OK here is the next chapter of this fic. Sorry for the delay in updating.
School has been horrible and my procrastination has extended into my
fanfics. We are beginning to close the gap on *begins shedding tears* on
the end of this fic. But if you all still love it, I will write a sequel.
Now on to the newest chapter. But first a quick note to the reviewers.
Luis: Thanks for thinking this is so interesting. I hope I can keep it up. Vash will have many run-ins with technology in the next couple of chapters. As for Geordie's Visor, in the later movies he received ocular implants on his eyes so he could eliminate the visor.
Suzuka Blade: Thanks for the review. I'm not sure exactly what you said but thanks for it.
Raditz: I finally updated it. Please don't dig my heart out with a rusty spoon or axe murder me and cook me into scones......mmmmmmm scones. And yes it is a shame that legato is dead and I can't use him. Perhaps in a different crossover.
l. chrisoula winfield: If I knew which cliff you were hanging off of I would at least send down a better branch. Anyway, I really appreciate your reviews.
Magnet-Rose: Why does everyone want to cause me bodily harm? I tried to get this chapter up quickly. Thanks for your review.
A big thanks to all of you again. If it hadn't been for you guys, this would have died off and not even I would know how it would end.
***********************************************************************
Riker was contemplating on possible answers when a local began firing into the bank. As several shots were fired into the bank, Riker only wondered about who was being hit. When a spray of bullets came from the bank, He jumped behind a concrete post. He looked from out from his new position to assess the situation again.
"You fire any more into this bank and we are going to kill the two pretty ladies here!" A rough and husky voice called back.
Riker froze. He knew the Deanna and Beverly were in the bank, but he could no longer do anything. 'If only I had a phaser.' He thought frantically. Riker turned his back towards the bank and reached to hit his com-badge.
"Riker to Enterprise. We have a problem."
**********************************************************************
"Is this a geo plant?" Meryl asked as she leaned down to feel the grass. The first stop on the tour was a place that Data, the android, called the holodeck. "How do you get it to grow in this room?" Meryl was fixated on the grass and the trees. She had not bothered to actually look up.
Vash was amazed. He had not seen something like this since the recreation room on the SEEDS ship. Even then he could tell where the walls were. But not in this 'holodeck'. Vash kneeled down next to his wife to feel the grass.
"These are real plants." Vash turned his attention to Data. "How is this possible? I can even feel a breeze and the sun's rays falling down. How?"
Rem had never before seen a place like this. Her knowledge only consisted of the dry dessert and the harsh winds that were always there. She ran over to the small creek and dipped her hand into the cool water.
"Mommy, look!" She exclaimed with childhood excitement.
Knives was as curious as his brother and so asked Data the same question to get an answer. "How does this work?"
"The holodeck uses force fields and holo-matter to simulate any environment that is programmed into it. In a sense, we can generate any environment that one could imagine." Data responded. His explanation left the guests confused about how it worked.
"Any type of environment?" Vash asked. He was skeptical about that. The SEEDS ship only had one environment in the recreation room.
"Yes. Would you like to see another?" Data asked. He felt a surge of pride come from his emotion chip. He did not understand why and so would ask Captain Picard later.
"Sure. Do we have to leave?" Knives asked. He noticed that Meryl and Milly had taken interest in their conversation.
"Can we see a planet that is made from pudding?" Milly shouted. Her eyes gleamed as she said the word.
"Milly," Knives looked at her. "Why do you always think about pudding?"
"Because since we got here, I have had over twenty different flavors." She smiled in return. Knives could not believe how closely she acted to his brother.
"The computer has 365 different flavors of pudding." Data offered. He did not understand why her taste for pudding was so great. Perhaps he would ask Councilor Troi upon her return.
Milly's eyes went wider as she heard the good news. Knives recognized what was happening and began to think about a quick solution. Or, she and Vash would be constantly ordering from the replicator. He felt a subject change would do it.
"Can you show us a snow covered environment?" He asked. Knives remembered the history of Earth and that there was snow towards the north and south poles. He wanted to see it.
