Devil's Advocate-Ch 13

Devil’s Advocate

By Triplover

Disclaimer: When I own all this I’ll be sure to go outside and watch the pigs flying cause it’s never gonna happen.
Genre: Mystery, Romance, Angst
Rating: R (for violence and other stuff)
Summary: After saving a cargo ship filled with many different species, crewmembers on Enterprise are found dead.

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Chapter Thirteen

Fighting Death

Trip knew there was only one way it could end. He had to face Jolen. Tucker closed his eyes, trying to reach out to the man with his mind. He opened his mind to Jolen; let himself listen to the voice. He could feel the connection at that moment between them. This implant’s telepathic abilities were strong; he could actually feel the connection. “Jolen,” he whispered.

He could feel Jolen aware of his presence. “I see you’ve found a way to use the connection.”

“Jolen, you gotta stop this. This isn’t you.”

“You don’t know who the hell I am! So don’t even try telling me that! You can plead with me all you like! You will be punished!”

“I used to know you. There was a time in our lives that I used to know a man named Jolen Croft… I don’t know who the hell you are now! Dammit Jolen, stop this! You killed Peter in cold blood! He never did anythin’ to you! Neither did I! Your daughter died, and I know it was difficult for you. Jolen, I still care about you. You were like a damn brother to me for god’s sake! I won’t give up on ya just because you’ve gone a few years dealin’ with this alone. You don’t haffta do that now, dammit!”

“You are the reason I have to deal with anything! I didn’t kill Peter in cold blood. I did what I did because it was what he deserved!”

Trip could feel the uncertainty in the back of Jolen’s mind, but it was so faint Tucker wondered if perhaps it was his imagination. “You killed a man for nothin’! My and Peter’s death isn’t gonna bring Sindy back. Nothin’ will. You could have your revenge, but what about after that? What are you going to do when I’m dead? Jolen, you’re letting your hate take over you. Don’t give in! You want someone to blame and so you chose to blame Peter and me! Who’s next? Admiral Forrest for not lettin’ me help her… all those officers that knew about her, but didn’t help? Who’s next Jolen? Cause my and Peter’s death won’t be enough! Your hate won’t go away with my death.”

“Well, at least revenge will be served.”

“At what cost?”

“The lives of two people who are responsible for a little girl’s death.”

“What about Peter’s family, people you forced him to kill? What about the three people you forced ME to kill? What about them? They don’t deserve revenge. So why make them suffer?”

There was a long pause as he felt Croft think about that. “Because they are important to you!”

“This is between me and you, Jolen. Not them.”

“Fine… you wish for this to be between us, then that is how it will be. Our ship has located Enterprise. Our transporter will beam you aboard and we will complete this.”

“You’ll leave T’Pol and the rest out of this?”

“I will, if you stop resisting me. You will pay for Sindy’s death, one way or another.”

Trip closed his eyes tight, his fists even tighter. “I can accept that.”

“Good, we will be here within the hour.”

“Understood.” Trip looked at Malcolm, who stood at the door of the brig. He breathed in deeply and smiled as he tried his best to block out his thoughts. Well, the first part of his plan was complete. He just hoped the last part of the plan worked. “Malcolm,” called Trip hitting the com so his friend could hear.

Malcolm turned and walked over to the wall, hitting the com. “Yes Trip?”

“I think you should call the Cap’n.”

==

They had been in there for over an hour. What could they be talking about? T’Pol squeezed her armrest. Why was she getting so uneasy? Just because the last time she’d talked to Trip was while trying to stop him from killing himself to save her, did not mean that she should be worried now. Right? T’Pol sighed, this was not happening. Her fear for Trip was making her act strangely. She was worried.

It was then that Archer’s ready room door opened and both Trip and Archer walked out. Trip, to T’Pol’s surprise, walked to his station with a smile as Archer sat in his chair. Why was he not in the brig? Did Phlox find a way to stop the implants effects? He couldn’t have taken the implant out in such a small amount of time without telling her or anyone else. Obviously the Captain did not see him as a threat to the crew, but why? What had changed? He turned to look at her before looking straight. Though he seemed in a better mood upon looking at her, she noticed the twinkle in his eyes vanish. They returned just as soon as he looked away. What could they have been talking about in there? Not but a few hours ago, Trip had tried to kill himself! He’d said Jolen was trying to force Trip to kill her. So what had changed within that timeline?

