Interlude – ...A Behemoth Is Born
by Commander Chelsea Dunham & Commander Richard Dunham
Post Details
OLD:
"We've travelled through time but not through space. This is sick bay on deep space five. When it was being installed. We have travelled back through time......."
NEW:
Chelsea looked at Rick with a smirk and touched his face, tilting her head to one side with a quizzical expression.
"Funny, you don't look a minute younger, my love" she teased, planting a light kiss on the tip of his nose lovingly.
Dunham smiled, chuckled and rubbed the tip of his nose against hers in an Eskimo kiss. "even when I tear you through time, you still love me." Said Dunham adoringly.
"Aww!" she nuzzled back. "You can tear me through anything you like as long as on the other side we're still together!" she replied softly.
"How long do you think we've gone back?" she asked. "Right back to when DS5 was first fitted out? Do you think?"
Dunham looked around the room. It was the sickbay he recognised, but it was half done. Some of the medical equipment was missing, bio beds were still in their original packaging and parts of the ceiling were exposed to the circuitry underneath. "It looks that way, doesn't it." Dunham frowned a bit, "but why....? come on, lets go and have a look around."
Chelsea was curious. She poked into the partially built bays and cubicles, commenting on how each one was going to look. Eventually, she came out of the bases for Intensive Care.
"Do you remember much about what happened when you were in the Vortex? Mister Warren said that was why you had to have the formula.... so that's kinda why we're here..... I remember the state you were in when you were brought back from the Sarek. I was so afraid I wouldn't be able to save you.... i nearly died myself that night.... from heart failure.... If you *had* died.... " she began to get emotional and needed a hug. Moving closer to him she reached out her arms, tears in her eyes. "I love you so much!"
Dunham gathered Chelsea in his arms in a loving embrace, making soothing shh noises to ease her feelings. Dunham shook his head slowly from side to side, like a man thinking deeply on a subject that pained him with both physical and mental memories. "Nooooo....." he said thoughtfully, stretching the word over his thoughts. "I remember just crossing the event horizon, my fighter blowing up around me, my body partially on fire, and large hot bits of metal stuck through me.....the next thing I remember is coming out the other side and almost....well actually crashing into the uss Sarek."
"I don't know how you survived all that but I thank the Prophets and God and Fate and everything I ever believed in...... " Chelsea stopped. "I guess I'm not really sure *what* I believe in really. Apart from you!" She snuggled in closer, enjoying his closeness.
"What do you believe in, Rick? Do you think there's a force for Good in the universe?" she asked. "I mean there's clearly presences... i feel that sometimes.. but what does it all mean? Here we are, moving about through time... I don't know what to think some days."
"Such a weighty question yet clear in its simplicity..." said Rick with a small sigh. "What do I believe?" It was a rhetorical question, as he was mulling over the answer thoughtfully, as they both began to explore, what seemed to be a Deep space five half way through its construction and largely unoccupied. "reality is as it is, not just as it appears to be," said Dunham quoting the The Noble Eightfold Path, the fourth of the Buddha's Noble Truths.
"I don't think I know how to tell the difference" Chelsea said humbly. "Is that something you have to learn how to do?" her interest was genuine and her question was a serious one.
Dunham shrugged, it was difficult to explain. "You just do......" it was difficult to explain. "Ok lets look at it from another point of view I also believe, that were all spiritual people, I don't think this physical world is it, I think were here but for a reason, the same way a baby grows in a womb for a reason, it grows physically, so when it comes out in this world everything it grew in the womb is now relevant, eyes, legs, arms, ears. So when we die here, we don't really die; we die physically, but we go to another spiritual level, while everything we grew here in this world, personality our spirituality our virtues, our humanity is then used in that next life, then maybe a life after that, with each step being relative. An eternal round of growth all they way until we meet this un-knowable essence and all the mysteries of the universe will finally be revealed to us..."
Chelsea nodded. "...sort of like a butterfly?" she asked, considering what he was saying. "It starts off a tiny bit of spittle, grows into a grub, eats itself fat then turns into a chrysalis and dies off as it's old form.... but out of that dead shell that it leaves stuck to a leaf somewhere, flies free a new butterfly....? Is that it? Over-simplified of course?"
