Actura IV-
Leon-
The waiting was terrible. Of course the others didn't care. Most all of the colonists were well on their way to recovery only hours after Doctor Crushers treatment and life was returning to normal for all but the Enterprise's crew. The sun, dirty though the dusty atmosphere, was starting to set, but that didn't help the filthy look of the planet. In fact, the only good it did was that the darkness hid the ugly colony.
Leon heard everyone talking around him, more people coming in as their jobs ended and all they had to do was rest until it was time to go home. He watched them smiling and laughing together, a simple mission gone smoothly was always something to celebrate.
All this time Leon kept to himself. It had gone passed the point of paranoia, Leon was sure. If it was just paranoia, then he wouldn't be sitting next to himself. His other self had seen fit to leave the window where Leon had seen him a short while ago and was now sitting on the ground with his legs crossed and glaring at Leon. It wouldn't be so bad if he wasn't always angry with himself.
'Maybe if I sit here quietly enough no one will notice I'm going mad. It can't be that obvious and counselor Troi isn't here so she wouldn't notice. Yeah, just don't talk, don't look at anyone and they'll never guess.'
'Idiot.' Leon's reflection shook his head, going from angry to exasperated. It was a pretty good change, all things considered. At least he wasn't swearing anymore. 'Idiot, idiot, idiot.' At least no one else could see Leon's angry reflection.
'Can't you think of anything else to say?'
'Yer mamma dresses ya funny.'
'Oh, shut up.'
'Don't blame me. I'm just telling it like it is. Well?'
'Well what?'
The reflection rolled his eyes. 'Well, what are you planning to do now? Wishful thinking only gets you so far and it won't get you to D or Chris.'
Leon swallowed hard and looked back at his fellow crewmembers. No one was really paying him any attention, but they didn't notice the street that was running right through the middle of the room. They didn't even notice that the ceiling had vanished and they all now had a very clear view of the night sky. Not the murky, ash colored sky of Actura IV, but the smog filled sky of Los Angelos. He couldn't see any stars, but he knew they were there. The only visible thing in the sky was the moon. How could they not notice it? Oh, yeah. It was a dream and they couldn't see Leon's dreams.
"Haven't had any dreams in a long time." It was kind of nice. He should be scared. He knew he was going to start hurting soon. It didn't seem bad, though. Leon's eyes followed the road that went through the room and out into the colony. He raised his fingers to his lips and felt a cigarette he didn't have touch his lips. He inhaled and imagined he felt the nicotine infected smoke fill his lungs. The reflection of himself was forgotten, but for that he saw himself shake his head sadly before he looked out the window again. There was movement on the street only he could see. A small figure gracefully making his way down the street.
"Ensign, are you alright?"
'Why the Hell is he lurking around Park Avenue at this time of night?' Leon wondered, almost not hearing the other voice at his side. It didn't matter. He had to keep an eye on D.
"Ensign!" Leon was dragged out of his dream when a hand touched his shoulder and he turned to see Doctor Crusher looking up at him with a puzzled look on her face. "Are you alright?" She was even speaking slowly, like he was dim-wit. "You've been talking to yourself."
"Yeah? What did I say?"
"I'm not sure. You were mumbling something about a museum and bribes." She was very pretty, Leon thought. A bit skinny, but pretty all the same. She seemed kind, but firm and reminded Leon of someone he'd loved long ago. Someone who had died and her passing had hurt Leon deeply. "Here, let me..." She activated her tricorder and passed it in front of Leon, her concerned look growing deeper as she read the results. "Why don't you take a..." Her mouth was still moving, but Leon couldn't hear her voice. He heard another voice. "It's time to wake up, dear. You certainly are a lot bigger than the last time I saw you. I would have hoped you'd have grown up a bit, as well!"
Leon didn't reply. It was all part of the dream, but he did look away from her. Doctor Crusher's face was overlapped by the face of the only woman Leon had ever loved. There was the faint shadow of wavy blonde hair tied into a loose ponytail and a soft, knowing smile that only a mother could have. He'd seen her earlier, when he'd looked at Doctor Crusher. It was just another dream. Or was Doctor Crusher a dream? It was getting hard to tell.
Leon blinked and tried to clear his vision. This was probably the worst situation he could have gotten into, besides meeting counselor Troi while involved in a waking dream. "What did you just say?"
"I said I think you should rest a while." She touched his arm, but Leon jerked it away.
"I'm okay. I was resting." He looked again for D, but both he and the road were gone. There was nothing but reality, now. At least, Leon thought it was reality. Maybe this was all part of the dream, too. "I need some air. Where are we?"
