Enterprise-
Captain Picard-
"We'll get back to Actura IV at a crawl, sir." First officer, William Riker sat stiffly at the conference table to give Jean-Luc the bad news. "There was a good deal of damage during the attack, so we'll be a couple of hours before we can get there."
Jean-Luc nodded, thoughtfully. He'd calmed down considerably since hearing that he'd lost two of his crew. One of them, ensign Barns, was definitely on Actura IV. There were several witnesses who'd seen him running away from their temporary base. Lieutenant Barclay was a bit more of a mystery, though. While ensign Barns had obviously been ill, though they didn't know the nature of his illness, Mr. Barclay was perfectly healthy, as far as anyone knew. In fact, this was the first time in months had Jean-Luc had even heard Mr. Barclay's name.
"We'll be able to find Reg's signal and beam him directly on board, I'm not worried about that. But ensign Barns threw his communicator away. We found it just before we came on board." Doctor Beverly Crusher looked deeply worried with her hands folded before her on the table. "Ensign Barns is seriously ill and I don't know what's wrong with him. I've gone over the readings I took from him, but it makes very little sense. I caught traces of some kind of chemical in his system, but nothing that should have any real affect on his behavior or thought process. Vetium is a minor sedative. For goodness sakes, I use it on children for little scrapes!" She threw her hands up and let them fall to her lap with a disgruntled sigh. "His health records were clean, perfectly normal, and he was fine when we went down to the planet. The only thing I can think of is that he caught something while on the planet, but no one else has been acting odd symptoms and the colonist have never reported any disease like this."
"Then perhaps he wasn't sick." Mr. Worf said, leaning back in his chair and still looking more than a little unhappy. At the best of times, Mr. Worf didn't look happy, but now, right after a battle with the infamous Borg and after losing two men on a planet, he was decidedly cross. "A painkiller is not enough to affect someone's reason. Perhaps, he knew what he was doing. He deliberately discarded his communicator and does not wish to be found."
Beverly frowned at him, almost angry. It wasn't hard for her to get angry. and she could go from peaceful to livid at a moment's notice. "You saw him, how can you say that?! He was obviously ill."
"Yet, you found nothing wrong with him. He was in perfect health." One of Mr. Worf's troubles, was that he took things far to personally. If one of the officers under his command made a mistake, it shamed him. If one of them went so far as to deliberately break a Starfleet regulation, then he was likely to kill the offender and then himself. That ensign Barns had intentional abandoned his communicator and run away from his superior officers, right before a battle, no less, showed Mr. Worf that ensign Barns wasn't fit to be rescued. In Mr. Worf's mind, the failure of one of his people, was his failure. "The decision was his to make."
Beverly scowled. "There's more to illness than just physical illness. Deanna...Deanna?"
But Deanna Troi wasn't paying attention. She was staring at the tabletop and obviously deep in her own thoughts. "Sorry." Deanna said when she realized everyone was waiting for her. "Just...we know Reg left the ship. The only place he could have gone was to Actura IV, right? I saw him just a short while before the mission began. He was...er...with ensign Barns. Neither of them were acting at all peculiar. In fact, they were in very good moods. Reggie was very talkative and more confident than I've ever seen him." She paused. "I don't believe Reg just ran away. He went after ensign Barns."
Jean-Luc looked at her sharply. Deanna's insight was nearly flawless and he tended to believe her hunches more than most people's facts. Still, that begged the question of how. "I didn't even know ensign Barns was missing until the Borg were upon us, minutes after the away team returned without ensign Barns. How did Mr. Barclay know that ensign Barns was still on Actura IV?"
Deanna shook her head. "I don't have any answer, sir. But I believe it's true. They were very close. It's not impossible that Reggie was keeping an eye out and he noticed that ensign Barns didn't come back with the away team."
Riker looked doubtful. "I'm not even sure Reg could do something like that. He's the most incompetent engineer I've ever seen. I don't even know how he made it into Starfleet, let alone get promotions. If nothing else, he's an unmitigated coward and I can't see him going down to an unknown planet alone, right in the middle of an attack."