"yeah something like that....." said Dunham with a smile, and giving Chelsea a hug. His spirituality was not something they discussed much, but he was happy that she was trying to understand.
"Does that make a difference to what sort of wedding you'd like to have?" she asked, going off at a tangent for a while. She intended to come back to the spirituality but she'd just been struck by this thought and it popped out.
"I'd like a Buddhist wedding, with all our friends and family there." said Rick slightly taken back by her sudden question and then answering it just as quickly.
"Okay, what happens at a Buddhist wedding?" she smiled back.
"There is no set wedding service in the Buddhist faith, as the Buddha did not consider marriage to be a sacred ceremony. Instead, marriage is considered a social rather than religious occasion. The Buddha stated only that marriage should be based on deep mutual respect between partners and that it should be a partnership of equals. Buddhists can marry anyone from any religion and their union should be a harmonious blend of the differing strengths and abilities of the man and woman."
"That sounds like it was written for us!" Chelsea beamed. "So when do we start?"
He shrugged nonchalantly like he didn't really know the answer, "When I can arrange with the rest of the family to meet us on earth?"
"Earth?" She looked taken aback. "You want to get married on Earth?"
"yeah.......?" he said stretching the word over several seconds.
"But all our friends are here.... " she gestured around her at the empty pristine Sickbay and then wrinkled her ridges. "Well, *there*... as in back in our own time but on this station?" she looked as if she'd done something wrong.
"As long as all our friends and family are together in the same place when we get married I don't care where we have it. I just thought Earth would be more convenient, because I have a large family there.....but I'm sure we can arrange to have them brought here...I mean their." he gestured with a leapfrog movement with his finger. "I mean here but then.....this very confusing."
"What if, instead of the Mountain coming to Mohammed, so to speak..... we have two ceremonies. One here for friends and another, more family based one on Earth straight after... then we can honeymoon in that part of the universe too?" Chelsea suggested. "Or the Earth one first and then we can have one here and honeymoon on Bajor?"
Dunham shrugged "It wouldn't be all that trouble getting them to DS5 you know....now that I think about...Most of them are starfleet officers or retired diplomats, it wouldn't take much for mum to give um a lift as it were, after wedding well.....we could take the Chelsea and go wherever we like?"
"I know, but my Grandma isn't well enough to come out here and if you have family on Earth? I hadn't thought about it but it seems like a nice idea.... or maybe.... if you're mother is running a Hagnon round trip... maybe if Grammy had a nurse and Grampa were told a Starship was coming for him... " She wasn't sure now. She looked at Rick to see if he was doing this to please her or if it was what he really wanted.
Dunham looked around the room. "You know....we should probably....perhaps....maybe....consider.....you know......getting out from being lost in time, before we discuss wedding plans?"
"Okay" she replied. "What do we do next? How do we influence that?"
"Well..." said Dunham with a grin and slapping hands together; rubbing them enthusiastically. "The sooner we can get out here, the sooner we can get back to wedding plans....then marry you." he said with another smile touching his finger on the tip of Chelsea's nose "Lets go have a proper look around, maybe head to the science lab."
"Science?" she sounded surprised. "Why Science? I would have thought you'd want to see the Hanger Bays!" They set off as they talked.
"yeah....well.....as much as I like being thrown backwards in time I don't want to stay here and as it seems our tour guide has run off were going to the science labs to use the science equipment, and see if we cant find a way out of this mess."
Chelsea interlaced her fingers with his. "I'd rather go back but if we never can, at least we'll be wherever we end up, together!" she said.
They wandered together through the half fitted out station. Past empty corridors and suites, through empty areas that didn't look anything like they *would* one day. Past bare bulkheads that would become walls, wires and plasma conduits openings and stacked materials waiting for fitters, builders and engineers to craft into the final piece of work that would become 'home' to literally thousands of people of all races and species. It was a huge and somewhat humbling experience and they walked it mostly in silence, taking in the enormity of the task in hand.
"Is it odd that there are no people?" Chelsea asked finally breaking the quiet moment.