T’Pol sighed and looked down at her console. She did not like this. She did not like this one bit. She was worried about him even more now after seeing him. “T’Pol.”

T’Pol looked up at the Captain and Trip. Trip was smiling. “Yes, Captain?”

Archer breathed in deeply before looking down at a padd in his hand. “You and Trip need to go do some work on a torpedo. You’ll be working on creating shadowed lifesigns.”

T’Pol nodded. “Of course sir.”

Trip stood and walked over to her, handing her a padd. The Vulcan looked at his instructions and raised an eyebrow. She was impressed. How long had Trip taken to devise this? She couldn’t be sure, but she WAS sure that she knew what he was up to, and it was an interesting plan. Very interesting. Though part of her knew what would come next, she understood this was Trip’s decision. He had to face Jolen. It was the only way. They could not run from Jolen forever. He could not run from Jolen forever.

==

Trip had spent the time left before Jolen would arrive rushing to get the torpedo he had come up with ready. He and T’Pol worked together, though neither spoke about what would happen after everything was over. Trip could tell she wanted to say something, but still they said nothing. There was nothing to say… for now.

When the torpedo was finished he and Malcolm loaded it into the brig. Jolen knew he would be in there, and Trip was aware that if Jolen located the lifesigns anywhere else that the man would wonder what was going on. Shadow lifesigns had been something Jolen Croft himself had taught Trip. Now he was using the trick to stop Jolen. Everything was ready. T’Pol had finished installing in the torpedo shadow lifesigns of Trip to fool Jolen’s sensors. She and Tucker had also finished shielding his own lifesigns by use of a tricorder. Trip would have to keep it near him. T’Pol had designed a belt for him to hold the modified tricorder so it would stay securely with him. Everything was ready. Trip just hoped he was ready.

Trip walked onto the bridge with T’Pol by his side and looked at Captain Archer, whose eyes asked a question. Trip licked his lips and nodded lightly, an acknowledgement that they were as ready as they’d ever be. Archer nodded back and turned around to face the screen just as Reed’s console beeped. Malcolm looked down. “It’s Jolen.”

The first and second officers took their stations. The entire crew seemed to straighten, ready for the final battle. “On screen,” the Captain commanded. The screen switched to show the image of Jolen Croft’s ship and Archer breathed in deeply, keeping his calm. This was it. There was no turning back.

Everything that happened after those few seconds as they looked at the ship seemed to be a blur. It all happened so fast. Jolen’s ship swung fast to one side as phaser fire hit Enterprise’s bow. Enterprise activated phase cannons and began to return fire. Captain Archer sat in his chair yelling out commands to Travis and Malcolm. The ship shook violently with each attack made by the enemy ship. Crewmembers fell to the ground and sparks flew in the back of the bridge. Trip and Archer exchanged looks and both knew it was time.

“Hess to the bridge!” came a voice from the com.

Archer hit the com unit. “Captain Archer here.”

“Jolen Croft’s ship has transported the torpedo to their ship.”

Archer looked back up to meet Trip’s eyes. “Understood, Archer out.”

Trip breathed in deeply before looking down at his console. “Activating the weapon now, sir.” Tucker’s hands flew over the console as he sent the command to the torpedo unit. His eyes widened when he received results from the weapon unit. “Uh sir, we’ve got a bit of a problem!”

Archer stood, ignoring the ship’s shudders, to walk over to Trip’s post. “What kind of a problem?”

Trip looked up. “Jolen raised shields around the torpedo. I can’t activate it.”

“Damn!” Archer closed his eyes in thought. “What now?”

Trip paused, frowning deeply. “There’s only one way we’re gonna be able to activate the weapon.”

“How?”

“Beam me aboard their ship.”

Archer shook his head. “No, there’s no way I’m sending you to Jolen’s ship.”

“Cap’n, it’s the only way.”

“No! Find another way!” Archer turned to walk back to his chair just as Trip stood.

“Cap’n! This IS the only way! Transport me to Jolen’s ship. I’ll make sure it activates.”

Archer turned back to look at the Commander. He could see the determination in his eyes. Trip wasn’t about to back down, and he obviously was confident in himself being able to do the job, but Jonathan wasn’t so sure. “I’ll send T’Pol.”

“No Cap’n, it’s gotta be me. Jolen wants to kill me, but I know for a fact that way he has planned has me dying very slowly. He’ll want me alive for now. I’ll get it done, Cap’n.”

