Petite Vriens

by katirene (XMP)

SeaQuest and her crew are the brainchild, IIRC, of Steven Spielberg and the property of Amblin Entertainment. I've tried to remain true to the characters as portrayed by the actors who played them. If I have failed then you have my deepest apologies. There is no intent to insult, defame or gain monetary benefit from this work, it is written with the deepest of admiration to the goals and realities of the show and actors. This story is rated G (to the great dismay of several people I know)



Petite Vriens
by katirene (XMP)

Ensign Irene, or Ari, Adler, late of County Kerry, Ireland and Paris, France, currently assigned to general duty onboard the deep submergence vehicle Seaquest, hurried down the corridors toward Lonnie Henderson's quarters, another ensign assigned to the experimental boat. The pretty, popular ensign had invited her that morning, before first shift, to come by after second shift, Ari's own, had been relieved. The invitation had surprised and pleased the junior officer.

The past couple of weeks had been difficult ones. Not only was she trying to catch up with the other ensigns in terms of duty watches and familiarity with the technology, but there was the problem that everyone already knew everyone else, and the cliques were firmly established. So far, Ari had made only one real friend onboard. At that thought, she snorted with amusement, he wasn't exactly someone that she could talk to and enjoy a private heart to heart talk with all that often.

Feeling a little shy and tentative, Ari had gotten into the old, coping habit of carrying a book everywhere. If she was reading something then, of course, it didn't matter that no one was with her. Except that it did. Somehow, it was harder to be alone among a few people, than alone in the middle of a city. So when Lonnie had started talking to her about her book this morning, Ari had been more than ready to respond.

Approaching the door, she noticed that it had been left invitingly ajar as she put her hand up to knock. But hearing her name mentioned, she froze, and listened.

"Ensign Adler? Why'd you invite her?" she heard the normally pleasant voice of the handsome Sensor Chief, Miguel Ortiz, asking.

Lonnie answered lightly, her voice tinged with a soupcon of pleasure, "She's new and she looks lonely. I remember what it's like to be the new kid on board."

A third voice, a man's voice, spoke up, "That's the new ensign we picked up a few weeks back, right? The one's who's been working with you on the WSKRS, MIguel? I've seen her in the galley some mornings, and thought about going up to talk to her, but she's always so intent on a book and I don't want to disturb her concentration. Good books, too. I wonder if she'd feel like sharing." Ensign Adler tried to recognize the voice of the third member of the party, but it was the clue of breakfast that identified him as the communications officer, Lt. Tim O'Neill, j.g.. There weren't many members of the first shift in the galley when she had her last cup of tea before turning in.

"I met her in the showers this morning and she seemed nice enough. Actually, she reminded me of you, Tim. So, since we'd already planned to get together this evening, I thought it would be a good idea to ask her to join us." She paused, "But you don't seem to like the idea, Miguel. What do you have against her?"

After a short silence, he answered. "Oh, she makes me nervous, that's all. Always watching me. Everyday, she comes onto the bridge about half an hour before her shift and she watches me. Every move I make, she's there." He gave a little, nervous laugh. "I swear, I think that she's got a crush on me, or something."

"Miguel!" Lonnie's voice, loud with amused chiding, covered the sound of Ari's gasp.

There was another pause, then he continued, "I'll tell you what, Tim. Why don't I introduce you to her and you can distract her while I make my escape. Who knows? Maybe she'll forget about me and get a crush on you, instead."

Lonnie laughed, but whatever she was going to say was lost to Ari as she quietly backed away. Nothing could induce her to enter that room, not now. Blindly, she turned and fled.

Behind her, Lonnie teasingly berated the hapless MIguel, "You think that she has a crush on you? Really! That is the most conceited thing I've ever heard you say! I don't believe you."

"It's also untrue," Tim surprisingly added. Miguel turned on him.

"What do you know about it? She's not always there at your shoulder watching every move you make."

"No," O'Neill answered slowly. "But she's not watching you either, except to see what you're doing to the WSKRS and sensor equipment."

Miguel shook his head in denial.

"That's not so. She's got her eyes fixed on me so tightly that I keep doing dumb things. I forget what I was going to say, I make mistakes. She makes me nervous," he repeated. "When she's around, it's like all my nerve endings have been sandblasted. I can't concentrate on anything because I'm constantly aware of where she's standing, how she's moving." He shrugged, frustrated by his inability to describe just why she bothered him. "You know, I almost think I can feel her heading toward the bridge before she gets there."

Tim nodded consideringly. "You know, you're right, that does sound like a crush." Miguel perked up, vindicated, only to be dashed down by his friend's next words. "You're describing exactly the way I've felt with every crush that I ever had on a girl." He laughed unkindly at the look on the sensor chief's face.

"Miguel," Lonnie asked, disbelief warring with amusement in her voice, "haven't you ever liked a girl who didn't like you first?"

"Of course I have," he answered indignantly, "just before I went up and introduced myself to her." Tim and Lonnie exchanged knowing smiles and nodded. "Wait a minute you guys. You've got it all wrong." Tim nodded again with mock sadness, a small smirk of amusement on his lips at the thought of the mighty Miguel falling like an ordinary human.

"Nope, I told you, I've seen her," Tim twisted the screws. "You've never even stuck around to see what kind of job she's doing. I have. Her eyes glow and her face lights up when she's got the WSKRS controls away from you." He laughed maliciously, adding, "She doesn't have a crush on you, she's got a crush on the WSKRS. And you have a crush on her!"

"I think Tim is right, Miguel," Lonnie chimed in. "But I also think that we should find something else to talk about, she's going to be here any moment now."

"Fine! We'll talk about something else. But it's not a crush!" he growled, splitting his glare between the two of them, beginning to splutter with laughter at his vehemence. "She's not even my type!"

"Yeah," Tim added, snorting with laughter. "She has brains." Lonnie looked up with surprise at him. She and Miguel had gone out a time or two, while on leave, of course.

"I think I resent that remark!" Grabbing a pillow, she smacked the tall, thin lieutenent across the back, scattering the cards over the floor. In defense, he grabbed another and soon they had a free for all going on, only settling down when a passing crewmember poked her head in to find out what the rumpus was about.

*

Ari found herself at the Moon Pool without any memory of transversing the intervening corridors. As was usual at this time of day, Lucas Wolenczak wasn't around, but Darwin, the dolphin, was. And it was Darwin she wanted to see.

Plopping down to her knees beside the open water, Ari reached into the pool and rubbed the dolphin's head,

"Play 'I say'," he begged the troubled ensign, the electronic sound of the vocoder giving his words a weird plaintiveness.

"Umm, not just yet," she responded, her throat feeling closed and scratchy with suppressed tears. "How 'bout if I toss the ring, instead?" With his assent, she picked up one of the rings left by the side of the pool for that purpose and threw it out into the water, her thoughts far away.

Her feelings of shock and embarassment over the overheard conversation were fading, but she still couldn't believe that he could say that. She wondered if she'd really been making that much of a fool of herself. No, it wasn't possible. She knew that she didn't have a crush on Ortiz. Okay, so granted, he was good looking, disturbingly so, but the real attraction was the way he manipulated the wireless satellites.

Thinking about his wizardry in that area, Ari felt her anger fading slightly and she shook her head in bemused admiration. She had learned more from him in the past couple of weeks about what the satellites were practically capable of than she had during her entire term in the wireless satellite labs at the university.

Automatically, she accepted the ring from Darwin and threw it out again. Frowning with concentration, Ari reviewed all her interactions with the conceited non-com to date. Shaking her head slightly, her anger began to grow. Ok, so she was on the bridge before her shift, but how else was she supposed to learn her job if not through observation? She'd never asked unnecessary questions, never tried to chat him up or interject personal comments. She was careful not to distract him from the displays, at any time. For that matter, she'd never even approached him off-duty for any reason. All in all, she hadn't said or done a single thing to make that vain coxcomb think that she had the slightest tendresse for him. Where did he get off thinking that she did?

Maybe she should stop going up to the bridge before her shift? No. When Professeur D'Argent had learned that she was assigned to the SeaQuest, he had told her that Ortiz was one of the best operators there was, and he'd advised her to take every opportunity to watch him in action. And, it was the truth. He was just as good as advertised. Besides, if she did stop going up early, it'd be an admission that she was at fault, had been doing something wrong. And, anyway, why should she make his life any easier. Her eyes hard, she nodded abruptly, then squealed as a cold spray of salt water hit her full in the face.

"Play 'I say', now!" Darwin demanded, bored with her abstracted tossing. Ari laughed, her bad mood lifting with the combination of the cold shower and her friend's insistance. Besides, it was his problem, really. Not hers.

"Ok, Darwin. We'll play 'I say'. Just let me get the equipment, ok?" 'I say' was a game that had occurred to Ari the first time she had met the talking dolphin. Although, to be accurate, it was the computer data base that actually did the talking. But it had caused Ari to wonder. If it was possible to isolate and identify the dolphin's language components well enough to create a data file for the computer's use, then it should be possible for a human to learn enough to be able to communicate with him without the intervening program.

On examination of the actual mechanics of the vocoder, however, she discovered that it wasn't quite that simple. Most of the sounds used by the delphine community could not be picked up from the water by the human ear. Furthermore, on discussing the idea with Darwin, she discovered that much of the syntax of dolphin speech, grammar and overtones, could only be read in the tension of the body and the expression of movement, much like human sign languages.

So, Ari had modified a keyboard to transmit dolphin-like clicks, whistles and sighs into the water through the speakers used by the vocoder when the appropriate keys were depressed. Sensors along the sides of the pool isolated the vocal component of Darwin's own speech, the same ones used by the computer, but Ari had the signals shunted to a headset instead, turning off the external system in order to concentrate better.

What Darwin enjoyed best about playing "I say", Ari suspected, was the novelty of being in command, telling a human what do do, and having her do it. It tickled him to when she did something he considered silly, just on his say-so. He was disappointed, though, that the game couldn't be continued in the water, but the headphones and keyboard weren't designed to be submerged.

As Ari picked up the underwater microphone they used, she paused, considering it thoughtfully. She hadn't paid much attention to Lt. O'Neill before because he was communications, and she considered sensor to be the more vital and interesting field of study. But this was communications, wasn't it? She smiled, a small, thoughtful, and calculating smile. Perhaps she should give Lt. O'Neill a bit more attention. She'd be changing her field of operation soon, anyway, after all.

As a "last man on board" vessel, it was vital that every member of the SeaQuest crew know how to do everyone else's job. So junior personnel did a turn at every system on board, and more senior members did occasional turns at other stations to keep in practice. Ari had been assigned to Sonar and Sensor on posting, because that had been one of her major fields of study. Her off-duty time was spent all over the boat, gaining familiarity with the operation of the other sections.

But since she knew she'd be taking a turn at communications before too much longer, perhaps she should make an effort to get to know the comm officer, now. It might help to prevent whatever was bugging CPO Ortiz. And he seemed nice, as well as interested in the books she'd been reading. With a genuine smile on her face, she turned back to Darwin, dropping the mike into the water ready to obey her sea-bourne taskmaster.

*

She's not coming, Lonnie," Tim announced flatly. "And I'm tired. I'm going to turn in. See you guys in the morning."

"I'm off, too. Sorry it didn't work out, Lonnie." Miguel gathered up the cards into a pile before standing up. "Look, I'll give her another chance. Ok? Maybe I have been a bit hasty about her." As the two of them left, Lonnie heard Tim ask, "Will you still introduce her to me?" and she smiled when MIguel replied testily, "Shut up, Tim." But the smile faded quickly into a faint worry.

It didn't make any sense. Ari Adler had been delighted with the invitation to drop by her quarters. What possible reason could she have had to just not show up. It was clear that the small young officer was lonely. Those books she carried around were just a blind. Lonnie couldn't think of any other reason to have them.

The pretty helmsman squared her shoulders and nodded, a determined expression on her clear features. She hated not knowing things, and these were questions she was going to get the answers to. All she had to do was to track down the other woman and shake them out of her. And Ari had to be somewhere on the SeaQuest, there was no where else to go. Leaving her quarters, she moved down the corridor toward the room that Ens. Adler shared with another woman.

*

As Lonnie stepped into the room with the moon pool, Ari was listenting closely, her head cocked to one side and one hand holding the earpiece. She typed something on a keyboard, then leaned down, selecting something before throwing it into the water. Darwin must have been waiting just below the surface because he leapt from the water to catch the ring on his snout. With a snap of his upper body, he tossed it back out of the pool, chittering away. Lonnie was surprised that no translation was provided.

Ari turned around, a smile of triumph on her face. "Oh, hello Lonnie. One moment." Removing the headpiece, the small ensign stood and made some adjustments to the vocoder controls on the wall. Darwin nodded again.

"Hello Lonnie," he said through the vocoder.

"Hey Darwin. Ari, what's going on here? And where were you? I expected you to come by my quarters tonight when you got off your shift?"

"Oh. Weli, um. I was relieved from my shift early. And since you said that you expected me around 0130, I decided to come down here and play with Darwin until then." Ari shrugged, smiling. "I guess I lost track of the time. But I can put this away and come with you, now." As she suited actions to words, she added, casually, "What time is it, anyway?" Lonnie shook her head in mock dismay. Just like Tim. Getting so caught up that he didn't notice anything around him.

"Your shift ended more than an hour ago. We waited about half an hour, then the guys left. I thought that something might have happened to you, so I came looking."

Ari looked up, eyes innocent. "The guys? Which guys?"

Shrugged her shoulders, she answered, "I thought that you could meet Tim and Miguel off duty, and we could play a couple of hands of poker and have some laughs together."

Ari snorted, a self-mocking sound. "And who are Tim and Miguel when they're on duty?"

"Miguel Ortiz and Tim O'Neill," Lonnie amplified. She regarded the smaller woman with sudden suspicion. Could she really be that oblivious to things around her? "After all, you've been relieving Miguel's station since you came aboard, and I thought that you and Tim might have something in common."

"Oh, Chief Ortiz was there," Ari tried to look thoughtful and made a small moue. "Just as well I missed it then. I don't think that he has much of a personality." Now that was going too far. But Lonnie couldn't figure out what the other woman was up to. "But O'Neill? You mean the guy in charge of communications?" Lonnie nodded and Ari laughed softly at herself. "You'd think that after two weeks of being on board, I'd know more first names, wouldn't you?" This actually did sound honest, and a little sad. Lonnie felt herself responding to the hurt in the voice.

Ari finished gathering the equipment into a compact bundle. Standing up, she placed it carefully in her gear locker before turning around. "Night, Darwin. I'll try to be by for more tomorrow, ok?" Darwin nodded assent and said "Bye, Ari. Bye, Lonnie." Returning, the smaller woman gestured toward the door, asking with some curiousity, "What do you think that O'Neill and I have in common, anyway?"

"Well, you both quote things that nobody else has ever heard of and read books with weird alphabets. That sort of thing. Like that book you were carrying while waiting in the showers today."

Ari looked up with interest. "The Euripides? O'Neill reads Greek?"

