The Bonds Of Friends And Family
Disclaimers: The characters don't belong to me, the story belongs tome and every else belongs to the movie company and the creator.
Warnings: For this Chapter it's showing the added side effects of the mission Wesley and Robin took on as they, Kurland and their friend create a new team. As they're going over things, as the truths of the added side effects of the games start coming forward. They see that the further they dig into and the more sinister that the Ktarians plan becomes as they're discussing things.
The true findings of the side effects make themselves clear to the senior staff crew. As things shift course, as they all realize just what causes their added problems were, while the added side effects make themselves known now as his diagnostics reveal the added damage to his body. And they take charge while the group gets a chance to deepen the bonds now.
As Wesley gets a chance to be with some new friends and having everything he wants now as an adult. As the episodes from here stay the same, Unification gets jumped, as they're dealing with the aftermath of this episode. So it jumps the cliffhanger and goes right to the next episode of the season, before it hits the next few episodes in the season, as things start picking up now for them.
As the situation from this episode starts foreshadowing the rest of the season as they decide to make changes to the next episode focused on him. Before he returns to the academy and they keep him home as he returns to on the job training as the term starts, as he's in recovery for three months and then in month four Sito Jaxa, Kate Higgens and Josh Alberts Joins the young crew as they start training now in that as she gets a glimpse of her possible future now.
Chapter 19: Crew Past Explanations And The Next Flip Out
"The first ten months resulted in unexpected trouble but at the time once Data confided in me regarding a few things and his wish to be human rather than an android. That made enough of an impression on me then and from Farpoint and forward. It's we had earth born human slang jokes and references coming into our conversations every time. Especially regarding research on his data banks over these planets and their cultures."
"And it started getting out of hand from there after that day. That Yankee Trader remark was an old joke regarding my cultural background on earth. I'm from North America and 600 years ago, my diversitial group were known as the Yanks. And on our planet they were into marketeers and traveled the globe in trying to sell their goods and information, but his mentioning of that was based in the 17th to 18th centuries in economics.
"Looking for a good profit, these characters were a group of capitalists at the time, and though it tended to get dangerous, because their code followed the act of Caveat Emptor, roughly translated it meant, 'let the buyer beware'. And upon hearing this information I was looking at getting new information on the planet. Before the cultural joke references started getting out of hand from there, till the captain ended the conversation at that."
"But having our engines screwed around with were making us all tense at the time, in this situation. And it's because something was making it looking like we were anticipating their every move and we didn't know what the heck was going on at the time. To the point that having him make it worse by remarks said in sotto voce. Was, by this point, was enough to break the camel's back when we had the radio going."
"And our adversary's were listening to his remark and I wasn't in the mood for learning our equipment was acting up or Geordi getting snippy then as I told them that was enough of that, before we went to check things out." he said to her gently and she nodded. "I take it this is a common occurance regarding you and the captain where the crew is concerned, Sir?" she asked and he nodded as he explained that to her gently.
"Yes it is, where the away teams or other members of the crew are concerned, the safety of my team is my primary concern. And I've been doing this, since I was aboard the Hood at the time now. So someone crosses me regarding the boys, the captan, her, Deanna or Wesley and I will do a lot of damage to the person that causes it. Our bonds are more than simply just friends or co-workers, since the senior staff was assembled."
"We became really good friends and started acting as each other's surrogate family since then. And in extent the team became a family and we take care of each other, which is why I'm beyond pissed at what just happened earlier. As to why it's because she forced my surrogate son into a position that he never should have been. And with him at the level he's at right now at the current moment, and with that in mind right now."
"And to answer the unasked question of when and why exactly now, it's because of Tasha, she was murdered towards the end of that year. The five of us had grown used to working as a team and became close that losing her had torn a hole in our hearts. And for us, it just made making sure we never lost a member of our nine person group more clear and important since at the time, I was offered my own command on 2 occasions."
"And in both I gave it up, because if we had a person like Shelby on board she'd cross the line between working and working them into exhaustion. And the last time I saw him like this was after we had an elf on board and he got hit by the knack. In fact, during our first encounter with the Ferengi, just ten months prior to her being killed here. But when they jumped us after I called out to them, and they knocked the three of us out."
"But it was after I woke up, saw they also knocked Worf out that I was furious and let them know I was awake. Because they took my communicator, by this point I knew there was likely to be trouble but seeing them acting like they were acting likely either pirates or mercenaries that I decided enough was enough. When we had a sudden power burst that they started complaining about the weather on the outpost we found that day."
"And I told them that's nothing compared to what the captain would do to them for breaking our landing party agreement, once he heard they knocked the four of us unconscious. When Data and I found Geordi hanging from the tree. The wrath of the captain is something you never want turned on you whatsoever, but then I'm just as bad and both together, whoever commits the infraction in orders winds up with vocal scars."
