Title: RR: Janus
Author: jyorakku, Mara, essential phenylalanine, Josephine, Lizard, Chrysa
E-Mail: For contact info, look under the posting forum at http://judy.jteers.net/cgi-bin/cutecast/cutecast.pl?forum=10&thread=512.
Rating: PG-13
Category: Romance
Codes: T/S, R/S
Summary: Round robin in the Others/Sato forum. When a transporter accident splits Hoshi into two nearly-identical individuals, the two Hoshis must make a series of difficult decisions.
Disclaimer: Star Trek and Enterprise are registered trademarks of Paramount Pictures. No infringement is intended.
Notes: This is a round robin started in the Others and Sato Forum (http://judy.jteers.net/cgi-bin/cutecast/cutecast.pl?forum=10) of the Linguistics Database (http://judy.jteers.net/lingdata/). There are multiple authors involved, please seek permission from all before archiving. Format by jyorraku, beta by Mara.
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jyorraku |
"Hoshi! Hoshi! Are you there?" Ensign Hoshi Sato jerked her right shoulder inward, further diminishing her slight form and aggravating the burning wound on her back. But she was relatively sure it took several microseconds off the time it took to unzip the pocket on her right arm. Within the pouch was the disembodied voice of her commanding officer, Captain Jonathan Archer. The small silver communicator felt cool in her sweat-grimed hands. She gripped it extra tight before pressing on the tiny catch, and flipping the cover open. The gadget chirped perfunctorily before his voice rose from it again. "Hoshi? Can you read me?" The sophisticated instrument conveyed without pause the urgency in his words. And when she would answer, she could almost count on him telling her not to panic in his best reassuring tone, having forgotten she had already heard his own trepidation from his hail. But these were special circumstances, and she could ignore the hypocrisy for the moment. Hoshi's mouth was dry, more so as she panted heavily to catch her breath. She made an attempt to swallow, but found her throat so tight she nearly gagged. Her head pounded heavily against the narrow confines of her skull, her body protesting without the necessity of words. All those sparring sessions and workout days on Enterprise did not prepare her for this. If she had the time to listen closely, she could probably hear her bones rattle with each inhalation, she lamented. As luck would have it, the gunfire and explosions from over yonder prevented her from further introspection on her sorry state. Another explosion rocked the ground beneath her boots. She told herself the haze in front of her eyes was just dust. Holding the communicator a little too close, she spoke. "Captain...I'm here. I had to take another route to avoid the Veninian patrols. How...how much further until I'm in transporter range?" She honestly hoped she sounded calm and...unpanicky--worthy of the Starfleet uniform she wore. "There should be some sort of building directly ahead of you, to the north. The scrambling perimeter ends there." A pause. "There're two patrols heading toward your direction. So-" "Hurry. Yes, you don't have to tell me twice!" Ignoring the languid burn in her leg muscles, she pushed ahead. The building grew agonizingly closer. She felt as if she was running in slow motion, taking one step forward and two steps back. "Ika!" She heard the Veninian voice call out. A patroller. He was telling her to stop and surrender, that particular word having the connotation of dying quickly if you don't obey, dying slowly if you do. The perimeter was five feet away. Another five steps and she would have been home safe. Well, maybe not totally safe. God knew if the transporter was going to cooperate or if it was going to spit her back out in pieces. No, must think nice thoughts. Good thoughts! "Ika laneng kanark." Ah, a connotation no longer. Now he was promising death either way. What do I do? Shit. I say we run for it. No! Are you crazy? What good will the transporter do us if we're dead? What good will the transporter do us if we're captured, subsequently tortured, and then killed, huh? That--that's a good point actually. Now if I can actually get our feet to move. Oh, that's easy. Hoshi's mind was suddenly flooded with images of blood and mangled flesh.She leapt for the perimeter, vaguely registering the high whine of a particle weapon behind her as her world went black. * * * * * "I've got her! I think--" Trip stopped short of the darkened platform. "Hoshi?" There was a grunt, followed by a delicate whimper. "Yeah--Yes?" Trip blinked several times, whilst shaking his head. His eyes and ears were telling him something that