"Mr. Picallo, can you please explain to me what the hell possessed you to attack Ensign Walenczak yesterday?" Hudson was pacing angrily in front of Picallo in his office. He stopped suddenly and the two stood nose to nose in the middle of the room.
Picallo stared strait ahead and responded, "Sir, all I can say is that Ensign Walenczak and I were having an argument and it got out of hand. I'm sorry, sir, and I'm fully prepared to accept any punishment you think is fitting."
"Mr. Picallo, you realize what hitting a superior officer constitutes. There's only so much that I can do for you before regulations kick in."
Picallo gulped. He knew all too well. "Yes, sir."
"I don't understand, seaman. You tried so hard to make the officer's exam and then you go and blow it all by getting in a fist fight! Why would you let yourself get carried away like that? After all you've done..."
Picallo didn't know how to respond to Hudson's sudden change in tone. He hesitated a bit before looking his captain in the eyes and responding. "I guess old habits are hard to break. Sir."
It took a long time for Hudson to reply, but when he did, his voice had hardened back into command mode. "I don't buy that, Mr. Picallo, and I'm afraid that that's not good enough." Tony stood a bit straighter and once again fixed his gaze on the far wall. "Anthony Picallo, you are hereby stripped of the rank of Warrant Officer and confined to the brig for ten days. Dismissed."
Lonnie Henderson looked around the cramped mess hall and sighed. She was later to dinner than usual, and now she had hit rush hour in the mess. Spotting an empty chair at a table in the back, she picked up her tray and went over to join the group already seated there.
"Hey, guys." Lucas, Tim, and Ford looked up from their conversation as she set her tray on the table. "Have ya'll seen Tony around anywhere? He was supposed to meet me at 1600." Quickly she added, "He wanted me to help him study some more." She hadn't even had to look at Ford; she could feel his glare. At the mention of Picallo, Lucas looked down at his food and started pushing at it absently. She ignored both of them and went on. "He never showed up and I haven't seen him anywhere. Hey Lucas--you're his roommate. Have you seen him?" He looked up as she sat.
"Lonnie..." Ford tried to warn her, but it was too late.
"Lucas!" She exclaimed, seeing the nasty bruise that had formed on the young man's jaw. "What happened to you?!"
Uncomfortable with the situation and still too angry and hurt by Picallo to trust himself to talk about him, that he frantically tried to think of any excuse to leave.
"Uh, I've got a lot of work to do. Hudson asked me to, uh, write this program." Hurriedly, before he could dig the hole any deeper, he stood up. "See you later."
"What was that about?" Confused, Lonnie followed Lucas with her eyes as he walked out the door. Tim and Ford exchanged looks, making Lonnie even more frustrated. "What? Will somebody please tell me what's going on?"
"Tony is in the brig." Ford finally confessed.
"What?! Why?"
"Well, yesterday Tim walked into Lucas and Tony's quarters and found Lucas pinned against the wall--with Tony's hands around his neck. From what I've heard, they had an argument over something, and Tony lost it and attacked him."
Lonnie was floored. "What? I don't believe it. What could have been said to make Tony lose control like that?"
"Well, Lonnie, old habits are hard to break." Ford commented as he turned back to his food. Personally, he was glad that Picallo was in the brig. That was he couldn't get near Lonnie. Ford had warned him just last week about keeping his relationship with Lonnie professional. For a while, at least, he wouldn't have to worry.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Uh-oh. "Well, I just mean that Tony was a convict for a lot of years, and he picked up some bad habits that are hard to break. He's just not navy officer material, that's all."
"How can you say that?! Tony has pushed himself incredibly hard over the past months to be better than he was. Every day he worked so that he could gain the respect of people like you. I thought that he had gained at least that much from his commanding officer, but I guess it was too much to ask for, Commander." Ford groaned. It wasn't good when she used his rank when addressing him. "I'll see you later, sir." Abruptly, she stood up and exited the room.
Lucas rushed back to his quarters. He wasn't ready to deal with this yet. The fight, which had been so one-sided that it could barely be called a fight, had been the final and ultimate betrayal in a string of conflicts that had ripped Lucas apart. Wanting to do anything but think about real life, Lucas plopped himself down in his chair and booted up his computer. He fidgeted a few minutes and ran his hands through his hair while he waited.
As soon as the computer was up and running, he noticed a small blip at the top of the screen.
He sat back, shocked. His results...he had almost forgotten about his search with all that had happened. Now he wasn't so sure whether or not he wanted to know what the search had turned up. The memories...he didn't think that he could handle dragging up the past.
Thoughts flew through his head at a million miles-a-minute. Was it his father? Was he still alive? If he was, why hadn't he tried to contact his son when seaQuest returned? Or was it his mother? Had she re-married? Did she have any more children? Did she even remember him?
Lucas' fear of the unknown was great, but his curiosity if what he could find out was greater. With a sigh, he moved the mouse to the flashing words at the top of the screen and, after a moment's hesitation, clicked.
Lucas stared at the screen, not sure of what to do next. He couldn't think of the last time he had thought about Juliana and Nick. Juliana; that name brought back so many memories. Juliana had been his first, and only, girlfriend. Their attraction had been obvious from the moment Lucas had stepped on Node 3, and their relationship had continued long after he left. God, she had been so beautiful. ..he wondered if she remembered him. It had been, for her, 12 years since they had seen each other. Would she even want to see him again?
His heart skipped a beat as he read the second result listed on the screen. "Walenczak, Lawrence." Lucas knew him better as Dad. A dead calm washed over him. His face started to flush, and he seemed to be stuck right where he was, immobilized by the name that had materialized out of the past.
Lucas' father was only that in name. He had always been too busy with his projects to take any time for his son. Lucas could always sense the uneasiness between them and had even gotten used to it. But after living on the seaQuest, without his father calling or writing, he had gotten sick of it. The last time he had spoken to his father was before Hyperion. The entire crew had been given a two-week leave while seaQuest dry-docked at New Cape Quest for some refitting. When he had called his father to let him know that he would be coming home, his Dad had told hi, that he would be staying at the office for a few weeks closing a deal to re-try his failed World Power Project. Lucas would just have to try his mother. Tired of being hurt and feeling neglected by his father, Lucas had blown up at him. He had screamed things like, "That project is more your baby than I am!" and "What kind of father sends his son to live on military sub and then doesn't let him come home during leave?" When his father had tried to say something in his defense, Lucas had angrily told him where he could shove it and had shut off the vidlink.
And that was it. To Lucas, Captain Bridger had been more of a father than Lawrence ever had. And that made the captain's betrayal all the worse. So now here he was, staring at a name on his computer screen. He asked himself if he was ready to face his father again. He wasn't sure.
But he had to do something. Lucas needed closure; he needed an ending to that part of his life. If he was ever going to face the future, he needed to be free of his past. Without thinking any farther so as not to lose his nerve, he clicked on the first name listed.
He didn't know how he felt about what he saw next. It wasn't fear, or sadness, or even anger. He felt...happy. On the screen in front of him, Lucas found himself staring at an article from the Cape Quest Daily, printed on May 1, 2026.
"Jason and Sylvia Drake are proud to announce the engagement of their son, Nicholas to Juliana McQueen, daughter of James and Laura McQueen. The wedding is to take place on..."
Lucas didn't have to read the rest of the article, though he noticed that an address and a vidlink number followed it. For a moment, he didn't know what to think. Then he smiled. His two friends from Node 3, married? For the first time in what felt like months, he started to laugh. Letting it all out, he laughed until he doubled over in his chair.