"LEE!" Harri sat bolt upright in bed shaking and drenched in sweat, the visions of Lee being tortured and tormented by some faceless entity still reverberating in his mind. As his breathing and heart rate slowed to normal, he slung back the covers, got up and made his way to the head to get a drink of water. Looking up from the sink, his eyes met the shrouded mirror in front of him and he cursed the entity that had stolen his captain and son.
After dispatching Sharkey to take care of the mirrors he had forced himself to go to sleep, he was beat and could feel his mind becoming foggy and muddled due to his lack of rest. The last thing he needed was his most powerful weapon slowed by exhaustion. Given what they needed to do to ensure they all survived this encounter he had to be at his mental best to carry this out.
Taking several deep breaths to calm his nerves, he settled himself into the chair behind his desk and composed himself. As he tried to recall the substance of his dream he found himself somewhat amused at the niggling notion in the back of his mind that to resolve this situation he need only detonate Seaview's weapons. After speaking with Keeper he knew exactly the source of that unbidden idea. He stared at the clock across the room and noted it had been nearly 12 hours since Lee and Kendal had been taken. Not a patient man this interminable waiting was driving him mad, he wanted his people back now and the delay in taking action concerned him as that meant Lee had not yet regained consciousness.
Finally feeling more in control he pushed to his feet and walked back into the head to shower and get ready for the day. Shaving proved to be a challenge given the lack of access to a mirror but he made due using the reflection in the blacked out screen of his computer. When he finished dressing he headed out the door and down to sick bay to check on Chip.
As he neared the door he was gratified to hear Chip and Jamie's elevated voices arguing back and forth regarding Chip's fitness to leave sick bay and resume his duties. Harri smiled for a brief moment at the one shred of normalcy he had encountered in quite some time then entered sick bay to take on his duties as referee.
()()()()()
"Good morning Jamie, Chip," Harri said as he walked into the room.
"Good morning Admiral," they both replied.
"It's good to see you up and awake Chip, we were getting more than a little concerned when it took you so long to come back to us," Harri said as he patted him on the shoulder.
"Thanks Admiral it's good to be back so to speak. I'm also ready to resume my duties, but Jamie seems to think different," he answered.
"Chip you suffered a moderate concussion that left you unconscious for over 10 hours, you also have a broken arm and two broken ribs which would be at risk if you were to become dizzy and fall. Also by the look of your squinted eyes you have one hell of headache you're very desperately trying to ignore," Jamie countered.
"Look Jamie with Lee missing I'm needed in the control room," Chip stated as he looked hopefully to the admiral for support of his case.
Harri smiled and shook his head no. "I'm going with Jamie on this one lad. At the moment you're needed right here to recover from your injuries, not to run the risk of adding more."
Chip frowned at the admiral and looked away. He hated being incarcerated in sick bay to begin with and now with his captain and best friend missing he needed to feel that he was somehow involved in figuring out where he was and getting him back.
"Chip listen to me," Harri began. "There's absolutely no need for you to be at the con right now. We are completely immobilized by a force field generated by some alien entity confined to the center of this planet, all repairs have been made and there's nothing any of us can do at the moment but sit back and wait. Right now I want you doing that here so when the time comes and I need your experience and expertise you're rested and recovered to the greatest extent possible."
Chip stared at Nelson for a long moment then sighed and nodded. "Alright sir, I'll stay here one more day."
"We'll see about that Mr. Morton," Jamie cut in. "You aren't escaping my grasp until I feel you aren't a danger to yourself."
Harri chuckled at the banter that usually went on between his command team and their common foe in all things medical the immovable CMO when one or both found themselves in his care. He had to admire Jamie's fortitude and patience for enduring their continuous attempts to escape their least favorite area of the boat. He was still amazed at how incredibly lucky he was to be able to call all three of these exceptional men his officers and friends.
"So what is the situation with Lee and Kendal, sir?" Chip asked.
"Unfortunately I haven't heard anything from Keeper, the alien that contacted me last night regarding their condition or about an attempt to get in touch with them. Keeper indicated that we had to wait until Lee regained consciousness before we could try contacting him. The fact that we haven't heard anything in over 12 hours concerns me."
