"Until The Last Moment"

Ensign Enrique de Marquez
Counselor

Ensign Vanda M'Giia
NPC Nurse

Lieutenant Anna Gartner
NPC Security Officer

*** Deck 36 ***

Vanda and Enrique ran as fast as they could from the turbolift down the corridor to Main Engineering. The medical teams were swamped with problems, and they were the closest - even though they were 20 decks up at the time.

Turning the corner, they came upon a team of security officers carrying the wounded out of Main Engineering. Vanda ran over to them, taking out a medical tricorder and a hypospray with a mild sedative out of the emergency medical kit. She scanned the unconcious ones first, her expression unreadable. Enrique could feel that the situation was quite serious.

"What is going on," Enrique asked one of the security officers.

"We're evacuating the Star Drive," she replied. "Only D5 hazard personnel are staying behind. Come on, help me get these people out of here. We have 30 minutes before the separation sequence is initiated."

Enrique looked back in the direction of Main Engineering. Smoke was billowing out of the broken doorway like it was a gateway to hell. Something inside Enrique made him want to go in and help the others, but the security officer grabbed his upper arm firmly.

"Ensign," she said. "There's nothing we can do. We have to follow orders."

Enrique looked at the Terran woman. She had a scar running down the right side of her face, something that could have easily been removed by cosmetic surgery, but was probably a reminder of a life-changing experience. He knew she was right, but he also knew there was a slim change the remaining officers would make it out alive. Not even a transporter could get them out of there fast enough to avoid the utter destruction of a warp core breach.

"Yes, Lieutenant," he replied, helping her carry one of the patients to the Jefferies tubes.

*** Deck 15 (19 minutes later) ***

Enrique and Anne struggled up the Jefferies tube shaft with an unconscious officer on their shoulders. Vanda was following just behind them, carrying the medical equipment.

"Finally, we're here," Anne said as they passed through the last hatch from the Star Drive into the Saucer Section. They gave the wounded officer to the rest of the security detail, and he was pulled up into the corridor. Everyone was panting and sweaty and tired from all the exertion. It had taken a lot to crawl through all those decks in 19 minutes.

Vanda summoned all of her strength to pull her up the last couple of steps. Suddenly the ship was rocked violently by an internal explosion, and Vanda lots her grip on the rails. Clinging onto the ladder with one hand, Vanda accidentally dropped the medical. She tried to get her grip, but her fingers slipped and she fell. She grabbed out blindly and caught the rail again. Vanda slammed against the rails and her breath was knocked by the blow.

Enrique looked on with horror as his friend fell. He let out a sigh of relief as she caught the rails just in time.

"Hold on Vanda!" he shouted down the dimly lit shaft. "We'll get you out of there!"

=/\= Initiating separation sequence =/\=

The blood drained out of Enrique's face as he heard the computer's cold, lifeless warning. It was too late to save Vanda. There was nothing they could do.

=/\= Sealing blast doors =/\=

"Enrique!" she shouted out of the darkness as the lights flickered. "I don't want to die!"

The hatch between them shut instantaneously, closing them off.

"Vanda! No!" Enrique cried, striking at the hatch with his fists.

=/\= Starship separation in 5.4.3.2.1. Separation sequence completed =/\=

"There's nothing you can do," Anna said, trying to pull him away.

"F*** you!" he yelled, shoving her away, tears running from his eyes. "She's my friend! I can't just leave her to die!"

Anna dragged Enrique away from the hatch out into the corridor with all the strength she could muster. He was trying to break free, but she kept holding on, trying to calm him down.

"Ensign! Get a hold of yourself!" Anna said, slapping him through the face. "That's an order."

"How dare you say that to me?" he cried, wiping the tears from his eyes. "You didn't just loose a friend! How would you know what it feels like?" The instant he said those last words, Enrique regretted it. His memory came rushing back to him, and he remembered reading Anna Gartner's personnel dossier; she had lost more than he could ever begin to imagine on Outpost 119. "I'm sorry," he apologized, taking a deep breath. "I'm not thinking rational."

"I know how you feel," she said, helping him stand up. "But right now we have a duty to perform."

Anna walked into a dimly lit maintenance room and went to one of the display screens. It was flickering on and off. She slammed her palm against it twice, and it stopped flickering. Enrique walked over to the view port and looked outside. The Star Drive was on a collision course with the Breen battlecruiser. He stared in silence as it rammed into the enemy. Enrique turned his head as Anna placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," she whispered.

There was a bright flash of light as the two ships exploded. Suddenly the Galaxy's saucer section changed direction, shifting the view of destruction to the left. And then they saw why. The warp core had exploded, sending a shockwave heading directly towards them.

"All hands, brace for impact!" came the command from Bridge.

It was futile. The shockwave would collide with them in a few seconds, and it was moving much faster than they were. Enrique grabbed Anna's hand, and a moment that felt like an eternity passed between them. In that moment, they shared a mutual fear of the oncoming death, but were somehow reassured that at least they wouldn't die alone.

“Point 003 Seconds to Impact”
By Lieutenant Mikala Pailaka
With excerpts from “Parting Shots”

***HMS Victory***

Mike looked up into the face of Captain Hardy, who stood on the poop deck pointing his sword at Mike like a death sentence. To either side of the captain stood a trio of musketeers.

Mike, bleeding and exhausted, stared directly back into the eyes of the captain. As if in slow motion, Hardy’s sword made a cutting motion in the air. Six hammers dropped, igniting six sparks and six clouds of smoke….

And then time seemed to stop. Mike blinked once or twice, uncertain if he was dead or alive. In front of him, less than two feet away, six musket balls hung motionless in the air. “What in heaven?” he murmured.

“No, not heaven old boy.” Spoke the cheerful voice of Trelane. “Not for another instant at least.” The foppish, omnipotent pirate captain had appeared out of nowhere, and other than Mike, was the only thing moving within sight. He extended a well manicured hand and plucked one of the musket balls out of the air, he examined it for a moment, rolling it around between his fingers nonchalantly before placing it back into its previous position.

"What's going on Trelane?" Mike asked, stepping out of the path of the projectiles and looking around at the frozen battle scene.

"I just spared your life." Said Trelane, with a broad grin. "I couldn't suffer to have a fighter such as yourself put down by such a cruel barrage. Why, that last display of bloodshed was by far the best yet. The pure savagery of it, the intensity in your eyes as you struggled against death…"

"I lost that struggle, Trelane." Said Mike grimly. "Or at least, I was about to until you stepped in."

"Thus showing I can be merciful." Trelane quickly pointed out.

"Fine, then restore everyone else." Said Mike. "Bring back Sanchez and the rest and then I'll think about being grateful."

"Oh come now!" said Trelane scoffing. "What good would that do? You can’t have a war without some sacrifices. But you know what they say… To the victors go the spoils!" He snapped his fingers and the scene around them instantly changed, as did Mike's appearance. Gone were his loincloth and tattoos and even his earlier wounds. Instead, he was dressed as a Spanish gentleman, in clothes as ostentatious as Trelanes. He was standing on a cobblestone palm lined path, leading up to a large white mansion. As he watched, a carriage pulled by a team of six horses passed them by, the coachman tipping his hat to them in salute. "Welcome to my humble abode." Said Trelane, smiling. Do you like it?"

"It suits you." Mike replied, the hint of sarcasm lost on the boyish godling.

"Trelane Manor has the best of everything Port Royal has to offer. Wine, women, song and wealth beyond compare, accumulated though my many daring adventures. And the best is yet to come, old shoe." Said Trelane, putting his arm around Mike's broad shoulders and leading him down the path. A pair of servants in scarlet jackets opened the double doors for them as they approached. Inside, Mike marveled at the expansive foyer, floored with Spanish tile and paneled with mahogany.

"Very nice, Trelane." Said Mike.

"And it will get even better with you at my side." Trelane replied. "Just think of it… You, me and whomever else we can convince, lording over the Caribbean. All you need to do is dump that stodgy old Price and throw your hat in with a real pirate captain!"

"Thanks." Said Mike. "But I'll pass."

"Surely you jest!" Replied Trelane, with a look of astonishment. Then his face took on a sly grin. "Ah, I see. You want more. Spoken like a true buccaneer!" Trelane clapped his hands. "Oh Countess! Come meet our new arrival!"

Mike's jaw dropped as the stunning woman glided into the foyer. She was perfect in nearly every way, and hauntingly familiar, though Mike was certain they had never met.

"Is the brave and handsome sea dog you were telling me about, Lord Trelane?" she asked, her voice lyrical. She extended her hand and Mike, in spite of himself, bowed and took her hand in his own and kissed it. The countess smiled. "And a gentleman as well! I do hope you will be staying for a while good sir, for already, the thought of your departure pains me."

Mike smiled and turned back to Trelane. "She's lovely." He said. "But you can forget about me joining you willingly. It's not going to happen."

"But why?" Trelane nearly whined. "Everything could be just perfect. I could make it so, just you wait and see."

"Sorry." Said Mike. "While I'm certain I'd enjoy the adventure, and the company.." he glanced over at the Countess and shot her a smile. "I make it a rule never to play with cheaters."

Trelane nearly choked on his next words. "Cheaters? Me? Why I never!"

"Never?" Said Mike. "Try all the time."

"That's an insult to my character and you are on dangerous grounds sir!" Warned Trelane.

"You're worse than a Fergengi croupier at a dabo table full of blind men!" Mike continued.

"Now I say, that's a bit below the belt!"

"And what's worse, you do not even realize what you are doing is wrong!" Mike added.

"Name one example!" challenged the pirate captain.

"Only one?" said Mike sarcastically. "All right, how about giving Nelson's ships a favorable wind all to themselves?"

"That wasn't cheating!" Trelane insisted. "I was simply embellishing the story!"

"Ha!" Mike laughed. "You knew Price was the better captain, and on a level playing field, would have trounced your manufactured enemies. You couldn't bear the thought of loosing to an ordinary Human!"

Trelane was becoming red in the face. "It's my story! I can write it however I wish!"

"Ah, the lament of a child, wondering why no one wants to play in his sandbox." Mike retorted. "For all I know you may be a god, Trelane. But you will never be half the man that Captain Price is!"

"Fine, have it your way!" Trelane roared. "You want to play without my interference, be my guest!" He snapped his fingers…

…Point 003 seconds later, Mike was thrown backwards by the impacts of the musket balls, spun in the air and landed on his stomach on the deck of the HMS Victory, his head to one side. As he watched, a warm pool of blood began to expand across the deck.

His eyes began to close, and his thoughts went to calmer seas, the sapphire blue waters of his native Pacifica. In his mind, he imagined that he was floating.

A tremendous explosion rocked the Victory from below decks as a soft rattle in Mike's chest signaled his final breath as flames began to lick up from below….

*** ***

It seemed as if only an instant had passed since the impact, when Mike suddenly found himself back in his EVA suit with the rest of the away team, the chill of his blood draining away still cascading through his mind. The Gothos was once again a silent ship in the void of space and nearby, the USS Galaxy hovered like a shining beacon, seemingly intact.

A minute later, he was back on board and removing his helmet. The air had never tasted sweeter. Mike had always tempted fate, with his cliff diving, free descents and other antics, but tempting fate and cheating fate were two different things. He had died, of that he had no doubt. It was both the most terrifying and exhilarating experience of his life, and it was going to take a while to sort out in his mind. But for now, he was content to follow his Captain to the bridge and to resume his old position at the helm, where hopefully, he could put as much distance between the Galaxy and Trelane has humanly possible.

*** ***

Lieutenant Mikala Pailaka
Chief Helmsman, USS Galaxy
AKA
David Friedland
ICQ# 5805168

Death's Mercy

Lt. Jake T. Olson
USS Galaxy
T-Prea & Jake's quarters

In many ways, T-Prea was a lucky woman, for she died in meditation, and Bud passed in his sleep.

T-Prea had finally gotten Bud to sleep and had decided to meditate. She needed the mental rest. She slipped deep into trance, but was able to wake should the baby cry.

A robust boy, Bud was growing at great rate. He looked nothing like his father Jake Olson. He was big, and very strong. At seven months, the child was on hands and knees and into anything he could get hands on. He never got sick. As needed for such a curious, and determined little resident, the quarters had all but been cleaned out. He weighed in at 22 pounds.

The explosion threw Bud out of his play pen (Jake didn't care for cribs as they could prove risky for such a lively child) and smashed his head like a pumpkin against the wall. He never awoke, it happened so fast.

The wall, after impacting with Bud, collapsed like tissue over the meditating T-Prea. Her neck snapped.

All happened in 1.5 seconds.

"Bloody Memories"
by Lt. Cmdr. George Kirk
ACSO

Kirk was knocked off his feet as the storm started getting out of hand. Water washed over him, making him even colder than he was before. George sluggishly fought his way back to his feet. The water soaked him thoroughly. He could see Captain Price and Trelane arguing, even in this storm. George tried to get closer, so he could hear what was going on, but his feet came out from under him and he hit the deck hard. He fought to get back to his feet, but his body refused to listen. Slowly, he felt himself begin to go unconscious. He also knew that if he went out, he'd never get up again.

