THE ABDUCTION OF TUCKER

The invitation had seemed friendly enough at the time and T'Pol had actually not objected. It seemed she was familiar with these people and did not see them as any kind of threat. What none of them knew was that several Suliban that were members of the Cabal were setting a trap. Their plan was to capture Captain Archer and make him give them all the information he'd gotten on his little trip into the future. Not to mention the data disks he'd stolen from their cloaked vessel.

As the shuttlepod set down and Commander Tucker secured the vessel, Captain Archer began to move towards the counsel chambers. The fact that Commander Tucker was several paces behind would be his undoing. However, it also allowed him to see the Suliban crawling down the side of the building. "What the hell? CAPTAIN, ABOVE YOU!"

Archer heard Trip yell and looked up to see the Suliban on the side of the building. He quickly took cover behind a large cement statue as phaser fire filled the air. Looking around the side of the statue, he couldn't quite see Trip and that worried him. He'd been left out in the open when the phaser blasts started. "TRIP?"

"I'm okay, sir." He'd been trying to reach Archer's location, but he no sooner spoke those words when a phaser beam caught him in the right hip. "Ahhh." Falling to the ground in a heap, the searing heat and effects of the beam caused him to lose consciousness.

Archer heard Trip's cry of pain and knew he was no longer okay. Unfortunately the Suliban had him pinned down behind the statue. He did his best to return fire and took out several of the Suliban, but it wasn't enough. Catching a glimpse of several Suliban approaching Trip's motionless form, Archer tried to fire on them. Watching as they picked him up and began to drag him away, he took aim and fired. One of the Suliban went down, but another came up and took his place. "Trip."

Enterprise's sensors had detected the phaser fire and Reed was struggling to get a transporter lock on both men. Unfortunately he was having trouble with interference. Finally he was able to get a lock on Archer and engaged the transporter.

Archer felt the tingle of the transporter and although he was grateful to be out of there, he couldn't help worrying about Trip. Did Enterprise get a lock on him too? As soon as he materialized in the transporter room he looked around to see if Trip was there. "What about Trip?"

Reed looked back down at the console. "I can't beam him back without bringing several Suliban with him."

"Get a security team down here, then beam Trip up." Archer moved next to Reed and looked at the sensor readings. There were at least a half dozen Suliban around Trip, but only two of them were actually making physical contact.

"Aye, Captain. A team is on the way." Reed's brow furrowed and he adjusted the controls. "Sir, I've lost the Commander. He's no longer on the sensors and it looks like the Suliban have erected a dispersion field around their ship."

"Damn it. I want that ship tracked." He wasn't about to lose Trip to the Suliban. They could be brutal and he knew they had probably wanted him and not Trip. "Hang on, Trip."

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When Trip regained consciousness he found himself laying on the floor in a small, empty room. He had no idea where he was or how long he'd been out. What worried him the most was where the Captain was. His hip throbbed with the pain of the phaser wound and his captors had done nothing to treat the wound.

As he tried to sit up, pain flared in his hip and he gritted his teeth. Trip leaned back against the cold, metal wall and closed his eyes. He made sure he kept his weight on his left side so he wouldn't make the pain in his right hip any worse.

It didn't take him long to figure out that he'd been relieved of his communicator, tricorder, and phase pistol. At that moment he wasn't even sure where he was. Were they still holding him on the planet, or was he somewhere else? He could feel a slight vibration under him and that told him he was aboard a ship. "Where the hell are they taking me?" He whispered.

During that time when he had nothing to do but think, he made the decision that no matter what they wanted from him he would not give it to them, or help them get it. He had a pretty good idea that it had been Archer they really wanted and they probably wanted those data disks back. Well, they could do their worst to him and he was not going to give in.

A short time later, Silik and two other Suliban came into the room and moved to where Trip sat. He didn't bother to get up, but the two Suliban pulled him to his feet. "Commander Tucker, you weren't who I wanted, but you should do nicely." Nodding to the two soldiers, they moved him towards the door. "Somehow I don't think Jonathan will let anything happen to his best friend."