"Which is why these fools never want to mess with us, it's also why he looks up to us, as to why we're what he wants to become now. And with it that's why he want to continue serving under our command later. Half being with his true team, half under the best and the third back to being with family again, because we unofficially adopted him after Beverly got called back home." he explained and she nodded smiling at the wording.
"Out of curiousity what is Wesley's position here if Harry Bernard and the quintet were looking at him like that?" she asked and he chuckled. "Wes took over three different position when he got added to the crew when we had the traveler on board. But the first was the console position on the bridge, number two he helped Data and Geordi in the engine room and finally he acted as the big brother for the kids younger the fifteen."
"The sextet were the parents of the kids he was with when he mentioned Aldea, Harry was ten years old in that situation, but he and the quintet all considered him their big brother at the time. But that cemented their bonds and he's been acting like a big brother to them since. With him back the kids got their older brother back with them." he told her and she nodded to that she hid a smile then as she answered him.
"Well it's been three months since I got added the crew and I passed your tests Sir, with that though, just what is that kid's problem exactly, I can see that he's jealous?" she asked and they sighed in aggravation. "It's the act of having such a strong pull with the twenty of us, in truth the fact we threw his friend, who, as it turned out regarding Colin Marks was actually his cousin, off the ship he lost his surrogate big brother."
"But Brand ordered him to train from up here, so she could prevent him from getting into trouble and arrested at the time, though now we have to get him off the ship. But the duo were here at the same time Wes was coming home, because she was hoping he'd straighten him out by watching him as he worked with us. Wes is the leader of the junior crew staff and Robin just got position number two as second in command here."
"So she, the duo and Wesley are in charge of looking after the Cubs as surrogate big brothers and sisters and are helping us when we need it. Though at the current moment the fact that Hanson just got showed up by a supposed cadet is enough to annoy him when said cadet is really your rank, Ro. As to that, he's been shoved to position five and Wes is in charge." Geordi told her and she nodded to that explanation.
"In our eyes nothing could replace him, because his acts of caring, compassion and integrity were what we saw in him first, when we needed help, he offered it, but he never started showing off. Regarding the kids he thought about them first like after the situation with Roga and he's humble, as to that it just made him more well known around here." O'Brian added and she nodded to him as she got it then.
"And you're right, if I heard they had attacked you guys. I would kill them myself, because the welfare of my people comes first over my own. And with that, with us just starting out in the first four months it's enough I wasn't taking having my team attacked for no reason at the time. Though we were just beginning to get used to being together, you read my reaction to that perfectly, Will." Picard said and he nodded, smiling, to that.
"Four months together back then and already we read you that easily, that's gotta be a record in these situations, but considering our starting point, it only made it more necessary Sir. With one member gone, Wes was now at the academy and it was just being the seven of us the last ten to eleven months just made it more necessary. It was we weren't losing anyone else now after repeated problems the last ten months now." Geordi said to him and he chuckled and nodded as he answered him gently.
"Four years together and the bonds grow stronger than any crew I ever had, and you're the ones that mean the most to me now. Where you're concerned I do whatever it takes, though I wasn't expecting the type of situations we get ourselves into. Though at the moment with him back, it's back to the first four years before he left and this time, making sure no one screws with us. Because they target him next and I'm doing a lot of damage to them." he said, looking at the sextet and Ro hid a smile at that.
"I think that first encounter triggered a chain reaction between us, if we could read each other that easily, Jean Luc. Though in this case it's being able to read each other like a book that makes all the difference now, you've known me longest and as a result, our bonds switched courses and we're like this together. When the barriers got dropped and we're like this around each other now since the middle of that first year together."
"But I think it was supposed to be like that between us, we became more than a crew, let alone a team, but adoptive family to each other." Beverly said and they nodded in agreement to that as Will looked at her. "Maybe, but making sure our youngest recovers from this escapade has only become more necessary, and getting him away from those kids, they're a bad influence on him. Time to get on the radio, because we're telling Admiral Brand, tonight, and that's including we discover anything else regarding this."
"Than we're finishing the job they started and are on acting on the policy of trying to solve this mystery regarding protocols now that he's home for 18 months. And that we're extending his leave for a bit longer and restarting his on the job training now. Though how they're going to take we had another foothold and conspiracy running loose in the federation is anyone's guess." he said and she nodded to him in agreement.
"What's your acting position in this Will?" she asked and he smiled gently. "You appointed us: the captain, me and Deanna, as his guardians when you left, so what else Beverly, his God parents, so parent and legal guardians. At this age though he's in college, we still have the rights regarding our children when they're at the academy. To make decisions regarding their physical health and I'm getting him away from his squadron."
"For a few months so he can heal right now, if they have him up all night fooling around when he's supposed to be in bed. Though at the moment, I think with such a close call this time, I doubt he's going to want to stop with the fact Etana just reactivated his primary fear and the one that caused his to flunking the original entry into the academy. As to that, best to have him home so he's able to deal with it now."
