Title: Caught in the Act
Author: Ginny Powell

Act II - Malcolm
Scene 1

Trip wiped his face and straightened his uniform for what must have been the hundredth time as they rode the turbolift up to A Deck. There hadn�t been enough time to wash properly, but he�d done the best he could. He wanted to glance at Gabreefa, share one last smile with her, but he just knew that was a bad idea. The business-like, almost dismissive way she�d dressed herself after the Captain�s call had told him that they�d shared all they were probably ever going to share. Maybe that was the way they did these things on her planet. And besides, he was too busy squelching his subconscious fear that he had turned purple and everyone that saw him would immediately know why.

They reached the Bridge. The door slid open and Gabreefa stepped out immediately, her eyes scanning the room. There was something speculative, almost predatory, in her gaze when it passed over T�Pol and Mayweather, but when she found Captain Archer, she broke into a huge smile. Their eyes met, and they headed straight for each other as though no one else was present. Trip, swallowing his jealousy and guilt, trailed behind her.

�Ah, Gabreefa, how was your tour?� Archer asked, taking both her hands in what had become their perennial greeting.

�Quite educational, Captain,� Gabreefa replied.

Behind her, Trip coughed. �Uh, hi Cap�n,� he mumbled when Archer looked at him for the first time. He felt like a child whose parent was about to discover the cookie jar was a little lighter.

�Hi, Trip. How are those repairs going?� Archer asked leadingly.

�I was just on my way to check on the progress, Cap�n,� Trip answered, unduly glad for the excuse. �If ya�ll�ll pardon me.� And he headed back to the lift, though he�d already been forgotten by the couple behind him.

�I wanted to show you what we�ve found,� Archer was saying as he led Gabreefa to a monitor. �That leak you told us about, that caused the explosion? Well, it turns out it has a good side. By tracing the residue, we have determined what direction you came from.� He pointed to a star chart on the monitor, where a line grew, showing her trajectory. �Now, can you remember how long you were in your scout ship? It would help us to locate Harac.�

�I had no chronometer,� Gabreefa answered, �so I lost track. Perhaps ten days?� She shrugged apologetically.

�Good, good, every little bit helps,� he assured her, patting her arm. She smiled gratefully, and he suddenly felt warm all over. �Well, since it looks like you�re going to be around a while,� Archer smiled at that thought, �we should arrange some quarters for you.� Some nice, private quarters, he mused as he led Gabreefa toward the turbolift.

�Captain,� T�Pol broke into his reverie. Archer looked at the Vulcan impatiently. Unnoticed by Archer, Gabreefa also looked at the Vulcan, her eyes narrowing. �If I could have a word with you.� When Archer arched a brow as if to say �Spit it out, woman, I�m in a hurry,� she added, �In your Ready Room, please.�

Archer sighed, glanced at Gabreefa, who watched him with big, tempting eyes. He�d have to leave her again, dammit, but he swore this would be the last time. He looked around the Bridge. Mayweather was at the helm, where he was needed. Hoshi was gone, still translating somewhere. T�Pol was watching him expectantly. That left Lieutenant Reed.

�Gabreefa,� Archer said as he turned her toward the Armory Officer�s station, �this is Lieutenant Malcolm Reed. He will show you to a room that will be yours for the remainder of your visit. I�ll stop by and make sure you�re comfortable as soon as I can, all right?�

At the news, Malcolm jumped up out of his chair and hurried to stand beside the visitor, smiling nervously, as she thanked the Captain. Archer watched them until the turbolift door closed, and then motioned to T�Pol.

�Mayweather, you have the Bridge,� he called over his shoulder as he opened his Ready Room door, T�Pol close on his heels.

�Okay, what�s so all-fired important and secret?� he demanded, turning on her as the door closed behind them.

T�Pol seemed unfazed. �Based on Lieutenant Reed�s study of the debris, and my own analysis, we have determined that the craft which brought the female aboard had no engine,� she explained, handing the Captain a pad containing her findings.

�This bolsters your transporter theory then?� Archer said, barely glancing at the pad.