"Don't count on it. We all know the risks when we sign on and the Captain won't risks lives to save mine." Trip gritted his teeth as the pain in his hip flared. They pulled him along a corridor and into another room. In that room was a chair with straps and a monitor. He knew what was about to happen, but he hoped he could convince Archer not to give in. They were about to beat him and then show Archer what was happening to him.

The two Suliban forced Trip into the chair and strapped his arms and legs to the chair. Moving back, they let Silik move up next to Trip. "Now, Commander Tucker, what did Archer do with the data disks that he stole from us?"

Trip sat there and said nothing. He wasn't going to tell them anything except maybe where to go. His hands grasped the arms of the chair tightly as he watched Silik make a fist. The blow to his face was harder than he expected and his head was thrown to the side. Still he said nothing and made no sound. Blood began to trickle from his nose and he knew it was broken.

"Answer my question, Commander."

"Go to hell." Again his head was thrown to the side by the impact of another punch. Now there was a small cut on his left cheek that began bleeding and he could already feel his left eye beginning to swell up. By the time Silik was finally ready to contact Enterprise, Trip had blood trickling from his nose, mouth, and the cut on his left cheek. His nose, left eye, and lower lip were all swollen, and his head hung down with his chin resting on his chest.

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"Sir, we're being hailed. It's the Suliban vessel." Hoshi's voice was strong, but there was concern in it.

"Put it through." Archer sat up straight in his chair as the image of Silik came up on his screen.

"Jonathan, I am sure you know why I am contacting you." Silik smiled and looked forward to seeing Archer's reaction to his friends condition.

"Give us Commander Tucker back and we'll forget this happened." He knew Silik wouldn't do it, but he had to try.

"I can't do that Jonathan. You see there are some data disks that you stole that I want back." Silik nodded and the image shifted to Trip strapped to the chair. One of the Suliban soldiers grabbed Trip's hair and forcefully pulled his head up so his face could be seen.

Hoshi's hand went to her mouth and she gasped. She had to turn away from the image of a badly beaten Tucker. A brief flash of anger crossed T'Pol's face before she got herself back under control. Reed and Mayweather openly showed their anger and deep concern covered Archer's face. "Bastard, he's done nothing to you. Let him go." Archer could see the glazed look in Trip's blue eyes and knew his friend was not doing well. He also saw the message Trip was giving him with just a look. 'Don't give in to them.' He'd do his best not to.

"Not until you give me what I want. I want those data disks back and I also want a detailed report of everything you learned from your trip to the future, Jonathan. Until I have those the Commander stays with me and I can't guarantee he won't suffer more of the same treatment." He could cause Tucker no further harm, he'd made his point to Archer, but he was angry about losing to Archer last time and wanted someone to take it out on. Besides, he had a feeling Archer would need further motivation to cooperate.

"It's going to take some time, Silik. The data disks are at Starfleet headquarters on Earth and I'll need to write up the report you want." All Archer could do was try and stall Silik until they could come up with a rescue plan.

"You have three days, Jonathan. After that you will never see your Commander again. At least not alive." Silik quickly cut the transmission and turned to the two soldiers. "Take him back to his cell."

"Yes, sir." They released Tucker from his binds and had to half carry, half drag him out of the room. Moving down the hall, they threw him into the cell and closed the door.

Trip hit the floor hard and groaned. It was the first sound he'd made since telling Silik to go to hell. The pain in his hip and face was not severe, but there was a throbbing that made him feel miserable. After a few moments he let the soothing darkness of unconsciousness take him. When he woke again the throb was no less and he again moaned in pain. The wound in his hip was oozing blood and becoming red and inflamed. Since it had gone untreated, an infection was beginning to set in.

It was a struggle to get into a sitting position and as he leaned back against the wall, his fingers began probing the area around his left eye. It was very swollen and he could barely see out of it. Next his fingers found his lower lip and he gently touched the split there. "Just great." His jaw ached too and he knew it was very bruised. None of that mattered. He'd been beaten and didn't make a sound. For that he was proud of himself, but he'd heard Archer tell Silik that he would get what he wanted and that made him angry. "Don't do it, Captain."

