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I
"I'm sorry Captain, But it's difficult to believe what you're telling me." Mirana finally said, after she had heard Colin's explanation of what had been happening to him.
Voices in his head. Whispers that only he could hear. And then a woman. With silver eyes, no less.
"Even so, it's true." he insisted. "I realize it sounds bizarre and I dont know why I'm the only one affected....: his voice trailed off and he sighed.
"I've checked repeatedly and the computer has no record of anyone on board that doesnt belong here."
"Maybe she has life signs that aren't easily detectable." he objected.
"Then I would at least be able to sense her presence. I do not." Mirana countered.
Colin stiffened slightly at her reference to her Betazoid heritage and accused, "But you're not a telepath. Maybe you're not strong enough."
"Perhaps." she conceded. "But there are full telepaths aboard. None of our Vulcan, Rigelian, or Betazoid crew members have come forward with similar symptoms."
"I'm not crazy, Doctor." Colin's voice was bordering on the desperate. "Someone is trying to communicate with me. Someone needs our help."
Mirana didn't respond at first. She plucked an object from a cabinet and placed it in her palm. "This is an alpha wave recorder. I want you to wear it for the next 24 hours. It will monitor you r brain waves for irregularities."
"You think I'm hallucinating." It was more a statement than a question. What if she was right? What if he was falling apart.?
Mirana didn't support or refute his comment. "That's a possibility. But if someone is trying to contact you telepathically, your brain wave patterns will be altered as well."
Colin nodded in permission ."Alright."
Mirana attached the device directly on the side of his left temple and activated it. "Please keep me informed if you have any further contact with this woman."
"I will." he rose to leave.
"And Captain, you realized I have no choice but to discuss this with Comander O'Conner."
"I would expect you to." he paused and then, "Are you relieving me of duty?" he asked quietly.
"No. You've done nothing to make me believe you're a danger to this ship. Yet. But I recommend that you go to your quarters and rest. You obviously need some sleep."
That was the most politely couched order he'd heard in a long time. He almost smiled.
******
Daniel sat huddled on the ground, with his back against cold rock. He wiggled his fingers. They had gone numb ten minutes ago, and he flexed them repeatedly, coaxing the circulation back to the tips. To conserve heat, Beth Lear and Ariada D'all pressed on either side of him, thier faces barely visible within their hoods. Only Seyla stood apart near the mouth of the cave, where she could watch the dust storm build in intensity.
It had come apon the away team suddenly, without warning, and it had been the Klingon's foresight that had allowed them to survive thus far. She was the first to realize what was happening and had herded them into a cave whose presence she had noted earlier that day. It was the slowest hundred yards he had ever travelled, the wind storm catching up to them in the end, bruising thier bodies with sand and rock it had kicked up from the surface. Now they were safe from the storm's hazards, but not from the cold. The suns had nearly set, and once the last light of day had vanished, he'd calculated the temperatures would drop 40 degrees. And they would likely continue to drop throughout the night.
Ignoring the howling winds, Seyla repeatedly tapped her commbadge, resolutely broadcasting thier position to Prometheus--even though it was evident they had lost contact long since. It was unlikely the ship would respond to their hails until the storm subsided.
Daniel's primary concern was whether they woudl be able to outlast it--whether they would survive the night's temperatures was anybody's guess.
********
*HELP ME!*
Colin bolted upright in bed, eyes wide open.
"Computer! Lights." he orderd.
The silver eyed woman had projected an image at him and although he didn't understand, he knew what she wanted him to do. Shrugging into his uniform, Colin hurried out of his quarters and reached the bridge in record time.
"Captain." Mark was startled into sitting up straight in the command chair. He couldn't quite manage to keep the surprise out of his voice. After his conversation with the Doctor, he hadn't expected to see Colin Becker on the bridge so soon. From the surprised expressions on the bridge crew's faces, neither had they. The rumor mill spread quickly and by now, everyone knew the Captain had practically been confined to quarters. By now, everyone also knew he had been released from a psychiatric facility prior to assuming command of Prometheus. Neither of these gems of information did wonders for his authority at this moment.
Colin barely acknowledged Mark, turning his attention to his Ops officer. "What's the status of the away team?" he demanded.
"There's still no contact. We wont be able to reach them until the storm subsides."Naeve promptly replied.
"And at your closest estimation, when do you think that might be?"
Naeve didnt even pause before answering. "Not for another 7 hours, sir."
