The Night Weighs Heavy

Posted on Mon Oct 3rd, 2016 @ 12:30am by Niro

Mission: Further Challenges
Location: The Brig

The Brig - Isolation Unit *

Counselor Amani had been gone a good twenty minutes and yet Niro still stood at the forcefield, watching the corridor as if expecting the man to reappear any second. Neither the counselor nor anyone else appeared and finally he turned away and began to pace the confines of his cell. He had been counting the time until his inhibitor-free week and now it was almost over, the days fleeting. He knew the time would be spent alone, as per the agreement, other than the counselor and that was fine. Raj was really the only one he wanted to see.

The realization stopped him in his tracks it hit so hard. The Counselor? Really? The required sessions were one of the main provisions that had allowed Niro to remain on the station. Originally, he had wanted to stay here for the sake of Reva and Six but he had seen neither of them. He had seen in Raj’s mind that they were now off the station. Falasin had only come once so far, and she had kept her distance. She had promised to come again, but that had been weeks ago and he suspected Mamu was behind the absence

That brought him around again to Lt. Amani. At first, Niro hadn’t wanted to talk to Raj at all. He’d been rude and nasty and yet, it hadn’t ruffled the counselor one bit. Raj listened to whatever rantings spewed forth from Niro, had let Niro’s insults roll right past him and came back for more. He had addressed Niro with courtesy and understanding which had, at first, infuriated Niro, at least as much as the mood stabilizers had allowed.

Eventually, however, Raj had worn him down. There was just something about the counselor that drew Niro in, despite his anger and mistrust - something that put Niro at ease. Darwin had said as much when Niro was first brought in. The counselor was Kriosian. Niro was unfamiliar with the race so in all his empty hours, he had looked it up. He wanted to understand the counselor and without his telepathy, had to rely on conventional means. The description of them was a real eye-opener, especially the notes on the rare female metamorphs. What interested him, though, was the men. They were a race of empaths and while the males were never metamorphs, it seemed they still had the ability to understand just what the people around them needed and how to respond emotionally. Niro had to admit, it was a real gift in a counselor.

On a personal level, it meant that the man he was destined to see twice a week for close to forever, in his view, had the ability to be exactly what he needed. Niro wasn’t sure if that pleased him or made him wary. What he did know was that now he craved the counselor’s company like a dying man in a desert craved water. That realization both thrilled and disturbed him, making him wonder if he weren’t already going stir crazy.

He wouldn’t see Raj again for three days and by then, the telepathy blocker would be back in his system. That was, of course, why he had spent his time with Raj today sifting through the man’s memories, picking out everything he could about about his interests and his life, about his desires and emotions - anything Niro could hold onto to fill the empty hours and keep Raj close, even when he wasn’t there. What he had discovered was something of a surprise. He’d seen so many memories of Jan, the woman from the Nexus Club. What that had revealed to Niro was the extremely passionate nature of his counselor. He should have expected it, he realized, given what he had learned of Kriosians. It wasn’t Jan, however, that really interested him. It was the emotional sizzle that came with the memories, the deep caring and desire from Raj. That was what Niro wanted to hold onto and replay in the empty hours alone. It was the very essence of Raj himself and it would be enough to carry Niro between visits...for now.

He also discovered plenty of memories of Raj’s sessions with Six and Reva, most of them discussing what Niro had done to them and in Reva’s case, what she had suffered on Fisher’s ship because of Niro. Those memories hurt too deeply to review just yet. The pain from the two young women, and the fact that he was the cause, was more than he could face right now. In picking out Raj’s memories, he’d also gained the force of the emotions behind them, making them all too real. The sensations associated with Raj were good ones. Those from Reva and Six were not and so he shoved them away.

A faint hum told him his dinner had materialized on the bunk and he wondered what was on the menu tonight. Whatever it was would taste wonderful, thanks to the lack of inhibitors and mood stabilizers. He sat down and dug in, eating with gusto. Finally, he put the tray in the recycler and stretched out on his bunk. A soft hiss whispered through the cell, notice that the telepathy inhibitor was once again drifting into his cell. He reached out, sensing the minds of those nearby, but then slowly the noise faded, leaving him blind. He closed his eyes and began to dream….of Raj.

*************
Niro
Wrapped up in silence...All circuits are dead...