Closing his eyes, he fought the pain and prayed that Archer was just trying to stall Silik until they could try to rescue him. Provided the Suliban left him alone for a while, so he could get his thoughts together, he'd be making an escape attempt the first chance he got. If he could get free long enough to find an escape pod, he could head for Enterprise and hope she was close enough to reach him before the Suliban did.

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Archer was angry and he was putting that anger to good use. He had his entire bridge crew working on a way to rescue Trip. The condition of his friend had frightened and angered him and he wanted to get him out before he was beaten any more. With every hour that passed, Archer became more worried about Trip. Silik had given him three days and he didn't think he'd kill Trip before that time. About ten minutes ago he'd ordered everyone to the situation room to find out what they'd come up with. "What have we got people?"

"According to the transmissions that I've been monitoring, the Suliban ship is headed for a helix." Hoshi handed the Captain a PADD and waited to hear what the others had to say. She was very worried about Trip, but tried not to show it.

"That coincides with the projected destination based on their current heading." T'Pol added.

"Their ship is heavily armed and with both of us at warp, we can't used the projectors to see through their cloak. In my opinion, waiting until they reach the helix would be our best bet." Reed didn't want to wait until then, but he didn't see any other choice.

"We'll be dealing with a lot more Suliban if we wait and we won't know if they move him when they arrive there." Archer didn't like it. There had to be a way to get Trip off the Suliban ship without having to wait until it reached the helix. "There has to be a way to get that ship stopped."

"I'll go back and look at the data we have on that kind of vessel." Reed didn't think there was a way, but he'd do whatever he could to get Trip back.

"Hoshi, I want you to go to Doctor Phlox and let him know what to expect when we get Trip back." He wasn't going to say if, there was no room for ifs in this.

"Yes, Captain."

"T'Pol, work with Reed in finding a way to get that ship stopped." Archer headed for his chair on the bridge. "Travis, how far from the Suliban ship are we?"

"I've been maintaining a distance of eight hundred kilometers, sir." Travis turned to look at Archer. Everyone on board was worried about how Archer was holding up, but he seemed very focused on what needed to be done.

"Very good. I want to know if anything changes."

"Aye, Captain." Travis turned back to his console. He'd keep a close eye on the warp trail of the cloaked Suliban vessel.

"I'm headed to the mess hall for something to eat. Contact me immediately if anything changes." Archer stepped into the turbo-lift and nodded as Travis replied.

"Certainly, sir." Travis made sure Enterprise stayed close to the Suliban vessel. Most likely they knew they were being followed, but he wasn't about to lose them.

T'Pol and Malcolm went back and began studying the plans for the Suliban vessel. They needed to find something, anything that they could use to rescue Trip, or at least get the vessel stopped. They studied the plans inch by inch and memorized every detail. Slowly they were beginning to formulate a plan, but it was still a question mark as to whether it would work or not. The other thing that concerned them was what would happen to Trip if they did attempt a rescue. If everything didn't go just perfect, they could wind up getting Trip killed.

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In the meantime, Trip was working on a plan of his own. If he could just get the lock on the door shorted out, then he could get out of that room and find an escape pod. Unfortunately he had no tools to work with, so it was making the task more difficult. He'd managed to get the cover off the controls, but had shocked himself on the wires a couple of times as he tried to rewire it with his fingers. "Damn it."

He knew that time was running out and still hadn't gotten the door open. Part of the problem was that he was starving. The Suliban had given him some water, but no food at all. Finally after another ten minutes of messing with the controls, the door opened. Trip peeked around the corner to make sure there were no Suliban around. The corridor was empty and Trip smiled.

Carefully he began to move down the corridor. He tried to remember where everything was located on the Suliban ship, but the pain and lack of food was making it hard to concentrate. Reaching the next corridor, he paused to check and see if anyone was there. Quickly he ducked back as a small group of Suliban soldiers passed by. Luckily he hadn't been spotted and he continued his journey to the escape pods.