"You're still upset about that whole holodeck incident, aren't you?" Deanna couldn't quite hide a little smirk.
"You aren't?!" Riker's eyes looked ready to pop out of his head.
Deanna sniffed and gave him a superior grin. "A man made me the object of his ultimate desire and obviously thinks of me as a goddess. I have nothing to be insulted about. You on the other hand..."
"Right! Right! Let's stop there. The point is, Reg doesn't have the courage or the know-how to do something like this. We didn't even notice he was missing until after the attack was over. It's more likely that the Borg took him."
"Why him and no one else, then?" Deanna countered. "Everyone is accounted for, except Reg and ensign Barns. I know they are extremely close to each other. The ship's sensors detected no Borg near where Reggie should have been. It's much easier to think that Reggie was keeping and eye out for ensign Barns and..."
"And what?" Riker interrupted. "He rushed to the rescue? You're seriously trying to tell me that Barclay dropped everything, with the red alert sounding, and ran off like a knight in shining armor?" Riker gave a barking laugh. "You think he managed to find an empty transporter room and beamed himself down to the planet? All in the space of roughly three minutes? It's just not possible. An inept man like Barclay..."
"Commander," Geordi spoke quietly, as he usually did. "That's the second time you've questioned Mr. Barclay's competence. I don't suggest a third. You don't know the man and you don't know what's hidden in his head. Reg is a genius. I believe Deanna if she says he found a way to get to the planet."
"A genius?" Riker looked surprised. "Barclay?"
"I've seen some of his work. You know, he takes care of monitoring certain operations in the ship. It's a low level responsibility job, any ensign could do it. The only thing is, Reg takes them all on at once. His station runs at double time, giving readings for four different operations at once. To top it off, we haven't had any issues with any of the operations he monitors since he started. It's easy enough for him to do it, but he also works on other things while he's doing it. He would be watching the monitors while typing on a handheld computer. I caught a glimpse of it, once. It seems that he's trying to double the efficiency of the food dispensers."
"The food dispensers?"
"Yup. He thinks there's a great need for them on long range expeditions and military vessels. Don't take Reg lightly. He knows what he's doing." Geordi thought for a moment, tilting his face slightly upwards. "He could have rigged the transporter for a delayed signal. That's not really all that difficult. He's a master multi-tasker, he could have been monitoring while watching to see if ensign Barns returned...no. That's not right. He wasn't on duty when they came back. He'd have been watching the signals from the transporter room from his quarters."
"You're still forgetting the fact about Barclay's courage, or lack therefore."
"I think you're seriously underestimating him, Will." Deanna was shaking her head, very sure of herself. "Reg isn't a coward. He..." She stopped. "Anything more would be a violation of confidentiality. Sufficed to say, he isn't a coward. He's just unsure."
The argument over Mr. Barclay's good qualities was interesting, Jean-Luc had never head anyone speak so highly of the man before and he liked it now that he did, but he had to break it up. "What has lieutenant Barclay got to do with the fish?"
Riker gave him a puzzled look. "Sir?"
"That...fish thing. The one that took over the ship. Do you think Mr. Barclay is responsible for it?" It seemed incredibly unlikely. He just couldn't imagine someone like Reginald Barclay creating a program that could take over the entire ship and then vanishing. Even considering Geordi's recent revelations about Mr. Barclay, it seemed very unlikely. "It was traced to his quarter's terminal, but vanished after that. I'd like to know if this virus is still active and affecting our systems. Will it take control of us again and not be so benevolent?"
"Everything's running normally, sir." Geordi assured Jean-Luc. "We're just slow because of the damage from the attack. There hasn't been even a blip from the fish."
"No sign of the kistune, either, sir." Worf grumbled, unhappily. That had been a major sore spot for him ever since the appearance of the fox creature. To make it worse, Q hadn't returned with any snide comments or thinly veiled threats, which was quite unlike him. Jean-Luc had been on edge for far too long and it was destroying his nerves.
Again, Deanna spoke up for Mr. Barclay. "It's possible that it's just coincidence that the fish went back to Reg's quarters, isn't it?"