"I was thinking that too" he said squeezing her hand reassuringly. He went to a map guide on a wall and started looking at it, mumbling the words science over and over again. "Ah there it is," he said tapping it with one finger. "did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" She asked listening but not hearing anything. She looked at him quizzically.
"That" he said to an un-heard sound. "Sounds like footsteps" He paused a moment concentrating on the sound, it was the sound of feet on deck plating. "There it was again. I thought we were alone here?"
"Um....." Chelsea looked around but could see no-one and no sign that anyone had been here either, at least not lately. "I thought so too!" she replied, beginning to feel uneasy. "What does it mean? Are they on the deck above? With no sound muffling yet?" she tried to guess.
"I don't know....but it could be trouble. probably best if we stay out of sight." Said Dunham leading her by the hand and finding a secluded and dark hallway, until they could identify what was making the noise.
Chelsea followed without question and once they were away from plain sight, she nestled in against his shoulder. "I don't think this adventure is so much fun any more" she mouthed, waiting tensely.
At that moment a man appeared around the corner and jumped towards them holding a modern weapon of some kind, aimed right at them. "You can't escape me Eric! Did you think I wouldn't be able to trace your DNA?" he snarled. "Who's the broad you've picked up? Don't bother with introductions, she'll regret having ever met you, she's toast - just like you are. Make your peace with whoever you believe in, this ends here!"
Rick instinctively placed himself in front of Chelsea, however the rest of his mind was totally confused, who the hell was this guy and why was he calling him by his dad's name? The man raised his weapon ready to fire, there was sound of weapons fire, but instead of the lancing energy hitting Rick, the man in front of him instead slumped and fell to the ground. Standing behind him was another man, looking not unlike Rick. "Quickly this way." he said indicating a direction with his gun.
"Wait, no. Who *are* you?" Chelsea gasped, one minute in fear for Rick's life, the next in shock as yet another person who looked very much like him appeared from out of nowhere. ~This is getting to be ridiculous!~ she thought as, always the doctor, she instinctively crouched down and examined the fallen man for a pulse.
"and who the heck is *this*? Have you killed him?" she asked all three questions in quickfire before falling silent as she counted in her head.
The man paused and gave a look of exasperation and held his forehead in incredulity, he sighed, "Well in answer to your first question I'm going to be your farther in law, in answer to your second question yes I did kill him, but that ain't gonna stop him, so can we carry on with the running away please."
"How could it not stop him?" Chelsea couldn't understand. "And isn't it *you* who are dead? What in the universe is going on?" she realised from being unable to find the pulse that what Eric Dunham had said was true so she got up and hurried behind him, looking at Rick to see how he was reacting to having his dead father back. It was like a nightmare, only more real.
Unseen to those running away the man on the floor's eyes shot open. He began to pick himself up off the floor.
Rick's stare was off into the distance, he looked into a world that was not around him. His head spinning with unanswered questions and hypothetical scenarios to answer the fundamental question that was running through his mind, was that his father running with them.
Chelsea grasped Rick's hand as they ran and squeezed it. On the one hand it made her feel safe to know that at least *he* was real and on the other, she hoped it would be comforting as she tried to imagine how he must be feeling.
They came to a junction and a shaft where a turbolift would be in the future. Eric seemed to stop and look around. "Do you need to know where we are?" Chelsea offered. "This shaft goes up to the Bridge, amongst other levels."
"Stop!" said Rick finally coming to breaking point, he stood still to the spot. Rooted and not going anywhere. "Would somebody please tell me what the Hell is going on!"
Chelsea stood right up close to him, side by side, bending forward a little with both of her hands on her knees as she got her breath back and together they faced Eric Dunham, waiting for his reply.
Eric was about to open his mouth for a reply when the man they had downed early, animated and walking, hobbled up the corridor after them firing his phaser. The small party threw themselves down a side corridor.......
tbc....