Lonnie paused, a huge yawn stopping her for a second, "Yeah," she confirmed sleepily. "He reads that stuff, too." She yawned again. "Sorry about that. This is late for me." Ari walked with her back to her quarters, chatting quietly about the shy communications officer and from there to other members of the crew. As she climbed into her bunk Lonnie felt a warm glow, a feeling that she was helping out another person. Sleepily, Lonnie examined the thought of Tim O'Neill and Ari Adler. The two ofthem would be well suited, but there was something a little disturbing about the idea as well. Before she had time to work it out, the pretty, young woman was sound asleep.



PART 2

note: The literal translations for the Latin phrases are given below the line. I don't know if the series ever showed inter-ship e-mail communiques, but this is how I imagine they'd set them up if they did.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0330
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
Lt. O'Neill, ens. Henderson has told me that you read Greek. Are you, by any chance, familiar with Euripides play, "The Bacchae"? I am currently attempting to read it in the original and am running into some problems. Would it be possible for you to meet with me to discuss this? I'd greatly appreciate any insight that you may have into it. C.V. ensign I. Adler


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0525
to:i_adler, ens
from:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
I've read that play several times, both in translation and the original, and would be glad to give you any help that you may need with it. When can we meet? I'm going to have to look over the text again before we do, or I'd suggest this morning. And I'm sorry to have missed you at Lonnie's last night. Tim O'Neill
BTW, what does C.V. stand for? T.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0530
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
It would have to be either before first shift or after second. I'm off-shift at 0100, could you make it then? C.V. I. Adler Oh, yeah, C.V. is from a book I had as a child, it stands for credendo vides. Ari.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0532
to:i_adler, ens
from:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
I can not easily make it at 0100 as I'm usually in bed well before midnight. What about 0530 tomorrow in the galley? That doesn't appear to be too late for you, is it? As for that saying of yours, I'm not sure I like the idea of "believing is seeing". I prefer the philosophy of timendo credes. Tim O'Neill


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0534
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g., lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
Ok, that time and place is fine with me. You're right, I am often in there then. I'll even buy you breakfast. And re your saying, I can't believe that "fearing is believing". Things can't be as bad as all that. Timendo credes, indeed! C.V. Ari Adler, Non credeo timendo credes.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0537
to:i_adler, ens
from:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
You haven't been onboard SeaQuest as long as I have, either, or you'd believe it readily enough! It's a philosophy that has brought me much comfort over the years. As for breakfast, I'm a vegetarian, so don't worry about it. Tim O'Neill


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0540
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
It's ok. I grew up only having meat only once a week, I know lots of vegetarian dishes. It's no problem. As for your advice. "Difficilis, querulus, laudator temporis acti, se puero, castigator, censorque minorum." C.V. Ari Adler


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0635
to:i_adler, ens
from:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
Why you impertinent pup! Call me a grumbler and a critic of youth, will you? To quote Horace back at you, "Quodcumque ostendis mihi sic, incredulus odi." I'll see you tomorrow morning. T.C. Tim O'Neill


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:1245
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
If you plan to discredit and revolt at anything I put before you, then should I even bother bringing food? C.V. Ari Adler


"Credendo vides." is from a book called "Voyage of the Bassett" and means "Believing is seeing."

"Timendo credes" means "Fearing is believing" and is based on a quote by Lt. O'Neill from "Watergate". "I believe in anything that makes me nervous."

"Difficilis, querulus, laudator temporis acti se puero, castigator, censorque minorum."



Horace 65-8

B.C.E. Ars Poetica, 173.

Trans. "Testy, a grumbler, inclined to praise the way the world went when he was a boy, to play the critic and censor of the new generation."

"Quodcumque ostendis mihi sic, incredulus odi." Horace, Ars Poetica, 188 Trans. "Anything that you thus thrust upon my sight, I discredit and revolt at."



PART 3

Tim O'Neill looked carefully around the galley, his stomach curled up in apprehension. Ensign Adler was not in sight. At this time of day, with second shift settling down and several hours before first relieved third, the galley was about as empty as it ever was, so her absence was glaringly obvious. What if this was just another stupid practical joke, like all the ones he'd suffered through in high school. He snorted quietly, considering the idea. Miguel and Lonnie could have set that whole discussion just as a lead in to this. But then, again, those responses had come through pretty quickly. Did Miguel know Latin? It was difficult to tell with him. He didn't display all he knew on the surface.

Tim shrugged the question off. Well, in any rate, this was his normal breakfast time, so he could just act like he was in on the joke when they tried to pull it off. Making his way toward his usual table, he stopped at the sight of the books piled there. Picking up the top one, he automatically translated the title from Greek, "Euripides, The Bacchae". Glancing at the one below it, he saw that it was an English-Grecian dictionary. At least they got the props right. Flipping through the pages, he sat down, reading the introduction.

The smell alerted him first. The warm, tantalizing smell of fresh-baked bread mixed with hot cinnamon and recently brewed coffee. "Here, move that out of the way," a slightly-frazzled female voice ordered in the way of all women in commission of domestic engineering feats. "I need to put this down." Tim looked up, his eyebrows raised slightly in surprise. Then he stood up to help her with the tray.

"You know, I half-way expected you to not show up," he chuckled as he helped Ari put the contents of the tray on the table.

"That's for you," she said quickly as he started to put the warm, tantalizing plate in the centre of the table. "And this, and this," she continued, putting down a cup of coffee and glass of orange juice in front of him. "The teapot, creamer and sugar are for me."

Settling down opposite of Tim, Ari gazed at him frankly, a wry smile twisting her lips. "I was of two minds about this meeting, myself," she confessed. Pouring her tea, she paused, nodding at the covered plate. "Go on, and eat, don't mind me. I'm trying to settle down to go to bed, but you need to eat something. I hope you like cinnamon buns."

"Why?" the lanky lieutenent asked curiously. "Hey!" he interrupted himself at his first bite, "this it really good. How'd you get the cook to make cinnamon buns? He's always refused to do special orders, before, unless the Captain requests it."

Smiling secretly, Ari answered, "I didn't, I made him a deal, instead." She nodded toward the rolls, "I convinced him that the Captain would like to have some for breakfast." Slowly sipping her tea, she eyed the communications officers with consideration. Sighing finally, she put her cup down and leaned forward. "Look, Lieutenant, maybe this is a bad idea. I mean, I had this dumb idea that perhaps we had something in common that we could talk about." Ari pointed her chin at the book still at Tim's elbow. "The others laugh behind my back when they see me with something like that, but it didn't seem as if you would. And all they ever want to talk about are sports competitions or job complaints."

Putting her cup down with an air of finality, she stood, pushing her chair back and reaching for her books "Let's just forget about this? I'll take those and we can pretend that we're just in the galley at the same time, as usual. What do you say?"

Tim put his free hand quickly down on the cover of the book. Finding that she had the same doubts as his made him feel somehow in control of the situation. "Wait just a minute here," he ordered. "You said that you'd buy me breakfast if I'd help you with your translation." He waved the rapidly disappearing roll in his hand, "As I see it, you've fulfilled your part of the bargain, now let me do mine. Deal?" He smiled, and Ari realized that she'd not seen him smile before. His smile didn't so much transform his rather long and quirky face so much as refine it. She smiled hesitantly back, resuming her seat.

"Deal. Did you get a chance to go over the play yesterday?"

"Uh-huh. What problem are you having with it? It seems pretty straight-forward to me."

Ari reached for the book again, this time, Tim handed it to her. Rifling through the pages, she found her mark and opened the book fully. "Here," she said, pointing. "I can't believe that I'm reading what I think I'm reading." She handed the book back.

Hastily, Tim put down his bun and wiped the frosting off his hands. Looking at the proffered verse, he read aloud, " 'I am also told a foreigner has come to Thebes from Lydia, one of those charlatan magicians, with long yellow curls smelling of perfumes, with flushed cheeks and the spells of Aphrodite in his eyes. His days and nights he spends with women and girls, dangling before them the joys of initiation in his mysteries'." He handed it back, shrugging, "I don't see what's wrong with that."

Ari shook her head in confusion, "That isn't the way I read it. Listen." She found the disputed passage and her quiet voice read slowly, struggling a little with the translation. " 'The other news is that some stranger has arrived in town, a sorcerer from Lydia, a conjurer of sorts, with golden scented hair tumbling down to his shoulders, a skin that glows like wine, and eyes that promise Aphrodite's secret charms. He spends his nights and days with girls, I hear, enticing them with his Bacchic witchcraft'." She looked up and he shrugged.

"So we're not using the exact same expressions. That's normal for original translations." Ari sighed with frustration.

"No! Listen again. I try to make it so that you can see what I'm talking about." Again she began to read, this time with more confidence and greater expression, putting a seductive twist into the words with her pauses and intonations. This time, when she looked up, Tim was nodding his head with understanding. "You see, when I read the passage, I feel that Pentheus is describing Dionysis in words that you'd normally expect a man to use for a woman, not another man.

"And that's not the only place I find that. Here," quickly, she scanned through, then read, her voice caressing the words gently, " 'So! You cut a handsome figure, I'll give you that! Quite tempting." her voice trailed off, then spoke hastily, " I mean to women, the object, I don't doubt of your presence here in Thebes." With the next words, she again began to drawl in an attractive way, " Your curls are soft! A bit too long for wrestling, but very pretty, the way they hug your cheeks, so lovingly. And what fair skin you have, so well looked-after! But then, you don't expose it to the sun, do you? You like the darker places, where you can hunt desire with your beauty'." Losing herself in the effort of rendering justice to the meaning, her voice raised and lowered, purring langorously. Tim listened, enrapt with her expressiveness. When she finished, it was a few seconds before he realized. Blushing fiercely, he shook himself and laughed inanely.

"Perhaps you should record your translation, so that I can get the full flavour of what you're talking about," he suggested then shook his head in admiration. "I've never noticed anything like that in the play before."

Ari paused to consider the notion. "You mean write down my translation?" she asked dubiously. Tim laughed.

"No, no. I mean audio-tape. I really want to hear how you read this. When you read, I mean, I can see where the words are coming from, but you put them together, and interpret them, in a way that I never saw before. It's fascinating. And I don't think that I get the full impact of what you're talking about, unless I hear the emphasis that you put on it. How far are you from finishing the play?"

"Actually, I have finished it. I mostly wanted to talk about it." She paused then looked him straight in the eye and firmly stated, "I'll do it, but only on the condition that you tape your version of the play, as well." Tim nodded thoughtfully.

"Good idea, I'll get mine to you and you get yours to me and then we can compare our interpretations on our own time." He looked at his watch, and shook his head regretfully, "There's really not enough time to do it now."

"Do you mean it?" Ari asked eagerly. "I mean, you're not just saying that to get rid of me or to shut me up? I'd understand if you were."

"No, no, no," Tim said, shaking his head earnestly in punctuation. "This is interesting and I think that it would be fun."

Ari started to speak, but got caught by a huge yawn. "I'm sorry," she apologized, a little embarrassed by the faux pas. "But I think I have to turn in now. Thank you, Lieutenant."

"Umm," Tim bobbed his head a little. "Could you call me Tim. I'd like that better."

Smiling brightly, Ari nodded, "Ok. Tim. And I'm usually called Ari." Picking up the tray, she started clearing the used dishes from the table. Tim stood up.

"Here, let me do that. You brought the tray, it's only fair that I should remove it. And I'd like to have the tape as soon as possible. Do you think that you could get it done today?"

"Welll," she demurred dubiously. "Not today. I don't think that I could do it justice right now. How about after my next shift. Will that do? I can send it to your quarters when I'm finished?" She looked up to him with shining eyes.

"Fine. And I'll do the same for you. When do you want to meet again. Tomorrow?" Ari laughed, shaking her head. "No," he continued. "That's too soon. Well, then, how about the day after?"

"Ok," she agreed. "I'll bring your breakfast, again. What do you like?"

Smiling down at the dimunitive ensign, Tim responded, "Surprise me." As she walked away laughing, he thought wryly to himself that she already had.

*

Unlike Tim and Ari, I do not read Greek, so I'm crediting the people who actually produced the translations used in this chapter. ---ki

The version of "The Bacchae" by the Greek playwright Euripides quoted by Lt. O'Neill was interpreted from the original Greek by William Arrowsmith and can be found in the book "Euripides V" published by Phoenix Books, a division of The University of Chicago Press.

The interpretation used by Ensign Adler is that done by Michael Cacoyannis, published by Mentor Books. (This is one of my favorite versions of the play


CHAPTER 4

Nearing the end of his duty, Miguel shifted and stretched in his console chair, feeling an increasing unease. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the irritating ensign Adler approaching. He'd tried being nicer to her the past couple of days, but she tended to cut him off with protocol. Quickly, he refocused on the screen before him, braced for the words of her formal permission to view his work, but they didn't come. Instead, he felt her passage behind him, going further along.

It was with a combined sense of shock and surprise that he looked over toward communications just in time to see her place her hands on the back of Tim O'Neill's chair and bend over him, her mouth so close to his ear that it had to be almost touching it. He felt an odd sense of betrayal that the ensign was over there and not with him. He leaned toward the two, straining to hear what she had to say to his best friend.

But it just wasn't possible to catch any of it. Whatever it was, though, the effect on Tim was electric, a compleat surprise to the sensor chief, who had known him for several years now. Spinning around to look at her, his mobile, individual face lit up with a huge smile of welcome, and it was clear that he was more than pleased with her presence. Miguel cocked one eye-brow speculatively. He wasn't sure what he thought of this, but he didn't think he liked it one bit.

Adler rested her weight lightly on his seat as Tim turned back to his station, his head turning back and forth to keep an eye on both the screen and her face. Apparently recognizing the inconvenience of his position, she moved more over to one side, enabling Miguel to catch glimpses of the her expression as they talked.

He'd never dreamed that she could appear so animated as she gestured, changed positions, and then, finally, leaned back, throwing her head up to laugh quietly at some joke from the communications officer, accompanied with a comic-opera salute. Her eyes half-closed, her face open with pleased delight, the smooth column of her throat, disappearing into the open collar of her uniform. Why hadn't he ever seen her like that before?

The disjointed sense of betrayal coelesced and was joined by the hot, liquid flow of atavistic anger. This wasn't right. Adler was assigned to Sensor Operations, and she had no reason to be over there, and none at all to be talking to Lt. O'Neill.

"Mr. Ortiz," Ford's voice had a warning note in it.

"Sir!" some of his emotions spilled out into the monosyllable, making it much curter than military protocol required.

"Adjust the WSKRS pick-up for maximum dispersal, if you please." Quickly, he made the necessary changes, then turned back to his surveillance of the two.

Ensign Adler had made a quarter turn in his direction, and Miguel was stunned to see her laughing, glee-filled face lit up and glowing with happiness. She leaned forward to cup a hand on the side of Tim's up-turned face and then moved even closer until, for a moment, he thought that she would kiss the seated officer, but she merely whispered something in his ear, that set the shy lieutenant laughing uncontrollably, earning them both a glare from the stolid second officer.

As the ensign straightened up and turned with a fluid, graceful movement, the sight of her gentle, glowing expression of pleasure, still directed at Tim, sent a twist of pure jealousy through the Sensor Chief's guts. She'd never turned that look on him, none of it. Her face turned toward him, her words were clear on her lips, making it possible for Miguel to read her last words. "Ok. I'll see you then, Tim. And you'd better be ready, willing and able." She half-turned to flash that brilliant smile at him, then turned toward the sensor station again.

