Chapter 17: XVII
K'nera sat up on the bio-bed as the Betazoid doctor began to input the information from his tricorder into the main computer in the small infirmary that had been set up in the Betazoid Refugee Camp. She'd woken up there more than three hours ago to learn that she'd been brought in after Lwaxana had found her collapsed in her quarters. Since then, she had been scanned, poked and prodded in nearly every possible way as the doctor tried to determine what had caused her to fall out and, most importantly, how to prevent it from happening again.
"I don't understand," Doctor Umzad shook his head as he read over the test results. "These readings of your paracortex show a level of hyper-activity that I've only seen in Betazoids in Melaza."
"The asylum on Lonita."
"You know of it?" The doctor raised a brow in surprise. He knew that the woman who was now his patient had grown up with only Klingons as companions. From what he'd learned from Lwaxana before the young engineer awoke, she has been nearly completely ignorant of much of the ways and traditions of her own kind before being stationed at the camp. Her knowing of the asylum on Betazed's moon of Lonita was quite surprising.
"I've often thought about the fact that if I'd grown up on your world, I'd have most likely ended up there." K'nera stressed the fact that she didn't consider Betazed to be her own planet as she raised a hand to her head; trying to carry on a conversation while having the constant bombardment of hundreds of others' thoughts vying for her attention was straining her mental focus to say the least.
"Non-sense. The only telepaths that end up there are those who were bor-" A look from K'nera cut the doctor off in mid-sentence. "You can't be serious! Individuals like that just aren't capable of living in society as a whole like you have... Just how have you been able to integrate into general society?"
"I've grown up using Klingon meditation methods."
"Klingon meditation?" When Doctor Umzad thought of Klingons, he never considered them to be deep thinkers. How could such methods help an individual like his current patient? After all, the traditional Betazoid meditations had rarely, if ever, been able to improve the lives of his patients back in Melaza. Even Vulcan meditation practices often fail to bring stability into the lives of those unfortunate Betazoids.
Through the muddled voices in her head, K'nera heard the doctor's opinions of Klingons in general and she felt insulted on her family's behalf. "Klingons are much more disciplined than most ever give them credit for. They believe in not just being strong in body but in mind as well, Doctor. They are far more complex than they appear to be on the surface."
"I'll have to take your word for it," the doctor went over to his instruments as he spoke. "You have been the one to live among them for nearly two decades. However, it would seem that your regimen of Klingon meditation has begun to fail. The levels emanating from your paracortex are at exceedingly dangerous levels."
"Up until the war broke out, I would take frequent sabbaticals to spend time with the monks on Celyn Four to help with the meditations. There, all of the telepaths train to lock their abilities away so that we don't pick up on every single stray thought and learn to keep our own thoughts to ourselves so as to not impose our thoughts on others."
"And when was the last time that you've taken one of these sabbaticals?"
K'nera inhaled deeply as she responded, "More than a year."
"I see. Well, considering that going there has helped you up to this point in life, I'd suggest that you return there now. That or find some other place that's secluded. Your system needs a chance to get away from the excessive stimulants that are a natural part of everyday life. For now, I'm going to recommend that you wear this paracortical inhibitor. It will suppress your telepathic abilities for you for a while."
The doctor placed a small medical device on the back of her neck at the base of her skull. As soon as the small device was in place the incredibly distracting voices from all on Talceus Prime became silent for the first time since she'd arrived on the planet.
"K'adlo." (I thank you) K'nera let out a sigh of relief at the disruption of the background noise that had become impossible to ignore.
The doctor nodded before picking up a datapad and began to tap away on it. "I'll forward my recommendation for you to be relieved of your duties to the medical doctor over in the Klingon complex. At least for now; if not on a more permanent basis now that-"
"Why do I need to be relieved of duty? With the inhibitor I'll be able-"
"The inhibitor is only a temporary solution, only. You'll only be able to wear it for a few days at most before its effects begin to wear off. That should give you enough time to arrange transport off of the planet. I'd suggest that you find one with a minimal crew since the moment the inhibitor is removed your senses will be just as strong as ever. The more individuals around at that time the higher the levels from your paracortex will return. In the meantime, I'll continue to look into other treatments to see if we can find a more permanent solution."
Gritting her teeth, K'nera acknowledged the doctor's orders as she got up off of the bio-bed and headed out of the infirmary. Not liking the idea of being ordered to give up her commission in the Klingon Defense Forces.
