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To travel, this was certain. New planets were sought out, surveyed, noted down in Starfleet's maps. New species were met, in good faith or in bad; ships were destroyed, people died, alliances were made, love was found and lost. Again and again this process was repeated; an attempt at some stellar census, perhaps, or a tactical ploy, or maybe those humans really just couldn't help themselves from seeking out new life and new civilizations. To go somewhere new was the undeniable purpose of the Enterprise.
Returning was another matter. If the planet was inhabited by a friendly species, more ships might be sent later to establish relations. If a planet was of scientific interest, probes and vessels were requested. But the overwhelming majority of planets were little more than rocks and gases held together by gravity; these places had no one to answer the door, as it were, and when the Enterprise left they didn't come calling again.
Archer couldn't help but bring his hand up to his face, rubbing his nose slowly as he looked out at the dark planet spinning quietly below the Enterprise. He could hardly believe that they were here again. He looked over at T'Pol, the question still in his throat when her eyes met his.
"We have arrived at Dakala, captain. No vessels have been detected anywhere on the surface."
Archer released the breath he didn't realize he had been holding. He nodded and straightened up, trying to collect his sense of command. His hand tapped the arm of his chair unconsciously.
"Well! I don't think it would be out of line to check in on our friends down there. See if they need a new masking agent." It was a bit of a weak excuse, but he was the captain, dammit, and his word was final.
He didn't have to turn around to feel the long, knowing look Trip and T'Pol shared with each other. Whatever. They could judge him all he wanted, but he honestly hadn't expected to run across the dark planet again, and he was going to take full advantage of the opportunity.
Archer was glad Travis was flying the shuttlepod down to the surface; he was unable to concentrate, fidgeting with his hands and half-listening to Trip and T'Pol's discussion of the volcanic vents.
"Captain." T'Pol's steady voice took him out of his thoughts, and he looked up to see her staring at him with those quiet, cat-like eyes. She blinked once at him. "I'm sure that you are aware that there is no guarantee that the wraiths will be friendly, or even remember us."
"Well, as long as we don't shoot at them, I'm sure we'll be alright." He gave a tight smile. She raised an eyebrow as Trip looked away so that Archer couldn't see his expression.
"It would be wise to show some caution." Was all she said before dropping her gaze back to her scanner. Archer scrunched his eyebrows slightly, feeling for all the world like a teenager being warned to stay safe on a date.
Travis's eyes sparkled as he took in the vents. "This is amazing! It's like Yellowstone." He practically danced from rock structure to rock structure, spinning around and bringing his hand as close to the hot steam as he could bear before yanking it back.
"Or the grottoes of Deneva Prime?" Trip said cheekily and raised his eyebrows at T'Pol, who Archer swore rolled her eyes as she waved her scanner.
Archer let them quibble and study the bacteria in the thermal vents as he started to wander off. Trip saw him going and caught his arm.
"Cap'n." He said quietly. "Be careful, okay?"
Archer gave his friend a slight smile. "I have my communicator right here, Trip."
"Alright. We're not heading to the next formation until you check in."
"I know."
Trip let him go and they shared a look of understanding for a moment. Trip sauntered back to where Travis was setting up a complicated sensor.
"Think that thing'll stand being dropped into a volcano half a dozen times?" Trip put his hands on his hips and critiqued Travis's work as T'Pol wandered around, noting down vents of particular interest.
Archer slipped away.
It had been a while since he had been here, but his feet seemed sure of where they were taking him, until Archer was in a space with a rock shelf on one end, dimly lit by the superheated steam coming out of the magma vent.
"Are you here?" He asked, not quite daring to believe in anything. He closed his eyes, listening.
"Jonathan." The voice was different, but still familiar. Archer felt the shiver up his spine of being known. He opened his eyes slowly, hesitantly.
Archer's breath caught in his throat when he turned around. The silhouette standing at the entrance of the cave was not the fairy woman with apple blossoms in her hair; a man, tall and wide, stood at the mouth of the cave, the meager light from the vents not quite reaching him.
Archer stepped forward to meet him, finally able to make out his face when he got closer. The man who looked at him with cool, steady eyes was familiar in a half-forgotten way; a tank top clung to his barrel-like chest and his bare arms were thick with muscle. Firm features stared at Archer calmly as he tried to place where this vision came from. The large man neither smiled nor frowned, simply standing slightly too still for a human and allowing Archer to approach.