George closed his eyes, just wanting to get the water out, and he felt himself slip away. And then, he was on his feet again, gravity taking hold. George did everything he could to keep from falling over. George looked down at his body. He wasn't in pirate clothes anymore. He was back in the EVA suit. George looked out from the screen of hardened plastic in front of his face. He didn't have a clue what was going on. He looked at the others and by the looks on their face, they didn't know either. He watched as Captain Price called the Galaxy and then he felt it. His hand was returned. He moved it, testing to see if the fingers worked. They all did. George clenched his hand open and shut, watching it in awe. And then he felt the cool tingle of the transporter wash over him and he was back on the Galaxy.

After a brief discussion, Captain Price made his way to the bridge while the others stripped off their suits or went to their posts or other areas. George was the last person in the locker room, changing out of his EVA suit and putting it up. He removed his duty jacket from its' hanging. He'd started sweating for seemingly no reason. He closed his eyes and in his mind he saw the big sailor with the axe, bringing the weapon down on him. George jerked his head to the side, getting rid of the memory. He could feel the blood leaking out of his body, mingling with the blood of the men he'd slaughtered in combat. He'd never come that close to death. He'd never fought with or seen that kind of savagery. He dabbed away the sweat and ran a hand across his forehead. He'd been so cold not long ago. George sat down on the bench, feeling weak. He pushed at the sweat beading his forehead and upper lip. His hands had started shaking. George held them close to his body, trying to make them stop. And then, his left hand tensed up and pain shot through his body from the hand. George opened his mouth to scream, but the pain had robbed his body of oxygen. It felt like the hand was engulfed in flames and being stabbed with a thousand needles.

George doubled over, trying to will the pain to stop. Slowly, for what seemed like hours, the pain began to subside. George took several deep breaths, trying to gain control of himself. George held up his hand and looked at it. It looked the same as it always had. But it felt different. He clenched his fist, and felt the fingers and nails bite into the flesh. George stared at his hand. He stood up and grabbed the corner of the locker. He pressed his hand as hard as he could into the locker and jerked down. The cut opened up on his hand and blood began to flow. But what George was concerned with was that he felt pain. It was a sensation in that hand he hadn't felt in a year. George quickly wiped away the blood and dressed the wound the best he could. It wasn't a bad scratch. He tested his other hand, a little more carefully. He had no sensation, just like before. George shut the locker door and slipped on his duty jacket as quickly as possible. He had a report to make to 'Commander Albrecht, but that would have to wait. He wanted to know just what it was Trelane had done to him. As he stepped out, he dodged suddenly, seeing one of the British officers who'd attacked him. It was just another officer from the Galaxy, looking at George with puzzlement. George nodded at the man and wiped at the sweat covering his face and felt the heat from his own face. The sensation was new to George after all this time. He had to figure out what happened to him.

"Till Death Do We Part"
By LtCmdr Michala Lynn and
Lt(jg) Eric Odin

Eric limped over to to Michala bleeding from his forehead, his wounds from the bruns partially opened and his arm looked broken as well. He also appeared to have a sprained ankle. He spoke with some obvious strain and pain in his voice,"Hey doc, I think it's time for that follow up check up." He droppedto one knee and asked,"Can you help me with the ship the way it is?"

Michala paled a little for he was in worse shape then when she had sent him out. She had helped move the walking wounded to a more secure location for the seperation. She had been forced to leave Dee behind. Their location now, with systems as they were, left only a system of first aid readily available. "I can help you, lieutenant." Her words were simple and direct as she led him to a place where he could lay down.

The first thing she did was administer a mild pain killer so he would be more relaxed. Only then did she scan for what damage he had managed to avail himself of this time. "Mind telling me how you ended up like this?" She asked the question with a half-grin to set him at ease.

"I was in main engineering trying to help keep things running and durig the course of the battle part of a bulkhead flew at me and that's when I shielded myself with my arm. That's why it looks so bad. I tried to help out as much as i could after that, but I couldn't focus very well. I ended up being ordered here, because of how I looked. I don't feel so hot either. I have one hell of a headache too."

Michala smiled down at him. She liked this young man, he had spunk and determination. "Well Hero, I would say that your headache would be due to this large bump on your head and the resulting concussion." Michala was repairing what she could with the supplies they had. She would have to set the broken arm and splint it for now.

He smiled to her and said,"Thanks Doc. I hope I can recover enough to help repair what's left of the ship. How are you holding up Doc?This must be hard on you too."

"A doctor doesn't notice how hard things are till they are done being hard. Ask me tomorrow and I will give you a proper answer." Her answer was serious but her tone was light. "I believe that you are going to be off duty for a bit this time, Lieutenant. There is nothing I can do for these injuries till the systems are repaired and you are not going to be the one doing the repairing." She saw his look of rebellion. "That is an order, Lieutenant!" Her tone more firm. "Do you understand."

He nodded and said,"Yes ma'm. I will stay away from work until we get the ship fixed."

"Good, I would hate to have to sedate you but I will if you force me too. Now, I have to set this arm and it is going to hurt. Are you ready?" Michala waited for him to brace himself and then firmly pulled the arm into place. It had to have hurt because she was forced to twist it some to realign the bone properly. She quickly splinted the injury. "Okay?"

He let out a small grunt of pain and then said,"Oh yah much better. You know that pain was so much better than the other one." He laughed alittle and then said,"Seriosly, thanks doc."

Michala smiled. "Oh don't thank me yet. I am not done torturing you." She moved to his ankle probing for where the damage was the worst. "Let me guess, this hurts right here?" She pushed on an extremely tender spot on Odin's ankle.

He grunted and his neck tightened as she did that and he then said,"Oh yah. Forgot about the ankle. That kinda hurts."

"It should, you have torn it some in addition to the sprain. You know, I think you left one limb in tact, care to try again?" She asked teasing him into a smile as she probed and then wrapped the tender ankle.

He smiled to her,"No, thanks I think you found the right spot. You are a very skilled doc and a good comedian too."

Michala stood up and stretched. "I must have been funny in a former life." She grinned down at him.

He grinned right back at her and said,"You're just a natural."

She smiled down at Odin when something went horribly wrong. The ship lurched as if hit by a large object. Sounds of explosions began to rocket through the ship. Michala landed ontop of Odin, she glanced into his eyes, her fear echoed in his. She looked up and felt as if her heart stopped. A large ball of fire rocketed towards her, ending her brief existence before it had barely began.

After feeling Michala and himself die, he found himself with Michala in a completely unfamiliar place. It wasn't disconcerting at all and their bodies were unharmed in any way. He felt an overwhelming peace and the new place they were both in was bright with a brilliant white light. He turned to Michala and said,"We're both dead and that means the Galaxy must of been destroyed in that fireball. How do you feel?"

Michala looked at Odin in shock. "We can't be dead. We are talking?" She had just started living, how could she be dead? She looked around not knowing where they were. Her voice grew hysterical. "How can we be dead together and there be no one else here?"

He grabbed her by her shoulders and looked to her and said,"We are dead and my guess is we're in a waiting room or something. I know this must be hard to understand. We're in the afterlife."

Michala shook her head in shock. She didn't believe in the afterlife. This had to be a dream. She looked at Odin in fear. If it was a dream, why could she feel him. Michala went to ask him a question.

She blinked and was sitting in her bed. She looked around. Where was Lt. Odin? How did she get here? Had it all been a dream? She jumped out of the bed. [Computer: Locate Lt. Odin]

[Lt.Odin is in his quarters.]

What was going on? She knew she had met this man. Would he remember it to? She decided to go find him. She had to know. Michala left her quarters determined to find the man she had died with.

Eric found himself back at his console in his room. What had just ahppened? hadn't he just died? He looked himself over and saw that he was looking good with no injuries. He then remembered Michala, where was she? Was she back onboard as well? He deicded to Make a visit to Sickbay to find out soon enough. He first had to sort out some things first he would then go looking for Michala. He remebered everything that had happened and he had no idea why everything seemed all back to normal now. He sorted through his questions sitting at his console and thinking through what happened.

"Home Again, Home Again"

Gailyn had all but forgotten the nausia his kind often experienced when placed in temporal flux. It was simply one of the many prices they had paid to be what they were. The pain in his side was great, but the el aurien knew it was no where near anything vital. He watched with great sorrow as one by one the Galaxy away teams started to dwindel. Death was no stranger to the virtually immortal alien, and he knew that each passing greatly diminished the universe as a whole. A dull thump to his right drew his attention as he watched George Kirk collapse from multiple injuries. Quietly Gailyn said a prayer over the dead human.

"You're not like them." the voice of Trelane hissed in his ear.

Gailyn's head snapped up at the intrusion, and he turned to gaze at the super-being with his non-commital el aurien eyes "No, I am not." he replied simply.

Trelane studied him for a moment, his eyes squinted before he suddenly sucked in a breath and spat in the taller alien's face "El Aurien scum. I should have known by the way you took to the ship. Of course you have sailed on one before." The godling turned back to Captain Price who was watching the exchange with some degree of interest "If you knew what I knew about the El Auriens Price, you would do well to escort him to the air lock." Trelane intoned with a sneer.

"Mr. Gailyn is a valued member of my crew Trelane, and has proven himself time and time again to be an honorable fellow. It's more than I can say for most." Price retorted, his steel blue eyes boring into the petulant fop. Gailyn watched with increased interest as the war of words between the Captain and their kidnapper heated up. For a moment, the tall alien thought the stress had finally done Price in, but smiled slightly when he finally figured out the Captain's stragedy. Then, almost as if the whole thing never happened, everything was gone. Gailyn took a deep breath of the recirculated atmosphere of his EVA suit, looking around at the ageless vacume of space. Another moment later, he was encased in the soft glow of the transporter beam and whisked away to the safety of the Galaxy...an no doubt a major scolding from Electra.

"Back alive... chance for a skive."
By Ensign Peter Lockhart

Peter blinked and started to yawn, then recalled why he was on deck three. Firstly, he was dead, which was always a bugger, and second he'd lost his memory, which hadn't helped. He looked around and noticed Chris Aaron standing nearby, looking dazed and confused. He remembered that Chris had been killed by a falling bulkhead but he didn't know who he was because he thought he was Cadet Lockhart, not Ensign.

"This is confusing." Peter said slowly. Chris Aaron made no reply, other than to open and close his mouth so Peter continued. "I presume we're dead Chris, and this is the afterlife. Not very pleasant is it? Having to spend more time on the Galaxy."

"Maybe we're not dead." Chris said.

"Oh no!" Peter laughed. "I quite clearly remember being vaporized by a breen energy weapon. I speak from experience, I've been butchered."

"And I remember having the bulkhead fall on me and crush..." Chris said, petering off at the end.

"So, we've established that fact. We're dead." Peter said.

"Are you certain?" said a female voice. Peter turned to see the Yeoman... Yeoman Banks he remembered now... approaching the pair.

"Yes. I think." Peter added, less confidently. "Where did you get to?" he suddenly asked.

"I was standing behind you sir, when you where opening the panel." she merely said, choosing not to add that she'd too been vaporized.

"Ensign Smith to Ensign Aaron." suddenly came over the comm. channel. "Are you okay?"

Chris tapped his badge, out of instinct and replied, "Me and Ensign Lockhart are on deck three. We seem to be okay. What happened?"

"Not fully certain yet. Reports are still sketchy, but it seems we were all killed, and restored by some sort of God-like entity that is on the Gothos.... sort of like a Q." Ensign Smith explained.

"So I am alive after all?" Peter asked.

"Yes, and you're on duty as well!" came the voice of Lieutenant Elaithin over the comm. channel. "Report to security."

Peter sighed loudly and replied, "Yes sir."

Chris however had decided other things. "Sir, is Ensign Mason alive. Can I go and see her?"

"She's on the bridge Chris. Request granted." Jii said, and closed the channel.

Chris smiled and said, "I've got to go and see her Pete." and started jogging off to the nearest turbolift.

"Why does he get all the breaks?" Peter started ranting to the Yeoman. "Just cos he's got a girlfriend means he gets to skip duty. I feel faint. I think the trauma of being killed is having a negative effect on my work. I'm going to put in for some time off. I think I've got a pretty valid excuse. Need to rest after being vaporized. That's bound to be worth a few weeks rest."

Yeoman Banks was merely smiling and when Peter turned to her, she nodded her head and said, "I agree sir. I know exactly what you mean."

"Excellent. Well then Yeoman. Carry on." Peter said, and turned towards the turbolift, wondering how he could get a few days off in order to recuperate from his 'traumatic' experience.

USS Galaxy "The Fallout of Gothos"
Written By Ens. Darren Jones
Operations Officer, USS Galaxy

Darren rested laying on his back in his quarters - the smell of gun powder and burning wood lingering on in his mind.

Such destruction and violence, bringing war upon neighbors and involving the innocent. This thing that brought the away team to the Gothos was no better than he claimed the human race was!

Darren continued to lay there, looking up at his ceiling - the gray regulation color of the federation reflecting in almost everything his eyes gazed upon. Something then snapped inside of Darren's mind - the past last couple of months on earth, the break up of a 3 year relationship and the hurt that followed forced Darren to stand up and go to the Galaxy's gym.

