Part 12

Harper examined the handheld unit in his hands, and his mind drifted to the possibility of no longer being able to do the work he was attempting to do. It didn't seem real, that an operation to improve his health would mean he could no longer work with units like these. He switched the power on and looked at the array of information that flashed up on the screen, feeling a little nervous to the pit of his stomach. Whether it was the nerves, or an actual general sensation, Harper felt the beginnings of a head ache as he made sense of the information on the screen in front of him. This couldn't be happening, he considered sadly, machines were the one thing that had always made sense to him and getting his port had been the breakthrough in enabling him to make something of himself and now that was being threatened, and he felt angry. The universe, he considered now, really did hate him.

"Harper?"

"Beka," Harper spoke up with surprise, and immediately put the hand held down on the bench in front of him.

"Busy?"

"Just looking at these units," Harper gestured, recovering his composure.

"I thought you were off duty?" Beka moved closer and picked up the hand held that Harper had just been looking at.

"I am," Harper agreed. "I'm just a little restless, so I thought I'd do some basic analysis," he offered.

"You don't have to explain," Beka smiled knowingly. "How are you feeling now?"

"Better," Harper nodded his head, but deep down his stomach was jumping hoops, knowing he would have to tell Beka the truth and had so far successfully avoided doing so. "Actually, we need to talk," Harper then frowned.

"I knew it," Beka remarked.

"You did?"

"Dylan was acting funny, he more or less ordered me to come and see you," Beka stated softly.

"He did?" Harper almost gulped, he had hoped no one would have noticed his avoidance in telling Beka immediately.

"It's serious isn't it?" Beka picked up on Harper's nervous actions.

Harper gestured to his rest area of the workshop. "We should sit down," Harper offered briskly, and indicated to Beka to sit down at the end of the bed, as he sat down beside her.

"What is it, Harper?" Beka asked with concern.

Harper stood up, clearly anxious, as he paced in front of her trying to find the best way of telling her the bad news, and her part in it. Finally he stopped, and paused as he looked at Beka fondly. "It changes nothing, ok?"

"What doesn't?" Beka demanded. "Please just tell me what's going on, I mean the fact Dylan obviously already knows, Harper, you're scaring me here."

Harper sat down, and for a moment he took Beka's hands into his own, before pulling away again and putting his head in his hands. Taking a deep breath still holding his head, and not looking at the blonde captain he spoke. "I have brain damage."

"Brain damage?" Beka repeated, shock in her voice. "How, when?" she asked quickly. "How bad is it?"

Harper sat up and sighed. "It can be cured, in a manner of speaking, so that it wouldn't affect me," he shrugged.

"The black outs and seizures?" Beka then recalled, and Harper simply nodded his head. "Harper, what happened?"

"You," Harper paused, instantly seeing the horror on Beka's face with that one word spoken. "You, in the conduit, the shocks," he could barely bring himself to say the truth as he saw Beka's face fall.

Immediately Beka got to her feet, and Harper was at a loss as to what to do so he remained seated. He felt dreadful for telling her, but knew she had a right to know, and he wanted her to know from him. Deep down he was still angry by the situation, but he couldn't be angry at her, even though it would probably make it easier to accept if he had someone to blame. Beka was his rock however, and now she was hurting, not physically, but Harper knew he had just turned her world upside down and he hated himself for doing that to her.

"I'm sorry, Beka," Harper spoke, not knowing what else to do.

"You're apologising to me?" Beka responded, her voice emotional. "Seamus, I don't think you have anything to apologise for!"

"I just don't want you to," Harper paused, his words sounded so stupid given the situation, and he got to his feet to stand behind Beka. "Don't do this to yourself, things are cool, don't punish yourself, it was an accident."

"How bad is it?" Beka spoke without emotion, still facing away from him. "You said it can be cured?"

"I'd need an operation," Harper shrugged, trying to sound cool. "But I'm not going to have it."

Beka spun around to face him. "What?"

"Beka, it's not as easy as just fixing the damage," Harper explained quickly.

"Harper you will have that operation, don't make me have to watch you suffer because of what I did to you, if there's a way to fix it, just fix it," she stressed.

Harper took a deep breath, and looked at Beka. "It would mean losing everything, Beka, my life, my work and my passion."

"What?" Beka couldn't comprehend what Harper was trying to say. "How can fixing the damage lose you your life? I thought it was going to make you better?"

"Physically maybe," Harper moved away, before turning back to her. "But I'd lose the port and any ability to interact with artificial environments. I would lose the very thing that makes me, me," Harper stressed with force. "I can't give that up, Beka, not even for you, I'd rather die."