DS9
Alexander sat at the bar as he waited for his father to prepare to leave the station. Deep Space Nine has been his father's home since the Enterprise D met its fate. It was understandable that it would take time to vacate his quarters. Deciding what to take with him and what to leave behind; never easy decisions.
Now for the first time Worf was about to call the Klingon home world, Qo'noS his home and will be assigned quarters within the Federation Embassy since he was now the new ambassador to the Klingon Empire. Alexander had yet to decide if he should take his father up on his offer to join him at the complex or accept regular Klingon issue crew quarters. He liked the idea of spending more time with his father, but he didn't want to push his luck.
"So, I hear that you and Worf are going to head back to Qo'noS." Hearing her voice, Alexander looked up from his drink and saw Ezri walking up to join him at the bar. The young Trill took a seat before placing an order for her own drink. She then turned her attention back to the Klingon who no longer seemed as young as he once did; though that could probably be said of both of them. "Are you excited?"
Alexander thought on the question before he answered. "In a way. It's been a long time since my father and I have spent a lot of time together. I just hope that we don't end up killing one another."
"The two of you will be fine." Ezri smiled as she tried to reassure Alexander. "Besides, I think that this will be good for both of you. It's about time that you two actually talk about a few things. This will give you the chance to do just that."
Hearing Ezri mention the fact that there were things that he and his father needed to discuss reminded him that Ezri knew just what had been behind Jadzia's cryptic allusion to the fact that she knew what his father's reasons for sending him away to Earth were. Perhaps now he could finally learn what those reasons had been. If he did learn of them, would he agree with them? Would he even be able to understand them? There was only one way to know that for sure and that was to hear them for himself.
"Dax," Alexander used the symbiont's name rather than Ezri's to make it clear as to just whom he was really speaking to. He shifted his gaze toward the door just to be sure that his father was not about to walk up on them. "About some of those things that my father and I need to talk about, is there any way that you could just go ahead and give me a heads up on what I could expect?"
"Alexander, I can't. What I know was meant only for Jadzia. I can't break your father's trust by breaking his confidence." Ezri saw the Klingon's face fall a bit before he was able to cover his disappointment. "I'll do my best to get him to go ahead and talk to you but don't ask me to tell you myself. I really think that he is ready. He just might need a slight push. Just promise me; when you hear it, try to look at things from his point of view. Everything that he's done really has been because he thought that it was in your best interest."
"I'll try to keep that in mind," Alexander nodded before finishing his blood wine. "But you know that I had to try and ask you first."
"I know." Ezri put her hand on Alexander's shoulder and gave it a squeeze as she grabbed her own glass as she saw Julian walk into the bar. "I'll see you later."
With that, the Trill went to join her lover on the other side of the bar and left Alexander as he prepared to head back to the Klingon ship that he had been transferred to in preparation to head to the Klingon home world.
DS9
"There you are."
K'nera heard Lwaxana's voice ring out as she neared her quarters. If she was to leave the planet before the para-cortical inhibitor was removed, then she had some people to contact and she needed to do it fast. Then of course she'll need to pack up her quarters of the few personal touches that it had; touches that had been acquired thanks to the older Betazoid woman who was walking up with a small little boy trailing behind her.
"Ambassador Troi." K'nera turned and waited for the woman and her son to join her at the entrance to her quarters.
"I've just come from the infirmary to find that you've already left. I came to check on you. You scared me to death when I found you just lain out on the floor like you were. I'm just glad that you are alright now."
"Not that I don't want to seem ungrateful but why were you here when you came into my quarters?"
"I wanted to share with you the news!" Lwaxana bent to pick up Barim as she strolled into the familiar surroundings. K'nera, meanwhile, went over to the replicator and ordered a raktajino as she began to try to figure out just whom she should contact first about gaining transport off of the planet. "The Dominion has surrendered! The war is over. Isn't that grea-"
As K'nera turned from the replicator she saw the paracortical inhibitor on the neck at the base of the skull of the young woman. Upon seeing the medical device, Lwaxana rushed over and tilted K'nera's head to the side to get a better look at it. "What in the worlds? Why is this here?"
"It's a paracorti-"
"I know what it is, Young One; I asked why."
"My paracortex is showing some hyperactivity. I have to wear it until I leave the planet's surface. It looks like I won't be sticking around to help you pack up to return to the Cyndriel System. I was about to start making arrangements to leave when you came up." K'nera took a long sip from her beverage as she watched a multitude of emotions cross the ambassador's face as she took in the news. If it wasn't for the inhibitor, she would have been able to sense the woman's thoughts as well, but as usual, such abilities weren't needed to know just what she thought.