"Mr. Kovos."
"Sir?" the navigator asked tentatively.
"Is there any way the away team can be retrieved by a shuttle or runabout?"
"No." he answered without hesitation. "With that storm, a shuttle would never be able to make it to the surface."
"Very well. Set a course for bearing 34, mark 18, Mr. Delos. Full impulse. We'll return in the morning for the away team." he said calmly.
The entire bridge crew turned to him as one, mouths agape in astonishment. They couldn't have looked more surprised if he had sprouted rings.
"Mr. Delos, belay that order." Mark spoke before the helmsman could touch his console. The bridge crew held it's collective breath at this turn of events.
Colin's head swiveled in the direction of his XO, and he impaled the other man with his gaze. To his credit, Mark did not flinch.
"Is there a problem, Commander?"
"I'll say. I would like to protest your course of action. You're abandoning the away team."
The crew watched the exchange in continued silence and with growing alarm.
"Abandoning the away team?" Colin's voice was dangerously mild. "Hardly. There's nothing we can do. We can't beam them back, or go down to fetch them until the stormends. Sitting up here in orbit for the next 7 hours wont help either. Or do you disagee?"
"Where do you propose we go, then?"
"I propose, " he repeated with emphasis. "to return to the planet Aires."
Mark frowned at the unexpected answer. "And then?" he challenged.
"Haven't decided. I'll know when I'll get there."
"I see."
Colin smiled crookedly. "Are you going to relieve me of duty, Exec?" It was the second time he had asked the question that day.
"Not yet." Mark answered, and the implication remained that he still might.
"Good. Then as long as I'm still Captain of this ship, get the hell out of my chair."
II
Mark had never seen a bridge as silent as it was now. Noone spoke, all eyes remained averted, seemingly fascinated with their respective consoles. The only sound was the hum of the impulse drive and the occasional beep of sensor sweeps from the Ops station. It had been this way for the past hour, and the tension was only building.
Captain Becker sat with his eyes on the starfield they cruised through, a look of sheer determination on his face. Mark would have liked nothing more than to remove him from duty. At this point, he felt the doctor would have no choice but to agree. And yet, a small part of him held him back from that particular action.
The Captain's behavior was strange, certainly, but that wasn't necessarily cause for removal. His actions were sometimes unorthodox as he had learned during the encounter with Vartok, but that didn't make them wrong. Nor did it make him a bad Captain. And Colin had been right about the away team---they were powerless to help their crewmates and hovering ineffectually in orbit didn't make it any less true.
But why were they heading towards Aries? They'd thoroughly investigated the turbulent planet and the probe's findings couldn't be more clear. The planet was lifeless. Unlike the rest of the bridge crew, Mark knew about Colin's hallucinations. And even if his mystery woman was real, she couldn't possibly be calling him from Aries. Sensor readings didn't lie. So why were they going there?
It was four hours round trip from Kelad to Aries at top impulse speeds. That left just under three hours to resolve whatever was happening to the Captain. There was no doubt that Prometheus must be back in orbit around Kelad within 7 hours. The planet's temperatures would drop overnight, and presuming the group survived the weather, he refused to allow the away team to spend one more moment on the planet's surface than necessary. He would NOT risk their survival.
And if he had to assume command to ensure their safety, he would.
********
Seyla peered out into the roiling storm, searching for some sign that it was subsiding. There was none. She scowled in the darkness. This wasn't how she'd imagined it would be. When she thought of her death, she had always assumed it would be in battle. She was a warrior first and foremost. That was why she had chosen to become a security officer....the end ould come during combat. Ship to ship or hand to hand, it did not matter. Either way would have led to an honorable end. But in her wildest nightmares, she had not envisioned this. Freezing to death in a cave. She was overwhelmed with disgust at the thought.
And her companions in death would be two humans and a Deltan. That was the worst of it. Who would perform the death wail? Sto'vo'kor would not even know she had arrived. Seyla wriggled her toes--they were becoming numb in her boots. The cave floor was frigid stone and the cold seemed to creep into her body. She stamped her feet a few times to increase her sluggish circulation and glanced disinterestedly in the direction of the others.
They were huddled against each other onthe floor, thier backs propped up against the cave wall, sitting very still. Seyla frowned at the sight.
"Ensign Lear." she called. When she recieved no reply, she walked over to them, kneeling down to peer into their hoods.
