Chapter 52

"Deanna, I'd like to talk with you for a few minutes," said Sarah Allen. She had been talking with Rolani alone in the common area and felt comfortable that Rolani was now calm enough to attend the coronation ceremony without incident. She had made significant progress in gaining the young woman's trust, but clearly, there was more work to be done.

She found Rolani and her people fascinating and was considering putting in a proposal to continue working with the small group of people. Admiral Forrester had made a point of telling her that relocation and introduction of Rolani and the other Tranan people to Earth would be gradual at best. Now that she had had the opportunity to study and interact with them, she agreed with that approach. Rolani was obsessed with the disappearance of her brother Li, and had no apparent interest in relocating to Earth. It was undisputed that the Tranans had been "rescued" from a small planet called Trana, which had otherwise been uninhabited by humanoid lifeforms. Counselor Allen saw no reason why the Tranans could not simply be returned to their home planet. The shock of travel to Earth and integration into what would seem like an alien world might be too much for them to take.

She knew Picard disagreed and wanted the Tranans returned to Earth. "Earth is their rightful home", he had argued with a certain level of contained anger. He was hiding something. His overly-protective attitude regarding the Tranans was curious, and a bit out of step with what she currently knew his personality to be.

She eyed Deanna Troi as she approached. Deanna looked disturbed, to say the least. Troi stood typing frantically into a small datapad, but her brow was furrowed and her head bowed, not exhibiting her usual upbeat posture.

As she neared, Sarah reached out and touched Troi lightly on the forearm. "Hey," she said gently.

Startled, Deanna nearly dropped her datapad. She fumbled it again before taking hold of it tightly in front of her almost like a shield. "Yes? What is it?" she questioned testily.

Something was clearly wrong, but this only solidified Sarah's desire to get her own confession off of her chest. She didn't want to be the reason that Deanna was so upset. "Can we talk?"

Deanna glanced around the room quickly, noting that Rolani was across the room, lying on a large couch with her feet up. The young woman seemed calmer than Deanna was personally, so that was something.

A little while earlier Deanna had been with Beverly when her friend had discovered a disturbing gift from Dr. Petral. At least, both women were convinced that the white traditional wedding dress left carefully on the bed in Beverly's guest room was from the doctor who had made a point of making Beverly uncomfortable since his first visit to the Enterprise.

The basis for Del's warning to the captain about Petral's fixation on Beverly was now all too clear. The crew's knowledge of Petral's forced marriage to Wesley's young friend Hatha only fueled Troi's concern that Petral had similar plans in store for Beverly. Beverly had demanded to be left alone, and so Troi had left her in her room, but now she regretted not staying and comforting Beverly. She regretted coming to Ciapathia and everything that came with it. She couldn't sense Geordi anywhere, and it made her feel that the entire away mission had been doomed from the outset.

"Talk?" She glanced distractedly at Sarah. Despite her own inner turmoil, she could see clearly there was something bothering her former mentor. And she knew immediately that it was of a private nature. "Of course, yes we can talk..."

Sarah straightened. "Something happened between Will and me last night."

Deanna managed not to blink, practiced as she was at keeping a calm demeanor. But she suddenly wanted to run from the room. Instead, she fortified her emotions and lifted her chin, waiting expectantly for details that she did not want to hear.

When Deanna didn't respond, Sarah added, "Something significant happened between us. I just thought you should know that-"

"Excuse me, but I don't need the details," Deanna interjected more sharply than she intended.

"Oh...because you could sense that-"

"No," Deanna said firmly. "Because it's a private matter..between you and Will."

Sarah leaned in. "So does that actually mean you two are no longer together?"

Is this revenge for all those years ago?Troi clenched both her jaw and the data pad even more tightly. "Will and I are friends," said Deanna.

Sarah smiled and tilted her head, saying more with a knowing look than she could have with words.

"While it's true we still carry a bond between us, we both feel that...things are better this way." Deanna pushed away a sudden surge of sadness, that before now had lay dormant for years.

Sarah straightened. "Okay. I'm glad that you two were able to work something out...to establish a friendship, I mean."

The two women stood in awkward silence for a few moments before Troi glanced over at the common area. Her jaw dropped.

"Goddess! Rolani is gone!"

"Hey, Worf, over here!"

Worf shielded his eyes from the mid-morning sun and focused his eyes on his commanding officer. Natasha Yar was crouching down in the street about 50 meters away. Worf jogged toward her and halted as she stood up holding something out in her palm. Even in the blinding sun, he could now see that it was a golden communicator badge.

Worf's eyebrows knit together as he stepped closer. "You found this here?"

Yar nodded. "I just ran the ID number...it's Ensign Rickman's badge."

Worf's jaw worked angrily. "Rickman reported seeing Lieutenant LaForge. It is likely he went to render aid."

Yar kept her expression as controlled as possible, but inside she was worried.

"That's right, and now he's gone missing. I've ordered Ensigns Jackson, Roti, Gallivan, and Liu back to rendezvous with Captain Picard at the palace. They've been patrolling the edge of the city, but now they're needed to protect the rest of the away team."

Worf studied his human colleague. He had begun to appreciate that her intensity was similar to his own in many ways. "Orders, sir?" he ventured.

She looked up at him squarely. "If there is a chance that Lieutenant LaForge and Ensign Rickman are still alive, we need to find them."

"Then time is of the essence."

Yar nodded curtly. "Let's go."

