Somewhere in Time

Posted on Mon Nov 16th, 2015 @ 10:17pm by Lieutenant Commander Earl Crane & Lieutenant Commander Gilroy & Commander Ehlana Winter & Lieutenant Commander Solis & Jono

Mission: Further Challenges

* Piper Medical *

“Uh-huh,” Earl nodded and glared at Gilroy for a moment, “So you’re going to say that these injuries are from getting into or out of a life pod?” His doubt was evident in his tone.

Gilroy, stone-faced, simply shrugged. “Perhaps the Takei’s shuttle had a rough transit,” he answered. The Takei had sent Niro’s crew back to SB900 in a shuttle so that they could focus on finding the rest of Niro’s ship. “Just make sure his tongue works so that he can explain what happened to the Korenna. Remember that Solis’ wife is on that ship.”

“As if I could forget!” Earl growled and continued working on his patient’s wounds. “Poor guy was wearing a rut in the floor. So far, he hasn’t destroyed any furniture, though I have the feeling that won’t last long.”

“We’re doing everything we can to find them, Dr. Crane,” Gilroy assured the doctor.

The blond man on the table beneath Earl’s hands moaned suddenly as Earl began to work on a large burn on his arm. “Escape pod…” he whispered.

“Yes, yes, you were in an escape pod,” Earl muttered at the man. “Who is this fellow? Do you know?”

Gilroy frowned. “Falon, ship’s engineer,” he answered. Speaking up slightly, as if the man might have gone deaf, he asked, “Falon, what happened to the Korenna?”

The voice was unfamiliar to Falon, but it penetrated the haze and finally he seemed more coherent. Opening his eyes, he looked to Gilroy and frowned as he tried to place him. “Security,” he concluded.

“Yes, and you should be happy to see me,” the officer growled, “Now, answer me: what happened to the Korenna?”

“We were...about two hours out and things were fine. But then, we got hit with a massive energy wave. Engineering went nuts. Whatever it was emerged from subspace and you could see it moving through the engine and all the panels. It caught me too and I thought I was on fire.” Falon paused to take a shallow breath. “Warp core went offline and the klaxons were sounding. Niro sent out a call to get to the escape pods. He said he’d meet us there but needed to round up the rest. We launched but the last pod never did. Then, space sorta lit up and the Korenna vanished.” He fell silent and closed his eyes.

Gilroy looked at Earl who simply said, “He needs rest once we get these wounds treated.”

Reassured that the man hadn’t suddenly died, Gilroy nodded. “Fine. I’ll have officers posted outside the crew’s recovery rooms. Is Solis aware of this development?”

Earl blinked and said, “I don’t know. I haven’t told him, but one of the other staff may have. It’s not like we’ve kept this secret.”

“No reason to do so,” Gilroy said and moved away to find Solis.

* The Wormhole Bar *

Solis dropped his empty shot glass on the bar and looked back at Jono. “Hit me,” he ordered.

“With the whiskey or my fist, mon?” Jono joked. “The fist would be less painful.”

Solis raised his eyebrow as he stared back at the man. “Very funny. Now use this same glass so I can be sure it’s clean.”

Jono shook his head and smiled. “Now who’s the comedian?” He refilled the short glass and pushed it back to Solis.

“Thank you.” Solis lifted the glass but a shadow fell over the bar and he stopped to look behind him. “Well hello.”

“Ophelia guessed you might be here,” Gilroy said. “You know that drowning your sorrows doesn’t work, right? They just keep bobbing to the surface, annoyingly.”

“It may not drown the sorrows, Gil, but it keeps me mellow enough that I don’t lose my shit altogether. That’s a good thing, don’t you think?” Solis grinned at the security officer, then drained his glass. “It also means I won’t hop on the first ship out of here and chase that miserable son of a bitch down and blow him into dust.”

“Well, if you did that, you’d have a hard time following him. Dr. Solis, I’m sorry to be the one bringing this to you, but Niro’s ship disappeared. The Takei found several escape pods from the Korenna and took them on board. The Korenna’s warp trail stopped where the pods were,” Gilroy paused, hating the next part the most, “Lt. Bajun was not on any of the escape pods, nor were Darwin or Six of Ten. The Takei has remained in that area, searching for any explanations for the ship’s disappearance.”