"Of course. Computer, The Swiss Alps on a snowy day." Data called out.
Suddenly the lush grass and forest had disappeared. In its place, a land that looked as barren as Gunsmoke was spread before them. However, there was no sand. It was all white and soft. Vash noticed his boots sinking into the material as he stood there. A snowflake drifted down and landed on the tip of his nose.
"This is beautiful!" Milly exclaimed as her mind was taken from pudding. "We never left the last room."
As each of them stood taking in the new sights, Rem reached down and picked up a handful of snow. She rolled it between her hands to create a lopsided ball. Her eyes began to shine brighter as she threw it at her father. The snow splattered across his chest as he recoiled from the soft blow.
"What was that for?" Vash questioned. He then recalled from deep within his memory of how children used to play in the snow. "Why you!" He reached his own hands down to return to his daughter as another one hit him in the side of the head. As Vash fell over, he looked up to se if Rem had hit him again. To his surprise, Meryl was the one who threw it.
"Good shot mommy!" Rem shouted. Her mother had joined her to make him suffer. As Vash regained himself, he noticed Knives picking up some snow and throwing it at Milly. Milly quickly joined Rem and Meryl in pelting Vash and Knives with snowballs.
Data watched on in amusement. He had never witnessed a snowball fight before and was content to watch this one unfold.
"Bridge to Data!" Came Picard's voice over the ships intercom. The impromptu snowball fight had suddenly stopped.
"Data here sir." He responded. The general tone was felt amongst everyone present.
"Bring our guests to the bridge. The away team has encountered a problem."
"Aye sir. We are on our way." Data turned to the others. "Computer, end program. Please follow me." He turned as the snowy mountains disappeared leaving a black and yellow grid behind.
The group of Gunsmoke residents was startled at the sudden disappearance of their playground. However, the sense of sudden urgency brought them all down to earth as they followed Data out of the doors.
********************************************************************
Vash had expected the command center of this ship to resemble the one on the SEEDS ship. In a sense, it did. There was a central chair where Captain Picard was sitting. There were two chairs on either side of it, all flanked by a set of controls. In front of the chairs, there were two stations that resembled the ones that Rowan and Mary were always at.
Knives lowered his head as the same memory came back to him. He felt the chilling reminder of the life he had originally tried to live.
"Mr. Data, the away team has encountered a problem. I want you to scan the area." Picard said as he heard data heading for is station. "Doctor Crusher and Councilor Troi were captured by some bank robbers."
Vash and Knives jerked their heads at those words. Between the two of them, they had stopped many bank robbers. Vash wanted to do something to help. Meryl stepped forward and grabbed his hand as she took in the same sights. He gripped her small hand back to give her some support.
After Data sat down, his hands moved across his station. After a few seconds, he turned towards Picard.
"They are being held by four men along with twenty three other hostages. Commander Riker is approximately twenty-five meters from their current location."
"Damn," Picard started. "We can't just beam them out."
"We could use the ships phasers on a low setting to stun everyone in the area." Worf offered. "We could then beam them out."
"You can't do that!" Vash shouted out.
"We are gathering our options to extract our people without revealing ourselves to the local population." Picard answered. "This is only a last resort."
"Then send me down there." Vash returned. Everyone on the bridge turned his or her head towards him. "I've dealt with this before."
"Vash," Meryl started. "You said you wanted to get away from that life. Get away from being Vash the Stampede."
"They need help." Vash turned to her with his emerald eyes. "I'll be fine."
"Sir it would be a better alternative to have him solve this problem." Data added. "According to reports, the locals already fear him."
"I'll send you down." Picard stated after a moment of thought. "The ships phasers on stun will be the backup plan."
"I won't fail captain." Vash started. "I just need to get a few things before I go."
********************************************************************
Riker began staring at the sign of the bank. It had been an hour since the robbers had first taken Deanna and Beverly hostage. 'They should be done by now.' Riker thought. He had considered all of his options and was able to use none of them.