**** Galaxy's Gym ****

Darren walked in taking off his top and allowing his gray singled to show the light of day. He moved to a small locker, pulling out a pair of padded kick boxing gloves - he moved to the big punching bag that hung in a corner of the gym.

Darren stood there a second as if waiting for the defenseless bag to throw a punch - he sized the bag up and started punching it with quick and rapid movements. Moving in and out, ducking and weaving - as if he were fighting an imaginary opponent.

Darren's anger flowed like a river through him, his body heating up and starting to cover his body in a sheen of sweat. Darren stopped and took off the gloves, throwing them to the floor and returning to punching the bag with all his might. His hands, those of an artists and as soft as silk soon started to open up and bleed.

Darren continued to punch not feeling any pain - the anger and adrenalin flowing like two powerful forces. He finally looked down at the bloodied bag and then to his cut and swollen hands - he stared at them. Sweat poring from every part of his body - Darren calmly wiped the bag clean and walked out of the gym.

Darren entered sickbay, his arms now covered in blood from the cuts that covered the top of his hand. He looked around "Um can I get some help here?" He asked a passing nurse who quickly scurried off to get a doctor.

"A Celebration of Living"
by By Dr. Brooke O'Connell
and
Lt. Tim O'Connell, Security Officer

Brooke sat, not knowing exactly what happened. She was trying to figure it out. For her, she had never experienced anything so bazarre.

Tim was up he was just as puzzled as Brooke, his arms weren't tinglinh as the burns were, and his breating was easy and painless. Getting up he walked over to the crib and picked up Liam who cooed and waved his fists. Walking out in to the living room Tim asked, "Brooke, did you just have the strangest dream?"

"I'm...not...sure. Was it a dream? I can't be sure. It seemed so real." She stood up and walked over to them and gave Liam a kiss on the forehead, caressed his little cheek and ran her finger down to his little chin, "What do yu remember?"

"Well one minute I was back from sickbay, my lungs were sore and I was off duty for a while with injuries. Now i'm fine." He hands Liam to Brooke and lets her hold him, he showes her his arms, "no pink tissue."

She visually examines his arms, "I don't understand it. I'm just glad to know that it wasn't real."

"But I remember it. " He walked to the console, "Computer what is the current medical duty status of Lt Timothy O'Connell

A chirp and then the computer replied, "Lieutenant O'Connell is on light duties due to burns on his trachea and lungs."

Brooke was totally confused, "Okay, so it really happened. But it all seemed like a dream. I feel like I just went through one of those temporal anomalies or something."

Tim shook his head, "We're starfleet officers, wierd is part of the job. I think I heard that once."

"Well, I know that if I sit here and try to figure it out, I'm going to drive myself crazy. Weird may be part of the job but right now, i don't want it."

"Then what should we do, think, relax, drink coffee just hug our son." Tim smiled and leaned over to kiss her cheek.

She looked at him, "All of the above. Whatever happened, I'm glad that you're better."

Tim smiled, "I'm glad to be better."

Brooke smiled back, "So where's my coffee?"

Tim leaned in for a kiss, "one track mind tonight."

"I have to. Anyway, you brought up the coffee," she teased.

Tim smiled and snuck in a kiss, this time a nice soft one. "Now I'll get you coffee."

While she waited for it, her mind kept becoming occupied with thoughts of what could have happened. She looked at her child and was grateful that if they'd really did died, that they were given a second chance to live. She was gazing at Liam, almost in a trance, when Tim walked back out.

He handed her a cup of coffee, "You ok Rocky?" he asked curiously as he sat across from her.

"Hmm? I'm sorry, I wasn't listening. My mind keeps thinking about this whole thing."

"Want to talk, might make things easire."

She took a sip, holding the scalding liquid away from Liam, "Only if you have a theory and you can explain to me what and why it happened."

"I have a letter that might explain everything."

"A letter? And how did you get something like that?"

"Think of it, did you read the briefings from the Enterprise crew on Q?"

"I never had time. If I remember correctly, I was up to my elbows in patients."

"Ok true, but Q or Q aliens, have brought people back from death before. and this sounds like his MO."

"Okay, well if Q's are involved, then I can see what possibly happened.

"Yup. Sounds like that would explain everything." Tim began to massage her shoulders.

"Well then, hats off to the Q for having the decency to spare our lives."

"Quite true." He gently nibbled on her ear, "we owe him a lot."

"Well, we don't owe him that much. They shouldn't have been involved in the first place." She relaxed a little as Liam laid in her lap, "Let's not talk about it anymore."

"I'll agree with that."

Liam started to fuss. He didn't like to be dirty and was starting to get worked up so she went and changed him, putting him in new clothes too. "So, how about getting out of here and maybe take a walk around the ship or something and maybe see if everyone else is confused?"

Tim nodded, "that sounds good to me." He got up and looked at his sleeping attire, "I better change though."

Brooke laughed, "Might be a good idea."

Tim shrugged, "Or you could come in here and we could celebrate our being alive........" He grinned slyly, teasing her, somewhat.

"You might have to ask Liam about that. He doesn't look like he's planning to go to sleep, not for awhile anyway.

Tim looked at his son and scooped him in his arms. "Liam m'boy. Your daddy is going to need some alone time with your mommy, now that means you're gonna have to go to sleep for a bit." He rocked his son gently whispering in his ear, Soon Liam had dozed off and Tim put him in his crib. "He'll be out for a while......I hope."

She whispers, "Tim, you are just too good."

Tim smiled, "I love the little guy." He turned to Brooke and slipped his arms around her, "and I love you."

She returns his smile "I love you too." She puts her arms around him as well, "So, what do you exactly have in mind?"

Tim looked in her eyes and kissed her lips softly, "perhaps...." He kissed her again, "we can celebrate our new lease on life."

"Provided that Liam stays asleep." She looks in on him one more time, "He may just stay asleep long enough for us to celebrate." She said in a teasing matter.

Tim smiled, "I think I put him to sleep. Just a little singing. some soft words and he's out." He gently touched his nose to hers. "Did I tell you that yo look beautiful today."

"You just did. Thank you. I believe it's true what they say, that love is blind."

Tim gazed in her eyes and smiled, "Love may be blind but you my dear darling Dr O'Connell are a major babe."

Brooke smiled back and kissed him, "And you my dear are a major hunk."

Tim kissed her back, "I know I've seen some ensigns checking you out...." he grinned, "kinda makes me feel special, guys are still checking out my wife."

"Well, I am not exactly an old lady. If they stopped looking, then I would have to worry." she teased.

Tim smiled, "They never will." They walked in to the bedroom and he sat on the bed.

"Even if they do stop, it doesn't matter as long as you don't stop looking at me." She stood there, smiling at him.

Tim reached up and took her hands in his, "I'll never stop, when we're old and grey I'll still think you're the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.

She teased, "You better or you'll face my wrath and you know what happens then."

"I sleep on the couch and have to spenda lot of time on the holodeck." He pulled her on to his lap with a grin.

"That's right." She put her arm around him, "But that will never happen, right?" She looked at him with a playful stern look.

Tim nodded, "You know that's the truth."

She started to laugh, "Good, I'm glad we see eye to eye."

Tim slipped his arms around her. "So, how to celebrate our new life."

She smiled and got a serious look on her face, "Just being here with you is enough of a celebration. Being thankful that we have each other and a beautiful baby too."

Tim smiled and kissed her, "It's enough for me."

She hugged him tightly, "Have I told you lately how much I love you?"

"Not as much as I love you." Tim smiled, running his fingers along her back.

"Well, if that is true then you must love me more than anything in this world because that is how I feel about you." She looked into his eyes, "Promise me that no matter how old we get that we will tell each other how much we love each other all the time."

"I promise." He hugged her tightly. "I promise."

Brooke pulled slightly away, looked at him with love in her eyes and kissed him, this time with a great deal of emotion, almost a sultry kiss.

Which Tim returned, this time it became more passionate and his hands caressed her cheek.

Brooke never needed to say anything. When she looked at him, her abundant love for him showed through her eyes and her smile. This time, her love for him was even more intense. Maybe it was the realization that life could end in a blink of an eye. She would never take him or life for granted. She was grateful that a second chance at life was given to them. She spoke in almost a whisper, "Thank you for being in my life."

Tim looked in her eyes, he smiled and reached up to wipe away a tear from her cheek, "Thank you for being in my life."

She smiled at him once more and went back to kissing him. She wanted to show him how much she loved him the best way she knew. She stripped off the top part of her clothes and began to kiss him again, this time, more fervently. She whispered in his ear, "Let's celebrate."

Tim smiled and kissed her back, "you seem to have read my mind my darling." He nuzzled her neck gently and began to peel off his shirt.

After awhile, their kissing became more intense. She stripped off the rest of her clothes, revealing herself to him as she had done many times before.

Tim did the same thing and their passions seemed to burn together. They shared their joy in being alive together. Afterwords Tim laid next to her holding her hand in his.

"Isn't life wonderful? From now on, I think that I will never complain again when things are tough. Just being alive is the most important thing."

"No arguments here. Living is the most important

She smiles, "It's even more so because I get to live it with you."

Sitting up Tim heard a high pitched cry, "Right on schedule. Liam." He grinned and kissed her gently. I think that's a mommy cry."

"I think he wants to celebrate too." She got up, pulled on a robe and got Liam,"Hey there little one." Liam had quieted down as soon as she picked him up. She brought him back to the bed.

Tim sat up and took his son in his arms, "Hey buddy, you want to go to 10 foreward today, you me and mommy?"

He smiled, cooed and kicked his feet like he was already walking there himself. "Well, if we are going to 10-Foreward, I guess I better get dressed."

Tim chuckled, "no let's go naked.......they'd love it."

Brooke hit him, "No way. My body is for your eyes only." She got up, "You change him while I get dressed."

Tim chuckled and began to change Liam as she slipped off to change. Finally his son was in diapers and a fresh set of clothing. "He's ready, now I need to dress."

Brooke took him from his dad, "Thanks Tim. Next time, I'll let you get dressed first and I'll change him." She took him in the other room and waited for him to finish.

Tim stepped out, dressed casuallly and ready to go. "Ready to go my darling. Shall we hit the lounge?"

She grabbed some stuff for Liam, "That sounds like a plan to me."

Tim scooped his son up and they walked out and in to the lounge.

There was a lot of people there, all talking about what happened. Several of them they even knew. "Maybe we should ask a few of them to join us, what do you think?"

Tim nodded, "sounds like a good idea. Why don't we ask around?"

Smiling at someone they knew, "Okay, let's."

"Smoozing"
By: Jake Olsen and Mhari Stone

Jake Olson had spent a long while with his family, now he had his rambunctious three month old in a nul grav carrier attatched to his chest and a chattery Scott. A beauty approached, and Scott's eyes were all over the place naturally.

Mhari was already seated at the bar when she noticed Jake. She stood, smiled and walked over to him. She had never really and truely met him yet. "Heya, how have yah been?"

"We're fine, this is my son, Bud, friend Scott." The baby looked darkly Vulcan, looking up at his father with black eyes. Obviously very strong.

"It is his, I know they don't look much alike!" Scott wasn't keen on talking about babies. It was clear he wanted to talk something else.

"What a sweety." She smile sweetly at the baby. She looked at Scott out of the corner of her eye and smiled but quickly turned her attention back to Jake. "Very cute kid. You must be very proud."

"Oh yes! He crawls everywhere now, and everything within reach is strictly game."

The topic of discussion studied the newcomer.

"What do you do on ship?" Scott smiled.

"I beat up people," she said with a wink. "Kidding. I'm a security officer. And what occupation have you choosen to do for the rest of your life?" She giggled.

"We're science officers," Jake grinned empishly. The love he shared with his boy was obvious. The baby snuggled.

"Why would you want to do security?!" Scott blerted out. -She was so beautiful!-

"I enjoy it. I've been fighting since I was 2, might as well make it an occupation. Go for what you're good at, right?" She winked again. "So, how about a drink, all? There's a table over there." She pointed to an empty table by the window.

"Sure!" Jake and baby ambled behind Scott. "I was always dreaming up something or other that was both crazy and fun for the gang, and landed me in science. Kept my mind alive while in hospital, not real healthy as a kid. Glad Bud didn't take after ME! Took after a grandparent on T-Prea's side of the family."

"Still not healthy." Scott was obviously recovering from the bombshell Mhari dropped.

"Yea. Tell me about it." Jake grinned. "But Hell, didn't stop me. Puked my way into Star Fleet!"

"Attractive," she said and laughed. "Sounds like a bundle of fun. My brother did something like that but it wasn't for the same reason. We visited a couple more bars then we should have." She smiled and started for the table she pointed out.

"Jake can't drink at all." Scott snickered.

"Alcohol acts like battery acid rather than a light buzz." Jake said.

"Hi," an attractive young blonde saw her ex admiring a young woman and decided to muscil in.

"Hi Susan!" Jake smiled while Scott fumed. "My son, Bud, and this is Mhari."

"Glad to meet yah," she said smiling and grabbed another chair so she could seat with them. She plopped in her own seat. "So, how's life, everyone?"

"Mine's doing great." Susan grinned at Jake, who dispite not being much older than she, was acting in a parental role to the girl.