"You were telling me the truth, weren't you? Back on the Ya'Vang. You told me that you were born with your abilities. I'd thought that you were just trying to get rid of me but- Oh you poor dear."
K'nera rolled her eyes as Lwaxana tried to pull her into a sympathetic hug. "It looks like actively using my abilities hasn't exactly done me much good. Maybe I should have kept that one hand tied behind my back after all."
Lwaxana eyed the younger woman as she pulled back. She couldn't quite place how but K'nera's comment seemed familiar. "I'm sorry. I had hoped to convince you to come with us to Betazed and show you around. I was sure that you'd fall in love with the place if you ever saw it."
K'nera didn't know why but she felt the need to reassure the older woman, so she gave a small smile before saying, "Maybe some other time. Besides, I know this is just temporary anyway. The doctor will keep trying to find something that can help, and I usually only need a short break away from everything ever so often."
Lwaxana knew that there had been very little breakthroughs in the field dealing with abnormal telepaths within their society but nodded anyway as if she accepted the fact that K'nera's current predicament was indeed temporary. "I suppose that I just might decide to drop in on you in the meantime, if I happen to be in the area of course."
"Lwaxana, you can't just be in the area of Celyn Four. From here alone, traveling at warp five, it would take twenty-five days to get there. It's not exactly in a well-traveled area."
"Well, one can never tell just what life will bring," Lwaxana said flippantly before asking about the plans that K'nera had for leaving the small refugee camp behind, as well as whether or not she had sent word to Alexander of her change of locations.
DS9
Alexander checked his workstation as the ship prepared to disembark from the station. He suspected that his father was taking one last look around Deep Space Nine and saying his final good-byes to those who have been his friends and comrades for the last several years. Both he and Chancellor Martok were the last to board and soon as they joined the rest of the crew, the staff on the bridge was given the clearance to set course for Qo'noS. Once the ship was on its way back into Klingon space, the atmosphere of the entire ship became one of celebration. The men and women all began to sing songs of victory as they went about their duties.
The chancellor's ship already had a full bridge compliment, so Alexander was assigned to one of the consoles on the auxiliary bridge. Just setting foot on the secondary bridge gave him a weird sense of déjà vu. The last time he was on one, the main bridge of the Y'tem was destroyed; leaving only the auxiliary bridge behind to continue the fight against the Dominion. This ship, however, was not heading off to battle. Instead, it was returning back to the Klingon Empire in victory; a costly victory but a victory, nonetheless.
When his rotation shift was over, Alexander went to his assigned quarters to pull up the transmission that he knew he'd received during his shift. As expected, it was from K'nera; what he wasn't expecting was the message that she'd sent him. He'd been looking forward to asking for leave now that the war was over so that he could visit her on Talceus Prime.
He had no idea that her telepathy caused her so much trouble. But then again, maybe it shouldn't come as that big of a surprise. Alexander back to instances of when he'd come across K'nera when she'd seem to block everyone and everything else out except for whatever assignment she was working on. In those cases, he'd been concerned for her. If one of the others on the ship who were intolerant of aliens serving on board the ship had found her in those times of distraction, she would have been in big trouble.
Looking back now, Alexander supposed that those cases should have served as some sort of warning sign. Or should they? He'd never met a telepath who had difficulty with their innate abilities. Even the various children of telepathic races that he'd grown up with on the Enterprise had always appeared to be perfectly content with their natural talent to glean thoughts and emotions from others.
Pulling up the ship's computer database, Alexander decided that he should try to learn all that he could about hypersensitive Betazoids. Unfortunately, the computer's information that it had available was very limited. Apparently, it was never considered to be a top priority to keep such information within its database. The computer at the Federation's Embassy should have the information that he wanted so he just would have to wait until they arrived on Qo'noS.
In the meantime, Alexander punched in the codes to establish a link to speak with K'nera before she was due to leave the refugee camp. He had a few questions that he knew that only she could answer, and he also had the feeling that she would need to talk. He didn't know that much about what was going with her right now but whatever it was, it couldn't be easy for her to face both her strained telepathic abilities as well as being forced to (at least temporarily) leave the Klingon Defense Forces; something that she'd been working toward since she was very young. Alexander knew that it wouldn't be the same as being there face to face but he wanted K'nera to know that he wanted to help her in any way possible.
Even through sub-space.