Alanna never looked at holopictures of her mother. It would prove too painful. She had been on Vulcan at the time of the extermination. *I only hope we aren’t too late.* Alanna wished desperately. Their coordinates had been off, just slightly. But enough to matter, nonetheless. They may have traveled back in time for nothing. Their attempts to right the Gabbaccians’ wrongs may prove to be futile. And they didn’t have enough power to attempt another leap> *********** Have a comment to make about this story? Do so in the Trip Fan Fiction forum at the HoTBBS! |