was impossible. He approached the step and leaned down, supporting himself on his knees as he placed both of his hands hesitantly on Hoshi's slim shoulders. His touch confirmed it, he dug his fingers in just to be sure his senses weren't lying. But however bizarre reality was, he could feel its impression sinking into skin of his palms, firing through the cobweb of synapses as it drilled into his befuddled brain. "Oh hell," Trip muttered as his thoughts splintered into a million different directions, none of them leading to particularly good destinations. He paused, continuing to be dumbfounded by the scene before him, and added as an afterthought, "Oh shit." "What's wrong?" asked a small chorus of two women. They froze upon hearing the other's voice, feeling the thin hairs at the back of their necks rise at that all-too-familiar tone. Slowly, with a foreboding that chilled into their bones, the two women turned toward each other. Without the benefit of a reflection, Hoshi Sato saw into her own eyes...and fainted into Trip's arms...stood there watching herself fall into Trip's arms. Hoshi rolled her eyes. "Well, as far as swoons go, I'd give that a 10." She crossed her arms as she glared at her prone form. "Perfect." * * * * * |
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Mara |
Jon stood just inside the door to Sickbay and tried to decide whether he wanted to laugh or cry. The scene was rather theatre of the absurd, after all. Two occupied biobeds, two hovering men. Well, actually there were 10 or 12 people milling around, waving scanners, and getting in Phlox's way, but only two that stayed in one place. Not to mention the two Hoshi Satos. Jon shook his head in wonder and took a moment, before anybody noticed his presence, to just look. There they were: two figures that looked exactly like Enterprise's comm officer. And sounded like her, too. Well, at least the one on his left did as far as Jon could tell through the din in Sickbay. He could hear snatches of her speech. "Malcolm, I'm fine. Stop fussing. The doctor has treated me and I'm..." She stopped, propped herself up on the bed and shouted, "Quiet!" Dead silence as everyone in the room turned in shock to look at her. Even Trip, hovering over the other Hoshi, looked up. The two women glanced at each other, the second saying, "Thank you." "You're welcome." Jon decided this was his cue to be useful and he stepped into the middle of the room. "Okay, everyone, let's clear this space so the doctor has some space to work. Everybody out." The various scientists who had been scanning the two women grumbled, but marched out past the stern captain. When he looked back, everyone had left except for Trip and Malcolm. The two men stood in almost identical stubborn poses, each by the bedside of one Hoshi, hands crossed over their chest, legs braced for impact. Jon debated the merits of trying to get rid of them as well, and decided it wasn't worth it. He waved his hand. "Fine, you can stay, but get in the way and the doctor can kick you out, too." The Hoshi on his left, still propped up on her elbows, pursed her lips. "What now?" "Now, I finish my medical check-up," Phlox said. "You mean, check that I'm really Hoshi," she said. "I don't know who you are, but I know that I'm Hoshi," said the one on the right. Trip patted her arm and she smiled up at him. The Hoshi on the left rolled her eyes. "Just get on with it." * * * * * Time passed. Phlox puttered about, mumbling to himself. The two Hoshis rested on the biobeds, stealing occasional glances at each other. Malcolm and Trip hovered. Jon waited, forcibly restraining himself from tapping his fingers on a hard surface. Finally, Phlox turned and everyone held their breath. "I am not certain this answer is going to please anyone," he said, "but every test I have run comes to the same conclusion. You are both Ensign Sato." "What?" "You're kiddin' me!" "How can that be?" "No way, I don't faint like that!" "Quiet!" Jon shouted. He waited for a full five seconds of silence. "Continue, Doctor." Phlox nodded gravely. "Your DNA is identical, your cells show the same degree of aging, and you arrived with the same recently-inflicted injuries. There are some slight differences in your brain patterns, but both of you are well within the normal range of previous scans of Ensign Sato. As far as I can tell from my limited testing, you have the same memories. You are both Ensign Sato." The two Hoshis stared at each other, somewhere between shock and horror. Jon leaned against the nearest bulkhead and wondered where in the rulebook it told him what to do if one of his bridge officers got split into two people. |