"Though with the fact that this latest could have caused a relapse regarding the knack." he said to her gently and Pulaski nodded in agreement to his thoughts. "He's right, at times the effects of the knack remain, even though the elf that used it is dead. Though if the effects of the game combined with it and whatever is in these pills we have to make sure right now." she said and Beverly nodded as she looked between them gently.
"Yes and if the book just activated the rest of it, we finish the job, but as I decided then, you three are his legal guardians, but that's four. And if it takes keeping him home for eight to ten months just to recover, than its the only option. And his being away from those kids is just another reason to do it now. If Locarno is trying to force his influence on him, it's enough I'm not going to take it well." she said and he nodded in agreement.
"What time is it in San Fransisco exactly anyway?" Bates asked him and he sighed. "Ten in the morning, if the entire council and academy leaders are at command HQ, than we tell them all at once now. And we finish this once and for all, as to that. We do as he suggested now, though he doesn't quit after you told him to boys, I think that's when the programming activates, if there's more than what you confiscated Jack."
"Whoever the secondary host on the ship is, he's trying to finish off the programming and making sure the job is done now. We start research on those headsets in the morning, but he's staying off the conn position and is with you in the engine room till things get started. But for that scenario, we're acting emergency procedures regarding the armory and locking things down for this." he said to him and he nodded to that.
"We're better off going medical security alert, condition three for this Will, because if the effects kick in at the same time. And whatever's in these pills do, and our original cover story is going to land on the table. But preventing him from getting off the ship or hurting himself with the fact he's acting like Geordi did is the primary concern here." she said to him and he nodded in agreement to that remark as he answered her.
"I wouldn't put it past her to try and push him into remembering Radue though." he said, before Picard looked at the duo. "Alright who here has a habit of screwing around with the controls and likes getting into the holodeck like its a giant video..., oh god, if we have anyone suddenly losing control of their faculties. It's going to be the ones that like getting into the holodeck repeatedly." Miles said and Picard nodded as he thought it over.
"Yes well the ones getting addicted to the damn thing like the ping pong effect of the video games back then. But I'd consider this tantamount to screwing around with the pachinko machines they created back in the 20th century and that's what this thing is, a modern day pachinko machine. So whoever likes the bounce back effect got addicted to not taking it off when we deactivated the damn thing." Greyson said to him firmly.
"Yeah well at the moment the kids, the quartet, are now the ones most at risk, but Jake and Robin are the duo about to suffer the psychological reaction. And of having that thing on them in the same way that the narrator had that reaction to having that damn slug being on his back. Because though they know they're free, just the thought of being stuck around a bunch of former drones and several with the secondary programming."
"It's enough they're not going anywhere without the phasers and are keeping themselves surrounded by us adults that are unaffected by the program. For the boys the reaction is enough that after close to 24 hours on the go, having the rest of the secondaries coming after them. Now means that Wes is possibly not going to let his ankle rest if we have any more flip outs around here." Bates said in answer to that and he nodded in agreement.
"That's what Beverly and I are worried about right now, but the final confrontation is going to be a possibility of three things: but 1) her making him think he's running late to return to the academy, combined with trying to replicate the blasted thing and getting it off the ship. 2) Radue coming after him with the fact we have a security officer looking like a 22 year younger version of him and he's coming to kidnap him and the sextet."
"Or 3) and it's the possibility that the programming reactivated in us and his training for this situation has now gone out of control. And we have to head it off for real this, because by then his ankle is healed, or halfway healed. But if he doesn't stay off his ankle and it winds up back in the shaft, if he crosses that hatch a second time. In his delirium he's not going to realize it's open and fall right through it."
"Though if this starts again when he suffers that relapse finally, and he's going to break or possibly dislocate it this time. If he thinks the programming reactivated in us at the moment." Deanna said and he nodded as Geordi answered that remark at that. "We've had thirty new arrivals in the last two years and the ones that are likely to lose it first. In all here are the quiet ones, case in point most of us are pretty open with each other."
"He just got added to the crew eighteen months ago and of the latest members joining the crew, he's more accident prone and sensitive then the rest of us. Though that tells me anything, he's more than likely going into withdrawal from that more than those of us who go in there occasionally." Geordi said to him and he sighed and nodded in agreement to that as Picard answered him and sighed as Beverly said it.
"The rest of us are more extrovert to introvert and we get into conversation in our off time and he's the only one who likes repeated use of the holodeck, before we had the exact same situation when we got into our simulation Jean Luc. Though if that tells me anything it's this Jean Luc: 80% of our ship's crew is from earth. And the others are scattered to thirty different planets around the federation, but it's earthborn crew."
"Our planet had and has a history screwing around obsessively with computer games, electronics and substance abuse in the earlier centuries and this thing is a combination of both. But for the quiet ones it brings out the extrovert and suddenly losing it is enough to cause a reaction, as is having it bring out the part of you that gets violent. And all at once. I bet the first to have a reaction to that suddenly getting removed, forcefully."