Trip found a room off one of the corridors that made him smile. If he could just have a few minutes in that room, he could do a little sabotage. Looking both ways, he quickly entered the room and went to work. Twenty minutes later, he left the electrical room with a smile on his face. He ignored the fact that it caused pain in his lip.

Ten minutes and three corridors later, Trip could see his goal in sight. The doors to the escape pods were at the end of the corridor. Unfortunately he was more focused on what was in front of him, that he didn't notice Silik and several other soldiers come up behind him. Before he knew what was happening they grabbed him and shoved him hard against the wall.

"Commander, you shouldn't have done that. I do understand why you did it, but none the less, you shouldn't have attempted to escape." Silik was once again angry. These human's were causing him more trouble than anyone else ever had. He punched Tucker in the stomach and watched him double over as the wind was forced from his lungs. "Take him to another cell and teach him a lesson."

"Yes, sir." Two of the soldiers grabbed Trip by the arms and dragged him to another cell down the corridor from the one he'd been in before. This one had no controls on the inside, so he couldn't try to escape again. They threw Trip on the floor and began kicking him. Most of the blows landed at his lower back, but a few caught him in the ribs. By the time they finished, Trip lay unconscious on the floor with several broken ribs and severe bruising and swelling to the small of his back.

An hour later Trip moaned as he slowly began to regain consciousness. The pain in his back and ribs was far greater than the pain in his hip and face. His attempt to move only brought him intense pain in his back and his breath caught as he fought the wave of pain. Now he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to move at all, which meant no further escape attempts could be made. As he lay there one thing became obvious to him, the ship he was on was no longer moving. What that meant was that his sabotage had worked and he felt satisfaction at that.

What Trip didn't know was that what woke him was the ship dropping out of warp as his sabotaging of the electrical system took effect. The Suliban vessel was now at a dead stop and the soldiers were running around trying to find out what had happened. Trip lay there quietly and hoped he'd given Archer what he needed to get him out of there. "Come on, Captain. Get me out of here." He whispered before drifting to sleep.

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Travis sat up straighter in his chair. The Suliban vessel had just dropped out of warp. "Sir, the Suliban vessel just dropped out of warp. In fact it's at a dead stop and it looks like all of their systems are down."

"I'll be damned." Archer smiled. He had a feeling in his gut that Trip had something to do with it.

"Sir?" Travis turned to look at him with a puzzled look on his face.

"I'll bet you that Trip had something to do with that."

"You think so, sir?" It was possible, after all Trip was an engineer and if he'd gotten a chance to do something, he'd have done it.

"Yes, I do. Mister Reed, please get a landing party together. We are going to make that rescue attempt right now." To himself he added. 'Good work, Trip.'

"Aye, Captain." Reed was very glad that they'd gotten a break. If Trip had anything to do with getting that Suliban ship stopped, then Malcolm thought he deserved a medal. Leaving the bridge, Reed began to assemble the landing party and equipment they would need. The most important thing they'd need were the stun grenades so they could knock out as many Suliban as they could.

While Reed was making his preparations, the Suliban were frantically trying to make repairs. Trip's sabotage had done a lot of damage and it was taking time to fix. Silik was furious and ready to kill Tucker, but knew he couldn't until he'd gotten what he wanted from Archer. After that though, he'd send Tucker back to Jonathan, but not alive.

When the ship went dead the door to Trip's cell opened. The entire ship was dark and he thought it might be another chance to escape. Crawling to the doorway, Trip used the door frame to pull himself to his feet. A bolt of pain shot through his lower back and ribs, but he tried to ignore it. Once he was on his feet the pain in his back became exquisite, but he forced himself to move out of the room and down the hall. He leaned against the wall as he slowly took one step after another. A few moments later, Trip fell to the floor. The pain was too great and he couldn't go any further. His hope was that Archer was planning a rescue attempt now that the ship was stopped.

Silik and a group of soldiers found Tucker laying in the corridor. He had to admit the man had guts. Since he hadn't been able to get anything out of him by beating him, he thought he'd try using the same thing he'd used on the Vulcan back when Archer disappeared. Commander Tucker had to know what Archer knew since they were best friends and Archer probably told him everything. "Take him to the surgeons and get him ready for interrogation."