A JP Between:
Lt. Cmdr. Chelsea Adams
CMO - DS5
and
Lt. Cmdr. Rick Dunham
CAG - DS5
and
Captain Eric Dunham
NPC's by Dan
by Commander Chelsea Dunham & Commander Richard Dunham
Post Details
| Title | ...A Behemoth Is Born | |
| Mission | Interlude | |
| Author(s) | Commander Chelsea Dunham & Commander Richard Dunham | |
| Posted | Thu Sep 23, 2010 @ 3:45pm | |
| Location | DS5 | |
| Timeline | 2376 (?) |
"We've travelled through time but not through space. This is sick bay on deep space five. When it was being installed. We have travelled back through time......."
NEW:
Chelsea looked at Rick with a smirk and touched his face, tilting her head to one side with a quizzical expression.
"Funny, you don't look a minute younger, my love" she teased, planting a light kiss on the tip of his nose lovingly.
Dunham smiled, chuckled and rubbed the tip of his nose against hers in an Eskimo kiss. "even when I tear you through time, you still love me." Said Dunham adoringly.
"Aww!" she nuzzled back. "You can tear me through anything you like as long as on the other side we're still together!" she replied softly.
"How long do you think we've gone back?" she asked. "Right back to when DS5 was first fitted out? Do you think?"
Dunham looked around the room. It was the sickbay he recognised, but it was half done. Some of the medical equipment was missing, bio beds were still in their original packaging and parts of the ceiling were exposed to the circuitry underneath. "It looks that way, doesn't it." Dunham frowned a bit, "but why....? come on, lets go and have a look around."
Chelsea was curious. She poked into the partially built bays and cubicles, commenting on how each one was going to look. Eventually, she came out of the bases for Intensive Care.
"Do you remember much about what happened when you were in the Vortex? Mister Warren said that was why you had to have the formula.... so that's kinda why we're here..... I remember the state you were in when you were brought back from the Sarek. I was so afraid I wouldn't be able to save you.... i nearly died myself that night.... from heart failure.... If you *had* died.... " she began to get emotional and needed a hug. Moving closer to him she reached out her arms, tears in her eyes. "I love you so much!"
Dunham gathered Chelsea in his arms in a loving embrace, making soothing shh noises to ease her feelings. Dunham shook his head slowly from side to side, like a man thinking deeply on a subject that pained him with both physical and mental memories. "Nooooo....." he said thoughtfully, stretching the word over his thoughts. "I remember just crossing the event horizon, my fighter blowing up around me, my body partially on fire, and large hot bits of metal stuck through me.....the next thing I remember is coming out the other side and almost....well actually crashing into the uss Sarek."
"I don't know how you survived all that but I thank the Prophets and God and Fate and everything I ever believed in...... " Chelsea stopped. "I guess I'm not really sure *what* I believe in really. Apart from you!" She snuggled in closer, enjoying his closeness.
"What do you believe in, Rick? Do you think there's a force for Good in the universe?" she asked. "I mean there's clearly presences... i feel that sometimes.. but what does it all mean? Here we are, moving about through time... I don't know what to think some days."
"Such a weighty question yet clear in its simplicity..." said Rick with a small sigh. "What do I believe?" It was a rhetorical question, as he was mulling over the answer thoughtfully, as they both began to explore, what seemed to be a Deep space five half way through its construction and largely unoccupied. "reality is as it is, not just as it appears to be," said Dunham quoting the The Noble Eightfold Path, the fourth of the Buddha's Noble Truths.
"I don't think I know how to tell the difference" Chelsea said humbly. "Is that something you have to learn how to do?" her interest was genuine and her question was a serious one.
Dunham shrugged, it was difficult to explain. "You just do......" it was difficult to explain. "Ok lets look at it from another point of view I also believe, that were all spiritual people, I don't think this physical world is it, I think were here but for a reason, the same way a baby grows in a womb for a reason, it grows physically, so when it comes out in this world everything it grew in the womb is now relevant, eyes, legs, arms, ears. So when we die here, we don't really die; we die physically, but we go to another spiritual level, while everything we grew here in this world, personality our spirituality our virtues, our humanity is then used in that next life, then maybe a life after that, with each step being relative. An eternal round of growth all they way until we meet this un-knowable essence and all the mysteries of the universe will finally be revealed to us..."