The sound of footsteps caught Riker's attention and he turned his head to face the direction of the noise. He noticed a person, tall and clad in red, approaching him. As he drew closer, Riker was able to identify more of his features. Deep yellow tinted circular glasses covered his eyes. His hair was spiked upward and blond. The red Riker had seen, turned out to be a coat that extended from his neck down to his feet. Only one sleeve was present, the other revealing a black, leather clad arm that had buckles and an elbow pad. Riker could not tell who this man was. Although he had a certain familiarity about him, Riker just could not place his face. He began to walk towards the bank. As he approached the entrance, Riker could see to thin wires extending from his ears to somewhere in his coat.
Then Riker froze. The man he had been watching was entering the bank. A burst of gunfire was heard as the wind blew up dust. When it all cleared, Riker thought he would see the body of the red-clad man on the ground.
"Who do you think you are?" An angry voice shouted from inside.
The new man lifted his hand and took the plugs out of his ears and raised his sunglasses.
"Isn't the bank open today?" He asked. Riker looked on wondering if he could actually be that stupid.
"Get out of here!" The same voice shouted. Another gunshot was heard.
"That's too bad. I have sixty billion double dollars to deposit too." The man began turning away.
"Hold it..." That voice began to say. The red-clad man knocking him unconscious with the butt of his silver revolver cut him off. Riker was amazed at the speed that he possessed.
After subduing the first man, he ran inside. Riker remembered seeing three other men. He then heard three shots fired. Riker began to tense. He reached for his revolver again, knowing that it would do him little good.
Riker's mood changed when he seen Deanna and Beverly walk out of the bank. They were both still alive. Riker ran towards them both.
"Are you two alright?" Riker was frantic that they had been hurt.
"We're fine." Beverly replied.
"What the hell happened in there?" Riker demanded.
"That man just walked in and shot all three of them. He only hit their weapons though." Deanna responded first. "After that, he knocked them out with blows to the head."
The man in the red coat exited the bank and walked towards Riker. He was no longer wearing the yellow sunglasses revealing his emerald eyes. His face was plastered with a smile that ran from ear to ear.
"I bring a message for you all." He started. He looked to see who could hear and noticed that no one was interested in them. "You are to report back immediately."
"Report back to whom? We are from another city on vacation." Deanna replied. They had rehearsed their cover story before hand.
"Captain Picard. I have a set of beam out coordinates. We should go quick." He turned and started walking in the direction he had come from.
"How do you know that? Who are you?" Beverly asked.
"Your ship rescued me. And I am Vash." He replied.
"As in Vash the Stampede?" Riker half joked.
Vash turned around and looked at all of them. "Yes. Now let's hurry."
Riker looked towards Deanna for an answer. "He is being completely honest. But we should contact the Enterprise."
"Good idea." Riker tapped the com-badge under his vest. "Riker to Enterprise."
"This is the Enterprise. Did Vash find a way out for you number one?" Picard asked.
"Yes he did sir. We are proceeding to the beam out coordinates. Riker out." Riker cast another glance at Deanna. "I think we missed something."
"No doubt we missed something. Let's get home." Beverly added as they followed the outlaw they had heard so much about.
***********************************************************************
Meryl watched as Vash and three others materialized in front of her eyes. She had not left the transporter room since Vash had beamed down. As the process finished, Meryl ran up to her husband throwing her arms around his neck.
"Hey, I was only gone for twelve minutes." He responded as he caught her full weight. Although she did not weigh very much, she could throw it around.
"I was just worried that you were going to be hunted again. You said you wouldn't put that coat back on!" Meryl said, holding back small tears.
"I needed to use it for the effect I was going for." He began to apologize.
"You planned all of that from the beginning?" Riker stepped forward to ask.
"Only the coat. The rest just sort of happened." Vash set his wife on her own feet and placed his left hand behind his head. "It's sort of a fluke."
"You have great skill but you credit it to luck. Why don't you just admit it?" Deanna stepped forward. She could sense he was lying about his abilities.