"Yes sir, but do you think he'll survive in the condition he's in?"

"Who are you to question my orders? I really don't care if he survives or not." Silik was not happy with the way things were going. Commander Tucker was becoming more trouble than he was worth.

"We'll take him right away, sir." The soldiers picked Tucker up and dragged him down the corridor. His boots scraped along the metal floor as he was dragged.

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"T'Pol, could we beam Trip off that ship?" Archer decided that before he took a shuttlepod over to the Suliban ship, he'd see if there was an easier way.

"It would be possible if he was in a location that was not blocked by a dampening field. Most of the ship is accessible, but a small section at the front is blocked. That must be where the Commander is as I am unable to detect his bio-signs." She'd already anticipated his question and run the scan. The Suliban were making progress with their repairs, so the Captain had better act fast.

"The shuttlepod it is then."

"You'd best get going Captain, they are making progress with their repairs." T'Pol ran another scan and a look of concern crossed her face.

"What is it, T'Pol?" Archer hadn't missed the look.

"I ran another scan of the Suliban vessel and the area that is blocked by the dampening field was briefly accessible. It would appear they are using the same process on the Commander that they used on me when you disappeared." She didn't want to remember that. It had left her weak and uncomfortable.

"Damn, in Trip's physical condition that could kill him. I remember what it did to you and you were healthy." This new information had Archer very worried. If they thought they could get the information out of Trip that way, then they might not care if it killed him. The worst part was that Trip couldn't tell them anything. Archer had been determined not to tell anyone what he learned in the future. It could have damaging effects to the timeline if he told anyone anything.

"Indeed. The longer you wait to get to him, the less chance he has for survival." T'Pol greatly admired what the Commander had been through so far and still managed to somehow sabotage the Suliban vessel.

"Archer to Reed, are you ready to go Lieutenant?"

"Aye, Captain." Reed had assembled the supplies and had two of his security officers with him.

"I'll be right down. We don't have much time, Trip is in serious trouble." Archer quickly got in the turbo-lift and headed for the landing bay. Now that he knew Trip was in real danger, he felt more urgency. Not that the situation hadn't been urgent from the beginning, but it was even more so now. The minute he was aboard the shuttlepod Archer gave the order to depart.

"What's happening with Trip?" Reed didn't know what was going on, just that something had made Archer's concern grow.

"T'Pol says they are using the same technique on Trip that they used on her to find out information. In his condition that could kill him."

"Understood, Captain." Now Malcolm understood. He remembered what T'Pol had been like when she came back from that experience. Reed set a course for the Suliban vessel. At least this time they wouldn't need to disable the Suliban vessel first. Trip had done it for them and if Archer didn't put him in for a commendation, Reed would have to say something.

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Back on the Suliban ship, Trip was fighting to stay conscious. The stuff the Suliban were pumping into him to make him talk was taking it's toll on him. There was nothing he could tell them, but they didn't seem to want to believe him.

"What did Jonathan learn in the future? I know he had to have told you. You're best friends and among human's that means sharing things with each other. Is that not correct?" Silik was getting frustrated and was about ready to just kill Tucker. The problem was, if Tucker didn't know anything and he killed him, Archer certainly wouldn't give him what he wanted then.

"Ordinarily, yes." Trip had to pause so he could put his thoughts together. "The Captain wouldn't tell anyone what he learned." Another pause. "He was afraid." Trip closed his eyes, it was so hard to think. "That it would damage the time line."

"So he told no one what he learned? Not even Starfleet, or the Vulcan's?" Silik was skeptical, but somehow it did seem like something Archer would do.

"No." Trip was quickly losing his fight to stay conscious and he was terrified that if he lost consciousness, he'd never wake up again. Silik would kill him and that would be the end of it.

Before anyone had time to think, things began exploding around them and Silik headed for the door. He knew Archer was trying to rescue his friend, but he needed to save his own ass. Let him have Tucker back, he'd have another chance to get what he wanted. Sending his soldiers to fight Archer, Silik headed for the nearest escape pod. The scientists also headed for the escape pods leaving Trip laying there. He was now unconscious and unaware of what was going on around him.