Both men nodded in agreement. "I hate feeling so helpless," answered Chip. "I think that's what's so frustrating about this whole situation is the total lack of control over our lives and our inability to come to their aid."
As Harri was about to answer, Keeper suddenly materialized in the center of sick bay startling the three men. "Nelson it is time, and we must move quickly. It has already assaulted Crane once and he is only now starting to regain consciousness. We must make contact now before it notices that he is awake and goes after him again."
Harri's face paled at the news that Lee had been attacked and that had resulted in him passing out. "Of course, let's return to my quarters where we can work undisturbed," Harri replied.
Keeper nodded and disappeared. Nelson looked back at the concerned faces of Jamie and Chip. "I'll let you know what's going on as soon as I'm able. Wish me luck," he said as he turned and hurried out the door.
"Good luck Harri and bring them back," Jamie called out after his boss.
()()()()()
Harri ran down the corridor towards his cabin, decorum be damned, there was no way he wasting any time in getting his missing people back. He entered his cabin and found Keeper standing in the center of the room awaiting his arrival.
"We must act quickly Nelson; our window of opportunity is very small. I need you to either sit or lay down whichever is most comfortable for you. You will need to able to concentrate completely on what we are about to do."
Harri nodded and moved over to his desk chair and sat down. "I'm ready whenever you are Keeper."
"Good. First I need you to close your eyes and clear your mind of outside concerns. Breathe deeply and relax your body. I want you to concentrate only on my voice," Keeper continued. Harri nodded his understanding. "Now you will feel something a kin to an itch or tickle in the back of your mind, don't fight it just let it grow. As it grows it will become a generalized tingling and now you should feel a flush of comfort and wellbeing."
Harri nodded once more as he felt each of the effects Keeper described. A profound sense of peace washed over him and he felt as though his body was now floating on a warm calm sea.
"Now Nelson I want you to picture Crane, visualize your son and lock that image in your mind."
Harri quickly brought to mind an image of Lee, seeing him clearly as though he was standing in front of him. The image seemed so real he was tempted to reach out and touch him.
"Now I want you to mentally call out to him. Call him by name, draw his attention and convince him you are there with him in his mind. Use one of those memories that only you two share to convince him that this is not some trick employed by the other to win his trust. Tell him that he must remain as still as possible and give no hint that he is awake. Tell him not to speak out but only think his responses lest it notice that he is conscious and it comes after him once more."
As Harri reached out his mind it felt as though he was hurtling down a long black tunnel like a rocket on rails. He felt momentarily queasy at the sense of motion but that passed quickly. His momentum slowed as he met with resistance, he instinctively pushed against the barrier until he moved past it into what must be Lee's mind.
The feeling and sensations were indescribable as he realized he was now somehow joined with Lee mentally. He sensed extreme wariness and concern along with a hint of fear and a nearly overwhelming wave of pain. Tentatively he moved forward reaching out his thoughts and then called Lee's name.
()()()()()
Lee felt the return of consciousness ease its way upon him. Instinctively he bit back the groan of pain that might alert it that he was awake and remained motionless as he quickly ascertained his condition and the area around him. He became immediately aware of Kendal's head on his shoulder as she lay there sleeping, he fought back the urge to reach up and touch her to reassure her that he was fine.
Well fine was really pushing it, even by his definition. His chest felt as though it had been placed in a vice, he was finding it more difficult to breathe and his head throbbed incessantly from all the abuse he had absorbed in the last few days.
As he continued his assessment of the state of things he felt a tingling in the back of his mind and then a surge of warmth that momentarily relaxed him. He mentally pondered this new development and then became aware of a voice seemingly coming from inside his head that wasn't his own yet somehow just as familiar.
'That's just great,' he thought to himself, 'now I'm hearing voices in my head if things weren't bad enough already.' As he listened to the voice it started to get louder until he could finally make out what was being said and by whom.
"Lee, Lee, can you hear me? Lee, its Nelson. Please listen closely to what I say your life depends on it. Whatever you do, do not speak or move doing that will only draw its attention. To communicate with me, just think your response son."
