Immune - Chapter 7

Immune

by Trinneergirl

Disclaimers in Chapter 1

Chapter Seven

His heart pounding wildly, Trip made his way through the ship, his mind darting over the possibilities. Who made that hail? The Captain was in stasis. Could it be an alien invader? Why would any invader address him in the Captain's voice? It was obvious they wanted him to go to the Bridge. Could it be a trap? Breathless, he entered the room containing the weapons locker. He walked over to the largish cupboard, turning to watch the door as he crouched. Keying in his code he opened the locker and retrieved two phase pistols and a couple of extra energy units. Sticking a phase pistol holder to each hip, cowboy-style and pocketing the energy units, he closed the cupboard and locked it. He put in a command code that locked this and every other weapons locker on the ship to all but his codes. Didn't want to arm the enemy.

Pulling a phase pistol, the Starfleet Commander left the room, checking each of the corridors before swiftly moving down them. Back against the wall, cautious at every turn, Trip ran to Engineering. Once inside the vast chamber that contained the Warp 5 engine, he carefully looked round, his gun at the ready, before moving to his 'office'. This grandiose title merely described a desk and chair, squashed in under the ladders and walkways. Sitting down and placing the pistol on the desk, he called up a video image of the Bridge. It was empty! Trip bit the inside of his mouth nervously as he scrolled the camera around. Nothing! There was no one on the Bridge. Nobody at all! Trip blinked as he tried to think through the import of that.

If he was hallucinating to this level already there had to be a reason for it. He hadn't gone crazy in the underwater biosphere. The implications of him being this bad, this soon, were frightening to contemplate. Before he could label himself a lunatic though, he had to make sure of his duty to protect Enterprise. If there were aliens on board and he couldn't see them, were they invisible? The Suliban could shapeshift to blend in with their surroundings. Trip shook at the thought of Suliban soldiers on the ship. When they'd turned up to take the Captain, Trip had been devastated, wondering if he'd ever see his friend again. Then Jon had disappeared and the Suliban troops boarded Enterprise.

Silik, the Suliban leader, had ordered Trip to give assistance to him and, bolshy with worry, Trip had pushed the soldier who pushed him, finding himself staring straight down the barrels of two guns and a rifle. Aware of the consequences of his actions a moment too late, not for the first time, Trip stood motionless, waiting to be put to death on Silik's order. T'Pol had commanded him to comply with the Suliban demands, defusing the situation, and he'd done so, every limb turning to liquid with relief. When the crew was taken to their quarters and locked in, two Suliban had followed Trip into his own rooms. They were the Suliban whom Trip had pushed and his buddy. Since no bones were broken and the bruises didn't show, Trip hadn't bothered to tell anyone or put in his report the beating they'd given him. When they left and locked him in, he'd got slowly up off the floor sat on his bed for a while, just until the shaking stopped, then he'd reached into his bedside drawer, got the little toolset he left there, and started the rescue of his crewmates.

Sitting alone in Engineering, trying to assess the threat, Trip was unnerved at facing a Suliban threat on his own. His cerulean eyes went to the drawer where the detection device ‘Crewman Daniels’ had left behind was situated. In his few hours of spare time, Trip had been working on the technology. He knew that he shouldn't, that if the Captain found out he'd get into trouble, as the device came from the future and if he tinkered with technology from beyond his own time he was messing with the timeline. But Trip couldn't see how he could do that. Surely anything he did now would help create the future. Anyway, he'd made his unilateral decision and had not only deciphered a lot of the components in the detector, but had also created similar chips for the Starfleet equipment. Opening the drawer he picked up the prototype tricorder and set it to the Suliban life signs.

He took his phase pistol in one hand and the scanner in the other, and carefully searched the warp engine room, including the ceiling. The Suliban could hang on the ceiling like the bugs they were. When he was satisfied he wouldn't be ambushed, Trip climbed onto the warp platform and gave the ship's engine and related systems a thorough check. There were some minor systems that needed work, but he could leave the warp core for the moment. He paused to key in one of Malcolm's security protocols. Now only Trip, Sub-Commander T'Pol, Captain Archer, and Lieutenant Reed could have access to the ships’ systems, especially warp and weapons. Trip climbed down the short ladder, made his way across the deck and was about to leave when the hail sounded again. Cold fear gripped the Commander as the voice came through.

"Archer to Commander Tucker." The Captain sounded impatient. Trip walked swiftly back to his desk and sat down. Having rushed across he was strangely reluctant to key the comm channel.

"Tucker here, sir," he managed to say.