Worf-
Lieutenant Worf disliked it when things went wrong on missions, especially things he couldn't control. The rescue mission had been going quite well until a couple of hours ago when they'd been told that there was something wrong with the transporters and no one knew what. It wasn't a mechanical failure, Geordi had been sure, so they just thought it was probably a power failure somewhere along the lines. Worf wasn't exactly sure what that meant, but it was irritating Geordi to no end. It meant, Geordi had told him, that they were going to have to search through the whole system of the Enterprise just to find it and that would take hours.
Frankly, Worf was pretty sure it was it was something to do with the kitsune. There had been nothing but trouble since that thing had come onto the ship.
'The captain had to sent me away when we have a dangerous, possibly hostile, alien running loose. Since it vanished into the interior of the Enterprise, there hadn't been a single sighting of it. Of course, it hasn't been long, just a night and a few hours, but still...someone should have seen it at least once.' Of course it was an alien. Whatever rubbish Data had stored inside his brain, Worf knew better than to think of the creature as some kind of imaginary spirit. Perhaps Q had made it look like a mythical animal, but it was real and therefore an alien.
All in all, Worf would have much rather been on the Enterprise taking care of his ship and his captain. That was his first responsibility. Instead, he was stuck uselessly in this little colony to which he had no responsibility. To top it all off, all the people they'd come to help were nearly fully healed and now Worf's security people had nothing to do. At least doctor Crusher's medical team were busy cleaning up their mess and keeping an eye on the last of their patients.
As time went on Worf's temper grew shorter and shorter and the only person who didn't seem to notice was the young ensign who was staring out a window at the darkening colony. He hadn't reacted at all when Worf began yelling at several of the other ensigns who'd come on board at the same time. Barns.
Worf didn't start worrying about his ensign until he saw doctor Crusher approach the young man slowly. That only irritated Worf more. Doctor Crusher was a senior officer and she shouldn't have to be concerned with the security detail that was supposed to be protecting her and her staff. Worf knew for a fact that all his people were healthy. With a scowl, Worf made his way over to them and heard doctor Crusher answer something the ensign had asked.
"We are on Actura IV." Doctor Crusher answered. She exchanged a look with Worf that told him clearly she'd noted the ensign's strange behavior and that she would take care of it. That settled Worf's worry a bit and he stopped just far enough away that he could hear what was going on without interfering. She was most capable. "Leon," Doctor Crusher said, moving closer to him and looking carefully at his face. "Do you remember where we are?"
For a short while, ensign Barns looked very serious, staring intently at Doctor Crusher. Then, without warning, he smiled brightly and put a hand to his mouth, a bit sheepishly. "Huh? I guess you can get hungry in a dream."
Doctor Crusher frowned and reached out to put a hand on ensign Barns' forehead even as she pulled out her tricorder and began a scan of him. "You aren't dreaming, ensign. Are you hungry?"
"Hey, this thing may look like a turd, but it's actually kinda good." Ensign Barns raised his hand towards his mouth, his hand cupped as if he were holding a rock or a ball.
"Leon!" Doctor Crusher snapped, giving his arm a little shake. "Can you hear me? Wake up!"
Ensign Barns blinked and his eyes focused on her. "Oh."
"Are you feeling quite all right?" Doctor Crusher asked, yet again raising her tricorder to scan him.
Ensign Barns batted the tricorder away. "Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. It's just a dream. There's nothing to worry about." Even to Worf, ensign Barns looked pale and his fingers were trembling. There was obviously something to worry about. Humans were stupidly stubborn about such things and Worf wondered if he should incapacitate the young man before he could do himself or anyone else damage. That would have been the sensible thing to do, but he supposed he should leave that decision to doctor Crusher.
Doctor Crusher didn't look at all appeased by ensign Barns' answer and scowled at him. "Waking dreams are not something to be ignored. You could be very sick. Just lay back and..."
"I wish I knew what was going on." Ensign Barnes lay back as Doctor Crusher encouraged him to do, but kept on talking. "I never know what's happening and damned if he'd tell me." He sounded frustrated, but not really angry.
"He who?" Doctor Crusher asked with the air of someone who was just trying to keep her patient calm while she examined him.
"Him." Ensign Barns raised his hand and pointed out the door. There was nothing there but blackness and the dirty colony. "He won't even look at me and just keeps talking about...about...what was it? We were in the forest and he was talking about dead animals. That celvalkes was fuckin' huge 'n it was only a baby." Ensign Barns chuckled. "You shoulda seen its mama. Damned thing musta been about ten feet tall. D said they were extinct. And the cat. I shot that goddamed cat with the teeth. Saber-toothed something, I think its called. It was gonna eat D. D was some pissed off when I shot the bugger." His eyes grew misty. "Two kittens. I didn't know she had kittens."