'Oh great,' thought Lee 'now I'm delusional. That's the last thing we need.'
"You're not delusional Lee; I am with you in your mind. It's imperative that you believe me lad for this will be the only way we will be able to get you and Kendal back. Lee I want you to think back to first time you called me Dad*. Do you remember that Lee? Do you remember the first time we went to my cabin? Remember how you managed to escape from the handcuffs and then rescue me by incapacitating our captors despite being shot."
"Admiral? Is that really you? How are you here in my mind?" Lee inquired still uncertain as to what was going on.
"Yes Lee it's me. I am able to be here with you now through the aid of a being known as Keeper, it is giving us the ability to communicate through telepathy. The thing that grabbed you and Kendal is unable to detect this form of communication so we can speak freely."
A wave of mutual relief washed across both their minds as each took comfort at being back in contact, as corny as it sounded they always felt that together they could overcome any obstacle. Lee fought hard to bite back a smile at having his 'Dad' back at his side even if only in mind. Harri did smile thrilled to find Lee readily accepted the situation and believed that he was there with him.
"Lee do you know why it pulled you into its cell?"
"Yes sir. It wants me to deploy our missiles and then detonate them just above the rift in the trench floor. It said that it was wrongfully incarcerated and it needs our help to break free from the Keepers, whatever they are. When I refused, it attacked me. Sir you can't let it make use of the missiles at any cost."
"I know son. Keeper told me they locked that creature in the center of the earth to prevent it from destroying the universe. Should it escape, the earth would be completely destroyed and it's highly likely this universe as well."
"I figured that was pretty much what would happen if it got loose but hadn't considered a universal scale of destruction."
"Lee the reason Keeper has put us in communication is that there is something it needs you to steal from that thing in there. The item you need to get your hands on is called a power stone. It uses that power stone to access and focus energy from outside sources to cause the earthquakes and other planetary changes we've witnessed to ultimately escape from its prison. You need to get a hold of its power stone and then bring it back to this side of the mirror." Harri explained.
"Sir, if this Keeper is capable of imprisoning this thing and enabling us to communicate, why can't it grab this stone itself? Why is it using you as an intermediary and relying on me to act as thief? It all seems rather suspect and inefficient." Lee replied.
"Keeper said that if it acted directly it would result in the destruction of all life on the planet. It's using me to contact you knowing that once you recognized and believed it was me you would trust my judgment and do what I ask of you. Also by going through me, the thing in there remains ignorant of Keeper's presence and won't strike out at you or the planet any more than it already has. Son I fully believe that what Keeper is asking of us will prevent it from escaping and protect this planet and the universe from destruction," Harri answered.
Lee pondered Harri's response for a moment then rapidly made his decision. "I'm not sure how to even go about finding this power stone sir. Its pitch black in here and the only light is a few white dots on one side of the room. Do you have any idea what this thing looks like or even how big it is? Does Keeper know if it keeps the damn thing in its possession or will it be lying around somewhere? And how are we supposed to get back to the other side if we get it, we don't even know where to look for the way out." Lee asked urgently.
Keeper, who had been monitoring their conversation, interjected the answers to Lee's questions into Harri's mind.
"Lee, Keeper says that it will enhance your eyesight to enable you to see the power stone and the entity that has you prisoner. Based on what Keeper is telling me the stone should be about the size of a football as best I can tell, it's silvery white in appearance and will be very warm to the touch since it is using it extensively to channel energies necessary to carry out its plans; lad the power stone is carnotite."
"Isn't that lovely," Lee sniped being all too familiar with the effects of carnotite on the human body.
"Keeper thinks that the entity probably has the power stone stashed somewhere as opposed to holding on to it; even to them it can be toxic when they take a physical form. Once you've found it let us know immediately then Keeper will create a diversion that should allow you to grab the stone and head for the lights, those are the portals between its world and ours. The portals with the green lights will be the ones we can pull you through. When you let me know you've got the power stone we will pass ropes and harnesses through the interface to you, you just need to get yourselves tied on and we'll pull you through to safety."
