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Chapter or Story 
Chapter or Story
Disclaimer see part 1
An imaginative view of the world 6 - 10
"Ms Parker, will you open your eyes", an unfamiliar voice barked at her. Slowly she opened one eye only to squeeze it shut again as the light blinded her. Where was she now? Maybe back in her own reality? Or did she jump to another world? Another TV series? She’d never imagined being in another series before. No, wait a second. That voice was not that unfamiliar. She had heard it before, somewhere. But where? She opened her eyes and blinked into the light. She was lying on a hard bed and wasn’t able to move. Several people were standing around her, staring down at her. She knew that face. A young woman, about 5 ˝ ft tall, with grey-blue eyes and short brown hair. Her long fingers were playing with a syringe, she was holding. She smiled and it seemed to Kyla that she had seen that face before. Somewhere on a photo. Photo - wait a second - yes! That was Myra.
"Myra?"
She only smiled, not saying a thing. She looked up at the man standing beside her. The man that had been talking to her earlier. It was Mr. Lyle. What was he doing here? And where were Jarod and Ms Lewellyn? Had they been abducted while she had been sleeping? Or was this another reality where Jarod was one of the bad guys? Or was she once again in another reality?
"Where am I?" Kyla asked in a hoarse voice.
"Where do you expect to be after all what you’ve done?" Lyle asked.
"After all I’ve done? What did I do?"
"You spied on us, you were collaborating with the enemy and you worked against us. You know what that means for an employee of the Centre," he said and grinned wickedly.
What, an employee of the Centre? She was part of that hell-house? Definitely another dream. But what about Jarod? She had wanted to arrange a meeting with Myra, now she had one, but she had thought it to be different. Myra was one of the bad guys, and she herself seemed to be one of the good guys who had been caught while working for the wrong side. What had she done?
"What have I done to be treated this way?" Kyla asked, needing all her courage to face Lyle.
"You were working with Jarod. You helped him escape. You will face the same fate as your friend," he said and gestured towards another bed where Miss Parker was lying. Her friend?
"Why she?"
"You were working together, why not she?"
"Let her go," Kyla demanded.
"Of course I will let her go," Lyle grinned and mentioned Myra to help Parker up.
"You are free to go, Parker", he said and couldn’t stop grinning. There was something in Parker’s eyes that told her to stop talking.
"Go, Parker."
"I’m waiting for your orders", she said, not moving.
Oh no, another brain washing experiment. But somehow Parker seemed to have resisted. There was a sparkle in her eyes and Kyla knew that she could count on her.
"What have you done to her?" she asked Lyle.
"Oh, this is part of the Centre’s retraining-facility. She’ll listen to my orders only and from now on she’ll be working for me. And I intend to catch Jarod. He trusts her and he’ll be mine, the next time they meet. Oh, and you will help us as well," he said still grinning wickedly.
Kyla wasn’t sure if she could resist the "retraining" the way Parker had but she intended to do her best. She didn't want to end up like another Angelo or worse, like a slave of Lyle. Lyle said something and Parker left the room. Now she was alone again, alone with Lyle and Myra. Was everybody against her? She felt the prick of a needle on her upper arm and from the corner of her eyes she saw Myra step back.
"Well done," Lyle said to her and kissed her on the cheek. What?? Lyle had kissed Myra? What kind of reality was this? Her head grew heavy and her surroundings seemed to disappear into darkness. She didn't see Lyle grin broadly, didn't feel that she was lifted and brought into another room.
They laid her down on a small bed inside an empty room with no window and only a light bulb at the ceiling. Somewhere, invisibly hidden behind cracks in the wall, there were cameras watching her constantly. She was high on drugs that Myra had injected her. Myra, who had followed them stood beside the bed and waved the two men away who had carried Kyla. They closed the door behind them and the two young women were alone. Myra was still playing with the syringe in her hands and was looking down at Kyla. The door opened again and Lyle entered the room. He was smiling when he saw the syringe in Myra's hands.
"Can't get enough, can you?" he said she only grinned.
"You know that I forever have to have something to do with my hands or else I'm incapable of concentrating."
"So what are you concentrating on?"
"Her thoughts. There's something on her mind that doesn't belong here. Maybe she doesn't even belong here. Maybe we caught the wrong person. What if she wasn't working with Parker the way we think? What if there are other people involved?"
Lyle only looked at her and shook his head. Then he took her by the arm and led her out of the room.
***
Kyla opened her eyes and looked around the room. The light seemed to be artificial and it was somehow too bright to be sunlight. The ceiling was high above her. The last thing she remembered was her encounter with Lyle and Myra, but where was she now? Why couldn't she just go back to her own reality? For the umpteenth time she imagined herself already being in a lunatic asylum, drugged and without any connection to the real world. What if it was true? She had no connection to HER world, was jumping from one imagined world to the next and had no idea what was really happening around her. From one corner of her mind she saw a movement and slowly turned her head. Oh no, not again here. Again on DS9? But something was different. This wasn't Deep Space Nine, it was somewhere else, but definitely in the future. A woman came towards her bed and looked down at her. She had long red hair that curled around her face. She smiled when she looked into Kyla's eyes.
"Nice to have you back. How do you feel?"
Kyla looked around, somehow the surroundings seemed familiar, but that had always been the case when she had jumped to another fantasy of hers.
"Where am I?" she asked, already knowing the answer.
"You're on the Enterprise, and you're save now."
"Save? Save from what?"
"You've been taken hostage while on an away mission. They were trying to erase your brain patterns, some kind of brain washing. Data and Geordie have found you and freed you. Now you're back and I've been able to repair the damage they've done to your brain," the woman said.
Kyla only looked around the room, trying to remember the woman's name. Crusher! Dr. Beverly Crusher. Right, the CMO aboard the Enterprise. She wanted to sit up, but Dr. Crusher put her hand on Kyla's shoulder and shook her head.
"You're not in the condition to get up yet. You'll stay here for another day or so."
She heard the doors open and Dr. Crusher turned around. It was an old man without any hair, a black and red uniform -- a DS9 uniform, what meant that she was somewhere in the 6th or 7th season. Well, Dr. Crusher still wore the old uniform, but that was normal, even in the movie Star Trek - Generations she still had that uniform, along with some other crewmen. Kyla had to smile when she thought back to a conversation she had had with Michael (back in a time where they had been good friends and had used to talk about Star Trek) and their discussion about the film and all the different uniforms. The old man, well, old, yes, about in his mid-sixties, was standing beside her bed, looking down at her.
"I hope you're well, Ensign."
"Yes, thank you, Captain," she said after seeing his four collar pips, "I'm fine."
Picard, his name was Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Oh my God, she thought, I'm getting old, I can't remember the names of my favourite Star Trek characters.
*There was a time when I knew every episode, every name, could tell which episode it was only by seeing one scene and now I don't even remember the names of the main characters, what a shame!* Kyla thought.
Picard smiled and then turned to Dr. Crusher. They left her alone and Kyla kept on thinking about all the things that were going around her head. She had no idea where exactly on the ship sickbay was situated. She tried to remember the blueprints she had stored somewhere in her room, in her own reality, but she couldn't remember anything, except the one thing that the bridge was on deck 1, but that was the case on all star ships. Whatever, maybe it was the same as in every other case, that she wouldn't be here long enough to really have that problem. She heard the door open again, but didn't bother to look, it would be Captain Picard, who was leaving the room. She felt a hand on her arm and suppressed the urge to scream out loud. She turned her head and looked into the white face of Data, the Android.
"I am sorry, that I have scared you. I only wanted to see how you were."
"I am fine, thank you Data."
"Here's someone, who wanted to see you a well."
A large red cat jumped onto the bed and looked at her.
"Hey Spot. Nice to see you."
At least I still know the name of Data's cat, she thought. Picard and Dr. Crusher came back from Dr. Crusher's office and they both smiled when they saw Data and his cat.
"Data, animals are not allowed inside sickbay", she reminded him.
"I am sorry, Doctor, I just thought that it might help her."
"She's alright. Please take the cat away, will you?"
Data nodded and took Spot who protested wildly. Kyla waved them goodbye and then closed her eyes. She had anticipated to be somewhere else when she opened them again, but she was still in sickbay, still on the Enterprise and nothing had changed. Somehow it was good to still be at the same place. Whenever she "changed universe" she felt disoriented at the beginning. The longer she stayed in one reality the more came back to her. She remembered many of the things she had seen on TV, but it was something completely different to be in a world of which she knew that it didn't really exist, at least not yet. She knew the construction of the set itself, she had been there to watch the filming of the episodes. Now it was real. A real world with real people who didn't know that they only existed in people's minds. They didn't know of the actors and actresses who had given them their appearance, they didn't know that many people admired them, tried to become a little more like them or even changed their names. They didn't know of the phenomenon called fandom, didn't know of fanfic and the writer's fantasies. Another idea came to Kyla's mind: What if she was caught inside the fanfic of another author? She had been writing some fanfic (which she didn't consider to be very good) and she knew of other stories that involved the writers themselves. This could be another possibility. But she still didn't know what she should make of the ever-changing place of events. The highest possibility was still the one of her being crazy. Why not? She had heard it often that people had called her crazy, a lunatic, disconnected from reality and many more things. From time to time she had even believed it herself.
A movement beside her bed made her turn her head. Dr. Crusher was standing beside her, checking on her bio-readings on the monitor beside the bed. Kyla thought about a possibility to solve the problem.
"Doctor, am I crazy?"
"What?"
"Am I crazy? Have I gone nuts?"
"No way, Ensign. This is all an after-effect of the brain-washing experiments, if you mean hallucinations or things like that."
Kyla sighed.
"No, it's something different, but I'm not sure if I can tell you."
"You can try. Then I can tell you whether it is nonsense or something we should take care of. What do you think?"
"Guess I could live with it. But what if you say that it is nonsense?"
"Depends on what you're telling me," Dr. Crusher smiled.