Beka just stared at Harper, taking in the weight of his words and she seemed lost for a moment, as she considered a response. "My god, Harper," she spoke, and her voice sounded shaky.

"Beka, please, don't," Harper attempted to make her feel a little better, as he moved forward. "Look, things will be fine, I'll just have to take more care, it'll be ok," he reasoned but Beka's emotions were breaking and she moved away from him. "Don't go, please, stay, we should talk, Beka!" Harper spoke desperately but Beka had already turned and was half way out the door, barely containing her emotions.

"Crap!" Harper snapped with frustration, and looked up as the holographic projection of Andromeda appeared. "Great, now I feel like crap, Rommie," he stressed and moved to where he had left his sparky, taking a huge gulp.

"She needs time," Andromeda calmly spoke.

"Maybe," Harper sighed. "I just don't want her to blame herself, or think I blame her, I mean maybe at first I did but," Harper paused, and showed his own frustrations. "I just want things to be normal again!" he raised his voice.

"Harper," Andromeda voice was level, and lacking emotion in comparison. "You need to rest, I am detecting high levels of stress, and your earlier work on those units has adjusted your levels outside of what we deem to be safe, suggesting you may be at risk to an attack unless you calm down and rest."

"I'm fine," Harper snapped and moved to the exit.

"At least see if Trance can give you anything to reduce the risk I'm detecting at present," Andromeda requested.

"Beka's more important," Harper simply said before leaving the workshop.


Rommie walked onto the observation deck and surveyed proceedings, satisfied that everything was ready for the guests who had just arrived on board. As the last of the droids moved out, Rommie turned and smiled, as Dylan approached, leading the group of eight towards them.

"Please make yourselves comfortable, we have a selection of drinks and snacks for you, before discussions begin," Dylan offered, and Rommie gestured to the table that had been laid out.

"Dylan, a quick word," Rommie took him aside, as Dylan excused himself briefly from his guests.

"What is it?"

"Harper has told Beka about his condition, I think it would be wise not to insist on their attendance to this function," Rommie simply said.

"Did it go well?"

"It's still going," Rommie could only say. "Beka needs some time, and she needs Harper with her."

"Understood, of course they are excused," Dylan considered. "Is Tyr and Trance on their way?"

"Yes, although Trance needs to just administer some medication to Harper, but she should be along soon. Tyr, well, he is taking his time," Rommie could only explain.

"So long as he gets here," Dylan simply said, and with brief nods of the head, they both moved away from each other so Dylan could continue playing host.


Harper moved along the corridor, consumed by the need to see Beka. His thoughts rushed with the words he could say, or things he could do to make things better for Beka to understand, he really didn't want her blaming herself for what had happened to him. So caught up in his thoughts Harper failed to move out of the way quickly enough before bumping literally into Tyr, on reaching the junction in the corridor.

"Tyr!" Harper jumped back immediately, and then froze on seeing Tyr for the first time since the events that had happened previously.

"I trust you still have eyes in your head, I suggest you try using them," Tyr simply said in response.

"With all your superior uber senses I would have thought you'd have known I was coming," Harper returned sharply.

"I was distracted," Tyr spoke, and for a moment they both stood in silence just glaring at each other.

"Yeah, well," Harper hesitated. "So was I," he offered.

"Are you better?" Tyr asked.

"Yeah," Harper wanted to keep the conversation brief, still wanting to catch up with Beka. "Look, I'd love to stop and chat but I have things to do."

"Likewise," Tyr agreed, but still neither man moved and they just stared at each other.

"So no apology then?" Harper broke the awkward silence.

"I feel no need," Tyr returned.

"Course not," Harper looked away in frustration, and with annoyance. "Probably enjoyed it far too much to think you were wrong, hey, maybe the fact you didn't kill me is killing you right now, right? I'll always be the one who got away, for the whole stinking universe to see," Harper goaded, unsure why he was saying the words he was, or feeling the anger he suddenly felt, just wishing he could just move away and find Beka.

"I spared you your life," Tyr stated.

"Oh please," Harper was riled now. "Don't flatter me uber, you're just lucky I didn't forget who you were, I wouldn't have been so generous."

"Are you threatening me?" Tyr seemed amused.

"Just stating facts," Harper sneered.

"I spared you because I saw your potential to help me," Tyr responded calmly.

"Sure," Harper stated unimpressed. "Not because I outwitted you."

"I was being genuine with my offer to help you, in return for helping me, you should have taken me up on it instead of running away, it would have saved you a lot of unnecessary pain," Tyr stressed.

