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"Why Ask How When What You Wanted Was The Who"
(Previous Post: (ANU) "Deeper Darkness" / (BAS) "The Return")
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Setting: USS BASTET, Infirmary
Stardate: 33322.1100
"Everything checks out," Doctor Andersson joyfully reported following the most recent study of her scans. It was plain to see that the expectations of the crew had been squarely set on the shoulders of the Chief Medical Officer. The reason for this was after all quite simple; who else could confirm that the woman currently on her medical examination table was the person they claimed to be. The entire crew of the HATHOR wanted to believe that the claim was true, but following the mysterious journey they had all been on thanks to the alien named Adrien, it made sense for them not to trust their own senses. "Allow me to be the first one to officially welcome you back, Captain."
"Thank you, Sofia, but you can call me Selene. Sarena is the one who officially holds that title, for now, I am just... me." Iverson hesitated to qualify herself in any other way for the simple reason that she was not entirely certain of 'who' she was. Upon her walking out of the shadows, he had taken a fair amount of time trying to explain 'who' she was. Although the former Commanding Officer of the BASTET understood that she had been plucked from time itself to be here amongst friends instead of there as a prisoner of the shadows, she felt incomplete.
"I am sure that everyone here, and I mean everyone including Commander Valentine, will be happy that you are back," Sofia explained, the woman barely able to contain her excitement.
"Doctor Andersoon, did you notice the time index on your instruments?" Lieutenant Mitshiba asked as the Asian Chief Science Officer stepped into the Infirmary. "Sorry Captain," Misaki added, bowing to the woman sitting on the examination table. "I did not mean to interrupt."
"It is quite alright Misaki, and you can call me Selene. Sarena is your Captain, not I."
"I am sure that this will be all worked out as soon as Sofia confirms who you are and gives you a clean bill of health," Mitshiba said, her excitement matching that of the Chief Medical Officer. "I am sure that it is nothing more than a matter of time. Speaking of which," the scientist continued focussing her full attention onto the Doctor. "Did you notice the onboard chronometers?"
"Why?" Sofia asked, the simple question instantly bringing back countless memories of the man who seemed dedicated to having her answer that same question in order for her to make her way to the next questions which eventually lead to the ultimate 'who'.
"We landed on the Okari planet on stardate 33120.1230, look at the current stardate."
"That cannot be," Doctor Andersson said shocked by what she had just read. "We have been back on board the HATHOR for less than an hour, so that would mean that we spent..." The monumental discovery proved to be more than the woman could voice.
"I checked the main computer and every device on board. The displayed stardate is accurate. We were on that planet for over 200 *days*," Misaki confirmed. "I can only guess that our little journey through time happened a lot slower than we experienced. Actually, to be entirely honest, there is no way for me to tell if this passage of time was a result of what Adrien did or just a normal discrepancy between normal space and how time passes on the world of the Okari."
"The explanation Adrien tried to give me did seem to drag on, but I doubt that it accounts for all of those 200 days," Iverson joked, the amused tone of her own voice surprising her just as much as it did the other two women in the room with her.
"Anyway, Commander Valentine would like to discuss this with you as soon as Doctor Andersson authorizes you to leave the Infirmary," Misaki explained to the still sitting woman they were all beyond happy to see alive.
"Of course, I would not have expected anything less. I am sure that Sarena has a great many questions for me, I just hope that I will actually be able to answer some of them as I find myself with just as many questions, if not more."
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Setting: USS BASTET, Bridge
Stardate: 33322.1130
The moment Selene stepped onto the bridge, she was greeted by Gemma and Nicole, both approaching the woman from different sides.
"Welcome back Captain," the Intelligence Liaison Operative said before shooting a quick warning glare in the direction of the Trill Counsellor.
"It is delightful to having you back with us Captain," Dima followed up with, dismissing what Gemma had done as being just another quirk of the woman with too many personalities to list.
"Thank you both, but as I have been saying to everyone, just call me Selene. The Captain is the woman over there," the former Commanding officer said pointing to Valentine who now stood next to the central chair.
"They are all happy to see you back, as I am, *Captain,*" Sarena said emphasizing the word to make it clear that she would not in any way oppose the woman should she wish to reclaim the position and responsibilities that were hers before the unfortunate events that took place in the Lokustaar dimension. "I have some green tea waiting in the Ready Room if you are up for it."