Miguel had turned away, ostensibly keeping his face focused on the displays, but watching out of the corner of his eye. He could see her take a deep breath, and saw the animation flow from her expression. That almost unconscious gesture on her part felt like a hard right hook to his solar plexus. As she squared her shoulders, as if bracing herself before taking on an unpleasant chore, Miguel wondered just how she did regard him. Then she was standing respectfully behind him, at the sensor station.

"Permission to observe, sir?" she asked, her voice curiously husky, with the purring undertone of some accent fuzzing the sound. The thought of what might be responsible sent a fresh jab of anger through him as he gave his assent.

*

As soon as her relief appeared, Lonnie walked over to the entrance to the bridge where she usually met Miguel and Tim to share a Mag-Lev ride from the Bridge. Miguel had been relieved already, but he stood behind Ari at the sensor and WSKRS station, apparently giving her last minute instructions. Lonnie pursed her lips with amusement at the other woman's clear dismissal of both the sensor chief and his advice and she watched as he stood back, his shoulders drooping a little as if with disappointment.

Slowly, he turned away and moved to join her at the entrance. As usual, Tim's relief was late by a few minutes, the rest of first shift dispersed by the time he appeared. Rising with alacrity, the tall, thin junior lieutenant almost skipped across to the young second-shift WSKRS operator, bending down for a private conversation with the ensign. Lonnie's eyes widened when Ari turned up a face so open and friendly that it might almost have belonged to some woman other than the one who'd relieved Miguel. Curious, she shot the muscular Cuban a sideways glance, to see if he'd noticed the change.

From the darkened, glowering expression on his face, and his tense, almost angry posture, he had noticed and was not happy about it. With a final pat on her shoulder, Tim walked toward his two friends, still chuckling a little. Lonnie hadn't seen much of the previous encounter, just enough to excite her overly active curiousity and this added fresh fuel to the fire. His face still glowing from the brief exchange, he joined them.

Off the bridge, out in the corridor waiting for the Mag-Lev, Miguel looked at Tim, curiousity mixed with barely contained pique, and he accused the other, "I thought that you said you didn't know her?"

Tim's eyebrows raised, "Ari? I didn't." He smiled a small, secretive smile. "But I do, now." They entered the transport and sat down.

Lonnie laughed, "You seem to know her quite well."

Tim shrugged dismissively. "You know how things are on board. You don't know people, then you meet them and you do."

Lonnie looked toward Miguel and their eyes met. He shrugged at the implied question, so she asked casually, "How did you meet her?"

Tim's face screwed up warily, and he turned from one to the other, his eyes narrowed. Shaking his head at the two of them, he relaxed, the corners of his mouth turned, and he teased them, saying, "What does it matter? Look, you two, I've got some things I need to get to work on. I'll see you later, ok?" Standing up even before the Mag-Lev came to a compleat stop, he quickly exited and hurried off in the direction of his quarters, leaving the others standing, staring after him.

Left agape by the suddeness of his dismissal, they slowly began to walk toward the off duty lounge. With an an impish, sideways flick of her eyes, Lonnie couldn't resist a jab at Miguel, testing his odd reactions to this turn of events. "I thought that Ensign Adler had a crush on you?"

But he didn't react to her comment. Glowering and serious, he pursued his own train of thought. "I don't like this, Lonnie. This isn't like him. You know Tim as well as I do..."

"Better, I hope," she interrupted with a half laugh.

Seemingly oblivious to the interruption, Miguel continued his thought. "Have you ever seen him like this before? I mean, a couple of nights ago, he didn't even know the girl. Last night, she barely even looked in his direction, and now ... ? And now this?" He shrugged, his open, empty palm gesturing upward.

Now it was Lonnie's turn to look thoughtful. Pursing her lips, she shook her head slightly, "No. I can't say that I have." She smiled, shrugging her shoulders, "But what's the big deal, Miguel? You're making a mountain out of a molehill."

"I don't think so. You didn't see what I saw, back there on the bridge." Lonnie put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him and turning him around.

"What is this?" she asked incredulously. "Four nights ago you were practically shoving her into his arms and begging him to take her off your hands. Now, you're bugged that they're talking together on the bridge? What do you imagine could happen there?" She looked at him closely, scrutinizing his expression. "Are you concerned about Tim getting hurt, or afraid that she might like him? That's it, isn't it? You don't like the idea of the two of them hitting it off together."

Miguel shrugged her hand off his shoulder, turning away, uncomfortable. "You didn't see them," he repeated stubbornly, walking on. "Or hear what she said."

Lonnie hurried after him, leaning closer in her eagerness to find out what she had missed. "And?" she prompted.

"I think that they're planning a romantic rendevous," he confided reluctantly, as if hoping that the ensign could convince him otherwise. And she tried, laughing at the thought, certain that this was some elaborate joke on his part.

"Tim? No! He wouldn't do that. He's too much of a gentleman." But Miguel didn't answer. Her brow wrinkled as she realized that he was serious about this. "What could they possibly have said to make you think that," she challenged him. He stopped, turning slightly to face her, and lowered his voice.

"It's not just what she said, but the way they were acting. She kept touching him, and he was letting her. You know how he always pulls away and gives that warning glance when he thinks someone's invading his space?" Lonnie nodded, she'd seen that over and over again from their self-contained friend.

"Well, it wasn't there. He was, I don't know, inviting her to get closer, I guess. And then, as she was leaving, she told him that she'd see him later, and that he'd better be, umm, I think she said 'ready, willing and able'."

With a nervous laugh, she suggested weakly, "They could have been talking about almost anything, you know."

"Yeah, maybe." With the air of someone pulling out the big guns, he said, "But she kissed him."

"NO!" That was too much to believe. "She didn't! Cmdr. Ford would have had a stroke."

"It was just after he'd told me me to change the settings on the WSKRS."

Feeling vindicated, Lonnie smiled, "Then you couldn't have seen it. You're making it up."

Stung, he turned on her. "Ok, maybe they didn't actually kiss, but it was clear they wanted to."

His sincerity, and the pain the conversation was causing him, convinced Lonnie that maybe he did know what he was talking about. Doubtfully, she countered, weakly defending an increasingly indefensible position. "But Tim wouldn't agree to have, to have an on-board affair. And he definately wouldn't talk about it on the bridge if he did. I know him!"

"Maybe not as well as you think," Miguel countered, and hurried away, leaving Lonnie standing open-mouthed in the middle of the corridor, staring at his rapidly disappearing back.

*

Tim closed the hatch to his room with a sense of accomplishment. It was often that he could twist the tails of those two so compleatly, and it was thanks to Adler, no, to Ari.

Still grinning, he looked around the organized confusion of his quarters, searching for his copy of "The Bacchae". It should be near at hand, he had it just that morning ... Ah, there it was. He picked it up and readied the audio-recorder, but didn't set it running yet. He wanted to savor the scene on the bridge first.

The first clue he had to her presence was the pressure of two hands on the back of his seat and a warm puff of air on his ear. "Hey, Tim. I wanted to let you know that the tape's in your mail box. I finished it a little while ago." Her voice was low and husky, probably from the strain of reading aloud for so long, but it caressed his ear in a pleasant way.

He'd smiled up at her, saying, "That's great! You are fast. I'll try to finish mine as soon as I get off duty here."

"You'd better," she'd chided him. "You don't want a junior to steal the march on you, do you, Lieutenant?" The kittenish, come-hither tilt of her head delighted him. Although he knew that he ought to be paying more attention to his station, he couldn't resist stealing glances at her. Apparently, she noticed the problem and moved around so that he could keep an eye on both.

"No, that would never do. I think I'll have to start running faster just to stay ahead." She'd laughed at that, apparently pleased with the compliment.

"Please don't push yourself too hard. I know that you have a lot more demands on your time than I do." Shrugging a shoulder, she warned, "And if you do fall behind, I'll be there to push you on." From the position of her hands as she demonstrated, Tim thought that he might very well enjoy the assist. She continued with a half laugh, "Although I do confess that I am more than a little curious to compare the two."

"So am I," Tim had admitted. "It's going to hard not to take a premature look at yours before finishing, though." Adler straightened up, shaking a mockingly stern finger at him.

"No peeking before you deliver on your end, Lieutenant. You know that as well I do."

With a comical twist to his lips, Tim burlesqued a half salute. "Business before pleasure." He paused before daringly adding, "And this will be a pleasure." Ari had leaned back, throwing up her head and laughing musically. As Commander Ford's voice cut through the bridge, though, she abruptly straightened up and tensed, her attention directed outward, toward the dark non-com who'd been the subject of the Commander's verbal lash. Tim glanced over his shoulder to see what had upset her, but the other man was just doing his job.

Remembering this, Tim felt perplexed and knew his face was wrinkling up with confusion. He'd looked back at Ari, and she was like another woman, her face set and anger sparking in her eyes. She'd looked down at him and relaxed slightly. With a nod across to the other station, she said, "Sorry. Apparently we are providing entertainment for the troops. Shall we give him something to really gawk at?" She quickly told him what she had in mind.

Remembering, Tim's face split into a wide grin again. This could be fun, he thought, having an ally against Miguel and Lonnie both. She'd arranged herself so that she could keep an eye on the curious sensor operator while they continued their conversation. It hadn't been long before she nodded that they had his attention again.

Leaning forward, she'd cupped the side of his face, and then had moved even closer, the laughter they were both suppressing making it difficult to maintain the pose. Then she'd whispered in his ear, "That should hold him." The sound of her smug satisfaction had made the entire situation unbearably funny and he couldn't hold the laughter in any more. Pleased with herself, she'd straightened up, turning in the same movement. And then she was gone, heading toward her assigned station.

Sighing happily, Tim opened the book to the marked page, re-wound the recording, and found where he'd left off. Before he started, though, he wondered idly why they called an audio-recording a tape, when it wasn't anything like the fastening stuff? It wasn't even sticky. For a moment, he considered looking up the etymology, but with a quick twist of his lips, decided against it. Settling back comfortably, he began to read aloud.


PART 5

Miguel paused after entering the bridge, wanting to take the opportunity to observe Ensign Adler before she knew that he was there. Lonnie was right, he'd over-reacted and read more into what he saw than was probably there. And he hadn't been paying as much attention to her work as he ought to have been, as Tim had charged the other evening. But the fact was, whenever he was anywhere around Adler, he felt funny, and did have trouble acting naturally.

From his vantage point, he had a clear view of her profile. Although it was near the end of second shift, the rapid play of expression on her face as she responded to the flow of information from the three wireless satellites showed no signs of boredom. In fact, he wondered if she would have noticed him even if he hadn't stopped so far away.

Lieutenant James Brody, Weapons and Tactical Officer, had the bridge, and, as was usual on his watch, things were a bit more lively than with any other watch officer, with banter flying from one station to the other, Adler apparently the only hold-out. Slowly, under the cover of one of Brody's stories, Miguel approached the WSKRS station, coming up behind her chair. Then he stopped, struck by the evidence of the display.

Two of the three wireless satellites were in their expected places, performing as usual, but the third ... What was she doing with Junior? With deep wonder, he stepped closer, listening and watching as the oblivious young woman leaned over the controls, playing them like an electronic game.

The third and smallest of the WSKRS was looping in tight spirals and darting from one side to the other, above and slightly behind the SeaQuest. The visual display showed several dolphins around it, and Miguel suddenly realized with an increasingly wide grin that the formal, rigidly professional Ensign Adler of the past few days was playing tag with them. She sent Loner off on a tangent while simultaneously making the smaller satellite swerve out of the way of a diving cetacean. "Missed me, HAH!" she breathed. "Watch your language, there. I know that one." A whimsical thought occurred to him.

"Permission to observe," he asked, grinning as he reached her shoulder.

To his delight, she actually jumped in her seat with surprise, wiping out the incriminating display even as she was turning to face him.

"If you want..." It was almost comical, but also rather dismaying, how quickly her face changed, the liveliness draining away leaving a stone statue behind, as she recognized him. "Of course, chief," she responded formally. "Do you wish to take the console?"

He stood behind, shaking his head slightly. "No, no, that's ok." Shrugging, he continued, smiling pleasantly, "I had a little free time and thought that I'd come observe you at the station. Turn about is fair play, you know."

"Yes sir," she replied, turning back to the displays, her expression so business-like and stern that it was impossible to imagine the animation that had been present only a short while before. "If you say so."

Miguel felt his smile freeze on the ice of her regard, then slip away untended. He watched her operate the controls, while wondering how to break through the barrier of formality surrounding her. Frowning thoughtfully, he glanced up at the screen while he considered the social temperature between them. While she hadn't been especially forth-coming, she'd at least acted human before.

He blinked with surprise. Junior was now safely tucked up beside Mother so demurely it was as if it would never have occurred to it to be anywhere else. And he realized that Loner was investigating a steadily increasing trail of radio-isotopes, just at the range of detection. Adler swiveled her seat to call over her shoulder, stopping with confusion as Miguel's body blocked her movement, then turning in the other direction.

"I've found another one, Lt. Brody," her voice cut through the chatter, killing it instantly, sounding still a little husky, but the lilting purr of accent almost absent. Instantly professional, Brody nodded.

"Ok, give me the co-ordinates and I'll set a grappling torpedo. I don't know what our parents were thinking of, depositing nuclear waste in the oceans like this. Just postponing the problem and foisting it off on future generations."

A muttered voice agreed, "Yeah, like us!"

As the Lieutenant sent out the torpedo, he asked conversationally. "What's the status of this cannister, anyway?" Miguel opened his mouth to protest that there was no way she could answer that yet, but he didn't get the chance.

The woman seated before him answered without hesitation, "Not too bad. This must be one of the later ones, or else a more sturdy construction, The seams are only just beginning to pop. Surrounding radiation levels aren't in the danger zones, yet. I'm scanning for additional cannisters since they weren't usually dropped in singles, but I'm guessing that those would be intact." Miguel closed his mouth.

"That's impressive, ensign," he finally said. She granted him a wary, suspicious glance that reminded him strongly of Tim's proximity warning glare.

"Thank you, Chief. Coming from you ... Thank you." He turned, leaning on the side of the station so that he could watch her face.

"If the area isn't exactly hot yet, why did you go looking there?"

She paused, her hands freezing momentarily over the controls as she considered the question. "It was the relative levels of the different radio-isotopes, I guess," she decided, gaining confidence as she continued the explanation. "Natural radiation produces certain isotopes in well-defined ratios, the water here contained a different mix." Miguel pursed his lips, considering the explanation. He nodded and swung around, bending down to put his hands on the controls.

"Mind if I take a look?" he asked, an empty courtesy as he was already calling up the recent data stream on all three WSKRS, confining his review to a small screen in screen so as not to interfer with her work too much. His arm brushed against hers as he adjusted the flow of information.

As Ari tried to settle into her duty again, she glanced toward him, leaning over the board as he worked, so close that their hands and arms would touch from time to time, but somehow, not collide, almost as if their relative movements were carefully choreographed. He was arrogant, self-centred, cocky, but somehow, she found herself ignoring all that in order to admire his lithe grace and the natural elegance of his form.