"Is it you?" Archer asked quietly. The man smiled, then, something that crinkled his eyes and showed teeth.
"Jonathan."
"It is you!" Jonathan laughed, exhilarated. She - he - they had lived. They were alright. Jonathan felt his knees tremble under him as the relief hit him like a wave. The large man in front of him held Archer's shoulders in both hands, steadying him. Archer looked the man up and down. Still so achingly familiar, but…
"You look different."
"You are different." The man replied, concern knitting his brow. The words were slow from his human-shaped tongue. "Your dreams are different. You have changed since we last met, Jonathan."
"It's still me." Archer reassured the burly man, closing his eyes and sighing as a meaty hand caressed his cheek with a feather-light touch. When he opened his eyes, the man was smiling at him.
"Yes. You are still Jonathan."
"And you are still…" He wasn't sure how to address the wraith. As far as he knew they didn't have a name. They just smiled at him, though, eyes wide and tender in a way that almost looked out of place on the action-movie body.
Archer turned slightly away from the hand, remembering the reason -- technically -- for his visit. "The masking agent. Has it been working? Are your people alright?"
A nod, almost imperceptible. "Yes. We are hunted, still, but we are no longer caught." Joy, unfiltered, was on their face and Archer couldn't help but smile back.
"Good. That's good. I'm glad to hear that." Archer tentatively folded his hand over their large one, feeling quieted in a way he couldn't easily describe. They were hidden here, the two of them, in this small cavern surrounded by rock.
"Thank you." They whispered quietly, watching Archer with wide green eyes. "Jonathan. You cannot stay here."
Archer trembled, clutched the hand tighter for a moment. "I know." He said, not moving. "I know." He said again. He took in a deep breath of the musty cave air.
"Not for long. But I can… stay for a little while." He couldn't look away from the piercing eyes. "If you want." He added.
"You want to…" They brushed their meaty thumb over his cheek, concentrating. Reading his thoughts. They cocked their head to one side.
"You want to spend time with me." They brought their hand from Archer's head to their side.
"I've never met anyone like you. But I feel like I've known you all my life. Is that because of your -- appearance?"
They shook their head. "No. I know you, Jonathan, and you know me." They seemed puzzled. "Is this not enough?"
"It's never enough." The words escaped Archer's lips before he could think about them, but his hand tightened over their larger one when he realized what he'd said. "What I mean is, uh." He chuckled helplessly and shook his head. "I don't even know your name."
"We do not have names."
Archer sighed. "Of course you don't."
They stared at him for a little while longer, and Archer started to feel embarrassed. Why had he come back here? To moon over some -- person? Thing? No, a sentient being, but still. All they had wanted from him was his help. That's why they had read his mind and connected with him, making him dizzy with helpless fascination. They had just needed his help. And then he had helped them, and they had turned into a slug, and he had left. So why had he come back? The hand on his shoulder interrupted his thoughts.
"There is a spot not far from here, where the creatures do not go. The mouth of a river that rises from under the ground." They looked at him earnestly. "We can go there, for a little while."
Archer couldn't help the smile on his face. "I'd like that."
They smiled and Archer moved, hesitantly, to take their hand in his own. A thought suddenly occurred to him and, eyes never leaving their face, he grabbed his communicator and flipped it open.
"Archer to T'Pol."
"T'Pol." They looked from his face to his communicator, but didn't shy away, merely stood and let Archer talk.
"I'm going to a river close to here." He paused for a moment. "I'm with… a friend. I think I'll be alright."
"Understood. We will finish taking samples here and then go to the next formation of volcanic vents." She paused, and Archer heard a slight commotion in the background. "Rendezvous at our original location in three hours. T'Pol out."
Archer smiled at his companion as he closed the communicator.
"Lead the way."
Jonathan kept his flashlight off, holding tightly to the man's hand and letting them guide him through the underbrush. It was so dark, touching a fear that was an evolutionary holdover from when humans were still mouse-sized mammals. Through the faint starlight he could barely see the tattered white tank top of the man leading him around dense foliage and under strange trees. He was surrendering, putting his trust completely into the human-shaped being to keep him from tripping on roots and sharp rocks.