"I ordered you here to the Bridge, Commander," Archer snapped. "It's an emergency! Where the hell are you, Trip?" ‘Ordered you here to the Bridge?’ Trip's eyes stared almost unseeingly at the viewscreen where there was a clear image of the empty Bridge. If this was just his imagination, he needed to get himself a less scary one.

"There was an urgent situation in Engineering, sir," Trip improvised. "I'll be there in a few seconds."

"A very few, Commander," Archer warned and ended the conversation.

Trip sat for a couple more seconds, trying to clear his mind, before standing and leaving Engineering. Down each corridor, back through the starship, he moved carefully, making sure in front and behind that there were no Suliban or any other alien race there. Stepping into the turbolift for the first time since the nightmare by now he barely registered, the Commander rode up to outside the Bridge. He ducked down a corridor to the door behind the Situation Room. One last check of the sensors for Suliban life signs and a deep breath, then Trip opened the door. He moved into the space and crouched behind the Situation Room table. Slowly he crept forward. Then he stood. The Bridge was as empty as he remembered it. Moving with alert care, he went to the engineering desk and triggered the Suliban detectors he'd put into every corridor on the ship. He went across to T'Pol's station and started the search for all bio-signs. The results were inarguable.

Trip sat down heavily on T'Pol's chair. He was alone. There were the 82 bio-signs in stasis and his on the Bridge. There was no one and nothing else detectable anywhere. Trip holstered the phase pistol with a shaking hand. Am I going mad, he asked himself? He stared at the readouts for what seemed like ages, before he forced himself to rise and begin his work on the ship's systems again. Tense and jumpy, yet obversely numb, Trip scrutinised everything he could here and then went back to Engineering. He fixed the failing systems and all else he could, before leaving to do his rounds of the cargo bays and Sickbay. He was walking from one cargo bay to the other when he heard two noises that stopped him in his tracks, blankly looking round in incredulity. As Chief Engineer and one of the designers and builders of Enterprise, Trip knew more about her systems than anyone. Over the years of her building and service he had grown into a symbiotic relationship with her systems. There was no doubt about what his ears had just heard.

Enterprise had just left warp to drop into impulse. No, not impulse; he couldn't hear the impulse drive. They'd come to full stop. And the second noise froze Trip to the marrow of his bones. It was the main airlock opening. The Commander wanted to scream in frustration. If anything was happening, he was in deep trouble. If not, his waking nightmare hallucinations were getting worse. Pulling the phase pistol, he cautiously made his way to the airlock. When he got there a deep depressing thud seemed to hit him. The airlock was closed and sealed. There was no ship on the far side and a nearby window showed the ship was still at high warp. The deflector dish glowed slightly as it moved the dust aside. The glow was clearly there now. It was so bright it could be seen here clearly against the transparent aluminum pane.

Just when it seemed as if he could take no more, the young Commander jumped in surprise as the communications panel shouted his name.

"Trip! Dammit, come to the Bridge, now!" Archer's voice screamed from the comm panel. This just couldn't be happening. There was no logical explanation for any of this. No logical explanation except one.

Blinking back tears, Trip leaned back against the wall, his dark blue eyes blank with the defeat of realisation. Four days. Just four days in and he had let everyone on board Enterprise down. The new Commander was a man of straw. Unworthy of the uniform, let alone the rank. Not that any of them would ever live to know it. He was going insane. It was the only viable way to reason this through. He felt sick to the stomach. They were all going to die because he wasn't strong enough.

Walking like a man stricken by ague, Trip returned to the second cargo bay and did the checks of each stasis module. He silently apologised to each face as he shone the torch on them. Sorry. Sorry for the pitiful piss-poor coward you got stuck with as your last hope. Sorry he couldn't design an air filter system that kept you from getting sick. Sorry he was so crap a person that his own best friend turned away. Sorry that, when you needed him most, his feeble mind gave way and left you all to die. Sorry. Sorry. “Sorry, Captain.” Trip gazed down into the stasis tube where Archer lay.

"You were right to dump me, sir," he told the sleeping figure. "I guess you knew me better than I know myself." Trip's blonde head bowed down in defeat. Then he whirled round in astonishment as the hail chimed again.

"Where are you? Trip, damn you! Come to the BRIDGE!" Trip glanced down at Jonathan Archer in his stasis module. Why was he still hallucinating the Captain's voice? It didn't make any logical sense.