�No, I have ruled that out. This new evidence means that the craft must have been launched from another, larger ship nearby.�

�A cloaked ship, I suppose.�

�Yes, sir.�

�So now we have not only a small ship appearing on our bow out of nowhere, but a larger ship hanging around that we are completely unable to detect.�

�Exactly, sir.�

�You�ll forgive me if I need a bit more proof before I accept this theory,� Archer said, emphasizing the last word, as he handed the pad back to T�Pol. Though the expression on the Vulcan�s face did not change, he worried that he was being too brusque. �Look, maybe it was engine- less,� he continued in a softer tone. �It could have been launched from a space-based platform and inertia carried it this far. Or maybe the engine was vaporized in the explosion and that�s why you can�t find any trace of it.�

�The craft was too small to carry a warp-capable engine, Captain. Either way, it must have been traveling at impulse speeds. At those speeds, there are no planets within ten days on our present course.�

�That was just a guess, it could be twenty days for all we know. Or the Haracians could have technology we know nothing about. Look, all I�m saying is I need more than suppositions. Everything you�ve brought me seems to indicate that Gabreefa is hostile, yet she has done nothing to make us suspicious of her. If you get something conclusive, then I�m interested. But until then, we follow the leak trail. Okay?�

�I understand, Captain,� T�Pol replied, and without waiting for a dismissal, she left.

Archer was right behind her, intending to find Gabreefa once again, and this time, not be interrupted. But as he passed through the door, the com buzzed.

�Dr. Phlox to Captain Archer.�

With a sigh, Archer stepped backwards, back into his Ready Room, and pressed the button to answer. �Archer.�

�Captain, there are some scans I think you would like to see, if you could come to Sickbay.�

�I�m kind of busy right now, Doc, could you be more specific?�

�If you insist. There is more to our guest than meets the eye. She has some�bio-mechanical parts.�

Archer sighed again and rubbed his nose. He wasn�t exactly sure what the Doctor meant, but he had to admit that he ought to check it out. �Be right there.�

Scene 2

Malcolm and Gabreefa walked down a corridor on D Deck. Malcolm led, scanning the name plates on doors as he passed. Room 17 was supposed to be reserved for guests, though up to now they had had no use for it. But, apparently, some crewman or woman had gotten mad at their roommate and moved into Room 17. A lot of other shuffling and trading of bunks had been going on, by the look of the scratched out and rewritten names everywhere. But he was hopeful that one room had been left empty somewhere. He just had to find it.

�Ah, here we are, Room 4,� he said with some relief when he found a door with no name plate, turning to smile nervously at Gabreefa. She smiled back warmly, which only increased his nervousness. He always seemed to get like this when he was around women he found attractive, and he found Gabreefa very attractive. Having seen how the Captain looked at her only served to make his nervousness more acute.

Reed pressed the button to open the door. That it opened was a good sign that it really was empty. As they stepped in, he found that it was exactly that � empty. In fact, it had been stripped of all moveable objects. Only the built in bunk beds remained, and they were devoid of mattresses.

�Oh, my. Let me just go get you a few things,� Reed said apologetically, reaching for the door panel.

But Gabreefa grabbed his arm from behind. �No hurry,� she purred. �Everything I need right now is in this room.� And she ran her hand slowly up his arm and around the back of his neck.

Malcolm, not quite believing that what he thought was happening was happening, turned around slowly. �Um, Gabreefa, are you- Umph!�

She cut him off with a passionate kiss, and before he knew it he was sitting on the step just inside the door, with her straddling his lap. He tried to form another question, but she beat him to it, murmuring against his lips.

�Do you want me, Malcolm?� She saved him from answering by trailing one hand down the front of his coveralls until she found the bulge that threatened to burst his zipper. �I know you want me,� she continued. �Well, here I am.� And she leaned back just enough to get her gown off over her head.

