Lt. Commander Foster: Watching Hope Die

[+ Saveron]

OOC: Having watched this relationship from the beginning, through it's trials and tribulations, I don't think there was a dry eye in the house by the end of this sim. 

 

((Holodeck Nightmare Scenario Number 347))

 

::And here they were all together again.  And they were also all fighting a gigantic red dragon in fantasy armor.

 

And somehow this was a normal day on the USS Constitution-B.

 

Spells were flung, swords were swung.  Shields were used and everyone lived.  Except the dragon which died in an...

 

Actually let's not think about that right now.  It was dead, OK?::

 

Atan: I think it's dead.

 

Sindri: I’m not too sure about that.. ::He looked about carefully.:: This game has rules, so something should change if we achieve a goal?

 

Atan: Let's hope the simulation plays by the rules and lets us out now.

 

Young: ::Sighing:: That would be nice.

 

Foster: Because it's been playing by the rules oh so much so far.  ::He  intoned drily.::

 

::Wyn cast a gaze towards Ji-hu, pretty sure that the engineer knew what was going on well before the actual program started to show itself.  And in return Ji-hu wouldn't even meet his gaze.

 

Wyn Foster frowned, feeling any hope of the relationship they might have had wither and die.  His fears had come true.  T'Reshik had imprinted too much on Ji-hu and in Wyn's mind he was irrevocably changed.  No longer the same person he was before.  It was like watching a friend die, and someone else walk around in their skin.

 

He felt cold.  Unbearably cold.

 

He could hear the wind.::

 

Vehk: Stand back.

 

::Others were still making sure this dragon program glitch thing was dead.  Vehk rammed his staff into the thing's eye.  If Wyn was in the frame of mind to notice he would have heavily appreciated such a gesture.::

 

Rajel: :: to Saveron:: Are you alright?

 

Saveron: ? 

 

Vehk: Are we able to issue commands to the program now?

 

Atan: :: hopefully :: Door?

 

Horne: Arch.  ::Nothing::

 

Yito: Computer end program.

 

Foster: Hey computer, puke us out.

 

::Nope.  Maybe they'd be stuck there forever.

 

Fun, Wyn could play the game of 'how long will Ji-hu avoid looking at me.'

 

Long enough for Wyn to feel dead inside, most likely.::

 

Yito: Maybe we need to do something else. Unite the queen and king or something. But I’m no expert at these games.

 

Rajel: Not sure how much more united we can be, short of a kiss, and I prefer to keep those for Jerry unless we need to. But killing the dragon should have been the conclusion.

 

Ardaris: Not an expert on Terran myths or past-times here. Could be timing, though. The program looked broken enough 

 

Foster: You guys give holodeck programs too much damn credit for working properly.  ::He muttered.  Wyn was well and ready to leave and do some wholly destructive drinking.::

 

Horne: Where is Dameroth?  Or was it Damerov?  ::Jacob couldn't remember::  He seemed to be the one giving us updates and moving us in the right direction.

 

Vehk: Given the dragon was speaking in Klingon… ::He fell silent for a long moment.:: Perhaps Commander Saveron knows more. ::Vehk approached them and bowed his head.:: Commander. I trust you are unharmed?

 

Saveron: ?

 

Sindri: Maybe it’s just a lag? ::He spoke optimistically.::

 

Rajel: Maybe. ::She stepped to the severed dragon head and crouched down in front of it. Reaching out she brushed her hand over the scales, each one almost as big as her palm. It was a magnificent beast she would have loved to study more. She mumbled to herself and halfway to the dragon.:: Too bad you had to threaten my crew and kidnap my First Officer.

 

Horne: We were lucky.

 

Sindri: Um… where did my grenades go? 

 

Yito: Mine are gone too.

 

::Hey, were they back to normal?::

 

Young: Please please please let me have both my legs!! Please please please.  ::After failing to fall awkwardly to the side, Raven cracked an green eye open then sighed with relief.:: Hey, I still have both legs Doc! ::Grinning happily::

 

::He turned towards the kid - he liked Raven.  He mustered a smile.::

 

Foster: Hey, awesome!  Best news I have heard all day.

 

::He meant that.::

 

Horne: Is it over?

 

Rajel: Well if our transformations are any indication, I would believe it is.

 

Yito: Finally

 

Saveron: ?

 

Sindri: Can we go now? ::He implored.:: I am so over this quest!

 

Atan: I am glad to be back to my normal size, although I seem to have a lingering craving for mushrooms. 

 

Rajel: Then let's try this. Computer, exit. 

 

Ardaris: Finally.

 

::Finally finally.  All the finallys.::

 

Sindri: Well, that’s it then?

 

::What, Sindri, you wanna go around again?  Well, he could do that himself if he desired.::

 

Horne: ::jokingly:: So do you guys want to stay here and debrief?

 

Atan: The only debriefing I want to do is in the lounge with something not synthehol.

 

Yito: Here, here to that

 

Foster: I hereby prescribe hangover medicine to all.

 

::And yes, his mind was made up.  He was getting drunk.  Destructively drunk.::

 

Atan: Shall we? I suppose we should find out what happened first...

 

Young: It's real, it's over!

 

Rajel: Let's get out of here, and I believe I'll find Maxwell to ask him what happened. 

 

Sindri: Maxwell? Isn’t he away? :: He looked at Jalana strangely, the quest had gotten to her.::

 

Ardaris: Maxwell? I don't believe we've met.

 

:Here a Maxwell, there a Maxwell, everywhere a Maxwell, Maxwell.::

 

Yito: Understood

 

Rajel: Oh I thought everyone had seen that. He appeared in the program as a huge floating head and told us he was working on getting us out. Looks like he's back. 

 

Sindri: A floating Maxwell head.. ::He smiled.:: and I thought this quest was the strangest thing I’d seen…. Well, this week at least.

 

Foster: You need to see stranger things. 

 

Rajel: Alright everyone, check in your departments and see if anything has been happening outside as well, there were indications. Saveron and I will go and talk with Maxwell. 

 

Yito: Understood

 

Young: ::Nodding rapidly:: I'll head to the bridge and see if I can be of any help.

 

Saveron: ? 

 

Rajel: And great work, all of you. It was a very unusual situation and I've seen some great adjusting and working towards the common goal. Thank you. Computer, end Program. ::She looked to the piles of treasures and unbreathing body and head of the dragon and it both disappeared without fanfare.:: 

 

Ardaris: Thank you, s-. ::She was still getting used to Jalana's sense of informality.

 

::The crew started to scatter.::

 

Foster: Ji-hu--  ::He called.  It was passionate and yet pitiful, watching the back of Choi Ji-hu as he practically ran out of the holodeck, leaving Wyn standing there.::

 

::The others dispersed.  He stood there.

 

He finally watched T'Reshik wheel herself out.  Wyn still stood there, his frown digging so deeply into his expression that it threatened to tear his lips off his face.

 

He started moving before she could question him, casting one last glance towards her.  He was sure Ji-hu wasn't inside her brain either.  No.  He was quite sure the Ji-hu he knew was dead.  There was only T'Reshik and T'Choi now.

 

Served him right for trying to care for someone.  Wyn, you stupid fool.

 

What did you learn from all this?  People are selfish and think only of themselves.

 

He turned, the last one out of the holodeck and he flipped the fading black and yellow grid a hate-filled middle finger.::

 

~*~

~fin~

~*~

 

Lt. Commander Shar'Wyn Foster

Chief Medical Officer

USS Constitution-B

 

"Why do we fly?  Because we have dreamt of it for so long that we must"

 

~Julian Beck

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