"Possible, yes." Geordi answered. "But not very likely. It's one Hell of a coincidence, if it is. Just the fact that we haven't been able to track it any further than Reg's computer makes me nervous. It's lurking in there and we can't find it." He turned to Jean-Luc with a thoughtful set of his mouth. "Don't think of this as a crime, yet, sir. Whatever that virus is, it saved us. Somehow, it chased the Borg away. They were heavily damaged and if Reg is responsible, that fish could be the best weapon against the Borg the Federation could have asked for."
Riker raised an eyebrow and looked doubtful. "He still shouldn't have loaded a virus into the ship's computer, Geordi. Regardless of the effect it ended up having. The big question is: are we even going to find them?" He looked around at everyone, but rested his eyes on Jean-Luc. "We have to face the fact that the Borg might have taken Reg. They were after Geordi, we know that for a fact. If they'd gotten access to our computers, then they might have known that Reg is also an engineer. When they couldn't get Geordi, they probably went for the next engineer on the list."
"Speaking of which," Geordi spoke up again. "Has anyone heard news about that kid that saved me?"
"I think we're going to have to lump him in with Q's pet kitsune running around somewhere, but we just can't find them. why Q would save you, I'm not sure." Jean-Luc had too many things to think about. "Add this mysterious boy to the security alert, Mr. Worf." Other than that, there was very little they could do. The boy had run away as soon as the Borg had vanished. Obviously an alien creature, from Geordi's description, but one that could speak English and saved the life of one of Jean-Luc's precious crew.
This was a bad situation all around and Jean-Luc was so tempted to lay the blame for everything that had happened in the past few days squarely on Q's shoulders. He couldn't, though. This really wasn't Q's style. Not enough danger and far too much mystery. No. Q would have loudly announced his challenge to the Enterprise crew and made sure they knew exactly how much danger they were in. All this floundering around in the dark just wasn't like Q.
"We will assume that lieutenant Barclay in on Actura IV, from lack of other evidence. If we fail to find him there, then we will mount a rescue. It is conceivable that when the Borg failed to get Geordi, they might have gone after another engineer." He didn't say what he worst feared. That if they didn't find Mr. Barclay on Actura IV, then there was little hope for him. From his own nightmarish experience, Jean-Luc knew what anyone captured by the Borg would face. Jean-Luc would kill Mr. Barclay himself if there was no hope of saving him. Better to die than to live like that. "How long until we reach Actura IV?"
"Four hours and twenty eight minutes, sir." Mr. Data answered, precisely. "Several parts of the ship were damaged in the attack."
Jean-Luc nodded, still not happy. "Let's get there as soon as possible."
Actura IV-
Leon-
He could still see Reggie, but he saw other things, too. Things as well as people.
They were all looking at him, but not all of them had faces as kind as Reggie's. There were men he didn't recognize and a girl with short hair who hated him. There was Mr. Goti and Leon felt his stomach twist in fear. Mr. Goti was smiling as sweetly as he always did. An angel's smile with devil horns. Leon was walking down the hallway of Mr. Goti's Children's Home, following Mr. Goti on the first day he'd arrived. Everything was exactly the same and Leon found himself wondering if maybe it was real. Maybe all that stuff about Reggie, the Enterprise, and Starfleet was all just a dream.
"Leon, are you day dreaming again?" Jill nudged him in the ribs and he refocused on the road. "Jeeze, if you're going to insist on driving, then at least pay attention. If you keep this up, I'll insist on driving and you can bitch all you want. Your car smells like cigarettes, too. Didn't you to quite , yet?" She leaned back, though, and pulled out her gun, making sure it was loaded and the safety was on. "Ya know, you're actin' kinda spacey lately. Everything okay with you and the Count?" She laughed and flipped her curly hair out of her eyes. "Don't look at me like that! I can see what's happening, even if you don't want to admit it. How many other cops take their suspects boxes of candy every day?"
Damn it, Jill. Do you have to be so smug about the whole thing?