"I'd prefer to have this conversation in a private room. Could you release me to my quarters?"
"From the medical point of view it's not wise but I think I can make an exception. I'll help you to get up. I don't think you're fit to walk on your own."
Dr. Crusher held her by the arm and led her out of sickbay. They entered the turbo lift and nearly instantly the doors opened again to reveal another corridor with the living quarters. The entered the room which was supposed to be Kyla's quarters. She didn't recognize the room, but one thing was the same as in her quarters on DS9, the frame with Miss Parker's photo, at least something that was repeating itself.
Crusher led her towards the sofa and she let herself fall down heavily. The Doctor only smiled and sat down beside her.
"I guess it would be a better topic to discuss with the counsellor," Kyla said.
"No, it's alright. But if you prefer to speak with Deanna Troi I can understand that."
"I'd feel more comfortable to discuss it with someone who is not trained to read my thoughts. Somehow I feel uncomfortable in her presence."
"She can't read your mind, only her mother can. Her mother's a full Betazoid, Deanna is half human. She can only read your feelings. So if you're feeling sad she can feel it. It's nothing to feel uncomfortable about."
Kyla shrugged her shoulders and pulled a strand of hair back that kept falling into her eyes. Normally she hated her hair, but today she was happy it was this long and kept hanging into her face so she could hide behind it. Somehow she wanted to avoid this topic, she didn't want to talk about it. But Dr. Crusher stayed by her side and waited patiently. She didn't press her to talk, she was just sitting beside her, looking at her.
"Would you mind if I told you only one half of the story? I'm not sure about the other half."
"Of course. I wouldn't even mind if you decided not to talk about it at all."
"No, I need to talk about it to be sure it really happened. There's just one question I want to ask you before I start telling. Is it normal that I don't remember anything that happened before I woke up in sickbay?"
"Yes, that's not unusual. Your brain was severely damaged and I had to perform major surgery. It is possible that your short time memory has been totally erased."
"But it's not only my short time memory. I have no idea how I came here or what my job is. But that's already part of my story."
"To be honest, that's not normal," Dr. Crusher said, "I would feel better if you returned to sickbay after we have finished talking."
Kyla only looked at her, but didn't say a word. Back in "her real world" she had adored Dr. Crusher and the actress who played her and now she found herself in her reality and even sitting beside her on a sofa. Somehow she liked this reality. Dr. Crusher was really caring about her and wasn't calling her a lunatic before she had heard the story. Most people thought that she was crazy before she had even talked to them. Dr. Crusher was different. So Kyla decided to tell her a part of her story, that part that didn't seem to be too complicated, she hoped. She started by telling her that she was from a different reality. From Dr. Crusher's face she could see that she was still listening to her, trying to understand what she was trying to tell her. She kept on telling her that she remembered being a quite normal girl in her world. That her mother had sent her to a psychiatrist and from that moment on everything had kept going wrong. She told her that she had found herself in different realities, all TV series she loved to watch.
"What is a TV series?" Dr. Crusher interrupted her.
"That was before holodecks existed. People sat in front of a screen and watched actors who were playing."
"Like theatre? You had no chance of altering the plot?"
"That's right. Only by writing stories by yourself you have the chance to make them act the way you want to. That's called fan fiction. I have written a few stories myself and the people I've encountered in these different realities act exactly the way I've always imagined they would act in my stories."
"So you think that there's a connection between your writing and the things you've been going through?"
"You believe me?"
"Of course I do, why shouldn't I believe it? You don't look as if you were crazy. I have to admit, it sounds a little confusing to me, but I'm sure I'll understand it if you told me the rest of it."
"The only thing I really want is to return to my own reality and be the girl I used to be."
Another thought came to her mind. The Pretender Payback. The "real" Miss Parker, Jarod and the others had tried to change the real world by writing a story of their own. What if she tried the same? She had plenty of ideas for new stories, why not start working on them right now?
"You better return to sickbay with me now, you don't look well."
"I feel a little dizzy, but otherwise I'm fine."
"You're coming with me. And that's an order."
"Yes, ma'am." Kyla thought it sounded ridiculous, coming from her mouth. Reluctantly she followed Dr. Crusher to sickbay. She had wanted to start writing right away, but she didn't dare to ask someone for paper and a pen. She suspected that they'd laugh at her for asking for such ancient things, in this time they used pads for such simple things like writing. But writing was out of fashion. They had no idea how a computer worked in the 21st century or how wonderful handwriting could be. Computers in the 24th century worked via voice commands. Somehow boring.
She was lying on the bed where Dr. Crusher had told her to lie down on, staring at the ceiling. She wondered what happened to those realities where she had been before. She had been to DS9 twice, so she knew that they didn't stop existing. But what about her? Was she sleeping? She knew that every time she had fallen asleep or fallen unconscious she had changed place. So it was only logical to assume that she was still sleeping in the other realities. She wondered when she would shift place again. She had been here for much longer than in any other reality before. Maybe this shift was final? Maybe she was stuck here forever. How she had wished to be part of it. Part of the Enterprise, a crewmember under Jean-Luc Picard. Now that she was, she wished to be home. Somehow ridiculous. Her wish had come true and she didn't want the dream anymore. She had to make the best of it. Maybe she could get used to life on a star ship, especially a star ship the size of the Enterprise.
"You may leave sickbay and return to your quarters," Dr. Crusher said and looked at Kyla. Kyla slowly sat up. She smiled at Dr. Crusher and went out of the doors. There she was, alone and lost on a large spaceship like the Enterprise.
She returned to her quarters and the first thing she did was checking her timetable. Usually, when getting home, she was checking for new emails but here? She seemed to have missed quite a few appointments. There was a sign on the screen that looked like an envelope and it was blinking. Mail? She tapped the sign with her finger and a face appeared on the screen. The woman strangely resembled Miss Parker and she only said "Get well soon," before the face disappeared again only to be replaced by another face. He had white skin with a golden touch and black hair. Data! He said something about a missed lesson in tap-dancing. Tap-dancing? She was taking lessons from Data? Or was she giving lessons? She had no idea. Another face appeared on the screen. It was completely unfamiliar to her. A girl of about 16 years with dark brown hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a black turtleneck. Something was familiar, but maybe it was just the picture in the background.
"Holodeck 3, 8 p.m., tonight," she said and disappeared again. Her face was replaced by the sign of the United Federation of Planets, a blue and white symbol that looked mostly like the UNO flag. It was silent inside the room and she glanced at her wrist only to discover that her watch was gone.
"Computer, what time is it?"
"7.53 p.m."
Kyla jumped up. She had seven minutes to get to the holodeck. She didn't even have time to change. Still dressed in her uniform she strode purposefully through the ship's corridors and into the turbo lift.
The doors opened again and she found herself standing in front of the huge holodeck doors.
"Program running, enter when ready," the computer's voice said.
The doors opened and she saw herself faced with a most familiar sight. This was Miss Parker's living room. She had been here earlier. She had fallen asleep and then she had shifted to another place. So now she was back here because someone she had never seen before had told her to come to the holodeck. She still had no idea who this girl was who had told her to come here or why she had wanted her to come. The doorbell rang. Miss Parker came from the kitchen smiled at Kyla and opened the door. There was this girl again who had sent her the message.
"Hello Krystal," she heard Miss Parker say, "Kyla's not well, but I think she'll be fit enough for a little talk."
What was this? Another shift in a new and unfamiliar way or just a holodeck program?
"Computer, end program," she murmured hoping that neither Miss Parker nor Krystal had heard her. Krystal was another member of the pretendfic mailing list. She had been writing a story called "Delusions" in which she described how her life had changed since she had begun to see Miss Parker and Jarod at her school, or something like that. To her shame she had to admit that she hadn't read it yet. Krystal came to stand beside her.
"Already feeling at home?" she grinned.
"What do you mean?"
"Don't you get annoyed with these shifts? Mine are coming in quite regular intervals by now. I'm getting used to it."
"There are more people shifting through realties?" Krystal nodded and took Kyla by the elbow. She sat down on the sofa and mentioned Kyla to do the same. Miss Parker came down the stairs again and smiled as she saw the girls sitting on the sofa. The doorbell rang again and Miss Parker opened the door. Another girl, a little older then they both were, was standing outside, smiling.
"Hi KB, nice to see you," Miss Parker said, "Come in. Krystal's here as well."
"How does everybody know that I'm here?" Kyla whispered.
"I didn't know. I just happened to walk in that door and end up in your world. Our fantasies are interconnected and there's no way to tell where a door leads."
"Can you help me to get back to my own reality?" KB sat down on the sofa beside them and smiled.
"That's a nice question," she said, "I wish I knew. But I know that there are more of us who are caught between the universes. We are trying to find a way back. Maybe you can join the group and help us find a way home."
"But what happens when I shift to another reality?"
"We shift as well."
"To the same universe?"
KB and Krystal shook their head in unison.
"Everybody who's caught between the universes shifts between their favourite TV series. Depends on how many series you like. Some people only shift between two series, others like you, shift between five or more," Krystal said.
"How do you know it's five?"
"Good guess. I know that you like Pretender and Star Trek. I was really just guessing."
They stopped talking when Miss Parker came back into the room. She stood in front of the girls looking down on them.
"Anybody want a hot chocolate?" she asked.
They looked at each other and nodded.
"Krystal, one question," Kyla said as Miss Parker had disappeared into the kitchen, "How were you able to contact me?"
"Contact you? Where?"
"You didn't send me a message, telling me to come to the holodeck?"
"No, how should I have done this? I've been here with the Pretender universe for quite a while. Why do you ask?"
"I saw you. At least I think I saw you on my screen."
"Holodeck? Sounds like Star Trek to me."
"Yeah, right, the Enterprise."
"I've been there before, but I've never seen you."
"I've been there the first time."
"Must've been my imagination. But I'm sure that I've never seen a photo of you. The only thing I knew about you was the fact, that you like dark clothes and that you have dark hair. That's all."