Doctor Crusher's eyes narrowed, thoughtfully and she made to take yet another reading of ensign Barns, but he brushed her away, again. "Can't you leave me alone?" He muttered under his breath.
"No." At once she because very stiff and professional. "You are not well, ensign. Sit down." From out of those marvelously huge pockets, doctor Crusher pulled a hypospray, no doubt loaded with some kind of tranquilizer, and moved to press it against ensign Barns' throat.
Ensign Barns didn't take it well and pushed her hand away from him with a scowl. "Leave me alone. I've had enough of those damned things. Useless, anyway. Won't make any difference now. Not that stuff."
Worf was not pleased by the behavior of ensign Barns. He was under Worf's command and that meant, to Worf, that ensign Barns belonged to him. It meant that he was responsible for what ensign Barns did and right now the young ensign wasn't making him look very good in front of doctor Crusher. He sounded like he was losing his mind, which was bad enough. What made Worf see red was when ensign Barns thoughtlessly batted doctor Crusher's hand away, not once, but three times!
He'd hit a superior officer and there was no excuse for that. Worf inhaled deeply though his nose and tried to keep himself calm. Sick or not, ensign Barns knew better and Worf would see him disciplined for his transgression later. It was lucky for ensign Barns that doctor Crusher was such a compassionate person. Worf knew he wouldn't have acted so kindly as she did. Instead of being insulted by the rude, if not exactly aggressive, slap of his hand, doctor Crusher frowned at ensign Barns.
"You are sick."
"Bla, bla, bla. And I smoke to much, too. That's what he always says." Ensign Barns started shaking and wrapped his arms around himself as he slumped back down to the floor and lay his head sideways on his knees. "My head hurts. I need some fresh air."
"You need to rest." She fixed him with a steely glare. "I'll give you something for your head."
"Don't want it. If I can't have the stuff I don't want yours." He had the vague look of someone pouting and turned away from doctor Crusher.
"What stuff?"
"It's a secret. I'm not supposed to tell."
Doctor Crusher put her fists on her hips and pulled out her last threat. "Look, if you don't let me do my job, I'm going to have to ask Lieutenant Worf to suspend you from duty. Do you want that?"
"Like it matters?" He fell silent.
Doctor Crusher threw her hands up in defeat. "Lieutenant?"
Worf was more than happy to do his duty. He stripped ensign Barns of his phasor and informed him, "You are relieved of duty until we reach the Enterprise and you submit yourself for medical treatment, ensign."
"Oh, fuck off."
Worf looked at Barns sharply and hissed though his teeth. He thought he'd explode, but for the presence of a superior officer. He had been spoken to like that in the past, but in the past, he'd always been able to discipline the offender. Ensign Barns was definitely going to get disciplined as soon as doctor Crusher pronounced him well. Oh, yeah. A run covering all decks of the Enterprise might teach him a little respect. Or something demeaning, like making him scrub the gym from floor to ceiling, including the locker room.
Before Worf could say anything, doctor Crusher took his large arm and pulled him a little bit away. "He's refused treatment and since I don't know for a fact that he's incapable of making his own decisions, I can't do a thing. There's something wrong with him, but it's not showing up on my tricorder. I need to get him to the Enterprise." She cast a worried look at the ensign over her shoulder. "I think it's something Deanna has to deal with. For now, he's off duty, all right? I wouldn't trust him with a weapon."
"Agreed." Worf was still fuming from the ensign's foul mouth and wondered how long he would have to lose one of his men. A pity. He'd shown a great deal of promise when Worf had tested all the new recruits and his records from the Academy were impeccable. "The transporter should be fixed very soon, perhaps in the next half hour. Until then, I'll assign someone to keep an eye on him and...damn it!" Worf snarled when he happened to look back at where they'd left ensign Barns.
Ensign Barns was gone and the window was open.
Worf rushed to the window and looked out, but the few dark streets were empty. There wasn't a trace of the missing ensign. Beside Worf, doctor Crusher paled. "We have to find him. I don't know what he'll do in his state. He doesn't even seem to know what's going on around him."
Worf wasted no more time. He marched away from doctor Crusher and, as he passed them, seized two of his security officers by the shoulders and pulled them along after him. "We have a man missing. Ensign Leon Barns. Missing for barely a minute. Find him!"
Doctor Crusher-
When Worf stormed out of the building they'd taken shelter in, hauling two confused security officers with him, Beverly swallowed hard and looked down at the few readings her tricorder had given her before the ensign's disappearance and she was worried about what she saw.
