Beka punched the punching bag as hard as she could. She thought she was alone, but really Tyr was watching her from a dark corner. He watched her as she punched and kicked the inanimate object, apparently venting some frustration. After the last punch, he began to applaud and she jumped. "What are you doing here?" she asked between breaths.
"I was thinking," he said calmly. "Is something bothering you?"
Beka wiped her forehead. "This cat- or whatever it is…" She searched for words. "I just can't figure it out… I don't remember it, but I'm scared of it. I don't know what it is, and I can't stop thinking about it." She sat down on a bench. "Doesn't it bother you?"
"Not as much as it bothers you, apparently. I find it's best not to think of it. It may hold answers to our questions about what happened to us, but we don't know for sure, and I don't want to risk my life over it." He took a deep breath. "I lost my bone spurs, not my life. I'd like to keep it that way."
Beka took into consideration what he said. "I guess you're right," she said defeated. She stood, patted his shoulder, and walked out of the room. She ran into Dylan not far down the corridor. "Oh, hi, Dylan," she said.
"Beka," Dylan started, but stopped and looked at her. "Been working out?"
"Do I smell that bad?" Beka smiled.
Dylan shook his head. "Anyway," he said. "I need you to go try to talk to Harper."
"What?" Beka sounded curious.
"He's turned his comm. off and locked himself in the machine shop. Trance, Rommie and I have already tried to talk to him, but he won't answer us."
"He's probably just drunk or something," Beka rolled her eyes as she said this. "I'll pull him out of it," she said confidently.
She walked slowly and boldly through the corridors toward machine shop. When she reached the door, she held a fist up to knock on the door, but stopped herself when she heard Harper's voice. He was speaking in French. Harper didn't speak French. "Ah, crap," she said. "Harper!" she shouted.
"Go away, Beka, I'm busy."
"Harper, open the door."
Dylan walked towards Beka. "Any luck?" he asked hopefully.
"I think I know what's wrong with him, and I think I've figured out what that cat is doing."
* * *
The crew, minus Harper, stood on the command deck listening to Beka's take on what was happening. "That cat has got to be some kind of time warp," Beka explained. "Rommie, last night, did you see anything unusual?"
Rommie looked embarrassed. "Well, I wasn't going to say anything. I thought you were sleepwalking or something. You left your quarters and went to the Maru late last night. Once you stepped onto the Maru, I engaged privacy mode."
Beka pointed at Trance. "I told Trance that I had a dream last night that I was a little girl again back on the Maru with Uncle Sid, then I was back on Diphda Five. I have a feeling it wasn't a dream."
"So you're saying this thing is distorting time?" Dylan said curiously. "How does that explain Harper's behavior?"
"I heard Harper speaking French when I got to his door." Everybody stared at her blankly. "Harper doesn't speak French. But he did when that Perseid downloaded all that information into his cerebral port."
"So you think he's having memories of it?" Trance asked.
Beka shook her head. "Remember how he said he got kicked out of Rommie's systems painfully? Well, I think Rommie's systems have accidentally downloaded the information back into Harper's brain."
Dylan looked to Rommie. "What do you think?"
Rommie raised an eyebrow. "I can't be sure. Since I have no idea what's going on in my systems, I can't tell which files have been opened today."
"Andromeda," Dylan said. Rommie's image appeared on the view screen. "Can you tell me which files stored in your system have been opened and downloaded to another place in the last twenty-four hours?"
Rommie's image paused, then replied, "You'll find this interesting. The files that we extracted from Harper's brain have been opened and downloaded using an authorized code."
"Which one?" Dylan asked, annoyed.
"Harper's." Everyone turned and looked at Dylan. He raised an eyebrow and stormed out of the room. "Andromeda, disengage privacy mode in machine shop and find out what Harper's doing." He proceeded through the corridors to machine shop. The rest of the crew followed a few feet behind him, watching him curiously. When he reached the doors to machine shop, he pounded on them with both fists. "Harper!" There was no answer. "Harper, open the doors!" Still no answer. "I'm ordering you to open the doors!"
Tyr approached the doors and quieted Dylan. "Boy, if you don't open the doors, I'll snap your neck so fast you'll think it tickled." There was a pause, then the doors slid open. A look of satisfaction came upon Tyr's face. Harper stood near a table in the machine shop holding a wrench in one hand and a nanowelder in the other. When he saw it was his crewmates, he put the makeshift weapons down and sighed.
"What took you so long?" he whined.
"You," Beka answered matter-of-factly. "Why wouldn't you open the doors?"
"Why did you threaten to kill me?" Harper snapped back. He looked to Rommie. "Got any good news for me, sweetheart?"
"First, don't call me sweetheart," Rommie replied. "Second, no good news, only bad. Your brain's on overload again."
"Tell me something I don't know." Harper wiped his forehead. "Why is it always me?" he complained. "First, I get infested with Magog larvae. Then I got sick; really sick. Now my brain is overloaded, AGAIN!" He sat down on the table. "I don't know how much more I can take, boss."
Beka looked at him with sympathy in her eyes. "You've taken a lot so far, I think you can manage more."
"Beka?" Trance's small voice came from behind Beka. Beka turned and looked at Trance, who looked at the palm of her hand. Her face was full of pain. Beka looked at her palm. It was purple. She looked at Trance's face. A tear ran down her golden cheek. "I don't understand it." Beka ran her fingers through Trance's dreadlocks, and one of them came unfurled and turned pale yellow. "Dylan," Beka said. Dylan approached her. "Something is definitely going on."
