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Past Rewards, Future Torment - Chapter 9

Author - Hoshissis
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Past Rewards, Future Torment

by Hoshissis

Disclaimers in Chapter 1

******

Chapter Nine

Five minutes previously

“Phlox!” called Trip as he walked through sickbay door into a dimmed room. // That’s funny; I wonder why the lights are out?, // thought Trip as he wondered over to where the controls were. Just as he was about to touch them, he felt a stinging sensation on his neck, as if someone had just pressed a hypo spray into him.

“What the f……!” cried Trip as he sank to his knees, suddenly feeling very drowsy. “Who’s there!” shouted Trip, looking around with blurry eyes.

Silence.

“Doc, is that you? Where are ya?”

Silence.

Trip managed to regain his feet. After spying a blurred image in the distant corner of the room, he groped his way over there before falling to his knees once more.

“Phlox!” he cried, gentle probing the silent figure besides him on the floor. “Thank god!” he whispered as he felt a faint pulse.

There was a soft moan as Phlox stirred.

“Phlox!” cried Trip again, gently shaking him at the same time. Suddenly Trip heard a quiet chuckle from behind. “Who’s there?” cried Trip again as he looked around, trying hard to focus.

Again, there was no answer

// I gotta get some help, // thought Trip as he struggled to stand and stumble to the com unit on the wall. Quite a task with a pair of shaky legs that felt like they were gonna give out any minute and eyes that were getting dimmer by the second.

“Sorry Commander, I can’t let you do that.”

“Who said that?” asked Trip turning around quickly, squinting hard as he tried to focus on the blurry image in front of him coming closer and closer.

“Just someone who wants payback for what you did to us.”

“What did you do ta me?”

“Just a slight relaxer, it’s only fair Commander, the size of you compared to me – you can’t expect me to take you on without giving myself some kind of edge.”

“Why are you doing this?”

“You have a nerve saying that after what you did to us, to my mother.”

“Look, ya gotta understand, I didn’t know anyone had been killed. Nobody told me.”

“Would it have made a difference if they had?”

“Yeah it would. I’m not the sort of person who actively climbs the ladder on the back of others or their misfortunes.”

“Why Commander, how moralistic of you!” replied Mark, who was now standing in front of Trip, holding a small, sharp scalpel. “Too bad I don’t believe you.”

“Look why don’t we go and get your ma and Captain McGane, I’m sure we can talk this through,” said Trip. He could hear the sound of running feet outside Sickbay, which would indicate that help was near, so stalling was the next best option.

“You leave her out of this,” replied Mark grapping Commander Tucker by his collar and holding the scalpel to his neck, “you’ve put her through enough.”

Just then Captain Archer, Malcolm, Captain McGane and Caroline burst through the door. Mark reacted quickly and quickly pulled Commander Tucker, whose strength was fast depleting him, in front of him holding the knife at his throat.

“Don’t come any closer!” warned Mark, whose hand was trembling.

“Put the scalpel down and let Commander Tucker go,” asked Captain Archer quietly, trying hard not to let this situation get dangerously out of hand.

“Please Mark,” pleaded Caroline, “do what Captain Archer says, please, for my sake.”

“I’m doing this for you, mom, and Uncle Harold. He said it himself we deserve justice.”

“Not like this baby, it’s wrong. What happened is all in the past, we’ve put it behind us and made a pretty good life, wouldn’t you agree?”

“She’s right Mark, it’s not right. What you heard were just grumblings from a bitter old man who should’ve known better. Do what your mom says, put it down. Your dad wouldn’t have wanted this.”

The next couple of minutes all seemed to happen in slow motion.

“How would I know, I never even got a chance to know him because of him,” shouted Mark as he tightened his grip and tried to slash into Trip’s flesh.

With his remaining strength, Trip struggled and gripped the scalpel, managing to pull it away. Amidst an ear piercing scream from Caroline, both of them lost their footing and fell, struggling for control of the scalpel as they descended to the ground. They both landed on the floor in a crumpled heap with a sickening thud, then Captain Archer, Malcolm, Caroline and Captain McGane looked on in horror as a pool of red blood began to spill forth.


Continue to Chapter 10

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