"That is if it is going to be any of our later arrivals and the first is likely Reginald Barclay. Though considering he's addicted to using the holodeck here..." she said and he nodded to her. "Than it's enough that he's likely to be the next one, because the rest of us are acting normal and are not having a reaction to it. But then we've been here longer than he has, and we've had our heads and bodies messed with once too often."
"It's that the effect is not going to even touch us here, because we're used to this right now." Will said sharply and she nodded as Picard answered him. "Wasn't Lieutenant Barcley addicted to screwing around with the holodeck controls. And so he could add himself as a character into the storyline last year. Before he fried the circuit breaker and Wesley had to fix the damn thing, before he left at the time last year, though Geordi."
"Because you reported him for being late ten times in six weeks, and then to top is off is whatever he was trying to play around with in there, Commander?" he asked and they nodded. "Wait what?" Ro said and Will explained that to her. "Remember when I said we ran them through the survival test, before doing a bonding test last year?" he asked and she nodded and Geordi ran a hand through his hair as he explained that to her.
"After getting the test worked out, it was stage two for us as we just landed the shuttle on the planet, supposedly. That I decided to check and we heard several laser blasts, and the noise was real as well. As I realized the system malfunctioned, again, once they ended up on planet five in the simulation in there. They managed that portion of it, but Wes got hit hard and by stage nine as they realized the blow to the staircase in there."
"It damaged his spleen, and once they reached the end of it Jake was beyond furious, but whoever screwed around with the damn thing fried the circuits. And it barely missed killing him, after we looked into who caused this, Barcley, from the look on his face. He knew he had several furious parents beyond ticked that the simulation. It once again turned so real it barely killed a member of the crew, our family at the time now here."
"After Beverly helped him recover, the traveler arrived and then we did the bonding test, that worked out, but that's what we meant." he said and she nodded as he said it. "Yes Sir, but after the latest tardy business the commander lost his temper though I think..., oh boy. If he's addicted to playing around with these than he's about to..." Geordi started to say, before they heard a loud crash and quickly turned at that.
"Whoa, Reg calm down now, get away from that thing!" they heard and he sighed. "Alright that's enough, calm down now Barcley." they heard in an add on. "Have a nervous reaction to it, and it's like him screwing around with the holodeck and it's going haywire." he said with a sigh as O'Brian looked at him. "What the hell is going on in there?" O'Brian said quickly and a technician came running to the door to answer that.
"Wes's remark about the withdrawal and rebound just landed on the table right now, we had another flip out in the secondary programming, to answer your other question Sir. It's Reg alright, Miles, he's having a nervous reaction to the damn thing, it's a repeat. And I think he was drinking, before we dragged him in, because a fight broke out in ten forward, he got into it with Drake Renfield and Renfield tried to get him to cool down.
"And Porter and his unit arrested him and brought him in, he saw the headset and lost it, because he's resisting arrest in here, Sirs." he told them, and Will quickly looked at him. "Are any of the kids still in the room right now, because if it's the secondary programming, and the damn thing is still on the interface terminal." he said and before he could answer, they heard a loud crash into the wall and a thunk.
And then they heard a panicked shout. "No, get the hell away from me, back off Barcley, commander, lieutenant, help!" They heard from Dayton at that and knew what was happening at that. "Stay the hell away from him, Reg, that's enough." They heard Wilcox shout out as they heard two thuds and a hollowed one as they heard a thunk on the floor, before hearing Porter shout an order out to Dayton then.
"Charlie get out of the room, now!" They heard Porter say quickly and Worf and Will quickly charged into the main room at that information and the call out as Anenzi walked in with them at that. "It's the god damn secondary programming, that makes four, he's trying to get that thing on the kids. Charlie get out the room now, get in here!" Geordi said and the duo nodded in agreement as they went to check at that.
Before they heard a quick running and the teenager quickly ran into the room as he ran head long into them as Worf caught him as he slowed him down at the reaction, before he tried to jerk back at that. "Let me go!" he said quickly as Worf caught him as he struggled to get free. "Take it easy, easy, easy, shh, it's okay, it's okay, it's us, it's us, honey." Beverly said to him gently and Will gripped his shoulder gently
As he repeated that gently as he gripped his neck gently to calm him down, before pulling him into a hug and as he felt the young man as he burrowed into his arms at that response and buried his head into his shoulder shaking, and he hid a sigh. 'Damn it, with the fact I took Nick's place, I'm now the one taking care of the boys now, damn it Etana, stay away from my kids.' he thought as he said it to him as he repeated her remark then as he looked at him.