Someone was talking to him and Leon felt his attention shift away from Jill. He was staring up at an ugly night sky with two moons and Reggie was looking down at him. Reggie wasn't talking, though. He was just watching Leon and occasionally watched the sky, nervously.
Voices filled Leon's ears, but nothing really distinct. It was like a dull buzz, like a swarm of bees. Some of the voices were angry with him, but that really couldn't be helped. They did bad things, so Leon didn't care if they were angry or not. The man who killed Leon's dad was angry because Leon had kill him. The girl was angry because Leon had put her boyfriend in jail. There were other voices, hundreds. Brilliant swirls of color and flashes of light so bright that Leon thought it might blind him. He was overwhelmed, the colors and light drowning out Reggie's face and the moons above. The brilliance gave way to a fearsome darkness that seeped despair into Leon's soul before withdrawing to let the light in again.
Mom.
Leon remembered seeing her in waking dreams, but she seemed even clearer now. The laugh lines around her mouth and her merry eyes. She had always been so gentle and her dry, calloused hands had been warm. He remembered fishing in the creek just outside their small cabin and bringing back some fish for dinner. Mom had been so proud and they ate royally that night.
They'd been poor, but not really. They had food and a roof over their heads. While the food was sparse and the roof often leaked, it was a happy childhood. His first one, anyway. Filled with love, hugs, and bedtime stories. Their home in the mountains was comfortable and clean, as good as any mansion in Leon's opinion.
"Leon! Look at you, laying in the mud." Leon's mom chastised, though she smiled with amusement. "You've got to get going. It's almost time for school and it's such a long walk. Were you playing cops and robbers, again? Isn't that hard to play all on your own?"
Leon felt pleasantly warm all over, but he was pretty sure it was just a memory. He was happy, anyway. To finally know what his mom looked like was a wonderful feeling of peace. She was perfect and he looked just like her. Now he knew where he got his eyes. She smelled like fresh grass, Leon took a deep breath and let the scent fill him. It wasn't that he just saw her for the first time. Seeing her was like opening a door in his memory. How could he have forgotten?
"You're confused." Mr. Goti was smiling at him, too, but it wasn't a comforting smile. Leon knew that smile was nothing but a mask. He smelled like disinfectant and the smell made Leon want to throw up. The cold, sterile life of endless testing and experiments was far less pleasant. "This isn't real, Leon. You're deluding yourself. Living in a dream world is no way to live. You have to face reality."
Why? Leon didn't want to face reality, if it had Mr. Goti in it. What was wrong with living in a dream? His dreams had mom and Jill and Leon felt so happy when he was with them. Besides, he couldn't really decide what was real and what was dream. Reggie was looking down at him again, his forehead wrinkled with worry.
"I tried to warn you. You were always so damned stubborn."
Leon had listened. He always listened to Reggie, but it was so hard to do what was right. This was what happened when he couldn't have the meds and now he was seeing too many faces all at once and everyone was trying to talk to him. Couldn't they be quiet for just a minute? They'd all started out as just a background buzz, but now it was a roar in his ears and Leon couldn't even hear his mother's voice anymore.
Chris' hand was cold in Leon's the first morning when he'd brought Chris to the petshop and into D's care. It had been such a rush job to find Chris a place. Hell, he hadn't even known that he was getting Chris until a couple of hours before the plane had landed and Chris, pale and silent, had been led off by a friendly fight attendant. He had to go to work or risk losing his job and at such short notice, who was he supposed to turn to? D had sprung to mind and Leon, as he always did, trusted his instincts. That Leon had heard Chris' voice just before Chris was supposed to be sent to the asylum, Leon gave credit to D and he was forever after grateful.
-Big brother?-
'Chris? Are you crying? Shit. Don't cry. Hell, D's gonna yell when he finds out I swore in front of you. Damn it, I did it again. Come on...don't cry. It's not like anyone's dying, are they? Am I?'