Archer and Reed tossed another stun grenade and moved into the room. Reed looked for the controls for the dampening field while Archer went to Trip's side. The condition Trip was in shocked him and he didn't know how he'd been able to sabotage the ship like that, but he would be putting Trip in for a commendation for his tremendous efforts. "What have they done to you, my friend?"

Trip moaned and slowly opened his eyes. "Captain?" He tried to move, but was still strapped to the table.

"Lay still Trip. We'll get you out of here." Archer's brow furrowed as he looked at his friend. The injuries he could see seemed bad and he wondered what other injuries he had that he couldn't see. "Just take it easy."

"Silik?"

"Appears to have fled. Sometimes I think he's more of a coward than he'd like people to know." He couldn't believe the way Silik had run to save his own ass.

"Sir, I can't find the controls for the dampening field. We're going to have to get out of this room to get away from it." Reed moved next to Archer and looked down at Trip. "How are you feeling, sir?"

"Like hell, but glad you guys are here." Trip tried to smile, but he was in too much pain.

"Can you walk?"

"I don't think so, Captain." Pausing, Trip closed his eyes as a wave of pain washed over him. "They decided to use me as a soccer ball." He took a deep breath and continued. "Most of their kicks landed at my lower back."

"Okay, just relax. Malcolm and I will carry you out." He'd left the other security officers at the shuttlepod to make sure it was secure. They quickly got the straps removed and gently lifted Trip off the bed. Archer took him under the arms while Malcolm got his legs. Every moan that Trip made sent pain through Archer's heart and he did his best not to cause him any more pain.

Malcolm kept a close eye on Trip's face and could see him grimace in pain. They took him out of the room and down the corridor. Once they reached a distance that they thought would get them out of the effects of the dampening field, they gently laid Trip down. "Reed to Enterprise."

"Go ahead."

"Can you beam Commander Tucker up now?" Malcolm sure hoped so, because he didn't think Trip could take being moved again.

"Yes, I have a clear signal now. I have Doctor Phlox standing by in the transporter room with a medical team." T'Pol had been monitoring Tucker's vitals with the transporter and they were getting weaker.

"Beam him up, then we'll head back to Enterprise." Archer had only intended to rescue Trip, but it seemed that their stun grenades had done a lot of damage to the Suliban ship. According to his tricorder, it was going to blow up completely, very soon. As soon as Trip was gone, he and Malcolm headed back to the shuttlepod. There wasn't much time before the soldiers would start to wake again.

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The minute Commander Tucker materialized Doctor Phlox was at his side. He was furious as he examined Tucker. The Suliban had really abused him and it was amazing to him that Tucker was even conscious. "Take it easy Commander, we'll have you to sickbay in a few moments." Turning to his medical team, "Get that stretcher over here."

"Archer?" Trip wanted to know where the Captain was. It was all he could do to stay conscious, but he wanted to know where Archer was first.

"He's on his way back in the shuttlepod, Commander." T'Pol's voice was steady and only she knew about the anger she felt at seeing Commander Tucker in the condition he was in. One day she would get the chance to see justice done and that day couldn't come soon enough. She was going to have to really meditate that night in order to bring her emotions back under control.

The medics moved in to pick Tucker up and place him on the stretcher. "Be very careful with him. He's got some serious injuries to his back." Phlox was a little worried, but according to his scans, most of the damage consisted of bruising and swelling. Hearing the Commander moan in pain as they lifted him onto the stretcher, prompted Phlox to give him a hypo-spray with pain killer in it. "Get him to sickbay, I'll be right behind you."

The medics nodded and moved out of the transporter room with the stretcher. Tucker seemed a little more at ease now that he'd gotten the pain killer, but he was starting to drift off. Reaching sickbay, the medics got Commander Tucker off the stretcher and onto a bio-bed. They began doing what they could for him until Phlox arrived and could do more. Tucker was now unconscious which made their job a little easier. They'd been trying not to cause him pain, so now that he was out they didn't have to worry about that as much.