Returning to her attention to the WSKRS display with surprising difficulty, her normal pleasure in the spare beauty of the sensor response was marred by her consciousness of his presence, and she kept sneaking peeks at him, trying to determine his reactions. She should never have allowed herself to get suckered into playing with Darwin while on duty, she scolded herself. That was stupid and unmilitary. She peeked again. Would he put her on report?

And there was another thing bugging her. How had he managed to sneak up on her like that? No one was able to do that, not even ... Resolutely, she cut off the memory of the twins before it was fully formed. Anyway, she always knew when someone was coming too close. Her dad had said that made her a perfect Sonar operator, being aware of her surroundings at all times. Or at least she had always known before now. Once again, she glanced at him from the corner of her eye.

You had to give him one thing, at least. He was easy on the eye. As her hands danced over the controls automatically in response to the stimuli of the information displays, her thoughts drifted idly away. Was his hair really as soft as it looked, or was it of a coarser texture? It was so springy looking. She smiled privately, wondering what it would feel like to smooth a lock of it between her fingers. Ortiz looked down, catching her gazing up at him, and cocked his eyebrow ironically, as if he could read her thoughts. Blushing hotly, Ari ducked her head, trying to concentrate on the WSKRS and cool her thoughts in the serenity of pure data.

Miguel returned his attention to the screen before him, his breathing unaccountedly quickened. He wondered what she could be thinking, to be looking at him with such an inscrutable smile. Was she comparing him to Tim? How did they compare? And who came off the better? She was so lovely when her colour rose like that.

After a pause that dragged out long enough to become awkward, he asked, "Are you doing anything after your shift ends."

"Yes, sir," she responded promptly.

Closing up the screen and leaning on the back of the chair, he probed, "Well? What are you doing?" Adler glanced at him sideways, her eyes alert and wary, warning him off.

"If you don't mind, Chief Ortiz, my private plans are just that, private."

Unsettled by the put-down, he stood up and nodded toward the data display. "Very impressive bit of detection, ensign. I'm not sure I would have seen it quite so quickly. Especially not if I'd been looping another WSKR through a ring at the same time." At that small dig, she blushed again, casting her eyes downward to hide the expression in them.

"Do you often do that while standing watch?" he continued.

"No sir." The voice was soft, her confusion, uncertainty and sincerity shining through. "I ... I was feeling a bit ... , well, we weren't really doing much tonight, and, with all the ... No, sir. I don't do that kind of thing often. And I won't do it again, either, sir."

Her confusion delighted him. He was actually piercing that armour she had erected around herself. He crossed his arms, planning to enjoy this for as long as possible.

"I want to review your personal duty logs." If she was as good as she appeared to be while playing with the sea mammals, then he should be able to find more professional examples of that fact in her records. Examples that he could bring to the attention of the captain.

Because, if she really that good, then she'd be wasted on the routine station rotation demanded of new crew to determine their areas of competence. There had to be a way that SeaQuest could exploit that talent more effectively. He wondered if her technical and mechanical skills were on par with her rapid analyses of the information gathered by the three WSKRS, and her attention to detail. Watching her closely, pleasantly aware of her awareness of him, he found himself wondering about her other skills. It would be a sin to lose her to Communications. He grinned suddenly to himself. A sin that he did not intend to commit. He stood up with sudden decision.

In his eagerness to confirm his suspicions as to her capabilities, he was unaware of how curt his voice sounded. "Download the records to the terminal in my quarters," he ordered, "I'll get to them later."

"Yes, sir." As Ari transmitted the files to the indicated location, she wondered unhappily what would happen now. Anyone else walking up at that moment wouldn't have realized what was going on. It was just plain bad luck that it had to be the one person on the boat who would.

"Ensign Adler," Miguel began to say, then stopped himself as she glanced up at him with eyes dark with worry and fear. He felt obscurely ashamed of himself, frightening her like this. He wanted to get her to react, but not like that. "Look," he started again, more gently this time. "I'll want to discuss your logs with you. Could you be available after your next shift ends tomorrow? Say about 0115?"

He watched as her eyes turned inward, considering her schedule. "I can make myself available then, sir," she decided. "I do have an engagement for that time period, but I can tell him that I'll be delayed."

Miguel was suddenly, sickeningly certain that her appointment was a rendevous with Tim. His dull conviction made his response, "Cancel it. He'll understand." come out even more repressively than he knew. He turned abruptly and left the bridge, leaving the deeply shaken ensign behind, her concentration severely compromised for the rest of that shift.

As he strode to his quarters, Miguel thought about Tim and Ari together. Tomorrow would be all right, he decided. She was smart enough to know that she'd blotted her copybook pretty badly tonight, and she'll want to find out how bad it was. But what about other nights? Maybe he could arrange something to delay her. It wouldn't be necessary to keep her too long, Tim tended to prefer early nights, and the end of second shift was rather late for him. But what about tonight? She had clearly said that she would see him later. He stopped short in the corridor to consider the question, then nodded and continued on his way. No, Tim had said something about turning in early. He was probably already asleep.

If Adler was as good as she appeared to be then perhaps Miguel could arrange special training sessions and computer simulations for her. Maybe even tell her that he wanted to establish a data base to use for training other members of the Sensor, Sonar and WSKRS team, and enlist her to help with that. If he scheduled it after her shift for, oh, say a week, maybe that would forestall any meetings between the two of them for long enough.

Meetings. Miguel stopped short in the center of the corridor. That's right, Tim had mentioned seeing her at breakfast. That must be where they met. Perhaps he could be there, too. That way he could keep an eye on the two of them. Miguel continued on his way, entering his room when another thought hit him. Tim usually gets up at the crack of dawn, sometime around 0600. He groaned, glaring at his alarum clock, before shrugging and reaching out to change the settings.

*

Lonnie hesitantly approached the door to the room that Ari shared with ensign Svarbo. The doubts that Miguel had planted in her mind had grown prodigiously in the past few hours and she had to know if he was right or not. Raising her hand to knock, she heard Tim's voice inside, then Ari's purring response, the intimate tone clear and caressing.

At first, she felt a shattering disbelief. That Tim could risk his career this way was inconceivable. Not if she could help it, she thought pressing her lips together firmly. And she gave the door a sharp, quick knock. The voice stopped and the door opened almost immediately.

"Lonnie? This is a surprise. Come on in. My roommate is out." The younger woman looked composed enough, but even more subdued than usual.

Entering the small room, Lonnie looked around for Tim. But there was no one else there. "Is there something wrong?" Ari asked miserably. "Something I can help you with?" ¸

"I ... I thought I heard Tim in here, with you."

Ari spluttered, a strangled sound that was half way between a sob and a snort. It was as though that was the best laugh she could manage at the moment. "No, he's not here. Why would you think that? You could try sending him a message, if you want," she offered, waving a hand toward the terminal.

"No, thank you." Feeling as though she'd walked into a play without a script, Lonnie sat down heavily at the desk. "I just thought I heard him in here."

"Oh! You did. I'm sorry, I didn't realize that I had it on so loud. Usually I listen with the headphones on, but this needed to be, oh, I don't know, ah, bigger? More present." She gestured toward a audio-player.

"What are you talking about?" Lonnie asked. "What were you listening to?"

Ari sighed, walking over to the player and looking down at it, not her unexpected guest. Putting one hand on top, she answered softly, "Lt. O'Neill."

Lonnie was taken aback. Now she could really use a script. Ari glanced up, her eyes bright. As she took in the other woman's face, a sort of a smile crept on her lips. She smiled, twisting her lips to one side, and sat down hard on the floor beside the player and a small pile of books and papers. Arranging her legs tailor style, she looked up, and explained. "He was kind enough to translate a play for me, reading it aloud." Once again, she reached out and lightly touched the equipment, a small self-deprecating grimace on her face, and she shrugged. "With what's been happening, I decided to listen to that first, before doing anything that I'm 'supposed' to."

"What's been happening? I haven't heard anything out of the ordinary."

Instead of answering directly, Ari sighed and pulled her knees up, hugging them closely to her chest. "You're pretty close to Chief Ortiz, aren't you? What's he really like?"

"Miguel? He's pretty easy-going, friendly. He's a nice guy. I know that you've gotten off on the wrong foot with him, but give it time, it'll get ironed out."

Ari shook her head pessimistically. "I don't think so. I did something really stupid today." She sighed unhappily again, laying her cheek on her knees. "He caught me playing with one of the WSKRS and he didn't believe me when I told him I hadn't done it before. That it was the first time. He asked for my duty logs to look over." Looking up again, her eyes were bright again, and Lonnie thought that the other was close to tears. "I think that he might put me on review. I mean, considering his attitude toward me, and all." She hit her leg with one clenched hand. "It was stupid, so stupid. I can't believe I did it. But I did."

"Ari, I think you're over-reacting. Whatever you did, it couldn't have been that bad. And Miguel isn't the type to hang anyone for one offense, no matter what he thinks of them. And besides, he doesn't think that badly of you." The only response to the last statement was a skeptical stare and a shrug

"That's not all. Commander Ford was waiting for me after my shift. He read me the riot act about 'behavior unbecoming an officer' and proper protocol on the bridge."

"You mean Miguel had already reported you?" Lonnie couldn't believe that. Ari shook her head, giving a bitter laugh.

"No. For earlier, when I first came on the bridge. I was, apparently, a little too friendly with Lt. O'Neill." She hit her leg again, this time angrily. "And it's Ortiz's fault!"

"What? Wait. How was that Miguel's fault?" Ari glanced up at Lonnie from under her eyelashes, a shamed smile on her lips.

"Ok, it wasn't his fault, exactly. But I hate it when somebody spies on me! And if his eyes were bugged out any more, they would have fallen on the floor."

"We've all done stupid things, both on and off duty. It won't be that bad, honest. Look, why don't you listen to your tape and just forget about it for now. Here, I'll get it started for you." Leaning forward, she pushed one side of the multiple capacity player. Ari's voice, rising and falling with a suggestive quality to it, came out of the speakers. The smaller woman quickly stopped the player.

"I thought you said you were listening to Tim?"

Ari indicated the other cartridge. "That one. The one on this side is mine. We're comparing our translations in order to discuss the play."

"Oh? When are you finding time for that? I mean, considering the different shifts and all."

Ari gave a brief smile. "Just before first shift shows up for breakfast, in the galley. I usually have a last cup of tea before bed, and Tim generally gets up earlier than the rest of you."

"Ummm. But isn't a translation just a translation. I mean, they should be identical, right?"

"No." Ari gave a gentle laugh. "Even words that mean almost the same thing have certain implications, and those implications change from country to country, and person to person. So, Tim and I are comparing the implications that we each see in the same play. Here, listen." Reaching out, she re-started her own tape, and Lonnie listened closely, chuckling from time to time at the dialogue.

"Now, listen to this." Tim's version was less florid, less emotionally charged, more judicial and severe. Lonnie nodded slowly.

"Yes, I do see. Listen, do you suppose that you could give me a copy of these? I'd like to listen to the rest of it and see how you both did?" Ari shrugged.

"Sure, give me a moment to rewind them, and I'll zip a copy of each for you."

"Thanks, and Ari? Honest, you don't have to worry about Miguel. He's really nice, and he's not at all vicious. As for Commander Ford ... " Lonnie stopped. She couldn't think of anything comforting to say about him. "Anyway, Miguel won't get you into trouble."

Not compleatly convinced, the troubled ensign shrugged again. "Ok. Thanks. I'll get the copies to you as soon as I'm finished." Standing up, she saw the other woman to the door, closing it firmly behind her. Lonnie stood for a moment, wondering if she should talk to Miguel about this. Perhaps she ought to wait until tomorrow, when he might be a little more reasonable. He'd sounded, well, rather unlike himself, after their shift. She nodded. Yes, she'd talk to him tomorrow.

*

Despite his best efforts, Miguel didn't get out of bed until well after 0600, so it was on the far side of half-past when he walked into the galley and found Tim and Ari seated suspiciously close, laughing and carrying on. From the looks of the table, they'd arrived there some time ago. He got himself a tray and approached their table in time to hear Ari, laughing maliciously, say, "So, you don't think that his hostility toward women is at all significant?" She looked up and her face hardened with surprising quickness.

"Not exactly, but if you look at the evidence..." Tim became aware of the change in his companion and stopped in mid-sentence, looking up to see what had attracted her attention. "Oh, hi Miguel. Take a seat, why don't you."

Ari stood up. "He can take mine," she offered stonily. "I should be going now, anyway." She flashed a genuine smile at the lanky lieutenant. "Goodnight, Tim."

With a more formal expression, she turned to Miguel, "Good night, Chief Ortiz. I've made the arrangements for after my shift tonight. I'll be ready to meet you then." Nodding in farewell, she left the room.

Tim, his face gently bemused with the sight of her leaving, sighed. "You know, Miguel, she has so much passion. So much energy. She really kept me on my toes, there."

Starting suddenly with surprise, Miguel spilled coffee on his lap. "Tim! You didn't!"

The other officer picking up the last bit of food from his plate murmured indistinctly, his eyes closed and his face diffused with gustatory pleasure. He added more clearly. "Ummm. And I really like the things she does for me." He sighed in heartfelt satisfaction.

Miguel was deeply disturbed. Leaning forward, in a quiet voice, he asked, "Tim, what if the Captain finds out? What would he think?"

O'Neill frowned at remenant of the pastry roll in his hand with an expression of confusion. "Why should it bother him? He likes what she does, too." Drinking the last of his coffee, he put his napkin on the table and said, "Listen, Miguel, I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got some things I need to get done this morning. And I'm late already. I'll see you around." Picking up the tray, he left the galley, leaving the troubled Sensor Chief staring unhappily at the clouds in his coffee



PART 6

Walking through the endless corridors, late for the meeting, Ari tried to find the door to Chief Ortiz's quarters, but it seemed to be receding in the distance. Every corner she turned took her further and further away from that part of the boat. Somebody called her name, she turned her head and there it was, right in front of her. She wiped the sweat from her forehead before knocking. It opened immediately, and she was on the bridge.

Everyone was looking at her queerly, except for Ortiz, who was fooling around with the Sensor station. Looking down, she realized the she had forgotten to put on any clothes. But it was too late to go back and get something on, because he was already beside her, grabbing her arm and dragging her to the console.

"Here!" he ordered, pushing her into the seat. "You're late! Start working." She looked up at him, stunned, and only then noticed that he was also naked. In fact, looking around, she realized that while no one else was actually undressed, neither was anyone on the bridge in uniform, except for Darwin, who was chomping on a cigar, in the peaked cap and admiral's uniform of an earlier age.

Ortiz leaned forward and grabbed a handful of her hair, pointing at the screen with the other. "Solve these problems in 10 minutes, or we'll throw you off the boat." he threatened. She looked at the display. The information was in some language, some symbol system that she'd never seen before.

In panic she rotated the seat towards Communications. Tim suddenly appeared, like a genie from a bottle, his uniform ironed in sharp creases.

He pointed at the sensor display and his lips moved. She knew that he was telling her what to do, but no words came across to her. It didn't matter. She couldn't do it. She couldn't do it. Wildly, she half exited the chair, revolving as she did so, running away. Chief Ortiz caught up with her at the edge of the Moon Pool. Grabbing her shoulders he forced her into the water, diving in with her and pushing her down, down, down ...

