8

"I'm not surprised, Captain." The recordings of Lwaxana's death hung on the screen in the briefing room. Deanna's voice was completely detached and emotionless. She actually shrugged. She looked to her counterpart who nodded. Forcefields were down; they had their private mode of communication again.
"It was inevitable once my mother showed up in this universe. Your Lwaxana was granted a clean death. We can live with this, and be happy." It was her turn to look at the other who nodded. "Is there anything else right now, Captain?"

"What will you do now, Bev?" The two had window seats in a corner of Ten-Forward. Guinan was at the far end, giving them as much privacy as possible.
Crusher sipped her tea. "Don't have a clue." She smiled wryly. "But I can tell you this: I may have extended my lifespan but unemployment sucks."
She looked at the other woman. Beverly's spectacular bruises were starting to fade but she had several new scars along her face and neck. Some could be treated with a protoplaser soon, but others would be permanent. There were many more injuries out of sight under her uniform. "You're still a sorry sight, my dear."
"Is that how one says: "I'm sorry" in the Empire?"
They clinked cups together.

'Is it time to visit my prisoners again?' Deanna still refused to use any names. The two Betazoids were heading in the general direction of Ten-Forward and some well-deserved sundaes.
'Not just yet, Little Sister.' She gave her a sideways look. 'You know, I think I'm a bit disappointed in you. It's more than a week now, and I could swear I'm more "civilized" than you. What's going on inside you now? What happened over there anyway?'
Deanna stopped and passing crew almost bumped into them. They moved out of the way. 'I can't feel a thing, Dee.' She thought it over. 'Our mother turned me into a cold-blooded killer, and I didn't stop her. Then she schooled me in the arts of torture, and I didn't stop her. You've some more commendations on your record, by the way. And then —'
'Not your fault. It was do or die, Deanna! As if - as if either of us have ever stopped Mother from doing anything she wanted.'
'And then I tortured and executed Wily-Will Riker.' The other dug her fingers into Deanna's arm. 'Not like you think. He tried to assassinate me.'
Dee let go. 'Oh.' A beat. 'That's all right, then.' They gazed at each other unconsciously giving identical little head shakes. Suddenly both of them were laughing.
"Who-who-" Deanna was laughing so hard she couldn't continue. She gasped for air and held on to her aching ribs. 'Dee, who would possibly counsel a pair of maladjusted counsellors like us!''
'I suppose that would be Guinan, Deanna.' She wiped the tears from her eyes. 'But it will have to be after our hot fudges.'

Captain's Log Stardate: 2861.65: I have received a "For Your Eyes Only" set of orders from Command regarding the cold-sleep counterparts stranded from the mirror universe. These orders clearly indicate what is to happen to the counterparts who are awake as well.

"Will, how are you coming along with your old medical issue?"
Riker was puzzled. "Captain?"
"You told me once you were susceptible to selective amnesia, Number One. Do you still have that problem?" At Riker's nod, Picard waved him to a seat and showed him his sealed orders.
Riker read quickly. "Section 31. It has to be. I hate it when Section 31 sticks their noses in. Captain, sometimes we are way too like the mirror Empire."
"Mmm. Do you remember T'rena's class lectures regarding insubordination at the Academy?" He didn't wait for an answer. "She taught that Starfleet Oaths were illogical and unethical if they were to demand an officer's blind loyalty. That there would inevitably be those situations in which you had more information to hand that your superior didn't, a clearer firsthand view, no time, and acted accordingly. To question and do the right thing, regardless of regulations, and sometimes, albeit rarely, not do what you had been ordered to. Face the music and justify your actions later. The question is, is this one of those times?"
"I wish she were here now." Riker stood formally. "Captain, compliance with these orders will create a serious future danger to everything the Federation stands for. Tyranny is raising its ugly head once more." He didn't hesitate; they were both thinking the same way. On the same page, as it were. "Yes sir. This is one of those times."
"Then we agree. This decision has to be on my head alone, Will. Brace yourself for a relapse. Dismissed."
Picard sat back and thought about his chateau and vineyards in France. He had the feeling he would be seeing them again soon. As in, forced retirement. "Picard to Troi."
There was no response. "Picard to either Troi. Respond please." He waited. "Computer. Locate Deanna Troi."
"Two Deanna Trois have been located. Both are in Detention Area Five."
Picard felt cold. "Computer, locate Dr. Crusher. Locate Guinan."
"Two Dr. Crushers have been located. One is in sickbay. One is in Detention Area Five." Pause. "Guinan is located in Detention Area —"
"Five." Security would be no help. He would have been already notified if otherwise. He strongly doubted Lwaxana Troi would ever be in a position of value to Section 31 now. Picard turned his attention to the cold-sleep capsules.
It would take about an hour for him to wonder why in hell he was still in his ready room.