"Well I..." Vash started. Picard interrupted them by entering the Transporter room
"Its about time Will. You look like you need a shower." Picard joked. Riker almost looked natural in his disguise.
"Sorry for the holdup Captain. They wanted a sandwich." Riker pointed at the two women.
"I'll read your report later." Picard turned towards Vash and Meryl. "I cannot thank you enough for risking yourself to help my officers. Join me in the Briefing room at 1500 tomorrow."
"Ok." Was the only response Vash could give.
Picard smiled and walked out of the doors. Riker Troi and Crusher all followed behind him. Vash and Meryl finally left and headed towards their room.
***********************************************************************
Captain Picard was sitting in his ready room staring at the stars of this galaxy.
"Earl Grey, hot." He spoke aloud, not taking his eyes from the stars.
His drink materialized in the replicator and Picard reached over and removed it. Bringing the teacup to his mouth he took a small sip before setting it on his desk. His focus was interrupted by the door signal.
"Come." He commanded. As the doors parted, Councilor Troi stepped through.
"You wanted to see me captain?" She said as she took the seat in front of the desk.
"Yes." Picard turned back so he could face her more directly. "We have full power back, but we have one small problem."
"The natives of the planet." Deanna answered for him. Her Betazed half allowed her to sense his feelings about them. "You're not sure what to do with them yet."
"We cannot deny them the choice that they have. I don't know if their ready for it." Picard's face was laced with worry.
"Why don't you ask them?" Deanna offered.
"I plan on it."
"Then why did you call me in here?" Deanna probed. She could tell that he was hiding something since he began speaking.
"I wanted to know how you were doing." Picard answered. He knew that he couldn't hide things like that from his councilor. If she had been full human, he could have.
"I've been taken hostage before Captain." She answered. She noticed the sigh of relief come from Picard.
"well then," Picard went back to his normal business self. "I'm glad to hear that. Thank you councilor."
"Anytime." Deanna stood up and walked through the doors leaving Picard by himself again.
"I hope this goes over better than it has before." Picard said to no one. "It's easier to fill out the paperwork if it goes smoothly."
************************************************************************
Ok, that's it for this chapter. Please review it. I hope you enjoyed it.
Luis: Thanks for thinking this is so interesting. I hope I can keep it up. Vash will have many run-ins with technology in the next couple of chapters. As for Geordie's Visor, in the later movies he received ocular implants on his eyes so he could eliminate the visor.
Suzuka Blade: Thanks for the review. I'm not sure exactly what you said but thanks for it.
Raditz: I finally updated it. Please don't dig my heart out with a rusty spoon or axe murder me and cook me into scones......mmmmmmm scones. And yes it is a shame that legato is dead and I can't use him. Perhaps in a different crossover.
l. chrisoula winfield: If I knew which cliff you were hanging off of I would at least send down a better branch. Anyway, I really appreciate your reviews.
Magnet-Rose: Why does everyone want to cause me bodily harm? I tried to get this chapter up quickly. Thanks for your review.
A big thanks to all of you again. If it hadn't been for you guys, this would have died off and not even I would know how it would end.
***********************************************************************
Riker was contemplating on possible answers when a local began firing into the bank. As several shots were fired into the bank, Riker only wondered about who was being hit. When a spray of bullets came from the bank, He jumped behind a concrete post. He looked from out from his new position to assess the situation again.
"You fire any more into this bank and we are going to kill the two pretty ladies here!" A rough and husky voice called back.
Riker froze. He knew the Deanna and Beverly were in the bank, but he could no longer do anything. 'If only I had a phaser.' He thought frantically. Riker turned his back towards the bank and reached to hit his com-badge.
"Riker to Enterprise. We have a problem."
**********************************************************************
"Is this a geo plant?" Meryl asked as she leaned down to feel the grass. The first stop on the tour was a place that Data, the android, called the holodeck. "How do you get it to grow in this room?" Meryl was fixated on the grass and the trees. She had not bothered to actually look up.