Ensign Barns did not have a fever. In fact, his temperature was starting to fall. There were a great number of chemicals in his bloodstream, but nothing that looked really dangerous. Most disturbingly, his brain waves seemed a bit off. 'It's not likely that there's anything in the air. No one else seems to be acting oddly. Can't be the plague, he hasn't had any of the symptoms.' Still, she decided she'd keep a closer eye on everyone. Maybe he's more sensitive to something in the air. A natural chemical that we didn't know about. 'Like an allergy or something.' She tapped a few controls on her tricorder and started chewing on the inside of her cheek at what she found out. 'His brainwaves are very erratic.' They would go insanely weird and then settle into a normal wave pattern. It seemed to happen erratically.
She decided then and there that ensign Barns was NOT capable of making his own medical decisions. If she'd just checked a few minutes earlier, she could have had Worf hold ensign Barns down while she gave him a tranquilizer and then started a through exam.
Enterprise-
Reggie-
-You are worried?-
Reggie almost smiled at the computer's screen where the exotic looking fish swam lazily, her fins moved by the programmed current on her disk. He'd only had Mellow for a few hours, but Reggie found that he rather liked her. Her 'voice' was very gentle and he liked that best of all. "I can't talk now, Mellow. I have to finish this." Reggie was working in his quarters, having accessed the ship's computers from a terminal he kept just in case he needed it. Mellow, his gift from Count D, was on another computer screen, watching him with programmed patience. He rather liked Mellow. She was effortless to take care of and pleasant to talk to.
-You are worried.-
"Just a little." It was so much easier for him to work when no one was around and the privacy of his own quarters allowed Reggie to work without the anxiety that someone would come and peek over his shoulder when he wasn't paying attention. He had plenty of reason to be worried and that was why he was working so hard. in fact, most every engineer was working very hard to find the source of the transporter's malfunction.
-About Leon?-
The question was out of the blue and Reggie stopped his work to look across the room at Mellow's screen. "How do you know Leon?" More importantly, why would she think Leon was the one he was worried about? There was really no reason why the Count would put that sort of information into Mellow's program.
-We all know Leon. He is very special.- Mellow's voice seemed to become softer. -Leon was with the Count...that day.-
"What day? We who?"
-The day I learned that Jodi was gone. Leon came to find the one who took Jody from me.-
"Jodi?"
Mellow didn't say anything and she turned her back on Reggie, seeming to swim away, though she didn't entirely leave the computer screen If he didn't know better, he would have sworn she was sad. Impossible.
"I don't understand, Mellow. I've known Leon my whole life and he's never met Count D before. What you're saying is impossible." Reggie turned back to his work and noted the time on the computer with growing apprehension. Only a half an hour until the medication wore off and Leon would start to meltdown. At this point, Leon was probably starting to feel symptoms and, if he was unlucky, it had been noticed. 'First job he's had since he got here, the first day he's on duty and this has to happen!' So much for easing Leon off the medication.
It could work out in the end, though. Doctor Crusher must have noticed Leon's odd behavior, or she would very soon if they couldn't get the transporters working. She wouldn't let him out of sickbay until she knew what was wrong and then she would force Leon to go to rehab. This could all be a blessing in disguise. That is, if they could get him back to the Enterprise before anything really bad happened. Like Leon dying.
-They have met. A long time ago.-
"Leon told me he'd dreamed about Count D." Reggie said this more to himself than to Mellow. Nothing was making sense. Why would Count D program all this stuff about Leon into Mellow?
Mellow just watched him silently without replying.
"Please, I have to know what you know about Leon." How stupid. To be begging a computer program. He should just start dissecting her program and...her? He was calling a program her. If he took her apart, he'd be able to find out what information she held. "I can't let Leon be hurt again."
Reggie broke out in a cold sweat at that thought. It was all too possible that Leon would die before he was brought back to the Enterprise. If they couldn't fix the transporters, then there was no was that Leon could get to his medications in time.
Reggie had even thought about taking one of the shuttlecrafts down just so he'd have a chance to slip the medication to Leon, but it wouldn't have worked. There just wasn't enough time and he wouldn't be able to get a shuttlecraft because everyone KNEW that there wasn't a life or death emergency. The captain just wouldn't authorize it. Unless, of course, he admitted Leon's addiction to the captain and Reggie wasn't sure Leon would ever forgive him for that. On the other hand, if it kept Leon safe and healthy it would be worth the risk. Better that Leon was alive and hating him, than dead.