"Ropes, really? That's the high tech way we get out of here?" Lee asked incredulously. "I expected something like a material transporter or at the very least a rabbit hole. I suppose the damn things have to be made of hand woven hemp as well," Lee quipped.
Harri chuckled at Lee's response. He so appreciated having this man as the captain of his boat. Even in a situation where everything had skewed so completely out of control and any reference to normal had been shot to hell he could find the humor and irony in the bedlam. He had to agree with him that it all seemed rather ridiculous and primitive given the entities and powers at play.
"Son, Keeper says you need to completely relax and he will enhance your vision now. It said it may hurt for a few minutes but the pain will pass and when it does you will be able to see the room around you."
"Well what's a little more pain, I probably won't even notice. Okay, tell Keeper to go ahead."
Lee grunted in pain as Keeper manipulated Lee's mind and eyes via Harri's connection giving him the ability to see in this dark space. As he did Harri flinched as he too experienced the pain Lee did since they were still mentally connected. He sighed in relief as he felt it abate.
"Keeper says open your eyes son."
Lee slowly and surreptitiously cracked open his eyes. He could now make out things around him. His new vision reminded him of the emergency lighting on Seaview as everything was composed of reds and black. He noticed something hulking and immense standing off in the distance; he assumed that it was what had grabbed them. He cautiously turned his head trying to spot the specks of light he had noticed earlier, his slight movement disturbed Kendal and she woke immediately.
"Lee, Lee, are you okay?" she inquired as she sat up and gingerly placed her hand on his chest. Her words and movement caught the attention of their captor and it turned slowly around to check on its guests.
"Ah so your companion has decided to rejoin us," it said with a gurgling chortle.
"Shit!" Lee thought.
"Lee what is it?!" Harri asked suddenly aware of his captain's agitation.
"It knows I'm awake and it's coming over to play. Don't have much time, how do I contact you when I find the stone?" Lee asked.
"Just mentally call to me Lee and I'll be there," Harri replied solemnly. "You be careful son and take care of yourself and Kendal. Hope to hear from you soon."
With that their connection was broken leaving Harri feeling concerned and emotionally bereft at no longer being in touch with his son.
()()()()()
Lee watched in horror as the thing turned around to face them. Whoever first described what the devil looked like had been clueless and incredibly kind. Hideous didn't even come close to describing this thing. Human accounts of a devil, for that's surely what it had to be, always seemed to portray it as a large sleek being that looked very much like a human except for hooves for feet, a long slender barbed tail and horns on top of its head. This thing was nothing like that.
Its size was immense as it nearly filled the cavernous room Lee now saw around them. The body was slug like with rolls of fat that folded over in layers like shingles on a roof, giving it an almost melted appearance and was covered in a viscous slime; the very size and oily sheen screamed of greed, gluttony and decay. There were numerous appendages of varying shapes and sizes that studded its rotund body some were like hands, some like tentacles and others like pincers and claws.
There were orifices scattered all around the body as well and oriented in the most disconcerting directions. Some opened vertically, others horizontally, a few diagonally and others resembling sphincters dilated and contracted making a wet smacking noise with each movement. All of these openings were studded with teeth of one form or another and oozed some foul smelling bodily fluid.
The face, if it could be called that, was a mix of extreme and improbable angles marked by gelatinous growths and weeping sores perched impossibly at the top. Eyes dotted the head and the grotesque mouth Lee had seen in his first encounter with this thing was positioned up near the top of its head close to the disconcerting yellow eyes. The most disturbing thing about this creature was the lack of symmetry; nothing about it made sense. Lee had an extremely tough time looking at the thing; it was so alien in form the human mind had difficulty processing the image and tried to shut down if forced to look upon it for any length of time.
Lee forced down the shudder as the thing oozed its way towards them trying desperately to hide the fact he could now see it. Lee touched Kendal's hand and patted it gently letting her know he was awake. He struggled to sit up and groaned loudly as he stressed his broken and battered ribs. Kendal did her best to help him up and gripped his hand tightly for the meager bit of reassurance and comfort it provided against the horrors of their situation.
"So you are back now, have you changed your mind? Are you willing to order your weapons released into the trench?" it hissed at him.
