"We're getting nowhere," Xistan declares.

Findlay nods in agreement. Failure. They are no closer to a solution now than when this started.

My God, the fate of the universe rests on the whim of one Lieutenant Alara Kitan.

The point of getting Gordon and Alara to talk was to discover why she reacted differently, not for them to fall in love.

Findlay is at the point where he feels he must turn the mission over to another Technician.

He grimly prepares to enter the new iteration. For the first time he feels despair. The risk of bleed-through contaminating the timeline increases with each iteration, although he wonders if it matters if the Orville doesn't rescue its commanding officers this time.

Reset timeline starts now:

"Guys, please," Alara pleaded. "I had no choice."

Gordon merely looked at her before deliberately setting down his fork and napkin. "Permission to speak freely, sir."

"Yes, of course," Alara answered, exasperated, but doing her best to appear calm.

"You know what the most heinous thing about this is?" Gordon asked, then continued. "If the Captain were in your shoes, he would have gone after you. He would have risked his career to save your life."

"You…." Alara waited for him to continue, but unexpectedly, Gordon stopped mid-sentence. He blinked, then looked down at the table, avoiding her gaze.

Alara was going to tell him to look her in the eye and then it registered. Just before he looked down, his demeanor changed. He didn't want her to see his sudden sympathy, or empathy or whatever. She sat there, mouth hung open, not knowing what to say. She closed her mouth and looked bewildered.

John looked at Gordon, then looked at her, then looked away, shaking his head.

Gordon now looked at her, obviously still unhappy, but the anger was no longer present. "Never mind, sir. What's done is done. I guess you're technically not wrong, but I know Ed would have done it differently," he sighed. "I guess it's an unfair comparison," he said softly, almost a whisper, his face looking a little redder, almost as if embarrassed. He stared off in the distance now, as if focused on the wall a few meters away.

John just swallowed, still upset and looking like he wanted to say something but deferred to Gordon and said nothing.

Alara just sat there, staring at them. What just happened? Gordon was ready to tear her a new one, then suddenly stopped and changed his tack. Her eyes went wide, as if she had an epiphany. She shook her head as if to clear it.

Suddenly, she stood up and announced, "Attention, everybody! I have been ordered by the admiralty to take this ship back to Earth and leave the Captain and Commander to their fate!"

Everybody sat or stood stock still, with expectant expressions among many. It was if an energy was permeating the room.

"But I say, the hell with them! We're going to the Calivon system and get them out of there!"

The cheers were deafening. "How fast can you get us there," she asked the smiling Gordon and John, looking as serious as she was able to manage.

"As fast as you want," Gordon answered, "sir!"

Alara turned around and headed to the bridge, so as to hide the smile forming on her face, followed by the two lieutenants. Everyone ran to their posts.

…

The rescue was successful, the timeline restored. Mostly.

In spite of never figuring out what the variable was, this event was a success. The bleed through effect was unavoidable given the number of iterations they went through, so memories from previous iterations could linger. In any case, no major deleterious effects were noted. Individuals involved were affected to an extent, but no actual harm was done. In an unheard-of move, the controller offered to show the field officers the results. Xistan expressed no interest, but John Findlay did. After showing him, the controller closed the file, and the technician went on to see what his next assignment would be. No words were spoken, but the controller smiled as he looked at the technician's back as he headed away. He knew that Findlay had developed an affection for the Orville crew and would perhaps be gratified to an extent at the resulting changes. It could be interesting…

…..

It was a long day of celebrating and Gordon was beat. Dressed in his shirt and shorts and just about to jump in bed, he heard the door ringer. He figured it was Ed or John and even though he was tired, he signaled for the door to open, heading toward the synthesizer to get drinks. "What'll you have?" he asked, then turned around, smiling. There was Alara, standing there expressionless except possibly a slight sadness mixed with an unidentifiable emotion in her eyes, still in uniform with the blue sapphire medal still hanging on her.

Gordon was a bit startled and felt a bit embarrassed at how he was attired. He shook it off. It was after hours, and he was going to bed after all. Regaining his composure, he decided to act nonchalant. "What's up?" he asked lightly.

"I'll have a Xelayan tequila, a double, if that's okay," she said, looking a bit chagrined. "Or I can go, if you want."

"No, no, one Xelayan tequila, double, coming up!" He got himself a beer, then sat at the edge of his bed.

"Oh," he said, as if suddenly realizing how he was dressed. "I'll get some pants on."

