The Bester of Both Worlds, chapter 2
Londo Molari stalked out of his quarters, pissed off about another one of G'Kar's misdeeds. G'Kar had taken up a strange new Earth hobby recently; something called practical jokes. He had sneaked into his quarters the previous evening when he was out on a diplomatic mission, short sheeted his bed and had put itching powder in it. He had developed an intolerable rash in an unmentionable place and was very grouchy this morning. To add insult to injury, he didn't notice the unconscious human woman lying just outside his door until he tripped over her. The fall didn't hurt anything but his pride. He looked back at her and knelt for a pulse, immediately forgetting about his own little problem. Relieved at feeling a pulse, he thought the woman was very pretty for a human. Concerned for her, even though he didn't have a clue as to who she was or how she happened to be there, and fearing that someone had attacked her and taken her purse or something, he dragged her into his quarters, placed her on his couch, removed his cape from his shoulders, draped it over her, and used his com link.
"Great Maker!" He whispered to himself. "That poor woman. This space station is a rat trap. It should have better security than this." He waited while the face of Captain John Sheridan, the relatively new space station head, replacing Commander Jeffrey Sinclair, appeared on his screen.
"What can I do for you, Ambassador?" The station commander asked, noticing the worried expression on the Centauri's face.
"Captain, I just discovered some poor human woman unconscious just outside my quarters. Where is Garibaldi when we need him, anyway?"
The security chief had sufficiently recovered from a PPG blast that almost ended his life, and had been put on light duty until he had fully recovered.
"He's busy with another new development, Londo. It seems that one of Mr. Bester's aids discovered him out cold on the floor of his quarters as well. Someone had dressed him in some sort of strange uniform or costume, with an insignia on his chest we aren't familiar with."
"Sounds like something G'Kar would do. Who is this woman I found, anyway?"
"I don't know, Molari, but I'm sure G'Kar wouldn't knock two people out for no good reason, and he wouldn't dare try anything with Bester. He could kill him with a thought. I will contact Dr. Franklin about your mystery woman. He should be there shortly. In the meantime, don't move her unless you have to. She might have injuries you can't see."
"I already moved her to my settee, Commander." Londo said helplessly.
"Well don't move her again."
***
When Captain Chekov regained consciousness, he focused his eyes on a rather drab gray metal ceiling. He heard voices around him, and soon realized that he was in some sort of sickbay. Attempting to sit up, he felt a firm hand that forced him back down. There was no need for such force, for he also felt very dizzy and disoriented. He heard some strange comments, and wasn't sure if they were spoken by those around him or if he was dreaming them. They were calling him a jackass and an asshole, and were also saying that whoever hit him should have finished the job they started. He heard another male voice say that if he wasn't a doctor, he would have. It was all very confusing. It was hard at first to get his equilibrium. He frowned, wondering if they were going to let him sit up or if he would have to lie there indefinitely. He then thought of his two companions. His head was propped up on a rather thick pillow, and he found he could turn it to look on either side of him. He saw Clare, who appeared to be still unconscious to his left. There was no sign of Ralph Offenhouse, and Chekov feared the worst. Ralph must have been killed when the Guardian fell over.
"I'm getting too old for this shit." Chekov sighed softly to himself, holding his aching head.
Sighing again, he tried to sit up once more. This time, no one stopped him. The doctor who had pushed him down was in another part of the room, talking softly to a rather tall fellow named Garibaldi. Chekov found it strange that he heard the name from this distance. His head was still pounding as he swung his legs to the floor, grabbed the edge of the bed he had been lying on for support, and slowly moved towards Clare, hoping to awaken her.
"Mr. Bester, get back to bed!" The young doctor barked. "You and the lady have sustained severe concussions, and I will not have my patients wandering around the med lab like they own the place. I don't care if you're a psi cop or not!"
Chekov peered at him curiously. What did he call him? Bester? He also wondered what a 'psi cop' was. However, in order not to appear to be the jerk they obviously thought he was, he complied.
***
For a few moments, Ralph had the unsettling feeling of falling and not being able to get his bearings. Soon, however, he found himself on a cold wet snowy street. He involuntarily fell backwards on his backside onto the unyielding pavement and realized a few minutes later that he really should get out of the way of oncoming traffic. He stood and brushed himself off. He saw a nearby traffic signal, and sat down on a bench near a lonely bus stop. There was a trash can on one side of the bench, and he soon saw a newspaper. He was disappointed when he quickly found that it was printed in Russian. He noted the date on it, however. It was February 22, 1974, a Friday. Now he had an idea of where and when he was, but had no idea what to do next. He could tell that he was in a downtown area, so decided it was best to go to a store to get out of the cold. He wasn't dressed for cold weather, even though he had on a jacket for his visit to that planet he had been on moments before. He wondered what had happened to Clare and Chekov. Not a bad fellow, he hoped that they were all right, wherever they were.
***
The only things making sounds on the Guardian planet now were Chekov's dropped communicator and aftershocks from the earthquake. The Guardian was now a pile of smoldering debris, as dead as the world it had been on. The aftershocks shook the remaining foundations of the time portal and loosened large heavy rocks from nearby hills. One crashed into the small device, rendering it inoperative.