'I could tell them. Leon's going to die without my help.' Reggie sat back and chewed on the knuckle of his right hand. 'They'll have noticed by now, anyway. What would it hurt?' He even knew where Leon kept his medications. Out of the corner of his eye, Reggie saw Jill's black form swoop out of the bedroom and land on the table just in front of Mellow's screen. He'd almost forgotten that he was bird sitting for Leon.
Jill squawked at the screen and, in response, Mellow moved back to the front of the screen. For a moment, Reggie forgot what he was doing and just watched them.
-Yes. I have done it.- Mellow said.
Jill bobbed her head and gave another loud squawk while she flapped her wings once.
-I will remember.-
Then Jill turned and fixed her shining black eyes on Reggie. It was such an intense stare that Reggie began to feel nervous, like it was a person watching him instead of an animal. Jill turned her head just slightly to the side then gave a little hop and took flight. She flew back to the bedroom again.
"Mellow?"
-Yes, Reggie?-
"Were just talking to a crow?" Even if she did have as an advanced program as Reggie thought she had, surely she hadn't been programmed to talk to animals. Perhaps her voice recognition was messed up and she thought she was talking to Reggie.
-No.-
"Okay." The answer didn't really make any sense. "Then, who were you talking to?"
-It is a secret.-
If there was anything that could lower Reggie's self-esteem more, he couldn't imagine it. Now computer programs were keeping secrets from him. "Mellow, I get the feeling that you know something you aren't telling me."
-Many things, Reggie. You remind me of Jodi. It hurts to look at you. You make my heart hurt.-
Reggie was surprised by the expression. "Your heart?"
-Yes. Right here,- Then the image began to shift and morph.
Reggie was so caught up in what was happening that he left his work station and slowly walked closer to Mellow's screen. He kept walking until he was right in front of it and he leaned over, putting both hands on the table top the screen was sitting on, just to get a closer look.
Mellow continued to change, the screen growing blurry and the static covering up nearly everything. Then it cleared and Reggie thought his heart would stop. Black curls and dark eyes... "Deirdre?" He breathed the name. Yes, it was Deirdre, she couldn't be anyone else. She was even dressed as he remembered her, in the dull, plain uniform supplied by Mr. Goti.
Mellow held a hand over the left side of her breast and smiled sadly at Reggie. -My heart is here. You look different, but you are so like my Jodi in many ways.-
"Change back." Reggie blinked tears from his eyes and he felt his chest contracting painfully. "Turn back to a fish." How could he bear to look at her when she looked like Deirdre, whom he had failed so pathetically?
-You did not kill her, Reggie. Her death was not your fault.-
"Please." He couldn't stand it. She even spoke with Deirdre's voice!
-If you wish. Forgive me for causing you discomfort.- She changed quickly back into the fish and Reggie let out a sigh of relief. It was too much. -I was under the impression that you would favor my appearance as that girl, Deirdre Addams. Forgive my assumption.-
"What the Hell are you?" Reggie asked, when his heart slowed a bit. "You know too much. How do you know her? No one knows Deirdre."
-I am Mellow. I know many things.- Mellow was silent for a moment. -I will not harm you, Reggie. Please, do not be afraid.-
It was meant to be comforting, but had the opposite affect and Reggie wondered what, exactly, Count D had given him. He was getting the impression that Mellow wasn't an ordinary computer program.
Reggie almost wished he hadn't asked her to change back. It was nice to see Deirdre again. He had no photo's of her, that sort of thing hadn't been allowed in Mr. Goti's Home. There were no visual records of any kind unless Mr. Goti took them himself and Reggie was pretty sure he didn't want any of those. Mr. Goti only kept pictures for his research, so they tended to be very unpleasant pictures.
Reggie stood up straight and walked a bit away from Mellow. He had to think clearly. Something wasn't adding up. "What were you talking about before, when the crow was out here?"
Mellow-
She couldn't tell him about her link into the system of the Enterprise. He was very smart, from what she'd seen him doing. By now, after he had inputted her into the computer of the Enterprise, she had wormed her way into every part of the main computer. It wasn't especially hard and Jodi had been so smart to give her the tools to do this sort of thing. Of course, computers were so different than they had been years ago when Jodi had created her, but the humans who had designed and built the computers were essentially the same as they'd always been. Humans didn't realize that they really were building the same computers they'd been making since the idea was first conceived, just making them a little fancier.
Mellow turned away at Reggie's last question, she didn't want to have to lie to him. It would be too much like lying to Jodi. If he knew what she was doing while he was trying to save his friend, then he would surely be angry and that would complicate the Count's plans. Her duty here was most important, at least for the next few minutes.