"Lear." she grasped the woman's shoulders clumsily and shook her. It was an alarmingly long time befoe Beth Lear roused, groaning softly.
"Are we back on board?" she asked groggily.
"You should not fall asleep." Seyla growled, reprovingly. "it is too cold."
Beth Lear struggled to sit up further, her extremities responding sluggishly as she attempted to orient herself.
"Sorry, sir." she said dully. Seyla was right. She had been foolish and she had almost paid the price.
"Help me." Seyla commanded, shaking Ariada D'all into wakefullness.
Within a few minutes, the two science officers were conscious, but bleary eyed and numb. Seyla regarded them all forbiddingly.
"Get up." she said with force.
"I cant." Ariada resisted. "Too weak."
"You must. Or you will die." was the harsh reply. "I will help you."
Slowly, Ariada rose to her feet, followed by Daniel and Beth, who helped each other to a standing position. Seyla ducked her head underneath Ariada's shoulder and grabbed her waist, steading her.
"We need to keep moving. Stay awake and warm up." Seyla ordered and proceeded to drag Ariada across the length of the cave. She glanced behind occasionally to ensure that Beth and Daniel followed.
******** Mirana glanced at her computer screen, enhancing the image and rotating it 30 degrees. Captain Becker's alpha wave readings were fluctuating in irregular patterns which coincided with the times of day he claimed to have been contacted by the woman. Of course, there was no way to tell if they were caused by telepathic activity or hallucinations.
She had seen him twice since he had ordered Prometheus to return to Aries and her scans had come up empty once more. The only anomoly she had registered was a slight alteration in his brain chemistry. This told her nothing--such minute changes could be caused by something as inocuous as lack of sleep.
She sighed and tapped a key. Her display screen wen tdark as she pushed her chair back and rose. Her commbadge chirped and to her surprise, an unfamiliar voice announced itself.
< Dr. Keset, please come to my office, the sooner the better. Counselor out. >
Mirana obeyed, more out of curiosity than anything else. She had thought the counselor slot hadnt been filled, perhaps she'd been mistaken. It didn't take long to get there, the medical and counseling sections were in the same hallway, right across from each other. She stopped short when she entered the office and frowned.
An exact replica of Dr. Louis Zimmerman stood before her. She knew he had arrogantly modeled the EMH program after himself, but she hadn't realized he had extended his influence to counseling.
The hologram glanced at her, then pompously said, "I would appreciate you knocking next time. It's a common courtesy between health professionals."
Mirana's eyes narrowed. "I'm a health professional. You're a hologram." she said shortly.
"I take exception to that, Doctor. I'm this ship's counselor."
Mirana said nothing. Unfortunately Zimmerman had programmed him with his own personality profile. She would have to ask Rhianna Jorrell to adjust his parameters. Something a little less...irritating would be nice..
"I didn't know you could activate yourself." That was a feature the EMH programs she was familiar with didn't have.
"It's a good thing I can." According to regulations, teh Captain should have activated me days ago." he sniffed disapprovingly. "I'm programmed to activate myself if that does not occur." He paused briefly, and resumed speaking. "I've been reviewing Prometheus' personnel files and I'd like to set up appointments for psychological evaluations for the senior staff."
He picked up a PADD out of the neat stack on his desk and glanced at her.
"When would be a good time for you?"
Mirana couldn't believe it. She had been summoned in the midst of the Captain's crisis, by a hologram no less, to set up a counseling session. As if she had been sitting in her office, twiddling her thumbs. As if she didn't have her own agenda and concerns. Of all the egotistical things to do.....
"Actually Counselor, " she made a point to emphasize his title, "I'm a little busy right now."
"But surely you can find the time----"
"Send me a memo." Mirana interrupted.
"But Doctor-----"
"And I wouldn't advise bothering anyone else right now. Especially the Captain." she warned.
"We've already spoken. I asked him to come down befoe I contacted you." The Counselor said reprovingly.
"Really? And did he?" she asked, curious as to how Colin had handled it.
"No." he frowned. " And he's blocked me from signalling his combadge. That will obviously be noted in my log."
Holograms had logs? Mirana smiled to herself. "If that's all, Counselor, I need to be going."
"Doctor, I must insist----"
"By all means, insist all you'd like. Computer, end counselor program." she said firmly.
The last thing she saw was the look of reproach mingled with surprise before he faded and disappeared.
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