Innocence
By Sailor Pixie
Disclaimer: I don't own Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda.
A/N: Hello people, I hope you are enjoying my first story. Sorry if the first chapter was a bit slow this one should pick up the pace. At least a little bit anyway. ^_^*
Chapter Two
Alexandria was on the edge of waking up when she realized there was something wrong with her bed. It wasn't sloshing around like it usually did and it wasn't nearly has flexible. She slowly opened her eyes and instead of seeing her light purple plaster ceiling she say a dark gray metal ceiling. She slowly sat up and saw the back of a girl with long red hair in a multitude of tiny braids. Alexandria looked around and saw a room that seemed strangely familiar and couldn't help but think she had been here before.
She swallowed and got up her courage to ask the girl with red hair, "Um, excuse me but could you tell me where I am?" The red haired girl spun around and Alexandria gasped when she realized who it was. "Oh my god I have to be dreaming." Then she promptly fainted back onto the med bed she had been sleeping on.
Trance turned around when the intruder asked her where she was and was surprised when the girl fainted again. She rushed to the girl's med bed and checked her vitals. They were fine. She straitened the girl out on the bed and went back to examining the girl's scans. It was another hour before she woke up again; Trance was in the middle of analyzing the girl's DNA. Trance heard the girl mutter under her breath that she was hallucinating.
"No actually you aren't. I would know if you were," said Trance as she slowly turned around. "Please don't faint again, my captain wants to talk to you."
The girl took a deep breath, sat up, and answered, "Alright it was just a shock to see you standing not six feet away from me."
"Are you ready to answer some questions from my captain?"
The girl sighed, "Sure what harm could it do." Trance smiled reassuringly.
"Andromeda let Dylan know our guest is awake. By the way what's your name?"
"My name is Alexandria Masters."
Alexandria told Trance her name as she contemplated what had happened. I'm either dreaming or hallucinating. Probably dreaming since I remember going to bed. This is so strange I've never had a lucid dream before. She wondered if she should tell Trance that she loved her show and watched it every Saturday. No she thought it could be more fun to omit that part.
Trance was speaking again, "My name is Trance Gemini, and I'm the medical and environmental officer on the Commonwealth starship Andromeda Ascendant." As she introduced herself Captain Dylan Hunt walked in with Beka Valentine. "Captain Hunt, Beka this is Alexandria Masters, Alexandria this is High Guard Captain Dylan Hunt and his first officer Beka Valentine.
"Trance tells me you want to ask me some questions?" Alexandria said.
"Yes we were hoping you would tell us how you got into one of Andromeda's quarters without being detected and then fell asleep."
"Well actually to tell you the truth,"
"That's always a good thing," muttered Beka.
"I have no idea how I came to be on Andromeda which is well over a thousand years in my future. You see I went to bed last night on Earth in 2002 A.D. and then I woke up here in Andromeda's medical bay." Alexandria waited for the indignation.
"What! You expect us to believe a wild story like that?" Yelled Beka.
Trance cleared her throat, "Well actually I can prove she came from the 21st century. When I was going over her blood I discovered some strange looking vaccines. I ran them through the computer and discovered that one of the vaccines was an experimental flu vaccine that they only administered from May of 2001 to April of 2002 A.D on earth. So she is telling the truth."
"So Alexandria is from over seven thousand years in the past," stated Hunt.
"That's correct Captain."
"Listen I have a question if you don't mind?" Asked Alexandria
"No go ahead if I can answer it I will," said Dylan.
"What are the Commonwealth and High Guard?"
"Well that could take awhile to explain. Let me get Andromeda to translate a flexi on them for you and you can read about them while we think about what to do with you. We'll see if there is any way to get you home," stated Dylan.
Alexandria resisted the urge to yell no, that she wanted to stay on the Andromeda, but instead she nodded meekly and said, "Alright that sounds good. Thank for going to all the trouble."
Dylan nodded, "We don't mind." Then he headed out the door with Beka close behind.
"Alexandria, I need to talk to Dylan. Don't worry I'll be right back," Trance added quickly when Alexandria looked worried and headed out the door. Alexandria waited a moment before getting off the bed she was sitting on and noticed for the first time that the shirt she was wearing was different then the one she went to bed in. It was the same size it just didn't have the Andromeda words or picture on it. Alexandria shrugged and walked around the Medical Bay, not to look so much as pass the time till Trance came back. When she got back to her bed Trance still wasn't back yet so she leaned on the bed and sighed, and then because she was so bored she started pinching herself to see if she could wake herself up.
"You know, that won't work," said a voice behind her. Alexandria spun around to find a small blue man standing on the med bed.