There was something thrilling about it, about willingly making himself so helpless. It reminded him of when he had undergone the pledge in college for Epsilon Tau Pi, in which he had been blindfolded and led barefoot through the nature preserve at night. There was an intimacy to depending on another so completely, in a strange place, without even the use of his own eyes. He had stumbled when his tender foot hit a rock jutting out from the ground, but his guide had pulled on his shirt, kept him on his feet. He had waited until Archer was ready, and then they started walking again, slowly. The grass had been wet. The rest of the ritual -- drinking something disgustingly sour, being rolled in mud, held close to a fire, carried by his feet and dunked into the water -- he had been blindfolded as well. He had never felt such a desperate connection to his fellow man before that moment. He had surrendered himself completely, become someone without agency.
This was different. More intimate. This wasn't a practiced ritual; it was just Archer and his nameless companion, moving through the darkness. The very air smelled alive. The man paused, Archer almost bumping into their broad back, and turned back to him. Something large and black lay in front of them.
"Hold on to me."
And Archer did, holding onto their thick torso as they brought their arms around him in return. His eyes were wide, and he gasped as they turned into something else, flowing like liquid over the fallen tree, carrying him like he was nothing. They slithered back onto the ground, morphing under Archer's touch back into the muscular man as they set him gently onto the ground.
"Afraid?" Their voice was deep, worried as Archer caught his breath.
"No. Not at all." He said softly, taking their hand back. Their smile was barely visible in the dark, but to Archer it seemed luminous.
The water reflected the starlight and smelled like sulfur. Jonathan reached for his scanner, but a hand over his hip stopped him.
"It will not hurt you." They said confidently. They dipped a hand into the black water carefully, held it there. "See?"
Archer kneeled at the side of the pond and brought his fingers slowly into the water. It was warm. He stuck his hand further in, fascinated. He finally brought his hand out and smelled the water cupped in his hand. It reeked, but it didn't hurt.
"Can you drink it?"
They stared at him, lips pressed together, thinking -- or perhaps reading his DNA as one would an instruction manual.
"You can drink it. It will not hurt you."
He brought his cupped hands to his lips. It -- it burned, but it wasn't bad. He took another mouthful, curious. His lips felt numb for a moment before feeling returned, first as pain, then as a tingling sensation.
"Do you need to drink water?" He asked his companion, curious. They were mirroring his movements, drinking handfuls of the water.
"As your kind. As a... human, yes." They said hesitantly, unsure. Archer sighed, contented, and adjusted his body so that he was sitting leaning against them. He took off his boots and his socks and rolled the legs of his pants up before dipping his feet into the warm water. It felt nice. A large arm wrapped around him, hugging him close. Archer tilted his head up and looked at the stars. Enterprise was up there, he knew. He imagined he could see it, as a slow-moving point of light among the others.
They sat there in silence for a while, together. The moving water was the only sound; the place was devoid of any animals. Jonathan had an idea as he felt the slow heartbeat of the body pressed against his.
"Can I try something?" He whispered. It seemed wrong to speak louder than a whisper in this place. They blinked, hand coming up to touch his temple for a moment before going back to his side.
"Yes."
So Jonathan turned and leaned over and kissed them. Their lips were soft, pliant under him. And he kept kissing them. When he pulled away, they pushed forward, closing the distance to catch his lips in another kiss. Archer sighed and melted into the firm touch on his shoulders, and they moved to embrace under the starlight, out in the open but hidden from the rest of the universe.
The rest of the away team had spent a while taking scans and fooling around at the other formation before T'Pol admitted there was no reason to stay longer, so they got back to the rendezvous point a little early and just waited at the large cavern, killing time. Travis and Trip shot the breeze, talking about rock climbing. T'Pol interjected with questions and ended up giving Trip shockingly good advice about body position and concentration. Never let it be said that T'Pol couldn't give a pep talk; between the two of them Trip felt halfway ready to try scaling a mountain again.
Ten minutes after the hour, Trip spied the Captain's big nose poking around the corner. He smiled and went to stand up, but Archer paused at the entrance into the cavern. He had a big grin on his face, and Trip saw him turn around and talk softly to someone hidden behind the rocks. Trip raised his eyebrows and shared a look with T'Pol. He had to admit, he was intrigued with the thought of seeing the Captain's invisible beau. He settled back into his seat on a rock shelf and looked at Travis. Travis had heard the whole story, too, and glanced from the captain to Trip with wide eyes.