"Did anybody else seem familiar to you?" KB interrupted.
"Except the characters from the series? No. I just encountered a Star Trek person in the Pretender universe and Jarod was talking about the profiler Rachel Burke, but they have met before. I feel like going crazy."
Krystal and KB grinned. Miss Parker came from the kitchen, balancing four mugs with steaming hot chocolate on a tray. She smiled at the girls and set the tray onto the table.
"I hope you don't mind if I join you while drinking my chocolate!?"
Without waiting for an answer she sat down on the sofa beside Krystal. Krystal smiled at her and took the mug Parker offered her.
When Parker had disappeared in her room again Krystal and KB looked at Kyla without saying a word.
"What is wrong?" Kyla asked.
"She's so different. Whenever I met her, she was chasing Jarod, always kind of a bad guy. Now she's here with you, being like a mother, a good friend. What did you do?"
"What did you expect, when you stood in front of the door?" Kyla asked instead of an answer.
"Uuuh, I was about to enter my own house. I expected my husband to show up and open the door for me. And I admit, that Jarod is that husband," KB said and grinned. Krystal and Kyla smiled and both had to think of the fic that Krystal and KB had written called "Delusions". It ended with KB and Jarod getting married.
"I was at school, in the real world. It was lunch break and I went to the locker room to store my bags. A friend of mine told me that the principal wanted to see me. So I went up the stairs and was waiting to be let inside. That's when Parker showed up."
Kyla looked at herself and something seemed to have changed. She realized that she didn't wear the Starfleet uniform anymore. She didn't even notice that the clothes had changed when she had entered the holodeck. Holodeck? Another reality? Whatever, her clothes had changed.
***
Her communicator beeped. What communicator? She looked around and found herself in her quarters staring at the computer screen in front of her. Krystal's face was still there. Hadn't she just been to the holodeck? Hadn't she just had a meeting with KB and Krystal at Parker's house? Yes, she could clearly remember Krystal say that she had been waiting in front of the principal's door at school when Parker had opened and had let her in. But where were they now? The fact that she was sitting inside her quarters aboard the Enterprise made the things more complicated. Was this another new way to shift between the universes? But she was back aboard the Enterprise and she was still searching for a way to get back. Back to where? Back to her "real" life where her mother was sending her to see a shrink? She could think of a better way of living. But Jarod had rescued her from the evil shrink who had wanted to send her into a closed facility. By the way, what had happened to him? She had to find a way to get back to this universe and see him. Or was there a chance he would come to her universe and bring her out of here?
The communicator beeped again. Dr. Crusher asked her to report to sickbay. She said she had found something interesting. Kyla sighed and left her room again. When the door to sickbay opened it wasn't only Crusher waiting for her but Data and Geordie LaForge as well. The three of them stared at a computer screen and didn't even realize that she entered the room. When she finally spoke Crusher and Geordie jumped. Data just smiled. *Data smiled? There was something wrong about this universe! Data never smiled.*
"We think we have found something that should be interesting for you," Geordie said. "Look at this star chart," he said and pointed at the screen.
"There are disturbances in space-time near the place we've been. It would be possible that you have somehow switched bodies with your alter ego from this time and place," Data explained.
***
“She’s slowly regaining consciousness”, she heard a voice from somewhere far away. It was bright day, the light was too bright. Keep your eyes closed, she told herself. The sentence seemed familiar and so did her reaction. She had no idea where she was or what had happened. Who was she anyway? She tried to move but couldn't. Something kept her from even opening her eyes.
"Her eyes are open. Kyla, can you see me?"
Who was this woman talking to? Who was Kyla?
***
"Kyla? Kyla, can you hear me? Ensign Parker? Everything alright?" she heard Dr. Crusher say and slowly opened her eyes. She was lying on the floor and looked up into Dr. Crusher's face. Crusher was kneeling beside her and running a tricorder up and down her body.
"You collapsed," Crusher stated, "but something was wrong. You seemed to be in a state of flux before you hit the ground. You've been lucky to stand beside Data. He caught you just in time. How do you feel?"
"I don't know. Everything seems so far away. Where am I?"
"Sickbay aboard the Enterprise. What is the last thing you remember?"
"I'm supposed to be home by six. What time is it?"
Concentrating was getting harder and names kept slipping from her mind. Who was the red-haired woman? Why was she asking so many questions? Why was the guy next to her so pale in the face and what kind of funny sunglasses was the other one wearing? What did the woman say, where was she? Enterprise? Was she in Oregon? She felt sleepy.
"Kyla, stay with me. Kyla, hey! Concentrate on my voice. You have to stay conscious!"
*I don't want to concentrate. I'm afraid of the darkness that's creeping up to me. Help me!*
***
“She’s slowly regaining consciousness”, she heard a voice from somewhere far away. It was bright day, the light was too bright. Keep your eyes closed, she told herself. There it was again. That voice. Where had she just been in her thoughts?
"Open your eyes, Kyla, look at me."
She opened her eyes and looked at a man of about 40 years. He seemed familiar.
"Kyla, do you recognize me?" he asked and Kyla only nodded.
"You've been off for nearly one hour. We've been trying to wake you but we couldn't. We started to get worried. I'm glad you're back."
"Welcome back," another voice said from the door. Dax was just entering sickbay. "I was worried we'd loose a crew member. How do you feel?"
"I don't know. I feel a little funny. What did you do to me?"
"You don't want to know, I'm sure about that. You will stay here a little longer than expected. Something was definitely wrong with you. We will run extended tests."
"Did you want to say something about me being in a kind of flux?" Kyla asked. Bashir looked at her and just nodded.
"How do you know?"
"Seems vaguely familiar to me. I've heard it before."
"You've heard it before? Where and when?"
"It seems like only minutes ago. But somewhere far away."
"Have you been in another universe?"
"I think I've been on the Enterprise."
"Enterprise? With Captain Picard?"
"Yes. But I've been to another place as well. In the time I think I belong to, the 21st century."
"We have to talk about that, Kyla. But you have to get well first."
"I'm feeling ok. Can't I go to my quarters? I'd feel much more comfortable there."
"No doubts about that but you need medical attention. I don't want to leave you alone right now."
"I could go with her," Dax volunteered, "We can go to her quarters and discuss some things she has seen so far."
"If you say so. You're the higher ranking officer."
"You're the CMO, Julian, I wouldn't do it against your strict order."
"It's alright. But please contact me as soon as something weird happens, ok?"
Kyla and Dax just nodded. Kyla slowly sat up. She felt a little dizzy and had to steady herself at the bed she had just laid on. Dax took her by the arm and led her towards the sickbay doors.
They walked through the corridors that seemed so familiar and yet so strange. What if she really belonged here and everything else was just a bad dream? It felt wrong. Everything felt wrong even Dax' helping hand at her upper arm. It was real. It was as real as her memories of "home" in the 21st century back on Earth. Just as real as the memories of Miss Parker, Jarod, Data, Dr. Crusher, Geordie, Krystal and all the others. So, what was real then and what wasn't? Or was everything real? Or was everything just a dream? Maybe it was a conspiracy or she had been sucked into her TV and was living in all the TV series. Maybe people in front of the telly could see her along with the actors? Maybe she could try to manipulate the storyline and find a way back out? But what if it was something completely different? She had met people from the mailing list that definitely existed in the 21st century. She had memories of a childhood in a small town named White Bear Lake in Minnesota together with her parents, her little brother and a dog. But all this could be part of a dream. But she had no memories of a past on Enterprise or Deep Space Nine or a past with Michelle Catherine Parker or Jarod or anything that had to do with the Centre. Everything existed only on TV shows and in written fan fiction.
*Stop thinking about it*, she told herself, *You'll find out soon enough what all this means. In the meantime enjoy it. No school, no parents, your dream worlds all in one place and you in the middle of it. What more can you wish for? Maybe Michael. If he were with me maybe it would be easier. No. Stop it and concentrate on what's happening right now. Who knows maybe a change of universe is right behind the door of your quarters.*
"Are you alright?" Dax asked, "You haven't said a word since we left sickbay."
"I'm fine. What about you? Don't you have duties to perform? I mean, I'm just a simple Ensign why do you care about my well being?"
"You're not a simple Ensign you're a friend of mine and no – I don't have any duties to perform I'm on holidays as you would put it. There are a lot of things we have to talk about. We have more things in common than you think. Let's go inside and drink a hot chocolate and talk. I need someone to talk to as well. There are a lot of things that need to be said."
Kyla just looked at her and opened the doors to her quarters. It looked liked any other Starfleet issue quarters. No sign of another universe… Maybe it was Dax. She felt a little shaky as she entered her quarters but nothing happened. Dax' grip on her upper arm tightened as she staggered.
"Sit down on the sofa. I'll get something to drink for us. Do you like Rakdajino?"
"I don't know. Never tried."
"You are from the 21st century, are you? You're not kidding."
"I don't think so. I'd like a hot chocolate, please. Why are you suddenly so sure I don't belong to this place?"
"I hope you can live with the truth. I don't belong here either. I'm not Jadzia Dax the Trill with the symbiont inside her. And I don't belong here."
"Are you a shape shifter?"
"No. I'm Terry Farrell," she said and Kyla faded.
***
"Kyla, wake up. We're almost there. You have to get changed before we meet with Rachel."
She slowly opened her eyes and found herself sitting in the car with Jarod and Ms Lewellyn. Her head was lying in Jarod's lap and she looked up at his smiling face. How often had she dreamed about waking up like that but now that it was true she felt uncomfortable. He was a stranger to her after all. She sat up and looked out of the window.
"How long have I been asleep? This looks like Chicago to me."
"It is Chicago. The sedative Dr. Greene gave to you was stronger than I suspected. You were out for nearly eight hours. We'll stay at the Holiday Inn tonight. You are supposed to be our daughter. If you're not feeling comfortable with calling us mom and dad you might as well call us by out first names. But please know that you're not to speak to anyone except us."