He might hallucinate Captain Archer's voice while the man was out of sight, but there was no way he could imagine doing so with the man in plain view. The Commander tried to think, but realised a headache was preventing him from doing so. He'd had a headache for ages, he just hadn't acknowledged it. Trying to fathom things through just made the pain worse. Trip snapped into command mode. He was damned if he was going to be defeated by this. He left the cargo bay and ran at full speed to Sickbay. By the time he reached the medical room the headache was much worse. This was not right. Trip picked up a hypospray and loaded an analgesic. He administered the drug to himself, knowing that unless he got a grip here, he was going to die. Picking up a scanner, he ran the diagnostic device across himself. Blinking to clear his vision he focused on the readings.

The similarity between this and his feelings when he had nearly died of nitrogen narcosis half-a-dozen years ago, during the Omega training mission, one of the last before the final crew of Enterprise were chosen, hadn’t been misplaced. He still had nightmares of that horrible experience. He would have been a goner if it hadn't been for Jonathan Archer. He was suffering from oxygen depletion and carbon monoxide poisoning. While he knew what the problem was, he was in real trouble now. He had a few minutes at most. If he didn't find some oxygen soon, he was going to be fatally overcome. He hadn't enough knowledge about medicine to be able to treat himself. It was clear that the whole air circulation system of the ship was dangerously compromised. The crew in their self-contained stasis units, with separate life supports were safe. He was not. How had this happened? A dozen alarms should have gone off by now. But the how and why would have to wait until later. If he didn't find clean air he wouldn't have a later.

He looked around the medical room. Surely people came in here that needed oxygen? He racked his aching, cotton-filled brain to recall the fitting out of Sickbay. He remembered one of the storage bays held some O2 cylinders. He went to the medical storage room and found a cylinder with an oxygen mask. Turning on the valve, Trip pressed the mask to his face and began to breathe in the lifesaving gas. Knowing he couldn't breathe pure oxygen for too long, he secured the mask, picked up the cylinder and went back into Sickbay. He accessed the computer and looked up Carbon Monoxide Poisoning. He knew the basics. Suddenly one of the basics hit him between the eyes. Carbon Monoxide could only be released as a by-product of burning fossil fuels. There were no fossil fuels on Enterprise. Blinking to clear his vision, Trip took another scan and read the data.

As his brain continued to clear he saw the truth on the readout. CO2, not CO. It was carbon dioxide he was dying from, not carbon monoxide. Trip cleared the screen on the medical computer and looked up the new threat.

Starfleet Medical Issue /0970372089 Carbon Dioxide.

Carbon Dioxide/Industrial Gas Information/Material Safety

HEALTH HAZARD DATA

THRESHOLD LIMIT VALUE
TLV = 5000 ppm [TLV-STEL (Short Term Exposure Limit) = 15000 ppm (1.5% by vol.)]

SYMPTOMS IF INGESTED, CONTACTED WITH SKIN, OR VAPOR INHALED

Carbon dioxide does not support life and may produce immediately hazardous atmospheres. At a concentration in excess of 1.5%, carbon dioxide may produce hyperventilation, headaches, visual disturbances, mild to major hallucinations, tremors, loss of consciousness, and death. Symptoms of exposure in the concentration ranges of 1.5-5% may be highly variable, but typical symptoms of carbon dioxide intoxication include the following:

CO2 Concentration Symptoms:

3-6% headaches, dyspnea, perspiration
6-10% Headache, dyspnea, perspiration, tremors, visual disturbance, mild to major hallucinations, unconsciousness
Over 10% Unconsciousness
If the concentration of carbon dioxide exceeds 10%, unconsciousness can occur without warning, preventing self-rescue. At much higher concentrations, carbon dioxide displaces the oxygen in air below levels necessary to support life.

TOXICOLOGICAL PROPERTIES

Carbon dioxide is a minor but important constituent of the atmosphere, averaging about 0.03% or 300 ppm by volume. At higher concentrations it affects the respiratory rate. Additional symptoms are described above.

RECOMMENDED FIRST AID TREATMENT

Persons suffering from the toxic effect of carbon dioxide should be moved to areas with normal atmosphere. SELF CONTAINED BREATHING APPARATUS MAY BE NECESSARY TO PREVENT TOXIC EXPOSURE OR ASPHYXIATION OF RESCUE WORKERS. Assisted respiration and supplemental oxygen should be given if the victim is not breathing. Frozen tissues should be flooded or soaked with tepid water (105-115F; 41-46C). DO NOT USE HOT WATER. Cryogenic burns which result in blistering or deeper tissue freezing should be seen promptly by a physician. As Carbon Dioxide is heavier than air rising to higher ground to seek fresh air is best.

