Lt. Shayne: A Dangerous Line of Inquiry
Quinn Friedl
((Deck 6, Natural Selections, USS Darwin-A))
Shayne: I put myself in their place- as much as anyone can. Confused, ruined, alone and yet not. I can't imagine. And no one should have to. You were just as helpful.
::He was kidding himself. It was a little too easy to imagine. That's where the fear came into play. He could just imagine himself in one of those chambers of horror, reclined on a plain metal table, with those cybernetic...things hovering around him. Or even worse, imagining someone he cared about in that same position. Completely alone. But not for long.::
Shayne: I...appreciate...you being so understanding.
::Just because one chose to suppress their feelings did not mean that they did not have them. Nor did it mean that they necessarily need to be any more forgiving. Merrick's acceptance was no less meaningful to Shayne than it would have been from anyone else.::
R'Ven: What you have done is . . . apparently what others have done as well. To include our previous First officer. ::thoughtful pause:: . . . and perhaps how I would have thought had I been in your place.
::Traenor had been doing his best to look out for the crew, to protect the interests of the away team, the ship, and the Federation as a whole. In essence, he'd been doing his job. Shayne could still distinctly remember the disbelief he felt when he heard Traenor's pronouncement, sentencing the wayward Six of Seven, and every other Borg on that planet to a terrible demise. He could still feel the heat in his face as he did his utmost to keep his tone civil, while arguing his point with the first officer. He could remember the pain in his chest as the shuttle lifted off, never to return...::
::Afterward, he'd been given permission to speak freely, in the privacy of Traenor's quarters. And he'd let him have it. Only then did Shayne see Traenor for what he really was- not a cold, cruel, sadistic devil, but instead a caring, competent officer stuck in loathsome circumstances. He began to see it from his perspective, and concluded that yes, from more than one point of view, he'd done the right thing. He couldn't imagine doing the same, were their situations reversed. He hoped he never would.::
::Was there such a thing as too much empathy?::
Shayne: You'll be going to the Blackwell, I'll be going to Atlantis. We might not see each other for some time. Until we do...
::The arm hung in space, and it was a moment before R'Ven grasped it. Pumping it three times, he released it, and with that handshake, Shayne felt more guilt and pain slip away than he expected. There was nothing like a fresh start to enliven a man's spirit.::
R'Ven: It will soon be time, but first I believe we will have to rendezvous with the Starbase in that region. i am sure we will see each other again.
Shayne: DS26 is a big place. Maybe you'll let me buy you a drink there.
::The immediate problem (at least for him) had been solved. Shayne's conscience was soothed, and perhaps he could rest just a little bit easier now. But there was something that had been bothering him for months. From the moment he'd heard R'Ven speaking of Six of Seven's past, he'd known something strange had happened, something he didn't quite understand. He set his jaw, and went about finding out.::
Shayne: Way back when, you told us about her. ::Referring to Six of Seven.:: I know it's...personal- you don't have to answer this- but...how much do you know?
::Badly phrased, but the best he could do. He didn't know what the ground rules were, didn't know how the Rodulan would react.::
R’Ven: I have had the chance to . . become aware of most of the denizens of the Borg Sphere. If you have any questions, I would be pleased to answer them if I am able.
::What did he say to that? It was such an opportunity, a chance to learn about the young girl they'd tried to save before her assimilation. After all the heartache he'd wrestled through, it would certainly be nice to know what she had been, if not what she could have been. But was it an invasion of privacy? Would she want him to know about her? He had been partially responsible- if indirectly- for killing her. He could have commandeered the shuttle. Mutinied against Traenor. At the time, that hadn't been such a terrible idea to him. But he hadn't. And she'd been reduced to ashes hours later. R'Ven (to his knowledge) had not asked for special insight into the Collective. What should he do?::
::And then he imagined her on that table, desperately pulling to get free, and realized that if he was in her position, sentenced to something worse than death, he wouldn't want to be forgotten.::
Shayne: Tell me more about Six of Seven.
::He wanted to know her.::
R'Ven: response
((OOC: With the new mission coming in play, we can leave it here, or continue- it's up to you, R'Ven. I could go either way. :) ))
Tag/TBC?
Lieutenant Randal Shayne
Helmsman
USS Darwin
NCC 99312-A
G239202RS0