"Wh... Who are you?" She asked.
"My name isn't important, what is important is the fact that you aren't dreaming or hallucinating," said the man.
"How do I know you aren't part of my dream?"
"You've read about lucid dreams in psychology you know how to get out of them, so try to leave this one."
Alexandria threw up her hands, "But I've never tried to do that what if it doesn't work?"
"The only way you'll know is if you try, so try."
"Fine but I'm blaming you if Trance walks in and thinks I'm going nuts," Alexandria sat on the floor and crossed her legs. Then she started breathing slowly and counting her heart beats. She chanted softly under her breath, "This is a dream, this is only a figment of my imagination. When I open my eyes I will be lying in my bed with the walls of my room surrounding me. This is a dream, this is only a figment of my imagination. When I open my eyes I will be lying in my bed with the walls of my room surrounding me. This is a dream, this is only a figment of my imagination. When I open my eyes I will be lying in my bed with the walls of my room surrounding me," Slowly she opened her eyes and found herself sitting on the floor of her room staring at the TV. She looked down and saw that she was once again wearing her Andromeda shirt. She stood up and looked around her room, her clock said it was 7:00 am on Saturday. "Oh well I guess it was to much to hope for," she walked to her closet and went through her clothes before deciding on black jeans and a men's white button up dress shirt over a black tank top. She walked down the stairs and heard her dad talking on the phone. She walked by his office and stopped when she realized he was talking to her mother on speakerphone.
"Listen Audrey, I have my own life if you don't take her I'm sending her to boarding school," said her dad.
"But Daniel, I'm in the middle of a photo shoot, I can't deal with her right now. Maybe later in the year but not right now, she just such a hassle to take care of," complained her mom.
"Fine but if you don't take her after the semester I am sending her to boarding school. You think it's any easier for me to take care of her. If only she was more outgoing," Alexandria choked down a sob before running back to her room. When she got there the little blue man was standing on her bedside table.
"See what I can take you from. If you come with me back to the Andromeda you can escape all of this," the little man held out his hand and she hesitated before taking hold of his hand. "Good I'm glad you chose to come with me, now take this duffel bag and fill it up with clothes and other essentials. I'll make sure it appears with you the first time you go to the Andromeda," he handed her a bag and she walked into her closet to pick out clothes.
"I just have one question, well actually it's more like two. What are you and why do you want me?"
The little blue man sighed, "Well you see I'm a kind of guardian of the time and dimension strings. I watch over them and make sure that time in all the dimensions runs smoothly."
"What does that mean?" Asked Alexandria as she picked some jeans and slacks and stuffed them in the bag.
"Well there are an infinite amount of dimensions and each one has a certain time line, my job is to make sure certain events and people are born at the right time. The reason I need you is because," the little blue man blushed purple. "I kind of fell asleep a little while back and I let something happen in the Andromeda time line that shouldn't have. Since it was my fault it happened the Council of Elders decided I would have to fix it without going back in time and changing the event. Why, I don't know they do things for strange reasons."
"What's the Council of Elders?" Alexandria picked ten different shirts she really liked and stuffed them in the bag.
"Don't forget a couple of nice and semi-nice dress and skirts," he ignored the tongue she stuck out at him and went on. "The Council of Elders is a bunch of our wisest and strongest Guardians. They can see every possible outcome to every possible event and advice the lower Guardians when we reach a point of frustration."
"You mean there is more than one Guardian?" Alexandria picked three formal gowns, four semi-formal dresses, and five skirts.
"Of course, each Guardian has a section of dimensions that are connected. I have all the ones with a United States in it. But don't ask anymore I can't tell you."
"But you haven't told me why you picked me?" Alexandria, her bag half full, went to her bookshelf and picked her favorite twenty books before throwing them in her bag.
"I didn't pick you the time and dimension strings did. I asked for their help and they dragged you out of bed and placed you on the Andromeda. You see the Andromeda crew needs someone innocent, they need someone they can protect. Trance used to be the person they were always protecting but then while I was sleeping she grew up and she could take care of herself. They had no one they felt needed to be protected from the harsh realities of their world. But now they will have you, they will go out of their way to find ways to protect you it make them look for different ways to deal with things.
"Did the strings have to take me from a different dimension?" She picked out some shoes, socks, and nylons and threw them in the bag.
The man looked impressed, "Smart question. No actually they didn't, eventually this world will join the Commonwealth."
"Neat," Alexandria put a case of CD's and a CD player in with a holder in her bag. "Alright I'm all ready to go."