Lee fought down the urge to vomit as looking at the thing left him feeling off-balance and gave him a sense of vertigo. He quickly averted his eyes and swallowed compulsively until he was able to drive back the contents of his stomach. "I've already told you I have no intention of ever giving that order," he snarled.
It growled menacingly at Lee's refusal to comply with its demands. "Well then if I cannot convince you to change your mind, perhaps your companion will be more successful."
It cocked its head towards Kendal and sneered. Seconds later she screamed in absolute agony and terror as she fell to the floor writhing convulsively. Lee looked on in horror as it tortured her unmercifully. He was blocked from giving in to its demands and sparing Kendal this agony by his sworn duty to protect his boat, his crew and his world. He sat there helplessly watching her writhe and squirm under its ministrations all the while cursing himself, Keeper and most of all that damn creature.
()()()()()
Kendal cried out in unimaginable agony as it reacted to Lee's denial to release Seaview's weapons, by torturing her. She felt as though her skin had been peeled off her body with every nerve fiber exposed and raw with it pouring salt and vinegar on the bare ends. Her organs felt as though they were being twisted and squeezed to the point of exploding and her brain was on the verge of liquefaction. She twisted and writhed on the floor trying desperately to escape the pain but there was no exit in sight. Her throat was raw and her voice began to fail as she continued to scream in response to the unending pain.
She cried out, "Lee…Lee…Please do something, please make it stop! Help me, please!" She felt as though her mind was going to explode as it tried desperately to block the pain and make it go away. She knew she had been here for an eternity unable to recall a time when this agony did not exist. As it continued to press its attack ratcheting the pain higher with each passing minute, Kendal finally reached her limit no longer able to cope with the assault and blacked out.
As her screams stopped it harrumphed in disappointment and ceased the attack. Kendal lay motionless on the ground, drenched in sweat, blood seeping from her mouth, eyes and ears.
"Have you no compassion for this creature human," it admonished Lee cruelly. "Once she returns we'll see how well she stands up to round two."
()()()()()
As the connection was severed with Lee, Nelson sighed heavily and forced his eyes open. He had just handed Lee yet another impossible mission with the full expectation that he would achieve their goal regardless the personal price he and Kendal would have to pay. He focused on Keeper staring intently, the anger at their situation boiling just below the surface. "Well what do we do now?" he snapped.
"There is little we can do; it is all up to Crane. It would be best that you make preparations to recover your people since we have no idea how soon he will find the stone," it said neutrally.
"Agreed," Nelson replied. He reached across his desk and snapped on the intercom. "Chief Sharkey, report to my cabin immediately."
"Sharkey here, on my way sir."
Nelson nodded to himself and sat back in the chair. He once again regarded the alien before him for a moment. "Keeper, may I ask you a question?"
"Yes Nelson what would you like to know?"
"Why did you imprison this entity in the center of our planet, what was its crime?"
"Crime? Oh I understand. It is an entity very similar to us coming from the outer arm of this universe. Its appetites were for conquest, destruction and enslavement of everything in its path. It has an insatiable hunger for power and sought to subjugate and consume every resource it encountered systematically draining the life out of each place it touched. There is a balance to the universe and its activities threatened to destabilize that thereby affecting everything and everyone that existed on this plane. Finding its appetite growing beyond this universe's ability to feed it, it began manipulating singularities and other such portals to adjacent universes to feed its rapacious hunger and in the process destabilized those universes as well."
"As the situation became critical a meeting of entities was convened and a coalition was established to capture, contain and render it impotent before it destroyed everything. We swore an oath to keep safe this universe, hence we became the Keepers. What ensued was a violent and costly war that resulted in the destruction of innumerable worlds and beings across many universes. When finally we had backed it into a corner from which it could not escape we forced it to take physical form and then encased it in the iron cell that sits at the center of your world."
"Contained inside the core and in its physical state it was cut off from the energy and materials it needed to pursue its mad march for power. As I said we expected this planet to remain dead but as your sun grew hotter and additional materials and energies were added to this mass, the rock around the core began to heat and melt resulting in the living planet you call earth. Up until very recently the only influence it had on anything outside its cell was through the dreams and other subconscious states that you as sentient organisms experience. It has tried to encourage your people to destroy this planet since their first sentient thought."