With a cry of protest, Ari sat straight up in bed, eyes searching wildly for a way out. As the familiar surroundings of her SeaQuest quarters registered on her dream maddened mind, she slowly calmed down. When her respiration was closer to normal, she reached over and picked up her clock. 1130. Replacing it with the extra gentleness of someone who would prefer to dash it on the ground, she groaned and threw herself back on the bed, facedown in the pillow. She'd only gotten to bed some 5 hours ago. It wasn't fair.

Closing her eyes, she tried to compose her thoughts for sleep, to consider water so that she could sleep. But water reminded her of the end of the dream and Ortiz's handsome, smiling, sardonic face kept popping up behind her eyelids. Groaning even more loudly, she sat up again. What did it matter? Even if she did fall back to sleep, she'd just have another nightmare. Dimly, she could remember a whole line of them, stretching back through the night. And each one involving the all too handsome Chief in his all too attractive glory.

Surrendering to the inevitable, Ari grabbed her uniform and dressed, leaving her jacket off, the tank top would be enough. Besides, it looked as though Teena had been borrowing some of her clothes again. They were both low on clean uniforms. With a sigh, Ari considered, well, she was up early anyway, might as well do something with it. She could duck into the laundry room and sign up for a couple of the machines before going to the galley for a cup of coffee, maybe even something to eat, although, she felt a little queasy at the thought. It should be early enough to beat the first shift lunch rush. After she felt a little more human, she might head down to the Moon Pool to talk to Darwin until she could get her clothes in. Spending time there always seemed to calm her, and maybe a little delphine communication would help her settle her thoughts. On the way out, she picked up one of the technical manuals off the desk.

Ari let her eyes survey the galley. More crowded than at 0500, but still not too many present. A shift in population revealed more of the room and she groaned softly to herself. Of all people from first shift who might possibly be here, Ortiz was the one she least wished to see. He seemed intent on his lunch, so perhaps she could grab her coffee, drink it and be out of here without him noticing her.

She picked up a tray out of habit, then stood, looking with distaste at the lunch food spread out before her. The cook's aide looked up. "Can I help you?" he asked.

"Uh, no thanks. I'm not really hungry." She put the tray back while he shrugged and turned again to his chores.

"Suit yourself."

Grabbing a cup from the stack, Ari poured herself coffee from the urn some of the ensigns called "Triple X", for the strength of the brew. Momentarily, she considered adding a scoop of vanilla ice cream, but decided against it. Today, she'd need the hit unalterated. Blowing on the liquid's surface and scanning the room with her eyes, she selected a table partially hidden from the one occupied by Ortiz, and on the other side.

Ari opened the manual, and dove into the lovely technologese, pausing only to sip her coffee and grimace at the unaccustomed strength of it. She was deep into the theory of the fusion generator when a plate of toast sliding under her nose startled her into looking up, but it was the surprise of finding the hand on the plate attached to Ortiz that caused her to jump, sending a fountain of hot, strong coffee all over the table, although most of it ended up on the front of his uniform pants.

She stood frozen in shock as he jumped away from the table, cursing fluently in Spanish. A detached portion of her brain, still capable of rational thought, noted with admiration the artistry of his oaths, no repetition and all without breaking the second commandment. But the flow of hot, black liquid threatening the manual broke through the strange paralysis that gripped her.

Snatching it up, she placed it on the table behind her, out of harm's way. Ignoring the continuing tide of coffee creeping across the table, she grabbed a napkin from a tray and knelt down in front of the upset non-com, stupidly dabbing at the stain spreading over the front of his pants. Then, realizing the impropriety of that reaction, she flushed and stood, dropping the the soggy serviette on the floor, as if to disassociate herself from it entirely.

"I'm so sorry," she babbled helpless. "I'm so very, very sorry. I'll go get some napkins and clean up this mess. I'll be right back."

But as she turned to go, he reached out and grabbed her arm, stopping her in mid-flight. "Never mind," he sighed. "It doesn't matter. This must be my day to have coffee spilled on me. I got hit this morning, too." Turning her slightly, he pushed her toward another table, a short distance away from the mess. "Sit here. And stay! I'll be right back." Before leaving, he retrieved the book and the plate of toast, which had survived the deluge. "Now, stay put," he emphasized.

Ari, feeling more nauseated than before, pushed the plate away, and anxiously watched him head back toward the serving line. There were more people in the room now, and more arriving all the time, many of whom had observed the interplay and were watching curiously. For a moment, she considered leaving, just to get away. But after what she did to him, she should stay and let him have his pound of flesh. Sinking down, feeling compleatly miserable, she raised the manual like a shield and tried to hide behind it.

Ortiz returned with two fresh cups of coffee and a half consumed tray, apparently his own interrupted lunch. Placing them down, he frowned at the untouched toast in the middle of the table, and plunked it down in front of her again. "Eat!" he ordered. "You'll feel better. And they're sending someone out to clean up the table, so don't worry about it." And Ari could see one of the galley workers already approaching with cleaning supplies.

Obediently, Ari picked up a slice and took a small bite of the dry toast. Her throat was even drier, drier than dust. Grabbing the cup, she sipped, and felt the lump push its way down her esophagus.

"Look, Chief, I really am sorry. I didn't mean to spill all over you. If you want to give me your trousers, I'll take them to the laundry for you, and deliver them to your quarters, afterwards, if necessary. I was planning on doing my own today, anyway." She was aware of the queer, helpless look that he gave her, but had no idea what it meant until he stood up, the strange expression still on his face, and reached for his waistband. Face flaming anew, she half-rose, bubbling laughter, almost hysterical, rising from her throat, protesting, "That's not what I meant! After you finish eating. Not here. Not like that."

Ortiz sat down again, a devilish grin covering his face and laughing with delight. She wasn't acting formally polite right now. As he picked up his fork, he accepted her offer. "Thanks, I don't know when I'd get time to do it, myself." Taking a bite, and sipping his drink, he said conversationally. "I saw you come in, and that you didn't get anything except the coffee. Are you on a diet or something?"

"No," she replied in a subdued voice. "Just not very hungry."

"Well, you need to eat something. Especially considering the way you just reacted. What was that all about? You're so tightly wound up with nervous energy it's a surprise you didn't hit the ceiling." After a pause, he asked gently, "Is it because of our meeting tonight?"

She grimaced unhappily, shrugging her shoulders helplessly. "In part. But it's other things as well. Doesn't matter, though. I should have been paying more attention to what was going on." She forced her self to take another bite of the unwanted toast, chased with the too bitter brew.

"I don't understand it. I'm usually not like this. This distracted. But I wanted to look this stuff over and then you were just so suddenly there, and I didn't expect you and ... " her voice trailed off, not certain of where she was headed with this train of thought anyway.

"You don't have to be that anxious about tonight, you know. I've had the chance to look over your duty logs, and they're in fine shape," he reassured her sympathetically. Numbly, Ari shrugged, rejecting the comfort. He chuckled, shaking his head at her nervousness. "It isn't as bad as you think. I'm not going to eat you, you know." Ari shook her head, more in control of herself.

"I deserve whatever you plan to do to me, sir. I know what I did last night was wrong, and you have the right to be upset about it." His reaction astonished her. Laughing quietly, shaking his head, he leaned forward, elbows on the table, pointing at her with his fork.

"You aren't in any trouble, ensign, at least, not with me. I was just amazed with what you were able to do, regardless of why you were doing it," he reassured her.

"In spite of your distraction, you noticed and responded to a signal anomaly that I might have ignored. And your duty logs show that you consistantly perform at that level. Lt. Brody's assurance that you could answer questions like the one about the nuclear waste cannister with that little information is a telling indicator of his expectations of you. I'd like to use your expertise to see if we can train those same responses in other members of the sensor staff. I'm definately not angry with you."

Ari sat back, pleased with the unexpected compliment, especially considering the source. But then her eyes turned inward and she shook her head, a puzzled frown creasing her forehead. Refocussing on Ortiz, she contested his statement, "No sir. That doesn't scan. You were angry about something that happened on the bridge last night, sir. Angrier than I've ever seen you."

He shifted in his seat, then leaned forward again. "Look, here," he said, confidingly. "In light of the fact that you just baptised me ...," Looking down, he corrected himself with an amused grimace. "Well, a rather important part of me, anyway." Ari felt her face flushing again and was aware of his satisfied grin. "Do you think that you could bring yourself to call me 'Miguel'. It is my name, you know."

Ari licked her lips. A week ago, she wouldn't have minded the request, but now ... Ortiz leaned a little closer, and coaxed, persuasively, "Come on. It isn't that difficult. I know that you can say it. Miguel. Just two little syllables."

Laughing helplessly, she gave in with a graceful nod. "Ok. Miguel. But if I get tapped for impertinance, I'm blaming you."

Miguel settled back in his chair with a satisfied air. "You do that. Just blame it on me, I'm sure that I can handle it. And I think that Lonnie calls you 'Ari'." He creased his lower lip invitingly, "Ok if I call you that, too."

She nodded again, smile still lighting up her face, then she became quiet and serious again. "But you still haven't answered me, s ... Miguel. Why were you so angry last night. You were okay when you first came on, although it was weird to see you that late at night. Then you got business-like, and then, I don't know, you went almost ballistic. You stormed off the bridge like a thundercloud. Why?"

Miguel picked up his coffee and blew on the lukewarm liquid, stalling for time. Sighing, he put it down again, and looked Ari in the eyes. "Ari, you know how the no fraternization rule works on a sub, don't you?" She made a throw-away gesture that he took for affirmative. "It's important to maintain a certain distance..." he stopped. Ari sat still, watching him closely, her eyes wide with the effort to understand his fumblings.

"Well, strictly speaking while Captain Bridger isn't likely to dismiss crewmembers found breaking the rule, he'd still be forced to take action on it, no matter what he personally thought about it. And something like that would really mess up a person's hopes for further advancement, even if they do manage to stay in the service." He stopped, and looked at her, waiting for a response.

"I know that. They make sure that it's quite clear in training. And Commander Ford was quite emphatic about the importance of avoiding the appearance of fraternization, as well. I know that I shouldn't have been fooling around on the bridge yesterday, and I don't intend to do it again.

But beyond that," she shrugged, "it doesn't really have a lot to do with me." She peered at him dubiously. "It isn't part of your duties to give a sexual orientation lecture to new ensigns under you, is it?"

Miguel shifted uncomfortably, and Ari wondered why his face was flushing. "No!" He sighed with frustration. "Look, you're a very pretty woman." She smiled, but Miguel floundered on. "Just be careful about what you do and who you do it with and who else knows about it. Ok?"

She stared at him, and one hand crept up to clutch at a small medallion hanging around her neck, her eyes slowly darkening as the implications of what he'd been trying to say seeped into her mind. Slowly, carefully, she stood up and leaned forward, oblivious to the watching crewmembers. With her hands flat on the table, her face level with his, she asked with precise diction, in quiet, dangerous tones, "And exactly what do you mean by that, Chief Ortiz?"

He leaned back in his chair, away from her, "Well, just, you know, be careful. Don't get caught. Tim is my friend, you know, and I don't want to see him get hurt," he finished self-righteously. She stared stonily at him, then nodded ominously.

"You think that there's something going on between Tim and myself?"

He flushed, feeling himself on the wrong foot, somehow. "Well considering what I saw on the bridge yesterday, and then this morning. Yes, I do."

Still speaking with dangerous precision, she answered him. "You saw on the bridge what you were intended to see. As for my actions ..." As understanding of what she meant filled him, Miguel felt himself heating up.

"You mean, you and Tim cooked that whole thing up between the two of you?"

"Those who spy on others deserve what they get, Chief!"

"And what about this morning? Tim admitted that you've been doing things with him. And the Captain." As soon as he said that, he knew he'd gone too far. But it was too late. Her eyes began to flash and she straightened up, her hands moving with graceful, controlled tension and power.

"Why you ..." her hand smacked her forehead with the index side of the palm. "You ... " now her fingers were wriggling under her chin. "How could you ..." Her hands flew too fast to follow as she lost all ability to speak in her anger and indignation. With an effort, she clutched them together, forcing them both down on the table. Breathing heavily, she continued.

"What is it about you men?" she asked bitterly. "Just because I'm convent-bred, I must, of necessity, be fast and loose, as well?" Miguel shook his head, caught flat-footed by the accusation. As he rose up, putting his hand on her arm to urge her down again, she ignored his attempts to distract her. "That because I grew up without any guys around, I will simply roll over for the first good-looking one who crosses my path?" She snorted with disdain. "No thank you. No thank you, very much. I have no intention of lying down for you or for any man, anytime soon." She paused and the hot fury of her regard raked him from head to foot and back again, "Especially not you!"

Picking up her cup, she started to leave, then paused, looking over her shoulder. "If you are finished, and you still want your pants taken care of now, then you'd better hurry. I am leaving. NOW!" She continued on, leaving Miguel scrambling to gather his tray and follow. Ari noticed Tim in passing on her way out, but she was far too angry to respond with civility and she sailed right by without saying anything.



PART 7

Ari fumed to the Moon Pool and sat carefully on the ground beside it, trailing one hand in the water. Bad enough the scene in the galley, she thought, but when she took the trousers to the laundry for pretreatment, the guy there had thought that she was one of Ortiz's girlfriends. Insult to injury. At least she'd been able to start her own wash then. Sighing angrily, she opened the manual and began turning pages abruptly, her eyes barely registering the changing pages. The absolute, unmitigated gall of the guy. Where does he get off acting like that? Tears of anger threatened to spill out of her eyes and she brusquely wiped them away.

"Ari sad?" Darwin surfaced in the pool next to her and nudged the trailing hand. Ari tried to smile at him. "No, I'm mad, not sad, Darwin."

"Why Ari mad? Darwin bad?" Putting down the manual, since it wasn't doing her any good anyway, Ari reached into the pool with both hands and scratched his head on the melon, where he liked to be scratched.

"No, no. Darwin's good." She sighed heavily, shaking her head. "It's all so stupid. A stupid, stupid man said some stupid, stupid things and I was just too stupid to walk away."

"Darwin not stupid," the dolphin comforted her. She laughed.

"No, Darwin's not stupid. Darwin is good and kind and wonderful," she agreed.

"Darwin handsome", he added complacently. "Ari not stupid. Ari Darwin's friend."

"Thank you. And you are my friend, too." She leaned forward and kissed him on the tip of his snout.

"Use 'I say'", the dolphin asked.

"I'm sorry, Darwin, but I just don't feel like playing right now."

"Not play, use 'I say'," he insisted.

Ari regarded him uncertainly. "You mean, just to talk?" Her friend nodded eagerly. Her brow cleared and she smiled again. "Sure, why not? But I won't be able to say very much, you know. I don't have much of a vocabulary, yet."

"Darwin talk, Ari listen," he advised and, laughing at that, she pulled the equipment out of the storage locker and set it up. After all, she did have half an hour before she need to switch the loads.

Sighing regretfully some time later, checking her watch, Ari typed one last message to Darwin. It was interesting conversing with him in this manner, he wasn't confined to the one room, the one pool, but was able to roam all over the sub, telling her what he was seeing through his swim tube walls. He even went up on bridge and told her what was happening there. She picked up the equipment and started drying it before stowing it away.