Vash was amazed. He had not seen something like this since the recreation room on the SEEDS ship. Even then he could tell where the walls were. But not in this 'holodeck'. Vash kneeled down next to his wife to feel the grass.
"These are real plants." Vash turned his attention to Data. "How is this possible? I can even feel a breeze and the sun's rays falling down. How?"
Rem had never before seen a place like this. Her knowledge only consisted of the dry dessert and the harsh winds that were always there. She ran over to the small creek and dipped her hand into the cool water.
"Mommy, look!" She exclaimed with childhood excitement.
Knives was as curious as his brother and so asked Data the same question to get an answer. "How does this work?"
"The holodeck uses force fields and holo-matter to simulate any environment that is programmed into it. In a sense, we can generate any environment that one could imagine." Data responded. His explanation left the guests confused about how it worked.
"Any type of environment?" Vash asked. He was skeptical about that. The SEEDS ship only had one environment in the recreation room.
"Yes. Would you like to see another?" Data asked. He felt a surge of pride come from his emotion chip. He did not understand why and so would ask Captain Picard later.
"Sure. Do we have to leave?" Knives asked. He noticed that Meryl and Milly had taken interest in their conversation.
"Can we see a planet that is made from pudding?" Milly shouted. Her eyes gleamed as she said the word.
"Milly," Knives looked at her. "Why do you always think about pudding?"
"Because since we got here, I have had over twenty different flavors." She smiled in return. Knives could not believe how closely she acted to his brother.
"The computer has 365 different flavors of pudding." Data offered. He did not understand why her taste for pudding was so great. Perhaps he would ask Councilor Troi upon her return.
Milly's eyes went wider as she heard the good news. Knives recognized what was happening and began to think about a quick solution. Or, she and Vash would be constantly ordering from the replicator. He felt a subject change would do it.
"Can you show us a snow covered environment?" He asked. Knives remembered the history of Earth and that there was snow towards the north and south poles. He wanted to see it.
"Of course. Computer, The Swiss Alps on a snowy day." Data called out.
Suddenly the lush grass and forest had disappeared. In its place, a land that looked as barren as Gunsmoke was spread before them. However, there was no sand. It was all white and soft. Vash noticed his boots sinking into the material as he stood there. A snowflake drifted down and landed on the tip of his nose.
"This is beautiful!" Milly exclaimed as her mind was taken from pudding. "We never left the last room."
As each of them stood taking in the new sights, Rem reached down and picked up a handful of snow. She rolled it between her hands to create a lopsided ball. Her eyes began to shine brighter as she threw it at her father. The snow splattered across his chest as he recoiled from the soft blow.
"What was that for?" Vash questioned. He then recalled from deep within his memory of how children used to play in the snow. "Why you!" He reached his own hands down to return to his daughter as another one hit him in the side of the head. As Vash fell over, he looked up to se if Rem had hit him again. To his surprise, Meryl was the one who threw it.
"Good shot mommy!" Rem shouted. Her mother had joined her to make him suffer. As Vash regained himself, he noticed Knives picking up some snow and throwing it at Milly. Milly quickly joined Rem and Meryl in pelting Vash and Knives with snowballs.
Data watched on in amusement. He had never witnessed a snowball fight before and was content to watch this one unfold.
"Bridge to Data!" Came Picard's voice over the ships intercom. The impromptu snowball fight had suddenly stopped.
"Data here sir." He responded. The general tone was felt amongst everyone present.
"Bring our guests to the bridge. The away team has encountered a problem."
"Aye sir. We are on our way." Data turned to the others. "Computer, end program. Please follow me." He turned as the snowy mountains disappeared leaving a black and yellow grid behind.
The group of Gunsmoke residents was startled at the sudden disappearance of their playground. However, the sense of sudden urgency brought them all down to earth as they followed Data out of the doors.
********************************************************************
Vash had expected the command center of this ship to resemble the one on the SEEDS ship. In a sense, it did. There was a central chair where Captain Picard was sitting. There were two chairs on either side of it, all flanked by a set of controls. In front of the chairs, there were two stations that resembled the ones that Rowan and Mary were always at.
