The Puzzle {Star Trek Enterprise Fan Fiction}

Piece 6 - Choices

It was white in the next room, so white that Travis's eyes burned a little. But at least he could see; after the last room, he'd wondered if they'd all been afflicted with blindness, and if it was permanent. So that was comforting. It took a moment but pretty soon he was used to the glaring whiteness of the room. There were no features in it whatsoever and the walls were not equipped with any doors.

He saw the Xindi vanish, and said, "Hey!" or at least he thought he did, but when he spoke, there was no sound whatsoever. He tried again, tried to say, "Is everyone deaf?" but there was total silence.

He looked around, and then he saw Solana. She was bleeding again, dark blue dripping down her blouse and through the field dressing he had made. She was placed on the floor by T'Bek. He took off his tank top and handed it to T'Bek, who tried to wrap it around Solana's wound. T'Bek held Solana in front of her, with Solana sitting up and leaning back. Solana looked like she was trying to put a brave face on the situation, but her antennae were drooping and she was not looking good at all.

Keleth came over, tried to say something, but he was also silent, although his mouth was moving. Frustrated, he stamped his foot on the floor. There was a vibration, so Travis knew there was some sort of a sound from that. He covered his ears briefly as a gesture to the others to show that he was deaf. For how long was unknown, but it had to be temporary. At least, that was what he hoped.

Aranda walked over and was saying something, but the effect was the same. She stopped when she saw Travis standing with his hands on his ears, then she nodded and pointed to her right ear and shook her head. Yekaterina made the same gesture. So it was confirmed. There were only six of them left, and they were all deaf.

And Solana was in bad shape. The blood had seeped through Travis's old tank top and Solana was beginning to shiver. Keleth took off his tunic and put it over her as a kind of blanket. Solana looked up at him, smiled for a second and then winced. The pain had to be excruciating.

Yekaterina beckoned to Travis and Aranda. She took Travis's hand and unfolded the fingers so that she would have access to his palm. He watched as she traced letters on his hand. D-O-Y-O-U-U-N-D-E-R-S-T-A-N-D, pausing slightly between words. He nodded. She continued to trace. Aranda should not watch if Solana dies. Take Aranda and try to find the door. Keep her busy. Maybe S will survive this room, too. Then Yekaterina looked up at Travis with pleading eyes. He nodded grimly.

He took Aranda's hand and gently pulled her away from the scene that was playing out among Solana, T'Bek, Yekaterina and Keleth. Aranda looked back a few times, distracted. Travis opened her palm and traced on it. Come this way and look for the door. Aranda looked up at him, confused. Then he remembered, she had said that she could not yet read. He then got her attention by tugging on her arm slightly. He pointed to his own eye. Look at this he wanted to say to her. He traced a large rectangle on the floor, taller than it was wide. Then he traced a smaller rectangle on it. He hoped she'd understand he was trying to draw a door with a panel.

She just looked more confused and looked back to where the others were tending to Solana. The scene was grave and Yekaterina looked as if she was about to cry. Travis tugged on Aranda's arm slightly but the child would have none of it. She could not stop looking at the injured Andorian and the Klingon, human and Vulcan who were trying to do whatever they could in order to save her life.

There was a trembling below, again like a planet quake. Travis almost fell over. He saw movement from the corner of his eye and turned to look at it. It was the wall, and there was one doorway. The doorway was open; there was no panel. The scene behind it was moving, sliding by horizontally and to the right. It was a room much like the first room they had been in, but it was not filled with water. The room zipped by and was replaced with another, identical room that slid by and was replaced with yet another identical copy. This time, when Travis tugged on Aranda's arm, she complied and turned around. She practically pulled him over to the doorway and together they looked more closely at the rooms which were practically flying by.

Keleth came over. He gestured to the doorway with his hand. Travis could see some dark blue fluid on it; Solana's blood. Keleth looked inquiringly. Travis shrugged. Keleth held out his palm and Travis traced, I don't know which is the right one. The sliding seemed to go more slowly, but it did not stop.

Keleth shrugged and traced into Travis's palm. Whatever we choose, it must be soon. He vaguely indicated back to where the women were sitting together. Travis nodded.

Just then, a room began to slide by that was the same as all the others, except there was a tiny flash of red and white, something in it, on the floor. Aranda pulled hard on Travis's arm, and Travis was caught so off-guard that he fell with her, into the room. The spinning stopped and they were all in the old room. Aranda caught a hold of what had attracted her to this room in particular, "It's Chabbo!" she called out, holding her toy aloft, "I found him!"

"Good job," said Travis, trying to sound upbeat. He didn't want to turn around. If the pattern continued to hold, Yekaterina would be gone, and Solana might be dead, and he wasn't sure he could bear that right now. But it was the old woman who came to him.

"Travis, this room is a little better, I think. Solana is feeling a little warmer, I think. She is not shivering. And it is good to be able to hear again," said Yekaterina.

"I, I'm so glad you weren't plucked." he said to her.

She surprised him by giving him a hug, "And I am glad you weren't, either. Now, what do you suppose is in store for us now, now that the pattern has apparently been broken?"

Keleth answered, or rather he thundered at the ceiling as his way of answering, "What do you want from us? We have given you all we could. We gave you six people! And now you want to take another! And for what? For a foolish game?"

T'Bek got up. She, too, yelled, her composure finally broken, it seemed, "You are obviously advanced technologically, yet you would kill innocents. If that is this evening's purpose, then your advancements are but illusions."

"Will you tell us what you are doing with us, or keep us in the dark forever?" asked Yekaterina.

"You had your fun, now let us go. At least let Aranda go!" shouted Travis, who had gone to comfort and look over Solana when T'Bek had gotten up.

"I, I'm cold." whispered Solana hoarsely, "I don't want to die here. At least let me die on my ship." she said weakly.

"I want to go home. I want everyone to go home," said Aranda.

There was another tremor, and a slight sound of machinery.

"Test One is now complete," said a voice, which sounded vaguely mechanical.

"What's that supposed to mean?" yelled Travis.

One by one, everyone began to vanish.