She watched as, behind Reggie's back, the phoenix/crow flew to the door and, as she'd agreed to moments before, Mellow made the door open and Jill flew out. Reggie swung around when he heard the door open, but he only saw the door closing and hadn't noticed Jill at all.
"What's going on?" Reggie demanded. He looked back to Mellow, his forehead creased with growing agitation.
The sensors in the room, conveniently they were actually all over the ship, told Mellow that Reggie's temperature was rising as was his heart rate. She'd made him uncomfortable by changing her image to that of Deirdre, something she'd done to please him. He was getting more and more flustered as time went on, but that was alright. Her main reason for being here was for the access it gave her to the Enterprise's computers, but also to keep an eye on Reggie. The Count was concerned with Reggie for Leon's sake. He had learned that Reggie was very close to Leon and that Leon depended on Reggie for emotional support. She was here for Reggie's sake, as much as anything.
"Mellow, tell me what's happening."
-Have you found the fault with the transporters?- It was an easy distraction, but one that Mellow knew would work.
As she predicted, Reggie rushed back to his other computer and began his work again. It was Mellow's fault. She kept moving the fault, far to fast for any of the crew to catch it and, of course, since she controlled the computers, she could foul them up that way, too.
"I'm not sure I shouldn't just give you back to the Count." Reggie said, his mind only half distracted. "Or report you to the captain."
-That would be a bad idea, Reggie. I told you, I will not hurt you.-
"That's what worries me."
-I can give you something, Reggie.- The Count had suggested this, but Mellow still wasn't sure that it was the right thing to do. -To prove I am not an enemy.-
"I doubt it. Logically speaking, anything you show me can be interrupted as a plea for my silence, if you are a kind of malicious virus or a spy program. Therefore, I know that you can't give me anything so important that...damn!" Reggie cursed, uncharacteristically when Mellow moved the fault away from him again. She made sure to keep it just out of his reach.
Mellow was impressed by his skill. None of the other engineers had come so close to catching her, not even the android, Data. Mellow knew everything the Enterprise computers had to offer about Reggie, and, therefore, everything the Federation and Starfleet computers knew about him. What she knew, she liked.
-I can give you Leon.-
Reggie looked up again, this time a look of almost anger on his face and Mellow cowered away. Right then, he didn't seem a bit like her dear Jodi. Jodi had never been so angry with her. "What are you talking about? Did you do this?!" He gestured irately to his computer and his problem with the transporters.
-I misspoke. Forgive me. I can give you part of Leon's past even he does not know about.-
Reggie must have guessed by that time that Mellow did, in fact, have more than a little to do with the transporter's mysterious malfunction. Still, he didn't carry though on his threat to expose her. That was good. She had no wish to carry out punishment if he broke the rule.
Mellow knew that no matter how hard they tried, they wouldn't be able to catch her. She could escape into the depths of the Enterprise's titanic computer system and, if she had to, escape to another ship or base that communicated with the Enterprise. She was safe. If she wished it, she could make it look as if she had never been in Reggie's quarters, thus protecting Count D.
Reggie was no threat. The only reason Count D had given Mellow to him was so that she could keep an eye on what was going on in the Enterprise and watch for danger. He hadn't forbid her from giving Reggie information, though.
Mellow tried to ignore Reggie's intense eyes. She knew he was just worried about Leon. -I know about Leon's treatment at Mr. Goti's Home for Emotionally Disturbed Children. Would you like to know?-
Reggie closed his eyes and breathed deeply. "What I want is Leon back here safely. I know enough about his past, I don't need to know more. If the Count put you up to this mess with the transporters then you have to fix them. Leon will die down there!"
-No. That is definite.-
"It is possible." He was getting angrier and angrier. "I know what can happen to him! I've seen it happen and why am I arguing with you? You're just a program!"
Mellow checked the time and knew she needed just a few more minutes. -Here. Watch.- The image on Mellow's screen changed as she let her image be overridden by a visual image she'd found on a small computer kept by Mr. Goti. It wasn't all that hard. He thought his records were secure, and they were from normal computers. He'd never worried about a program with an intelligence that could search more efficiently than any of the Federation's computers. -This is Leon's first day at Mr. Goti's Home for Emotionally Disturbed Children. He is under the influence of hypnosis. Please, listen.- Mellow was so sure that this would catch Reggie's attention.
Instead, Reggie asked, "Why are you trying to distract me?"
-You are too lose, Reggie. Just another moment is all I need.-
Reggie-
It was all there, plain to see and hear.
Mr. Goti sat at his desk while Leon sat opposite of him and spoke for the benefit of recording his findings. Reggie shivered at Mr. Goti's voice, a sound he often heard in nightmares.