"Very funny, my daughters. Very funny indeed." Lwaxana finally turned and faced all of them. Her body blocked the small eating alcove, and her face was red. "Breakfast." She flung a plate with an untouched bar of soap at them. It hit the forcefield and flew in two different directions. "Lunch." Another plate and bar of soap went the same way. "Dinner." Another crash. "Lower the field intensity just a teeny-tiny bit and I'll clean you up. All of you."
"I'm sorry, Mother. You're just upset I forgot your desert." Deanna's voice was rich with false contriteness. There was the flicker of the transporter and a tray with soap, steaming water and Lwaxana's favourite ring materialized inside the cell.
'We are both your daughters. Were you really going to kill one of us?' Lwaxana didn't bother to answer. "Well, you can have this ring back to choke on."
Guinan said: "What you asked for." She touched some controls and a screen lit inside the cell. Mr. Hom appeared. He stood in the transporter room breathing hard. They heard Guinan's voice whispering softly. "Only a little further now, my boy." Mr. Hom fought with himself as he lurched ever closer to the transporter controls. He finally managed to grind to a halt. Then his face twisted and whitened. He hit himself hard a few times and continued forward.
"There, there, my baby, I know that hurt. Now why don't you just hit yourself hard a few more times. Maybe you'll get used to it." He did it. "Good boy. To the console now if you please …..That's it. No, don't set the controls for a beam-in from Detention Area Five. She stays where she is. You'd rather set the controls for a beam-out into cold vacuum, wouldn't you, with wide-field materialization at the other end. Of course you would." He pressed keys. "Very nice. Now set the time delay…..and up you go!"
Mr. Hom turned and walked up onto the pad. There was a hum as he transported himself into empty space.
Guinan looked back at Lwaxana. "Well, Lwaxana? Does it meet your approval? Do I still have it?" Her eyes were small bags. She didn't wait for an answer. "Four of us and one of you. Get ready."
"You're soft. Should've been normal materialization and painful explosive decompression."
One Deanna stood to either side of Guinan. Both were wearing the same anticipatory expressions that any of their victims over the long years would have recognized. "One moment," Dee said. She sniffed. "Mmmm, I can smell your fear." Her nostrils flared. "Smells good. You, Little Sister?"
"Now who's soft?" The other Deanna wondered. "Dee, I can smell it; I could bathe in it. Yum."
"Usually I prefer to work with protoplasers." Crusher had joined in. "But sometimes scalpels are best." She chuckled.
It was the same sadistic game that Lwaxana had played a hundred times. It didn't bother her. "It's lesson-time, my children." There was a hissing sound and a "Sewd em va Kelohian!" as she snapped her head around and fell.
They gave it a few moments to be sure she was out and then dropped the forcefield. Deanna moved in and eyed the soap. "Sauhit -lpum; Ta`A."
"Bon Appetit." Lwaxana translated. Her eyes had snapped open, and a small cold smile played about her lips. Then she struck. An instant later Lwaxana's hands were around the counsellor's throat. Deanna gasped for air and sank to her knees. Lwaxana gazed directly into her daughter's eyes and squeezed mercilessly.
~~ The soap now filled all her mouth. It coated her tongue, and the cloying taste made her gag. And that action dislodged the slivers of soap stuck between her teeth. They wriggled like living things and eagerly made their way down her throat into her lungs. She was drowning in suds ~~
Deanna flailed wildly knocking Guinan and Crusher off balance. Her hands gripped Lwaxana's and then slid off like fluttering wings. A moment later she was on her back. Her heels began drumming out a death tattoo on the deck. It was a four-pronged vicious attack on all of them, and a long scream mirrored the ones echoing in her mind. Then the terrible pressure disappeared.
Deanna whooped for breath as she sat up. The buzzing that she'd thought was in her head continued alongside her counterpart's sardonic mind-speech. 'It was so good of you, to bring our agonizers across with you….'
Crusher quickly examined Deanna and then her eyes slitted into hate as she eyed Lwaxana's convulsing body approvingly. "May I start the interrogation first, everyone? Please?"

