Chapter 34

"How do you feel?" asked Beverly gently, holding Deanna Troi's hand in hers. About an hour earlier, she had simply fallen limply onto her hospital bed from her strange sitting position. The black substance had disappeared, her eyes had returned to normal, and she was now awake and apparently alert.

Deanna smiled. "I'm alright now, thank you."

"Do you remember what happened?"

Deanna's smile disappeared. "It was the Other. He used me, used my mind to reach the people on this ship. Even though I have been trained to control my mind only to aid people, never to harm them, there was absolutely nothing I could do to stop it, Beverly."

"I know, Deanna. We are dealing with someone or something who is powerful and his only aim seems to be to want to hurt us."

Deanna nodded and closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them again she looked at her friend with concern. "Beverly, how is Captain Picard?"

Beverly stood up. "He's gone. He disappeared around the time you fell into a coma."

"Goddess…" Deanna whispered.

Beverly took a deep breath, and could not keep herself from shuddering. "Guinan went to find him. She's been gone for hours now." She looked down at her hands. "I'm trying not to give up hope…but look around us, Deanna. The walls are literally closing in. What is happening to our ship?"

South Dakota, 1881

Later that evening, Guinan could not sleep. She went to the edge of the small stream where they had bathed earlier that evening and sat down in the cold sand. The moon was full and a beautiful pale yellow, but she felt strangely alone. She didn't know if it was Pritchard's sad tale of abandonment and longing, or her own fuzzy memories of her mother that had brought this mood on. But the more she considered it, the more she had to admit that Pritchard was right. There was a connection. Why did she care? She hadn't come to the planet to make friends.

"And yet you did," floated a voice over the bubbling of the stream. She looked up above her head to find an hourglass shaped purple light. "I am proud of you, that you have forged a friendship that will last across space and time," said the light.

Guinan almost fell backward from her sitting position, but caught herself. "Orla?"

"Yes," said the light.

"I need to know the truth," Guinan said, trying not to sound frightened. But she was, as she had never encountered Orla before.

"I understand," said Orla, and the light floated closer to her.

"It's no coincidence that I met Pritchard, and that he met me, is it?"

"No. Is that all you want to know?"

Guinan got to her feet. "No." She paused. "When I was a child my father cried every night after my mother left. He said she left to travel across space and time. That she had special powers beyond the average El-Aurian."

"As do you," said the light.

Guinan continued. "My father grew bitter because my mother left and he has grown old long before his time because of this loss."

"It is a sad thing," said Orla.

"And then I come to this hostile planet and I find a person who is also pining for his wife, a woman he thinks is from the future…who just appeared in his life one day…a woman who speaks El-Aurian."

"It appears that you have come to a conclusion," said the light.

"I don't understand…why are you doing this? Why are you interfering with the lives of mortals, who don't understand why they love you so much—who almost die when you leave?"

"Perhaps being immortal is not enough," said Orla. "Perhaps I need love too. Perhaps even Orla would like to live a normal life. I have a very great capacity for love."

"And so you travel the universe making people fall in love with you, only to leave them alone and heartbroken?"

"Yes."

"But why?"

"If I can be anything to anyone, then why not? John Pritchard already had in his mind a picture of the woman he loved. I simply appeared to him as that woman. What is wrong with that?"

"What is wrong is that it always results in pain. Because I grew up without a mother and poor Pritchard lost his wife. And his child."

"I was just as saddened by the loss of my child as John was. Living as a mortal woman I could not save my child from dying from a horrible disease and it was time for me to leave."

"I still don't understand," said Guinan. "You left when he needed you most."

"I would not be surprised if John Pritchard, or someone quite like him, meets a woman like this again in another life at another time and place. And if the time is right, they will both be happy."

"I suppose that is some comfort," said Guinan.

"You are disappointed in me, which makes me sad," said Orla. "I am very powerful, but I am not a perfect being. I need to know that my child still loves me. Do you still love me, Guinan?"

"I don't know."

"Listen up, everyone," Doctor Crusher said over the increasingly frantic murmur in main sick bay. Normally efficient doctors and nurses wandered aimlessly through main sick bay. "I need everyone's attention," she repeated loudly. The nervous chatter hushed and her staff turned to her expectantly as she stood in the center of the main medical bay. "We've lost contact with the other minor sick bays."