Doctor Phlox arrived a few minutes later and began studying the readings above Tucker's bio-bed. His vitals were weaker than they should be, but didn't appear to be life threatening. As he began scanning the Commander, Phlox was quite surprised that he was as alert as he had been before the pain killer and exhaustion had put him to sleep. The man had bruises over his entire body, but what worried Phlox the most was the swelling and severe bruising at the small of his back. "Ensign Cutler, would you please give these hypo-sprays to the Commander. When you've done that, cover him with a blanket."

Cutler took the hypo-sprays that Phlox handed her and pressed them against the Commander's neck. She couldn't believe how badly bruised and battered he was and it made her feel very sad. Her hope was that he would be okay and there wouldn't be any permanent damage. The injury to his back looked very bad. "Okay Doctor, I've done as you asked."

"Very good. Right now the Commander needs as much rest as possible. I need you to stay with him and make sure he doesn't move around too much. I'm going to turn him on his side so that there is no pressure on his back and I need you to make sure he stays that way." Carefully Phlox turned Tucker on his side and adjusted the blanket. He'd given him an antibiotic for the infection in his hip wound and bandaged it.

"I can do that. Is there anything else we can do?" She wished there was more that could be done, but at least Trip was resting comfortably at the moment.

"No, other than keeping him comfortable and not letting him move around, all we can do is let him heal." Phlox wanted to be in the landing bay when the Captain returned. He wanted to talk to him about Tucker's condition and let him know that he would be okay. After what Tucker had been through, Phlox thought he deserved a medal, or commendation, or something.

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At one point during the night, Trip began to wake. Even the slightest movement caused him tremendous pain as his swollen and battered joints had stiffened while he slept. Moaning, he tried to change position and wished he hadn't. "Oh, God."

"Commander, are you all right?" Cutler quickly moved beside the bio-bed. It was obvious that he'd tried to move.

"No." Taking a deep breath, he continued. "How long?"

"About eight hours, sir. Doctor Phlox wants you to stay as still as possible so you don't hurt yourself further." Cutler gently stroked his hair. She could see he was in a lot of pain. "How do you feel?"

"Like hell." Trip looked at Cutler and could see the concern on her face. "But I'll live."

"I'll get you some more pain killer." She figured that more antibiotic would be a good idea too. "Try to get some more rest."

"Thanks, Ensign." He wondered what had become of Silik and the other Suliban, but didn't have the strength to ask just then.

Cutler gave Trip the hypo-sprays and stayed with him until he fell back to sleep, which didn't take long. "Sleep well, Commander."

In the morning, Phlox came into sickbay with a double helping of breakfast for Tucker. The scans he ran when Tucker first came back had shown the lack of food, but he wanted him to get some rest first. "Good morning, Commander."

"Doc." Sometimes Trip hated the Doctor's chipper mode and now was one of those times. He ached all over and it felt like someone was sticking a knife in the small of his back.

"Not feeling too good, are you?" Phlox could tell by the bio-signs and the look of pain in Tucker's eyes that he wasn't feeling well. "Perhaps something to eat will help."

"Looks great, Doc. Ain't going to be easy to eat like this." Laying on his side wasn't how he usually ate.

"I'll get you into a comfortable position and I can help you eat if necessary." He smiled as he heard Tucker mumble something about being old enough to feed himself. Phlox could tell by the Commander's mood that he was in a lot of pain. Once he had Tucker situated and he was eating his breakfast on his own, Phlox prepared the hypo-sprays for pain and infection. To his credit, Tucker ate every bite of the breakfast and was now struggling to stay awake.

"Thanks, Doc." Trip felt a little better after eating. He'd forgotten just how hungry he was and the smell of the food when Phlox brought it in had made his stomach growl.

"You're welcome, Commander. Now I want to put an osmotic eel on your hip for a while. I'd prefer that you be asleep for that." Placing the hypo-spray against Tucker's neck, he gave him first the pain killer, then the antibiotic.

