Hi Everyone! :D

Now that SKIN DEEP: PART II is FINALLY FINISHED

The Following is a SPECIAL PREVIEW for the CONCLUDING SEGMENT of this THREE-PART STORY:

SKIN DEEP: PART III

Preview: The Impossible Message

Jake Sisko breathed deeply as he walked out of the air lock and onto the space station known as Deep Space 9.

The sprawling station was of Cardassian design: intimidating, badly lit, and poorly laid out – at least by the standards of human comfort. But, to Sisko, returning to this dark, dingy metal bucket was like coming home. When he was a child, his father had been the station commander. He'd grown up there, made friends, fallen in love… And later, while the station had been under Dominion occupation, he'd remained aboard as a war correspondent for the Federation News Service, risking his life to report the truth of what was happening on the front lines.

Jake hadn't come there to reminisce, though. He'd received a summons. A strange message had been forwarded to his desk - a garbled code it had taken him and his coworkers nearly a month to figure out. And, they'd only managed that after they realized the message had been sent from outside their familiar spacetime continuum.

"Could it be that Q guy, you think?" his editor had asked, squinting at the impossible message in open fascination. "Q are supposed to be from another continuum, aren't they?"

"Only one way to find out," Jake had told her and, fortunately, she'd agreed.

The warm, blended smells of the station's many restaurants brought him back to his childhood, when he'd climb to the second level and dangle his legs over the Promenade, watching the crowds flow in and out with his best friend, Nog.

Jake swallowed back the memories and kept walking, trying not to think about how much time had changed this place, where he had spent so much of his life. Familiar spaces were now inhabited by strange shops, strange people he didn't know, and who didn't know him. Small children ran past who hadn't been born when he'd last set foot in these corridors. The sensations in his mind were surreal, of time overlapping, memories overlaid... And yet, for all the changes, the physical station was still very much the same as it had been just after the war. So much so, Jake felt he could walk the whole place blindfolded, identifying each section by scent alone.

Turning a corner, Jake left the busy Promenade with its wide open feel and entered a narrow corridor. The private observation lounge had been reserved in advance. Punching the code and walking in, Jake found the room empty, but proceeded to make himself at home, ordering a drink from the replicator and sitting back to take in the vastness of space, as seen from orbit of Bajor. He was eight minutes early, after all, and the strange message had been pretty precise about the time.

His mind had drifted off somewhere, half daydreaming, half composing a new short story, when he heard the doors slide open behind him. He sat up and turned around, a jolt of excitement rising through him.

Until he saw the newcomer, and he sank back into the chair with a sigh.

"You're human," he said.

The man snorted a smile and moved in to straddle the chair across from him.

"You sound disappointed."

He spoke perfect Federation Standard, no accent, no indication that he was anything other than what he appeared to be. An ordinary human being in ordinary travel clothes. The man looked tired, as if he hadn't slept in days. His dark, unkempt hair and unshaven face seemed to back up that observation. But that, too, was pretty normal fare for a busy space station full of busy travelers.

Jake sighed.

"Maybe. I don't know. After spending so much time and effort deciphering that message...finding out where it came from - or, rather, where it couldn't possibly have come from...! I suppose I was expecting something a little more...exotic."

The man snorted again.

"Indeed? Well, you seem exactly as I expected. Leaping to conclusions based solely on surface observations."

"Excuse me?" Jake frowned.

The man reached up to cover a wide yawn.

"Pardon me," he said. "It's been a long journey."

"Who are you?" Jake asked. "Are you the one who sent that strange message to my desk?"

The man yawned again and scrubbed his fingers through his hair.

"The message? Yes, that was me," he said. "As for my identity—"

The door slid open again, and Dr. Julian Bashir strode in. His wide, smiling expression landed first on Jake, then broadened into something more like amazement as he approached the stranger, who rose to his feet to greet him.

"Commander," Bashir exclaimed, warmly clasping the man's pale hand. "Commander Data, can it really be you? But, where have you been? I heard—"

"It's really me, Doctor," the android assured him, while cutting him off. "Still operating under cover, though, so try to keep it 'under your hat,' as it were."

"Of course, of course," Bashir said, never taking his eyes from Data's face as they both took a seat. "I'm sorry if I'm staring...Dr. Crusher told me of your upgrade, of course, but... This really is amazing. You do look absolutely incredible." He smiled. "If I may ask, Data... Does your hair still grow?"

The android laughed.

"It does indeed, Doctor," he said, ruffling his hand through his dark locks again. "In fact, I think I may be past due for a haircut now."

"Hold on, hold on, what is all this," Jake demanded. "I didn't come all the way back to this station just to watch your reunion. I came for a story. Now, who's going to tell me what this is really all about?"

Data raised his eyebrows and sat back in his chair, sharing a somewhat amused look with the doctor.

"Oh, I have a story for you, Jake Sisko," he said. "It's the scoop that no one has, because so few besides me have bothered to look. Part of the reason is there are people - powerful, dangerous people - who would rather not see this story brought to light. The fact that those who do dare to investigate tend to wind up with targets on their backs may also play a part. But this story is important, Jake. And once it is revealed, I fear the impact on the Federation may be felt for years to come."

Jake furrowed his brow.

"If it's so dangerous, why come to me?" he asked. "Why not recruit a more established reporter?"

"I came to you, Jake, because I figure you owe me one. A big one," Data said, looking the younger man straight in the eye. "I also figure, there may be much that we can learn from one another. So, Mr. Sisko," he challenged. "Are you with me?"

Keep an eye out for Skin Deep: Part III, coming soon to a computer screen near you!