by Avery Breaux and Vol Tryst
80615.22
...continued from part one
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80615.22
...continued from part one
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Vol wanted to hug this woman, and he almost wanted to believe that she were right, for the simple sake that she wouldn't have to acknowledge that what she was feeling was much bigger than her sister's death. Vol made a point to schedule a line of appointments with the officer after today.
It was then that a pair of Engineering officers entered the Sickbay.
"Doctor, we've finished our diagnostic." said one of the gentleman.
All eyes turned to the Engineering officer, "Nothing out of the ordinary."
"Ops to Breaux," Avery perked up hearing the comm hail. Breaux responded, "Go ahead to Breaux."
"Doctor no traces of anomalous activity during the time frame you requested...will there be anything else?"
Breaux furrowed his brow, "Thank you, no."
Breaux turned back to Vol, who knew the words that would arise even before they were said.
"Then it really was her..." Beth breathed, as a her feelings of hope emblazoned anew.
"Or we're all delirious, despite what the 'good' Doctor says." Hull mumbled under his breath, clearly thinking all of this was a bunch of hoo-hah.
"Mark." snapped Parent, who glared at the man. Mark wasn't backing down though.
"You don't tell me you believe her?" he retorted. There was a pause as Parent bit her lower lip and sideglanced Beth. The pause stretched out, and it was clear to Vol that neither Parent or Hull thought that Beth's sister had come back somehow. Hull didn't even consider the possibility, whereas Parent discounted it because she perceived it as just not being logically or practically possible. She didn't say anything, because she didn't want to string Beth DeBerry along. It didn't appear to make a difference to her though.
"I don't need any of you to believe me." She slowly looked at Hull and Parent, and than right into Vol's eyes. "I know it's her, I can feel it." She blinked, and then a smile crept on her face as she seemed to realize something. "I've got to go back..." She slid off the medical bed to stand firmly. "...I've got to talk to her."
Avery Breaux stepped in. "I can't let you leave yet Ensign, I'm still conducting tests and the Counselor hasn't---"
"Then let's go talk to her." Vol said. The statement took everyone back a little bit, especially Avery. Vol looked at Beth, returning her thankful smile. "Maybe I'll be able to sense her thoughts and be able to help you... reach her."
"A word, Counselor?" Avery motioned him over as they both made short strides to a corner of the sickbay. He whispered to him, "You're not saying you believe her."
"I can't say that I do, but the only way to find out for sure is go back to the scene of the incident. Look for everything and anything, no matter how insignificant. Furthermore, if she's not present when we find out what it is, she may think we fabricated everything. We need to banish the idea that this may be her sister, or else her she'll hang on to that false hope for the rest of her life."
Breaux thought for a moment, "I suppose you're right. I'll finish with these two, that will allow you some space to work with her at the site do contact me if you need me." Breaux turned back to the group and signaled to the two he wanted to remain behind,
"I'll finish up with you, and we'll no doubt, clear you for duty, Ms. DeBerry will follow the Counselor..." Hull began to speak and Avery interrupted him,
"Lieutenant Hull...do you have any allergies to hypos that I might have missed?" Hull quieted down.
==== Transporter Room ====
Vol entered with Ms. DeBerry, Avery, and another trained engineering officer who stood at the transporter console, as he'd agreed to be on full alert while the Counselor and his patient re-examined the reported happenings. Waiting for the disembodied voices to speak again, Vol thought that there were perhaps stranger things he could be doing now.
"Where were you when you heard them?" He asked.
Beth silently turned and looked at the Transporter pads. She walked up the few steps and then bent down on one knee, looking intently at one of the partially hidden conduits.
"I was making a routine check of this here conduit, it seemed to be in perfect working order."
Breaux suggested, "Perhaps if we begin the similar check..."
Vol finished his thought, "...we might be able to recreate the scenario you experienced."
Beth opened a panel and began checking and reconfiguring the system, poking around with an instrument, the same she had been using from before. She was about to explain to the group that all looked as expected when everyone in the room heard the same thing, a voice.
"There it is!" Beth was elated, Avery lifted up a hand as he squinted to listen.
The voice was muffled, distant, but definitely there. As if they were underground, and the voice were coming from above ground. It also sounded like a transmission of some kind, like through a technical device, and not directly from the voice box of a person. Vol looked over at the officer at the console, awaiting an answer.