Knives lowered his head as the same memory came back to him. He felt the chilling reminder of the life he had originally tried to live.
"Mr. Data, the away team has encountered a problem. I want you to scan the area." Picard said as he heard data heading for is station. "Doctor Crusher and Councilor Troi were captured by some bank robbers."
Vash and Knives jerked their heads at those words. Between the two of them, they had stopped many bank robbers. Vash wanted to do something to help. Meryl stepped forward and grabbed his hand as she took in the same sights. He gripped her small hand back to give her some support.
After Data sat down, his hands moved across his station. After a few seconds, he turned towards Picard.
"They are being held by four men along with twenty three other hostages. Commander Riker is approximately twenty-five meters from their current location."
"Damn," Picard started. "We can't just beam them out."
"We could use the ships phasers on a low setting to stun everyone in the area." Worf offered. "We could then beam them out."
"You can't do that!" Vash shouted out.
"We are gathering our options to extract our people without revealing ourselves to the local population." Picard answered. "This is only a last resort."
"Then send me down there." Vash returned. Everyone on the bridge turned his or her head towards him. "I've dealt with this before."
"Vash," Meryl started. "You said you wanted to get away from that life. Get away from being Vash the Stampede."
"They need help." Vash turned to her with his emerald eyes. "I'll be fine."
"Sir it would be a better alternative to have him solve this problem." Data added. "According to reports, the locals already fear him."
"I'll send you down." Picard stated after a moment of thought. "The ships phasers on stun will be the backup plan."
"I won't fail captain." Vash started. "I just need to get a few things before I go."
********************************************************************
Riker began staring at the sign of the bank. It had been an hour since the robbers had first taken Deanna and Beverly hostage. 'They should be done by now.' Riker thought. He had considered all of his options and was able to use none of them.
The sound of footsteps caught Riker's attention and he turned his head to face the direction of the noise. He noticed a person, tall and clad in red, approaching him. As he drew closer, Riker was able to identify more of his features. Deep yellow tinted circular glasses covered his eyes. His hair was spiked upward and blond. The red Riker had seen, turned out to be a coat that extended from his neck down to his feet. Only one sleeve was present, the other revealing a black, leather clad arm that had buckles and an elbow pad. Riker could not tell who this man was. Although he had a certain familiarity about him, Riker just could not place his face. He began to walk towards the bank. As he approached the entrance, Riker could see to thin wires extending from his ears to somewhere in his coat.
Then Riker froze. The man he had been watching was entering the bank. A burst of gunfire was heard as the wind blew up dust. When it all cleared, Riker thought he would see the body of the red-clad man on the ground.
"Who do you think you are?" An angry voice shouted from inside.
The new man lifted his hand and took the plugs out of his ears and raised his sunglasses.
"Isn't the bank open today?" He asked. Riker looked on wondering if he could actually be that stupid.
"Get out of here!" The same voice shouted. Another gunshot was heard.
"That's too bad. I have sixty billion double dollars to deposit too." The man began turning away.
"Hold it..." That voice began to say. The red-clad man knocking him unconscious with the butt of his silver revolver cut him off. Riker was amazed at the speed that he possessed.
After subduing the first man, he ran inside. Riker remembered seeing three other men. He then heard three shots fired. Riker began to tense. He reached for his revolver again, knowing that it would do him little good.
Riker's mood changed when he seen Deanna and Beverly walk out of the bank. They were both still alive. Riker ran towards them both.
"Are you two alright?" Riker was frantic that they had been hurt.
"We're fine." Beverly replied.
"What the hell happened in there?" Riker demanded.
"That man just walked in and shot all three of them. He only hit their weapons though." Deanna responded first. "After that, he knocked them out with blows to the head."
The man in the red coat exited the bank and walked towards Riker. He was no longer wearing the yellow sunglasses revealing his emerald eyes. His face was plastered with a smile that ran from ear to ear.
"I bring a message for you all." He started. He looked to see who could hear and noticed that no one was interested in them. "You are to report back immediately."