"So are you saying it was responsible for the bloody and barbarous acts that have occurred throughout human history?" Nelson inquired.
"Only in a peripheral way, in its current form it can only suggest and urge not coerce or force a being to act. You as sentient beings always retain the free will to choose your ultimate path; the horrors let loose on your planet by your own kind are a conscious decision by those who choose to act on the suggestions planted in their minds. Once it finds an adept and willing acolyte it concentrates on that being feeding their dreams and desires to subjugate and destroy those around them. It urges them to develop more powerful weapons to decimate their enemies and in the process hopefully achieve its ultimate goal of planetary destruction and freedom. It strokes their egos and stokes their delusions urging them on to greater acts of aggression and destruction. As these humans begin to gain power, they draw others to them that desire the same, like moths to a flame. They create armies that make war against those they deem subhuman and beneath them. This in turn motivates those who oppose them to take up arms and resist, further escalating the development of weapons of war; examples of this progression of aggression litter your racial history. The closest it has come to realizing its goal was your most recent global war. Having harnessed the power of the atom, you now have the means to trigger an event that can release it from its prison."
"To your species' credit Nelson the opposing faction has always risen and united to drive back your most heinous aggressors. In victory they more often than not demonstrate restraint in exacting retribution and attempt to assimilate their enemies as opposed to destroying them. Where it succeeds in finding and exploiting those bent on domination and control, it ultimately fails because those actions spur the adepts committed to the opposing view to action and their numbers and abilities far exceed those it has corrupted."
"Adepts, what do you mean by adepts?" Harri inquired.
"These are the gifted members of your species. They are the ones that have one or more exceptional talents that serve to draw others to their cause and advance the species as a whole positively or negatively. An example of adepts can be found right here on your vessel, virtually every person aboard has abilities or characteristics far beyond the normal human. I have never seen such a large assembly of those with extraordinary gifts and potential in one place. Take you for example; your mental capabilities are far in excess of what the rest of your species exhibit, you're charismatic and can readily spot those of special talent and draw them to your cause, those are your gifts. Your son is yet another; his mental abilities are nearly equal to yours. He is an exceptional strategist, he is extremely empathetic, leads people with ease and he is able to draw out their special talents allowing him to prevail where others would fail. He also has an unequaled talent to read those of your species and rapidly divine their true intentions towards him or those he cares about; you would be well advised to make better use of that Nelson," Keeper said with a hint of amusement in its voice. "It has unwittingly chosen a most formidable foe to try and bend to its will and that will be its ultimate undoing," Keeper finished.
"I notice you keep calling it 'it' Does 'it' have a name?" Harri inquired.
Keeper stared over Nelson's head for a moment, its expression going blank as it quickly combed through the brief book of human history. Having found what it was after Keeper returned Harri's gaze. "Its true name is not something you could pronounce and would mean nothing to you. Humans have named it many things throughout time. In your culture it is called Satan, Lucifer and Devil."
Harri stared back in disbelief and shock. "My god then it really is the Devil at the door," he replied in a hushed voice. "So if it's the devil, are you 'God'?" he asked sarcastically.
Keeper smiled at Harri and shook its head. "No, not in the sense that you mean, we did not create life on this planet. We don't establish laws of moral conduct or deign to direct the actions of any creature on this or any world; we are only interested in preserving the status quo on a universal level. What proceeds naturally of its own accord is permitted to happen whether it offends our personal sensibilities or not; only when something acts to unnaturally alter that balance, like with the Devil, do we move to protect and return the equilibrium by whatever means necessary. To more primitive members of your species we would appear as gods based on the powers we possess and the things we can do. I have existed since nearly the dawn of time, when one exists that long one learns to control and manipulate quite a lot."
"You may not be 'God' but it sounds like you certainly play at it, especially with those who have no power," Harri replied coolly.
As Keeper prepared to respond there was a knock at the door. "Come," called Nelson.
* Aptitudes and Skill Sets posted on fanfiction