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essential phenylalanine |
* * * * * It was nearly 2200 hours when Doctor Phlox began to slowly tidy up and shut non-essential systems down for the night. He moved around the room, closing a cupboard here, feeding an experiment there, monitoring the two Hoshi Satos that lay opposite each other in his Sickbay--watching the two men that stayed with her. The captain had been in an hour ago, while both women slept. He had tried to convince Trip and Malcolm to go to bed, to persuade them that both Hoshis would be fine and that they could come back and visit in the morning. However, both had decided against sleep in order to remain with the Hoshis. He then told them that there would be a senior staff meeting at 0800, and that they were to be there, regardless of anything, before he bade them all goodnight. Doctor Phlox peered at Malcolm through a mesh partition. Malcolm was studying a padd with the transporter readings on it, his one hand grasping the gray metal. In the subdued light of the Sickbay, to help simulate night and entice sleep, the blue glow of the screen lit up Malcolm's face, and cast a paler blue light over his Hoshi and her white bed. Every few moments, he would lower the padd and look at Hoshi. Sometimes he would glance over to the other Hoshi and to Trip, and then go back to his work. Mr. Tucker was not so different in his vigil. He too studied a padd with the transporter readings on it. The two men, forming a partnership earlier, had argued over the cause of the accident, and as a result had decided to work apart, forming their own theories. The argument had been a product of guilt and concern, Phlox had privately concluded. Phlox turned his mind back to work. He called up the readings that he had taken some hours earlier. There would need to be a psychological evaluation tomorrow, before they were released to some form of accommodation. There was already evidence of subtle differences between the two Hoshis, but to what extent was unknown. Neither had Phlox discovered anything biological that had aided in the split. It was a medical mystery, but one that he would enjoy solving. He smiled to himself, and switched off the computer. He busied himself with more menial tasks, walking over to the other side of the Sickbay, to replace four sterilized test tubes in their racks. His Denobulan Namis Rat was silently building its nest in the corner of the glass case. A small Terran spider was spinning its web between two branches of a synthesized bush. The doctor glanced around his Sickbay, and seeing that there was nothing left out of place and that all his animals were fed and watered, tended to his last job. On the side lay two data padds with all information on the two Hoshis. He intended to give the information to both Trip and Malcolm. Phlox glanced over to Trip, and then to Malcolm. It seemed as if both officers had attached themselves to a Hoshi; Trip to the quieter, less sure ensign, and Malcolm to a more confident and outgoing Hoshi. Neither was about to leave the Sickbay, Phlox knew. Calmly, he moved to Malcolm's side, and gave him the data padd. "This contains all information I've gathered on the patients, in case it helps in any way in your investigation," he told Malcolm. Trip heard. "Hey Doc, have you got one of those for me?" he asked. Malcolm took the padd in his right hand, and gave the doctor a small smile of gratitude. Phlox moved to Trip and handed him the other padd. "Thanks Doc," Trip said, putting his first padd down. He paused. "She's gonna be okay, isn't she Doc?" Trip asked. "Both patients will be fine for the moment," Phlox said to both Malcolm and Trip. "You may use the biobeds for your convenience, provided you remove your boots. Goodnight Commander, Lieutenant." Malcolm smiled, and Trip offered a "Thanks, Doc." As Phlox left the Sickbay, he pondered. He wondered what he could do about the two female patients, seemingly identical, to put them back together. If they wanted to be put back into one, that is. He wondered what the captain would do. Would he rely on his, the doctor's judgement, or on his own, personal opinion? He wondered what it would mean if Hoshi remained in two separate bodies. But most of all, he wondered what it meant to have the Malcolm holding Hoshi's hand, and to have Trip holding the other Hoshi's hand. |
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jyorraku |