Confused crew members glanced at one another worriedly. The murmuring began again.

"It's not going to do any of us, or our patients for that matter, any good to panic," said Crusher. "Obviously there are some strange forces at work on board the Enterprise, and things are changing rapidly."

"Are we even on the Enterprise anymore?" demanded a frantic looking orderly. "My wife told me we don't even have a warp core anymore, and half the crew has gone insane and is roaming the ship with phasers."

Beverly Crusher paused in momentary shock. She hadn't heard any of that before now. "The best thing we can do for the people on this ship right now is to focus on keeping our supplies in order," she continued. "Now I want us to organize all of the low-tech medical supplies we have and get them ready for relocation."

"Where are we moving to?" asked Nurse Ogawa.

"I have no idea," muttered Crusher walking away toward a storage room.

"Replicators are down on most levels, sir," said the ensign, handing Riker a data pad as the First Officer paced back and forth outside main sick bay.

"How long will our food last?"

"Each deck was stocked with food and water for approximately six weeks, Commander. But these stores along with everything else are now disappearing with the rest of the normal features of each deck."

"Commander Riker," came Worf's voice. Riker held his hand up for the ensign to wait.

"Yes, Worf, go ahead."

"I have good news and bad news," said the Klingon.

"Bad news first," snapped Riker.

"We have found Lt. Commander Data. He was in a turbo lift on deck 4."

"That's great, I'm glad you located him," Riker said relieved. Data had been missing and unreachable for hours now. They'd just got Deanna back and the last thing they needed was another casualty.

"His last known destination was the bridge."

Riker felt himself growing irritated. "I know, Worf, why the mystery...you said you found him…how is this bad news?"

"Commander Data has been...beheaded."

"What? Is his head—is it with his body?"

"Yes sir."

"LaForge is still in sick bay. Bring Data's body and head down here to Deck 12 and have LaForge repair him."

"Aye sir..."

"So what is the good news?" Riker demanded.

"I was not finished reporting the bad news to you, sir."

"Go ahead," said Riker tightly.

"There appears to be human blood on his uniform and neck area...as though it were transferred from the blade that struck him."

Riker's mind began racing. "What is the status on the bridge, Worf? Can we get up there?"

"No. the turbo lifts to the bridge are no longer operational."

"And the utility ladders?"

"I tried climbing them myself, Commander. There is an energy field preventing access to the bridge."

Riker exhaled loudly and leaned against the wall. "Worf, how about that good news?"

"Deck 10 is for some reason largely resistant to the changes taking place on board. In particular, Commander, Ten Forward has not been affected by the technological regression we are experiencing everywhere else."

Riker grinned, despite his foul mood. "We've got about 500 crew accounted for, and the rest are either missing on sealed off decks, or just plain hostile. Let's start relocation of those we have to Deck 10 immediately."

LaForge sat on a bio bed dangling his legs over the side. Across from him Romulan Sub-Commander Saris sat with a somber expression. What was she still doing here? "You know, I appreciate the support, but you don't have to stay here, Saris."

She looked up at him sharply. "I am a prisoner on board this ship, Commander LaForge. I cannot leave. So sitting here with you is as good a place as any."

LaForge made a face. "Thanks…I think." He braced his hands on the bed and stared at the floor. "So all of that stuff you said before…."

"I was ordered to seduce you," she said abruptly, and got up from her chair.

"What?" Geordi slipped off of the bed, and winced at a throbbing pain in the back of his head. Whatever Doctor Crusher had given him for his concussion really didn't seem to be working. "I should have known it couldn't be for real! You made me look like an idiot."

"I did not make you look like anything you are not already," she said with a pointed expression.

"Oh yeah?" He struggled for the appropriate come-back, but it just wasn't there. He had sustained a head injury after all. Damn, he thought. I really have no luck with women.

There was suddenly a commotion outside of the room, and Worf entered noisily carrying something. Wordlessly, he dropped Data's body not too gently on the bed Geordi had just vacated. Pulling Data's head from under the crook of his arm, he dropped it onto the bed.

"Hey, hey!" LaForge protested. "You can't just drop him like that, Worf, come on. Now, what the hell happened to him?"

Worf frowned down at the engineer. "I realize you have sustained a head injury, Geordi. But it should be obvious even to you that someone or something has cut off Commander Data's head."

Geordi turned Data's head toward him. "If I'm going to do this, I'm going to need some tools, Worf."

