Chapter Twenty-One: Catharsis

Dax spoke to Odo, and called for Quark to meet her in Ops when she returned. There the latinum was returned to its owner, Dax insisting on a receipt. Only then did she join Miles in the infirmary waiting room. "Any word yet?"

Miles shook his head. "It must be bad," he said grimly.

"Probably, but I trust Julian's skill," Dax attempted to reassure him.

Miles only nodded, then looked up sharply and jumped to his feet as the door slid open and Dr Bashir stood there. He had changed into a uniform shirt, but still wore the pants and shoes from his adventure, as well as the sideburns and glasses he had forgotten or simply not bothered to remove. "How is he?" O'Brien demanded.

"Stable," Bashir replied, brushing a weary hand across his forehead and then pushing the gold frames up in an automatic gesture. "He's not conscious yet, but you can come see him if you want."

Dax nodded, and wordlessly she and O'Brien followed Bashir into the infirmary. The commander lay sleeping apparently peacefully, and Bashir took his wrist for a moment in a newly formed habit that would not disappear immediately, though a glance at the monitors could have told him as much. "He's stable and comfortable," he reported.

"What exactly is wrong with him?" Dax questioned.

Bashir sighed. "He was alone for several weeks before I entered the holoworld and was able to find him. As Miles and I expected, he was beaten several times — badly. The wounds were infected by the time I got there, of course; I did what I could but they never fully healed. And the nature of the program was such that when I stopped the beatings by buying him, he still showed the effects of them when they would have occurred. Not as badly, of course, but bad enough."

"But that was in the holoprogram," Dax objected. "How could his injuries transfer to real life?"

"Any injuries in a holosuite are real enough with the safeties off."

"Yes, I know, but you weren't 'there' in the usual way; you were actually in the program as a transporter signature. Wouldn't that be static no matter what appeared to be happening within the program?"

"Obviously not," O'Brien stated. "I think it must have been somehow rewriting the signatures to reflect whatever happened within the program."

Bashir looked up. "Yes, and are we sure no one else was trapped there with us?"

"Yes," Miles assured him. "I didn't tell it which signatures to retrieve; if anyone else had been in there, they would have shown up with you."

Bahir nodded; they seemed to have forgotten he didn't know exactly how he and Sisko had been retrieved, but he understood enough to guess at the rest.

"So he will be all right?"

"Eventually. I gave him an antibiotic, which should take care of the infection with a few more doses. But I had to clear away so much dead flesh that there's practically no skin left on his back; I'm growing new skin to graft on, but it could be upwards of a week before it's ready." He rubbed a hand wearily across his forehead, and Dax's eyes narrowed in concern.

"Julian, you look dead tired. You said he's stable; why don't you go back to your quarters and clean up and get some rest?"

Bashir shook his head. "He's so fragile emotionally; I don't want him to wake up and find I'm not here for him."

"You don't have him sedated?"

"Only as much as needed for the surgery; when that wears off he'll probably rouse some, and I'd rather not give him more if I don't have to."

"All right," Dax agreed, not questioning Bashir's decisions on how to treat a patient. "But O'Brien and I can stay with him; surely we'd be just as reassuring."

Bashir hesitated, then nodded. "I'll leave a hypospray with the nurse; call her to sedate him if he seems to be getting upset."

"We'll be fine. You go on now — but you might stop and have a word with Jake on your way."

"I will. Thank you, Jadzia."

Dax reached to squeeze his hand as he went past. "Thank you, Julian, for everything you did for him. Sitting beside him for a few hours is nothing compared to that."

oOo

Nearly two hours later, Ben stirred and moaned slightly. "Suh…"

Dax squeezed the hand she had been holding the whole time. "Shh, sir…it's Dax."

Ben blinked open eyes that struggled to focus. "Old Man?"

"Yes."

"Then…Miles did it? We're back?"

"Yes, you're back."

"Julian…?"

"He's here; he was working on you for hours, so I sent him to get some rest. How are you feeling?"

"Good…back doesn't hurt. Jake…?"

"We told him you're back, and Bashir stopped to talk with him on his way to his quarters."

"See him…?"

"Better not until Bashir clears you for visitors, and he looked so exhausted that I'm not disturbing him unless it's absolutely necessary."

Sisko sighed, his eyes drifting closed. "Stay with me, Old Man?"