The shimmering rainbow of her torso revealed, Malcolm found himself mesmerized. His hands moved to touch her without conscious decision. He traced the darker blue cupping her breasts, circled her violet waist, let his fingers feel the lilac of her thighs. Her hands were also busy. With a quick zip, his coveralls were open to the crotch and she was reaching in to extract his erection from his briefs. Sliding her legs along his thighs, she guided him inside her.

Malcolm�s eyes closed and his head fell forward onto her shoulder as the sensations nearly overwhelmed him. He hadn�t been with a woman since they left Earth, not wanting to deal with the problems of the chain of command and the gossip of coworkers. It had been too long. That must be why this felt so much more intense. She felt hotter, tighter around him that he could have imagined. Her skin was smooth under his touch. Her smell was intoxicating, her taste exhilarating as he moved to nibble on her shoulder. And the way she�d taken control of the situation was definitely a turn-on. He wasn�t going to last long.

Removing one hand from her back, Malcolm slid it down her belly, over the silky smoothness of her mound, and finally placed his thumb against where he hoped she had a clitoris. From the way she gasped and bucked at the pressure, he guessed that she did. Pleased with himself, he moved his thumb in little circles as she continued to thrust against him. Very soon she was digging her nails into his back and muttering incoherently, and he was right with her, his seed spurting into her with each spasm of her muscles around him.

He was holding her up, the only sound their gasping breaths in each other�s ears, when the com buzzed.

�Archer to Reed.�

Scene 3

Meanwhile, in Sickbay, Dr. Phlox turned as he heard the doors open behind him. �Ah, Captain!�

�What�s this about �bio-mechanical parts�?� Archer got right to the point as he approached, his brow furrowed. �Do you mean implants?�

�No. These would have been present at birth, genetic enhancements, artificially introduced. Let me show you.� He led the Captain to a screen, pushed a few buttons until it showed a picture of Gabreefa�s hand. At least Archer assumed it was her hand, since it was blue. The picture then zoomed in on one fingernail until tiny structures like boxes could be seen. The magnification continued until, at the molecular level, it was obvious that these were not normal biological structures. �See here?� the Doctor pointed. �These are like little lids, designed to snap shut when the box is filled. Like microscopic storage containers. She has them other places in her body, too.�

�Storage containers? To store what?�

�I�m not sure. This scan was taken when she first came on board, and at that time all of them were empty. Empty like that, they are not much different than pores. Normal scans wouldn�t have detected them. It�s a good thing I did a molecular scan.�

�And what made you think to do a molecular scan?�

�Oh, well,� the Doctor seemed somewhat abashed. �Ever since she left Sickbay, I�ve been going over and over her lab work. I find her rather�fascinating.�

�There�s a lot of that going around,� Archer replied quietly, thinking of the way his officers had reacted earlier. And of his own reactions.

�Yes,� the Doctor said, smiling in understanding. �Well, that I can explain.� At Archer�s startled, and interested, look, he called up a new picture on the monitor. �I don�t know if you remember your organic chemistry, but this is a pheromone. A rather common chemical which plays a part in mating rituals of many species.�

�Yes, I know what a pheromone is, Doctor,� Archer cut in. �So she�s using them on us?�

��Using� is a rather strong word; it�s not as though she has conscious control over them. You and I are also producing pheromones as we speak. She just produces them in much greater quantities than we are accustomed to.�

�Can you block it? Make it so she no longer produces pheromones?�

�I don�t know enough about her biology yet to do so safely, no.�

�What about the crew. Could you give us something so we aren�t affected?�

The Doctor smiled a little too knowingly for Archer�s comfort. �Not without the side effect of greatly reduced sexual response, an effect which I gather the crew would be adverse to.�

That�s putting it mildly, Archer thought. �Thank you, Doctor,� he said after a moment. �I think it�s time I asked our guest a few more questions.� And he headed for the com panel by the door. But before he could place a call, someone called him.

�Sato to the Captain.�

�Archer here.�

�There�s something about the translation I think you should see, sir.�

�Where are you, Hoshi?�

�On the Bridge, sir.�

�I�ll be right there.�

Without hesitation, Archer placed his next call right away.

�Archer to Reed.�

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