"I'd been wondering why you didn't just use the vocoder phone. It's a lot easier, but not as private, is it?" a voice asked behind her. Turning around, she saw a young man, close to her own age, poised between teen angst and youthful maturity, his blonde good looks somewhat marred by a closed, distrustful expression, his body somehow shut up against strangers. She smiled uncertainly at him, all her own shyness of strangers surfacing. But she was on his territory here, so the social protocols were up to her.

"Hi. I remember you, but I bet you don't remember me. You're Lucas Wolenczek. We met shortly after I came on board." she said. "I'm ... " He interrupted her, moving closer and taking the "I say" keyboard away from her.

"Ari Adler, yeah, I remember. I've seen you coming 'round to play with Darwin most nights. I checked you out. And even if I didn't remember, you're all anyone is talking about today." He was opening up the back panel to check the wiring even as he spoke. "Why didn't you set it up a vocal translation system? Why use the keyboard?"

Technologese. That was easier to deal with. "Because it would have been cheating. I wanted to see if I could actually learn to communicate with Darwin myself, not relying on a stored language data base. I still need the pool sensors for pick-up and transmission because I can't make all of the sounds his language needs, but this way seems to me to be more versatile and flexible. It isn't as limited a system."

She flushed, suddenly remembering that this was the person who had set up the initial program when Darwin became part of SeaQuest. To cover her confusion, she took the board away from him, closing up the back and storing it away. Standing up, watching him carefully, she asked, "What do you mean, 'all anyone's been talking about'?"

"Follow me," he requested, and led the way to his lair, with his computer equipment all around. Seating himself before the computer monitor, he spun around to look at her, motioning for her to sit.

"Miguel was in here this morning, you know. He was anxious for me to set up a computer simulation to test you on past WSKRS runs. And wanting advice on a simulated training program for the other operators." He spun back around, began typing commands on the board. "But when I pulled up the log entries, I found that you'd already been through the past duty records."

"Not all of them," Ari grinned and shrugged. "I didn't know that they were off-limits." Pausing, she thought about it. "Although ... He did mention something about that, when I saw him earlier," she mused quietly.

Lucas shot her a sideways glance, as if expecting some hidden insult. Finding none, he answered, "They're not restricted, no. But how do I know that you don't have them all memorized. Now, I've got to mock up a program to test you adequately without relying on the recorded data."

"No, you don't," she contradicted. "Access the randomizer program Alpha 6374 gamma 3 and connect it with the AI to ensure that the external information matches the internal data runs and then plug in the entries. It should scramble the information so that each simulation will be self-consistent but not recognizable as to source or solution. And anyway, I haven't memorized the logs. There was no reason to." She waited while the young genius accessed the program and began reading the code. He nodded approvingly.

"It's crude, but it should work. I'll have to clean it up a bit, of course, but not bad." He looked at her directly for the first time. "No wonder you've impressed both Tim and Miguel."

Ari snorted, "The only things about me that have impressed Miguel are my lack of morals, lack of good taste and lack of judgement."

"That's not true," Lucas protested. "He was insisting that I had to make this as challenging as possible because, he said, anything else would be too simple for you."

Ari shrugged, then returned to the statement that had been bothering her. "That's Miguel, but you said everyone? What did you mean?"

He smiled, a malicious, gleeful smile, "I went to lunch after you and Miguel left." Ari groaned and covered her face. "According to those who were there, you walked up to Miguel and poured your coffee over his head. When he knocked you down, you hit him in the crotch and forced him to get you more coffee. Then you beat him up, spat in his face, grabbed his collar and pulled him out of the galley." She shook her head numbly, able to see exactly how that particular rumour had arisen.

Lucas continued, enjoying himself. "But Tim claims that it couldn't have happened in that way. That you are too good, too kind, too gentle, too pure to ever act that way." His smile got even wider. "It's funny, though. According to Tim, you're an angel. But Miguel ..." he shook his head with wonder. "You aren't what I expected from his description."

Ari narrowed her eyes. "And just what was his description of me?" she asked suspiciously. But Lucas just shook his head, perhaps realizing that he'd said too much already. He concentrated on checking the program, tuning her out. Ari stood to leave. But before she reached the door, he spoke, again.

"I can tell you this much, though. He's got it bad. Everything came back to you."

She stopped and stood silently, staring at him in bemused disbelief. Then she began to laugh.

Walking over to the terminal, she held out her hand. "Thanks," she said. "I needed a good laugh, today. Will you be there tonight when I undergo this ordeal you're creating?"

He grinned widely back. "I wouldn't miss it for the world," he promised, and half rose out of his chair to shake her hand. But a few seconds later, he was once again engrossed in the flickering phosphors, and Ari knew that she had ceased to exist for him. Regarding his back with amusement, shaking her head, she left the room. She'd lose her chance at the clothes driers if she didn't hurry.

On his way back to the bridge, Captain Nathan Bridger stopped outside the Moon Pool. He chuckled softly to himself, his craggy features softened by the affection with which he held the dolphin. Darwin had been cavorting through the swim tubes during the lunch hour today. Not an uncommon sight, but the exuberance he'd displayed had Nathan wondering what he was up to this time.

"Hey, Darwin, how are you?" he asked heartily, reaching into the pool to pat him.

"Darwin fine. Darwin good and kind and wonderful. Darwin not stupid. Bridger stupid?"

The smile that the dolphin's catalogue of virtues inspired in him faded with the last question. Puzzled, he responded, "No, you're not stupid and I'm not stupid, either. Darwin, has someone been saying bad things to you?" He felt himself getting angry at anyone who would try to hurt the dolphin.

"Darwin not hurt. Ari hurt." The captain nodded. Darwin had started mentioning an Ari about three weeks back. There was some mystery related to her visits, but he knew that the dolphin would let him in on the secret when he was ready. His thoughts were interrupted by another question from Darwin. "Who stupid man on SeaQuest?" Darwin asked. Now, Bridger was really taken aback.

"Stupid man?" he repeated. "We don't have any stupid people on this boat. Darwin, what's got into you? What's wrong?"

"Stupid man hurt Ari. Ari Darwin's friend. Darwin don't know stupid man." Frowning a little, the Captain tried to find out more.

"Darwin, where did the man hurt Ari? Did he hit her?"

Shaking in the way that meant "no", the dolphin answered, "Stupid man say stupid things. Make Ari cry."

Troubled, Bridger reached down to pat his friend and promised, "I don't know who this man is, but I will take care of it. Will that satisfy you, old friend?"

"Not make Ari cry?"

"I'll make sure that he doesn't make Ari cry again," he reassured the anxious animal.

"Good. Good Bridger." And the dolphin dove into the pool.

Nathan's thoughts, as he continued to the bridge, boded ill for whoever was at fault. Life on a sub depended on careful consideration of others. A feud could affect the operation of the entire team and severely handicap any captain foolish enough to ignore the danger signals. He made a mental note to talk to Dr. Smith about it before too much longer. But first, he needed to find out just who Ari was. From the timing of Darwin's acquaintance with her, she was probably one of the ones they'd picked up a few weeks back. But he couldn't remember anyone by that name off-hand.

Nathan sighed heavily. Under normal circumstances, he would have known, not only the names but the faces and personalities of each of the new people by the the end of the first week. He shook his head with disgust. But the same stop that had added the new personnel, both science and military, had embroiled him in a controversy with UEO high command. A Dr. Samuel Siebas had developed a controversial navigational technology which would tie every electronic sensing system on SeaQuest together in an effort to improve efficiency. Nathan had argued that the advantages gained were not sufficient for the risk involved. And he had his doubts about the feasibility of the technology, as well. It was not ready for a test of this magitude yet. His last appeal was before the Research and Developement Board now, and he should get an answer today, tomorrow at the latest.

Anyway, Commander Ford would know the person Darwin was talking about. He always made a point of learning the names of every person under his command.

On reaching the bridge, Nathan turned to his severe first officer. "Commander Ford, who do we have on board called 'Ari'?"

Bewildered, the dignified commander stalled for time, "Um, Ari, sir?"

Miguel, his attention caught by the name, called out casually from the Sensor station, "Could it be ensign Irene Adler?"

"No, that's not her name," Tim immediately contradicted. Miguel answered coldly without looking in his direction.

"It most certainly is. She has been assigned to Sensor for almost three weeks now, and I certainly know her name."

The usually polite communications officer persisted with a slight sneer. "Then you most certainly are wrong. Her name is Air-ren-nay," he said carefully pronouncing the separate syllables. "It's English." Captain Bridger did not miss the looks of dislike that passed between the two, normally the best of friends.

"Ah, yes, I have heard of her. Well, since the two of you know her so well, perhaps one of you would be kind enough to tell me if she's been having trouble with any particular person over the past couple of days." A pall of silence dropped over the bridge, as everyone bent industriously over their stations. Only the surreptious side-glances in the direction the Sensor Chief and the slow darkening of his features gave Nathan any indication as to the source of unease.

He nodded, "Very well. Since no one seems to know anything, I want to make it clear in general that if any of my crew is having problems with any another member of the crew, it would be a good idea to get it straightened out before someone is forced to take official notice of it." Looking toward Sensor, he added, "Do I make myself clear?" "Yes, sir," Miguel mumbled, hiding behind the computer panel.

Commander Ford approached. In a low voice, he requested, "A word with you, Captain, if you don't mind."

"What is it Commander?"

"This situation may not be what you think, sir. I found it necessary to reprimand this ensign Adler after her last shift for inappropriate behavior. From what I understand occurred in the galley, Chief Ortiz was merely trying to give her a friendly warning along the same lines. I think that you should know, Captain, that she may be a trouble-maker, sir."

"Excuse me, sirs." Brody stood away from the weapons console where he'd been stretching his ears to listen in on their quiet conference and he joined them. "I'm couldn't help overhearing, sir, and, respectfully, sir, I think I know Adler better than the Commander does."

"Oh, really?" Bridger asked. "And how is that?"

"She's been WSKRS op on my watch a number of times over the past couple of weeks. And I have to say, sir, that I've only once seen her display anything less than compleatly professional behavior and attention to her work. If I were assembling a team and needed a top, over-all sensor operator, I'd choose Adler."

"Hmmm," Bridger considered the accolade. "But once you found her actions to be out of line?"

"No sir. Not exactly." Brody nodded his head slightly toward the sensor operator. "Chief Ortiz appeared on the bridge last night and spent some time interfering with her work. Apparently he said something to upset her because after he left she was distracted, not able to concentrate. I suggest, sir, given her relative youth, and training, perhaps Chief Ortiz is feeling a little professional jealousy toward her?"

"I see," Nathan nodded. Rubbing his chin, he turned to Ford. "And what were the circumstances of your reprimand, Commander?" The man's dark face looked a little perplexed.

"Ensign Adler came on the bridge and proceeded to act in a very provocative manner toward Lt. O'Neill." The captain gave a twisted grin, nodding his head. Now, maybe he did see. He looked up toward communications, at his rather off-beat, thin, gawky, sometimes awkward and usually diffident communications officer. Today, the man was smiling and cracking wise with the man at the next station, seemingly at ease and enjoying himself.

On the other side, the handsome, muscular, self-confident and generally friendly non-com was scowling and withdrawn. Not at all his usual easy-going self. Perhaps Miguel was jealous at that, but Bridger sincerely doubted that it was professional in nature. He rubbed his chin again, remembering another rather thin and awkward young man, years ago and miles away. "Thank you gentlemen for you insights," he said, dismissing them as he walked away.

Behind him, he heard Cmdr. Ford remark to Lt. Brody, "You would really choose Adler? She's that good a sensor op?"

"Yeah, she really is. Besides, she's prettier." Chuckling softly, the captain considered to himself that he had to meet this girl for himself and see just what the fuss was all about. And the ghost of that other young man was pulling for O'Neill on this one.

*

As the shift dragged near the close, Tim couldn't help noticing Miguel's increasing case of the fidgets. After Captain Bridger had reproved him, he'd done his best to appear absorbed, doing something with the WSKRs, but now even that pretense had worn thin and he was anxiously waiting for the time to leave. But a closer watch proved that conclusion not entirely accurate. The usually suave Cuban's attention was fixed on the entrance to the bridge. A slow, slightly malicious smile crept over the Communications Officer's face. Finding some reason, he walked up behind the other man.

"Hey, Miguel," he whispered softly. "You don't have to worry. She's not coming early today. She'll be here to relieve you at the end of the shift, not before."

"Huh? What? How do you know?"

"I told her at breakfast how nervous she makes you, watching over your shoulder. She was very understanding and distressed that you felt that way. When I suggested that she stop dropping by, she readily agreed that it would be for the best."

Miguel frowned slightly. "Well, thanks a lot, Tim," he said sarcastically. "I really appreciate it." He paused. "But don't you think that I would have told her, myself, if it really bothered me that much?" Tim shrugged.

"If it mattered enough for you to complain about it to us, I thought that it was important enough to mention to Ari." He smiled, returning to his own seat, feeling very pleased with life.

Miguel had come to the conclusion that Tim was right. She wasn't going to show up early today. He sighed miserably. Even if Tim hadn't said anything, she probably wouldn't have shown up after that horrible scene at lunch. He shook his head sadly. And he'd actually broken through her restraint and gotten her to act friendly before he'd gone and put his foot in it, he mourned. But maybe he could make it up to her, if his plan worked out right.

Some vibration in the air gave him the warning he needed. Looking up quickly, he saw her at the entrance, heading toward him. Before she even had a chance to speak the words signifying the formal shift change, he leapt out of the seat. "Ah, ensign, you're here, at last. The WSKRS are yours." And then he was gone, heading quickly off the bridge, conscious of the woman standing behind, blinking after him. If only he could take the cat to water.

*

Wondering where Miguel had taken off for, Lonnie waited until she and Tim were some distance from the bridge, before pulling him over to one side. "We've got to do something to help Miguel before he does something really stupid," she said. "He's not making any headway with Ari on his own."

Tim shrugged his shoulders cheerfully. "Looks to me like he's doing pretty good. I wouldn't have thought that he had it in him to mess up on that grand a scale." Grinning happily, he concluded. "I don't think that Miguel needs anyone's help in this."

Shocked, Lonnie couldn't find any words for a few seconds. Finally she guessed, "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Darn right I'm enjoying it. Seeing Miguel get egg on his face because he tried the wrong thing with the wrong girl?" Tim chuckled lightheartedly. "It's beautiful."

"But ... But he could get into real trouble. Didn't you hear the captain?"

"Sure, I heard the captain. But there's no need to worry about it. Ari's not going to jeopardize her career for something like this. She'll be professional and cool and business-like. And Miguel won't know what hit him! I'm looking forward to this."

Seriously discomposed, Lonnie observed in a small voice, "I've never seen you like this. What's got into you? I thought that Miguel was your friend?"

His face lost some of the glee animating it as he seriously responded, "Miguel is my friend. But you don't know what it's like. Everything comes so easily to him, why shouldn't he have it difficult for once. Face it, Lonnie, he screwed up big time today, and he deserves to suffer at least a little. Usually, he can get out from under by turning on the charm, cracking some jokes, and smiling a few smiles and everything falls into his lap." He nodded with satisfaction. "But I think that Ari is going to be a tougher proposition than that."