"Whoa, whoa, shh, it's okay it's okay, what happened if you called out to me?" Will asked softly and he looked at him shaking. Looking into his eyes, he saw a scared fifteen to sixteen year old looking back at him, and knew that the teenager was beyond spooked then and hid a sigh, knowing this just turned his young students three to four years younger than they were then as he answered him at that as he said it then.
"It's the secondary alright, with the fact I was faking it last night and this morning he's ready to get it on me for real now, it's bad enough if we have several more flip outs. But now it's turned into the fact that we need to be surrounded by the rest of the adults in the adult crew unaffected by the secondary protocols on that thing here. But with Wesley recovering he's more at risk than I am, but the duo, they're the added targets."
"We're looking at the third portion of the puppet masters, they're free and the drones added programming is determined to get that thing back on them, and us. He just barely got it on me, before the sextet arrested him a second time, but that thud into the wall you heard a bit ago. That was him throwing me into the wall, and they caught him, before he could get it on me, a fight broke out in ten forward like he said."
"But I was studying the damn thing with Wes and Robin in your quarters Aunt Beverly, and he saw me standing directly next to it and tried to attack me. Before Porter and his team as well as yours arrested him then, they got him off of me. And are trying to subdue him in there, but it's enough that Porter ordered me to get out of the room. Just before you said the same thing Commander La Forge, I mean after last night and today."
"Once was enough, but if Wes's system crashes it's going to turn into the real thing, because he's going to think you're still compromised regarding this situation. Though we're in our late teens and at the moment with us still exhausted and in his case, he's to exhausted to protect himself. And him with a sprained, near dislocated ankle, we need you protecting us now." he said and they nodded as Will pulled him into a hug at that.
And he buried his head into his shoulder and she sighed at that reaction. "Damn it, this is like that mental maniac and the book combined together now, but she's just turned the quartet, emotionally, back to being younger than their real age at the moment. And it's like the boogieman in the basement or under the bed reaction for the kids Alexandra's age, but now it's the act of dealing with that maniac at the moment."
"And they need us to protect them from the supposed boogieman and there's more than one and with that in mind. We have to protect the quartet from anyone else suffering a reaction till whatever else she has in mind kicks in. And I hope Wes locked the door into our quarters, till one of us goes to check on him. Because if his system crashes the delirium is going to have him thinking everyone is still infected by that thing."
"And it's taking reversing the ambush to catch him, before his delirium puts him in the E.R. here at the moment, for another concussion, his ankle or both." Beverly said and they nodded to that. "Yeah no kidding, damn it, alright, alright listen to me kiddo you better stay in here for now while we deal with him, just stay out of the way cub." Greyson said and he nodded as they went to check at that as they walked to the door.
Watching from the door the group came into the room to see a member of the technician team struggling to get free from five guards as he struggled to get to the interface of the one they were studying and he nodded as he got it then. "Beverly, the added reaction from getting a taste of that thing just struck, it's the speedball effect from that thing. Wes's theory just hit the table, and it's the secondary programming right now."
"Alright, Lieutenant that's enough, stand down now and get away from that thing right now!" he called out sternly and when he continued to fight, Will sighed as Picard repeated the order. "Alright that's enough Lieutenant, stand down and get away from it now!" Picard called out and when he continued fighting. "Reg stop, calm down." Geordi said again that did it as Will shouted it out to them sextet then as he got ready then.
"Alright sedate him!" he shouted as he, Worf, Bates and Greyson got involved it then. "If I wasn't sure then, I am now, this is like dealing with Roga that day. The effects of the secondary programming is being affected by the ethanol right now Beverly!" Anthony Perkins snapped as they struggled to get him under control as she answered him at that. "Just make sure he can't get his hands on your phaser right now, Anthony."
"In fact, hand to hand only, get him to the floor now, before he hurts himself!" Beverly snapped and they nodded as Worf knocked his legs out from under him then, as they got him down as he continued resisting. "Let me go!" he shouted and Bates said it sternly. "That's enough, calm down or you're ending up in the tank." he said to him sharply as he and Greyson struggled to get him into the floor as Porter said it again at that.
"Reg either you cool down or you're ending up in isolation, now calm down now!" he said to him firmly. "Anthony give me that!" Ro called out and they tossed it to her and she put them in her holster. "Whoa, alright that's enough, calm down now!" Geordi said sharply as he tackled him to the floor as the next jolt threw Bates into the wall. "Reg stop, calm down, that's enough, that's your last warning right now, now either settle down."
"Or you're winding up in the tank, calm down!" Greyson shouted as he and Perkins struggled to restrain him as Bates repeated that a second time as they exchanged looks as he snapped it out a second time. "Reg stop, calm down now!" Bates shouted out as they struggled to get him under control. "Alright hold him down guys, before he tears a ligament, it's the added speedball effect right now and it's interacting with the effects."