“It’s not you getting it done that worries me.”

Trip smiled. “I know, but for now that’s what’s most important. Trust me… please.”

Archer just stood there for a long time, not sure of what to say. He’d seen those eyes before. Commander Tucker didn’t expect to be seeing Enterprise again. It was the same look he’d given him when he’d asked to take Sim’s place in destroying the enemy ship serving ‘The Master.’ Finally Archer realized why Trip wanted to do this personally. Jolen had forced him to kill three of his friends. Jolen had tried to force him to kill T’Pol. Trip wanted to do this; he wanted to put a stop to Jolen. He wanted a taste of his OWN revenge. Captain Archer nodded, making Trip’s smile widen. “Go.”

Trip moved around the console. “I won’t let ya down, sir,” he assured Jon. “I promise.” And just like that Tucker entered the turbolift and was gone.

==

While the Commander walked to the Transporter room he readied himself for what might be ahead. Soon he’d be on Jolen’s ship. He had to be ready to face him. He had to be ready for anything, even his death. Tucker walked onto the pad and looked over at the officer standing behind the console. “Energize,” he ordered.

Ensign York nodded and began to beam Trip to Jolen’s ship right outside of the field blocking Enterprise’s connection to the weapon. Trip waited as the world around him slowly disintegrated into nothingness before reassembling into a world completely different. It took a moment for Trip to get a hold of his surroundings. He was in a corridor right in front of two large doors. Tucker held his gun tightly before hitting the padd on the wall next to the doors. They opened slowly to reveal a large round room with a transporter pad in the middle and a console on the opposite side from where Trip was standing. On the pad was the torpedo.

Trip ran over to the weapon, and opened it so he could activate it from its source. It only took a few minutes to activate the weapon. Tucker grinned as the weapon was brought online. He grabbed his gun, which he’d set down on the floor, and ran the hell out of the room and around the corner, taking cover as the weapon began it’s countdown. Trip counted in his head. Five… four… three… two… ONE!

His ears rung as the weapon blew, sending a large electric wave throughout the ship’s systems. Trip could feel the shock go through his body, shocking him a little before it passed. Thankfully he had taken measures to make sure he didn’t end up like Lieutenant Harren. He waited nearly a minute before opening his eyes. He could feel his body ache in pain. The ship looked toasted with all the consoles exploding, sending sparks that had burned the floors and walls. The lights were off… power was down. “It worked,” he whispered with a smirk.

==

“Captain! The weapon’s been activated! Their systems have lost power!”

Archer smiled as he looked at Malcolm. “Depolarize the hull. Contact Trip.”

==

Captain Croft cursed in the darkness. One minute he was about to destroy Enterprise for good. Then he’d beamed aboard what he thought was Trip, but really turned out to be a torpedo. The next thing he knew, it exploded and sent an energy wave that shot through the ship, blowing up every console it met as it went. “What the hell just happened?!”

“Enterprise activated the torpedo!”

“How?!”

“Before the power failed, systems registered an energy surge outside the of the transporter room. I believe someone beamed over from Enterprise.”

“Trip.”

“I can’t be sure if it’s Commander Tucker,” Shrith warned.

“It is,” Jolen whispered. “I know it is. Get systems back online.”

“Sir, our power has been drained. It’s gone. All I can do is get power from backup systems and feed it through manually, but it’ll only be enough to power shields and life support.”

“Then do it!” Jolen barked before grabbing the gun next to his chair. “Shrith, you have the bridge.”

Jolen stalked off the bridge, heading towards the transporter room. Power was down; he wouldn’t be able to use the turbolift. He walked to the access, a ladder that would lead him where he wished to go. He’d come up with the idea himself, ladders that would lead him to every part of the ship in case power was down. He would get to the Commander. Finally he had Trip right where he wanted him… ready for his death!

==

He was bleeding badly, and couldn’t feel his left leg. After the torpedo exploded he’d examined himself to see if he was okay. That was when he’d noticed his leg, caught under a beam. He could see the pool of blood there under the leg. It was then that he also realized his ears were still ringing. He was in bad shape. He’d tried to get the beam off him, but he couldn’t do a thing, and what was worse he knew Jolen was on his way. It was rather ironic.