Picard stood up quickly as an out-of-breath Will Riker entered the room. About twenty minutes earlier, Riker had contacted him, reporting that a junior member of Yar's security team, Ensign Rickman, had called in claiming to have spotted Geordi LaForge, walking with one of the Ciapathian "Guides". LaForge had appeared to have been wearing restraints.

After learning of this, Picard had contacted Admiral Nechayev, who had reported some interesting information herself before giving him further instructions. Her words still stayed with him. Admiral Forrester has been arrested and charged with espionage. It is likely that in a matter of days we will know the full extent of his crimes, but only through the efforts of you and your crew. Laforge's disappearance must be resolved, Captain. There is more at stake here than even his precious life.

Picard shut his computer, careful not to slam it down as hard as he would have liked. "Report, Mr. Riker."

"Sir...Ensign Liu was supposed to report in on a secure channel by 0900 hours. So far, she's a no-show and is not answering her communicator, although it appears to be on and functioning. None of the other security officers are answering either."

"Odd," remarked Picard, but his features were etched with worry. "Any word from Lieutenant Yar?"

"No sir, not since she's ordered the security teams back here. I should have ordered her to remain here, but she said she was going to meet up with Rickman and would report back before taking any further action in finding Geordi."

Riker's face was solemn and tense, mirroring Picard's mood. " I just tried calling her. Nothing. Either her communicator has been deactivated, or it's malfunctioning. He took a deep breath. "Same as Worf's."

Damn it. The Captain tapped his communicator. "Picard to Data."

"Data here." There was a strange low buzzing tone on the other end.

"Data, our entire security team has gone missing down here. We need security reinforcements immediately."

"That is most unfortunate, Captain. However, recent complications prevent us from doing so. The phase shielding that surrounds the capital city has increased. We are unable to use the transporter."

"At all?" Riker looked at Picard with alarm. The man was as stoic as ever. He's not surprised. Has he been expecting this?

"Yes, Commander. Transporter functionality is currently being hampered by the Ciapathian shielding. However, we are working to resolve this issue."

"Keep us apprised of the situation, Mr. Data. Picard out."

Picard activated the communication terminal. "Premier Del, please."

Del's assistant blinked into view. "Good morning, Captain Picard. Premier Del is preparing for the coronation festivities and is currently unavailable. Can I be of assistance?"

"We shall soon see. Can you tell me why the phase shielding has been increased?"

"For security purposes, Captain," she replied smoothly.

"My crew must be able to come and go as needed," said Jean-Luc. "It is imperative that these...security arrangements be lifted, so that we can return to our ship."

The assistant paused on the other end. "Captain Picard, Premier Del requires your presence at the proceedings this morning." There was something about her voice that was both sinister and ingratiating.

"And I require access to my ship," snapped Picard. "Now, kindly tell Del that I am requesting to speak to him immediately. Picard out," he added, not concerned at the moment about proper etiquette.

Just as he was about to turn and say something else to Riker, there was a brief knock on the door to his temporary quarters, which then opened inward. Beverly Crusher not so much walked, as swept into the room.

The muscles in Picard's jaw twitched; that was the extent to which he expressed any emotion in response to this new interruption.

"I need to talk with you," Beverly announced as though she and Captain Picard were the only two people in the room. It was then that Riker could see she was clenching some balled up article of clothing in her hands.

"Now is not a good time," Picard said tightly.

Crusher was persistent. Her face was flushed. "You were right...I've changed my mind." She held up the white garment so that they could all see it, before tossing it to the floor. "I'll go to the ceremony today. But I won't be manipulated. This is my choice to make and I choose to carry out my duties."

Riker noted that Beverly was almost standing at military attention, not a posture she typically struck.

Picard eyed her warily before crouching down to pick up the clothing from the floor. He. got up slowly, carefully studying the garment. Something changed in his expression and then he looked up at Riker. "Commander, please excuse us for a few minutes," he said quietly.

Riker nodded, and quickly exited the room.

USS Enterprise

Wesley...may I come in?"

Wesley nodded and stepped aside, surprised to see anyone. While he had been attending his school classes since the away team left, he had been on his own for the most part. "Hi Commander Data. Uh, yeah...of course."

Once inside, Data stood stiffly with his arms hanging at his sides. "When is the last time you spoke with your mother, Wesley?"

"Um...about 24 hours ago...why?"

"Have you communicated with anyone else on Ciapathia?"

"Umm..."

"Your hesitation suggests you may be considering deception, Wesley."

"No further communications with Ciapathia will be permitted at this time unless authorized by me."

"But, Data..."

"Yes?"

"I'm worried, I just want to help."

"Wesley, you are a civilian. It is not appropriate for you to be involved in starship operations unless permitted to do so."

Wesley scuffed his foot on the deck. "Data, now that you're in charge...could you permit me to help out? I'm going crazy, worrying about Mom..." Although it was true he was worried for his mother, he couldn't stop thinking about Hatha and her fears of a life with Doctor Petral.

"Wesley, if you are going crazy, perhaps you should report to sickbay."

"Huh? Oh, I mean it's just a saying, Data. but it has been kind of hard not having my mom here to talk to. She just...gets things, you know?" He glanced down at the floor, suddenly embarrassed.

Data was sure he did not know the nuances of Wesley's relationship with Doctor Crusher. What he did know is that Wesley Crusher appeared highly intelligent for a human of his age, and had managed to assist the Enterprise even while he himself was infected by the Tsiolkovsky virus. The ship was now faced with a crisis of another kind, and perhaps Wesley could again be of assistance.

Data blinked quickly. "Wesley, I have a project for you."