Been debating if I should continue this or not. Seems like I write a lot of stories about people ending up in parallel worlds where their fictional heroes (and villains) come to life, so I sometimes feel like I should scrap some of these. But I also like the background idea to this, so... yeah, you guys will have to tell me what to do with it.
She had just poured water into the sink and started to wash up when she noticed the strange sound coming from the washing-machine in the next room. Frowning, she turned off the water, wiped her hands and opened the door to the small bathroom.
The washing-machine seemed to work as usual; the water was on and it was spinning at the right frequency. Still, the strange sound continued.
"How odd", she muttered to herself, rising from her kneeling position and brushing off her trousers. Perhaps it came from the neighbor's house; she tended to hear what they were up to and sometimes believe that it happened inside her own apartment.
Shaking her head at herself, she walked out to the sink again and dipped her hands into the hot water. While she scrubbed the plates, the sound behind her increased in intensity.
"What the hell are they doing?" she muttered once she was done and had wiped her hands on a towel. She turned to head out to the door and go bang the others' door to find out what was making that sound, but she only managed to turn partly when she saw the fire rushing towards her, along with the loud bang that seemed to tear her apart from inside-out.
Her scream was quenched in the flames of the explosion.
"Two of them did not make it; their internal damages were too big", doctor Beverly Crusher noted as she walked around the beds in sickbay. All of them were occupied by survivors from the recent explosion on the planet below.
"Will the others make it without side-effects?" Captain Picard asked, walking beside her.
"Some of them have irreparable damages; limbs ripped off and organs damaged", Beverly answered. "But most of them will be able to make a full recovery."
They stopped next to the only bed around which there were no worried relatives and friends. Beneath the sheet lay a human woman in her twenties.
"Data said that she was the one closest to the detonator, with the exception of the bomber himself", Beverly said, scanning the body as she did. "I do not know how, but she suffered some of the most minor damages in the group; her ears were damaged and her skin burned, but not beyond repair."
"She might have been protected by something", Picard suggested.
"Possibly", Beverly admitted. "But then we would have been able to find traces of whatever that was around her. There was nothing between her and the bomb, except for the bomber, who wasn't much of a protection."
Picard frowned slightly, then noticed the slight stir in the body on the bed. Beverly noticed it as well and seconds later, the woman opened her eyes, blinking in the strong light of the lamps.
"What… what happened?" she managed to ask.
"A bomb detonated right next to you", Beverly answered, scanning the body as she did. "You've suffered some minor damages, but you should be fully recovered in a couple of hours."
The woman's eyes followed her movements with increasing interest.
"Where am I, then?" she asked, her voice somewhat stronger.
"Onboard the USS Enterprise", Picard answered and stepped forward. "I am Captain Jean-Luc Picard."
"The Enterprise?" the woman said with a frown, then turned towards Beverly. "Am I really awake?"
"The data says so", Beverly answered with a soft smile. "Do you wish to sit up?"
The woman nodded slightly and got up with the doctor's assistance.
"Now, you need to be careful over the next few hours, but I see no need for you to remain here in sickbay once you feel strong enough to walk", Beverly continued, once again scanning her body for anomalies.
"Thank you, doctor", the woman said, then looked at Picard. "Where was the bomb?"
"A man detonated it on a piece of rock three meters from you", he answered. "It is believed that he worked for the terrorists that have attacked your village and the neighboring ones over the past years."
"Oh", the woman said. Then she sat silent for a while, pondering the news she'd just received. All of a sudden, she gave him an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry, Captain, but I must still be disoriented."
"No need to apologize; you have been through something terrible", he answered with a smile of his own. "I shall leave you to rest…"
"Wait", she said, swinging her legs over the side of the bed as he started to turn. "Mind if I come with you?"
Picard glanced at Beverly, who nodded in agreement.
"Not at all", he said. The woman smiled and rose, took a few steps to test her ability to stand and walk, then came up beside him.
"I'm Rosalie", she introduced herself when they headed out into the corridor. He noticed that her eyes moved along the panels on the wall with an ever increasing curiosity.
"Well, Rosalie, is this the first time you've ever been on a starship?"
"Dare say so", she answered. "At least of what I can remember."
She frowned slightly.
"Captain, why was the Enterprise already here when the explosion occurred?"
"We've been having a diplomatic meeting with several of your Elders in the different villages and cities", Picard answered. "The Federation has become increasingly worried about the attacks and wishes to end them, but so far no solution has been found."
"Well, if there's anything I can do to help, don't hesitate", Rosalie said. "The sooner we put an end to this the better…"
She glanced back the way they'd walked, back towards the sickbay.
"How many died?" she asked silently.
"Two civilians, and the bomber himself", Picard answered.
"But if I was the closest one to the detonator, how come I survived?" Rosalie asked. He frowned.
"We do not know, yet."
He nodded at a door.
"You may reside in here, as our guest. Once we've stabilized and cleaned up on the surface, you will all be sent back home."
She nodded and gave him a slight smile, before she said good-bye and headed into her quarters.
The first thing she did was to sit down by the small screen designed for messages.
"Computer, state the full date of today", she said aloud.
"Today is stardate…"
"Oh, do not worry about the stardate", she interrupted the voice of the computer. "Use year, in the fashion of Earth."
"Year 2368", the computer answered. Rosalie's eyes widened and she started to pace round the room.
"Alright, state the planet we are orbiting", she said.
"The USS Enterprise is currently in orbit around Feltan III", came the answer.
"A far way away from Earth, I guess", Rosalie said and sighed. "How is it possible to travel more than 350 years into the future and a whole lot longer out into space?"
"Please re-state question."
"I was talking to myself, thank you very much", Rosalie remarked. "But this means that there might be more things going on than the Captain is aware of."
Please comment what you think!
