Chapter 22
The alien could not interfere. He wished he could, it was difficult to watch the boy be harmed without protecting him, but he knew that, like a parent, protecting a child from all harm can be harmful in and of itself.
A parent must stand and watch their child learn to ride a bicycle, watch the wheels begin to wobble, and see their child fall to the ground. But if the parent always held on to the seat of the bicycle, the child would never learn to ride on his own.
So he watched, forcing his faith in the boy, forcing himself to have confidence in the boy's ability to extricate himself from this situation.
* * *
Beverly prayed as she and Picard approached the transporter room door. It hissed open and they walked in. O'Brien was studying the captain.
"Energize, Chief."
In a matter of three seconds, "Wes" was standing on the transporter platform with "Robin" in his arms. He collapsed to his knees and lowered Robin to the transporter pad.
For a second, both Picard and Doctor Crusher stood horrified. A young girl with a promising career lay apparently dead before them.
Beverly rushed to them bearing a tricorder. Before she scanned them, she swept the creature into her arms and clung tightly to it. It leaned against her, feigning relief and choking back a sob.
"Wesley, my god," Beverly whispered into its shoulder, "I thought you were dead..."
Picard knelt down beside Robin and touched her neck where there should have been a pulse. He found none. He closed his eyes and lowered his head, letting all his air out. He had just lost a junior officer under his command.
Beverly was unfolding a tricorder to scan Wesley, but he directed her attention to Robin, knowing the missing readings of a dead person would be easier to explain than those of a living person.
She scanned Robin's still form. Nothing. Not the readings of a deceased person, but no readings at all. The readings one would get if one had scanned an empty transporter pad. Her brow furrowed in confusion.
"Doctor?" Picard prompted.
"I'm not getting anything at all, Captain. It's like she's not here," Beverly touched her to make sure the girl really was there.
"They... they did something to her..." Wes volunteered, lower lip trembling.
Picard asked, "Did what, ensign?"
"I... I don't know..." the creature couldn't think of anything in the universe that could cause a living or deceased being to appear on a tricorder as being non-existent. "They... needed us to try to do what... what the Traveler does... and... it weakened us... she... she collapsed, but she was alive. They... they took her away, and it was the last time I saw her alive."
"Let me scan you and see if--"
"NO!!" the creature shouted and backed away from the object.
Beverly was taken aback. She glanced at her captain Her eyes seemed to ask, What have they done to my son?
She tapped her communicator, "Crusher to sickbay. Direct beaming Ensign Robin Wallace to Biobed C. Chief?" Chief O'Brien began the process of transport.
Robin's form dissipated in the twinkling glow of a transporter beam. Wesley broke down upon her disappearance.
Beverly embraced him, held on to him as she waited for report of a patient on Biobed C. None came.
"Sickbay, report," she called.
"We're waiting for transport, Doctor," a med officer replied.
"We /transported/," she stood, looking at O'Brien for confirmation.
"I show that we transported, destination Sickbay Biobed C, successfully."
"Well, there's no one here," sickbay reported.
"What could have happened to her?" Picard asked everyone and no one. "Chief, I want a full diagnostic run on that transporter," he jabbed an index finger at it, "I want an answer on what happened to my officer."
"Sir," O'Brien said, "this same thing happened yesterday, when the team went over to the Neverland in the first place. The Selelvian left here, but never arrived on the starcruiser. He just... disappeared."
"Selelvian?"
"Jaan, sir," the creature volunteered, softly. "We were made to believe he was alive and here. But it wasn't Jaan. Jaan's dead. That was the creature."
"Then it's possible," Picard surmised, "that was not Robin at all, but the creature. It's possible that she is not dead, but still aboard the Neverland."
The creature inwardly cursed. The Humans kept figuring things out. All it wanted was the Humans to go away and leave its children alone.
"Sir," O'Brien said, "I'll compare the two occurrences and look for parallels if you like."
"Make it so, Chief."
"I'm going down to sickbay. Wes, come with me," Beverly walked toward the door and waited for her son.
"Mom, could I... I just need to... to be alone, and... rest for a little while. Would that be okay?"
"I should run some basic tests, Wes, we don't know if you're all right yet or not."
"I'm... I'm fine, Mom," he sighed. "I just need to lie down and sleep. I just... I just want to lie down."
"You can lie down in sickbay," she volunteered, eyebrows drawn up in concern.
"No. I... I want to feel like I have my freedom back for a little bit. I want to close a door, and know that I can open it and walk out whenever I want, and that no one will open it and come in. I want to lie down and know that I won't be dragged from sleep to try to rip a hole in time. I want to close my eyes and pretend it's not my fault Robin's dead."
"Wesley," Picard walked to him and put his hands on his shoulders, "whatever happened while you were being held," he shook his head, "was not your fault. You could not prevent anything that happened any better than you did. And I for one am not giving up the hope that Ensign Wallace is still alive somewhere. Not yet."