"Report back to whom? We are from another city on vacation." Deanna replied. They had rehearsed their cover story before hand.
"Captain Picard. I have a set of beam out coordinates. We should go quick." He turned and started walking in the direction he had come from.
"How do you know that? Who are you?" Beverly asked.
"Your ship rescued me. And I am Vash." He replied.
"As in Vash the Stampede?" Riker half joked.
Vash turned around and looked at all of them. "Yes. Now let's hurry."
Riker looked towards Deanna for an answer. "He is being completely honest. But we should contact the Enterprise."
"Good idea." Riker tapped the com-badge under his vest. "Riker to Enterprise."
"This is the Enterprise. Did Vash find a way out for you number one?" Picard asked.
"Yes he did sir. We are proceeding to the beam out coordinates. Riker out." Riker cast another glance at Deanna. "I think we missed something."
"No doubt we missed something. Let's get home." Beverly added as they followed the outlaw they had heard so much about.
***********************************************************************
Meryl watched as Vash and three others materialized in front of her eyes. She had not left the transporter room since Vash had beamed down. As the process finished, Meryl ran up to her husband throwing her arms around his neck.
"Hey, I was only gone for twelve minutes." He responded as he caught her full weight. Although she did not weigh very much, she could throw it around.
"I was just worried that you were going to be hunted again. You said you wouldn't put that coat back on!" Meryl said, holding back small tears.
"I needed to use it for the effect I was going for." He began to apologize.
"You planned all of that from the beginning?" Riker stepped forward to ask.
"Only the coat. The rest just sort of happened." Vash set his wife on her own feet and placed his left hand behind his head. "It's sort of a fluke."
"You have great skill but you credit it to luck. Why don't you just admit it?" Deanna stepped forward. She could sense he was lying about his abilities.
"Well I..." Vash started. Picard interrupted them by entering the Transporter room
"Its about time Will. You look like you need a shower." Picard joked. Riker almost looked natural in his disguise.
"Sorry for the holdup Captain. They wanted a sandwich." Riker pointed at the two women.
"I'll read your report later." Picard turned towards Vash and Meryl. "I cannot thank you enough for risking yourself to help my officers. Join me in the Briefing room at 1500 tomorrow."
"Ok." Was the only response Vash could give.
Picard smiled and walked out of the doors. Riker Troi and Crusher all followed behind him. Vash and Meryl finally left and headed towards their room.
***********************************************************************
Captain Picard was sitting in his ready room staring at the stars of this galaxy.
"Earl Grey, hot." He spoke aloud, not taking his eyes from the stars.
His drink materialized in the replicator and Picard reached over and removed it. Bringing the teacup to his mouth he took a small sip before setting it on his desk. His focus was interrupted by the door signal.
"Come." He commanded. As the doors parted, Councilor Troi stepped through.
"You wanted to see me captain?" She said as she took the seat in front of the desk.
"Yes." Picard turned back so he could face her more directly. "We have full power back, but we have one small problem."
"The natives of the planet." Deanna answered for him. Her Betazed half allowed her to sense his feelings about them. "You're not sure what to do with them yet."
"We cannot deny them the choice that they have. I don't know if their ready for it." Picard's face was laced with worry.
"Why don't you ask them?" Deanna offered.
"I plan on it."
"Then why did you call me in here?" Deanna probed. She could tell that he was hiding something since he began speaking.
"I wanted to know how you were doing." Picard answered. He knew that he couldn't hide things like that from his councilor. If she had been full human, he could have.
"I've been taken hostage before Captain." She answered. She noticed the sigh of relief come from Picard.
"well then," Picard went back to his normal business self. "I'm glad to hear that. Thank you councilor."
"Anytime." Deanna stood up and walked through the doors leaving Picard by himself again.
"I hope this goes over better than it has before." Picard said to no one. "It's easier to fill out the paperwork if it goes smoothly."
************************************************************************
Ok, that's it for this chapter. Please review it. I hope you enjoyed it.