"That thing is triggering the same speedballing effect, by that I mean that he's suffering the side effect that speedballing with the ethanol caused, before. He's drunk, so just get him to the floor I'm putting him under right now." Anenzi called out and they nodded, as, working together, they forced him to the floor and restrained him then as he sedated him and after a minute the man lost consciousness, and the sextet relaxed slightly.
"What the hell was that?!" Picard snapped and he sighed. "Secondary reaction to the effects of these things, just like he said, the ones that aren't strong enough to come down off of it without side effects have a reaction to it. But at this rate, this is going to be like repeated dealings in the rehab department of an outburst now. Alright Eli, you take it from here, this is your arena now." she said and sighed as she finished.
"Alright this went from basic health to dealing with rehab from that thing. So with that, it's we're going on arresting the ones that are reacting to the effects of that thing and with that, the 'parasite' caused this reaction." she said and Greyson looked at her. "The parasite gets removed and we have four flip out here, already get ready, because we're going to have to start preparing for anyone else suffering a speedballing effect here."
"Just what did he say about this if, for us, it was causing a reaction like to much in drugs or ethanol?" Perkins asked and she sighed. "That it was going to cause a speedballing type of effect, the programming and addictive like effects of that thing are like the slug like parasitical aliens in that book Heinlein created, so with that. If this was normal drugs and he goes cold turkey, and as a result he wants one last taste of it."
"It's the damn parasite just jumped off him, and he's suffering the withdrawal and rebound from it. Alright again, you see anyone acting strange, nervous behavior or start acting erratically, report it and if there's another flip out tell me and we're arresting them. Because this is going to get serious if we have a multitude of people start suffering this!" Beverly called out and they all nodded as she and Anenzi both looked at Picard.
"We got to find the second host, before that happens again, Sir!" Anenzi said and he nodded to that. "That wasn't the second host, it's dealing with one of the guys that got addicted to having the parasites on their back and if that happens repeatedly, we're going to have problems now. If someone gets into a fight in the hall, tries to recreate another one or just uses the ones we deactivated the thing at the moment here."
"But again, we got to destroy these things, immediately." Deanna said and Will nodded in agreement to that. "She's right, we made enough that whoever is addicted to the damn thing, if they lost their headset, is going to try the ones we created and put it back on. But like I said, the second host is not infected with the programming, he's a plant. But the primary target for that, if we caught Barcley here, is Ensign Crusher..."
"And that wasn't a mistake right now, Wes left the room at the right time right now, before he flipped out now. We've got a couple guys who have been given instructions on getting one on him right now till whatever programming on his headset activates completely. So 1) we have to prevent these guys from trying and 2) we got to prevent him from getting off the ship, before she walks him right out the front door."
"Alright, everyone in senior staff listen up now: You see anyone else acting strange, acting like Data had been last year when he got hijacked. But catch them, before they replicate another. And it's because her next attempt as the alien queen is getting one on him a second time, because if we keep deflecting it. Then she's switching plans, and activating the programming on his headset at the current moment here."
"And with MacGregor on board the ship, the side effects are going to be it's likely going to react in the same way as his being under control of the knack. Though if his system crashes and it's likely to be across between two waking nightmares and his going on autopilot. Alright again, Derek, Jack, I want you in the engine room with him, Geordi and Data on watch, we're doubling security teams till we find the plant, as of now, Worf."
"But listen up everyone, nobody is getting off this ship, till we finish this, the ship is in lockdown, starting now. The ship is hereby under lockdown, security condition yellow, starting now nobody, but senior officers or crew members longer than two years, are getting near that computer mainframe, the engine room or high security areas. And everyone, watch for any strange behavior, you see anyone reacting erratically."
"Report it and if we have another reaction call security, but nobody is going near those shuttlebays or the transporter rooms till the situation is over with. You see anyone that hasn't been here longer then four years, and by that members that never got involved in our conversations bit ago. But longer than four years, or just arrived and they're acting strange, report it immediately!" Will called out and they all nodded to the orders.
"All security personnel longer than three years be on the look out for any more erratic behavior, and all crew members of that same length of time do the same. I get the feeling that if that's just the beginning whoever wasn't here longer than two years. And they never dealt with having our minds messed with repeatedly is going to suffer a reaction to that thing, though none of the teenagers younger than eighteen were."
"But for us, we're completely recovered at the moment from that piece of junk." Geordi said and Bates looked at him. "Yeah well after MacGregor caused the search to hit a snag after the entry tubes got locked off to us. It's getting him out of the search if this starts a second time, he's only going to respond to the 13 of us, if he has that relapse. Wes's response to us after this was over was enough to tell me he needed us still."
"But if MacGregor is the plant and he's working for either of them..." he said and Greyson nodded in agreement. "That's his second biggest fear right now, having the possible relative to his kidnapper here, and his third biggest has to be dealing with a repeat performance. But if the effects of whatever she downloaded into his headset activate all at once, if it's not the training course she's trying to take to get him out."