Wesley sighed, unable to meet his captain's eyes. "That's nice of you, sir, but I know she's gone. I know it."
Picard took his hands off Wes's shoulders and glanced at Doctor Crusher.
"How about we compromise, Wes?" Beverly smiled comfortingly. "You go lie down while I go get a report from sickbay. I'll come up to you in a little bit, then maybe you'll be feeling up to coming to sickbay with me. With your permission of course, captain," Beverly looked at Picard.
"Yes, of course, doctor. And as soon as the doctor is through, ensign, I want a full report. We'll need it as quickly as possible if we're to find out about Ensign Wallace."
"Aye, sir."
As Picard watched the Crushers leave, he couldn't shake the feeling that something just wasn't right. Ensign Wallace's body was now missing, if that was her body at all. Wesley didn't seem himself, quite, but he supposed that was because the ensign had brought home the body of a friend.
And Picard knew exactly how that felt.
There were some strange things going on and Picard knew only one person who might be able to offer some advice and perhaps some help.
* * *
Guinan's entire expression changed the moment Picard entered Ten- Forward. She knew he wasn't here to have a drink or to chat. She had been feeling the creature's presence on the ship again and had been trying to get in touch with Picard about it. She had gone to a wall commlink and located him, then called him. He'd said he was just coming to see her. Something was very wrong.
Picard folded his arms on the bar and leaned forward to speak in confidential tones to her. "Have you felt that... presence again, Guinan?"
"Actually, Jean-Luc, that's what I was calling you about. I began feeling it just about ten minutes ago."
"When Ensign Wallace beamed aboard. About ten minutes ago, we received a request to receive Wesley and Robin back. But Robin did not make it back alive," Picard's voice softened.
Guinan covered her mouth with her hand, shocked.
"At least, it appears that way. But Robin's body did not register as existing when scanned with a tricorder, and when we transported her to sickbay, she disappeared altogether. Guinan, could it be possible that Mister Crusher was made to believe Ensign Wallace was dead, and he brought back the creature rather than her body?"
"I'd say it's a strong possibility. I sensed the creature's presence at the same time you say they were transported back here. But, if the body of Robin Wallace is gone, why do I still sense the presence?"
"You sense it now?"
"Yes. If it was the creature that beamed aboard with Wesley, it's still here."
"Still here? But where could it have gone?"
"I wish I knew."
The alien could not interfere. He wished he could, it was difficult to watch the boy be harmed without protecting him, but he knew that, like a parent, protecting a child from all harm can be harmful in and of itself.
A parent must stand and watch their child learn to ride a bicycle, watch the wheels begin to wobble, and see their child fall to the ground. But if the parent always held on to the seat of the bicycle, the child would never learn to ride on his own.
So he watched, forcing his faith in the boy, forcing himself to have confidence in the boy's ability to extricate himself from this situation.
* * *
Beverly prayed as she and Picard approached the transporter room door. It hissed open and they walked in. O'Brien was studying the captain.
"Energize, Chief."
In a matter of three seconds, "Wes" was standing on the transporter platform with "Robin" in his arms. He collapsed to his knees and lowered Robin to the transporter pad.
For a second, both Picard and Doctor Crusher stood horrified. A young girl with a promising career lay apparently dead before them.
Beverly rushed to them bearing a tricorder. Before she scanned them, she swept the creature into her arms and clung tightly to it. It leaned against her, feigning relief and choking back a sob.
"Wesley, my god," Beverly whispered into its shoulder, "I thought you were dead..."
Picard knelt down beside Robin and touched her neck where there should have been a pulse. He found none. He closed his eyes and lowered his head, letting all his air out. He had just lost a junior officer under his command.
Beverly was unfolding a tricorder to scan Wesley, but he directed her attention to Robin, knowing the missing readings of a dead person would be easier to explain than those of a living person.
She scanned Robin's still form. Nothing. Not the readings of a deceased person, but no readings at all. The readings one would get if one had scanned an empty transporter pad. Her brow furrowed in confusion.
"Doctor?" Picard prompted.
"I'm not getting anything at all, Captain. It's like she's not here," Beverly touched her to make sure the girl really was there.
"They... they did something to her..." Wes volunteered, lower lip trembling.
Picard asked, "Did what, ensign?"
"I... I don't know..." the creature couldn't think of anything in the universe that could cause a living or deceased being to appear on a tricorder as being non-existent. "They... needed us to try to do what... what the Traveler does... and... it weakened us... she... she collapsed, but she was alive. They... they took her away, and it was the last time I saw her alive."
"Let me scan you and see if--"
"NO!!" the creature shouted and backed away from the object.
Beverly was taken aback. She glanced at her captain Her eyes seemed to ask, What have they done to my son?