-Leon, I miss you. You promised to come to the school for parent's night. Aren't you coming?- Chris put on a brave face, just like Leon had known he would do. -It's all right. I know you're busy and your work's important. Don't worry about me. I'll ask the Count, instead. If he's busy, I just won't go.-
Leon reached up and touched Chris' cheek. How long had it been since he'd seen Chris? Years, it seemed. 'I wanted to go. Didn't your teacher need to me about something? Your math grades, I think. Sorry. I think I missed it. Wasn't that a long time ago?' Chris had been apart of the other life, too. Chris and D and mom. Jill was sitting next to Reggie and looked disapproving with her arms crossed over her chest, muttering about what a fool Leon was to get himself into this kind of fix. She was trying not to cry.
The voices stopped and Leon could hear nothing. There wasn't even any wind, though it was cold. So cold that Leon could feel his flesh crawling and he was still shivering. He thought it might be best if he got up and started moving. That's what one was supposed to do when it go cold. He didn't move but rolled slightly, mainly to get away from the smell of his own vomit. There was little to look at in the sky and, besides, it was sort of nice to be alone. If he could just close his eyes and sleep for a little while maybe everything would be alright
'He shot me. That little punk kid.' Leon saw it as clear as day. D had run out to get a new outfit and Leon was minding the shop. He'd been making dinner when he'd heard a noise from the front room and gone out to find the teenager with the gun. The animals were creeping into the front room the strange fox. 'Oh.' Leon almost felt like laughing. 'Guess that's what the security alert was about. They saw Ten-chan.' It made a lot of sense, all of a sudden. 'And D's on the ship and that really was Chris I found with counselor Troi.' They were alive and as soon as he got back to the Enterprise, they could all be together again.
"Whatever possessed you, Leon? Why did you drink so much?" D sounded almost amused, but he also sounded kind of sad. Strangely, Leon couldn't see him. "Do you not know what it does to you? You always act so foolish when you are not in control and I thought you hated that."
'Wasn't drinking this time. Just...sick. Everything hurts. Where are you?' Hadn't he just been with Leon? Yes. He'd gone away just when Reggie had found Leon. Leon almost smiled, he would have if his face hadn't hurt quite so much. It was good to hear D's voice again.
"I am waiting for you. We're all waiting for you."
D wasn't an illusion and he wasn't someone new. Leon had known him for a very long time. Leon had died defending his home and his family. He was proud to have died like that. The petshop in Chinatown and D's habit of overdosing on sweets of any kind. Those frighteningly long fingernails always painted dark purple. He remembered every detail of their life tighter. Wasn't it funny how Leon only remembered now when everything else seemed to be falling apart? No. Maybe funny wasn't quite right. Tragic...
PAIN!
Enterprise-
D-
D paced through the front room of his petshop, wringing his hands with nervous tension. He had watched Tet-chan's adventure and felt so miserably helpless when there was nothing he could do to protect his dear Tet-chan. Soon, after much worry on D's part, the doors opened and Tet-chan slunk in with one arm held protectively against his chest.
Tet-chan moved slowly, awkwardly. He was breathing hard and looked pale. "Master." Tet-chan fairly sighed when his eyes met D's. "Hurts." With that, he stumbled as he took a step closer to D and nearly fell. He caught himself, though, and pulled himself upright, proudly. "Forgive me for coming back without permission, master. I will go back later, but I wasn't sure I could keep my guise intact. There is little to report now. The ship is in disrepair and confusion and the humans are trying to repair it. Mellow can tell you more than I." He tried for another step and this time his knees gave out on him. He landed with a thud and a sharp cry of pain.
"Tet-chan, won't you let me help you?" D gave Tet-chan very little choice, though. He was at his dear Tet-chan's side almost before Tet-chan hit the floor. The smell of burnt flesh was making the air heavy and it occurred to D that this was the first time he'd ever seen Tet-chan so injured, at least since Tet-chan had started living in the petshop. He hadn't smelled Tet-chan's blood since their first meeting where Leon had shot Tet-chan in the hand to save D. D put his arms around Tet-chan and lifted him easily.
"Master, I can walk..."
