Bang the Drum- Ch. 2

Bang the Drum

By stub&Joe

DATE: 01-23-03

RATING: PG-13 – R (for some swears, naturally)

DISCLAIMERS in Chapter 1

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Chapter 2

Captain Archer had mentioned nothing of the talk he supposedly had with Commander Tucker. Not that it was T’Pol’s concern. She’d done her part in mentioning to the captain of his friend’s recent disposition. The Vulcan saw less of the Chief Engineer in the couple of weeks to follow. She also noticed him eating more meals with Ensigns Sato and Mayweather and Lieutenant Reed. Something in the back of her mind told T’Pol this was a curious behavior, decidedly unlike the Commander’s usual routine. He took only one meal a day with her and Archer as of late, if that at all.

T’Pol kept reminding herself it was none of her business. Perhaps these Human men were quarrelling with each other. Though they seemed to be on pleasant enough terms. At least in her presence, though she did detect a certain amount of tension. T’Pol noticed Mr. Tucker stealing more glances at her than usual, as if he were trying to figure something out. She dismissed it immediately as him just being…well, him. She was rather grateful that she was spending less time in his presence. T’Pol slowly realized how much time she’d spent herself thinking about this man. It was illogical. He was her coworker, nothing more. She decided it would be best to limit the time spent with the commander, refusing to request his assistance until things righted themselves between him and the Captain. T’Pol couldn’t shake the feeling that she had something to do with it…that she’d somehow been situated between them.

Ridiculous, she scolded herself. I have done nothing to perpetuate their discomfort with one another.

She kept to herself, taking the Commander’s lead in sharing only one meal a day with Archer and Tucker. T’Pol absorbed herself with various independent projects. She was more than relieved when they happened upon an alien ship requiring assistance with some life support systems.

Captain Archer had called upon Commander Tucker’s expertise to assist these new aliens. As she and Archer met him in the corridor, T’Pol briefed Tucker on what little they knew. Again, the tension between the two men was palpable. T’Pol looked closer at Commander Tucker. He barely even looked at Archer. But the captain didn’t seem to notice or make a show of it.

Curious, she thought. Perhaps it was more one-sided than she had originally suspected.

T’Pol suggested to the Captain that Tucker go ahead and repair the life support system on the alien vessel. Archer agreed readily and the Commander disappeared into the alien ship without so much as a look over his shoulder. He seemed very eager to get off Enterprise, even if it was only for a short while. T’Pol couldn’t help but be just a tad alarmed. This was not like him at all. She now knew it was not a residual effect from the black hole they’d encountered earlier.

She shook her head, clearing her thoughts before they consumed her. The captain had invited these aliens, Mr. Goff and Mr. Plinn, for a meal while Commander Tucker made the repairs. T’Pol had time to meditate before the meal. She took this opportunity to settle her mind and remove thoughts of the chief engineer.

***

The meal started out in an uneventful manner but soon Mr. Goff received a warning call from his ship. He left the table in a huff to investigate. Captain Archer exchanged a concerned look with T’Pol. Warning bells rang in her head. Soon enough, they proved accurate as Mr. Plinn was hailed to help Goff with something. Plinn ran out in haste.

The Captain, T’Pol surmised, must have had a similar red flag raised. He tried to hail Commander Tucker. No response. T’Pol felt a brief flicker of panic in the pit of her stomach. Archer called upon Lieutenant Reed to escort Plinn back to his ship. After an abrupt firefight in the corridor, Goff had escaped; breaking the docking clamps and proceeded to lead Enterprise on a chase. Commander Tucker had been kidnapped, perhaps even injured. She did not think Goff would go as far as killing him, but it was not outside the realm of possibility.

T’Pol pushed out the concern and put a professional mask into place. They gave chase to Goff’s starship but it was to no avail. They needed to try a new approach. A decision was made to use the trapped Plinn to their advantage. As expected, he was less than cooperative. Captain Archer had come up with a ruse to scare Plinn into cooperating. It was not something T’Pol was used to doing; play-acting as a Vulcan dictator. Secretly, however, she enjoyed watching Archer bow to her. Their performance was effective. Mr. Plinn gave them the warp signature from his ship and they were able to search and find the vessel, now orbiting around a planet comprised mostly of water.