Malcolm stared at the small fingers in his hand. He didn't know how it happened. The other Hoshi had grabbed Trip's hand when the chaos in Sickbay erupted with the news that Hoshi had came back as two people. Anyone that fancied themselves scientists had come to see her. Distress was clear on her ashen face and she had gripped Trip's hand like a lifeline. The Hoshi, the one whose fingers were currently in his hand, had stoically accepted all the scans and questions aimed at her. But he saw her glance surreptitiously at the hand that Trip held. She clenched her fists tightly at her side. It was then that he realized she was as distressed by this situation as her counterpart was, only she wasn't showing it. "Hoshi," he said, pausing a second before opening her fist and taking her hand in his. "It'll be okay." Startled, Hoshi stared at their joined hands for a brief moment before looking up to flash him a quick smile. So he held her hand in his all through the night. He couldn't remember the last time he'd done that for anyone, not even his numerous ex-girlfriends. He looked across the bed and saw Trip hovering over the other Hoshi, who was tossing in her sleep. "I think she's havin' a nightmare," Trip called out to him before wiping off the beads of sweat on her forehead. "Shhh, Hoshi, it's okay." "Hey, you." Malcolm turned to the Hoshi at his side. She was awake, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Both of them jerked their head toward a loud gasp. "Hoshi! It's okay, it was just a nightmare!" Trip soothed, as he embraced her and ran a comforting hand through her hair. Hoshi's eyes grew wide as she registered her doppelganger at the next bed. "No...it's real," she whispered. Malcolm saw the Hoshi at his side frown at the other one. She slowly took her hand back from him, and sat up, her back straight: a defensive position. Doctor Phlox chose this time to enter Sickbay. "Good morning. How are my patients today?" he queried cheerfully. "Same as yesterday," Hoshi muttered. "Now, Ensign Sato..." The two Hoshis looked up at Doctor Phlox's words. Doctor Phlox blinked at the double dose of attention. "Hmm. Perhaps the first thing we should do is have some sort of nomenclature to distinguish between the both of you. Any particular suggestions?" "We could always name you Number One and Number Two," Trip piped up jokingly. Hoshi glanced sideways at him before leaning over and whispering teasingly, "And which one of us do you think should be Number One?" "Err." Trip looked to the Hoshi at his side for help. She peered up at him, her eyes glittering with quiet amusement. No help there. "Well?" Hoshi demanded, her arms crossed, the teasing demeanor gone. Trip felt a tug on his sleeve. Hoshi glanced at her semi-belligerent half before smiled mysteriously up at him. "You can call me Hoshi-chan," she said, soft enough that Trip felt she was only talking to him. "Okay," Trip found himself saying, mesmerized. Hoshi-chan laughed into her hand, wondering if Trip knew how much he looked like a dear caught in headlights. Malcolm leaned in close the Hoshi next to him. "What does chan mean?" he asked quietly. Hoshi smirked and shook her head. "It's a suffix used on a female name to denote familiarity." It somehow figured the quiet one would take a liking to the man who carried her the whole way to Sickbay. "Ahem. I'm afraid you gentleman will have to leave my patients to me." Trip opened his mouth to argue. He was the at the transporter controls when the accident happened, he felt responsible and he was not leaving either of them-- "Commander Tucker. I assure you, you'll have all the information that you need at the staff meeting in 30 minutes. Right now both of you will have to leave. I believe some of the questions I intend to ask Hoshi and Hoshi-chan are of a delicate nature." Trip reddened. "Oh all right, let's go, Malcolm." |
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Josephine |
"Well." Fifteen minutes later, Phlox bustled about, putting his instruments away. "I think I have all the information I need. Ah, Captain, just in time." He smiled as Jon came through the doors. "Phlox, Hoshi, Hoshi-chan. Are you through? I'd like to speak with the ensigns." "Yes, I'm done." Nodding at the women, Phlox left the room to start translating the data he gathered. "How are you feeling?" Jon looked from Hoshi to Hoshi-chan. Hoshi spoke first. "Fine." He turned to Hoshi-chan. "A bit...overwhelmed, Captain." Nodding, Jon continued. "We're working on what caused this, but have you thought about what you'd like to do regarding your duties?" "Not yet." "Think about it, and let me know. We also have to find another cabin for one of you, there's one down the corridor you can use. Talk to the Quartermaster about sheets and the like. The staff meeting has been moved to 1000 hours, it'll give you some time to get settled. Alright?" "Fine, Captain." Hoshi-chan