She tapped her communicator, "Crusher to sickbay. Direct beaming Ensign Robin Wallace to Biobed C. Chief?" Chief O'Brien began the process of transport.
Robin's form dissipated in the twinkling glow of a transporter beam. Wesley broke down upon her disappearance.
Beverly embraced him, held on to him as she waited for report of a patient on Biobed C. None came.
"Sickbay, report," she called.
"We're waiting for transport, Doctor," a med officer replied.
"We /transported/," she stood, looking at O'Brien for confirmation.
"I show that we transported, destination Sickbay Biobed C, successfully."
"Well, there's no one here," sickbay reported.
"What could have happened to her?" Picard asked everyone and no one. "Chief, I want a full diagnostic run on that transporter," he jabbed an index finger at it, "I want an answer on what happened to my officer."
"Sir," O'Brien said, "this same thing happened yesterday, when the team went over to the Neverland in the first place. The Selelvian left here, but never arrived on the starcruiser. He just... disappeared."
"Selelvian?"
"Jaan, sir," the creature volunteered, softly. "We were made to believe he was alive and here. But it wasn't Jaan. Jaan's dead. That was the creature."
"Then it's possible," Picard surmised, "that was not Robin at all, but the creature. It's possible that she is not dead, but still aboard the Neverland."
The creature inwardly cursed. The Humans kept figuring things out. All it wanted was the Humans to go away and leave its children alone.
"Sir," O'Brien said, "I'll compare the two occurrences and look for parallels if you like."
"Make it so, Chief."
"I'm going down to sickbay. Wes, come with me," Beverly walked toward the door and waited for her son.
"Mom, could I... I just need to... to be alone, and... rest for a little while. Would that be okay?"
"I should run some basic tests, Wes, we don't know if you're all right yet or not."
"I'm... I'm fine, Mom," he sighed. "I just need to lie down and sleep. I just... I just want to lie down."
"You can lie down in sickbay," she volunteered, eyebrows drawn up in concern.
"No. I... I want to feel like I have my freedom back for a little bit. I want to close a door, and know that I can open it and walk out whenever I want, and that no one will open it and come in. I want to lie down and know that I won't be dragged from sleep to try to rip a hole in time. I want to close my eyes and pretend it's not my fault Robin's dead."
"Wesley," Picard walked to him and put his hands on his shoulders, "whatever happened while you were being held," he shook his head, "was not your fault. You could not prevent anything that happened any better than you did. And I for one am not giving up the hope that Ensign Wallace is still alive somewhere. Not yet."
Wesley sighed, unable to meet his captain's eyes. "That's nice of you, sir, but I know she's gone. I know it."
Picard took his hands off Wes's shoulders and glanced at Doctor Crusher.
"How about we compromise, Wes?" Beverly smiled comfortingly. "You go lie down while I go get a report from sickbay. I'll come up to you in a little bit, then maybe you'll be feeling up to coming to sickbay with me. With your permission of course, captain," Beverly looked at Picard.
"Yes, of course, doctor. And as soon as the doctor is through, ensign, I want a full report. We'll need it as quickly as possible if we're to find out about Ensign Wallace."
"Aye, sir."
As Picard watched the Crushers leave, he couldn't shake the feeling that something just wasn't right. Ensign Wallace's body was now missing, if that was her body at all. Wesley didn't seem himself, quite, but he supposed that was because the ensign had brought home the body of a friend.
And Picard knew exactly how that felt.
There were some strange things going on and Picard knew only one person who might be able to offer some advice and perhaps some help.
* * *
Guinan's entire expression changed the moment Picard entered Ten- Forward. She knew he wasn't here to have a drink or to chat. She had been feeling the creature's presence on the ship again and had been trying to get in touch with Picard about it. She had gone to a wall commlink and located him, then called him. He'd said he was just coming to see her. Something was very wrong.
Picard folded his arms on the bar and leaned forward to speak in confidential tones to her. "Have you felt that... presence again, Guinan?"
"Actually, Jean-Luc, that's what I was calling you about. I began feeling it just about ten minutes ago."
"When Ensign Wallace beamed aboard. About ten minutes ago, we received a request to receive Wesley and Robin back. But Robin did not make it back alive," Picard's voice softened.
Guinan covered her mouth with her hand, shocked.
"At least, it appears that way. But Robin's body did not register as existing when scanned with a tricorder, and when we transported her to sickbay, she disappeared altogether. Guinan, could it be possible that Mister Crusher was made to believe Ensign Wallace was dead, and he brought back the creature rather than her body?"
"I'd say it's a strong possibility. I sensed the creature's presence at the same time you say they were transported back here. But, if the body of Robin Wallace is gone, why do I still sense the presence?"
"You sense it now?"
"Yes. If it was the creature that beamed aboard with Wesley, it's still here."
"Still here? But where could it have gone?"
"I wish I knew."