Worf shrugged. "There is very little to work with here," said Worf. "But if we move Data to Ten Forward we can replicate a hyper spanner."

"Okay," Geordi said and bent over to examine the body more closely. He looked up in alarm. "Worf there's human blood on his neck port, and on the collar of his uniform."

Worf nodded, and turned to regard Doctor Crusher as she entered the room then. "Come on everyone, we're leaving for Deck 10." Her gaze fell on Data's uniform. She said something softly to herself, and pulled a tiny vial from her pocket. She expertly swiped the vial over the blood stain on Data's uniform, and then dropped it back into her pocket.

Several hours later, as stray members of the crew continued to stream into Ten Forward, Geordi successfully reactivated Data. He glanced over at Saris, who leaned against the view port. "Not such an idiot now am I," murmured Geordi. She appeared unimpressed however.

Data sat up stiffly. He reached up and touched his forehead and then his neck. He turned his head back and forth. "Thank you, Geordi."

"Data," said Riker. "We were worried about you, but I think we all knew you'd pull through."

Data gave him a small smile. "Thank you, Commander. It is good to be alive."

Riker smiled and then quickly grew serious again. "Data we need to know what happened to you. What's happening up on the bridge?"

"Commander, I am afraid that the situation is quite grave." He described the altered bridge and hostile crew members. "A portal opened in the front view screen," continued Data. "A large tattooed being armed with a curved sword stepped through and declared himself to be 'Doulos, overlord of this realm'. With him was a group of warriors carrying similar weapons. He demanded that the Enterprise crew present on the bridge kneel before him."

Beverly Crusher walked forward, clutching her tricorder in one hand and a tiny vial in the other. Her hand shook, and she pressed it against her thigh to steady it.

Riker swallowed. "Did they kneel?"

"Yes," said Data. "They seemed quite willing to do so in fact."

Riker clenched his jaw angrily. "And then?"

"The being identifying himself as Doulos declared that our former 'king' was dead and that the blood on his sword was that of our king. And after I refused to swear allegiance to Doulos, he cut off my head."

Beverly took the tiny vial she had been holding and stuck it into the top of her tricorder. Almost immediately it beeped and a green indicator turned on. She read the screen and then stepped back with an expression of shock crossing her features. Her hand shook, as she backed away, and nearly walked into Saris who looked on curiously, but moved out of the way.

"Beverly, we can't know for sure," Deanna said, stepping to her side.

Beverly straightened and smoothed the front of her lab coat with a faraway look on her face. "Where's Wesley? Where's my son? No, don't touch me," she waved Troi off. "I need to find my son," she said walking away.

When they first materialized, Guinan was not entirely sure that they were even on the Enterprise. Almost the entire corridor had been transformed into a stone version of itself; no lights, and certainly no computer terminals. Toward the end of the corridor she saw a few faded words on the wall: "Deck Eight". Alright, she thought. Just get up to Ten Forward and contact sick bay from there.

Picard shifted on her shoulder. It appeared he was now awake, which was a good sign. It certainly wasn't from her medical care, if it could be called that, which consisted of draping him awkwardly over her shoulder and holding him by the legs.

"I'm upside down..." he groaned. His arms hung down loosely and blood ran slowly down his arm and through the fingers of his left hand, dripping onto the deck.

"What is he saying?" Demetrius asked.

"Guinan, is that you?" Picard croaked. "Wait..."

"Wait? If we wait any longer you'll die. Again."

There was a pause as a few more breaths rattled through his chest. "I died?"

"Yes," she said, busily searching for a turbo lift. Eventually she came to a narrow opening where the turbo lift should have been.

She waved Demetrius inside and then carefully slipped through with Picard. Before them lay a narrow passageway and a staircase winding upward. "Oh, not again," she muttered.

"Am I too heavy?" Picard asked weakly.

"No, of course not. Now be quiet and save your strength. That's an order, Captain." She was telling the truth; he wasn't that heavy, and although she appeared very unassuming, she was physically quite strong. She sighed as she began to climb the stairs. Demetrius hobbled along behind them saying nothing. Ages of solitude had apparently conditioned him to be spare with his words. But she knew eventually he would have to talk.

Picard was silent a moment more. "Guinan?"

"Yes?"

"Please don't tell Beverly I died..."

"That goes without saying," she replied.