Scott gave her a murderous glare.

"You lost your head to that stupid blonde reporter! Gail Buckman, bitch extraordinary!" Susan was clearly hurt.

Scott deliberately ignored her. Jake shook his head. "At least -you- know what commitment means Jake!"

"She wouldn't leave my girlfriend alone, I threatened to slip a slug in her underwear drawer!" Jake smiled.

Mhari looked at the group in confusion, her smile disappeared. "Umm..." she rose a hand. "Lost and drifting over here. Did I miss something?"

"My appologies," Jake offered. "Just some growing pains."

Scott stared holes into Jake. "Your younger than I am!"

"Hey now children, must we fight?" Her smile returned. "Come on now. Can't we all just get along?"

"Shut up!" Scott yelled at Mhari.

Mhari sat back and tried to hide her smile. She wanted to say more but restrained herself. She simply motioned for a waitress. "Can you bring my drink from the bar?" she said, ignoring the conversation at the table. "Anyone else want anything?"

"Ah, I don't mean to be rude, but Bud needs a change." Jake grinned.

"Can't you think about anything other than dirty diapers?"

Jake got up, and smiled. "It was nice meeting you!" he said to Mhari.

Mhari smiled back at him. "It was nice meeting you too. Once again, cute kid." She waved to little squirt.

The squirt smiled in 'fairwell' as Jake hustled off. Susan followed Jake like a duckling after mother duck.

Scott looked at Mhari blankly, wondering what to say.

The waitress brought the glass and set it down in front of her. "Sure you don't want anything?" Mhari asked Scott.

"Scared Pigeons"
by Lt Jg. Kira Murphy, Medical (General & Paediatrics) and
Fooey, Tykellian Pigeon
------------------------------------------------------------

Flapping her wings frantically, Fooey spun around the room, sqwauking loudly.

For some unknown reason, her fragile little mind had the memory of a loud bang and lots of pain along with a bright red glow.

***************************

Moving down the corridor as fast as she could in her anti-grav suit, Kira rushed to the door of her quarters and stepped into her quarters. A blur flew past her as she stripped her suit off. Kicking off the door, she headed to the center and used her suit to ensare her frightened pet. Opening the shirt, she chirped and rubbed Fooey, who started calming down.

Releasing her pigeon, she floated in midair and rubbed her pet.

Using her arms to give herself some momentumn towards the replicator, she headed over there and replicated one of Fooey's special birdseed dispensers. Leaving it in the air, she smiled when Fooey moved to it and started eating.

Checking the time, she realised she was on duty in half an hour.

"Just enough time for a shower."

Kicking off the wall, she headed to the bathroom.

***************************

Stepping out of the shower as water ran down her naked body, Kira dried herself with a towel and stepped out into her room. Pulling open her cupboard, she got out a fresh anti-grav suit and slipped into it before heading out into the corridor.

Entering sickbay five minutes later, she was about to start some diagnostics when a nurse came upto her.

"Excuse me, Lt. I know you are a paediatrician but there is an ensign who needs help."

Smiling, she said,

"That's okay. I do general medicine as well."

Picking up a tricorder, she moved across the room and opened the tricorder. Looking up, she gasped when she saw Darren's hands.

"Confusion"
By
Lt. Jg Navarre Shinta
Gavin Navarre

Shinta took a deep breath and then drew her crying son towards her. She distinctly remembered holding the boy's limp dead body in her arms before dying violently herself. And now suddenly here they were like nothing had happened. It was not a good feeling. And she had not heard from Bruce in ages. Shinta prayed that he would be okay.

"Mum." Gav wailed. "Mum."

"Shhh, it's okay, hon." She held him close to her chest. "It's all okay now, darling. Mummy is here."

The boy was still so thin. The plants hadn't helped either. The boy loved being a gardener, and Shinta was glad he had a hobby and a new friend. But as a cure it wasn't working and he was wasting. Maybe it was time to ask Brooke for that last cure. If only it wouldn't make her so scared. If that failed too. Maybe she should talk to Karyn about it first. Yes, Shinta decided. That was exactly what she would do.

Lt. Jake T. Olson (unauthorized appearance by Lt.Cmdr Sullax)
USS Galaxy

"You made an utter ass out of your self, Scott my man." Jake told Scott rather sternly. Jake was setting up some specimens in a green house. Scott was staring glumly.

"Ah, from the cotton haired fuck who got whatever he wanted." he sulked.

Jake stared at the other from one knee. "I'm not the guy who always gets what he wants. I just grew up faster. We are the same age but I have it together and you don't."

"Have you looked in a mirror lately? You look like E.T. on L.S.D.!"

"Scott, I am a man who's happily married with a son. I am a Lieutenant, and I don't hurt every girl I come into contact with." Jake brushed his hands of dirt. "You need to grow up before you fuck up so badly that you can't undo the damage. I suggest you watch what you say to higher ranking officers as well."

Jake got up, dusted himself off, and made back to main science. "You are the one to tell me..."

"Yes I am. I feel like I am dealing with a teen aged son, I feel like I have two children rather than one. I am very afraid you are going to get into something serious you can't handle. Excuse me, but I don't think you want to run into Lt.Cmdr Sullax right now!"

"Yes Sir," Scott snarled sullenly. Gave a sharp turn, and quickly moved opposite of science in a proper huff. Jake watched him go, then turned, he had a project to complete.

"Second filthy diaper of the day," Jake muttered angrily.

"Excuse me?" Lt.Cmdr Sullax asked, his sensitive Romulan ears picking up the grumbling.

"Lt.jg Scott was in need of some advice." Jake told the Romulan formally.

"Lt.jg Scott Duneson is the same age as your self, is he not?"

"Yes, he does seem to be younger." Olson replied.

"Carry on," Sullax released Olson to his current project.

Olson was the Galaxy's mother duck. It would seem that others have seen that quality in Olson. Still, Jake was rather surprised to hear Sullax note the quality.

Another duckling entered the lab, carrying the padds Olson was working on. "I think that's all of them."

Olson did a fast inventory. Nodded. "Yea, looks good. Let's cross index the two specimens and see what happens."

"Ok," Susan's lip trembled.

"He's a skunk, not worth it. Not all of us can be right in our decisions all the time." Olson advised.

"I know, It just hurts when you find out your wrong." Susan hiccupped.

Olson lay a hand on her shoulder, comforting. "This mistake will let you see more clearly, you know what a skunk smells like now, I take it?"

"Yea, that's true." Susan had to choke on a sharp giggle when she saw Sullax looking at her. One eyebrow was somewhat up.

"Ahhh, I see #5 has been rather lively, beating the beans outa #3." Olson concluded decisively.

"Tell me about it, the question is why." Susan's mind was pulled into a puzzle, the two tiny animals' actions were not so obvious to her.

"Let's bring up the whole project," Olson was ferreting through the padds. "Mmm, looks like five is craping on three."

"What?"

"See, the waste matter is coming from five. It is contaminating the environment of three, so there's some aggression here..."

"But it's just sitting there." Susan asked, bewildered.

"It's called passive aggression, something does something aggressive while not doing so obviously and or knowingly."

"But can mammals do that?"

"That they can, and do." Olson grinned at the girl.

"How?"

Olson then began to patiently explain the concept of passive aggression as it pertained to higher mammals.

"An itch that won't go away"
by Captain Robert Edward Lee Price

On the main view screen, larger than life was the familiar wooden galleon. The entire bridge crew, including Captain Price and Commander Casey, watched as the Galaxy approached the vessel that hovered in space directly in the starship's path.

"Alter course 'mate. Heading 125 Mark four. Ahead warp factor two." Captain Price called out.

Lieutenant Pailaka activated the appropriate controls at the flight control station and the Galaxy's helm quickly responded. Watching the view screen, the Gothos quickly disappeared to one side while the Galaxy put light years between the two vessels.

"Warp factor two sir. Steady as she goes." Mikala reported.

Lee took a couple of nervous steps, wondering if it was going to be good enough. Some how he knew it wouldn't be.

"Object appearing ahead Captain." 'Commander Hermedhie called out from tactical. "One wooden vessel. . . "

On screen, the Gothos again appeared, hovering in space directly in the USS Galaxy's path. Only this time it was light years from it's last known position.

"For an old sailing ship, it certainly gets around sir." Deiran commented.

The Commander's joke was no understatement. At warp factor two, the Gothos had likely become the most traveled Spanish galleon in history, having transcended a distance in mere seconds that no naval vessel had ever sailed on all of the high seas of Earth throughout her history.

"Bring us about. New heading 245 mark six. Do it 'mate. Warp factor six."

"Coming to heading 245 mark six. Warp factor six." Mikala repeated.

Once again the Ominous Gothos disappeared off the Galaxy's main view screen. The engines of the Galaxy pulled her through the open space of the uncharted territories with a steady hum.

"So far so good. Maybe the Gothos can't do warp six." Deiran smiled.

"Unidentified wooden object dead ahead." Raesene reported.

"Maybe not. . ." Commander Casey added sarcastically.

Lee just stared at the view screen blankly, before ordering "All stop."

Mikala glanced back briefly, and then complied with the order. "All stop sir."

The Galaxy came to a stop dead in space, just a dozen or so kilometers away from the wooden navel vessel, Gothos, which hung in space like a spooky ghost ship backlit by the stars of open space.

"It's time to end this once and for all." Captain Price stated.

When the General went to move towards the exit of the bridge, Deiran turned and called out, "What is your intention Captain?"

"I'm going over there to convince Trelane to let the Galaxy go." Lee stated.

"Captain, as First officer, I can't let you go over there. Especially after what happened last time." Commander Casey explained.

Lee rose his hand. "No number one. This is my problem. It's between Trelane and me. That seems to be what all of this was about. I want you here on the Galaxy." Captain Price stated moving towards the turbolift. When the doors opened, Lee stepped in, then before letting the doors close he called out, "You have the conn Commander. If I'm not back in twenty minutes, your orders are to take the Galaxy and get out of here any way you can. Understand 'mate?"

Deiran wasn't happy about the order, but knew there was no sense in arguing with the General once he'd made up his mind. "I understand sir."

Lee gave a nod before the turbolift doors swished shut.

***

The pale blue of the Federation transporter beam materialized and faded as it deposited Captain Price onto the deck of the Gothos. No longer in an alternate world resembling Earth of the early 1800's, the Gothos was still and floating in the vacuum of space. Stars surrounded her rather than the blue skies and deep Caribbean seas from before, and in the distance the USS Galaxy could be seen hovering a few kilometers away.

Though the wooden galleon was floating in space, there seemed to be an atmosphere surrounding the vessel. Classic type M, with a hint of salt air. Lee looked around the decks of the Gothos, which, like the USS Galaxy, had been restored to it's pre-battle state. Giving the bottom of his duty jacket a gentle tug, the Captain glanced around when he heard the sounds of a harpsichord being played.

Walking towards the upper castle of the ship, he spotted Trelane, still outfitted in his crushed velvet frock and delicately white laced shirt. The song he was playing was a sad melody, which somehow seemed to reflect the Pirate Captain's mood.

Climbing the last couple of stairs, Captain Price stepped over to where Trelane sat at the antique musical instrument. He was angry with all of the pain and suffering Trelane had caused. With all the disruption and chaos he'd subjected his crew and shipmates to.

"I expected I'd see you again." Trelane finally managed, still playing his heart wrenching melody on the ivory keyboard.

Lee's eyes narrowed slightly.

UNINTENDED COMEDY JP Sandy and Michele

Lt. Jake T. Olson & Mhari w NPC'S Susan, Scott, T-Prea
USS Galaxy
Galaxy 10-4

While Jake was giving Susan her exercise in bioengineering, Scott was in a nice ol' huff.

He literally bumped into a woman on his way.

Mhari looked up when she recognized a familiar face. "Hey, now..." She smiled at Scott. "Long time no see," she said with a wink.

"Oh hi," Scott smiled. "You ok?" he asked inanely. He was not the fittest on station himself.

"Just wonderful and you? I was just on my way to my quarters to catch some Zs. Must be more tired then I thought. Didn't mean to run you over there."

Olson and Susan were moving down the corridor, and she spied Scott making eyes. "Oh shit," Jake muttered to himself.

"Hey, welcome to the ship, seems you've found the local Romeo!" Susan quipped.

Mhari turned and smiled at Susan. She then turned back to Scott and rose an eyebrow but kept her amused smile. "Local Romeo?" She giggled. "Cute."

"Well, class dismissed," Jake grinned at Susan. "Or change of course,"

"My ex." Scott tried to dismiss.

"Oh yesss, you tried to make it with anything female on legs."

Jake went bright pink.

Mhari smiled and held back laughter. "Maybe you'd be more comfortable if we walked the other way, huh?" She pointed to the hall leading away from Susan.

"Scott," came trouble from the path Mhari indicated. T-Prea was moving swiftly down the hall in a white coat. "You didn't come in...." she wasn't happy.

"Oh for Christ's sake!" Scott stared rudely at the beautiful Doctor. She cocked an eyebrow at the Human.

"Mhari, may I present my wife, Dr. T-Prea," Jake introduced.

"You will be reported..." T-Prea told Scott.