"Notes: Patient is ten years, three months old. Male. Height: 4 foot 7 inches. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Name: Leon Barns. No family. Leon was recommended to this facility due to aggressive tendencies and an inability to distinguish between reality and fantasy. Leon has admitted playing with animals as if they were people and says he sees no difference between animals and humans. Since then, he has changed his story.
The use of this study will be the control of psychic suppressants. Subject has history of dreams that are so life-like he can not determine reality from fantasy. I believe this has lead to the mental exhaustion which causes the violent outbursts. In theory, AX4, the Psychic suppressant chemical, will repress both waking and sleeping dreams and allow subject to lead normal life."
There was a pause while Mr. Goti left his desk and moved his chair so he could sit next to Leon. "Why are you trying to distract me?" Reggie asked, so horrified that he couldn't turn away from the screen. His hands were trembling and he'd started to rock back and forth. He hated that face. Still saw that face and heard that voice in his darkest dreams.
-You are too close, Reggie. Just another moment is all I need.-
"Now," Mr. Goti said in his nightmarishly friendly voice. "Why don't we have a talk, Leon? I want you to think of the happiest moment in your life. Will you do that? Tell me what you see."
Leon's voice was faint, compared to that of Mr. Goti. "My family."
"Really? I thought you were an orphan." His voice was so gentle and kind. So deceptive. "I was told that your parents had died when you were a baby. No brothers or sisters. No aunts, uncles, cousins, or even grandparents."
"Stupid. That's just this time." Leon didn't sound at all upset and that surprised Reggie. He had thought that Leon might get at least a little upset, especially since he was so young when this had happened. "Last time I had a brother. My mom died when I was eighteen."
"But you're only ten, Leon. How is that possible?"
"I told you. It didn't happen this time. It happened last time."
"All right, then. Your mother died, but you have a brother. Where is your father?"
"Damned bastard ran off. Got himself thrown in prison right after he knocked up mom. Idiot went and tried to rob a gas station. Stupid thing to get locked up for." Leon's voice had become very bitter and he spoke as if the words tasted foul. "He can stay away. I don't want him to have anything to do with Chris."
"Chris?"
"My brother." Leon sighed as the tension induced by the mention of his father vanished and he smiled contently. "I want to stay here. It feels right."
"You can't stay in your dreams, Leon. They aren't real."
"Not dreams. Family. They're waiting for me, I have to go home."
"We'll leave that for now. Tell me why you ran away from the last home you were in. Now, now, don't look so worried, no one's angry with you."
"I'm not supposed to tell."
"Why not? Who told you not to tell?"
"D wouldn't want anyone to know."
"D?"
"He's mine."
"I see."
"No, you don't. You can't see it."
"Leon, will you tell me who, exactly, D is?"
"He's my friend and he takes care of Chris."
"Did D tell you to run away?"
"No, the butterfly did."
When Reggie got to this point in the transcription, he had to stop, his vision was blurring. D? Chris? "Stop, Mellow. Stop it, please. I've seen enough."
It was hypnosis, that was how Mr. Goti had gotten Leon to say all those things. Leon would have felt so shamed if he ever knew what Reggie had just seen. Not only had Leon told someone about his dreams, but it had been Mr. Goti who'd recorded it all. Reggie was absolutely furious.
"That Bastard!" Reggie snarled, slamming his fist down onto the computer top. "He went and...he knows everything." Reggie was scared, but not just for Leon. What had Mr. Goti gleaned from Reggie's mind? Reggie couldn't even remember being hypnotized, but that didn't mean anything. All these things were on record, somewhere, and if Mellow could see them then anyone could.
"Mellow, what do you know about Count D?"
-Time has expired. I must leave you now, Reggie.-
Reggie blinked and protested, "No! Wait! I have to know what's going on. What is Count D? Is he dangerous?"
-Not to Leon. Never to Leon.-
"What time limit are you talking about then?"
-It is Leon's time limit. Ten hours has expired and the chemicals he was putting into his body have begun to fully dissipate. Now I will correct the transporters, but I have found that Leon is alone on the planet's surface. Your people have found his abandoned insignia badge and have no idea how to look for him.-
Reggie paled at the thought. "They'll find him with the scanners." He sounded as if he were trying to convince himself.
-I hope you are correct, but I do not think so.-
"Why not?"
Just as the words left Reggie's lips the ship rocked so violently that Reggie was nearly thrown to the floor. He only barely managed to catch himself. The red alert lights began to flash wildly and captain Picard's voice sounded. "All hands, to battle stations!"
"What's going on?!"