"You don't have to do that on my account," Alara replied, a slight smile on her face. Gordon could almost swear she was looking at him appraisingly, scanning him up and down before looking at him. He didn't move and just looked back at her, wondering why she was here.

"Come to show off your medal, I see" he joked. Alara blushed, then looked down and took in in her hand.

"Sorry, I forgot I was still wearing this," she murmured. She looked at him with almost forlornly.

Gordon felt she thought he was chiding her, said, "Don't be sorry, be proud! You earned it, and then some!" he added enthusiastically. Yikes, that was a bit much! Tone it down a notch, Gordon. He was feeling nervous all of a sudden and couldn't understand why. He took a few gulps of beer to calm down.

"We all did," Alara looked grim. "I shouldn't be singled out. Besides, what are we honoring? I left hundreds of people behind in those cages. I don't know, I feel maybe I could have done more?"

Gordon blinked. She sat there looking lost, helpless. No way! He thought to himself 'that's silly'. But he couldn't shake the feeling.

"Alara," Gordon said calmly, "you took the risk. You led the mission, and it was successful. You got Ed and Kelly back and exposed the zoo for everyone to see! Don't trivialize that. You deserve the medal!"

Alara nodded as if in acknowledgement. Then her eyes narrowed, and she had a quizzical look on her face. "Why did you relent all of a sudden?"

Gordon shook his head, confused. "What?"

"In the mess hall, before we went back for Ed. You were very forceful with your opinion, letting me have it, both barrels, then all of a sudden you stopped mid-sentence. Why?" Alara asked.

Gordon felt exposed. He recalled that a feeling as strong as it was absurd suddenly came over him during his tirade, but he didn't want to talk about that. He dissembled, "I don't know. Does it matter? You know me, I can't hold a thought in my head for more than five seconds, outside of flying," he said smiling, trying to throw her off.

"Gordon Malloy, if you think for one second that I'm taken in by your goofball dumb guy act, maybe you are as stupid as you make yourself out to be!" she said heatedly.

Gordon's eyes went wide. It was like she was mad at him for being self-deprecating. What is going on?

All of a sudden, he had very unprofessional thoughts about her, as if her scolding him turned him on. He needed to get ahold of himself. He briefly flashed to the moment she kicked him off the bridge and wondered where that thought came from. Was he a bit turned on by that, too? Jesus! He shook his head as if to clear it.

"Okay, okay," he said to her. Then couldn't think of a thing to say except, "let me think!" Then he closed his eyes as if to concentrate.

She stood there, still waiting. Gordon tried to remember why he relented. What did stop him? He was furious that she had them return to Earth, then more furious when she kicked him off the bridge, he remembers, although he now vaguely recalls having a very different reaction as well. He shook his head again. Something happened during his tirade when she gave him permission to speak freely. He remembers a fleeting thought, ephemeral, just out of reach. It was crystal clear for less than a second, but it stopped him in his tracks. It was slowly fading then, but the memory was enough to derail his train of thought. But now he remembers exactly what it was! He relented, he now knows, not to take her off the hook, but take himself off the hook, to keep himself from saying anything that would expose how he suddenly felt. He thought if he diffused the energy, he would not have to admit what now again is all too clear.

He realizes the truth, causing the blood to drain from his face. It doesn't make sense; he hardly knows her! He's got to think of something! He'll look like a total and utter fool! And yet a part of him feels like they've known each other for a long time. Brief flashes of times and experiences together that couldn't possibly have been, heartfelt moments that couldn't be real, yet seem as real as them standing here now!

He came to a decision. He knew how he felt and how strongly he felt it. He just didn't know why.

He looked at Alara and saw the expectant look on her face. He took a deep breath and slowly breathed out. He steeled himself to maintain a calm and even tone. "Alara, it's been a long, emotional day for both of us," he said. "Let's meet tomorrow night and talk." Hopefully he can tell her then what he feels, without looking foolish, although how do you say, essentially, "I love you, even though we just met." without sounding like an idiot?

She looked perplexed. Just as she was about to reply, he reached out and gently touched her cheek. Her eyes went wide, and she gulped.

"Please," he pleaded.

She looked in his eyes for a moment and was comforted. There was no rejection there, just warmth and sympathy. She realized he probably didn't want to rush her, which she found both amusing and endearing. Or maybe didn't want to rush himself. He probably is afraid of sounding silly, he couldn't know it's what she wants with all her heart.

"Okay, Gordon. Goodnight," she said, smiling.

He responded with a smile of his own. "Goodnight."

It's going to be a long shift for both of them tomorrow.