Back To Reality

Posted on Sun Sep 6th, 2015 @ 10:16pm by Lieutenant Riley Sukotav & Lieutenant Raj Amani

Mission: Further Challenges
Location: OSN Kyllini

* OSN Kyllini *

Riley reached up to move a branch aside that had tangled in his hair, then stood still once more. It was important that he not be seen. He'd forgotten how warm it was in the Arboretum and he noticed now that his palm was damp against the leather that covered the handle of the knife. He wanted to move it to the other hand but that would mean movement that likely would be noticed. So he waited.

It wasn't long before Six appeared, strolling along just beyond the trees. So lovely. He recalled that first day on the Evariste when she had appeared at his office door and kissed him. He had spilled the wine he held - a gift from the XO to congratulate him on his promotion. Even now he could see the dark red stain as it had spread on the carpet. The image shifted to Six, lying on the grass, the red stain spreading over the green. It was what he was supposed to do.

He noticed now that Bryce had fallen behind. It was time. Silently, he dashed forward, knife poised to strike. She turned slightly and he drove the knife home, between her ribs as he knew he had been ordered. Somewhere, someone was yelling and it was heart-rending. Someone else was calling his name, then he felt hands on him.....

Riley awoke with a start, still yelling. Someone held him and for a moment, he fought off the hands on his shoulders.

"Riley! Stop! It's me!"

It took several more seconds for Riley's head to clear and to realize that the man who held him was Raj and that they were not on 900, but on a ship. The Orion ship. Little by little, the hours since his release from the brig filtered back into his mind.

"Sorry." He sighed aloud and rubbed his eyes, noticing that his hands shook. It was only a nightmare but the horror of it still enveloped him.

"Bad dream?" Raj pulled the chair over and sat by the bed. He, too, noticed Riley's shaking hands.

"Look and see," Riley murmured.

Raj fell silent and it took only an instant to see the remnants of the dream in Riley's head. He wasn't surprised. He reached over and rested his hand on Riley's arm.

"It's to be expected, but that doesn't make it any easier." He squeezed Riley's arm gently. "Such dreams may come for a while but try not to let them get to you. It's a normal step on the road to processing what happened and recovering, moving past it. Even so, if they begin to interfere in your waking life, there are things we can do."

Riley nodded. "At least she lived and there's no danger of me doing it again. Is there?"

Raj shook his head. "Both Nico and I have checked thoroughly and whatever programming was there is gone."

"There's that at least." Riley managed a faint smile. "I was dreaming I was back in the Arboretum and did it all over again. But before that, I was seeing the night on the Evariste, the night I met Six." He knew Raj had just seen the dream in his head but he had to talk about it even so. "I was in my office, just returned from seeing the Captain and the XO, who had promoted me. When I got to the office, the XO had sent a bottle of red wine and I opened it and poured a glass. Suddenly she was there at the door and I thought she was so beautiful. She also scared me. I have a hard time talking to women when I first meet them."

Raj smiled at the admission. He'd picked up on that in what he saw of the dream as well. "Go on."

"She introduced herself and I offered her a glass of wine. She took a few sips, then set it down and kissed me. It wasn't just a peck on the lips either but one that could curl your toes. It was her first post after the Academy, you see. She still was not very accustomed to social interaction and wanted to see what it was like. I was her first, you see." He laughed briefly at the memory. "When she kissed me, I dropped my glass and the red wine spread out over the carpet in a dark stain." Now he frowned as the memory pulled him back to his dream. "In the dream, the wine stain turned into her blood as she lay on the grass...." He stopped and pressed his hands to his eyes.

"Then I woke you up," Raj stated.

"Yes and I am glad you did. Someone was yelling."

"That was you," Raj informed him. "But it's over. I brought you some dinner. You need to eat."

"How long had I been asleep?" Riley sat up in the bunk and stretched.

"About ten hours, more or less." Raj stood and brought the tray over to the bunk. "It's good though. You hadn't slept since they took you in to the Brig. You were exhausted. Now eat."

Riley didn't think he was hungry but after the first bite, he was ravenous. "Either this is really good or I'm just hungry."

"You're just hungry." Raj laughed. "Or maybe both. I threw it together in the galley."

Riley paused to grin at Raj. "You'll make someone a good wife some day."

"Very funny." Still, Raj was glad to see a bit of Riley's humour returning. "I figure the time till we reach that ship will be good for you to rest and start recovering. Not much else to do on this ship anyway."

Riley wolfed down the rest of his meal, then stretched back out as Raj moved the tray. "I know we talked briefly about my seeing Six in your office with you there, if she is willing, but I had a thought. What about Suresh?"

"What about him?" Raj could sense what brought the question.

"What if he won't allow her to?"

Allow? The phrasing of Riley's question surprised Raj. He was aware of the reputation of Suresh, of course, and his relationship with Six was still something of a puzzle for Raj. "Is he in the habit of telling her what she can and cannot do?"

Riley shrugged. "I don't know. He seems very different with her than he is otherwise, down in the Pit. I do know he's very protective. He may not want her around me, given what I tried to do."

"We'll just have to wait and see, Riley," Raj answered. "That will fall to Six to deal with if it becomes an issue and she will either give in or she won't. She doesn't seem to bear you any ill will, though. She knows what caused all this. But let's worry about that if it comes up, alright?"

"Okay." Riley was silent as he considered it. "I hope...." He stopped and shook his head. "We'll see, I guess."

"We will. Why don't you get some more sleep? You certainly need it and we'll need you rested when we find Reva." Raj stood and moved the chair back to the small desk.

Riley started to protest but realized he was, in fact, sleepy again. "Alright." He settled back down and reached for the blanket. The mention of Reva prodded at him but he wasn't ready to examine the last time they'd talked in the brig. The wound was too fresh yet. He knew what he wanted, and he'd read her easily enough to see her feelings too. They had a lot to deal with, starting with Riley's head but first they had to find her. Maybe after a little more rest...

Raj waited until Riley's eyes closed and it was surprisingly quick. Moments later, he could hear Riley's even breathing and he took the tray and departed, locking the door behind him.

**************
Lt. Riley Sukotav
Sweet Dreams Are Not Made Of This

Lt. Raj Amani
Keeping Watch