"Oh for pissied eyed sakes! Can't you please leave me alone?"

Susan grinned, guessing what the doctor was about. "You aren't meeting your fitness requirements." and hadn't any of T-Prea's compunction about embarrassing 'Romeo'.

T-Prea just realized she was in the presence of someone she didn't know, two including Susan.

Mhari crossed her arms over her chest and smiled at the scene. "You know Scott..." She laughed. "I'm kidding. Maybe I'll leave you guys to talk then, huh?"

Scott was so angry he didn't know what to do with himself. Surrounded by women, he couldn't get anywhere, like the hero in a rotten comedy. T-Prea's eyebrow cocked at him. Mhari picked up the emotion.

"Resident mother duck is busy again," was T-Prea's comment, as she noted the pair of ex lovers and her pink faced husband, and the new female in the scene.

"Jake's not my mother!" Scott lost it.

"He isn't?" T-Prea returned.

Susan's face went pink.

Mhari couldn't hold it back any longer. She busted out laughing. "Ok," she managed to get out. "Think I should go." She turned to Scott. "You're welcome to come with, Romeo." She winked.

Scott followed.

Jake gently placed a hand on Susan's arm. "Oh boy, but that one's gonna make a royal wonder outa himself tonight! He needs an education I think!"

T-Prea shook her head. Looking at the two, Jake was not much older than the girl, but he had grown so much in so little time.

Scott chased after Mhari, hoping...

"So, Scott, What's up? Been anywhere interesting lately?" She was still smiling from the scene that just took place. She knew guys like Scott...unfortunately. She hoped maybe this might be different.

"Lord no, I'm afraid Jake's the only one who manages that. What does he do, settle down with the first love. Kid no less." Scott didn't understand that Jake simply passed over adolescence altogether and went from child to adult.

"I mean gosh, what was he thinking?" She smiled. "What do you do for fun, Romeo?" She winked.

"Risa, now that is a place for FUN!" He forgot that maybe she might have been about more than he...

"Now Risa...never been there. Didn't have the need I suppose." She paused. "Where exactly are we heading to?"

"There is a beach that is the ultimate. Bar's a bit wild. Food is the best, Jake made the scenery." Scott at least didn't need to worry about jake in a competitive way.

The word "beach" made her eyes glow. "Where at?"

"South Central..." and it was the roundest bar there. Scott never been there, but this was a holodeck. He was one confidant Romeo...

"South Central? I'm up for it. Maybe it'll wake me up. I've survived on less sleep before." She smiled. "Lead the way."

The pair entered, and Scott found himself mid squeak before he stepped through the door. "Holy fuck, what's that!" he pissed his pants, for he never seen a Klingon Batleth before.

The hologram stopped and stared. It was male.

"Awesome," she whispered with a smile. Her smile faded when she looked at Scott. "You ok?"

"Someone spilled a drink, what is that thing?" Scott lied, then asked. "Looks like a baby rattle with points."

Mhari laughed. "Something like that. You sure this is a good program for you? You don't seem very comfortable." She could sense he was more then scared out of his pants and knew that was no drink spilt.

A moment passed, the guy was spaced out. "You act like that thing's not an abnormal part in a bar." Scott stammered. "This is Risa, there ain't supposed to be freaky wierded out weapons around!"

"Told you I've never been to Risa and that is no wierded out weapon. That is a Bat'leth. As far as I've been told, Risa doesn't have any weapons. Are you sure you have the right program?"

Olson checked the program board, and cursed a blue streak. "That BITCH!"

"Fucking Susan slipped a monkey..."

"My ex girl friend. Fucked with the Risa program."

"Too bad. All I have is my training program. I guess our fun ends before it starts." She turned to leave.

"Your what?" Scott was still recovering from the practical joke.

Mhari turned. "My training program. I'm in security remember?"

Scott turned, stared at her like she was speaking Greek. Kid was in shock.

Jake had said that Scott was immature, and apparently slept through academy during social studies.

Mhari walked back over to him. "Maybe we should try this again. Hi, I'm Ensign Mhari Stone, a security officer here." She smiled and paused. "Are we just going to chill or what?"

"Inbetween Worlds"
By LtCmdr Michala Lynn Casey and
Lt(jg) Eric Odin

Michala reached the Lt.'s quarters in less then ten minutes. She was confused and frightened. She had no one to turn to as Dee was still on the bridge. She was detemined to find out if this had really happened.

Finally, standing before his door, she swallowed her fears and rang the door. She waited nervously to meet the man she had died with.

Eric was half startled when he heard the door chime he plainly answered,"Come in." He looked as the door opened and to his surprise he saw the woman he had most surely been with when he died and in the afterlife. He swllaowed hard and then asked her not knwoing if she had the memories too,"Can I help you Doc?"

"I am not sure. Have we met?" She asked him cautiously. She didn't want to sound like a raving lunatic.

He looked to her thinking that maybe she doesn't want to sound weird so he took a chance and said,"Yes I believe we have. Don't think I'm crazy but do you remember dying?"

Michala gave a sigh of relief. "Yes, I do. I was afraid I was losing my sanity. So we have met Lt. Odin. I am glad that you now seem to be in good health as well as alive."

He gave her a reassuring smile and then said,"Yes I do believe i am now alive and in good shape. Please call me Eric. Having these memories that seemingly didn't happen is very strange isn't it doc?"

Michala nodded. "It is the second time for me but it is still unnerving. I am sure someone will let the crew know what just happened. And by the way, my name is Michala. I would say nice to meet you but we already met sort of." She laughed nervously. Her head hurt, she was tired and very very confused.

He noticed she looked alittle uncomfortable and said,"Please take a seat," motioning for his couch. "Michala is a beautiful name and I'm glad I died with someone who's just as confused as I am. Can you stick around to talk?"

Michala had not had many offers of friendship since coming on board. Many seemed to avoid her as if she were some kind of freak. But then again, she was unanomaly, a statistic that should not have happened. She should probably go but then Dee was still on the bridge. "Sure, yeah I can stay for a bit." Michala smiled and moved further into his quarters.

He smiled as she decided to stay for a short while and he then asked her,"So what do you like to do for fun Michala?"

MIchala looked at him blankly. "I have no idea to be honest. I have spent the last few weeks becoming certified as a doctor. Between that and caring for Commander Casey's children, I have been to busy to explore that." Michala was unsure if Erik know her history. So she decided to let him ask the questions and not volunteer information unless asked. "What about you? What do you like to do for recreation time?"

He smiled to her and said,"I like to goto the holodeck and do intense physical training. My symbiont has a history of fighting, so I am utilizing the experiences. I have special techniques that no one in the galaxy has. I can fire more powerful than phaser blasts out of my hands. I like to talk with some of the people I've met on the Galaxy as well. Maybe you and I can get together some other time than this as well?"

Michala blushed lightly. "I would like that. I don't have any friends on the Galaxy. You see, I haven't been here very long." Michala's eyes grew a little misty. "I haven't been anywhere very long to be honest."

He gave her a comforting kind of smile and then said,"Well anytime you need to just 'be' somewhere I will guarantee you can be around me. I will be the best friend I can be and I will try my best never to let you down." He hoped that wasn't too strong, but he did want to get across he wasn't the kind of friend who would stab you in the back when you needed them most.

"Thank you very much." Michala sat nervously for a second. She was not used to social contact. "So what do you think just happened?" She finally asked.

He thought for a moment and then said,"Well for sure we died and somehow we were returned to the last place we were before any mention of the Gothos. It must have something to do with them. What do you think?"

"What is a Gothos?" Michala had been so busy in sickbay while they were fighting the Breen that she had heard nothing of a Gothos.

He smiled realizing she hadn't heard of them because of how busy she'd been,"We ran into them and then this whole mess began. They're an alien race and my guess is much like the Q."

MIchala searched her memory but found no reference to Q. "What is a Q?" She asked with child like simplicity.

He wondered why she didn't know what a Q was, but decided it must be her memory lapses from the others she was melded with. He then said,"It's a collective of Godlike entities. One of them decided to mess with the Enterprises crew and likes to play games to test the human race. In some cases they have only made the crew stronger. I have not seen the one called Q ever, so I couldn't tell you much about them personally. That's just what i read."

Michala nodded. She was interested in this Q and wondered if you could seek one out. If it could play such games, maybe it could help her. "So you think that this Q allowed us to die and then brought us back? What would be the point?"

he smiled ot her and then replied,"It wasn't a Q, at least i don;'t think so. It was a Q like species. When you have that much power you seek some sort of game or amusement. I believe that is what we provided."

"Our deaths provided amusement?" This was a foreign concept and one that she did not care for to much. She hoped the Captain dealt severely with this childlike species. Then Michala blushed remembering how they had both died. "I hope that you at least are not scarred by the experience. I found it to be educational personally."

He smiled to her and then said,"No, I'm not and I believe it can give a new perspective on life. How was it educational for you?"

"I did not believe in an afterlife and yet we experienced something after we died. I wll be researching this more closely for a bit." Michala bit her lip. She should probably get back before Andree found her running about. She rose from her chair. "I hope, Erik, that we can get together now and again."

He nodded to her wanting to research and then said,"If you want a research partner let me know and I hope we can get together soon." He rose as well and then said,"It was a pleasure meeting you and I look forward to many conversations in the future."

Michala smiled. She knew that she and Erik were forever tied to one another for they had literally died together. They had shared an experience after that she could not explain that had frightened her. She smiled and on impulse, kissed him on the cheek. She turned on her heel and strode from his quarters. "Bye Erik, until we meet again." Then she was gone.

He waved bye as she left and touched his cheek where she kissed. He then said to the air as if to her,"Bye Michala, I'm sure I'll be seeing you around."

Revelations
Casey Ti Miran
Doctor written by Michala Lynn

Miran woke up slowly, the dream fading away. Only a pair of blues eyes haunted her, the rest of the dream lost. She tried to sit up and found that she couldn't. She struggled only brief against the bonds that she couldn't see. Instead, she turned her head to look around where she was. No Cardassians in sight, this didn't look like one of their experiment rooms.

"Bobbie?" she cried out. "Where is Bobbie? I want Bobbie!"

"Bobbie is not here at the moment, Miran." A soft voice spoke as a doctor stepped into view. "How are you feeling?" The voice stayed soft. Miran had been asleep for sometime now, they had been forced to keep her sedated.

"Head hurts," she stated almost child-like. A tear slid down her cheek. "I miss my Da. Bobbie keeps me company."

The doctor administered a mild pain killer. Miran's body was still in a deep state of shock. It was not a surprise that some of her systems were irregular and even painful. "Miran, what is the last thing you can remember?" The voice asked gently.

"They were holding my Momma and Da. They would not let me go to them. Then they shot them and they did not move. He was laughing. I kept calling to them but they would not get up." Miran turned away, squeezing her eyes shut as if it would close her mind to the painful memory of her parents death.

The doctor ran the tricorder over Miran. She had regressed into her memories. She was unsure of how to proceed. There had never been such a case where an individual had survived so long in a pattern buffer. Well, the first step would be to notify the next of kin. "Miran, do you remember Deiran Casey?" She asked softly.

The pair of blue eyes came to mind, but no more then that. She shook her head no. She was thirsty. Afraid to ask for water, she licked her lips. "Can I go now?"

"No babe, not yet. I will gladly let you sit up if you promise me to behave. If you are hungary I can even have dinner brought to you, but you have to promise to listen to me. Can you do that? The doctor took the tone of a parent.

Miran shook her head yes. She sighed, gathering courage and asked, "Where are we? Where is the Gul?"

The doctor loosened the restraints and let Miran sit up. "The Gul left you here with me because you have been very very sick. They will not return for you as you are of no concern to them." The doctor spoke with confidence and reassurance. She set a tray a nurse had prepared in front of Miran with all types of tempting dishes.

"He will not return?" She then instictively held an arm up protectively. "I am sorry, please do not hit me." Talking back or asking questions were reasons to be punished.

"No, he won't be back. He hasn't been back for many years Miran. Please try to eat something and then I have something very special to show you. You might even say it is a surprise." The doctor seemed kind and was a human.

Miran slowly let herself relax, though she still flinched whenever a man came too close. This was strange. No Gul, no beatings, good food. It was like a dream that she was experiencing. She only played with the food. It was an abundance to her, but yet, she couldn't eat much. It still hurt mildly to chew and to swallow, making her lose any appetite she would have had. Before too long, she laid back down, drawing her knees to her chest forming a small ball.

The doctor returned and moved the tray away. "Are you ready for your surprise?"

The doctor held an object in her hand. "Remember I said that the Gul had been gone for some time. That is because you are no longer a little girl, Miran. There was an accident and you are having troubles remembering being all grown up. I want you to look here and tell me what you see." The doctor handed Miran a mirror. It was made of a material that could not be broken just in case.

Miran held the mirror up. Her mother's face looked back at her. She touched the mirror's smooth surface, amazed. She touched her nose and the person in the frame did the same. She took stock in the green eyes that peered back at her and the matted blondish brown hair.

"That is me?" she asked softly. In her current mind set, she had not seen a mirror yet. It hadn't been until she was released from the prison camp that she had seen a real mirror.