nodded, then smiled, looking over Jon's shoulder. "Hey, Cap'n. Hoshi. Hoshi-chan." The last name came out softer, almost shyly. Hoshi sighed and jumped off the bed. "I'll move into the new cabin. Meet me there so we can divide our things up." She passed by Trip without a second glance. "Trip." Jon stared at the engineer. "Just thought I'd come and tell Hoshi-chan...and Hoshi...'bout the change in time for the meetin'." "I've told them. How is the analysis of the transporter readings coming?" "Oh, fine...Malcolm's working on one end while I've got another." He glanced over at Hoshi-chan sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting for the men to finish. Trip really wanted to walk Hoshi-chan back to her cabin, but he also knew he should be working on the transporter problem. "May I go now, Captain?" At his affirmative nod, Hoshi-chan slid off the biobed, gasping as her knees buckled slightly. Trip was there in a second to steady her. "Thank you, Commander. I guess it's all catching up to me." She gave him another melting smile, and he was mesmerized again. "Captain, would it be alright if the commander helped me to my cabin?" Jon bit back a grin as Hoshi-chan leaned on Trip's arm. He had only seen the original Hoshi turn on the charm a few times; it looked like this version was a master at it. "Go ahead, Trip. But don't forget the staff meeting." "Aye, Cap'n. I won't." Without taking his eyes from Hoshi-chan Trip led her out of Sickbay. Jon sighed, wondering if Hoshi was going to give Malcolm a run for his money. * * * * * "How're you feelin', darlin'? Alright?" Trip tucked Hoshi-chan's arm in his as they slowly made their way to her cabin. "I guess. I still feel a little worn out. And my head feels like it's stuffed with cotton. Thanks for walking with me." She squeezed his hand lightly. "Happy t' oblige." He couldn't stop smiling at her. "Hoshi! Is it true?" Liz Cutler came running up to the pair. "Where's the other one?" She looked around like Hoshi was hiding behind Trip. Hoshi-chan sucked in her breath, pulling back from Liz. "I...I think Hoshi is in our cabin." "How does it feel to have a clone? I'd be so freaked out." Liz didn't notice Hoshi-chan's distress, but Trip did. "Drop it, Cutler. Now is not the time." Pulling on Hoshi-chan's arm, Trip dragged her away from the morbidly curious crewman. "Trip, you're hurting me." Hoshi-chan was nearly falling over her feet trying to keep up. "Trip!" She finally dug in her heels and her arm slipped through his. "What?" Trip looked back to see Hoshi-chan rubbing her shoulder. "I'm sorry. You okay?" "I'm still a bit sore." "We're close t' your cabin, let me check your shoulder." Hoshi-chan keyed open her door, slowly walking in as she realized half her things were missing. "Everything alright?" 'My books, pictures of my family..." She sighed, opening the closet. "And half my clothes." Most of what was left was dresses. Hoshi-chan winced as she closed the door. "Let me take a look at that shoulder." Trip waited as she lowered the top of her jumpsuit, peeled off her tank. She had taken her bra off early that morning when it was aggravating the particle weapon burn. Slight shivers went through her at the touch of Trip's fingers against her skin. Trip unconsciously splayed his fingers across Hoshi-chan's back, her smooth skin warm under his hand. His stomach tightened at the dark red lesion. "Phlox let you out of Sickbay with this?" "I told him I was fine." "You're not. Why'd you tell him you were?" "She was fine." Trip didn't have to ask who 'she' was. "You're not her." "Yes, I am." |
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jyorraku |
"Hey, what's taking so long?" Hoshi walked into her former quarters and stopped dead as she took in the scene before her. Hoshi-chan jumped and grasped the remnants of her discarded uniform about her. Trip hastily withdrew his hands and locked them at his sides. "Whoa." "This isn't what it looks like-" Trip started to explain. Hoshi chortled. "Sure. Fine. Whatever." She stared as Hoshi-chan tried harder to hide herself in her uniform. A muscle twitched in her cheek and she said, "Hunka guncha tika noi, likka oy annam. Anavoy kilaku?" Hoshi-chan gasped at Hoshi's words, her face going up in flames. "Wha...what was that? What did she...what did you say?" Trip's eyes volleyed back and forth between the two identical women. A grin grew wide on Hoshi's face as she registered Trip's frustrated confusion. "Oh my God, this is going to be so much fun." "Hey, now see here--" Trip exclaimed indignantly. "C'mon Hoshi-chan, zip up. I gather you've got a few things you want back. Let's go see how we're going