|
"Whips, Chains, and Plomeek Soup"
Rating: PG-13 This is a critical chapter, folks. Things aren’t right...some angst and some puzzling clues ahead. Four Crewman Saeed El-Sadr stood at rigid attention in front of Captain Hoshi Sato, his eyes riveted to a point above her head. Ensigns Branway and Tsoramu flanked the captain on either side, armed as per Lieutenant Commander Tucker’s instructions, but Hoshi doubted either man would need their weapons. The anguish and dread in El-Sadr’s eyes was directed not at her, but at himself. “At ease, Crewman,” she said in a quiet tone. “Ma’am,” he snapped and went to a modified parade rest. “What happened in the Armory today? You didn’t stop the training exercise after Lieutenant Commander Tucker ordered you to stop. Crewman Riley is all right, but Doctor Reed insisted on keeping him under observation for a couple of days.” She noticed El-Sadr flinched at her words. “Tell me what’s going on. This isn’t the first time, is it?” “No, ma’am,” he replied. His tone was crisp, but she heard the slightest hesitation. “It isn’t the first time. I just don’t have an explanation for either case, Captain.” Hoshi raised her eyebrows. “No explanation whatsoever.” “No, ma’am. I’m not usually violent towards my fellow crewmen and officers. I’m trained to use restraint in my actions. I follow orders.” El-Sadr’s mouth tightened in anger. “It’s just sometimes I feel this wave of rage come over me...and I can’t stop it. I don’t know where it comes from, ma’am. It’s out of nowhere.” If it was anyone else, Hoshi would have been skeptical of the excuse, but she knew El-Sadr’s reputation as an honorable, decent man. Trip wouldn’t have handpicked him for his Armory staff otherwise. He was only telling the truth as well as he could. If El-Sadr couldn’t understand what was going on, he admitted it. “So it comes and goes at random times?” “At first, it was just when we’re doing phase pistol or hand-to-hand practice in the Armory ma’am, but lately...” Now his voice betrayed the fear he dared not show, “it’s been more frequent. I volunteer to put myself under guard, ma’am, just in case I—“ She nodded. “You’re a good man to do this, Saeed. I wish we could do otherwise, but—“she sighed and glanced at the two Security ensigns. “Take positions outside Mister El-Sadr’s door, gentlemen. I’ll notify Lieutenant Commander Tucker on the situation. And Saeed—“ “Ma’am?” he croaked. “I’m going to ask Doctor Reed to schedule a full physical and mental evaluation on you. If there is a physical or emotional imbalance, he’ll find it and correct it. I’m sure Lieutenant Commander Tucker will be glad to have you back as soon as possible.” He blew out a sigh of relief. “Thank you, ma’am.” “If you feel one of these...rages coming on, inform the guards and they’ll let Sickbay know. I mean it, Saeed...I don’t want you doing something stupid.” “I won’t do anything dumb, Captain. You have my word.” “I accept your word.” She nodded at him. “I’ll have Commander Mayweather check up on you in a couple of hours.” “Thank you again, ma’am. I’m very grateful.” Hoshi left the guards outside El-Sadr’s quarters, then let both Trip and Malcolm know of her orders. She hoped that Malcolm might get to the bottom of El-Sadr’s problem; he was a valuable member of Security. She sighed as she entered the lift. They were scheduled to arrive at the Luran Homeworld in less than twenty-four hours. Jon and she had planned to go over the speech again during her lunch break. Hoshi was fairly confident she had the accents, the intonations, and the cadences down pat, but she wanted to make sure. Many first contacts had become ugly after a linguistic or a cultural misunderstanding, and this was one contact she didn’t want to screw up. Yeah, just like Huxley Terminus. God, that was a mess. She had been First Officer of the Madagascar then, and Captain Max Forrest had completed a successful trade negotiation, or so they had thought. Their communications officer had misinterpreted a single word in the First Councilor’s speech. One word. The next thing they knew, a firefight had erupted. The Away team had been pinned down by laser fire...Hoshi remembered that day, as clearly as ever... I don’t understand, screamed the comm officer. I heard what I heard...he wanted to use us as sacrifices for a successful treaty... Whatever you heard or didn’t hear, we’re in trouble right now! Forrest said. He flipped open his communicator. Forrest to Madagascar...emergency beam-out... Hoshi saw movement out of the corner of her eye and she realized the Huxley assassins had managed to circle around them and outflank them. She fired her phase pistol, hitting the lead man who had a target on Forrest. The comm officer went down in a hail of projectile fire; she hadn’t even had time to scream. She glanced at the Tactical Officer, who was relaying orders to his team as they returned fire. Her soul lurched as he identified the man. It wasn’t Trip Tucker, but another man entirely. Someone else heartbreakingly familiar. Then she felt something hot punch through her chest. She looked down and saw a smoking hole where her heart should’ve been...the phase pistol dropped out of her nerveless fingers... Wait a minute...this didn’t happen... It didn’t happen like this, but the pain slammed into her and she dropped to her knees, her hand clutching her chest. Agony spread through her, all her nerves afire, her mind screamed in an incoherent babble. Dimly, she heard the lift doors hiss open, and people on the Bridge shouted at the sight of her crumpled on the floor of the lift. “Bridge to Sickbay, medical emergency! Crash team to the Bridge!” “Captain? Captain Sato? Can you hear me?” “Dammit, we gotta do CPR. Jon, can you breathe for her?” “Go ahead, Travis.” She felt someone—Travis?—pound on her chest, someone else—Jon?—breathing life-giving oxygen into her mouth. She wanted to tell them she was all right, that everything was going to be al right. Then she felt gentle hands on her face, on her temple, and warm energy flowed through her, soothing the pain. My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts... T’Pol? Hoshi thought. The rational, logical mind was an anchor in the chaos and she grabbed hold of it like a lifeline. The Vulcan caught and supported her. Stay with me, Captain. Do not surrender to the blackness. I am here with you. You are not alone. She felt a gentle wave pulling her away, but she dug her heels into the wet sand. Suddenly, her head broke the surface and she gasped at the cool, crisp air. “She’s breathing!” Jon cried, in that other world. Then she caught sight of a distant shore in the sun. Her instincts told her to swim towards it, so she did as best as she could. She’d always loved the beach, but Malcolm didn’t care much for it. It wasn’t that he didn’t like the water, but he was afraid of drowning. She never pushed him to join her in the water; he would always watch her from the shore, ever vigilant... He cares for you, Hoshi. He always has. He always will. T’Pol, I saw him at Huxley, but he wasn’t a doctor. He was... It was not your reality, Hoshi. It was another. It is complicated to explain...perhaps one day I will tell you, when you are strong enough. If she could have taken T’Pol by the shoulders and shaken her, she would have, Vulcan privacy be damned. What the hell is that supposed to mean, T’Pol? I don’t understand... You do not need to. Not at this present moment. There is so much to do...we cannot allow you to know, not yet. Soon. I promise. But— Forget now, Captain. The Vulcan’s tone was gentle and regretful. Forget what you saw. My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts... T’Pol! But a gentle mist closed over her mind and despite herself, Hoshi Sato felt weariness overtake her. But strangely enough, she felt no fear, only a blessed peace. |
Like it? Hate it? Just want to point out a typo? Join the discussion now.
Disclaimer: Star Trek in all its various forms and its characters are the property of CBS/Paramount. No copyright infringement is intended by the authors of this site, which is solely for the purpose of entertainment and is not for profit. This site is owned by CX and was opened to the public in February 2008.