"Yes, that is you. As you can see, Miran. You have aged a great deal. I realize that right now you can't remember. But you will. You are a woman grown with children of your own. You are also a starfleet officer for the Federation of planets." The doctor spoke softly with a touch of reassurance.

Not really understanding much of what the doctor said, Miran laid back down again, back away from the doctor. She still held onto the mirror and kept touching the surface of the mirror and then her own face, still unsure of how she was seeing herself.

The doctor smiled. It was a good start. She left Miran the mirror and left the contained area. If Miran lost it again, she was not going anywhere. She had to contact the Captain of the Galaxy.

"Gothos and Back"
By: Lt/Cmd Ryak Sullax
CSO,

USS Galaxy

Ryak looked around noticing that he was back in his EVA suit. Ryak remembered everything as if it had happened but his tricorder gave off the reading as if they were just beamed onto the Gothos. Ryak was very confused.

It only took a few more seconds before they were all aboard the Galaxy. Ryak made his way to his quarters to try and figure out what had happened.

"Awaking from 'nightmare'?"
by Lt. (jg) Ragnald Gustavson, helmsman
USS Galaxy

"I know I will need something to drink after this is over." Ragnald said. Instantly he remembered himself having said that sentence before to the woman now manning the science console.

Ragnald tried to have a look at Ensign McAllen but he was hardly able to see her through all the smoke and the dust.

Indeed the battle seemed to be over. The residual Breen vessel stopped and the instruments showed the temperature was increasing inside. In a few minutes the vessel`s staff was supposed to be 'melted away'. Ragnald supposed to hear the rest of the bridge staff breathing a sigh of relief. The bridge was a mess as likely the rest of the Galaxy was, too. For Ragnald anything was secondary, he and most of the Galaxy staff survived the battle.

"Breen vessel`s warp engine was activated. Current heading is a collision course to the Galaxy!" somebody shouted through the smoke.

Ragnald tried to manoeuvre the saucer section out of the Breen vessel`s flight path. Split seconds later the last noise Ragnald heard was the incredible crying of the Galaxy`s bursting hull. An instant later the two ships exploded only leaving a cloud of small organic and inorganic drips. No time for Ragnald to have a last prayer, no time to feel pain and no time to walk the bright tunnel to Walhalla.

---------------------------

Ragnald startled and looked around. The bridge was neat and clean - no dust, no smoke and of course no blood - no signs of a battle at all. *Wow, what a nightmare!* Ragnald thought embarrassed for been fallen asleep during his shift duty. Then he realised his fellow crew members looked confused too. The main screen was still filled with that wooden ancient Terran ship. *Maybe this wasn`t a nightmare, but Donar`s sake which kind of horror trip have we gone through?*

Ragnald turned towards the science console where Ensign McAllen stared at the displays. First he intended to renew his invitation, but then he silently turned back to the flight control panel. He didn`t have the power to be brave anymore.

Title: A Voice From Afar
Author:Ensign J.C. Skinner
Position: Tactical
Location: USS Galaxy

J.C. walked slowly to his quarter on his way back to the gym. This time he had a bruised nose and a small cut under his eye. He was happy that he beat his opponent. He was not sure who he was sparring with but he was very proud to have beaten a security officer.

J.C. opened the door to his quarters to see that he was still without a roommate. As J.C. entered the room he said, "Computer 1/4 lights, light Jazz, a cup of chicken noodle soup and an ice pack."

As the room adjusted and the items appeared J.C. picked up his soup and the ice pack and sat down on the couch.

"J.C. Skinner has two messages waiting." the mono tone voice of the computer stated.

J.C. got up from his seat and walked over to the computer and pressed play.

Ensign J.C. Skinner you are requested to visit me at your earliest convenience for a consultation. Counseling Department.

J.C. looked down and shook his head. At least it might help me control this emotion overload.

Onto the screen came the next message.

Subspace message to Justin Case Skinner USS Galaxy From Lt Michael McKinney USS Expanse...

A man with black hair, brown eyes and a small tan appears before you his lips turn to a smile quickly...

"Hello... I know your thinking who is this?" He laughs some you now notice his Starfleet uniform and the location of the transmission is from Sickbay on the Expanse.

"I am Lt. Michael McKinney, MD, I like to be called Mike" Grinning "its short and simple like I like things" A data padd is now seen on the screen...

"I am always doing bio scans and guess what I ran across before.... you judge me as some psycho here me out..." he looks around then back up at the screen

"I wanted to know if we could meet some where I know you are busy just as I am I just hope that we can see each other just once" Looks up and sees a few people enter sickbay "I am sorry I gotta run please respond.... computer send message"

Lt. Michael McKinney
CMO USS Expanse

J.C. sat back in his seat and smiled. What is this? Is this a joke? J.C. looked at the screen and said, "Computer begin recording."

"Hello Mike, I just received your message and am a bit interested in it. I am not sure what to say. Well to answer you question yes a drink would be great. I hope as a Doctor you can ignore the face."

J.C. looked at his well pounder face as he stood up and took off his tunic. J.C. sat down in his baggy pants and a tight fitted tank top. The top finally showed off what J.C. worked so hard at getting. His rock hard upper body was seen trough his top.

"Well Mike tell me more about you? I have to go ice my face and drink my soup. Hope to here from you soon."

"Computer end recording and sent to Lt. Michael McKinney, USS Expanse."

J.C. Stood up and sat back on the couch and began to drink his soup, ice pack on his face.

"What Was That?"
by, Lt. Comdr. Raesene Hermedhie,
Chief Tactical Officer
-------------------------------------

The ship spiraled out of control before crashing into the Breen battlecruiser and exploding. Raesene had seconds before the fireball caught him, and incinerated his body.

For a few minutes, Raesene was in a bright, beautiful place. He was soon joined by his wife Dierdren, and two bright child-like beings. It seemed... strangely calm and quiet. As if they were in front of that still, small voice of renown.

*FLASH*

Raesene was back on board the Galaxy, in front of the tactical station and the wooden ship, Gothos was hanging in space before them. This left a question of what was that episode they had just gone through. For he still remembered all that had happened. And he suspected so did everyone else.

They began to try to go on their way. But, everywhere they went, that wooden ship appeared before them. It seemed that this godling-like creature did not want to give up, yet.

Raesene watched as the captain decided to go back over, and resolved to wait out the storm. It was the least he could do. Besides, he still had to reconcile the deaths of many for one glorious moment. The battle had cost that much before, and it still might cost them that much in the future.

"Meeting continued"
By Ensign Mhari Stone, Jake Olsen and NPC Scott

Mhari walked back over to him. "Maybe we should try this again. Hi, I'm Ensign Mhari Stone, a security officer here." She smiled and paused. "Are we just going to chill or what?"

Jake skittered to a halt in front of the Holodeck. "I found evidence of tampering, what the Hell is going on? I left Susan talking babies with T-Prea." Jake walked into the holodeck and started snooping hard in the electronics, concern on his face.

"Normally, practical jokes aren't something to worry about but one person's fucking with this caused some dead kids. Making sure." Jake began to breathe again. "Ok, she slipped a Klingon and a Batleth into a Risa program, nothing dangerous."

"Yeah, nothing dangerous," she smiled.

Jake gave her a crooked grin. "It's a visual scare, the Klingon and the weapon aren't programmed to do anything but look nasty."

"Fucking bitch!" Scott fumed.

"Watch your english please!" Jake complained.

She watched Scott carefully, waiting for something to happen. He was cute in his own little way but she wouldn't have gone as far as calling him Romeo. She then looked at Jake and gave him a quick smile. "So is the time lost or do we fix the program and continue?" She covered her mouth as a yawn escaped.

"Oh sure, I'll pluck the Klingon," Olson tapped a few buttons. "See you around," he had also managed to clean Scott up with a bit of elegant programming, removing all moisture out of the front of Scott's pants.

The two were left with Scott's program, a dull bit indeed.

Scott slipped an arm around her. She picked up arousel, he was making a clumsy pass.

Mhari laughed but held most of it back. She grabbed his hand and unwrapped it from her shoulder. "I think not." She looked around the program and looked back at him. "Nice place. I wouldn't mind visiting it in person." She then turned back to him. "Number one...you're not going to score with me. Two...you gotta work on that smooth thing and three..." She sat on a chair nearby. "Nahh, we won't go into that. Maybe I should just go back to my quarters and forget this?"

Scott stared, "Hugh?" She lost him.

"What are your intentions, big boy?"

"Boy? Boys don't get into Star Fleet, I'm an adult." How did she figure out the pass so fast?

"Adult, huh?" She turned away from him. "That Susan girl must have been quite desprete if those moves worked on her," she said, more to herself and turned back to Scott. "I'd give you lessons on girls but I've noticed you're not very good at the listening thing." She crossed her legs, making herself confortable.

"Susan's a Yeoman." Scott stared. "She gets upset at the least thing, she's just a snit." He dismissed Susan coldly.

Mhari picked up what happened, Susan was greener than grass, and fell into the arms of the first sweet talker that wasn't over aggressive, and Scott thought he was God's gift. She also sensed his intense jelousy of Jake who was so content.

"Is that so? Well, I can honestly say I'm not a snit...whatever that means." She smiled. "Tell me about yourself. I believe in getting to know the other before moving on to the little passes." She winked.

by Lt Jg. Seth Zonhieb, Gorn Security Guard
appearance by Ensign Lockhart

The lights came back on and Seth found himself in the emergency transporter room on the engineering level. He could only hear the heavy beat of his heart. Adrenaline pumped through his cold veins and his muscles coiled over each other. The taste of blood and death still stung his tongue. Last thing he remembered was the intruder alert.

With all the penned up fury realized in a second the security officer first assumed the crisis was still happening. The huge gorn grabbed the first humanoid in his reach.

Ensign Gallermo had his life flash before his eyes a second time in as many minutes, the lizard grabbed him and prepared to toss him across the room. Only his shriek snapped the gorn out of the pitch. Lt. Zonhieb stopped and gently placed the human on the deck.

"You will excuse me ensign." Seth made and apology before he exited the room. He went to a panel and found the saucer separation evacuation canceled. Yet still the red alert flashed reminding the lizard of blood and the fury he held internally.

Slowly the gorn lumbered off the deck, the lack of heat wearing him down to a slower pace. Still his recent battle played out in his head. Yet his insatiable hunger for violence was not quenched.

The gorns stomach rumbled, had it been that long again? He paused outside security to take a few breaths and calm down. Last thing he needed was to bite the head off his fellow workers.

As he stood there gathering himself the doors opened. A figure came out and walked into a wall of green scales wearing a uniform. Glaring down in anger at the figure standing on his clawed foot Seth watched Ensign Lockhart swallow hard.

-----
Dr. Andree Dothan (Lt. J.G.)
Medical Dept USS Galaxy
-----
Co Starring
Lt. Cmdr. George Kirk
ACSO
-----

After the Buster Keaton was safe and sound in shuttlebay two, Andree headed to sickbay, as the Galaxy was still on alert status.

*Could today possibly get any weirder?* Andree mused as he rude the turbolift.

Arriving there, Andree saw a Lieutenant Commander who came running up to him exclaiming "I can Feel my hand!" *I spoke too soon* Andree corrected himself.

With a perplexed look on his face, Andree replied, "Normally that is not a reason to come to sickbay."

George nodded. He didn't know whether to be terrified or elated. He settled for a frenzied state somewhere in between. "I know. But you see, a year ago, I was in an accident. The nerve endings in my hands and arms were all severely damaged. Since then, I've never been able to feel any sensation. Pain, heat or cold. Nothing. But just now, my hand. I was...I was in the room getting changed out of my EVA suit. And...and hurt. Badly. And then, I cut it. And I felt the pain. The heat from things. Cold. All of it. I don't know what's happened."

"Weren't you the one who had the makeshift amputation during the battle?" Andree queried.

George nodded, looking back down to his hand.

"I thought I recognized you. Anyway, I'm Dr. Andree Dothan. and you would be..."

George straightened up slightly. "Lieutenant Commander George Kirk. Assistant Chief of Security."

"Pleased to meet you Mr. Kirk. Any relation to..."

Andree never finished his sentence as Kirk cut him off. "Captain James T. Kirk. Yes. As a matter of fact, I am."

Andree nodded at his patient. *That* was a new one. He glanced back down at George's hand. He lifted it gently and began inspecting it, frowning at the small cut on his palm. "Is this where you cut your hand just now?"

George nodded. "Yeah. On the locker."

"How in the hell did you do that?"

George shrugged. "Uh. On purpose, actually."

"You make a habit of self-mutilation?" *This is getting weird*

"Only when I retrieve a hand I just got cut off. What do you think?"

Andree inspected the hand once more, then nodded towards an examining table. "Here." He led George over to the table and retrieved a medical tricorder. He started scanning the hand, looking at the readout with a puzzled expression. He glanced up at George. "It looks like the nerve endings *are* regenerating. At a fantastic rate." He scanned the rest of George's arm. He shook his head. "Just from the wrist down, it looks like. The nerves in your arm are still dead, for all intents and purposes." *Jeez I thought getting off the Gothos would put an end to the weirdness today* He bent over and removed a needle. The doctors in Sickbay hardly ever used them, but they could be handy in case of an emergency. He prodded George's hand right in the center. He glanced at George, who winced slightly. He tested each of George's fingers, eliciting the same response. And then he poked George in the wrist. No response. That confirmed it. He also tried the same process on George's right hand, but got nothing. He frowned. "That's the hand that got cut off?"