to split up our things." Hoshi looped her arm around Hoshi-chan's elbow and smirked at the bewildered commander. "See you later, Commander." Hoshi-chan snuck a look at Trip before stepping out, but when Trip caught her eyes, she ducked away into the shoulder of her counterpart. The duo left, leaving Trip wondering just what the heck Hoshi had said to Hoshi-chan. * * * * * "You LIKE him," Hoshi cooed at Hoshi-chan. She fiddled with her doppelganger's uniform collar as they walked down the corridor. Hoshi-chan nervously pushed her hand away. "So did you, when we were one person!" she shot back, desperately trying to ignore the burn in her cheeks. "Honey, we liked a lot of people on this ship. The male specimen on this ship is grade A, isn't that right, Professor?" "He was nice to me!" she protested. "Nice? Just nice?! Losers are just nice. Winners go home and fuck your brains out. Or has he done that already? It must have been a real fast quickie." Hoshi-chan tripped and would have fallen headfirst on to the deck if not for Hoshi's quick assistance. Then standing stock still, eyes wide with disbelief, mouth gaping at Hoshi, she managed to gasp like a fish on land, "I...I..I DO NOT TALK LIKE THAT! Or...or...or THINK LIKE THAT! And there was no...no...QUICKIE!" Hoshi smiled crookedly, leaned in until they were nose to nose, and stared into eyes that were mirror to hers. Her smile faded. "I guess that's one difference between you and me, huh?" "Ahem." The women turned to the source of the sound and straightened themselves. Malcolm stood there, looking uncomfortable, as if he'd been caught doing something he shouldn't have. "Hi, Malcolm," Hoshi-chan said softly. "Hoshi-chan," he nodded at her, then at Hoshi, "Hoshi." Hoshi tilted her head to one side and peered up at the armory officer. "Hey," she replied, her voice a low husk. There was a slight lull in the conversation until Malcolm spoke up again, his words unconsciously directed at the woman who seemed to be in command of team Hoshi. "The staff meeting--" "We know, Trip told me, no, the Captain told me...us, but Trip came to tell us again..." Hoshi rolled her eyes and with a look that effectively shut Hoshi-chan up, she said to the increasingly confused Malcolm, "What she meant to say is, we'll be there." "All right. See you, that is, both of you, there then." He nodded at them once more before hurrying away. Hoshi stared after him before feeling Hoshi-chan's curious eyes on her. "What? Do I have something on my face?" Hoshi-chan grinned. "You like him." Hoshi frowned at her. "He was nice to me," she replied, matter-of-fact. She blinked as her own words registered, and shot Hoshi-chan an icy glare, daring her to comment. Hoshi-chan remained wisely silent for the rest of the trek to Hoshi's quarters. |
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Lizard |
* * * * * Jon watched as his senior staff, except for Hoshi and Hoshi-chan, filed in for the meeting and took their customary seats. After a brief pause they, too, settled in, with Hoshi in her usual seat and Hoshi-chan at the end of the table. He hoped getting Hoshi settled in her new quarters had gone well. Trip was the first to speak. "I've been studying the transporter readings. I'm not sure how best to explain this, but I'll try and keep it simple. Hoshi was technically out of the scattering perimeter when we beamed her up from the planet. She was at the very edge, though, and some of the effects leaked past the perimeter. It distorted the transporter lock, kinda like it was seeing double. It saw two Hoshis, so it gave us two Hoshis on this end." "According to Trip, Hoshi and Hoshi-chan should be identical." Jon turned to Phlox. "But you said there were differences in their brain patterns, Doctor." "Yes. The differences are in the area of the brain that control emotions and personality. The closest example I can think of that you would be familiar with is identical twins. While they may look exactly alike, they have different personalities." "I thought you said they were the same person?" "Both ensigns were the same person until the moment the transporter separated them. They are now both Ensign Sato, with her exact DNA. The psychological analysis I conducted shows them to be slightly different. Perhaps Mr. Reed can explain more clearly." "The commander's analogy of double vision was pretty good, but I'd like to clarify it somewhat. The transporter saw two Hoshis, but they weren't two distinct Hoshis. I guess you could say the image was somewhat blurred in the middle. It gave us two complete Hoshis, but some characteristics came out more strongly in one than the other." "So Hoshi and