Chelsea nodded. "...sort of like a butterfly?" she asked, considering what he was saying. "It starts off a tiny bit of spittle, grows into a grub, eats itself fat then turns into a chrysalis and dies off as it's old form.... but out of that dead shell that it leaves stuck to a leaf somewhere, flies free a new butterfly....? Is that it? Over-simplified of course?"
"yeah something like that....." said Dunham with a smile, and giving Chelsea a hug. His spirituality was not something they discussed much, but he was happy that she was trying to understand.
"Does that make a difference to what sort of wedding you'd like to have?" she asked, going off at a tangent for a while. She intended to come back to the spirituality but she'd just been struck by this thought and it popped out.
"I'd like a Buddhist wedding, with all our friends and family there." said Rick slightly taken back by her sudden question and then answering it just as quickly.
"Okay, what happens at a Buddhist wedding?" she smiled back.
"There is no set wedding service in the Buddhist faith, as the Buddha did not consider marriage to be a sacred ceremony. Instead, marriage is considered a social rather than religious occasion. The Buddha stated only that marriage should be based on deep mutual respect between partners and that it should be a partnership of equals. Buddhists can marry anyone from any religion and their union should be a harmonious blend of the differing strengths and abilities of the man and woman."
"That sounds like it was written for us!" Chelsea beamed. "So when do we start?"
He shrugged nonchalantly like he didn't really know the answer, "When I can arrange with the rest of the family to meet us on earth?"
"Earth?" She looked taken aback. "You want to get married on Earth?"
"yeah.......?" he said stretching the word over several seconds.
"But all our friends are here.... " she gestured around her at the empty pristine Sickbay and then wrinkled her ridges. "Well, *there*... as in back in our own time but on this station?" she looked as if she'd done something wrong.
"As long as all our friends and family are together in the same place when we get married I don't care where we have it. I just thought Earth would be more convenient, because I have a large family there.....but I'm sure we can arrange to have them brought here...I mean their." he gestured with a leapfrog movement with his finger. "I mean here but then.....this very confusing."
"What if, instead of the Mountain coming to Mohammed, so to speak..... we have two ceremonies. One here for friends and another, more family based one on Earth straight after... then we can honeymoon in that part of the universe too?" Chelsea suggested. "Or the Earth one first and then we can have one here and honeymoon on Bajor?"
Dunham shrugged "It wouldn't be all that trouble getting them to DS5 you know....now that I think about...Most of them are starfleet officers or retired diplomats, it wouldn't take much for mum to give um a lift as it were, after wedding well.....we could take the Chelsea and go wherever we like?"
"I know, but my Grandma isn't well enough to come out here and if you have family on Earth? I hadn't thought about it but it seems like a nice idea.... or maybe.... if you're mother is running a Hagnon round trip... maybe if Grammy had a nurse and Grampa were told a Starship was coming for him... " She wasn't sure now. She looked at Rick to see if he was doing this to please her or if it was what he really wanted.
Dunham looked around the room. "You know....we should probably....perhaps....maybe....consider.....you know......getting out from being lost in time, before we discuss wedding plans?"
"Okay" she replied. "What do we do next? How do we influence that?"
"Well..." said Dunham with a grin and slapping hands together; rubbing them enthusiastically. "The sooner we can get out here, the sooner we can get back to wedding plans....then marry you." he said with another smile touching his finger on the tip of Chelsea's nose "Lets go have a proper look around, maybe head to the science lab."
"Science?" she sounded surprised. "Why Science? I would have thought you'd want to see the Hanger Bays!" They set off as they talked.
"yeah....well.....as much as I like being thrown backwards in time I don't want to stay here and as it seems our tour guide has run off were going to the science labs to use the science equipment, and see if we cant find a way out of this mess."
Chelsea interlaced her fingers with his. "I'd rather go back but if we never can, at least we'll be wherever we end up, together!" she said.
They wandered together through the half fitted out station. Past empty corridors and suites, through empty areas that didn't look anything like they *would* one day. Past bare bulkheads that would become walls, wires and plasma conduits openings and stacked materials waiting for fitters, builders and engineers to craft into the final piece of work that would become 'home' to literally thousands of people of all races and species. It was a huge and somewhat humbling experience and they walked it mostly in silence, taking in the enormity of the task in hand.