"Barely and not well at the moment. Let me pamper you for a bit." Tet-chan was a savage killer and a proud hunter, but he was still very small. Not even half as big as many of D's pets, Tet-chan was easy to carry. Through the petshop they went, collecting the attention of many of the other pets. D regretted that. Tet-chan was something of an authority amongst the pets and it would worry them to see Tet-chan hurt. Still, there was no help for it. "You shall rest in my chambers, Tet-chan." Tet-chan looked shocked and started to protest, but D forestalled him. "Chris is already there and this will make it easier for me to watch both of you."
"Yes, master." Tet-chan was breathing hard. "Have you heard from Mellow? She hasn't spoken to me since the attack. I thought she would."
"No." D held Tet-chan a little tighter. Now he had another pet to worry for. "She has not yet returned." Chris was still sleeping soundly in D's bed, nearly buried under several layers of blankets. It was a trick Tet-chan had told D, once. When Chris was upset or worried, as he was when Leon had left, he could only sleep if he was covered in enough layers of blankets to make him feel confined. Tet-chan said it gave Chris comfort. D helped Tet-chan to lay down on the bed, though Tet-chan looked distinctly uncomfortable. "Let me see your injuries. Move your arm."
D bit back a hiss at the sight of Tet-chan's wounds. They were like burns, but didn't seem to be healing. The fastest cure was Kami blood and D wasn't stingy when it came to his pets. He used a sharp fingernail to slice open the palm of his hand. When blood oozed out of his hand, D pressed his hand against Tet-chan's chest. The blood smeared against the wound and Tet-chan threw his head back with the odd sensation. He didn't cry out, but he looked as if he wanted to.
"Forgive me, Tet-chan." D put a hand to Tet-chan's face and took the pain away. "I did not expect you to get injured. All I wished was for you to watch what was going on."
Tet-chan barked a laugh, though it made him flinch from the pain. "I didn't expect to get injured. 'Sides, who else would you have sent to do it? We need that human alive." He yawned and relaxed his whole body. "You did something to me, master. You made me all sleepy?"
"No. You just need sleep. Try to rest."
Tet-chan was stubborn, though, and forced himself to his feet. "Uh-un. I won't take your bed, master. I'll take Chris back to bed and stay with him. Just give me a few hours and I'll have my strength back and I'll go back. Find out what's happening with Leo...that human of yours. I'll try to find out about Mellow, too." While he spoke, Tet-chan went around to the other side of the bed and started to pick up Chris.
"You don't have to leave, Tet-chan."
"I want to sleep under my own bed and Chris doesn't have to sleep with you for every nightmare." He held Chris gently and started out. Just as he was at the door Chris woke up and looked over Tet-chan's shoulder.
-Count? Is my brother back, yet?-
"Soon. He is working, now."
Chris nodded trustingly and settled back down into Tet-chan's arms. As they left, D heard Chris tell Tet-chan, -Where have you been? I missed you.-
Whatever Tet-chan answered, D didn't hear. At least Tet-chan was home and healing. That was one less worry. Mellow and, more importantly, Leon were both still missing. 'If I had known this would happen, I never would have exiled Leon to that planet. I should have expected this kind of disaster. I should have kept him here. I could have locked him in one of the rooms. He wouldn't have been able to hurt himself or get out. I should have kept him here!'
D was mentally beating himself for his foolish choice when his bedroom was lit by an otherworldly light.
The phoenix appeared in all of her glory, radiating light and power of the likes that most humans would never be fortunate enough to see. She was no longer in the guise of the crow, but superb in her true form, draping silk flowing over her tall body. "I will leave, now."
D stepped away from his bed, unable to keep the eagerness off his face. "Then..."
The phoenix nodded with her teasing, arrogant smile. "His memories have returned, though they are clouded. He now knows everything that had been taken from him and he understands, for the most part. Many things he will always be confused about, even if you try to explain. He is still not completely healed, but there is nothing I can do for his mind or body." She gave a strangely respectful bow and D was taken aback. He'd never seen a phoenix bow to anyone. "He is yours, now. Protect him and care for him." Her eyes twinkled. "I believe I understand why you have waited for him for so long. There is something endearingly about that human. For all of his weakness; his temper, his fear, and his anger, he is yet strong. He loves life." She turned away from D. "He is in your care, now that I have returned him to you. My promise to you is fulfilled. Tell Leon his Jill said goodbye. I will miss him." Then she was gone.