"What's this all about? Are we on a wanted add or something like that? I'm a very talkative person. How can I just shut up without knowing why?"
"OK, let's try it the other way round. We'll go to our room and order dinner from the room service so you're not tempted to speak to strangers. After dinner we'll meet with Rachel who is staying in Chicago at the moment. I hope she knows how to help you."
"Help me? What problem do I have except the fact that I've been kidnapped by the two of you and the whole State Police might be searching for a stray lunatic?"
"What about you shifting through universes? Isn't that a problem?"
"How do you know? I don't remember having told you about it."
"You were talking while you were sedated. I've asked a few questions and you answered them without hesitation. That's how I got to know about it."
"I shouldn't have trusted you."
"You didn't. Have you already forgotten that you were abducted and that the whole State Police might be searching for you? The only place you're safe at the moment is with us. As soon as they find you you'll end up in a loony bin. Do you want that?"
"Of course not. But how can I be sure that I can trust you?"
"We'll go an see Rachel. Maybe she can tell us what's really happening and maybe she knows a way for you to return to your real universe."
"This isn't a real universe? I thought you abducted me from Dr. Greene?"
"Of course we did. For you everything is as real as it can be. And so it is for us. Maybe you'll know more when you have met with your friends from the mailing list."
"I already – what do you mean?"
"What do YOU mean? You said you arranged a meeting with a few girls from your mailing list. Don't you want to meet with them anymore? "
"I do but you said you wanted to discuss this topic with me because you don't trust them. What's wrong?"
"What place did you say you wanted to meet?"
"In - good question. I don't know. Tomorrow in the afternoon. No definite time and no definite place. But it seemed right anyway. To tell you the truth I already met them – but in another universe. Not every meeting was pleasant so to say. Myra worked with Lyle and Parker seemed to be a completely different person. I have no idea how to explain it to you."
"I think I understand what you mean. She can be absolutely cute if she chooses to be."
"No, that's not what I mean. She was a completely different person and I seem to be living with her in her house in Blue Cove. She says her name is Michelle Catherine Parker and she's a psychiatrist. That's not the Miss Parker I know and not the Miss Parker you know. That's the Parker from my dreams."
"She sounds nice. Like I always imagined her. But she'll never be that way. You need to get changed. There are clothes in the bag next to you."
"Changing inside the car while we are driving and you are looking at me? No way. We have to stop."
"We can't stop, Kyla. Remember the wanted add? It probably describes you the way you are dressed right now and that's why we need to change your looks. Do you like your hair?"
"My hair? Of course I do. What about it?"
"It needs to be cut."
"Never. Better think of something better. Now look away while I get changed."
She took the clothes from the bag. It was a long skirt and a blue sweater. She hated skirts and she hated that kind of blue.
"Anything else I need to know about my change of personality while we are in Chicago? Do I get a new name or some strange things like that?"
"Yes," Jarod sighed, "Your name is Gwendolyn Lewellyn. And I'm afraid to tell you that there are more things you need to know. You have to change completely. I suspected you wouldn't like to cut your hair so there's a wig in the bag on the front seat. I know you love your blond curls but I'm afraid they have to change to brown. And Kyla - you'll have to use a wheelchair."
"You're kidding, are you? A wig, a new style, a new name and a wheelchair. I hope nobody ever finds out that this person is me. Why do you call me Kyla? I thought my new name was Gwen? Who's the one who has to get used to changes?"
"Don't get nasty, Gwen," Kira said from the driver's seat and smiled into the rear view mirror, "You're not the only one who's in danger right now. We are as well. I'm the only one who's not on a most wanted list so far. But I guess that's subject to change in the not so distant future. Please be patient. We'll do everything in our power to help you but you need to play along as well. If you want to play ice queen that's fine but please save that for another time. You know you need our help and we know it as well. Maybe Rachel knows what to do and you'll find back into your real world soon. You might remember all this only as a dream but for us it's real. This is our real life and nothing can change this. For you it can change. Remember that."
"I'm sorry but everything is so confusing. I'm getting angry with myself and that's what happens then. I didn't mean to be rude. I'm just trying to figure out what's going to happen if everything goes wrong or if anything could go wrong."
"Get dressed we'll discuss this later. You'll have to be finished as soon as we enter the inner city. It looks funny if someone gets changed in a car when everyone can watch you."
"I'm hurrying. Could you help me please? I have no idea how to put on a wig."
They reached the inner city in no time but Kyla / Gwen was ready. The only thing she couldn't get accustomed to was the idea of a wheelchair. But Jarod assured her that it wouldn't be too hard to learn.
"Just pretend you can't move your body. I will push you along," he grinned.
"I don't think it's going to be fun but if it's going to safe me from the loony-bin I'll play along as asked. I only hope there are no mirrors in the halls. I don't want to know how I look."
"You look fine and I love you with those brown curls."
"How long do I have to play this role?"
"I don't know. We'll meet with Rachel later the evening in a bar on North Fairbanks Court called Timothy O'Toole's. It's a nice place. The only problems are the stairs at the entrance. I hope I can carry you downstairs. I hope you can play that role convincingly."
"I've always been good at acting. I think I can manage that. As long as you don't start laughing or break down when you're trying to lift me up we should be just fine."
They reached the hotel and stopped in front of the main entrance. There was a parking place reserved for disabled people and since she belonged to that group now they had a perfect parking place right in front of the hotel doors. She had always hated searching for a parking place. Jarod pulled a wheelchair out of the trunk and lifted her out of the car like she was a doll. She didn't say a word and didn't move a muscle. She kept her eyes down and tried not to look at anyone around. She knew people were staring at her. They always were when a young girl was sitting in a wheelchair – she had been no exception until today. Now that she was the person who got stared at she knew how it felt and promised herself not to do it again when she was back in her real world.
Room 1408 on the 14th floor with a wonderful view on the lake. She was deep in her thoughts when Kira closed the door behind them.
"You can get out of your wheelchair, we're in a safe zone right now."
"No. I'm just getting used to it. Disabled people don't have the chance to have break from their illness and I don't deserve it. The main reason is that I will never get used to it and it's so hard not to move. I don't think I can do it tonight if I get out of that chair right now."
"I'm not happy with it but we can do something about it. And I don't think you'll like it."
"Don't say you want to sedate me again."
"How do you know?"
"I just read a horror book that had something like that in it. They sedated a woman so she couldn't move anymore and she had to watch how they killed her. A horrible thing."
"I wouldn't kill you," Kira said. "I would simply anaesthetize your lower body."
"You? Why you?"
"I'm a doctor. Why not me?"
"Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude. I didn't know. What do you mean with my lower body?"
"Jarod said you are not supposed to move your arms. So we have to deaden at least one of your arms and everything else that's not vital."
"NOT VITAL?"
"I can't simply anaesthetize your whole body. That would mean you'd need artificial life support. You have to be able to breathe on your own and you heart has to keep beating and of course you need to speak. Only in a low voice but you need to tell Rachel everything you know."
"Why isn't she coming to our room? I don't feel very comfortable with the idea of being helpless."
"I can understand that perfectly but Rachel wasn't very happy with meeting with us anyway and I don't want to push her any further into my criminal life," Jarod said and smiled a sad smile. "You know that it's not very good for a police profiler to be seen while helping a small group of criminals."
"That's exactly what I've been thinking. We'd be in public if we met at O'Toole's. Who would know she's in our room? The Holiday Inn is a huge complex. If she goes in through the front door who will know she's going to meet us here?"
"OK, you've won this round," Jarod admitted, "But I haven't been completely true with you. We are going to meet more than one profiler. Samantha Waters is coming as well and out room is too small for all of us. It is a 4 bed room but not suitable as a conference room even though it has this wonderful bench right in front of the windows."
"Why can't we meet at a restaurant?"
"Restaurant's are mostly under camera surveillance. I doubt that O'Toole's is. It's called a Public House. Low ceiling, TVs and music. I had hoped it would be the perfect place for us."
"I don't think so. Everyone would remember a young girl in a wheelchair if someone would start to ask questions."
"Do they ask about a brow-haired girl in wheelchair? No. They're asking about a sportive young woman with blond curls. Not much resemblance, right? That's why I'd prefer Kira to anaesthetize you. It wouldn't raise any suspicion if something unexpected happened."
"Unexpected like what? You stumble and fall down the stairs with me? No thanks. You could at least find a place without stairs."
"Like what? The Hardrock Café? The Rainforest Café? Or Starbucks? McDonalds? Kyla, please be reasonable. I don't mean to do any harm to you. I just want you to find out the truth."
"One thing, Jarod. I had an appointment with Dr. Greene at 2 p.m. I think I was with him about half an hour. He sedated me and called an ambulance to get me to the loony bin. But when you carried me out of the building it was already getting dark. I was awake for about an hour and then I fell unconscious for nearly eight hours you said. Now it's already evening. There are a few hours missing, aren't there? Can you please explain that to me?"
"Uh - no. I don't even know what you're talking about. We crossed over into another time zone if that's what you mean."
"No. That's only one hour. I was talking more about 12 hours give or take a few."
"I can't. But you should get some sleep. You need to be fully rested before Kira can start with anaesthetising you. And don't protest that you have been unconscious for eight hours. That's nothing compared to a good sleep in a real bed. At least two or three hours. Please."
"Alright. What are you doing so long?"
"We'll go into the bathroom, make ourselves some coffee and discuss our current situation."
"What?"
"There's a coffee machine in the bathroom and enough room for the two of us. Don't worry we'll be fine in there. Get some sleep. I'm sure you need it."
Kyla nodded reluctantly. She climbed out of the wheelchair and let herself fall onto the bed. She didn't even realize that Kira was leaning against the wall smiling while Jarod covered her with a blanket. They went inside the bathroom and closed the door behind them. They'd never held a conference in the bathroom but it was quite comfortable in there.