"You seem to forget my hate hate relationships with ubers, especially those who shoot me in the leg!" Harper returned with venom, but Tyr's words stuck in his gut, as he found himself considering what could have been. "Look, I haven't got time for this, what happened, happened but don't think if the roles had been reversed that I wouldn't have killed you the first chance I got."

"Am I supposed to be afraid of your angered tone?" Tyr asked.

"Thinking material, that's all," Harper dismissed. "Twenty years on Earth, I did a lot of studying of your kind, I know your weaknesses."

"We have no weaknesses," Tyr returned, his composure showing arrogance.

"That's your weakness," Harper simply responded, and turned to continue on his way to Beka. Once Tyr was out of sight Harper stopped and gathered his senses, gasping for breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding as he took a minute to calm down after his confrontation with a guy twice his size.

"You shouldn't speak to Tyr like that, Harper," Trance spoke up, and Harper jumped with a small shriek.

"Trance, don't do that to a guy!" He stressed, wondering where Trance had come from.

"Goading Tyr will not change what happened," Trance continued without reaction to the fright she had given Harper.

"I know," Harper conceded. "But I just feel a little defensive right now, ok?" he explained. "All three of them made me feel pretty small, and I'm not big on feeling that, excuse the pun," he stressed, as he caught his breath.

"You need to calm down and rest, this medication will prove worthless otherwise," Trance spoke, as she pressed the injector to Harper's neck.

"I'm fine, and I really need to check on Beka," Harper stated.

"I need to go and meet with Dylan's guests," Trance put the medication away.

"Guests, on board?" Harper checked with confusion.

"That group from the Hann home world," Trance prompted.

"They're here already? Seems like that conference was weeks away when Dylan first mentioned it," Harper frowned.

"Its ok, you and Beka have been given time to sort out what you need to sort out, so don't worry, you're not expected to attend," Trance smiled.

"So some good has come out of all this," Harper grinned.

"I wish you'd reconsider," Trance then looked at Harper with fondness.

"I'm not having that operation," Harper reiterated.

Trance nodded her head, showing a sadness that nearly had Harper asking her to explain it, but instead he simply let her move away. He knew he couldn't live without his port, or his work, and no matter what, he'd rather live the life he had now than be forced to live like he used to, before he got the port.


Dylan was pleased to see Tyr had finally showed up, and before the main speeches were made. Making his way over to the Nietzschean, Dylan sensed that Tyr appeared distracted.

"Everything ok?" Dylan offered on reaching Tyr.

"I'm here," Tyr simply answered.

"Apparently only in spirit," Dylan attempted humour.

"I spoke to Harper," Tyr then offered and Dylan was caught by the tone of Tyr's voice.

"When?"

"In the corridor on the way here, he bumped into me," Tyr struggled to explain, and Dylan wanted to know why Tyr was sounding uncomfortable.

"What did he say?"

"That had the roles been reversed, he would have killed me and not spared me as I did him," Tyr shrugged.

"I see," Dylan showed his confusion at Tyr's words. "Does this trouble you?"

"That a human half my size and with only an ounce of my strength would dare to challenge me?" Tyr offered, reverting quickly back to the arrogant soul Dylan was more familiar with. "I simply find Harper's need to threaten me, in the face of what happened, disturbing and a little concerning."

"You didn't expect a bear hug did you?" Dylan couldn't help himself, as he offered a smirk.

"Harper has never challenged me before, has never so much as dared to threaten me," Tyr offered with seriousness. "Yet now he is informing me in no uncertain terms that he knows my weaknesses, and wouldn't be afraid to use that knowledge against me."

Dylan realised the strength of Tyr's words and put it into context. "We should talk to him," Dylan suggested. "His anger is not welcome; we still need to work together."

"That is my concern," Tyr agreed. "Its enough that I stay on this ship, but I will not be forced to have to protect fellow crew from themselves, as much as he may think he knows my weakness, I know for certain what his weaknesses are."

"Tyr, I will ignore the fact that I have heard you making what I deem to be a serious threat, in sound mind, against one of my crew with the promise that I will talk to Harper about this," Dylan stressed. "Maybe I shouldn't have put off speaking to him myself, but these delegations took up all of my time, I will solve this," Dylan repeated his word.

Tyr simply nodded his head, and continued to observe the visitors from where he stood, leaving Dylan to move away hoping that the speeches would go smoothly, and be over quickly so he could try and tidy up once and for all the mess that had been made a few days earlier.

TBC