For a long moment, D stared at where the phoenix had been. "And now we are on our own, my lion." D whispered to the darkness, though he knew Leon would not hear his voice. "Just come back. Come back to me and everything will be fine. We will go back to Earth and I will protect you for the rest of your life. I will make you so happy."
D hated waiting. There was nothing at all D could do to protect Leon and he was long overdue to return to the ship. Perhaps the resident Kami were responsible for bringing those Borg things around, just to upset D's plans with Leon. It wasn't impossible, especially as how G had been treated on her first visit to Earth. Papa D had treated her very rudely and D wondered if she held a grudge. Was she so petty that she would find pleasure in hurting Leon because of what happened hundreds of years ago?
'Why not? I would.' If he had the chance to get his hands on the boy who'd killed Leon, he would have gotten great satisfaction in exacting his revenge. If his darling pets hadn't been so enthusiastic in their own revenge, then he might have even kept the boy alive for a few years while he worked out his anger. Still, he couldn't fault his pets for eating the offender. It was one of the perks for his predators, the privilege of defending their home. Revenge was on a grand scale when one did something to anger a being who could literally hold a grudge for near eternity.
For now, though, D was pleased that there was no obvious interference. All he wanted was Leon back where he belonged.
Actura IV-
Leon-
For a long time Leon's mind drifted aimlessly between thoughts and memories or maybe between dreams and reality. He wasn't really sure of anything at that point. Walking down bleach white halls between Reggie and Deirdre, driving an old, noisy car down the smoggy streets of LA. Watching the beautiful spirit musicians with D while the sakura blossoms fell. What was real?
Pain came again. He couldn't think for a long time and it felt like he had a dozen snakes in his belly, all writhing around trying to escape It felt like one of the snakes was slithering up his throat and Leon threw up. At least it was a bit of color. Leon almost laughed at the thought. Color...in the night...in a god forsaken ugly planet who's primal color seemed to be beige. Ugly. He wouldn't mind dying, if he could just die someplace a little nicer. Maybe a tree or two.
Reggie-
Leon had long since stopped talking. He had stopped moving and was so still that several times Reggie had to press his fingers against Leon's throat to see if he was still alive. It seemed very wrong for Leon to just be staring up at the night sky. He barely blinked and only very rarely did Leon even twitch. He didn't even seem to notice when the rain started falling or when Reggie pulled off his shirt to cover up Leon's face. The rain didn't last long, but when it stopped the night seemed all the more bitter. Leon's skin was a funny color, almost blue. He was shaking, but that could have been another effect of withdrawal. All the while, Leon just stared upward, lost in his own mind.
Reggie didn't bother to put his shirt back on, there seemed to be little point as it was soaking wet. Instead, he tossed his shirt aside and gave it up for lost. He was already so cold and now both of them were splattered with mud from the torrential downpour. Where there had been only bare desert moments before, now there was mud and large puddles of water. It was so bad that Reggie had to drag Leon out of a puddle and find a higher place for him to rest.
He lost track of time, but it really didn't seem to matter. This was as far gone as he'd ever seen Leon, on the rare occasions he'd seen Leon without the drug. Reggie knew he was going to lose Leon. There really wasn't any doubt about it, anymore. It seemed unlikely that anyone would be able to help Leon at this point, even if the Enterprise did make it back in time.
"I tried." Reggie said, not bothering to keep his voice low. "I did. You know I did...I hope you know. I tried to warn you. You were always so damned stubborn. I know I'm not the best person to give advice, but couldn't you listen? Just once?" Reggie patted Leon's forehead, pushing the damp hair away from his face. Reggie found himself wishing he still had his phasor so he could start a fire for Leon and warm him up a bit. He didn't dare leave Leon long enough to go find it. Besides, they were in the middle of a desert and there was nothing to burn. "All it would have taken was one little trip to a doctor. Any doctor, really. Doctor Crusher is really nice, too. I'm sure you'd have liked her."