An imaginative view of the world 6 - 10
"Ms Parker, will you open your eyes", an unfamiliar voice barked at her. Slowly she opened one eye only to squeeze it shut again as the light blinded her. Where was she now? Maybe back in her own reality? Or did she jump to another world? Another TV series? She’d never imagined being in another series before. No, wait a second. That voice was not that unfamiliar. She had heard it before, somewhere. But where? She opened her eyes and blinked into the light. She was lying on a hard bed and wasn’t able to move. Several people were standing around her, staring down at her. She knew that face. A young woman, about 5 ˝ ft tall, with grey-blue eyes and short brown hair. Her long fingers were playing with a syringe, she was holding. She smiled and it seemed to Kyla that she had seen that face before. Somewhere on a photo. Photo - wait a second - yes! That was Myra.
"Myra?"
She only smiled, not saying a thing. She looked up at the man standing beside her. The man that had been talking to her earlier. It was Mr. Lyle. What was he doing here? And where were Jarod and Ms Lewellyn? Had they been abducted while she had been sleeping? Or was this another reality where Jarod was one of the bad guys? Or was she once again in another reality?
"Where am I?" Kyla asked in a hoarse voice.
"Where do you expect to be after all what you’ve done?" Lyle asked.
"After all I’ve done? What did I do?"
"You spied on us, you were collaborating with the enemy and you worked against us. You know what that means for an employee of the Centre," he said and grinned wickedly.
What, an employee of the Centre? She was part of that hell-house? Definitely another dream. But what about Jarod? She had wanted to arrange a meeting with Myra, now she had one, but she had thought it to be different. Myra was one of the bad guys, and she herself seemed to be one of the good guys who had been caught while working for the wrong side. What had she done?
"What have I done to be treated this way?" Kyla asked, needing all her courage to face Lyle.
"You were working with Jarod. You helped him escape. You will face the same fate as your friend," he said and gestured towards another bed where Miss Parker was lying. Her friend?
"Why she?"
"You were working together, why not she?"
"Let her go," Kyla demanded.
"Of course I will let her go," Lyle grinned and mentioned Myra to help Parker up.
"You are free to go, Parker", he said and couldn’t stop grinning. There was something in Parker’s eyes that told her to stop talking.
"Go, Parker."
"I’m waiting for your orders", she said, not moving.
Oh no, another brain washing experiment. But somehow Parker seemed to have resisted. There was a sparkle in her eyes and Kyla knew that she could count on her.
"What have you done to her?" she asked Lyle.
"Oh, this is part of the Centre’s retraining-facility. She’ll listen to my orders only and from now on she’ll be working for me. And I intend to catch Jarod. He trusts her and he’ll be mine, the next time they meet. Oh, and you will help us as well," he said still grinning wickedly.
Kyla wasn’t sure if she could resist the "retraining" the way Parker had but she intended to do her best. She didn't want to end up like another Angelo or worse, like a slave of Lyle. Lyle said something and Parker left the room. Now she was alone again, alone with Lyle and Myra. Was everybody against her? She felt the prick of a needle on her upper arm and from the corner of her eyes she saw Myra step back.
"Well done," Lyle said to her and kissed her on the cheek. What?? Lyle had kissed Myra? What kind of reality was this? Her head grew heavy and her surroundings seemed to disappear into darkness. She didn't see Lyle grin broadly, didn't feel that she was lifted and brought into another room.
They laid her down on a small bed inside an empty room with no window and only a light bulb at the ceiling. Somewhere, invisibly hidden behind cracks in the wall, there were cameras watching her constantly. She was high on drugs that Myra had injected her. Myra, who had followed them stood beside the bed and waved the two men away who had carried Kyla. They closed the door behind them and the two young women were alone. Myra was still playing with the syringe in her hands and was looking down at Kyla. The door opened again and Lyle entered the room. He was smiling when he saw the syringe in Myra's hands.
"Can't get enough, can you?" he said she only grinned.
"You know that I forever have to have something to do with my hands or else I'm incapable of concentrating."
"So what are you concentrating on?"
"Her thoughts. There's something on her mind that doesn't belong here. Maybe she doesn't even belong here. Maybe we caught the wrong person. What if she wasn't working with Parker the way we think? What if there are other people involved?"
Lyle only looked at her and shook his head. Then he took her by the arm and led her out of the room.
***
Kyla opened her eyes and looked around the room. The light seemed to be artificial and it was somehow too bright to be sunlight. The ceiling was high above her. The last thing she remembered was her encounter with Lyle and Myra, but where was she now? Why couldn't she just go back to her own reality? For the umpteenth time she imagined herself already being in a lunatic asylum, drugged and without any connection to the real world. What if it was true? She had no connection to HER world, was jumping from one imagined world to the next and had no idea what was really happening around her. From one corner of her mind she saw a movement and slowly turned her head. Oh no, not again here. Again on DS9? But something was different. This wasn't Deep Space Nine, it was somewhere else, but definitely in the future. A woman came towards her bed and looked down at her. She had long red hair that curled around her face. She smiled when she looked into Kyla's eyes.
"Nice to have you back. How do you feel?"
Kyla looked around, somehow the surroundings seemed familiar, but that had always been the case when she had jumped to another fantasy of hers.
"Where am I?" she asked, already knowing the answer.
"You're on the Enterprise, and you're save now."
"Save? Save from what?"
"You've been taken hostage while on an away mission. They were trying to erase your brain patterns, some kind of brain washing. Data and Geordie have found you and freed you. Now you're back and I've been able to repair the damage they've done to your brain," the woman said.
Kyla only looked around the room, trying to remember the woman's name. Crusher! Dr. Beverly Crusher. Right, the CMO aboard the Enterprise. She wanted to sit up, but Dr. Crusher put her hand on Kyla's shoulder and shook her head.
"You're not in the condition to get up yet. You'll stay here for another day or so."
She heard the doors open and Dr. Crusher turned around. It was an old man without any hair, a black and red uniform -- a DS9 uniform, what meant that she was somewhere in the 6th or 7th season. Well, Dr. Crusher still wore the old uniform, but that was normal, even in the movie Star Trek - Generations she still had that uniform, along with some other crewmen. Kyla had to smile when she thought back to a conversation she had had with Michael (back in a time where they had been good friends and had used to talk about Star Trek) and their discussion about the film and all the different uniforms. The old man, well, old, yes, about in his mid-sixties, was standing beside her bed, looking down at her.
"I hope you're well, Ensign."
"Yes, thank you, Captain," she said after seeing his four collar pips, "I'm fine."
Picard, his name was Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Oh my God, she thought, I'm getting old, I can't remember the names of my favourite Star Trek characters.
*There was a time when I knew every episode, every name, could tell which episode it was only by seeing one scene and now I don't even remember the names of the main characters, what a shame!* Kyla thought.
Picard smiled and then turned to Dr. Crusher. They left her alone and Kyla kept on thinking about all the things that were going around her head. She had no idea where exactly on the ship sickbay was situated. She tried to remember the blueprints she had stored somewhere in her room, in her own reality, but she couldn't remember anything, except the one thing that the bridge was on deck 1, but that was the case on all star ships. Whatever, maybe it was the same as in every other case, that she wouldn't be here long enough to really have that problem. She heard the door open again, but didn't bother to look, it would be Captain Picard, who was leaving the room. She felt a hand on her arm and suppressed the urge to scream out loud. She turned her head and looked into the white face of Data, the Android.
"I am sorry, that I have scared you. I only wanted to see how you were."
"I am fine, thank you Data."
"Here's someone, who wanted to see you a well."
A large red cat jumped onto the bed and looked at her.
"Hey Spot. Nice to see you."
At least I still know the name of Data's cat, she thought. Picard and Dr. Crusher came back from Dr. Crusher's office and they both smiled when they saw Data and his cat.
"Data, animals are not allowed inside sickbay", she reminded him.
"I am sorry, Doctor, I just thought that it might help her."
"She's alright. Please take the cat away, will you?"
Data nodded and took Spot who protested wildly. Kyla waved them goodbye and then closed her eyes. She had anticipated to be somewhere else when she opened them again, but she was still in sickbay, still on the Enterprise and nothing had changed. Somehow it was good to still be at the same place. Whenever she "changed universe" she felt disoriented at the beginning. The longer she stayed in one reality the more came back to her. She remembered many of the things she had seen on TV, but it was something completely different to be in a world of which she knew that it didn't really exist, at least not yet. She knew the construction of the set itself, she had been there to watch the filming of the episodes. Now it was real. A real world with real people who didn't know that they only existed in people's minds. They didn't know of the actors and actresses who had given them their appearance, they didn't know that many people admired them, tried to become a little more like them or even changed their names. They didn't know of the phenomenon called fandom, didn't know of fanfic and the writer's fantasies. Another idea came to Kyla's mind: What if she was caught inside the fanfic of another author? She had been writing some fanfic (which she didn't consider to be very good) and she knew of other stories that involved the writers themselves. This could be another possibility. But she still didn't know what she should make of the ever-changing place of events. The highest possibility was still the one of her being crazy. Why not? She had heard it often that people had called her crazy, a lunatic, disconnected from reality and many more things. From time to time she had even believed it herself.
A movement beside her bed made her turn her head. Dr. Crusher was standing beside her, checking on her bio-readings on the monitor beside the bed. Kyla thought about a possibility to solve the problem.
"Doctor, am I crazy?"
"What?"
"Am I crazy? Have I gone nuts?"
"No way, Ensign. This is all an after-effect of the brain-washing experiments, if you mean hallucinations or things like that."
Kyla sighed.
"No, it's something different, but I'm not sure if I can tell you."
"You can try. Then I can tell you whether it is nonsense or something we should take care of. What do you think?"
"Guess I could live with it. But what if you say that it is nonsense?"
"Depends on what you're telling me," Dr. Crusher smiled.
"I'd prefer to have this conversation in a private room. Could you release me to my quarters?"
