MAY/JUN "Internal Flames"

[Tressa]

He was working at the desk; always working, he would not rest, would not stop. Not until he knew how to destroy them. There had to be a way, you just had to find their weakness; and find it he would.

A bead of sweat rolled down his aged face as he leaned closer to the simulation he was running. The flames of time had stolen his once youthful looks. So many days and years locked away in the lab that had become his home. His life had passed so quickly; a constant stream of sequences, DNA, simulations, profiles… but he would have his revenge… oh yes…

Time had changed his home, his life, his looks… but it did nothing to extinguish the rage that burned stronger with every failure. Every day was another reminder of what he had lost, and what he would never have again. The memory seared into his mind’s eye.

He would not forget, he would not forgive; his need to unleash punishment, the sheer desire to retaliate against those who had taken so much… it fueled his rage; burning deep within him, coursing through his veins and burning away at his core.

Tension.

His eyes narrowed as the analysis appeared on his screen… another failure…

For a moment there was nothing; before a sudden roar of frustration. The fire within him exploded, setting his senses ablaze with a fury that was all too common in the confines of the lab.

In a swift well rehearsed movement he swept the PADDs and vials from the desk, they clattered, broke, shattered upon the ground, but remained unnoticed by him as he turned his rage upon unseen enemies. Items were thrown, glass smashed, shards scattered across the every surface, the inferno continued until he had spent his energy.

He collapsed in the middle of his rage, his anger nothing more than simmering ambers until the next episode that would fuel the flames of what so many called his madness.

From his position in the wreckage his tired, old eyes drifted towards the tiny holographic image which continued to play. The circular projector was always kept clean, and running perfectly. On her circular stage, the image of a young woman danced and laughed silently, beconing to an unseen individual to join her in the fesitivity of her dance.

((Flashback))

"Dartris! Come dance with me!", she laughed and twirled in front of him.

Dispite everything the young man laughed as well, and stepped over to the woman, wrapping her in his arms. His eyes though tired sparkled with a love that radiated from his very core.

Through everything she kept smiling. The constant running and fear that their species had to endure on a constant basis. They were clever, they kept one step ahead of their pursuers, but in their hearts, they knew their time was running out.

And yet she smiled.

And yet she danced.

"My Farrah", he chuckled as he kissed her lightly on her forehead.

She smiled at him, and for a moment, they could forget where they were, and the future that awaited them. For a second in time they were truely happy together... and then the warning claxon.

It pierced the moment, and though they looked around in fear, they knew what was happening... what was going to happen.

As soon as the claxon started it stopped, and the words they knew and feared blared through the com system.

"We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile".

He swore under his breath in the many languages he knew, "What happened to the plan?!"

"It failed!" A man ran into the room, sweat pouring down his face, "A federation ship intervened, we need to evacuate now! Get to the escape pods!"

He tightened his grip on her as the colour drained from his face. Their last chance to survive was ruied, and now they had to abadon the vesselt aht had carried them this far.

"Dartris, we need your help to spread the word, there's no escape this time!"

"No", He held her close, turning his gaze to hers, "I'm not leaving you!"

"Dartris!" The man stepped forward ad pulled him away from her,

"Go", she smiled at him, trying to be strong, trying to hide the fear and the tears in her eyes, "They need you, I'll see you again"

"I love you"

"I love you too"

((Flashback Ends))

It was the last time he saw her as his Farrah and the last time she saw him as her love. They stole her... they...

There were days when it thought it would have been best if she had just died... those days he cried. Cried for the thoughts in his mind, for the family they had planned for, for the love he lost... she was everything...

And they TOOK her! They STOLE her from HIM! They ruined her life, ruined the beautiful woman that was! Her smile, her laugh, the brightness in her eyes when she looked at him... it was GONE, DESTROYED!

The fire rekindled, his body alive with the heat, the burning! He punched at a piece of glass under him ad it cracked under the pressure.

Standing he turned to the desk, where the PADDs, research and vials had rearranged themselves neatly on the desk as though by some unseen force. The broken shards and machinery from the first dissapeared slowly growing transparent until they no longer existed.

He was working at the desk; always working...

He did not notice the transparency to his own skin, or how the world was disjointed from him... he was working...

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

"So this is the place?"

A man appeared by what remained of the crumbled door. He brushed a cobweb away with a hand and looked around at the empty dust covered lab.

"Yep, this is it." A second man had appeared and cast his eyes around the gloom.

"So any particular way you want me to do it it?"

"Not really, just a safe demolition. We need the foundations ready in a few months, so quick is good." The second man chuckled.

"Quick it will be! I can see why you want it out of the way though; what a dump." The first stepped over and brushed away some dust from various vials, anda broken projector. "You said someone use to live here?", he laughed at the obsurdity of the idea.

"Yeah. Some guy lived his whole life here. Word was he lost his fiancee to the Borg", he shuddered at the name, "Spent his life trying to find a way to stop them, get revenge as it were..."

"And failed?"

"Apparently."

"So what happened to him?"

"I think he died in a fire. The whole place just went up on night. By the time anyone got here it was too late. No one could get in. "

The second cast a puzzled look to his companion, "You think he died?"

"Well, no one ever found his.. errr... remains. Possible they just got burnt too badly though."

The man chuckled, though the motion was quickly cut short by a shattering of glass on the far side of the room. The tow men froze and stared in the direction of the noise before turning their eyes back to each other.

"Rodents..." A nevous smile followed the uncertain statement.

"Yeah... rodents..."

The men shared anther look, before hastily exiting the room and the building in which it sat. Discussions of the plan they had for the forgotten room floated along the path, but no one heard them.

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

He was working at the desk; always working...

He would not rest...

Would not stop...