Solis blinked up at Gilroy. “It...vanished? Are you saying the ship blew up? That they are dead?” He squeezed the glass so hard, it shattered in his hand.

“No, just that it disappeared. We don’t know where it is. We can’t say that they are dead,” Gilroy said. “The Takei’s crew is doing everything they can to find them.”

“No debris? Please tell me there was none?” Solis was on his feet now. “You said you have some of the crew? Where are they?” His hand began to sting and he looked down, realizing now that the broken glass has sliced his palm. A rivulet of blood began to pool there.

Waving Jono over to get a bar towel from him, hopefully a clean one, Gilroy replied, “There was no debris and the crew said that there was an energy surge then the Korenna ‘vanished’. They didn’t say it exploded or imploded, just that it disappeared.”

“Then maybe there’s some hope.” Solis took the towel and pressed it into his palm. “Where’s the crew? I want to see them. Maybe I can get some answers you can’t. “

“They are in Piper, most were injured. Those who weren’t are, of course, in the Brig.” Gilroy hoped that Earl would keep Solis away from the crew there.

“Thanks, Gil, that’s just what I needed to know.” Solis looked back at Jono. “Send me a bill for the towel. Later fellows.” He stepped around Gilroy and made his way towards the door.

Gilroy went with him, all the way back to Piper and Earl. “Back so soon, Lieutenant?”, Earl said, seeing the big man coming in. “Solis, what are you doing here?”

“A big Klingon birdie told me you have some of Niro’s crew here. I want to see them Earl,” Solis demanded. “Now.”

“Yeah, that’s not going to happen, my friend. Not in your condition and not when we’re talking about men who had something to do with Julisa’s disappearance,” Earl said.

Solis narrowed his eyes as he looked at the two men. “I may be able to get some answers they aren’t in any shape to speak...or can’t recall,” Solis reasoned. “And what do you mean, my condition?”

“I can smell the alcohol on you, Sol, and your hand is bleeding. Come over here, let me fix the hand,” Earl drew Solis to an exam room, not minding that Gilroy followed along.

“Good point.” Solis hopped up on the biobed and held out his bloody hand. “I had an argument with a glass when Gil said that Niro’s ship vanished and for a second there I thought he meant they were dead. I won.”

Earl huffed in disgust and first cleaned the wound then started closing it up. “Gilroy, for a man who loves Shakespeare, you don’t have a way with words, do you?”

“I said the ship disappeared, not that it was destroyed!” Gilroy frowned at the two of them. “We do have telepaths, Solis, but... if you can refrain from hitting any of them, then you can talk to them and see what you can glean from them.”

Solis shrugged. “It’s not the crew’s fault, it’s Niro’s. They were just running the ship like crew does. That make you feel better?”

“Yeah,” Gilroy nodded. “Earl?”

“Okay, give me a minute here, though. I need to finish this up,” he said, continuing his work. When he was done, he wiped Solis’ hand clean then gestured to the door, “Let’s go see Niro’s crew.”

Solis followed Gilroy out and down to another examination room. He entered and moved over to the biobed, taking a moment to read the scans. The chroniton readings were slightly elevated and Solis frowned. “How about that. Have these decreased at all since he arrived Earl?”

“No, they haven’t. The Takei’s crew reported a high level of chronitons in the area of space where the Korenna went missing. They’re looking for a rift of some sort; so far, they haven’t located one,” Gilroy answered for Earl, earning himself a frown from the older doctor. He shrugged at Earl.

“I want to see your gorgeous wife when we leave here, Earl.” Solis wound his long hair into a knot on the back of his head, then studied Falon. “I know you can hear me and I want to talk to you. I’m a telepath though, so asking my questions may be easier that way if you are agreeable. I’m required to ask your permission, so I am, mainly because I’m a doctor and I can’t blame you for what Niro has done.”

“Niro’s our captain and commander. We do as he orders. What’s yer question?” Falon sneered at Solis.

“Why those people? Why Julisa and Darwin and Six?” Solis asked. He placed his hand gently on Falon’s arm. “You lie to me and I’ll know it.”