Scans indicated, however, that Mr. Tucker was not on board. In fact, the entire vessel was empty. They did note that an escape pod had been deployed. They hoped Commander Tucker had launched the pod and not Goff.

“Scan for Trip’s biosign,” Archer ordered.

“Aye, sir,” replied Lieutenant Reed, already doing so.

T’Pol surmised that the pod had crash-landed. She hoped Commander Tucker was still alive, if it was indeed him that was in the escape pod.

“Sir,” said Reed. “I’ve located three biosigns.” He looked at Archer in confusion.

T’Pol double-checked his findings. Indeed, Mr. Tucker was not alone. One of the biosigns appeared to be Mr. Goff’s. The third was unidentifiable.

“It appears Mr. Goff has ventured down to the planet as well,” she said aloud.

Archer furrowed his brow in concern. “What the hell is he doing down there?”

“Maybe he wants whoever belongs to that third biosign,” Reed suggested. “Hoshi, did you see anyone else on board when you were over there?”

The communications officer thought for a moment and then shook her head. “No, sir. Just a woman in a stasis pod. She was frozen and asleep.” Ensign Sato paused for a minute, then added, “But that’s what Trip was fixing. Maybe he un-thawed her somehow and they escaped together. If so, maybe Goff wants her back?”

Another woman? T’Pol felt something that was decidedly not panic in her stomach this time. She scowled to herself, careful to keep a neutral expression on her face. She did not like the sound of this. She paid closer attention to the conversation.

“Plinn did mention getting paid to deliver their ‘cargo’,” Archer mused. T’Pol could see a flicker of anger in his eyes. “Malcolm, get the shuttle ready. We’re going down there. Let’s try to find Trip and this precious cargo before Mr. Goff does.”

“Yes, sir,” said Lt Reed, all too happily. He practically ran for the lift doors and was gone.

“T’Pol, let’s swing by the armory on our way to the launch bay,” replied Archer, rising from his seat. “Travis, you have the bridge.”

T’Pol heard an “Aye, sir” as she entered the lift. The captain was by her side in no time and they made their way down to the armory. They grabbed some phase pistols and met Reed in the shuttle.

On their way down to the planet, T’Pol remained silent unless she was directly spoken to. Lieutenant Reed and Captain Archer started discussing Commander Tucker’s current situation. She was only half listening to them bantering back and forth. Only when they began talking about the woman did her interest become fully roused.

“Let’s just hope she’s old and ugly,” said Reed with a smile.

“Malcolm, that’s not very nice,” Archer returned. T’Pol caught a quick wink, however.

“Commander Tucker doesn’t exactly have a clean track record when it comes to socializing with alien women.” Reed shot a quick glance at T’Pol and added, “Present company excluded, I presume.”

She glared at the armory officer and only raised an eyebrow in answer. She heard the captain trying to stifle a giggle with a forced cough. T’Pol sighed inwardly and again wondered what kept her on this Human vessel for so long. Lieutenant Reed cocked his head at her, his eyes not wavering from hers, a small smile playing his lips. Did he actually expect an answer?

“Commander Tucker is my colleague,” T’Pol stated haughtily. “As are both of you.” She waited.

Reed did not disappoint. “Of course he is,” was all he said, ignoring the second part of her statement. He turned back to the controls.

T’Pol could still see him smirking. How pompous, she thought, narrowing her eyes. Her glare shifted from Lt. Reed to Captain Archer. He sat with his hands folded on his lap looking thoughtful. He blinked when he noticed the Vulcan looking at him and offered her a smile.

“I’m sure Trip’s being a perfect gentleman,” said Archer reassuringly.

“It’s not my concern, Captain,” she said coolly. T’Pol didn’t like where this conversation was going. She decided to change the topic. “Perhaps we should keep our minds on our mission. Commander Tucker may be in serious danger and we need to remain focused and alert.”