"Keep your shirt on, Ensign. We know she's shy." Trip muttered, putting a hand lightly on Travis's arm to still his fidgeting. They were all tense with anticipation. Archer had ducked back into the tunnel; Trip could just make out the back of his head as he spoke to whoever was with him.
"What's he sayin'?" Trip asked T'Pol. If anyone had a chance of hearing them, it was the sharp-eared Vulcan.
T'Pol fixed Trip with a flat look. "I believe it is not any of our business." She very pointedly looked at the far wall, leaving Trip feeling like an ass. He put his hands in his lap and waited, somewhat sheepishly, not looking up until he heard footsteps.
Jonathan walked out of the rock tunnel with a big smile on his face. Trip's jaw dropped. In his defense, from Archer's description of the poem, and the woman, he hadn't quite been expecting to see 20th century action star Bruce Willis walk hesitantly into the light, clutching Archer's hand tightly and staring at the away team with fear.
Archer, ever the diplomat, broke the silence. "I wanted you to meet my friends." He spoke to the Bruce Willis look-alike gently. They stared at Trip with wide, unblinking eyes, as if worried he was about to pull a gun. Honestly, Trip couldn't blame them, given that their only other experience with groups of humanoids was being hunted for sport.
Trip closed his mouth when he realized he was still staring, offering a friendly smile. His mama had raised him better than to stare at people, after all, and she'd kick him if she saw him being rude.
"Hi. I'm Trip."
Not-Bruce-Willis stared at him for a moment, eyes flicking back to Jonathan before looking over the three again, still unsure. Travis gave a little wave. T'Pol just sat there.
"You helped hide us." English, which surprised Trip. He nodded slowly.
"Thank you." They smiled. Trip just nodded courteously in return.
"You're very welcome." Something shifted then, in their expression. They relaxed enough to turn their focus back to Jonathan, no longer eyeing the away team like predators. Poor Johnny was absolutely head-over-heels, Trip could tell. He was making heart eyes at the wraith like they were the only two in the room. Trip honestly wondered if he should look away, but Archer just smiled as Not-Bruce-Willis brought their hand to his temple.
"Goodbye, Jonathan. Remember… "
"Never stop seeking what seems unattainable?" Archer said softly.
"Yes. Something else, too." And then they kissed, and Trip looked away politely, but he couldn't help overhearing their parting words.
"You are never alone, Jonathan. Keep your friends close to you. They are true."
When Archer said nothing, Trip looked up just in time to see Not-Bruce-Willis turn into some sort of serpentine slug and slither off into the darkness.
"Huh." Trip couldn't help saying. Travis was blinking, a question stuck on his lips, and T'Pol was unsubtly scanning both of them.
He looked up at Jonathan, and the poor man looked close to tears. Trip sauntered over and slung an arm around his shoulder.
"Let's get back to the ship, Cap'n."
Trip stared at Jonathan for a while, taking in his relaxed, slightly dazed smile. He seemed perfectly comfortable sitting in silence as Travis flew the shuttle back up to the Enterprise, and Trip held his tongue for as long as he could bear before finally giving in.
"Bruce Willis?"
"What?" Jonathan seemed confused, though when he turned his face he looked at Trip with the same blank smile. Trip tried to contain himself and failed as Travis snorted in front of them.
"Bruce Willis. From Die Hard. That's the guy you just -" He waved a hand vaguely. Trip could see the gears slowly turning behind Johnny's eyes for almost a whole minute before his whole face lit up.
"That was it! Bruce Willis. I knew, I knew he looked familiar."
"Cap'n, he's-" Trip tried to think of a suitable protest and failed to find a collection of words that accurately conveyed how deeply strange that was. "Practically bald!"
Archer leaned back, then, and regarded Trip sternly over his nose as he crossed his arms.
"Is that so, Commander?"
Trip gave up on looking for rhyme or reason in the universe and just buried his head in his hands to groan softly. Archer sighed and patted his back comfortingly as Travis had a fit of hysterics in the pilot seat. T'Pol sat very still, a raised eyebrow the only indication as to her feelings on the matter.
It was going to be an interesting mission report.