"From the medical point of view it's not wise but I think I can make an exception. I'll help you to get up. I don't think you're fit to walk on your own."
Dr. Crusher held her by the arm and led her out of sickbay. They entered the turbo lift and nearly instantly the doors opened again to reveal another corridor with the living quarters. The entered the room which was supposed to be Kyla's quarters. She didn't recognize the room, but one thing was the same as in her quarters on DS9, the frame with Miss Parker's photo, at least something that was repeating itself.
Crusher led her towards the sofa and she let herself fall down heavily. The Doctor only smiled and sat down beside her.
"I guess it would be a better topic to discuss with the counsellor," Kyla said.
"No, it's alright. But if you prefer to speak with Deanna Troi I can understand that."
"I'd feel more comfortable to discuss it with someone who is not trained to read my thoughts. Somehow I feel uncomfortable in her presence."
"She can't read your mind, only her mother can. Her mother's a full Betazoid, Deanna is half human. She can only read your feelings. So if you're feeling sad she can feel it. It's nothing to feel uncomfortable about."
Kyla shrugged her shoulders and pulled a strand of hair back that kept falling into her eyes. Normally she hated her hair, but today she was happy it was this long and kept hanging into her face so she could hide behind it. Somehow she wanted to avoid this topic, she didn't want to talk about it. But Dr. Crusher stayed by her side and waited patiently. She didn't press her to talk, she was just sitting beside her, looking at her.
"Would you mind if I told you only one half of the story? I'm not sure about the other half."
"Of course. I wouldn't even mind if you decided not to talk about it at all."
"No, I need to talk about it to be sure it really happened. There's just one question I want to ask you before I start telling. Is it normal that I don't remember anything that happened before I woke up in sickbay?"
"Yes, that's not unusual. Your brain was severely damaged and I had to perform major surgery. It is possible that your short time memory has been totally erased."
"But it's not only my short time memory. I have no idea how I came here or what my job is. But that's already part of my story."
"To be honest, that's not normal," Dr. Crusher said, "I would feel better if you returned to sickbay after we have finished talking."
Kyla only looked at her, but didn't say a word. Back in "her real world" she had adored Dr. Crusher and the actress who played her and now she found herself in her reality and even sitting beside her on a sofa. Somehow she liked this reality. Dr. Crusher was really caring about her and wasn't calling her a lunatic before she had heard the story. Most people thought that she was crazy before she had even talked to them. Dr. Crusher was different. So Kyla decided to tell her a part of her story, that part that didn't seem to be too complicated, she hoped. She started by telling her that she was from a different reality. From Dr. Crusher's face she could see that she was still listening to her, trying to understand what she was trying to tell her. She kept on telling her that she remembered being a quite normal girl in her world. That her mother had sent her to a psychiatrist and from that moment on everything had kept going wrong. She told her that she had found herself in different realities, all TV series she loved to watch.
"What is a TV series?" Dr. Crusher interrupted her.
"That was before holodecks existed. People sat in front of a screen and watched actors who were playing."
"Like theatre? You had no chance of altering the plot?"
"That's right. Only by writing stories by yourself you have the chance to make them act the way you want to. That's called fan fiction. I have written a few stories myself and the people I've encountered in these different realities act exactly the way I've always imagined they would act in my stories."
"So you think that there's a connection between your writing and the things you've been going through?"
"You believe me?"
"Of course I do, why shouldn't I believe it? You don't look as if you were crazy. I have to admit, it sounds a little confusing to me, but I'm sure I'll understand it if you told me the rest of it."
"The only thing I really want is to return to my own reality and be the girl I used to be."
Another thought came to her mind. The Pretender Payback. The "real" Miss Parker, Jarod and the others had tried to change the real world by writing a story of their own. What if she tried the same? She had plenty of ideas for new stories, why not start working on them right now?
"You better return to sickbay with me now, you don't look well."
"I feel a little dizzy, but otherwise I'm fine."
"You're coming with me. And that's an order."
"Yes, ma'am." Kyla thought it sounded ridiculous, coming from her mouth. Reluctantly she followed Dr. Crusher to sickbay. She had wanted to start writing right away, but she didn't dare to ask someone for paper and a pen. She suspected that they'd laugh at her for asking for such ancient things, in this time they used pads for such simple things like writing. But writing was out of fashion. They had no idea how a computer worked in the 21st century or how wonderful handwriting could be. Computers in the 24th century worked via voice commands. Somehow boring.
She was lying on the bed where Dr. Crusher had told her to lie down on, staring at the ceiling. She wondered what happened to those realities where she had been before. She had been to DS9 twice, so she knew that they didn't stop existing. But what about her? Was she sleeping? She knew that every time she had fallen asleep or fallen unconscious she had changed place. So it was only logical to assume that she was still sleeping in the other realities. She wondered when she would shift place again. She had been here for much longer than in any other reality before. Maybe this shift was final? Maybe she was stuck here forever. How she had wished to be part of it. Part of the Enterprise, a crewmember under Jean-Luc Picard. Now that she was, she wished to be home. Somehow ridiculous. Her wish had come true and she didn't want the dream anymore. She had to make the best of it. Maybe she could get used to life on a star ship, especially a star ship the size of the Enterprise.
"You may leave sickbay and return to your quarters," Dr. Crusher said and looked at Kyla. Kyla slowly sat up. She smiled at Dr. Crusher and went out of the doors. There she was, alone and lost on a large spaceship like the Enterprise.
She returned to her quarters and the first thing she did was checking her timetable. Usually, when getting home, she was checking for new emails but here? She seemed to have missed quite a few appointments. There was a sign on the screen that looked like an envelope and it was blinking. Mail? She tapped the sign with her finger and a face appeared on the screen. The woman strangely resembled Miss Parker and she only said "Get well soon," before the face disappeared again only to be replaced by another face. He had white skin with a golden touch and black hair. Data! He said something about a missed lesson in tap-dancing. Tap-dancing? She was taking lessons from Data? Or was she giving lessons? She had no idea. Another face appeared on the screen. It was completely unfamiliar to her. A girl of about 16 years with dark brown hair and blue eyes. She was wearing a black turtleneck. Something was familiar, but maybe it was just the picture in the background.
"Holodeck 3, 8 p.m., tonight," she said and disappeared again. Her face was replaced by the sign of the United Federation of Planets, a blue and white symbol that looked mostly like the UNO flag. It was silent inside the room and she glanced at her wrist only to discover that her watch was gone.
"Computer, what time is it?"
"7.53 p.m."
Kyla jumped up. She had seven minutes to get to the holodeck. She didn't even have time to change. Still dressed in her uniform she strode purposefully through the ship's corridors and into the turbo lift.
The doors opened again and she found herself standing in front of the huge holodeck doors.
"Program running, enter when ready," the computer's voice said.
The doors opened and she saw herself faced with a most familiar sight. This was Miss Parker's living room. She had been here earlier. She had fallen asleep and then she had shifted to another place. So now she was back here because someone she had never seen before had told her to come to the holodeck. She still had no idea who this girl was who had told her to come here or why she had wanted her to come. The doorbell rang. Miss Parker came from the kitchen smiled at Kyla and opened the door. There was this girl again who had sent her the message.
"Hello Krystal," she heard Miss Parker say, "Kyla's not well, but I think she'll be fit enough for a little talk."
What was this? Another shift in a new and unfamiliar way or just a holodeck program?
"Computer, end program," she murmured hoping that neither Miss Parker nor Krystal had heard her. Krystal was another member of the pretendfic mailing list. She had been writing a story called "Delusions" in which she described how her life had changed since she had begun to see Miss Parker and Jarod at her school, or something like that. To her shame she had to admit that she hadn't read it yet. Krystal came to stand beside her.
"Already feeling at home?" she grinned.
"What do you mean?"
"Don't you get annoyed with these shifts? Mine are coming in quite regular intervals by now. I'm getting used to it."
"There are more people shifting through realties?" Krystal nodded and took Kyla by the elbow. She sat down on the sofa and mentioned Kyla to do the same. Miss Parker came down the stairs again and smiled as she saw the girls sitting on the sofa. The doorbell rang again and Miss Parker opened the door. Another girl, a little older then they both were, was standing outside, smiling.
"Hi KB, nice to see you," Miss Parker said, "Come in. Krystal's here as well."
"How does everybody know that I'm here?" Kyla whispered.
"I didn't know. I just happened to walk in that door and end up in your world. Our fantasies are interconnected and there's no way to tell where a door leads."
"Can you help me to get back to my own reality?" KB sat down on the sofa beside them and smiled.
"That's a nice question," she said, "I wish I knew. But I know that there are more of us who are caught between the universes. We are trying to find a way back. Maybe you can join the group and help us find a way home."
"But what happens when I shift to another reality?"
"We shift as well."
"To the same universe?"
KB and Krystal shook their head in unison.
"Everybody who's caught between the universes shifts between their favourite TV series. Depends on how many series you like. Some people only shift between two series, others like you, shift between five or more," Krystal said.
"How do you know it's five?"
"Good guess. I know that you like Pretender and Star Trek. I was really just guessing."
They stopped talking when Miss Parker came back into the room. She stood in front of the girls looking down on them.
"Anybody want a hot chocolate?" she asked.
They looked at each other and nodded.
"Krystal, one question," Kyla said as Miss Parker had disappeared into the kitchen, "How were you able to contact me?"
"Contact you? Where?"
"You didn't send me a message, telling me to come to the holodeck?"
"No, how should I have done this? I've been here with the Pretender universe for quite a while. Why do you ask?"
"I saw you. At least I think I saw you on my screen."
"Holodeck? Sounds like Star Trek to me."
"Yeah, right, the Enterprise."
"I've been there before, but I've never seen you."
"I've been there the first time."
"Must've been my imagination. But I'm sure that I've never seen a photo of you. The only thing I knew about you was the fact, that you like dark clothes and that you have dark hair. That's all."
