part nine
Hudson listened to MeGath with only one ear. This was taking too long. The Secretary General had been on the vidphone for hours, trying to figure out where the seaQuest was and who was closest to her to give assistance. Pacing out of the vidphone's view, his mind wandered to his crew, those he was responsible for who were stuck in the hands of dangerous terrorists. And who was in charge? None other than his science officer, an ensign, none the less. Yes, he had faith in Lucas, but he still reserved the right to be worried out of his mind.
"Well, that's just not good enough!" MeGath yelled into the vidscreen. He himself was frustrated and worried; no one seemed to be able to locate the huge, 1000 foot ship. "Find her! I don't care how, but do it! And when you do, report back to me. Got it?" He didn't give the poor person on the receiving end of his tirade a chance to respond before he disconnected. Turning to the Captain still pacing in his office, MeGath sighed. "I'm truly sorry, Oliver. They're trying their best, but it's simply that no one can figure out where the terrorists took her."
Hudson glared as he stopped pacing and sat down on the couch. He was silent a few moments before he spoke. "I will not have a repetition of 2022, Bill. The seaQuest is out there, somewhere, and I won't let it disappear again. We have to find her, Bill. We have to."
MeGath sighed. "I know, Oliver. We're doing our best."
"I just feel so helpless. I need to be doing something other than sitting here. Let me help down in the radar room. I spent years trying to find the seaQuest after it disappeared 10 years ago; maybe they could use my expertise." He moved to stand. "I'll go down there now-"
"Oliver, sit down." MeGath used his most authoritative voice to get Hudson's attention. He sighed then said, "There's nothing you can do down there, but there is something you could do for me."
Juliana paused outside the door to the brigg. Even though the heavy door was closed, she could still hear it, the sound of flesh meeting flesh, the cries of pain that he could no longer keep silent. Oh, he had tried... his face had contorted into all sorts of expressions as he kept his mouth tightly shut, opening it only after the pain had passed to suck in a heavy breath. For 45 minutes he had been able to stay silent, the only sounds coming out of his mouth being "Walenczak, Lucas. Ensign, UEO navy. Serial number E2654..." 45 minutes! She couldn't imagine lasting 15 minutes.
But after that hellish silence was up, the real torture began for Juliana. With that first scream, she felt her soul stained. This was her fault. Lucas was being hurt because of her. Lucas! Her Lucas; the Lucas who shared her first kiss; the Lucas who made her melt with desire as their eyes met across the dance floor at that party so may years ago; the Lucas who still owned a piece of her heart. Every bruise, cut, and laceration on his body was a direct result of her actions. With every scream she heard, her heart turned a little bit blacker.
But she was right, wasn't she? The UEO had to be stopped, and the seaQuest was the best way to do that. She had a higher purpose now, one that went beyond their small pitiful lives. So what if her soul died as she achieved her goal? Machiavelli had it right when he said, "the end justifies the means." She had to sacrifice Lucas for the greater good of the world. If she could just get him to see how corrupt the UEO was, then she knew that he would gladly give up himself for the greater purpose. She knew it; but did she have the right to force him into it?
Shaking her head, she ran away from that room, and away from the guilt that wouldn't leave her alone.
Lucas felt numb. He couldn't believe what was happening to him. Not only had he managed to get seaQuest boarded by terrorists, but now he was in the hands of those same terrorists, scared out of his mind, hurt, bleeding, and alone; so very alone. He couldn't- no he wouldn't believe what Juliana had told him. She may have given up on herself, but never in a million years would he give up on her; not on Juliana. He winced and cried out as he felt another blow hit his stomach, and it was a few seconds before he could breathe again. It was all starting to blur together, the "interrogation." He had no clue how long he had been in here; all he knew was that there was no way that he could give in. It simply wasn't an option.
He heard the voice again, that same awful voce that spoke up once in a while to ask the same question. It never changed, the question. He had stopped listening to it a long time ago. He was so exhausted that now he couldn't understand the words even if he wanted to. The voice simply reminded him of the old Charlie Brown cartoons, and he had to smile at the preposterous nature of the image.
The voice came again, followed quickly by a sharp pain in his skull. The last thing he heard was something about wiping a smile off someone's face as the world swam together and faded into darkness.