Storm Shadows – Suspiration:

A Star Trek Voyager/Next Generation Crossover

Part 10:

Cass exclaims hotly, "get the hell off of me! I had her."

She struggles to break free.

But, by the time she almost is…she realizes he already let her go. And, she almost tumbles straight through the Doctor's holographic arm.

More than a little embarrassed, Cass glares straight at him.

With some small comfort in Cass's physical well being…Four begrudgingly and finally lowers her phaser.

Just about everyone else around is too stunned to say anything.

The EMH Doctor uneasily justifies, "if I hadn't…you would've caused massive internal bleeding in her brain. Is that what you would've really wanted?"

Cass then nervously looks back at Reia's beaten up unconscious body. And, it all then hits her like a ton of crashing down bulkheads.

She just bends over in her own guilt…and she cries and cries.

K'Olagh mutters, "better a Petaq than us."

Endri finds herself tempted to smirk. But…she finds herself hating herself for the thought alone. And, her smirk fades just as quickly.

Tyrik looks angry. But, he's trying to hide it away under Vulcan calm.

Orrak faintly grins at it all: Especially the look on Tyrik's pained face.

Sounding very shaken… Hannah Bates speaks out, "haven't we all had more than enough anguish for a lifetime?"

K'Olagh talks back, "speak for yourself."

Tyrik shouts, "K'Olagh!"

He moderately sighs to himself…as he struggles to calm himself down.

Endri is all the more stunned.

But, from sensing Tyrik's emotional state…she realizes all too simply that saying anything now won't help. And so, she doesn't say anything.

More calmly, Tyrik says, "K'Olagh. She is right: We all have. Fighting among ourselves is only going to make matters worse."

K'Olagh concedes, "annoyed sigh. Fine then. But, when it does come…Reia's life will bring nothing but more dishonor."

Kellin points out solemnly, "please go back to your quarters. All of you."

Hannah Bates concludes, "yeah. We probably should. Come on."

Kellin adds, "thank you."

Now very much stunned herself… Four asks nervously, "can I stay?"

Kellin wonders, "may I ask why?"

Four answers, "she's my friend. Possibly the only friend I got."

With a faint bittersweet smile…Kellin figures, "long as you don't intend on shooting us…I don't see why not." Four adds, "thank you."

Hannah Bates escorts the rest of Team Red Hour back towards the bed area.

Tyrik reasons, "I do not think it will. We have more than enough people to see that she does not break out of confinement."

K'Olagh adds doubtfully, "we'll see."

He goes over to his metal bed. And, he just lies there: Turning on his side so as to not look at anyone.

Orrak just sits on his metal bed: Mostly twistedly content with everything.

Not taking it anymore… Endri turns to Tyrik.

She questions, "what in the Great Fire happened back there, Tyrik?"

Tyrik insists firmly, "nothing happened. I am in control."

Endri mutters sharply, "fine! Be that way."

She storms off down another twisted corridor. And, she just sits there: Sitting out there nervously with her legs out…and her phaser out.

Not far from there… Hannah Bates wonders, "has anyone seen Jack?"

The two freed Bynar are standing before her. They answer in unified finished sentences, "we…have not. We think…the Borg took him."

Hannah Bates mutters, "damn! If we don't find him soon, we might as well turn ourselves in for re-assimilation. Keep an eye on things here. I'm going to go over the sensor readings. Maybe they left something for us to follow."

One of the freed Bynar says, "as you wish."

Hannah Bates heads for the Borg viewscreen: Leaving the freed Bynar be.

Around this time…

Four rushes over toward Cass.

As she sees the EMH Doctor though…she stops.

And, with a piercing glare… She asks him, "what did you do to her?"

As the EMH Doctor is about to answer though… Cass faintly mutters under her breath, "he didn't. It's…what I almost did."

The EMH Doctor looks faintly relieved.

Four looks very confused, "I…do not understand."

Cass wipes away some of her tears.

Silent tears continue to fall from her face. But, Cass looks up anyway.

She heavily sighs, "Four…I'm not really sure you can. I wanted to beat her up. But…not like this. Not like this."

On impulse, Cass hugs Four: Silently crying over her shoulder.

Given the circumstances though…a teary eyed Four just stands there: Extending a sympathetic hand over her shoulder.

And, the EMH Doctor and Kellin just let them both be.

Around this time, onboard the Borg Unicomplex…

Jack's body is on a Borg operating table. A silvery gray half face mask with a modified blue targeting beam is now a part of his face…and there's a silvery gray tray of sorts placed around his torso.

The drill ends of several Borg drones's servo-armatures are cutting into the tray's edges, while the arms of two Borg drones hold the unconscious body down.

And, there's a sickly green tank of Borg grey Trill off to the side.

A Borg hand reaches down into the tank…and starts bringing one of the motionless Borg Trill over toward the tray: Dripping wet in greenish tinted water.

Not long after, in Agent Captain Janeway's ready room…

Agent Janeway is looking at tactical reports from her terminal…looking for anything else she might have missed about Commander Shelby's ship.