"Then it's using the one he did this morning and last night, and though we were being controlled our memories were intact, so we have to use that against her." he said and Will nodded. "Yeah and we're the ones who know his thinking strategies inside and out, she may think she knows him, but that's a clear flaw in the programming. And he proved that last night and this morning by make it last this long right now at the moment."
"But with us programmed she was trying to dig up where we saw these tactics which was why it was taking this long. And secondly it's because she didn't understand our computer systems and ways of tracking regarding this. But with us back to being ourselves again, she's flipping the circumstances. And trying to push her way into his head and we know him better then he knows himself if she tries it at the moment."
"But this means we don't let him out of our sight, but 1) once the search begins, I'm orders the second half of each of your teams to guard our rooms from inside them. And 2) you guys like me, Geordi and Miles are following him around until we can head this off. But whatever you do, don't let him out of your sight, because if this ends up back in the tubes and we're going to have a repeat performance." he said and they nodded then.
Just as he finished saying they saw a secondary beam into the room as Robin came back into the room and up to them as she looked at the quintet holding down Reginald Barclay and quickly looked at them at that. "Guinan told me we had the first reaction and what the heck is wrong with him exactly. Because he had five glasses of ethanol in ten forward, just before this and his altercation and with that in mind."
"What happened in here exactly?" she asked and he sighed. "Your theory regarding the withdrawal and rebound effects of that thing just landed on the table now. Lieutenant Barclay had an outburst and it took the ten of us to take him down." Bates told her and she nodded. "For us teenagers to twenty years old it takes five to six, for a fully grown man or woman it's five to ten, if they're drinking during the comedown."
"Alright get ready, that's going to happen again soon enough, but for the ones less then three days. Then it's going to be the type of effect taking in three or four of the ethanol is going to do here. While speedballing is the big one and that's what these things are delivering here, the speedball effect." she said and the security teams all nodded to that. "Anything else in that?" she asked and he sighed as he ran his hand through his hair
"Yeah whatever programming they've been infected with till it wears off completely is orders to get one on one or both of you a second time and you both left the room at the right time. Because they just arrested him, before he could try and get it back on either of you." Will said and she nodded with a scared look on her face. "Well that just shifted it from fear and straight to paranoia, with MacGregor still scaring him out of his wits."
"Mom, how do think he's going to take this when he hears this, because he's got the door to your apartment locked right now. And just to keep anyone still infected from getting in right now and you just arrested the fourth attempt in twenty hours attempt, so what now. If you have to study that damn thing do it, just destroy the others, we're not having our worst nightmare getting worse right now at the moment."
"I mean, just knowing they're getting to darn pushy with the fact we busted her is one thing. But now it's turned into trying to protect ourselves from our own people and we don't even know who is suffering it and who's not right now." she said to her quickly and he pulled her into a hug as he said it gently. "Shh, it's okay, it's okay, calm down honey." Will said as he hold her and he felt her burrow deeper into his arms as he calmed her.
Feeling her shaking, she quickly said it to him. "Once is enough, for him if this combines with the memory of the Aldeans and with MacGregor. Then it's going to trigger whatever reaction you had with him three years ago if his activates all at once. But in mine, it's the fear of living with a real live version of that book. But once is enough, I'm not going through it again." she said and he nodded he sighed as he answered her gently.
As he said it to her then. "Shh, it's okay, don't worry we're making sure nothing happens a second time to you guys, it's going to be okay. Just relax." Will said to her gently and she nodded as she buried her face into his chest as she tried to relax. "Where'd you wonder off to exactly Robin?" Geordi asked and she sighed as she said it. "Decided to keep him company for the moment, Commander, he maybe exhausted at the moment."
"But that's not stopping him from running a neurological battery off of what we learned so far and I talked him into taking a break finally." she said and they nodded as Beverly went into that as she crossed her arms at the news. "He'd better be in bed right now and keeping that ankle propped up, or he's in big trouble. He okay right now?" Beverly asked and she nodded as she said it with a sigh to her as she looked at Dayton.
"What happened to you exactly, if you're looking like this?" she asked and he sighed. "Barcley didn't just lose it a bit ago, he tried to get the damn thing on me, before Porter and his team arrested him a second time." he said and she nodded. "Damn it, great with you guys its trying to get it on you for real, us it's a repeat. But yes, he's getting ready for bed at the moment, but I don't doubt he's not going right to sleep, mom, as to why."
"I think he's getting nervous regarding whether or not the parasite got to him or not." she told her and the sextet nodded with a sigh. "I can understand why, but if he's up all night and he's not going to get any rest anyway." Deanna said and she nodded. "I take it we're going on security lock out and lockdown tonight?" she asked and they nodded. "With that reaction and what just happened, yes, and with that in mind right now."