"Of course, sir," Dax said. Softly, she began humming a Trill lullaby, and soon Ben had drifted back to sleep.

oOo

When Bashir returned, he looked much refreshed in his customary uniform, the gold-framed glasses gone.

"Keeping the sideburns?" Dax questioned with a grin.

Bashir rubbed a hand over the facial hair. "No, but it's still growing a touch faster than normal; if I shave them off completely I'll look scruffy in a few hours. In another month, maybe I'll be able to get away with it." He looked at the monitors over Sisko's bed and nodded in satisfaction. "Was he conscious at all?"

"For a few minutes."

"How did he seem, emotionally?"

"Glad to see me, and he asked about Jake."

"Hm. I wonder if he'll remember it as more than a dream when he's fully alert…" Bashir mused.

"Probably not," Dax admitted. "Does it matter?"

"I suppose not. There's no need for you to stay now, Dax; I'm sure it must be long past time for you to be off duty."

"Yes," Dax admitted, getting to her feet. "Call me if anything changes."

"I promised Jake I'd call him as soon as his father is alert enough to see him; I'm not sure more than one visitor at that time would be wise."

"Call me if there's anything I need to know, then," Dax amended.

Bashir nodded. "Will do."

oOo

"O'Brien residence," Keiko responded to the chime of the communicator.

"Keiko, it's Dr Bashir; is Jake there?"

"Yes," Keiko responded even as Jake came hurrying in from the other room on hearing the doctor's voice.

"I'm here, sir; how's Dad?"

"Awake and eager to see you," Dr Bashir responded, the smile evident even in his voice.

Jake's own grin nearly split his face. "I'll be right down." Not pausing to sign off or say goodbye to Keiko, he hurried from the room so fast he nearly ran into the door before it had a chance to open.

Several people turned to look at him with curious expressions and raised eyebrows as he rushed through the promenade, but Jake noticed none of them. "Where is he?" he demanded, bursting into the infirmary.

"Calm down, Jake," Dr Bashir chuckled. "I can't let you see him if you're going to tackle him."

"Oh, sorry," Jake muttered, attempting to calm himself but still shifting from foot to foot in eagerness.

Dr Bashir chuckled again. "Come on, then," he gave in. "Just try not to excite him too much; he's recovering well, but he still needs his rest."

Jake responded with the barest nod as he followed Dr Bashir to his father's room.

"I've brought you a visitor, sir," Bashir announced with a grin.

Sisko slowly turned his head on the pillow. "Jake!"

"Dad," Jake whispered hoarsely. He stood for a moment as if unable to move, then dashed across the room, fell to his knees at his father's side, and burst into sobs with his head on the side of the bed.

Moving awkwardly, Sisko slowly put his arm around his son. "Jake, it's all right…I'm all right."

A fresh sob shuddered over him at his father's words, but he gave no other sign of having heard. For some minutes his father simply held him, until at last he raised his head and swiped his eyes with the back of his hand.

"Here, Jake," Bashir said quietly, handing him a handkerchief. He had been narrowly observing the scene, but as long as Sisko's vitals remained within reasonable limits, he saw no need to interrupt something both of them likely needed.

"Thanks," Jake said thickly, blowing his nose noisily and wiping his eyes again. "Dad…I'm sorry."

Tears shone in Sisko's own eyes. "You were worried about me, Jake; I understand."

Jake shook his head hard. "No! It was all my fault, Dad! If you hadn't been trying to stop me —"

"That program was meant for me," Sisko reminded him softly. "Remember how Quark wouldn't give in until I agreed to try it? Whoever put him up to it…he wasn't after you."

"But he might not have caught you if I hadn't —"

"No, Jake," Dr Bashir interjected. "Whatever might or might not have happened if your father had been alone, the fault for what did happen lies with one person only — the person who gave Quark that program."

"Maybe, but it still feels like my fault," Jake said soberly.

"Then I forgive you," Sisko assured him.

"Thanks, Dad," Jake whispered.

Next chapter coming next week! (…hopefully)

I proofread all my stories at least once before posting, but if you see any mistakes I might have missed, please let me know!

Please note that I have internet access only once a week, and may not have time to respond to all reviews/messages. If you have questions regarding my Deep Space Nine alternate history, check my profile first to see if they're answered there. Thanks for your understanding! Barbie