-Count D did not wish Leon to be on board when the Enterprise was attacked. That is why I had disabled the transporters until now. I will allow the away team to return, but Leon is far enough away that he will not return with them. He is safe on the planet.-
Actura IV-
Leon-
The world was foggy. The whole world was covered in a yellow light. Or was that orange. Maybe brown. Leon's head hurt just thinking about it. It was the worst migraine he'd ever had. Probably a hangover. What had he been doing last night? The moon was still up. Oh. So it was still last night. Was it last night or tomorrow night? Wait. That didn't sound right...
Something made a noise and Leon looked off to his right, but he couldn't see anything. The world was black now, entirely drenched in night, but for the moon...er...moons. There were three moons. Now since when did Earth have three moons?
He'd walked out of the colony, but that was alright, because it wasn't home. To be honest, Leon really wasn't sure where he was. The city looked familiar, but it wasn't home. It wasn't where he was supposed to be. He thought he was in a desert, but didn't know why. This couldn't be Los Angelos.
No. Not Los Angelos. Enterprise. That's where he belonged, right? Leon's hand drifted to the little silver badge on his chest and he plucked it off, staring at it as if he'd never seen it before. 'Badge. Enterprise. Starfleet. Yeah, that's where Reggie is. Wonder if he's okay. Poor Reggie.'
Danger.
Of course there's always danger. Bullets flying and ugly little man-faced goats. Crazy vampires drinking cheap beer and mermaids who steal memories. Lonely. He was so lonely. Just wanted a friend. Was that too much to ask?
Leon started running and didn't notice when the insignia badge slipped from his fingers to the cold sand under his feet. They were going to catch him and make him go back. He didn't want that. They? They who? It didn't matter. He just had to get away to somewhere safe where no one would find him. Leon ran until his feet ached, until his lungs burned, and until every muscle of his body was screaming in pain. The world blurred around him, now filling with more colors and it was as if he hadn't opened his eyes in years. The orange and red in the air gave way to share the world with other muted, night colors. Purple in the sky and bright yellow moons. Grey and brown earth and black of the distance mountains against the sky. So much color!
'It...it's like it used to be. Long ago.' Yes, Leon remembered what he had seen as a child, even if he hadn't dared talk to anybody about it, even Reggie. He remembered the beautiful creatures only he could see and he remembered the vivid colors that had been stolen from him the day he started taking the pills Mr. Goti had given him. Only on those days when the pills were kept from him did Leon see the colors again, but then it was only a single color. Bright, unnatural white. More than that, Leon feel so much. His skin felt like it was charged with electricity, every little hair on his arms prickled against his shirt and the air, as he ran, stung his face.
Cold. It hadn't been so cold when he left, had it? Every breath he took felt like ice water filling his lungs. When pinpricks of pain began to stab at the back of his eyes Leon stumbled for the first time and fell flat on his face. The pain lasted only a moment, but when it cleared, Leon was sure he was crying. He must be. There was warmth on his face.
'I think I'll just stay here.' The sand under his cheek was cold, but not as cold as the air.
When Leon did try to get up he was very surprised to find a small bed right in front of him. 'He's all curled up like that. Funny. I thought he was on the Enterprise.' There was the little bed Reggie had used when they were both at Mr. Goti's Home and there was Reggie curled up under the blankets, fast asleep.
Reggie hadn't moved for days after Deirdre had vanished, refusing to eat or drink. Leon forced himself to stand and he made his way over to the bed. "Reggie? Come on, wake up." He gave Reggie a firm shake on the shoulder, but Reggie only curled up more, hiding his head under the blanket. "Reggie. You've gotta get up. It's late."
"He will not wake up."
Leon smiled when he saw who was standing opposite of him, on the other side of Reggie's bed. "Hey. When'd you get here?"
"I have been waiting for you. I think you have been waiting for me, too." It was the faceless man, the one Leon could never quite see. Even now he was shrouded in the darkness of night. Leon could clearly see the man's hands and the long purple painted fingernails. The outfit was different than any of the ones Leon remembered, but so familiar, too. It was a Chinese style with the high mandarin collar, just as they always were when Leon saw him. "How long must I wait for you?"
"Don't know." Leon shrugged. "Why won't Reggie wake up?"
"Because he is not real. You are dreaming."
"Oh. I guess that makes sense." The man walked around the bed and came closer until, finally, Leon saw his face. "Ha!" Leon laughed. "I knew it was you all along." He felt a strange satisfaction that he'd guessed right. "Why are you here D?"
"I told you. I have been waiting for you. I thought I should come to see if you are all right." He leaned over and smiled kindly, just as he always did in Leon's dreams. "Can you walk?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"Let us walk together, then."
To be continued...