"I was thinking," he said calmly. "Is something bothering you?"
Beka wiped her forehead. "This cat- or whatever it is…" She searched for words. "I just can't figure it out… I don't remember it, but I'm scared of it. I don't know what it is, and I can't stop thinking about it." She sat down on a bench. "Doesn't it bother you?"
"Not as much as it bothers you, apparently. I find it's best not to think of it. It may hold answers to our questions about what happened to us, but we don't know for sure, and I don't want to risk my life over it." He took a deep breath. "I lost my bone spurs, not my life. I'd like to keep it that way."
Beka took into consideration what he said. "I guess you're right," she said defeated. She stood, patted his shoulder, and walked out of the room. She ran into Dylan not far down the corridor. "Oh, hi, Dylan," she said.
"Beka," Dylan started, but stopped and looked at her. "Been working out?"
"Do I smell that bad?" Beka smiled.
Dylan shook his head. "Anyway," he said. "I need you to go try to talk to Harper."
"What?" Beka sounded curious.
"He's turned his comm. off and locked himself in the machine shop. Trance, Rommie and I have already tried to talk to him, but he won't answer us."
"He's probably just drunk or something," Beka rolled her eyes as she said this. "I'll pull him out of it," she said confidently.
She walked slowly and boldly through the corridors toward machine shop. When she reached the door, she held a fist up to knock on the door, but stopped herself when she heard Harper's voice. He was speaking in French. Harper didn't speak French. "Ah, crap," she said. "Harper!" she shouted.
"Go away, Beka, I'm busy."
"Harper, open the door."
Dylan walked towards Beka. "Any luck?" he asked hopefully.
"I think I know what's wrong with him, and I think I've figured out what that cat is doing."
* * *
The crew, minus Harper, stood on the command deck listening to Beka's take on what was happening. "That cat has got to be some kind of time warp," Beka explained. "Rommie, last night, did you see anything unusual?"
Rommie looked embarrassed. "Well, I wasn't going to say anything. I thought you were sleepwalking or something. You left your quarters and went to the Maru late last night. Once you stepped onto the Maru, I engaged privacy mode."
Beka pointed at Trance. "I told Trance that I had a dream last night that I was a little girl again back on the Maru with Uncle Sid, then I was back on Diphda Five. I have a feeling it wasn't a dream."
"So you're saying this thing is distorting time?" Dylan said curiously. "How does that explain Harper's behavior?"
"I heard Harper speaking French when I got to his door." Everybody stared at her blankly. "Harper doesn't speak French. But he did when that Perseid downloaded all that information into his cerebral port."
"So you think he's having memories of it?" Trance asked.
Beka shook her head. "Remember how he said he got kicked out of Rommie's systems painfully? Well, I think Rommie's systems have accidentally downloaded the information back into Harper's brain."
Dylan looked to Rommie. "What do you think?"
Rommie raised an eyebrow. "I can't be sure. Since I have no idea what's going on in my systems, I can't tell which files have been opened today."
"Andromeda," Dylan said. Rommie's image appeared on the view screen. "Can you tell me which files stored in your system have been opened and downloaded to another place in the last twenty-four hours?"
Rommie's image paused, then replied, "You'll find this interesting. The files that we extracted from Harper's brain have been opened and downloaded using an authorized code."
"Which one?" Dylan asked, annoyed.
"Harper's." Everyone turned and looked at Dylan. He raised an eyebrow and stormed out of the room. "Andromeda, disengage privacy mode in machine shop and find out what Harper's doing." He proceeded through the corridors to machine shop. The rest of the crew followed a few feet behind him, watching him curiously. When he reached the doors to machine shop, he pounded on them with both fists. "Harper!" There was no answer. "Harper, open the doors!" Still no answer. "I'm ordering you to open the doors!"
Tyr approached the doors and quieted Dylan. "Boy, if you don't open the doors, I'll snap your neck so fast you'll think it tickled." There was a pause, then the doors slid open. A look of satisfaction came upon Tyr's face. Harper stood near a table in the machine shop holding a wrench in one hand and a nanowelder in the other. When he saw it was his crewmates, he put the makeshift weapons down and sighed.
"What took you so long?" he whined.
"You," Beka answered matter-of-factly. "Why wouldn't you open the doors?"
"Why did you threaten to kill me?" Harper snapped back. He looked to Rommie. "Got any good news for me, sweetheart?"
"First, don't call me sweetheart," Rommie replied. "Second, no good news, only bad. Your brain's on overload again."
"Tell me something I don't know." Harper wiped his forehead. "Why is it always me?" he complained. "First, I get infested with Magog larvae. Then I got sick; really sick. Now my brain is overloaded, AGAIN!" He sat down on the table. "I don't know how much more I can take, boss."
Beka looked at him with sympathy in her eyes. "You've taken a lot so far, I think you can manage more."
"Beka?" Trance's small voice came from behind Beka. Beka turned and looked at Trance, who looked at the palm of her hand. Her face was full of pain. Beka looked at her palm. It was purple. She looked at Trance's face. A tear ran down her golden cheek. "I don't understand it." Beka ran her fingers through Trance's dreadlocks, and one of them came unfurled and turned pale yellow. "Dylan," Beka said. Dylan approached her. "Something is definitely going on."