"Are you setting up a trap for me?" Selene said in jest which again took her as much by surprise as it did those on the bridge. "Thank you, it will be greatly appreciated."
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Setting: USS BASTET, Ready Room
Stardate: 33322.1135
"So, Doctor Andersson says that you are in perfect health," Sarena said as she presented the steaming cup of green tea to the Captain and inviting her to sit.
"I have the feeling that I spent some of those lost 200 days of yours recuperating from what happened to me," Selene said accepting the cup and realizing that she seemed far more at ease than ever before in trying to bring humour to a conversation.
"Tell me, what did happen?" Sarena asked joining the other woman with a cup of her own, sitting on the front side of the desk so that nothing stood between them.
"I am not entirely certain," Selene admitted. "I remember being cold, very cold, surrounded by emptiness without end with all of my fears being reflected back at me. I also remember pain the likes of which I could never have imagined and just when that pain grew to be more than I could handle, it stopped and I found myself standing next to Adrian."
"So he rescued you from the Lokustaar?"
"I am not sure that either one of us can qualify what he did as a rescue. He explained that he had plucked me from time, a single heartbeat from the end of 'who' I was then. I am not completely certain what he meant, but it was evident that the 'who' I was meant something to him."
"He was rather insistent in all of us discovering 'who' we truly are. I am wondering if that is not part of the reason why you are here. What possible reason could he have had to bring you back, not that any of us are complaining."
"I noticed that, but back to our conversation, I believe that we are going about these questions in reverse order. Are we not supposed to start with the 'what', work our way to the 'why' and eventually finishing with the 'who'?" Selene teased, again finding it strange that her usual professionalism was nowhere to be found.
"Something changed," Sarena pointed out. "You are not the same person you were the last time we were together."
Iverson had been ready to make another joke, this one claiming that after 200 days lost in the vastness of the unknown could easily explain a slight change in character, but instead Selene forced herself to react as she would have in her previous life. "I know. Although I do feel like I am the same person that I was, I also can feel something different. The problem is that I cannot tell if this is because of what the Lokustaar did to me or if it is because of what Adrien did."
"We may never know for sure," Sarena noted before tapping on her communicator. "Counselor Dima, could you please come into the Ready Room." Within seconds the door opened and the Trill woman stepped in.
"Yes, Commander?"
"Captain Iverson will be resuming her duties as Commanding Officer effective immediately. I want you to support her in any way possible. I do not expect the transition to be a difficult one, but I am sure that the Captain will be more than happy to know that she is not alone in dealing with whatever may come up during our journey back to NEW ALEXANDRIA." The announcement took both Selene and Nicole by surprise, especially after the fact that Iverson had been telling everyone that she was no the one in command.
"I will do everything I can to help, Captain," Nicole said to the woman who did not appear to be all that against her reclaiming the role and position she had been in before her disappearance and capture by the Lokustaar.
"Thank you, Counsellor," Commander Valentine said dismissing the joint Trill back to the bridge. "I hope that you can forgive me."
"There is nothing to forgive Sarena," Selene said going as far as to add a smile. "I know how difficult it was for you, for all of you. I can only guess that it was thanks to Adrien that I know this, but I do understand. All I can say is that I will need you just as much as you needed me. After all that has happened, I cannot trust myself in the same manner that I once did, so I will need you to keep an eye on me. I will make sure to speak to Nicole on a daily basis and report to Sofia for regular check-ups. You can tell Koniki that I am officially back, although I am sure that he will want me to answer some questions of his own, at least this way things will have been made to be as they were, as they needed to be."
"Thank you, and welcome back, Captain." With that, Sarena exited the Ready Room and left Selene to her own to finish the cup of green tea.
Iverson slowly made her way around the desk and sat in the chair that was hers by rank. "Captain," she repeated trying to see if the sound of the word was a pleasant or disruptive one to her ears. So much had happened back in the Lokustaar dimension, so much that she wished to forget as if it had never happened, and yet there was so much that she could not remember, memories that might help her understand the one question Adrien had been hounding her with. Who was she?
---
Jessica Solarik
Commanding Officer
USS BASTET
&
Chief Science Officer
USS ANUBIS
"To see the world in a grain of sand,
and a heaven in a wild flower.
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
and eternity in an hour."
- William Blake (British, 1757-1827)