“He’s got a history with Jules; Darwin pisses him off; the Borg girl...? She was luck, great luck. He’s been angsting about her, irritated that she kept him from Reva and Falasin. Having her onboard, we coulda made bank, man,” Falon grinned slightly, thinking of the money Six’s blood could have brought them. “Darwin, though, Niro wasn’t sure whether he was going to sell him or kill him.”

“I see.” Solis knew a little about Julisa’s past with Niro, but brushed that aside. He managed to make his voice calm as he continued. “So what happened? Why didn’t Niro and the others get to an escape pod along with you?”

“I dunno,” the engineer shook his head. “I was in the engine room, trying to compensate for the surge we were getting, then came the order to abandon ship. I did, he didn’t. Darwin, Jules and the Borg girl had been stunned and locked up, so they couldn’t have gotten off the ship anyway.”

Solis shot a glance at Gilroy, who had turned away and hung his head, then turned back to Falon. “What happened after that? You all hopped into the pods and then?”

Glancing at Gilroy an Earl, Falon said, “I told them that space sorta lit up and then the Korenna was gone. It just disappeared.”

“Sounds like a rift,” Earl said.

“It does,” Solis agreed. “One last thing. Had any of our people been harmed other than being stunned?”

Falon sneered at Solis. “We were two hours out. Niro hadn’t had time yet. If they’re alive, though, he’s probably making sure he’s on top.”

A muscle twitched in Solis’ jaw and he stepped back from Falon, releasing the man’s arm before he broke it. “He’s patched up Gilroy, I think he could use some place less comfortable before I change my mind about being nice.” He turned now to Earl. “We need to see your wife.”

Earl nodded at Solis. “Wait for me in my office, then we’ll head to my place.” He waited till Solis had left the room then said to Gilroy, “Once we draw up the discharge papers, Security can take him. But that won’t be for another few hours.”

Gilroy nodded. “We’ll be here when they’re ready, Doc.”

“Good. I have a friend to console,” Earl said and went after Solis.

* Earl’s and Ehlana’s Quarters *

“Honey! I’m home! And I have company!” Earl called as he and Solis walked in.

“About time you came to see me Solis.” Ehlana emerged from the bedroom, dressed casually, and smiled up at the Vulcan. She patted his cheek, then passed on to give Earl a kiss. “How was your day?” She stopped then, having picked up on Solis’ panic when she’d touched him. “Alright sit. What’s up?”

“Julisa. Niro stole her, made off with her on a ship and now the ship and Julisa are missing. Missing as in ‘gone through a rift of some kind’.” Earl held her close for a moment.

She snuggled up against him but when he mentioned a rift, she sat up straighter. “What sort of rift? Is she alright? Do we even know?”

Solis shook his head. “We know exactly nothing other than that an energy wave passed through the Korenna, Niro ordered the crew to abandon ship, and once the pods were free, the sky lit up and the ship vanished. Darwin and Six were with them.”

“Scans are picking up chronitons, Ehl,” Earl said. “Could you do your thing, see if there’s something your department can do?”

“I’ve gotten no alarms as yet, which means that nothing has gone wrong, or at least gone in a direction it hasn’t,” she informed them. “However, I will look into it. Why don’t you two go into the kitchen and forage for dinner while I take a look?”

“I’m game.” Solis frowned suddenly. “I wonder how Suresh is taking all this?”

“No idea,” Earl said, “Come on, the lady said dinner. Let’s see what we’ve got.” He led Solis into the kitchen and started looking through their options.

Ehlana stepped back into the bedroom and reached into a drawer for the temporal interface padd. Settling down on the bed, she entered a command and began to read as the information scrolled by. Everything appeared normal but as the timeline continued, something jumped out at her. Then another. Following these, the time line seemed to settle back down. That was a huge relief. It explained why her alarm hadn’t sounded. One last thing popped up that made her smile, then she scrolled back to one of the previous blips. She intended to keep an eye on that one but for now, no call for Ehlana to act. She sent an alert on to Tomas, then returned to the kitchen.

“I have good news, Solis. I know you’re worried but just trust me when I say that things will work out alright for you,” Ehlana informed him.