PHYSICAL DATA

BOILING POINT ('F.)
@ 1 atm -109.3F (-78.5C) FREEZING POINT ('F)
@ 1 atm 76 (-56.6C)
VAPOR PRESSURE (psia)
@ 68F (20C) 831 psia (56.5 atm) SOLUBILITY IN WATER
@ 68F (20C), 1 atm 87.8% by volume
VAPOR DENSITY (lb/cu ft)
@ 68F (20C), 1 atm 0.115 SPECIFIC GRAVITY (AIR =1)
@ 68F (20C), 1 atm 1.53 LIQUID DENSITY (lb/cu ft)
@ -35F (-37C), 11 atm 68.74 SPECIFIC GRAVITY (H2O = 1)
solid @-110F (-79C),1 atm1.56

APPEARANCE AND ODOR

Carbon dioxide is colorless and odorless as gas or liquid. It is stored in containers under its own vapor pressure. If the pressure is suddenly relieved, the liquid rapidly cools as it evaporates and sublimes, forming dry ice at -109.3F (-78.5C).

REACTIVITY DATA

STABLE. NO FIRE HAZARD.

STEPS TO BE TAKEN IN CASE MATERIAL IS RELEASED OR SPILLED

Carbon dioxide in small quantities will vaporize leaving behind carbon dioxide "snow" (a combination of dry ice and water ice where atmospheric moisture is present). Ventilate indoor areas well to avoid hazardous carbon dioxide concentrations. Ventilate well and avoid contact with cold vapors or dry ice. Carbon dioxide is a heavy gas and will remain in low spots without assisted ventilation.

WASTE DISPOSAL METHOD

Do not attempt to dispose of residual carbon dioxide in compressed gas cylinders. Return cylinders to Air Products with residual pressure, the cylinder valve tightly closed, and the valve cap in place. When disposing of bulk quantities of carbon dioxide from refrigerated storage tanks, always dispose of carbon dioxide outside, In a well ventilated location away from work areas, where vapors can disperse, Vent to the atmosphere slowly since rapid depressurization of the container will cause the formation of solid carbon dioxide (dry ice) internally, requiring longer periods to vaporize.

SPECIAL PROTECTION INFORMATION

RESPIRATORY PROTECTION (Specify type)
Use self-contained breathing apparatus in oxygen-deficient atmospheres or where carbon dioxide exceeds 1.5%. CAUTION! Respirators will not function. Use may result in asphyxiation.

VENTILATION

Natural or mechanical where gas is present.

LOCAL EXHAUST

May be useful at point sources of CO2 vapors.

SPECIAL MECHANICAL (General)

Where low lying areas are not naturally ventilated.

OTHER

Vents should be situated to avoid higher than normal concentration of helium in work areas.

PROTECTIVE GLOVES

Loose-fitting gloves of impermeable material such as leather when working with cold liquid, solid, or vapor.

EYE PROTECTION

Safety glasses are recommended when handling high-pressure cylinders and in areas where vapors are discharged.

OTHER PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT

None

SPECIAL PRECAUTIONS*

OTHER RECOMMENDATIONS OR PRECAUTIONS

In applications where temperatures less than -20F (-29C) are expected, avoid the use of carbon steel and other materials which become brittle at low temperatures ESP in area exposed to space. The atmosphere in areas in which CO2 gas may be vented and collect should be tested with a portable or continuous monitoring CO2 gas analyzer.

Trip took this information in like all other safety rules and regs he'd learned over the years. He read it once to comprehend it and once more to pick the bones out of what he really needed to know.

Okay, so carbon dioxide was neither flammable nor a safety hazard per se. That was good news. The bad news was that his hallucinations and scanner both showed a ppm saturation of CO2 as 975294 or 9.75%. That was perilously near the 10%-you're-dead cutoff point. Again Trip shook his head. This was crazy. The only way this could have happened is if the scrubbers had been switched off days ago. Alarms would and should have been set off on each deck as the heavier-than-air gas filled the ship. Trip saw that he'd done pretty much all he could medically, but was darkly amused at the Starfleet suggestion he should move to higher ground to get fresh air. The guidelines were clearly from an older source of information before space travel trapped you in with your death.

His problem was not climbing a hill, but finding a way to reinitialise the scrubbers and get the air clean without damaging the already dangerously overloaded life support systems. A solution occurred to Trip, but the cost to him would be very high. No matter, he told himself, it was the only way. He walked over and checked the six stasis units in sickbay, then he turned and left, carrying the O2 cylinder. He was about to make his tomb a coffin and bury himself alive in it.

Continue to Chapter 8

Return to Chapter 6

Back to Fan Fiction Main Menu

Have a comment to make about this story? Do so in the Trip Fan Fiction forum at the HoTBBS!