"Did anybody else seem familiar to you?" KB interrupted.
"Except the characters from the series? No. I just encountered a Star Trek person in the Pretender universe and Jarod was talking about the profiler Rachel Burke, but they have met before. I feel like going crazy."
Krystal and KB grinned. Miss Parker came from the kitchen, balancing four mugs with steaming hot chocolate on a tray. She smiled at the girls and set the tray onto the table.
"I hope you don't mind if I join you while drinking my chocolate!?"
Without waiting for an answer she sat down on the sofa beside Krystal. Krystal smiled at her and took the mug Parker offered her.
When Parker had disappeared in her room again Krystal and KB looked at Kyla without saying a word.
"What is wrong?" Kyla asked.
"She's so different. Whenever I met her, she was chasing Jarod, always kind of a bad guy. Now she's here with you, being like a mother, a good friend. What did you do?"
"What did you expect, when you stood in front of the door?" Kyla asked instead of an answer.
"Uuuh, I was about to enter my own house. I expected my husband to show up and open the door for me. And I admit, that Jarod is that husband," KB said and grinned. Krystal and Kyla smiled and both had to think of the fic that Krystal and KB had written called "Delusions". It ended with KB and Jarod getting married.
"I was at school, in the real world. It was lunch break and I went to the locker room to store my bags. A friend of mine told me that the principal wanted to see me. So I went up the stairs and was waiting to be let inside. That's when Parker showed up."
Kyla looked at herself and something seemed to have changed. She realized that she didn't wear the Starfleet uniform anymore. She didn't even notice that the clothes had changed when she had entered the holodeck. Holodeck? Another reality? Whatever, her clothes had changed.
***
Her communicator beeped. What communicator? She looked around and found herself in her quarters staring at the computer screen in front of her. Krystal's face was still there. Hadn't she just been to the holodeck? Hadn't she just had a meeting with KB and Krystal at Parker's house? Yes, she could clearly remember Krystal say that she had been waiting in front of the principal's door at school when Parker had opened and had let her in. But where were they now? The fact that she was sitting inside her quarters aboard the Enterprise made the things more complicated. Was this another new way to shift between the universes? But she was back aboard the Enterprise and she was still searching for a way to get back. Back to where? Back to her "real" life where her mother was sending her to see a shrink? She could think of a better way of living. But Jarod had rescued her from the evil shrink who had wanted to send her into a closed facility. By the way, what had happened to him? She had to find a way to get back to this universe and see him. Or was there a chance he would come to her universe and bring her out of here?
The communicator beeped again. Dr. Crusher asked her to report to sickbay. She said she had found something interesting. Kyla sighed and left her room again. When the door to sickbay opened it wasn't only Crusher waiting for her but Data and Geordie LaForge as well. The three of them stared at a computer screen and didn't even realize that she entered the room. When she finally spoke Crusher and Geordie jumped. Data just smiled. *Data smiled? There was something wrong about this universe! Data never smiled.*
"We think we have found something that should be interesting for you," Geordie said. "Look at this star chart," he said and pointed at the screen.
"There are disturbances in space-time near the place we've been. It would be possible that you have somehow switched bodies with your alter ego from this time and place," Data explained.
***
“She’s slowly regaining consciousness”, she heard a voice from somewhere far away. It was bright day, the light was too bright. Keep your eyes closed, she told herself. The sentence seemed familiar and so did her reaction. She had no idea where she was or what had happened. Who was she anyway? She tried to move but couldn't. Something kept her from even opening her eyes.
"Her eyes are open. Kyla, can you see me?"
Who was this woman talking to? Who was Kyla?
***
"Kyla? Kyla, can you hear me? Ensign Parker? Everything alright?" she heard Dr. Crusher say and slowly opened her eyes. She was lying on the floor and looked up into Dr. Crusher's face. Crusher was kneeling beside her and running a tricorder up and down her body.
"You collapsed," Crusher stated, "but something was wrong. You seemed to be in a state of flux before you hit the ground. You've been lucky to stand beside Data. He caught you just in time. How do you feel?"
"I don't know. Everything seems so far away. Where am I?"
"Sickbay aboard the Enterprise. What is the last thing you remember?"
"I'm supposed to be home by six. What time is it?"
Concentrating was getting harder and names kept slipping from her mind. Who was the red-haired woman? Why was she asking so many questions? Why was the guy next to her so pale in the face and what kind of funny sunglasses was the other one wearing? What did the woman say, where was she? Enterprise? Was she in Oregon? She felt sleepy.
"Kyla, stay with me. Kyla, hey! Concentrate on my voice. You have to stay conscious!"
*I don't want to concentrate. I'm afraid of the darkness that's creeping up to me. Help me!*
***
“She’s slowly regaining consciousness”, she heard a voice from somewhere far away. It was bright day, the light was too bright. Keep your eyes closed, she told herself. There it was again. That voice. Where had she just been in her thoughts?
"Open your eyes, Kyla, look at me."
She opened her eyes and looked at a man of about 40 years. He seemed familiar.
"Kyla, do you recognize me?" he asked and Kyla only nodded.
"You've been off for nearly one hour. We've been trying to wake you but we couldn't. We started to get worried. I'm glad you're back."
"Welcome back," another voice said from the door. Dax was just entering sickbay. "I was worried we'd loose a crew member. How do you feel?"
"I don't know. I feel a little funny. What did you do to me?"
"You don't want to know, I'm sure about that. You will stay here a little longer than expected. Something was definitely wrong with you. We will run extended tests."
"Did you want to say something about me being in a kind of flux?" Kyla asked. Bashir looked at her and just nodded.
"How do you know?"
"Seems vaguely familiar to me. I've heard it before."
"You've heard it before? Where and when?"
"It seems like only minutes ago. But somewhere far away."
"Have you been in another universe?"
"I think I've been on the Enterprise."
"Enterprise? With Captain Picard?"
"Yes. But I've been to another place as well. In the time I think I belong to, the 21st century."
"We have to talk about that, Kyla. But you have to get well first."
"I'm feeling ok. Can't I go to my quarters? I'd feel much more comfortable there."
"No doubts about that but you need medical attention. I don't want to leave you alone right now."
"I could go with her," Dax volunteered, "We can go to her quarters and discuss some things she has seen so far."
"If you say so. You're the higher ranking officer."
"You're the CMO, Julian, I wouldn't do it against your strict order."
"It's alright. But please contact me as soon as something weird happens, ok?"
Kyla and Dax just nodded. Kyla slowly sat up. She felt a little dizzy and had to steady herself at the bed she had just laid on. Dax took her by the arm and led her towards the sickbay doors.
They walked through the corridors that seemed so familiar and yet so strange. What if she really belonged here and everything else was just a bad dream? It felt wrong. Everything felt wrong even Dax' helping hand at her upper arm. It was real. It was as real as her memories of "home" in the 21st century back on Earth. Just as real as the memories of Miss Parker, Jarod, Data, Dr. Crusher, Geordie, Krystal and all the others. So, what was real then and what wasn't? Or was everything real? Or was everything just a dream? Maybe it was a conspiracy or she had been sucked into her TV and was living in all the TV series. Maybe people in front of the telly could see her along with the actors? Maybe she could try to manipulate the storyline and find a way back out? But what if it was something completely different? She had met people from the mailing list that definitely existed in the 21st century. She had memories of a childhood in a small town named White Bear Lake in Minnesota together with her parents, her little brother and a dog. But all this could be part of a dream. But she had no memories of a past on Enterprise or Deep Space Nine or a past with Michelle Catherine Parker or Jarod or anything that had to do with the Centre. Everything existed only on TV shows and in written fan fiction.
*Stop thinking about it*, she told herself, *You'll find out soon enough what all this means. In the meantime enjoy it. No school, no parents, your dream worlds all in one place and you in the middle of it. What more can you wish for? Maybe Michael. If he were with me maybe it would be easier. No. Stop it and concentrate on what's happening right now. Who knows maybe a change of universe is right behind the door of your quarters.*
"Are you alright?" Dax asked, "You haven't said a word since we left sickbay."
"I'm fine. What about you? Don't you have duties to perform? I mean, I'm just a simple Ensign why do you care about my well being?"
"You're not a simple Ensign you're a friend of mine and no – I don't have any duties to perform I'm on holidays as you would put it. There are a lot of things we have to talk about. We have more things in common than you think. Let's go inside and drink a hot chocolate and talk. I need someone to talk to as well. There are a lot of things that need to be said."
Kyla just looked at her and opened the doors to her quarters. It looked liked any other Starfleet issue quarters. No sign of another universe… Maybe it was Dax. She felt a little shaky as she entered her quarters but nothing happened. Dax' grip on her upper arm tightened as she staggered.
"Sit down on the sofa. I'll get something to drink for us. Do you like Rakdajino?"
"I don't know. Never tried."
"You are from the 21st century, are you? You're not kidding."
"I don't think so. I'd like a hot chocolate, please. Why are you suddenly so sure I don't belong to this place?"
"I hope you can live with the truth. I don't belong here either. I'm not Jadzia Dax the Trill with the symbiont inside her. And I don't belong here."
"Are you a shape shifter?"
"No. I'm Terry Farrell," she said and Kyla faded.
***
"Kyla, wake up. We're almost there. You have to get changed before we meet with Rachel."
She slowly opened her eyes and found herself sitting in the car with Jarod and Ms Lewellyn. Her head was lying in Jarod's lap and she looked up at his smiling face. How often had she dreamed about waking up like that but now that it was true she felt uncomfortable. He was a stranger to her after all. She sat up and looked out of the window.
"How long have I been asleep? This looks like Chicago to me."
"It is Chicago. The sedative Dr. Greene gave to you was stronger than I suspected. You were out for nearly eight hours. We'll stay at the Holiday Inn tonight. You are supposed to be our daughter. If you're not feeling comfortable with calling us mom and dad you might as well call us by out first names. But please know that you're not to speak to anyone except us."