Years ago he left Sindy to die after a beam fell on her, and she couldn’t get it off. Jolen had told Trip he would get revenge, and now things had changed. Trip sat outside the transporter with a beam on his leg, and Jolen on his way. He’d always wondered how he would die, but he could honestly say death by best friend wasn’t what he’d expected. Trip’s head hit the wall behind him, resting there. He no longer tried to fight. He couldn’t get up. He couldn’t fight Jolen. If this was the only way to save the people he loved… so be it. He was willing to die. He wasn’t afraid.

For the first time in years he wondered what would face him after death. Eternity in darkness? Heaven or Hell? Or would he simply cease to exist? He hoped there was more, but a part of him in the back of his head told him he was alone.

Trip shook his head. He couldn’t think like this! He couldn’t give up now! Not when Captain Archer was depending on him. Oh, who was he kidding! His left leg was useless, he had aches and pains all over the place, and he was barely aware! He was in no shape to fight Jolen… to beat Jolen. When he heard footsteps he did his best to prepare for what would be next. Still, who could prepare for death? The death he would be facing wouldn’t be quick and painless. He would suffer. Jolen would make sure of that. When the footsteps stopped he sighed. “What took ya so long?”

“Power’s down. I would have been quicker, but I had to use ladders to get to you.”

Trip nodded slowly. “Yeah.”

Jolen walked over to him and smiled when he saw the beam. “A fitting end… isn’t it? My daughter died trapped under a beam, and now here you will have the same fate.”

“What ya gonna do? Flood this place with radiation?”

Jolen chuckled lightly at the thought. “Perhaps.” There was a moment of silence then and Trip could tell there was no anger in Jolen’s voice. “Coming down here I wasn’t even sure I could wait long enough to let you die slowly. I’m surprised I haven’t shot you yet, or perhaps I am just contemplating how you will die? The thought of you dying the way Sindy died is quite interesting though. An eye for an eye… and all that.”

No wonder he wasn’t mad. He was just about to see the guy he blamed for his daughter’s death die in the same way she had. Trip chuckled, amused at things. “You are a very sick bastard Jolen… a very sick bastard.” His heart was beating fiercely, though he tried to calm himself down. He wasn’t about to face death scared as a startled cat!

Jolen sat down across from him, glaring back. “Funny, I would call a sick bastard someone who let a young girl die just to save his own ass.”

“Now there’s that hatred in your voice that I was waitin’ for,” he muttered.

“Hmmm, now I feel sorry for not disappointing you.”

“Oh that’s okay. Ya can’t be the evil genius constantly. It just gives ya heart problems,” Trip joked. Maybe he was a sick bastard if he was sitting here joking like this right before he would be dying. “So what ya waitin’ for? Why don’t ya just kill me?”

Jolen frowned. “Fine, you want me to just kill you? Forget the radiation. I’ll just get it over with now. I guess I always did hate long waits.” With that Jolen stood and pointed the gun at him.

“Yeah… so do I,” Trip whispered and closed his eyes, waiting for the gun to go off and his life to end.

To Be Continued

A/N: Yes I know I’m evil! My beta has made sure I know this quite clearly! But come on… let me have my fun and I’ll give you a good ending! Promise!

Chapter 14

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A handful of people have made comments

Arrrrghh, evil cliffhanger!!! I hope you plan a very long slow and extremely painful death for Jolen. Please update soon.

After all the chasing around and build up to his revenge I can't believe Jolen would simply shoot Trip dead now that he has him trapped and can make him die slowly. But then who knows what goes on in such a twisted mind? Hope you beam down the next part soon, Ali D :~)

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!! Dang nabit!!! Why you little evil cliffhanger maker you!!! Such a good Chapter, but that stupid cliffhanger at the end ruined it! Im Kinda hoping T'pol transports in, in the next chapter and beets the living shit out of Jolen. Have Polly beet him to a bloody pile a mush for making her man do all those awful things!
Please update soon!

AAAAAAAAAArrrrrrrrrgghhhhh!!!!!! I hate cliffhanger!
That's TORTURE !!!!Jolen will have mercy,right?
He won't kill our poor,innocent Trip,right?
Let's hope Jolen will kill himself 'cause I don't want either Trip or T'Pol to be murdere !!!!
PLEASE,update soon,pleaaaaaase !!!!!

Oh, that wasn't just mean, that was downright CRUEL! If you think you'll get away with just leaving us hanging there, you've got another thing coming! So, keep on updating. :)