George nodded, sweating suddenly at the mention of the sudden amputation. The feeling as the metal bit into bone and how all the muscles in his arm spasmed wildly. "Yeah. That's the one. What do you think?"

"Well, given what happened on the Gothos, from Trelane's storytelling, to the battle with the british warships, I would say, that this is well within Trelane's powers, and infact not at all that unlikely. In all likelyhood,

Trelane wasn't as omniscient as he led us to believe. Anyway, the priamry nerves that service your arms were not damaged in your 'accident' because if they were, you would not be able to move your arms and hands. it was merely the nerve endings in the Epidermis that were destroyed, and that would explain the new nerve endings in your hand being able to send a signal to your brain."

George nodded. He'd known that about his nerve endings. But the explanation of why he was feeling his hand again made sense. He shook his head. "Thanks. Thanks, doc."

"Well, I think that you're fit for duty now."

George smiled slightly. "Okay. I'm just glad I'm not going crazy." George shook Andree's hand. "Thanks again." As he walked out of Sickbay, George slowly clenched his hand, feelign the sensations running through them. He could feel in his left hand again. He shivered slightly at the image of his hand coming off. He glanced back at Andree and nodded slightly as he went out into the hall.

Andree smiled and waved, at George, before setting off in search of his patient from earlier in the day

"The offer"
by Captain Robert Edward Lee Price

Captain Price stood besides Trelane and glared at him for a long moment. The Pirate Captain was sitting at his antique harpsichord slowly playing a sad ballot, even as the Gothos floated harmlessly in space. Stars surrounded the Spanish galleon, and in the distance the starship USS Galaxy could be seen standing by.

Trelane looked somber as he played. His delicate fingers, some covered in jeweled rings from around the world, glided over the ivory keyboard effortlessly. It seemed the godling was putting everything he had into striking every note with the utmost care and precision.

"I don't know why things never turn out the way I plan them. It just seems to work out that way." Trelane stated in an honest tone while playing the keyboard. "I always have such grand plans! But then, things seem to go wrong. Through no fault of my own I assure you."

Lee was angry with Trelane, but somehow, seeing him speak candidly while playing that sad song on the harpsichord made the General feel sorry for him. Captain Price realized that despite Trelane's appearance, he was truly just a child. His actions, his mannerisms, his quick temper, his love for excitement and entertainment, they were all obvious signs of Trelane's true mental age; Perhaps that of a human child of twelve or thirteen.

"Maybe you are at fault 'mate. Had you ever considered that?"

Trelane glanced up at Captain Price, but continued his playing. "My fault? Phah!" the Pirate Captain huffed. An annoyed expression formed on his face while he gave it further thought. "I didn't mean any harm mind you. I only hoped to have some fun. Surely your kind can understand that?"

Lee had wanted to strangle Trelane for what he had put him and his crew through with the naval battle and the attack by the Breen upon the USS Galaxy, but somehow he was finding it hard to stay angry at Trelane for being a naive youth.

"Fun has it's place and time Trelane. But what you put us through. . . that was not fun. It was cruel."

"Cruel?. . . Maccabees! I have done far worse Price." Trelane declared. He continued playing and seemed to reflect on his last statement a moment. With a sigh he admitted, "I can be cruel. I can't seem to help myself. All I ever wanted was to have some fun and to have people like me."

Torn between giving Trelane a good swift kick in the butt, or helping the confused youth through a difficult time, the Captain chose to do the latter.

"You can not make people like you 'mate. Friendship is something that needs to be nourished and earned. It requires time and trust. If can never be forced or rushed."

Trelane considered Captain Price' words while he continued playing his sad tune. "I have made friends that way before Price. Why, utilizing my powers I once. . ."

Lee raised a hand, cutting Trelane off mid-sentence. "Were they really your friends 'mate, or merely scared of your powers?" the Captain asked point blank.

Trelane stopped playing his harpsichord.

After a long, introspective pause, Trelane replied, "You may have a point Price. I will give you that. However I did have a friend once. Really I did." The godling insisted. Then Trelane's face soured into a frown, as if he was recalling a bad memory, "But then again, he did end up stabbing me through the heart. . ."

Trelane returned to playing his music on the keyboard of the harpsichord.

"It is quite complicated, isn't it? The more one thinks about it, the more complicated it seems to get." Trelane commented.

Lee took a step forward, where he could look directly at Trelane as he played his music. Looking deep into the Pirate Captain's eyes, he asked, "So where does that leave us 'mate?"

"An interesting question Price. Where does that leave us? That is your starship out there, over the port bow. As you can see, everything is how it was before our little game." Trelane motioned towards the Galaxy with a bob of his head.

"Yet you block our path and will not let us on our way. Why?" Lee demanded.

Trelane smiled, "Because you haven't finished playing the game. Granted your first attempt wasn't as successful as it could have been, but that is not to say you shant improve with practice. . ."

Lee shook his head. "No 'mate."

Trelane's face physically contorted, as if he'd just sucked on a lemon, at hearing that word, 'No'. "My how I do hate hearing that word. I do believe I shall remove it's existence from all forms of language spoken by mankind."

"There you go 'mate. You are doing it again."

Trelane looked at Captain Price. "What ever are you talking about Price?"

"You are changing the rules to suit your own mood at the time. You dislike being told 'No', so you decide to eliminate it from everyone's vocabulary."

With a boyish smirk, Trelane responds, "Come now, you must admit, it is an innovative thought."

"That's not the point Trelane and you know it!" Lee replied with a hint of anger in his voice. Taking a calming breath, Captain Price gathered his composure and mentally reminded himself to ignore the fact that this was Trelane, the one that subjected his crew to unthinkable tortures and death. That it was not a mid thirties man dressed as a Pirate Captain on board a Spanish Galleon, but that it was in fact a young boy of twelve or thirteen he was dealing with.

"Look 'mate, you should let the Galaxy and her crew go. You don't really want to detain them against their will do you?"

Trelane's face seemed to drift back into that devilish little boy's smirk as his gaze looked through time and space at the possibilities for fun and adventure he could have with a ship filled with one thousand humanoid soles. "Oh, I don't know Price. I imagine we could have any number of wonderful adventures together. Entertainment of the likes beyond your mortal capacity to imagine."

"No 'mate."

"You really are stuck on that phrase Price. Are you capable of saying anything else I wonder?" Trelane asked sarcastically.

"Please let the Galaxy go 'mate." Captain Price asked in a sincere tone.

"And why would I ever want to do that?" Trelane asked toyingly while playing a more lively tune than the sad sonnet he was keying just a few minutes earlier.

"Because if you release the Galaxy and her crew and let them be on their way, I will stay here and be your friend 'mate." Lee stated somberly.

Captain Price' sincere tone struck a chord in Trelane. He immediately stopped playing his antique harpsichord and stood up to face the Starship Commander eye to eye.

"You would do that Price? You would leave your shipmates and stay here with me on the Gothos and be my,. . . friend?" Trelane asked.

Captain Price returned Trelane's gaze. The godling's eyes seemed to well up slightly, as if they were choking with emotion. Trelane was a vivid, passionate man. He was not one that was skilled at hiding his feelings, or suppressing his emotions. Captain Price was not an empath, nor a qualified counselor, but even he could tell that Trelane was touched and at the point of breaking down in tears at hearing of the possibility of obtaining a true friend.

Lee nodded. "Aye 'mate. If you agree to release the Galaxy and let my 'mates go. I'll stay here and be your friend."

Trelane looked awestruck for a moment. He then gazed at the Captain suspiciously, and began to pace back and forth, glaring at Lee as he walked. It was as if he was trying to surmise if the Starship Captain was really sincere or merely creating a deception.

"Meeting The Boss"

Lt. Commander Karyn Dallas RN
Chief Counselor/Nurse

Ensign Enrique de Marquez
Counselor

Ensign Vanda M'Giia
NPC Nurse
USS Galaxy

***Counseling Department, Karyn's Office, Deck 14***

"Come in," answered Karyn in response to the door chime, alerting her to the visitors standing outside her office. When the doors parted, Karyn was surprised to see two people enter.

"Hello Vanda, I see you've brought company today. Did he get lost?" Karyn wheeled around her desk and came to greet the new arrival. "You must be Ensign de Marquez. I'm Karyn Dallas." she offered her hand to Enrique. She smiled, "Welcome aboard, Counselor, I see you've made a friend already, that's great."

Enrique took Karyn's hand and shook it lightly.

"An honour to meet you, Counselor," Enrique said, taking the Counselor's hand.

"Please sit down you two. Can I get you something to drink?"

Vanda shook her head, "Actually, I just came by to make an appointment. I ran into Enrique in the turbolift. We're old friends from the Academy."

"Wow, small ship, huh? Hopefully you guys will have plenty of time to catch up. As to your appointment, I can see you this afternoon if you like."

"That would be fine, thank you. Enrique, I'll see you later. Good day, Counselor," Vanda said, heading outside.

Karyn watched Vanda go, and then turned to smile at the newest addition to her staff. "So tell me a little about yourself. How do you like the Galaxy so far?"

"Well," Enrique sat, leaning back in the comfortable, soft chair. "It is quite big! I got lost a number of times, but I seem to be finding my way around now, and the crew is very friendly. I was surprised I got a commision on the ship - the Galaxy has an outstanding reputation back at the Academy."

"I'm not sure it compares to being a concert cellist," she smiled.

"I take it you read my Starfleet dossier files," he continued. "There's not much I can add, except that Starfleet is quite different from my previous lifestyle. I was really my own boss when I was travelling around and playing concerts. I loved it, and I still love it, but I thought that after three years, I would like to try something different - that's why I entered Starfleet. I still had the opportunity to help and inspire people, just in a different way. I'm apprehensive and both excited at the same time about my future, and I think I can do with a bit of stability in my life."

Karyn laughed. "I'm not sure a career in Starfleet, especially as a Starfleet counselor, lends much to stability." She grew sober, "Of course, I'm sure you know that from your experiences from the Dominion War. Don't get me wrong, I love what I do here, but as I'm sure you know, it can be extremely stressful and frustrating at times. As all of my staff can tell you, new counselors get the PR talk."

When Enrique expressed his confusion, Karyn explained. "Counseling aboard a starship consists of two important duties: your duty to the crew and your duties to the ship. While it falls on you to help the crew deal with their personal problems, it is equally important to assist in keeping the ship running smoothly. You are a PR director for the crew. You have to run "interference" so to speak between the crew and other members of the Senior Staff so that potential personnel problems don't affect the ship as a whole during a crisis. Don't be afraid to be proactive, in this job it's mandatory. Your job is to anticipate potential problems as much as possible, and to handle them before they snowball. You don't always need to twist people's arms for them to come talk to you, but sometimes you have to go to them."

"Oh well, I have no problem with that," Enrique replied. "I'm usually the one jumping in to try and save the peace before an argument or a fight arises."

She smiled. "Don't be afraid to listen to the rumor mill either. While it is true you can't always believe what you hear, most of the time I use the rumor mill to support the things I already suspect. After a while you'll learn to read this crew fairly well, and then it gets easier to make the judgement call as to whether you should intervene. Not every situation is a problem of galactic importance, as this crew does like to let off steam in some unusual ways," she laughed, "but as a general rule, I follow my gut and see if an incident has affected the crew as a whole in a negative way. If it has, or word of the actions of a single crewmember have spread to the entire crew, you can bet it's gone to the Captain. THAT'S when you definitely intervene. If you have questions or concerns, you can always come to me. Are you ready for the challenge?" she asked mock seriously.

"Definitely," Enrique smiled. "I'm really excited to start, and I can't wait to interact with the crew."

"Great. You'll start out working during your assigned shift as a shift counselor. Basically you'll handle all the walk-ins from your designated departments. This will get your feet wet and allow you to meet a lot of the crew. If you see someone that needs more long-term counseling, approach them about it, and if they agree, you can schedule them as one of your regulars. We don't shuffle regulars around because it takes time for clients to build trusting relationships with their counselors. But I imagine you'll be busy enough. Do you have any questions?"

Enrique shook his head. "Not at this time, no."

Karyn offered her hand once more. It was nice meeting you, Enrique, I look forward to working with you. Take this time to get settled and to get to know your fellow crewmembers. I'll see you tomorrow at the start of your shift. Welcome Aboard!"

Enrique took Karyn's hand with a warm smile. "Thank you, Counselor."

"Ten-forward Melody"

Ensign Adrian An'quinsos
Counselor
USS Galaxy

With

Ten-forward Hostess Electra (NPC)

The Counselor woke up on the floor in his quarters. Sore, sweat protruding down his body as he got up and headed for the bathroom. Turning the light on, he found a couple of bruises on the right side of his stomach, resulting from a small fall from the couch.

"Ouch." He grimaced. "Though, I suppose it's better than death." He mused.

Changing, he headed out the door and towards a turbolift...

"Hey Electra, Where's Gailyn?"