"I-I can't explain it Counselor." As the officer's fingers whizzed across the console, trying desperately to have something more substantial to offer. Every time the man's fingers struck a key, a loud chirp would emanate.
"Mute that thing would you?"
"...yes, S--- Counselor." The officer did so, and Vol noted that he was about to call him Sir. Being reminded of his lack of rank. Avery piped in.
"And can you power down any unnecessary machines in here Ensign? Anything at all, we want to hear only the voice."
The officer was about to acknowledge, but Avery put an erect index finger on his lips to signal 'quiet please.' Vol had turned his attention to Beth, who was listening to the voice, trying to get more out of it.
Now, clearly all that could be heard over and over again was the distressed voice of a female yelling; "Emergency! This is a distress signal to all ships! Please aid! Emergency!"
Breaux's eyes raised to the ceiling as he heard the call, "I'll be damned." He whispered.
Avery produced a tri-corder to see if he could discern where the sound was coming from. Moving methodically from right to left holding the device aloft, Avery took careful notice of the readings.
"I guess all those years in Engineering were worth something after all..." Avery moved closer to the transporter pad..."...it would appear that the activation of the diagnostic resonates perfectly to allow for a minute slip in the time space continuum, and the sound is dissipating...dissipating...and should be gone....now."
The voice was gone.
Breaux turned to Vol, "It would appear that Beth...is not clinically insane," he turned back to her with a reassuring grin, that was met by an expression mixed of anger and shock, which set Avery aback a tad. Vol's head fell forward as he massaged his temples, Breaux should just stick to jazz and the Sickbay, and stay out of the Counselor's chair.
"No!" The volume of Beth's voice was unexpected, as was perhaps the aggressive tone in her voice. "Check again!"
"S-Sir..." Said the officer at the console, his hands still flying over the now muted buttons. The sound of the female voice, still repeating the same message with the same sense of urgency, came back. "It's reappeared. But I don't understand, the anomalous readings are still well within normal working parameters."
Now Avery and Vol shared a mutual look of 'you've got to be kidding.' Vol couldn't prevent the following sarcasm, as he didn't even turn from his standing position to face the officer.
"So, I guess if it's within the suggested working parameters, it's simply not there then?" Vol stopped himself from rolling his eyes, and he bent down to now sit next to Beth, who was still angry and in denial.
"It's not an anomaly, it's really her!" Beth denied herself right into a unrelenting lie.
"Beth..." Vol said softly.
"Or maybe it is her, from a past time. From when she..."
"Beth..."
Ms. DeBerry's body shook with her tearless sobs, her eyes watering but not yet falling.
"Janine..." Vol could only shake his head in response and moved his hands to rub the officer's arms. Vol could sense strongly that Beth did not recognize who the woman was in the timely-lost transmission, but she fooled herself into thinking it was her sister, because she wanted to be with her so badly. Finally, Beth broke down and the tears poured down her flushed face, and she buried her eyes into the shoulder of the Counselor.
"...I'm so sorry." She sobbed.
"She knows Beth, she knows." Vol reassured her, and the sobs came harder now.
Avery tip-toed around patient and doctor. Approaching the rather uncomfortable looking man at the console,
"Were you able to detect where--I mean when, the transmission came from?" He asked.
He nodded and quietly offered, "Yes sir...it's from twelve years ago, the Denari System, near as I can tell...if we cross-referenced missing or lost vessels I'm sure we can find a hit."
"Doctor..." came Vol's soft voice from behind Avery, who spun around to see the Counselor half-supporting an emotionally-wrecked Beth DeBerry. "...if you no longer need my expertise..." Vol seemed eager to get Beth out of here.
"Uh... yes, by all means. Thank you Counselor." Avery blinked a few times, still processing all that had happened.
"Not at all." replied Vol.
The doors opened and Vol and his patient stepped out, but not before Avery had thought of something.
"Oh, Counselor. Would you like our findings reported back to you?"
"I would, I'll be in my office Doctor." Vol responded thankfully, before turning away to take care of his patient.
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LT Cmdr Avery Breaux
CMO
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
and
Ensign Vol Tryst
Ship's Counselor
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
LT Cmdr Avery Breaux
CMO
USS Serendipity NCC-2012
and
Ensign Vol Tryst
Ship's Counselor
USS Serendipity NCC-2012