“Seriously?” Solis seemed to relax just a little. “You sure?” When she nodded, he pulled her into a tight hug, then let her go. “Wait...you said for me. What about Suresh?”

Ehlana shrugged. “His road ends well but is going to be a little rough on the way there. That’s all I can say.”

“Huh... are you allowed to do that? Read the future and tell us?” Earl frowned at his wife.

“I didn’t tell him anything other than not to worry.” She met Earl’s gaze with a ‘we’ll talk later’ look. “Nothing to worry about, which is why my alarm hasn’t gone off. So what’s for dinner?”

“Mushroom and fontina cheese omelettes. Solis is performing surgery on the ‘shrooms right now and I have the cheese grated and the eggs waiting, Shouldn’t be too long. Would you pick out a wine?”

“I will. I should leave dinner to you two more often.” She goosed Earl, then moved on through the kitchen to the pantry to get the wine.

* * *

Dinner had gone well following Ehlana’s announcement that everything would work out for Solis and Julisa. Earl and Ehlana had said goodnight to Solis and then went to clean up the kitchen. “Well... what was that glare for?”, Earl asked.

Ehlana sighed aloud. “What I said was true. Julisa is going to be just fine. Earl, it looks like she is….there with herself if that makes sense? Herself as a child. The timeline is intact, with a couple of blips for her though.”

“Huh... I wonder if she knows that,” Earl mused. “What are the blips, Ehl?” He knew the devil was often in the details.

“She has to save someone,” Ehlana answered. “I have no idea what happens or why, that’s all I can tell you. Solis really has no need to worry but you know he will anyway.”

“Save someone?” He stared at her for a moment then, shaking his head, went back to drying the pan he’d used to make the omelette. “That’s not a bad blip. I thought you were going to tell me she was nearly killed, like the last time she left the Station.”

“It’ll be fine,” she said, purposely vague. “How well do you know Suresh and Six?”

"Not very, why?" Earl put the pan away and started on the other dishes.

Ehlana shrugged. “Just curious. Her line is...odd. Like someone else is monkeying with it. I don’t know if Solis is in contact with Suresh so I didn’t want to say anything.”

"I think the only contact he has is through Piper, same as me. 'Course, I could be wrong. What do you mean by odd? Who could be monkeying with it?"

She thought back over what she had seen on the small screen of her device and shook her head. “I’m not sure but I don’t like it and there’s nothing I can do. There’s no way to tell what’s happening wherever they are or what will be when they get back.” She fidgeted with the plates, stacking and restacking them aimlessly.

"But so far, they haven't screwed up the timeline so you can't go get them, huh? Can you tell the Takei where they are?"

Once more Ehlana shook her head. “Not yet.” She set the plates aside and turned to Earl. “There’s something else. Those four, and Suresh and Solis, aren’t the only ones affected by this.”

"Who else, then?" Sometimes, she was far too cryptic for him.

“It’s going to affect some here on the station too, like Edana, and Li, Nico and…..” She hesitated a moment, then added, “Lucius.”

"That's a strange list, Ehl."

“Not so much if you think about it, my love,” she answered. “They are all people close to the group who has vanished. Even you will be somewhat affected by the web of events.”

He straightened up and looked at her. “Me? Will they need medical care?”

“That’s possible,” Ehlana admitted. “It’s not what I was thinking of though. Just....remember that she’s still your friend and may need your advice? That’s all I can say.”

He laughed disbelievingly as he reached over and took her into his arms. “Oh, my darling... I’m friends with Solis. But friends with Jules? Meh.... She’s friends with Julian.”

“Just trust me. Please?” She smiled up at him. “And maybe brush up on memory loss while we wait for them to get home. Now can we call it a night and relax while things are quiet?”

“Okay, and yes. How about a movie?” His hands roamed over her and he goosed her playfully. “Or we could make one in the bedroom?”

“I like that idea much better.” She took his face in her hands and kissed him gently. “Tonight’s mine, tomorrow, Solis may need you.”

“Not the way you do,” Earl murmured and started undressing her.

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

Lt. Gilroy
Lt. Commander Earl Crane
Falon
Lt. Solis
Jono
Commander Ehlana Winter-Crane