The startled Orion female turned around sharply to see a tall, blue-eyed humid in Starfleet uniform, with an infectious smile plastered all over his face.

"Quinn, you scared me!" She paused, catching her breath. "Gailyn's ith the away team on Gothos, didn't you know?"

"Come on, I'm El-Aurian, not...Q!" He replied, wrinkling his nose at the name.

"So, why did you need him?"

"Oh, it's nothing, just about Zerhi's birthday and all..."

"Ah, I see!" She grinned. "You two have been talking allot lately haven't you? And Gailyn told of the Holo-program you've sent her."

"Ah yes, Juen’sala Mishznari, The Jewels of the Heavens." The El-Aurian had a seat as he continued. "The Silver Moons of El-Auria, their glow cast over the night sky, mingled with the luminescent Aurora. Now that was spectacular!"

"Can I get you anything?"

"To tell you the truth, nothing right now."

"Well then, go on."

"On the certain days when all where to be full, my brothers sisters and I would head for this high hill over looking the capitol, and stay up all night watching the lights, as they danced across the sky in unique patterns of all shapes and sizes. I kept that memory for over a century, until I could find a way to duplicate the appearance."

"Sounds like you’re both moonstruck and love-struck."

"Well, we are trying to follow El-Aurian customs..."

"Right, like that kiss you gave her before she left!" Electra teased. "Some custom Quinn!"

"That was just a simple farewell kiss," The blue-eyed El-Aurian grinned. "We’re only following El-Aurian customs of dating. One doesn’t marry..."

"Oh, so you’re going to propose then?" She teased.

"Nah, not till next week!" He chided in, causing them both to laugh. "But, to be honest, since I met Zerhi, I don’t think I could ever live without her. She’s very special, and it’s like we have this connection between us that’s been present ever since we met on the turbolift that day."

"Sounds like an El-Aurian thing." Electra surmised.

"Yeah, that sums it up perfectly. Speaking of El-Aurian, do you have anything of El-Aurian nature, pertaining to a drink?"

"Hmmm. be right back." She turned went to the backroom, searching for any bottle of El-Aurian vintage. After several minutes of looking, she came out with a large blue bottle of El-Aurian Brandy. Adrian had two glasses set out and returned to his stool.

"The only thing I could find."

The Orion poured some of the pale-green concoction into the glasses then toasted each other.

"Thanks Electra. It was great talking to you."

"No problem Quinn. I enjoyed it!"

Title: Another Day Another Dollar
Author: Ensign J.C. Skinner
Position: Tactical
Location: USS Galaxy

J.C. finished yet another shift helping put the torpedo bay back together. This was not at all what he thought his job would be like here on the ship. To top it off the people he worked with have been getting even more difficult to work with. They have no control over there emotions. They let them flow without any type of control.

J.C. turned the corner to the gym and tapped the wall panel. "Computer send a message to Gailyn.... Hi there, this is Justin if you remember and I was wondering if you'd....um.... you know... like... um.. Damn it!... A drink... would you like to get a drink sometime. Well just let me know..... Send message."

J.C. stood there for a second and continued, "Computer send message to Lt/Cmd Dallas.... I would like to set up an appointment to talk with you at your earliest convenience. Ensign Skinner out."

J.C. entered the gym and changed into his work out clothes. J.C. was just going to do a work out routine that did not place him into a situation to get hurt. Lifting weights, cardio, punching bag and some running.

Four hours passed and J.C. headed back to his quarters. J.C. headed for the shower as soon as he got into the apartment. As he made his way out of the shower wearing only a towel he noticed a message waiting for him. J.C's heart began to flutter. Who was it. Did Gailyn respond already or was it Mike. J.C. tapped the padd to play the message.

Subspace message to Justin Case Skinner USS Galaxy From Lt. Michael McKinney USS Expanse...

The same man with black hair, brown eyes, & a small tan smiles happy to have received word from you.

"Hello again. Umm I am free just about anytime you are. As for about myself I am 25 years old I am 100% human."

Giggles thinking of the times he ran into non-humans that looked human.

"I am 5'6, 155lbs. Most of my free time is spent reading medical logs or sitting in our ship's aquatic center watching others splash around."

Yawns moving the laptop come so that you see his quarters. Very plane no art work or anything on the walls not even and personal items that you can see.

"I keep getting told by my commanding officer that I should have more fun in life but what I am doing now is fun to me I don't mind reading boring stuff I really like that sorta thing."

His eyes look almost as if they can see and maybe even feel you as he looks into the screen.

"Then again if someone was here or I was there I am sure they could change me for the better."

Smiles and giggles some then notes the time.

"Well, I hope to get a response soon and even more a meeting! Anyway good night."

Tells the computer to end log and then send it to Ens. Skinner.

J.C. sits down in his chair and says, "Computer record message and send as a reply.

Mike I have to say that I am intrigued by you sudden interest in me. I don't even know you or even understand how you found me. Don't take this the wrong way, I do want to meet you as well but I have to say I am a bit curious as to why me. From what I can tell you are not into anything I am.

J.C. stood up and walked around a bit. Not even realizing he was standing there in his towel.

"I do want to meet with you. That is a yes. As you can tell by my medical records I am not 100% Human."

J.C. looks down to see that he is in only a towel. Blushing J.C. moves behind a table and says, very quickly.

"Talk to you soon. End message and send."

J.C. moves over to the couch and says, "Computer lower lights to 10 % and play Funk program 3."

The lights dimmed and J.C. lay down on the couch in his towel and listened to his music.

"To the bridge"
[follows a jp with Karyn Dallas that will be posted shortly]
by
Lt Jg Navarre Shinta

After she had made sure that Karyn wasn't faking but was really deeply asleep, Shinta did as her boss had asked her to do and made her way over to the bridge. The corridors were crowded with people milling about and there was still an air of anxiety hanging about. She sighed to herself, a lot of people were going to need counseling once the dust settled. Now they were still to high strung to notice their own feelings. Give it a day or two and the counseling office would be overflowing. But not everybody would seek help on their own and there would also be an outbreak of irratibility and small fights amongst friends. It would be her job and that of the other counselors to keep a finger on the pulse of the ship and be everywhere at once.

She entered the bridge now and found the atmosphere there even tenser. The officers were staring at the viewscreen tense.

"What's going on?" Shinta asked a young NCO at tactical. Strange how she still preferred nco's above officers in a pinch.

"It's the captain ma'am. We were told to abandon him if he weren't back in twenty minutes and that time is almost up now."

Shinta looked aghast. She didn't think that commander Casey would leave his captain. But then she didn't know that man, had never been introduced to him even. Now taking all her courage she went up to the central chair.

"Excuse me, sir. Dr. Dallas is indisposed and asked me to step in for her on the bridge. I am Navarre Shinta, counselor. You... you are not planning on abandoning the captain are you?"

"Something Out Of This World"

Ensign Enrique de Marquez
Counselor

*** Deck 14, Counseling Department, Enrique's Office ***

The padd slowly dropped on the desk, the clang resounding loudly through the bare office. Enrique stood up and looked around him, startled. He breathed deeply as he realised he'd been holding his breath the whole. He was back in his office. But just a moment ago he was.Enrique quickly shut away the memory. It was horrible. It felt as if he'd been ripped from the most phenomenal feeling he'd ever had - it was like nirvana, like heaven. Still a bit uncomfortable in his own skin, Enrique shivered and rubbed his shoulders.

He quickly ran over to the window and looked outside into space. There it still was - the Gothos, ominously hanging in space. So it wasn't a dream. He looked at his watch and saw the time: 1430 hours. He was still on duty, but he remembered finishing the crew files, which lay scattered on the desk. He remembered meeting Rose and Vanda after duty - and that's when all the shit started. Red Alert, the Breen, the attack, leaving the engineers behind, and leaving Vanda behind. Then he remembered the moment he shared with Anna. It suddenly dawned on him that if he thought had happened what really happened, he never physically met her.

Sitting back down in his chair, he turned back to his desk. Recent events still puzzled him greatly, but there was time to think on it later. An hour at the gymnasium and some quiet meditation would most probably do the trick. As he picked up one of the padds lying on his desk, he felt the ship leap into warp. The padd was one from Ensign Sovok, requesting Bubble's medical information. Enrique placed it to one side and looked through the others. They were separated into two stacks: those he already read, and those he still had to read. The ones he hadn't read were a bigger pile, but looking through them, he realized he already knew the contents. Enrique sighed and leaned back in his chair. Blowing up wasn't something you'd easily forget. God, how weird that was.

He glanced over at the arrangement of fruit lying seductively in a small wicker basket on the side of his desk. It was a banana and two red apples, oddly arranged. 'Oh god', Enrique thought to himself as he took the banana and began to peel it, 'I desperately need a boyfriend.'

"Wake Up Call"
Ensign John Xavier

The first thing John did was fall into his bed and sleep. His lights were still on but that didn't keep him up, even though what happened on the Gothos didn't really happen, or did it? He couldn't tell but he was still worn out from it and he kept looking at his arm expecting to see it burnt and bleeding with the make shift bandage Mhari gave him, but that wasn't there.

John woke up in time for his shift and pulled himself out of bed, he was still in his uniform from the day before so he quickly changed into a clean one.

John put his communicator on and walked out of his quarters and headed for the shuttle bay.

=====
J. Hughes ICQ# 46111530

"One Pissed Off Orion"

starring: Gailyn, Electra & Door
(with a vid com message from Ens. Skinner)

There was no time for a debriefing as the away team materialized back aboard the Galaxy. Red alert signals still flashed from all quarters, and Captain Price headed straight for the bridge as soon as he solidified. It was simply protocal that the remainded of the crew report to their stations as well. Gailyn looked around the deserted transporter room, offering the dazed looking transporter officer a quick shrug as he too walked toward the corridore.

"YOU L'ISHKA EATING, MUCK CRAWLING, MAGGOT FACED GRUNTA!" a familiar voice yelled as the tall el aurien was soon assulted by a petite green form. Electra was sobbing as she pounded his chest, until all she could do was wrap her arms around her dearest friend.

"I missed you too." Gailyn whispered seriously as he hugged his green skinned friend back. Looking up he noticed the quiet figure of Door as he stood slightly back...unsure if he was intruding. Gailyn smiled and beckoned the young half cardassian over to join in the group hug.

"Though you were a gonner for sure." Door offered.

"I thought the same about you. Trelane said that all of these awful things were happening to you." Gailyn said as he wiped away a few tears.

"Who's Trelane?" Electra asked, regaining a measure of her former composure.

Gailyn shook his head grimly "It's a long story, and I'll be glad to tell you about it in the comfort of my quarters." He indicated the bulky EVA suit he still wore "This thing is not exactly the fassion statement I want to make right now."

****************************
Later in Gailyn' s quarters
****************************

Door listened wide eyed "So he really made you battle other people on the high seas?"

Gailyn nodded as he lounged comfortably in one corner nook of the large sectional sofa in his quarters "Made is really too nice of a word Door, he FORCED us to do harm to others...and ourselves."

Electra shook her head as she took another sip of the warm beverage she had replicated herself. Gailyn's quarters were always an interesting place to hold a conversation. His walls were hung with tapestries and paintings from times and worlds most mortals had never dreamed of. Here and there, she could pick out a few precious items saved from his doomed homeworld, as beautiful and delicate as the people who created them. It was hard to imagine anyone or anything forcing the handsome el aurien to do something against his will.

"You still haven't told me what happened back here. What did trelane do to you?" Gailyn asked, breaking Electra's train of thought as she refocused on the present conversation.

"He killed us." the orion stated simply "The basterd killed us all and left us with the memories."

Gailyn remained silent, gazing out of the large picture window behind them as the stars went streaming by "We've gone to warp." he said quietly.

Electra knew her friend well enough to hear the ragged edge of sorrow in his voice, but her thoughts were interrupted as the com panel on the corner of Gailyn's desk beeped. She almost fell off the sofa when she heard Ensign Skinner's voice inviting Gailyn out for a drink.

"What was that all about?" Gailyn asked, a rare look of mystification on his face.

"Gail, you've been a monk for too long. I've known bajoran vedecks that have more of a social life." Electra fired back. "Now young Mister Skinner has been asking me some pretty pointed questions...and Adrian has been telling me that there is this new guy in Counseling..."

"Wait a minuet!" Gailyn asked as he started to laugh, his eyes shading to a baby blue "How did we go from near death experiences to my dateing practices?"

"Easy...sheesh, I thought you were supposed to be the smart one." Electra snorted.

"Lexi, I'm confused." Gailyn stated as he propped at the edge of his desk. He looked to Door who just shook his head, as mystified as Gailyn. "Was I supposed to gleen a moral from this latest adventure?"

"We're all going to die someday. Hell, even you can be killed." Electra pointed out "What I'm trying to say is to use your com padd, take Ensign Skinner up on his offer and enjoy your life."

Gailyn was quiet for another moment as he stared at the green skinned woman sitting across from him "Been asking about me, huh?"

"Yep." came the reply.

"This is just drinks." Gailyn said as his finger hovered over the padd's reply button.

"You must start somewhere." Door offered.

Gailyn sighed and touched the reply indicator "J.C., hi this is Gailyn..."