Lonnie's eyes widened with confusion and hurt, then narrowed suspiciously. "He was right. There is something between the two of you. You like her yourself, don't you?"

Tim shrugged again, dismissively. "Doesn't matter if I do or don't. But, yes, I do like her." He smiled with serene contentment. "Ari has too much sense to be taken in by Miguel's brand of snake oil. I'm enjoying this." Lonnie continued to regard him closely. This was a complication she hadn't counted on.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that, Tim," she warned. "You can never be quite certain about what a woman might or might not do."

"You've got that right," he conceded, nodding thoughtfully. "I'll ask her about it at our next meeting."

"Oh, when's that?" Lonnie tried to ask casually.

"Day after tomorrow. I'm fixing a late dinner for her. She's made my breakfast, a couple of times lately, and I thought that it was time I returned the favour." He paused for a few moments, then continued, "We had planned it for tomorrow, but what with having to meet with Miguel tonight, and not getting much sleep this morning, she wants to make an early night of it." Lonnie's eyes took on a calculating gleam.

"You're fixing the dinner?" she asked carefully.

"Well, yeah! I happen to be a rather good cook," he boasted. "And it wasn't easy getting the cook to agree, but I talked him around."

"So, is this like, you know, a date?"

"No!" Tim's scornfully denied. "We just talk about books and things."

"Well, if it's not a date, then what if I join you?" As Tim looked dubious with the idea, she continued persuasively, looking up at him from under her eyelashes. "I've never done much in the kitchen but I'd like to help out, if I can?"

"Well, I don't know. I mean, I don't think that you'd be all that interested in what we've been talking about."

"You mean, you think that I wouldn't understand it," she attacked him hotly.

"NO! That's not what I mean. You haven't even read the stuff we're discussing."

"'The Bacchae', by some old guy named Euripides? I've listened to your translation and Ari's and I looked up the one in the library, too" she answered repressively. "I think that I can hold my own on the subject."

"How did you ... You already knew what we were doing?"

Lonnie shrugged. "I talked with Ari last night, after she got off-shift. Did she tell you what went on between the two of them? Why Miguel is acting so ham-handed?"

"Actually, no, she didn't. She just said that she'd done something stupidly juvenile and gotten caught at it. Has Miguel told you about it?"

"No. I haven't even seen him to speak to him today. That's why I wanted to talk to him now, but he's shawn-gone." Tim gave her an odd look, repeating soundlessly, "shawn-gone?" But Lonnie was thinking that if she'd been able to catch the tightly-wound CPO before they went on shift, perhaps the argument in the galley wouldn't have taken place.

Returning to the argument, she proposed rationally. "Look, at the very least, I can give you a hand with the dinner preparations. That is, if you're sure it isn't a date...?"

"No. It's nothing like that." He looked down int her face searchingly. "But are you sure you want to?" he cocked his head engagingly. "I'm sure that Ari wouldn't mind if you joined us." Lonnie smiled.

"I really want to be there, Tim. I can't think of anywhere I'd rather be." As he veered off, she stood for a few seconds, watching him walk away. Yes, she really wanted to be right there, watching the two of them. When she had thought that they'd make a cute couple, she hadn't actually thought that it would happen. It hadn't occurred to her that Tim could be actively attracted to another woman. And it shouldn't have occurred to him, either. She grimaced slightly and headed off to find Miguel.



PART 8

Ari stared at the display screen feeling vaguely dissatisfied for no reason she could discern. She'd relieved Chief Ortiz several hours ago and still had several left to go. With the way he'd disappeared after the shift change, she didn't expect him to show up again tonight. But even so, she was taking no chances, doing everything according to the regs.

He hadn't even waited for Lonnie and Tim to be relieved, she'd noticed. A corner of her mouth twitched at the thought to Tim. He was so sweet. He'd tried to stay and talk but she'd been in no mood for conversation. What could she say to him anyway? That his best friend on board was a filthy-minded jerk? A warm blush stole up her cheeks as she remember exactly what she'd called him in the galley.

Well, at least no one there had understood, but Sister Mary Margaret would have been appalled to observe the exchange. Her lips twitched again, Uncle Pandarus, on the other hand, would have cheered her on, though, most likely. She wondered what the old reprobate would think of the oh, so handsome non-com. She grinned at the thought of the two of them meeting. Then her smile wiped off her face as she remembered just what Ortiz had said.

How could he have implied such filth? Ok, so maybe, just maybe she deserved what he'd said about Tim. But to include the Captain? She'd never even said two words to the captain. Well, maybe two words, "yes" and "sir". But where did that accusation come from? And why was she worrying about it anyway? Furious with herself for thinking about him, she stabbed at one of the controls, then quickly compensated the angle as the satellite overshot her mark.

The floor vibrated with the approach of someone in a hurry. Quickly peeking around, Ari wasn't surprised to see Ortiz. Somehow, she'd known it would be. Stonily, she bent her attention to the board, trying to ignore the erratic beating of her heart.

"Access your duty logs," he directed, a little out of breath, as if he'd been running. "On screen."

"As you wish, sir," she answered coldly. Resolutely continuing to scan the flickering visuals and monitor tell-tales, ostensibly ignoring his presence at her side as he double checked her work, Ari knew that her concentration was impaired by her acute consciousness of his nearness. As he leaned over, shifting positions, she was aware of a sharp, disturbing, and oddly appealing masculine odor. Switching satellite views, she wondered idly what he'd been doing to have worked up a sweat. Body odor on a submarine was not generally tolerated.

Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed him stiffen with interest. He looked up, "A Crab went out?" The Sea Crabs were small utility craft, useful for construction jobs and minor pick-up and moving. It wasn't that unusual to see one leave or return to the sub, and Ari wondered why the annoying non-com was upset about it.

"Yes sir. It returned not ten minutes ago."

"Hmmm, yes. I can see that. Where did it go? Did you follow it?"

Ari felt surprise and resentment at this unwarranted line of questioning, and it coloured her voice, "No, Chief. I just noted its presence and direction."

"Perhaps you should try to find out what it was up to," he suggested. Ari bent to the task, sending the stern satellite, Loner, out on the fuel trail of the peripatetic vehicle.

Something flickered on the screen and she felt, rather than saw, Ortiz move closer. He bent forward, his breath warm on her cheek as he ordered, "Go back to that." even as her hands were moving swiftly over the controls. Adjusting the focus of the image from the stern wireless satellite, she stared, unable to believe her eyes.

Leaning forward, not incidently away from the disturbing presence so close by her side, she scrutinized the image. Disbelieving, half breathing the questions, she asked, "What ... ? How did ... ? That's not ... !"

Loner's opticals were fixed on an arrangement of debris on the ocean floor, spelling out "Sorry". She swung around, her face open with confusion. As Miguel was still at her shoulder at the time, her action brought their faces in close proximity. and Ari found herself unable to draw a breath, her questions forgotten for the moment. Face flushed hotly, she hurriedly turned back toward the screen, fighting for control.

Behind her, she could hear Miguel catch his breath sharply. Somewhat breathlessly, he suggested, "Perhaps you'd better expand the area of the visual." A few quick commands and she was looking at three arrangements of sea wrack, altogether saying "Sorry. Forgive me?" Smiling, slightly shocked, she faced him again, but before she could respond, Commander Ford's repressive tones interrupted her.

"Is there a problem, Chief Ortiz?" he asked. "Ensign Adler, perhaps you should put that on the screens?" Miguel opened his mouth to answer, but no words came out.

"No sir," Ari answered promptly. "There's no problem, sir. Chief Ortiz is merely giving me some pointers on the finer aspects of the Sensor equipment manipulation." Miguel noted with amusement that the satellite was already picking up a more innocuous view to display on the overhead. "He has suggested that the presence of the discolouring growth on the pipe at this spot might indicate the leak we're looking for."

Commander Ford frowned. "Very well, ensign. Make what analyses are necessary and let me know when you have something definate."

"Yes, sir." Keeping a wary eye on the rather precise officer, Ari sent Loner in for a closer look while she whispered, "How did you do that?"

Miguel shrugged, pleased with himself and his surprise. Speaking quietly, he confessed, "I'm the one who took the Crab out. Look, Ari, I acted like a compleat idiot and I said some things that I shouldn't have. Can you forgive me?"

Warmed by the magnitude of his effort, in spite of herself, Ari nonetheless answered severely. "You're right, you were a idiot." Switching the screen, she looked over the information and nodded, adjusting the levers to order a more intensive test. Glancing sideways at the anxious man, she gave a rueful, twisted grin and sighed, then confessed, "But I didn't behave much better." She bit one side of her lip, grimaced, and continued, "I flew off the handle and over-reacted. I'm sorry, too. What do you say we just forget about the whole thing and move on? I'm tired of thinking about it." She thought, but did not add, that she was tired of thinking about him as well, but there didn't seem to be anything she could do about that.

Grinning with relief, Miguel shook his head regretfully. "It's not going to be that easy, you know," he warned. "People are still talking about the scene in the galley."

Ari groaned, then stiffened as Ford glanced in their direction. She bent to her work, giving a perfect performance of an absorbed military officer in commission of her duty. After a few moments, the stiff Commander turned his attention to another station. Miguel continued, his breath tickling her ear even as his quiet voice filled it. "Rumour has it that I provoked the fight just so that I could beat you up and drag you off someplace private."

To her embarassment, Ari snorted with amusement, finally calling down official sanction on their heads. "Chief Ortiz, is there something you need to share with me?" Commander Ford asked pointedly.

"Um, no sir. Just clearing up some business."

"Then perhaps you'd better do it on your own time? I have a boat to run and I can not do that effectively with you distracting my sensor operator. Ensign Adler, I want that report."

"Yes sir." They responded in two part harmony. Leaning forward to speak softly into her ear, Miguel added, "We'll talk about this later." And his hand squeezed her shoulder gently as he took his leave.

After he'd left the bridge, Ari leaned toward the screen and whispered to the three WSKRS, "Not if I have anything to say about it."

Lonnie finally caught up with the elusive Sensor Chief walking jauntily toward Lucas's quarters, looking unsufferably pleased with himself. "Miguel, where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you."

"I took a transport out. Had something I wanted to do. Why? What's up?"

"Well, you should be trying to do something about Ari," she responded severely. He smiled smugly, buffing his fingertips on his chest.

"I already have. It's all taken care of. She's not angry with me anymore and everything's a-ok." Lonnie searched his face closely. He had that look. The one that said one of his schemes gone the way he intended.

"C'mon, what have you been up to?" she asked, but he was still too full of himself to want to give details. Deliberately refusing to get specific, he teased the woman.

"I apologized. That's all. She's accepted my apology and there's nothing to worry about."

"Then you aren't interested in knowing when and where she and Tim are meeting next?" She was beginning to understand what had Tim so pleased with the situation. More than anything, she wanted to wipe that insufferable grin off his face.

Miguel shrugged, his face shining with complacency. "In the galley at some ungodly hour of the morning?" he guessed casually, as if it didn't really matter anymore what Tim tried.

"Here," she thrust a small tape at him suddenly. "Let me know if you have any questions." Pivoting on her heel, she strode away but paused before turning the corner to look back. She could see Miguel finish examining the audio-recording with a look of disinterested curiousity, shrug and put the tape in a pocket before sauntering away. He appeared to feel entirely secure in the knowledge that everything was going his way. Shaking her head, Lonnie felt that she'd done what she could, but if he intended to act like an arrogant fool, perhaps Tim was right, and he did deserve whatever happened.

*

Lonnie would have been gratified to see him the next evening, though, alone in his quarters. Lying full length on his bed, Miguel listened to the soft, intimate voice filling his ears, amazed that Adler could sound so, so ... He cut the thought off, sighing heavily. It was intended for Tim, anyway, not him.

He shook his head, dissatisfied. It didn't make sense. She had been pleased with the apology, flattered with the work he'd put into it. He knew that. And the simulated runs after her shift had been a success, as well.

Remembering the way she'd gotten into that, he grinned. He'd had Lucas fix up a way for the two of them to do the same simulation, comparing the results for reaction and accuracy. He had had the jump on her, in most situations, but she was surprisingly good. Tim's comment about her keeping him on his toes made a lot of sense.

Afterwards, she and Lucas had gotten into a technical argument about how to improve the program, an update of one her father had been working on for Groton' sub school. A couple of times, she'd appealed to him for back-up, and he'd been glad to give it. But those were mostly dealing with the limitations and capabilities of the WSKRS, not details of programming.

Miguel yawned, and stretched. He'd been in the galley at 0600, had breakfast with Tim, but Ari hadn't shown up. The expression on the other man's face convinced the Cuban that his friend had known full well what he was doing there, but that smirk as the lieutenant was leaving ...

The recording ended. Getting up to rewind it, Miguel paused. There was something about the two translations. Something that reminded him of the discussion of Greek civilization in his Classics class, but he just couldn't put his finger on the memory. Setting it going, he leaned against the wall, returning to his interrupted thoughts.

Ari had shown up only ten minutes early for the shift change. Time enough to review the duty logs before taking over the controls, but not enough for any real conversation. Still, she'd acted friendly enough, making some comments about the program the night before and some things that had happened on his shift.

Miguel had been pleased with the way things were going until Tim had stepped up. In that moment, it had crystallized as to just what was wrong. Or, if not wrong, then not right. Sure, she'd been acting as friendly as anyone else. But Miguel didn't want to be anyone else.

The welcoming smile she'd turned on Tim, well, Miguel thought, if she'd given it to him, he could have warmed himself on it for days on end.

And where they'd been talking about ship's business, she and Tim started discussing things, particularly this. The tape stopped at the beginning, and Miguel pressed the play button again.

No. It was clear that she considered Tim to be a friend, and he, Miguel, to be something else. Somebody to be treated with respect and courtesy, but that was it. How could he change her mind about that, get her to look at him with the same warmth that she turned to Tim. To TIM!

Tim's voice issued from the speakers, dry, slightly nasal and pedantic. A marked contrast to the seductive tones in Ari's presentation.

A very marked contrast indeed. That faint memory wriggled again, a little closer to the surface of his mind. Perhaps if he didn't look at it too closely, it would solidify?

He'd finally walked away from the two of them, unable to join in their conversation. Lonnie had pulled him away, not waiting for Tim to finish. The poor kid was worried about their little circle falling apart. And considering the way Tim had been acting lately, she wasn't that far wrong, either. She'd suggested that they two, he and she, could make an effort to join the other two, to include Ari with them, rather than allowing Tim to splinter off.

It sounded like a good idea. He'd been friends with the other man for far too long to allow something like this to break up their friendship. Even if he was behaving oddly right now. And Lonnie had also said that she'd arrange a way for Miguel to talk to Ari semi-privately. Ari had said some things yesterday in the galley that had him wondering.

He settled back with his hands behind his head and tried to concentrate on the translation. Poor Tim. He sounded like some fusty old professor in this. Not like Ari's. She'd sounded more like one of the Bacchae, herself. He thought of the descriptions of them, lying in abandon, breasts uncovered and ... Sitting straight up, he remembered the reference. Something about the argument of Bacchic versus Apolloyon philosophies and the cultural mores of the times. He pulled off the phones, and jumped to his feet, stopping the tape as he passed the player.