Archer and Reed looked sideways at one another, as if sharing some sort of private joke. “Agreed,” replied Archer. “Thank you, T’Pol, for bringing us back to the matter at hand.”

T’Pol knew condescension when she heard it but decided not to pursue it further. The three sat in an uncomfortable silence as Reed piloted their shuttle to land on the planet’s surface.

They exited the shuttle swiftly, weapons at the ready. Lieutenant Reed heard the phaser blast first. The three of them quickened their pace in the direction of the shot, picking their way cautiously through the dense vegetation. T’Pol heard Commander Tucker’s voice followed by the voice of a woman. She scowled and pointed the men in the direction of the conversation.

Splashing noises gradually increased as the three Enterprise officers approached. Archer peered first through some foliage and slowly lowered his weapon. T’Pol came up behind him and peered around. What she saw caused a swell of unfamiliar emotion to rise in her chest.

Commander Tucker was almost disrobed entirely, stomping around in his Starfleet blues. The woman was neither old nor ugly, much to T’Pol’s reluctant dismay. She was beautiful and similarly undressed. Archer spoke then, alerting Commander Tucker to their presence. The engineer spun around, a look of shock written all over his face. T’Pol could hear Lieutenant Reed snickering behind her. From the corner of her eye she saw the captain trying to hide a smile. What was with these males? Did they not realize the repercussions of such a situation? What if the Commander had had sexual relations with this woman? What would that mean for her people and their rules, should there be any? What ramifications would this have on Commander Tucker? Would he get infected with some alien virus? Would he become pregnant again? And what if he wanted to do it again with this woman?

As she silently fumed while all these thoughts flashed through her head, T’Pol’s glare did not waiver from Mr. Tucker’s. At least he had the decency to look ashamed and sheepish. She hoped for his sake that nothing happened.

“I guess we should get everyone back to their respective ships, huh?” said Archer, breaking the tense silence. He cast a glance at the ground where Goff was laying unconscious.

Commander Tucker took this opportunity to retreat back to their campsite, the alien woman close on his heels. Her raven hair flowed untangled behind her. T’Pol scowled as she and the other two men followed. She heard Archer whisper quietly to Reed, “So much for being a gentleman.” The armory officer stifled a laugh.

Considering that he was a Starfleet Captain, Archer did not seem to grasp the catastrophic circumstances involved with Commander Tucker’s actions. He seemed more concerned with exploiting whatever humor he could derive from this situation. T’Pol was frustrated with the whole lot of them.

They had everything packed into Shuttlepod One in less than twenty minutes and were safely on their way back to orbit. Commander Tucker refused to make eye contact with T’Pol. The woman however, introduced as Princess Kaitama, glowered relentlessly at the Vulcan. Mr. Goff, still somewhat out of it, remained blissfully unaware of his surroundings. The ride back was mostly silent, the men exchanging glances and smiles when they thought T’Pol wasn’t looking or paying attention. She caught them all. She intended to have a word with Mr. Tucker about his behavior.

End Chapter Two

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Three people have made comments

Great new chapter I like that you wrote what T'pol thought and what she was feeling jealous of Princess Kaitama.I look forward to seeing her confrontation between her and Trip.She probably feels like she's been betrayed.I look forwrd to the rest of your story.

Ooops, looks like Trip is in hot water again! I wonder what was *really* going on? Hope you get the next part up soon. I loved the old green eyed monster raising its'head earlier on. And T'Pol getting jealous now? That's a hoot. Please write the next part soon, I am so enjoying this! Thanks for a good story, Ali D :~)

FABULOUS!!! I am loving this story so far. I really enjoyed how in the first chapter, Trip was directing his anger at Archer. I could picture him almost like a little boy with his head lowered, shuffling his feet and pretending that things were now okay between them.

Chapter 2 was also great. I loved how T'pol was annoyed with Malcolm's and Archer's behavior, thereby diluting her frustrations about Trip amongst the 3 of them...

Thanks. Can't wait until their 'conversation' about her almightly Prissiness!!!