"Good then give me your bag and take my hand. You're not allowed to tell them about me, you have to pretend you have know idea why this happening or it will ruin the whole thing and you'll have to go home," She grunted as she lifted the bag into one of his hands and then took his other hand in hers.
"Wait won't Andromeda notice I'm gone?"
"No, I can pause time for a short period that's what I did on the Andromeda no time will have past."
"Well if you're sure," the little blue man nodded.
"Now close your eyes and hold on tight," she did and when she no longer felt her hand in his she opened her eyes and found herself once again in Andromeda's Medical Bay. She looked around and thought softly to herself, 'I'm home, I'm finally in a place where I belong.' She looked around hugging herself when she realized she was back in her pajamas.
Trance came rushing in with a big grin on her face, "Dylan's agreed to let you move into quarters till we can decide how to get you home, and Tyr has finished examining your bag so you can get settled in."
Alexandria feigned ignorance, "My bag, what bag?"
Trance looked confused, "The bag we found sitting next to when we found you."
"Really, I wonder if it's mine?" Alexandria pretended to wonder.
"Yes it has to be yours we found a bunch of books with your name in them," explained Trance.
"Well I was getting ready to go to boarding school and I had bag all packed maybe whatever brought me brought my bag too. It was right next to my bed."
Trance smiled, "That was probably it. Well if you're ready I'll take you to your quarters."
"That would be great. By the way Captain Hunt was going to get the Andromeda to translate that stuff about the Commonwealth and the High Guard, did it do that yet," She hated the fact she had to call Andromeda it but no one had told her the Andromeda was sentient so she had to feign ignorance once again.
"I don't know why don't you ask her?"
"You mean the ship can talk back! That's amazing, just amazing," Alexandria beamed at the thought of getting to finally talk to her favorite character on the show.
"She does more than just talk back, Andromeda is sentient," explained Trance matter-of-factly.
"Really, that is so awesome," Alexandria lowered her voice. "Can I talk to her now."
"Andromeda hears everything that happens on this ship unless you request privacy."
Alexandria swallowed loudly before saying, "Hello Andromeda." Her voice shook slightly from excitement.
Andromeda's hologram appeared in front of her and an on-screen Andromeda appeared on the screen beside her and they said at the same time, "Hello Alexandria, it is a pleasure to meet you."
Alexandria squealed, "That is so cool. You guys are so neat."
Trance laughed, "Come on we need to show you to your quarters." Trance led her down several ladders and corridors before they finally stopped in front of a door. "Here we are. If you need anything just ask Andromeda." Then Trance left. Alexandria looked around the roomy quarters, she saw her duffel bag on the bed and decided to unpack.
"Andromeda, do you think it would be all right if I unpacked my things?"
"Yes that's fine."
"Thank you, Andromeda," Alexandria unzipped the bag and dumped everything out on the bed. She put the clothes in one pile, her shoes in another, her books in a stack, and her CD player and CD's in the last pile. She put the CD things on the bedside table, then she put the books on an odd looking bookshelf with a metal roll down cover. "Andromeda, could you please tell me what this cover is for?"
"If you pull it down every time you leave you don't have to worry about them flying every where if we get attacked and the ship is tossed around," Alexandria pulled the cover down.
"Well that makes sense. Thank you, Andromeda," Alexandria looked at her clothes then at the walls but she couldn't find the door to the closet. "Um, Andromeda, could you please tell me where the closet is?"
Andromeda's hologram appeared with a smile, "It's right here." She said pointing to the wall beside her and then disappearing.
"Thank you," Alexandria moved to the wall and pressed the electronic keypad next to the, now obvious, indentation in the wall. A door swooshed open and she saw a closet with hangers. "How did you know I would need hangers, Andromeda? Never mind it doesn't matter, but thank you for getting them for me," Alexandria preceded to place all her clothes in the closet, not very surprisingly there was the exact amount she needed, placed her shoes on the floor of the closet, and then put her socks and nylons in the drawers above the bar holding all her clothes. "Um, Andromeda, I'm going to get dressed now I was wondering if you could just shut your visual sensors of for awhile?"
"Yes I can and have done that," she responded.
"Thank you," then Alexandria pulled of her pajamas, through them on the bed, and grabbed black slacks and a purple quarter sleeved v-neck shirt out of the closet and put them on. Next she grabbed her hiking boots, a pair of black socks, and put them on. With that done she put her pajamas in the closet and told Andromeda she could turn her sensors back on.
"Hey Andromeda, could I get something to eat maybe, I haven't had breakfast yet," asked Alexandria.
"Yes Tyr's on his way to escort you to the dining hall." Alexandria suppressed a groan as she thought, 'Oh no, now I'm doomed.'