Leon blink and moaned deep in his throat, his brow creasing for a moment. His hands reached up, as if he were reaching for the sky.
"Leon? Leon, can you hear me?" Reggie tried to keep himself from getting too excited, but this was the first movement Leon had done in hours. He gingerly took one of Leon's hands, but Leon didn't respond at all. It was as if he was alone in his own little world, completely separated from Reggie and the real world. "Please, Leon..."
There was no answer and Leon's hand was limp in Reggie's. When Leon's other arm dropped and fell Reggie reluctantly lay down Leon's other hand, carefully placing it on Leon's chest. It was just like every time. Leon would behave as if he saw and heard things that just weren't there and Leon had never able to tell him when he woke up.
Leon's face twisted and his body tensed when pain hit him again. All Reggie could do was hold Leon's hand in support, though he doubted Leon even knew he was there.
There was a familiar and unwelcome feeling of being separated and Reggie found himself on the floor of sickbay surrounded by not only doctor Crusher, but counselor Troi and two security officers. "Oh, hello." Reggie didn't let go of Leon's hand, even when doctor Crusher moved to kneel next to them.
"Go get some dry clothes, Mr. Barclay." Doctor Crusher said, sourly. "I don't know what you think you were doing, but get yourself cleaned up while I work on him. You've got a lot of explaining to do. The captain's waiting for you."
Reggie started laughing as he felt himself starting to lose control. Now there was hope. Leon might actually survive. "Then the captain's just going to have to wait, isn't he? I'm not leaving Leon." He kept his eyes on Leon, but he was sure everyone was staring at him. "Forgive me. It's been a long night." He couldn't seem to stop laughing. In fact, he was laughing so hard that he almost didn't notice Deanna beside him until she put a hand on his arm.
"Reg, what happened down there?" She asked, softly.
"A little storm. A strange woman took my phasor. My only friend's dying." The laughter choked in Reggie's throat. "Dying." He raised a hand to his mouth, trying to stifle himself when he realized he was rambling.
"Reg..." Deanna got no further when Leon started to shake and this time it was much more than just the unpleasant shivering he'd been doing for hours. This time Leon's head jerked roughly to the side, catching both doctor Crusher and Reggie off guard. Leon's eyes seemed to focus, just for a moment, on something behind Reggie, though Reggie knew there was nothing there. Leon's left arm shuddered so badly that he hit Reggie in the leg. That arm jerked again and then the right, nearly hitting doctor Crusher's tricorder. Then Leon vomited, spraying himself and almost everyone else with it when he jerked upward.
"Turn his head, he's having a stroke!" Doctor Crusher shouted, which started off a flurry of activity and Reggie finally let go of Leon's hand, backing away enough for the medical team to do their work. If they could save Leon, he'd give anything. "Neuro-pathways are severely corrupted. He's going into pulmonary failure!" She looked over her shoulder at Mr. O'Brien. "Beam us to sick bay, now!"
Leon and doctor Crusher vanished in a glittering mass, leaving Reggie on his knees with Deanna lightly patting his arm and Mr. Worf looking angrily down at him. All the while, Reggie couldn't stop laughing. This was it.
"Reg, it's all right. Don't worry." Deanna moved so she could look at Reggie's face and he could see the concern for him in her eyes. "Beverly will do everything she can and you know she's an excellent doctor. I'm sure it'll help if you tell us what's going on."
"Don't call me Reg." Reggie squeezed his eyes tightly together. He hated being called Reg. Mr. Goti and Miss Forth called him Reg. "My name's Reggie."
"Oh...all right. Reggie."
"I want to see Leon. I have to be with him in the end."
"Don't be pessimistic. He'll be just fine, Reggie." Deanna slipped her arm over his shoulders. "You must have hope."
"Hopes and dreams...this is reality. Isn't that what you're always telling me? We must focus on reality. Leon will die." Reggie shrugged Deanna's hands off his shoulder and stood up abruptly with his face set. "I'll make my statement about what I did, but I want to do it in sickbay. I have to be with him."
to be continued...