"Computer medical security alert, condition three, lockdown all shuttlebays and transporter rooms starting now!" Picard called out and a yellow light flashed in the room at that. "Thank god we're in warp right now, there's no getting off the ship, till we get out of hyperspace. But it's going to be a long week this week if this keeps up, Sir." Geordi said and he nodded in agreement as she looked at him at that.
"How many days is it going to take us to get to base 67?" she asked and he sighed. "It's going to take a week, though if that's the first indicator of trouble, and we got her on a tractor beam hookup. I think she's trying to force her mind on the members in the crew that are younger in time frame than those of us who'd been here. But for the ones no longer than three years, we got a few problems at the moment right here."
"Just to throw us off the fact our mole is getting ready to make his move on Wesley." Will said to her gently and she nodded to him with a concerned look at that. Sitting down against the exam table, they saw her looking at the device with a scared look on her face then. 'Secondary host, no not again, I'm not getting taken a second time here.' Will saw in her eyes and sighed at that as the same thought shot through the twelve of them.
'Oh god, what happened earlier just had an impact on both of them, she's scared she's going to get taken a second time, it's just like the story. There better be more to this conspiracy if Maxwell lost it a few months go, but we got to figure this out and fast. Because if the Aldeans, K'Taris and Cardassians are all in this together we need to confirm that.' he thought softly as Bates said it for him then as he looked at her gently.
"You okay kiddo?" Bates asked and she shook her head. "Like him, after four days of dodging you and a near chase through the ship, I'm as exhausted as he is right now. To put this bluntly, is its like the murder at the radio station, before they had every infected host coming after them, the narrator knocks the cop away from their speeder. And it results in a chase down throughout the town, with the cop hanging onto the speeder."
"Till he gets him off the speeder by slamming him into radio terminal booth, followed by running into one of the kids that invited them into the ship, knocks him off the speeder and from there, they're so exhausted that though they know they're safe. Having the parasite they took back for study is still enough to make them nervous. And just seeing that thing lying around, after we studied it ourselves, it's enough that after that."
"And a close call it's enough we're both now too nervous to even relax, let alone sleep, he locked the door into your apartment after I came back to report into you." She said and took a deep breath as she finished. "In his case, he's so shaken up he's locked the door and scrambled the access codes into their apartment. With the possibility of a secondary host on board the ship, he's going to extremes to protect himself."
"As to why, with a secondary host on board the ship, once was enough for him, the thought of accidentally hurting someone is hitting him now. As is his thoughts of being the possible next host. And we're both scared we're going to get taken next a second time. I get taken once, he barely gets it and having a secondary host here, now that you're free of the programming, this is scaring us more than you think."
"Though I'm looking at one thing, whatever Maxwell said that could be part of this conspiracy, a conspiracy without violence. But K'taris, Aldea and Cardassia are all this together, but think it over his connection to you started seven months ago after the wedding, and before Maxwell lost it at the time. But we had a K'tarian medic at the academy clinic, that was seven months ago, when did MacGregor arrive here?"
"Because that's piece number two?" she asked and Robertson answered that one. "Also seven months ago, that's three and when did they get that science station set up exactly?" he asked and Picard exchanged looks with Will as he answered him. "Also seven months ago, are you saying that's what Maxwell meant. They're running supply ships back and forth, those ships were headed to K'taris to drop off those games."
"They got the games on Risa after their attempt to assassinate the Klingon ambassador failed. The first attempt failed, the trio tried again and again it failed, are you thinking they're trying this four out of five to infiltrate Starfleet and the federation. And by using you kids to do it, our ship and your new squadron here on the ship, to get this foothold into it?" Picard asked and she nodded to him as she said it to him gently.
"Aye Sir, but if MacGregor really is the plant and final piece to this conspiracy, with the fact you joined forces with Gul Macet to arrest Maxwell a few months ago. And I doubt it's Gul Macet who's involved in this, but another faction leader in the Cardassian military. But we have to get this news to the admirals, If whatever's in these pills is connected to it, we can't have it leaving this ship until the programming is cut."
"You don't have a choice here regarding this, you have to extend his sabbatical right now, because his body has taken enough abuse from all of this. If this last piece is part of it now, then they turned a human teenager into a walking time bomb. And just to finish their mission infiltration into the federation. We have to talk to Macet and Admiral Haden, he was the one who sent you after Maxwell." she said and they nodded to her.
"And the parasite is sitting on the interface right now, we understand. But if you guys don't get some rest it's going to be easier for them. Especially for them to get to you a second time if they try to create a secondary foothold on board our ship. And we still have to find the secondary host right now, as to that we're finishing the research. You two started and we're destroying the headsets to make sure that doesn't happen again."
"And I will let the committee and Haden know of our latest development in this right now at the moment, but in the meantime I don't want you kids left alone anymore. If on duty, you're staying where we can see you in case we have anymore flip outs. So just try to relax, okay, it's alright." Picard said to her gently and she nodded to him. Before she could answer Greyson looked at Barcley and then felt his heart take a violent jump.