Then, she hears a beep from the automatic door.

She sighs heavily. She's been expecting this.

Agent Janeway says, "yes. Come in."

It opens. And, Seven walks in.

Agent Janeway tries to argue, "are you sure this can't wait, Seven? For, while we debate over command decisions, more of these temporal distortions are coming for god knows what else. And, we still got some Hazari ships to get back out there."

Coldly calm, Seven comments, "perfectly. Your behavior is bordering on erratic."

Agent Janeway surmises irritatedly, "oh, I think that's understandable. Compared to our days of being stranded, this is just a walk to a tennis match."

Seven points out, "the tone you're having with me suggests otherwise."

Agent Janeway mutters somberly, "you'd think that after we got back to Earth, things would have been different."

Seven reflects grimly, "no doubt they are. And, that troubles you."

Agent Janeway finds herself teary eyed.

She heavily sighs into her hands. And, then… She looks up.

She admits more freely, "maybe. Maybe I'm just so used to hoping for things to be all right…that I can't stand the thought of losing more people. Don't get me wrong: I'm not defending Section 31. I just…"

Seven says, "you're worried."

Agent Janeway solemnly nods, "yes. I'm worried. I'm damn worried. First most of the Quadrant. Then Chakotay, B'Elanna…Tuvok…"

Seven tries to assure her, "slight nervous sigh. You shouldn't blame yourself over what has been continuously beyond your control. Under the circumstances… I'm sure you and Chakotay did the best you could."

Agent Janeway mutters insistently, "you have no idea."

Seven reveals simply, "on the contrary…I do. The Borg have faint knowledge of Hugh's resistance. But, I figured out the rest on my own."

Agent Janeway faintly smiles, "you always were one step ahead of us."

Seven faintly smiles, "precisely. And, so long as I'm part of your crew, I intend to keep to that personal directive."

Agent Janeway faintly chuckles.

And, with no doubt in her mind… She says to her, "and I wouldn't have it any other way."

Around this time, in Kes's ready room…

In this mostly gray room with darker blue bulkheads… Kes and the alternate EMH Doctor are face to face.

Kes no longer has her helmet on. And, the alternate EMH Doctor has a Starfleet uniform very much like hers: Only with a full jacketed uniform.

The alternate EMH Doctor uneasily asks, "all right. What's wrong?"

Kes concludes, "Doctor, there's some thing very wrong with the multiverse." The alternate EMH Doctor wonders in concern, "like what?"

Kes reasons nervously, "I know this is going to sound crazy. But….I think Section 31 is responsible for causing the temporal ruptures."

The alternate EMH Doctor points out, "not really. They've done some very questionable things before. This wouldn't be far off. Although, if they could do something like this… Why keep fighting the Borg? For that matter…why would anyone in Starfleet in this timeline still be fighting among themselves?"

Kes is finding it hard to look at him.

With a moderate sigh… She admits grimly, "I don't know. Maybe I don't want to know. But, I hope we find out how to stop it soon: For all of our sakes."

Out there…

A massing dark blue lightning subspace distortion is approaching the Beta Quadrant. And, through the distortion's endless fog… Dukat's glowing very sharp reddish orange hand is reaching for the Metreon gas planetoids.

In seconds…the planetoids are swept into the dark blue lightning distortion.

In the dark, before some rattled bulkheads…

Picard is standing before the comatose Lauren and Patrick: Both in medical beds. He looks about ready to let the dark of night itself pay him a visit.

Beyond his tiredness, Picard mutters bitterly, "how many more must suffer because of our grave mistakes? How many more does it have to take for it to end?"

As his eyes start to tear up… The room suddenly is cast over in light.

But, as he looks up…he realizes he's no longer in the same room.

He finds himself in his ready room on the Enterprise: His old one…with the fish and the rearview window looking out to dimming stars.

Surprisingly solemn, Q says, "it doesn't have to be this way, Mon Capitane."

With mixed feelings, Picard realizes, "Q. What the hell are you doing here?"

Sitting across his desk…is most certainly Q: In a late 23rd century Admiral uniform, with the jacket open and showing its paler brown colors.

Q suggests, "you may want to sit down for this, Jean Luc. There are some things you should know."

Picard irritatedly shoots off tired words, "if this is one of your games, Q…"

Ghostly clear, Q reasons, "no. As a concerned father… I've come to help put back the pieces of the continuum together."

Picard looks staggeringly thunderstruck, "what?"

Q says, "you heard me."

Now even more uneasy… Picard sits down on the little couch.

After breathing a heavy sigh into his hands… Picard looks up again.

He figures, "perhaps you should start at the beginning."

Q concludes, "I have all intention to. But…"

Picard asks, "but what?"

Q points out, "you're really not going to like where this is headed."

Picard solemnly figures, "I don't doubt it."

The Coming Of A Great Fire…Or Of Light Before the Storm Shadows?

Please Feel Free To Comment On Or Continue This Storyline