"Is it odd that there are no people?" Chelsea asked finally breaking the quiet moment.
"I was thinking that too" he said squeezing her hand reassuringly. He went to a map guide on a wall and started looking at it, mumbling the words science over and over again. "Ah there it is," he said tapping it with one finger. "did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" She asked listening but not hearing anything. She looked at him quizzically.
"That" he said to an un-heard sound. "Sounds like footsteps" He paused a moment concentrating on the sound, it was the sound of feet on deck plating. "There it was again. I thought we were alone here?"
"Um....." Chelsea looked around but could see no-one and no sign that anyone had been here either, at least not lately. "I thought so too!" she replied, beginning to feel uneasy. "What does it mean? Are they on the deck above? With no sound muffling yet?" she tried to guess.
"I don't know....but it could be trouble. probably best if we stay out of sight." Said Dunham leading her by the hand and finding a secluded and dark hallway, until they could identify what was making the noise.
Chelsea followed without question and once they were away from plain sight, she nestled in against his shoulder. "I don't think this adventure is so much fun any more" she mouthed, waiting tensely.
At that moment a man appeared around the corner and jumped towards them holding a modern weapon of some kind, aimed right at them. "You can't escape me Eric! Did you think I wouldn't be able to trace your DNA?" he snarled. "Who's the broad you've picked up? Don't bother with introductions, she'll regret having ever met you, she's toast - just like you are. Make your peace with whoever you believe in, this ends here!"
Rick instinctively placed himself in front of Chelsea, however the rest of his mind was totally confused, who the hell was this guy and why was he calling him by his dad's name? The man raised his weapon ready to fire, there was sound of weapons fire, but instead of the lancing energy hitting Rick, the man in front of him instead slumped and fell to the ground. Standing behind him was another man, looking not unlike Rick. "Quickly this way." he said indicating a direction with his gun.
"Wait, no. Who *are* you?" Chelsea gasped, one minute in fear for Rick's life, the next in shock as yet another person who looked very much like him appeared from out of nowhere. ~This is getting to be ridiculous!~ she thought as, always the doctor, she instinctively crouched down and examined the fallen man for a pulse.
"and who the heck is *this*? Have you killed him?" she asked all three questions in quickfire before falling silent as she counted in her head.
The man paused and gave a look of exasperation and held his forehead in incredulity, he sighed, "Well in answer to your first question I'm going to be your farther in law, in answer to your second question yes I did kill him, but that ain't gonna stop him, so can we carry on with the running away please."
"How could it not stop him?" Chelsea couldn't understand. "And isn't it *you* who are dead? What in the universe is going on?" she realised from being unable to find the pulse that what Eric Dunham had said was true so she got up and hurried behind him, looking at Rick to see how he was reacting to having his dead father back. It was like a nightmare, only more real.
Unseen to those running away the man on the floor's eyes shot open. He began to pick himself up off the floor.
Rick's stare was off into the distance, he looked into a world that was not around him. His head spinning with unanswered questions and hypothetical scenarios to answer the fundamental question that was running through his mind, was that his father running with them.
Chelsea grasped Rick's hand as they ran and squeezed it. On the one hand it made her feel safe to know that at least *he* was real and on the other, she hoped it would be comforting as she tried to imagine how he must be feeling.
They came to a junction and a shaft where a turbolift would be in the future. Eric seemed to stop and look around. "Do you need to know where we are?" Chelsea offered. "This shaft goes up to the Bridge, amongst other levels."
"Stop!" said Rick finally coming to breaking point, he stood still to the spot. Rooted and not going anywhere. "Would somebody please tell me what the Hell is going on!"
Chelsea stood right up close to him, side by side, bending forward a little with both of her hands on her knees as she got her breath back and together they faced Eric Dunham, waiting for his reply.
Eric was about to open his mouth for a reply when the man they had downed early, animated and walking, hobbled up the corridor after them firing his phaser. The small party threw themselves down a side corridor.......
tbc....
A JP Between:
Lt. Cmdr. Chelsea Adams
CMO - DS5
and
Lt. Cmdr. Rick Dunham
CAG - DS5
and
Captain Eric Dunham
NPC's by Dan