They stood back a bit from the screams to admire Crusher at work. "That ring looks absolutely lovely in her." Deanna deadpanned.
"Yes, it's a perfect fit, isn't it?" Crusher smiled. "Do we have it all?" Nods all around. "Good." She peeled away her bloody gloves and touched off the recorder. "She's all yours again. Enjoy."

Picard arrived a little out of breath as they came out of Detention. The four were chatting easily amongst themselves as if nothing had happened. The effect was rather spoiled by the Betazoid blood spattered all over Crusher's smock. They stopped short when they saw him. "I'm sorry, Captain." Deanna said. "Did you need us?" She glanced at Crusher. "Bev-Bev needs to clean up, but I think the rest of us are free."
"Not for long." Picard's face was hard. "You've all overstepped your bounds. I can't condone what's happened here. You're all in custody as of this moment. Unless, that is, you intend to use your, um, exotic talents on me."
"Captain," It was the other Deanna. "Lwaxana was resourceful and dangerous, and I was able to determine just beforehand that she had an imminent escape worked out. Otherwise, we would have waited. Now, we know everything that the Empire and Lwaxana has learned, done, and planned regarding us - their mirror universe. We are fortunate that she was most greedy; she kept the most vital elements securely to herself for future leverage. Our victory here has ensured that the Federation is not in any imminent danger of a cross-universe invasion. It will all be in my report."
Her counterpart added: "Please understand that there are no apologies being offered by anyone, sir. Lwaxana deserved everything we did to her, and more. Everything."
Deanna thought a moment. 'Best to remind him even further I can never be quite the same Deanna he once knew.' She blocked out the others, reached and was able to enter the captain's mind far too easily. She vowed to herself to train him in blocking intrusions. 'Stop that squirming – it's only me! Tell me what it was you told Will.' Pause. 'Thank you, sir, and yes, I will. I promise.'
"What was it you just said, sir?" She asked slyly. "Ah, yes. To question and do the right thing, regardless of the regulations, and sometimes not do what you had been ordered to." She smiled at the others. "The question is, is this one of those times?"
"The answer to that is that this is a very slippery slope and we do not make even a small habit of it. There will be a strong reprimand placed on your record, Counsellor." He studied them carefully. "Um, that is on whichever one of you who is my ship's counsellor...?"
They looked back at him innocently with heads tilted exactly the same way and identical small mischievous smiles. It was hopeless, and Picard gave up trying. "Do I make myself clear, everyone?"
"Quite clear, Captain." Deanna watched him leave and then turned to her counterpart. "Is there any of that lovely soap left we used on Mother?" She was smiling. "You've been naughty again. You went and told the captain a great big fib about Mother being about to escape."
"I'll help hold her!" Crusher said enthusiastically.
"Don't you dare! –"
Guinan rescued her. "Break it off, you two. I think Beverly is the only one who needs to clean up here."