"Don't worry, Doc. I'll be asleep in no time." In fact he could barely stay awake and now that he'd been given the pain killer, it helped him feel even more sleepy.

"You'll also need to remain still."

"Sure, Doc. I can do that." Trip closed his eyes and slipped easily into a deep sleep. The pain and exhaustion of the last few days still effected him. He didn't feel the Doctor tending to him and was not aware of Archer's brief, but concerned, visit.

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A week later, Trip was back at work, but he had to remain seated most of the time. The back injury was still a problem and he couldn't stand for more than a few minutes at a time. He still managed to keep engineering running smoothly as he let his staff do the manual labor. Archer had been keeping a close eye on him and it was starting to bug him. Doctor Phlox had been concerned about psychological effects of his abduction, but he didn't feel that he had any.

Archer had managed to keep Trip's commendation a secret, so that it would be a surprise when it was presented to him. It hadn't been easy to get Trip to the landing bay for the special ceremony. Of course right now it took him longer to get places with his back injury. Most of the time he walked with a cane and proceeded slowly. Phlox had assured him that Trip would make a full recover.

Admiral Forest was very proud. This had to be one of Starfleets finest moments. He'd shuttled out to Enterprise for the formal ceremony. Now he stood before Commander Tucker and the rest of the crew. "Commander Charles Tucker the third, it is with great pride that I present you with this commendation for the performance of duty above and beyond the call. Despite being seriously injured, you made several attempts to escape the Suliban and performed sabotage on their vessel, which allowed Captain Archer and Lieutenant Reed to effect your rescue."

Trip shook the Admiral's hand and accepted the award. "Thank you, sir." He wasn't really one for awards and glory. He'd just been doing his job and his duty was to try and escape whenever captured by the enemy.

Forest could still see a few of the fading bruises on Tucker's face. He'd read the reports and recommendations turned in by Archer, Reed, and Doctor Phlox. Commander Tucker had been put through hell while with the Suliban. Even now he was still recovering and due to the injuries to his lower back, he couldn't remain standing for very long. The Admiral had been informed by Phlox that Tucker would make a full recovery.

"I really don't know what to say. I was only doing my job. I'd like to thank everyone for their support and the efforts they made to rescue me." Trip reached for the chair that had been placed close by. He'd endured the pain in his back as long as he could, but now it was too much.

Hoshi made no attempt to hide the tear that ran down her cheek. She was so proud of Trip and she was so happy that he was safely back with them. The tear was also for the pain that he still experienced and it broke her heart to see him unable to even stand for very long. He was such a strong man and it was strange to see him the way he currently was.

"Take it easy, Commander. I know this first year of your mission has seen it's ups and downs, but I firmly believe that you are the start of something bigger and one day you'll all be in the history books." Forest addressed the entire crew. He wanted them to know that this was not just for Commander Tucker, but for all of them. "I must be headed back to Starfleet now, but I wish you all luck on your continuing mission." Turning to Trip, he squeezed his shoulder and looked down at him. There was obvious pain in his eyes, but he seemed to be doing better now that he was sitting. "Congratulations again Commander and I hope you are well soon."

"Thanks, Admiral." Trip smiled, but the smile didn't replace the pain reflected in his eyes. He'd been deeply touched by the way everyone had almost insisted that he be given a commendation. It wasn't something he expected, but he did appreciate it very much.

Once the Admiral was gone, Hoshi went over to Trip and knelt down. "Sir, would you like some help getting to your quarters?" She figured she'd offer to help him since Archer had gone to see the Admiral off.

Trip smiled at Hoshi and reached out to caress her cheek. She was a beautiful young woman and a tremendous asset to the crew. "That's sweet of you, thanks Hoshi." Putting his arm around her shoulders, he used his cane to push himself up. Once they were standing, he tried not to put too much of his weight on her. Slowly they walked back to his quarters and she made sure he was comfortable before she left. "Thanks again, Hoshi."

"It's my pleasure, sir. I hope you feel better soon." And he would. Within another week he would be back on his feet and feeling fine. Hoshi and the rest of the junior staff had an even greater respect and admiration for him than they had before.

THE END