"What's this all about? Are we on a wanted add or something like that? I'm a very talkative person. How can I just shut up without knowing why?"
"OK, let's try it the other way round. We'll go to our room and order dinner from the room service so you're not tempted to speak to strangers. After dinner we'll meet with Rachel who is staying in Chicago at the moment. I hope she knows how to help you."
"Help me? What problem do I have except the fact that I've been kidnapped by the two of you and the whole State Police might be searching for a stray lunatic?"
"What about you shifting through universes? Isn't that a problem?"
"How do you know? I don't remember having told you about it."
"You were talking while you were sedated. I've asked a few questions and you answered them without hesitation. That's how I got to know about it."
"I shouldn't have trusted you."
"You didn't. Have you already forgotten that you were abducted and that the whole State Police might be searching for you? The only place you're safe at the moment is with us. As soon as they find you you'll end up in a loony bin. Do you want that?"
"Of course not. But how can I be sure that I can trust you?"
"We'll go an see Rachel. Maybe she can tell us what's really happening and maybe she knows a way for you to return to your real universe."
"This isn't a real universe? I thought you abducted me from Dr. Greene?"
"Of course we did. For you everything is as real as it can be. And so it is for us. Maybe you'll know more when you have met with your friends from the mailing list."
"I already – what do you mean?"
"What do YOU mean? You said you arranged a meeting with a few girls from your mailing list. Don't you want to meet with them anymore? "
"I do but you said you wanted to discuss this topic with me because you don't trust them. What's wrong?"
"What place did you say you wanted to meet?"
"In - good question. I don't know. Tomorrow in the afternoon. No definite time and no definite place. But it seemed right anyway. To tell you the truth I already met them – but in another universe. Not every meeting was pleasant so to say. Myra worked with Lyle and Parker seemed to be a completely different person. I have no idea how to explain it to you."
"I think I understand what you mean. She can be absolutely cute if she chooses to be."
"No, that's not what I mean. She was a completely different person and I seem to be living with her in her house in Blue Cove. She says her name is Michelle Catherine Parker and she's a psychiatrist. That's not the Miss Parker I know and not the Miss Parker you know. That's the Parker from my dreams."
"She sounds nice. Like I always imagined her. But she'll never be that way. You need to get changed. There are clothes in the bag next to you."
"Changing inside the car while we are driving and you are looking at me? No way. We have to stop."
"We can't stop, Kyla. Remember the wanted add? It probably describes you the way you are dressed right now and that's why we need to change your looks. Do you like your hair?"
"My hair? Of course I do. What about it?"
"It needs to be cut."
"Never. Better think of something better. Now look away while I get changed."
She took the clothes from the bag. It was a long skirt and a blue sweater. She hated skirts and she hated that kind of blue.
"Anything else I need to know about my change of personality while we are in Chicago? Do I get a new name or some strange things like that?"
"Yes," Jarod sighed, "Your name is Gwendolyn Lewellyn. And I'm afraid to tell you that there are more things you need to know. You have to change completely. I suspected you wouldn't like to cut your hair so there's a wig in the bag on the front seat. I know you love your blond curls but I'm afraid they have to change to brown. And Kyla - you'll have to use a wheelchair."
"You're kidding, are you? A wig, a new style, a new name and a wheelchair. I hope nobody ever finds out that this person is me. Why do you call me Kyla? I thought my new name was Gwen? Who's the one who has to get used to changes?"
"Don't get nasty, Gwen," Kira said from the driver's seat and smiled into the rear view mirror, "You're not the only one who's in danger right now. We are as well. I'm the only one who's not on a most wanted list so far. But I guess that's subject to change in the not so distant future. Please be patient. We'll do everything in our power to help you but you need to play along as well. If you want to play ice queen that's fine but please save that for another time. You know you need our help and we know it as well. Maybe Rachel knows what to do and you'll find back into your real world soon. You might remember all this only as a dream but for us it's real. This is our real life and nothing can change this. For you it can change. Remember that."
"I'm sorry but everything is so confusing. I'm getting angry with myself and that's what happens then. I didn't mean to be rude. I'm just trying to figure out what's going to happen if everything goes wrong or if anything could go wrong."
"Get dressed we'll discuss this later. You'll have to be finished as soon as we enter the inner city. It looks funny if someone gets changed in a car when everyone can watch you."
"I'm hurrying. Could you help me please? I have no idea how to put on a wig."
They reached the inner city in no time but Kyla / Gwen was ready. The only thing she couldn't get accustomed to was the idea of a wheelchair. But Jarod assured her that it wouldn't be too hard to learn.
"Just pretend you can't move your body. I will push you along," he grinned.
"I don't think it's going to be fun but if it's going to safe me from the loony-bin I'll play along as asked. I only hope there are no mirrors in the halls. I don't want to know how I look."
"You look fine and I love you with those brown curls."
"How long do I have to play this role?"
"I don't know. We'll meet with Rachel later the evening in a bar on North Fairbanks Court called Timothy O'Toole's. It's a nice place. The only problems are the stairs at the entrance. I hope I can carry you downstairs. I hope you can play that role convincingly."
"I've always been good at acting. I think I can manage that. As long as you don't start laughing or break down when you're trying to lift me up we should be just fine."
They reached the hotel and stopped in front of the main entrance. There was a parking place reserved for disabled people and since she belonged to that group now they had a perfect parking place right in front of the hotel doors. She had always hated searching for a parking place. Jarod pulled a wheelchair out of the trunk and lifted her out of the car like she was a doll. She didn't say a word and didn't move a muscle. She kept her eyes down and tried not to look at anyone around. She knew people were staring at her. They always were when a young girl was sitting in a wheelchair – she had been no exception until today. Now that she was the person who got stared at she knew how it felt and promised herself not to do it again when she was back in her real world.
Room 1408 on the 14th floor with a wonderful view on the lake. She was deep in her thoughts when Kira closed the door behind them.
"You can get out of your wheelchair, we're in a safe zone right now."
"No. I'm just getting used to it. Disabled people don't have the chance to have break from their illness and I don't deserve it. The main reason is that I will never get used to it and it's so hard not to move. I don't think I can do it tonight if I get out of that chair right now."
"I'm not happy with it but we can do something about it. And I don't think you'll like it."
"Don't say you want to sedate me again."
"How do you know?"
"I just read a horror book that had something like that in it. They sedated a woman so she couldn't move anymore and she had to watch how they killed her. A horrible thing."
"I wouldn't kill you," Kira said. "I would simply anaesthetize your lower body."
"You? Why you?"
"I'm a doctor. Why not me?"
"Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude. I didn't know. What do you mean with my lower body?"
"Jarod said you are not supposed to move your arms. So we have to deaden at least one of your arms and everything else that's not vital."
"NOT VITAL?"
"I can't simply anaesthetize your whole body. That would mean you'd need artificial life support. You have to be able to breathe on your own and you heart has to keep beating and of course you need to speak. Only in a low voice but you need to tell Rachel everything you know."
"Why isn't she coming to our room? I don't feel very comfortable with the idea of being helpless."
"I can understand that perfectly but Rachel wasn't very happy with meeting with us anyway and I don't want to push her any further into my criminal life," Jarod said and smiled a sad smile. "You know that it's not very good for a police profiler to be seen while helping a small group of criminals."
"That's exactly what I've been thinking. We'd be in public if we met at O'Toole's. Who would know she's in our room? The Holiday Inn is a huge complex. If she goes in through the front door who will know she's going to meet us here?"
"OK, you've won this round," Jarod admitted, "But I haven't been completely true with you. We are going to meet more than one profiler. Samantha Waters is coming as well and out room is too small for all of us. It is a 4 bed room but not suitable as a conference room even though it has this wonderful bench right in front of the windows."
"Why can't we meet at a restaurant?"
"Restaurant's are mostly under camera surveillance. I doubt that O'Toole's is. It's called a Public House. Low ceiling, TVs and music. I had hoped it would be the perfect place for us."
"I don't think so. Everyone would remember a young girl in a wheelchair if someone would start to ask questions."
"Do they ask about a brow-haired girl in wheelchair? No. They're asking about a sportive young woman with blond curls. Not much resemblance, right? That's why I'd prefer Kira to anaesthetize you. It wouldn't raise any suspicion if something unexpected happened."
"Unexpected like what? You stumble and fall down the stairs with me? No thanks. You could at least find a place without stairs."
"Like what? The Hardrock Café? The Rainforest Café? Or Starbucks? McDonalds? Kyla, please be reasonable. I don't mean to do any harm to you. I just want you to find out the truth."
"One thing, Jarod. I had an appointment with Dr. Greene at 2 p.m. I think I was with him about half an hour. He sedated me and called an ambulance to get me to the loony bin. But when you carried me out of the building it was already getting dark. I was awake for about an hour and then I fell unconscious for nearly eight hours you said. Now it's already evening. There are a few hours missing, aren't there? Can you please explain that to me?"
"Uh - no. I don't even know what you're talking about. We crossed over into another time zone if that's what you mean."
"No. That's only one hour. I was talking more about 12 hours give or take a few."
"I can't. But you should get some sleep. You need to be fully rested before Kira can start with anaesthetising you. And don't protest that you have been unconscious for eight hours. That's nothing compared to a good sleep in a real bed. At least two or three hours. Please."
"Alright. What are you doing so long?"
"We'll go into the bathroom, make ourselves some coffee and discuss our current situation."
"What?"
"There's a coffee machine in the bathroom and enough room for the two of us. Don't worry we'll be fine in there. Get some sleep. I'm sure you need it."
Kyla nodded reluctantly. She climbed out of the wheelchair and let herself fall onto the bed. She didn't even realize that Kira was leaning against the wall smiling while Jarod covered her with a blanket. They went inside the bathroom and closed the door behind them. They'd never held a conference in the bathroom but it was quite comfortable in there.