Hoshi-chan basically embody slightly different aspects of the same person?" "That is essentially correct, Captain," Phlox replied. "Is there any way to...reverse this?" "What?" "Hold on a minute." "You're going to put us back together without asking us?" The previously silent Hoshi and Hoshi-chan appeared quite irate. "Relax, Ensigns. We aren't doing anything yet, just exploring the options. We wouldn't think of doing anything without consulting you first. Trip, do you have any ideas?" "In theory, all we have to do is transport the ensigns, and trick the transporter into thinking that there was only one. It would be the exact opposite of what happened to separate them. Making it actually work is another thing. I certainly wouldn't want to try it without a whole lotta testing first." "Captain, I think it prudent to mention a difficulty with reintegrating the ensigns." "Yes, T'Pol." "Since they have become separated, they ceased to be one person. They will have different experiences and different memories." "Sort of like Siamese twins when they're separated. So what do we do now?" Trip asked. "Trip, you, Malcolm, and T'Pol see if you can find a way of putting our twins back together. Consult with Phlox. I'll try and make up a report for Starfleet." "What about us?" "Hoshi, you and Hoshi-chan need to think about whether or not you want to be put back together. The decision will ultimately be up to you. Feel free to contact whoever you need to discuss this with. You are all dismissed." |
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Mara |
Jon left immediately, followed by Hoshi and Hoshi-chan, their faces identically bland, obviously thinking about their decision. Phlox and T'Pol excused themselves to head back to Sickbay and consider the medical aspects of possible re-integration, which left Trip and Malcolm avoiding each other's eyes on opposite sides of the table. Only beeps and clicks broke the tense silence as they consulted the data they'd gathered so far. Trip fought to contain a series of nervous twitches. First, he found himself tapping his fingers on the table. Then, when he'd stopped that, his leg started bouncing up and down. He put both hands on his knees for a moment and concentrated on sitting still. Satisfied, he went back to studying the records of what the transporter saw just before the moment of transport. "Commander," Malcolm said in a dangerous tone, "if you don't stop that this instant, I'm going to shove that padd down your throat." Trip's eyes widened, then he looked down and realized that he was tapping one padd on the table lightly as he read another. He put both padds down and pushed the chair back, almost tipping over. Practically throwing himself out of the chair, Trip started to pace, still unable to look at his friend. Back and forth. Thinking furiously, pacing, Trip was just about ready to explode. "What the hell are we going to do?" He finally turned and looked at Malcolm, and was startled when the armory officer looked up. His eyes were filled with a pain Trip hadn't seen since the moment they'd thought Enterprise destroyed. "Our jobs. That's all." "But if we-" "I know." Malcolm's lips twisted in sour amusement. "Believe me, I know." "I mean, we don't even know if they want to go back together." "But if they do, we have no choice." Trip continued to pace furiously. "What if we convince them to stay separate?" "How?" The word fell into the space between them like a black hole, sucking the air and light out of the room in an instant. To convince Hoshi and Hoshi-chan meant...well, it meant going out on a limb. It meant setting themselves up for the kind of rejection Trip could hardly imagine. It was one thing to have a woman say no to a date, and yet another for a woman to say no and cease to exist in any meaningful sense. If they re-integrated, would the memories still exist? The memories of the connections that were being created between the two of them and the two Hoshis? No way to tell. If so, how would the final Hoshi feel? Would she want one of them, both of them, neither of them? Trip looked at Malcolm, and was sure his eyes showed the same pain Malcolm's did. "Do our jobs, huh?" "Find a way to re-integrate her--them--safely. Give them the option. Step back and wait." "That sucks." "Eloquent as usual. But accurate." For a long moment, the two men stared at each other. With careful movements, Trip sat back down at the table and picked up his padd, going back to his notes. He didn't look, but he could hear Malcolm do the same. The room echoed with the sounds of silence, the unarticulated fears, and the inexpressible emotions. * * * * * continued in part two |