The library might just have the book he wanted. Or Lucas might be able to find it on the 'nex.

*

Looking down on the unkempt blonde head of his young protege as the boy eagerly explained the workings of the communications system that ensign Adler had created out of spare parts, Captain Bridger smiled at the note of enthusiasm in his voice. It appeared that the young lady had made another convert. The report he'd received from Miguel about her capabilities with the sensor equipment coupled with Lucas's comments about the program she and he were working on for Miguel had whetted his curiousity about her.

He'd taken the opportunity during second watch the previous night to observe her on-duty. He shook his head wonderingly. Very quiet, constrained and business-like, that was his opinion of the officer in question. Doing her job efficiently, no flamboyance, no distractions. But, then, the situation wasn't exactly a normal one. The tension on the bridge was tightly wound, and she was the focus.

Smiling, he remembered some of Commander Ford's comments. The XO had been upset that Miguel had appeared on the bridge and persisted in continuing the argument. Except, that they hadn't. With all the tension present, as soon as the sensor chief appeared, everyone on the bridge done their best to eavesdrop on the conversation. The apparent intimacy of the exchange had reassured them as to the innocuous nature of the incident. Nodding, he thought about some of the comments he'd overheard.

Most people seemed to have come to the conclusion that the two of them were involved with one another and what they'd witnessed was just a lover's spat. And they were looking forward to more of the same. The consensus opinion was that Miguel had met his match in this one, and good for her. Bridger wondered what Tim would make of that conclusion. He dragged his thoughts back to Lucas's explanation.

"So, the keys on this side are connected to a sound card that translates the specific key into a certain type of sound. I'd guess that she downloaded the language files for the vocoder to set this up."

"Why only the one side?"

Lucas shrugged carelessly. "Maybe she didn't want to make it any more complicated. But that's really more than she needed if she was using the data base I set up." He pointed to another connection. "And the sounds are transmitted directly to the speakers around the pool and in the tubes."

"I see." A small sound from the entrance alerted them both, and they looked up to find Ari in the doorway.

"Ah, ensign Adler," he said quickly before she had the chance to back out. "I believe that you can explain this to me."

"Yes, sir," she stammered nervously, her brows drawing together as she recognized the equipment opened up between them. "What are you doing with that?"

Lucas gave the captain a sideways glance, leaving it up to him to explain, while he continued examining the set-up. Bridger looked the young woman over for a few moments.

He was glad that he'd taken the time to go up on bridge last night, because if this had been his first sight of her, he would not have been at all impressed. The second shift ensigns had been assigned a mini-sub accident drill today, and from the looks of her still damp, salt-stringy hair and the way her uniform was clinging to her body, she'd come here directly after being dismissed.

"I do have access to all the lockers, you know," he finally remarked conversationally. She compressed her lips slightly and nodded, a slightly rueful expression passing quickly over her face. "As for what we're doing, Darwin has been trying to explain your game to me, but I'm afraid I haven't been able to make much sense of his explanations. I'm hoping that you can explain to me a little more clearly than he has been able so far, exactly what it is that you have done."

Moving a little closer, Ari jerked her head toward boy genius. "I'm sure that Lucas has already explained it, probably better than I could." He looked up and grinned, shaking his head.

"Nope, just the mechanics of it. I'm still trying to figure out why you'd want to do this at all with the vocoder available." Bridger nodded to the youth.

"Mr. Wolenczek has been most informative about how you've accomplished what you have, but I want to know what you are doing and how you intend to proceed. Ah, Lucas, I'm sure that you have something that you should be doing?" He shook his head, then yelped as Bridger nudged him.

"Yeah, yeah, sure. I've got to get going. See you two later." As he passed Ari on the way out, though, he muttered something in a schoolyard whisper, causing her to smile and give a nervous chuckle.

Captain Bridger wondered what he had said, but mostly he felt gratitude toward the boy for breaking the ice. As Adler continued to stand there, looking uncertain, but determined to protect what was hers, even against him, he chuckled reassuringly. "Relax, ensign. I not going to bite you. I've been hearing a lot about you lately and thought it past time I welcomed you on board SeaQuest." Her colour rose at this statement, and she still looked unwilling, but walked forward. Kneeling down, she began to close up her keyboard.

Since it was clear that she would not refer to the rumours still flying around the wardrooms, Bridger tried again to put her at ease. "Cook tells me that I have you to thank for the treats that have been appearing on my breakfast tray lately." She peered up at him shyly.

"Yes sir."

"You are a good baker, ensign. But I'm curious as to the reason for the pastries." She shook her head.

"I was ... well, Lt. O'Neill has been kind enough to help me out with some ... some translations. The rolls were a reward for his help and I ... Cook only agreed to let me make them if I made enough for you, as well."

"I see. Well, would you care to explain the use of this device." She had it back together again, and was holding it as if she wished to make it disappear.

Ari let out a long, slow breath. "I'd be happy to," she lied, her reluctance to allow the game to come to official notice excruciatingly obvious. "Excuse me, sir." She stood up and walked over to the controls to the external speakers of the vocoder program.

"Hold it. What are you doing?"

She stopped, her hand on the buttons, and looked back at him uncertainly.

"I'm turning off the speakers, sir. It helps my concentration. If I can hear the English translation, I find it harder to force myself to work out what he's saying on my own."

"So, there's no way that anyone else can verify the meaning of his utterances, to check on your accuracy?" She nodded, her brow wrinkled with perplexity. "Isn't that a bit of an oversight, ensign?"

"No sir. It's just a game, sir, for our private amusement. Why would anyone else want to listen in?"

"Ensign, you are using military issue components and working with a military-trained dolphin. And it never occurred to you that the Navy might be interested in any results you may discover?" She flushed hotly, embarassed by this evidence of her single-mindedness.

"No sir," she admitted softly. "I thought, I didn't think ..." Raising her brows and sighing ruefully, she confessed, a grin twisting her lips, "I just didn't think." Bridger laughed, easing up on her.

"I know how it is. You get involved in something and you think of it as your own private amusement." Her grin spread and she nodded. "But I think it's time you started sharing. Find some time to explain what you are doing to Lucas and Mr. O'Neill. Next time I come down here, I want to be able to know what Darwin is saying as well as what you think he's saying." She nodded compliance. "Very well, let's get Darwin here."

"Yes, sir." She returned to the side of the pool and sat down, tailor fashion. Pulling the keyboard onto her lap, she began to type swiftly. As she did so, the vocoder voice spoke. "Darwin, play "I say" with Ari? Please?"

"That was you?" the captain asked curiously.

"Well, sir, the keyboard is rigged so that when I type on certain keys, sounds are emitted into the water. Since the vocoder is still enabled, what you heard is almost what I sent."

"I see. And he can hear this signal from anywhere on board?"

"Yes sir, and for a short distance outside, as well. We call our game "I say" and it is more of a language class than anything else. Up until the other day, it just consisted of Darwin giving me commands in dolphin while I attempt to carry out his orders. But just lately, he's begun roaming the ship while maintaining a conversation with me, insisting that I respond appropriately."

Whatever he would have said in response was lost as Darwin, himself, broke the surface of the water. Whistling happily, he called out, "Ari! Bridger! Hello."

"Hello, old friend. So this is your friend, Ari?"

"Yes, Ari nice. Ari Darwin's friend. Ari Bridger's friend, too?" The captain chuckled.

"Perhaps, Darwin, perhaps." He leaned forward, "Feel like showing me how to play ... , What did you call it, ensign?" he asked turning to her.

"I say, sir."

"Right, feel like playing 'I say', Darwin?" he continued.

"Darwin play!" he agreed. "Ari play. Bridger play?"

"Not this time, old friend, not this time, maybe some day." Standing up, he looked toward Ari. "Please begin."

*

"It smells great, Tim," Ari enthused, leaning over the covered platter and breathing deeply. "What is it?" She was reaching out for one of the stacked plates when a deep voice from behind, echoing her question, froze her in mid-gesture.

"Yeah, Tim, what is it?" Miguel pulled out the chair between Lonnie and Ari and plopped into it. Carefully not looking at him, Ari finished her movement.

"I didn't realize that you had invited Or ... Miguel, as well, Tim," she observed slowly. Tim looked at Miguel blankfaced.

"I didn't. What are you doing here?"

"I invited him," Lonnie announced in general. When Tim and Ari looked at her with twin expressions of betrayal, she flushed slightly and continued defiantly. "I want all of us to be friends," She turned to Ari, "and we can't do that if one of us isn't talking to another."

Closing her eyes, her heart still racing unevenly, Ari tried to calm herself by slowly counting to ten. When that didn't work, she did it again in Swahili, backwards. Finally abandoning the effort as a lost cause, she opened her eyes again and looked directly at Miguel. "Why don't you join us, Miguel? We would love to have you." That had been a mistake. Feeling somehow mesmerized, she couldn't pull her gaze away. Eyes still fixed on the interloper, she asked over her shoulder, "And what did you fix for us, Tim?"

Tim looked from one to the other, an expression of faint disturbance on his countenance, then shrugged. Pulling the cover off with a flourish, he announced, "Dal fry with chapatis and tomato-ginger salad." It looked a little odd, lentils cooked with tomato and onion, but the savory smell filling the air conquered any indecision.

Without delay, each one helped him or herself and began eating, sneeking peeks at Tim to see how it was done. They tried to imitate his actions of piling a small amount of dal on the flat wheat chappati and rolling it up like a burrito, but the filling kept spilling every where. Looking from Tim, eating a neatly rolled chapatti, to Miguel, who was moving his mouth around trying to keep the dal from falling out, Ari started laughing, pointing at the latter.

"It's a good thing that you're better at your job than that," she teased the sensor chief. "Or we'd be in a lot of trouble." He smiled and used his napkin to dab at her face. She easily evaded the blow, still laughing, "You'll have to try harder if you want to get me," she challenged.

Swallowing, he shrugged, "I intend to." Ari wondered what he meant by that response, but Miguel didn't expand on the thought. Instead he turned on the other woman. "Hey, Lonnie, I thought you said that you'd never get up before seven for anything less than an emergency?"

Laughing, relieved that open warfare wasn't about to erupt, she shrugged. "When Tim told me that he was cooking something, I figured that it was an emergency."

"Hey! It was only a little fire," the lanky chef wannabe protested. "Hardly worth mentioning!"

"So that's the mystery spice," Ari suggested. There were a few moments of companionable silence, then Miguel cleared his throat.

Casually, he asked, "What were you and the captain doing last night." Lonnie and Tim looked up curiously, and he explained, "I was looking for Lucas and ran into the two of them at the Moon Pool. Some kind of weird music was playing, whistles and clicks and I don't know what. And Ari was trancing out." He grinned impishly. "She looked like a medium at a seance."

"I did no such thing," she responded indignantly. "And I told you where to find Lucas, if you remember." Pleased with the answer, his dark eyes twinkled at her.

"Yeah, I remember, but what were you doing there?"

"Ummm, I was listening to Darwin and doing a running translation, for the captain."

"Darwin wasn't in the room, I saw him swimming through the hydro pressure tubes." Ari shrugged, looking down at her plate.

"Well, yeah. He'd been teaching me dolphin for the last few weeks. Captain Bridger wanted to know how I was progressing." She shrugged, clearly uncomfortable with the questioning. With a grimace, she added, "Which reminds me. Tim, could you look over the comm equipment I use for the game. Captain Bridger wants it modified for multiple users." Her distaste for the idea was clear to Miguel, but Tim just nodded.

"Sure, be glad to."

Trying to break the tension raised by Ari's odd reactions to the game references, Lonnie raised the subject of the play, "I have to say, Ari, that I liked your version of the play better than Tim's."

"Then you did finish it?" Ari asked, trying unsuccessfully to keep surprise out of her voice. Much as she liked the helmsman, she had thought that the other woman would get bored with the ancient play.

"It wasn't that long. But the way you read it," she shook her head in admiration. "I don't see why it isn't better known."

"Because most translations are like Tim's," Miguel explained, when he had swallowed. Pointing with his wrapped dal, oozing at the edges, he continued, "But I suspect yours is more in keeping with Euripides original intentions."

Ari's eyes grew wider and she started to say, "How did you ..." but Tim was already hotly arguing the point with his long-time friend. "Hey, wait a minute, there. I did a darn good job and I know that's what was there."

"Yeah, but Tim, you aren't taking into account the morals of the time. That's a dangerous flaw for an interpreter. Don't you agree, Ari?" Ari blinked at him, dumbfounded with his insights. "Ari?"

"But ..." This was turning her notions about the handsome, muscular non-com on their peaked little heads. Those looks and brains, too? Her mind still reeling with shock, she continued her thought. "That's what Uncle Pandarus said. That 'an accurate interpretation requires the translator to keep the culture mores in mind'." Her tone of voice put quote marks on the statement.

"Uncle Pandarus? Shakespeare's Uncle Pandarus, from "Troilus and Cressida"? Tim asked with understandable confusion.

Shaking her head to dispell her thoughts, Ari explained, "No, my great-uncle Paul. That's his family nick-name. He gave me the play and the advice at the same time. But he also said that I shouldn't be too quick to judge. And Tim's version makes the contrast between the lawful and chaotic more compelling. It is the more technically correct interpretation." Miguel shook his head.

"That doesn't matter. Something can be technically perfect and still be entirely wrong."

Lonnie leaned forward and spoke softly, "The one I felt sorry for was Cadmus, the king's grandfather. He honoured Semele, Dionysis's mother; he dressed up in funny clothes to worship Dionysis; and danced and so on, but he still lost everything in the end. His home, his grandsons, his daughters, everything. It wasn't fair."

Ari nodded, "I agree. It wasn't fair. I've never understood why he was punished so harshly for something that wasn't even his fault."

Now Tim leaned forward, gesturing with his cup, "I think that it goes back to the idea of the sins of the father. If a child can be held responsible for the wrong-doing of his parents, then even more so can a father or grandfather, the head of the whole family, be held accountable for all crimes committed under his dominion."

Swallowing hastily and sipping coffee, Miguel agreed, "Exactly. He was the absolute ruler of the family, the head of the household. So how could anything be done without, at the very least, his tacit approval?"

Well, I think that it stinks!" Lonnie interjected, with Ari nodding emphatically a beat behind.

Before long, the platter and basket were empty and Ari was yawning promiscuously. The discussion had ranged back and forth, with Ari finding herself in agreement with Miguel a good part of the time, but not wanting to admit it. Standing up, she began stacking things on the tray, ready to return it to the kitchen and Lonnie laughed. "Miguel, rule is, those who didn't serve have to clear away. Get to work, you drone!" Miguel sketched a half salaam.

"To hear is to obey, madam," he burlesqued. Working quickly, the two of them managed to clear the table while Lonnie and Tim finished their coffee. They all four left the galley together.

"I'll walk you to your quarters, Ari." Miguel suggested. "I'm heading in that direction, anyway."

"That's all right," she demurred, shaking her head no. "I'm sure that I can find my way." Her feelings toward the disturbing man were chaotic enough before, now she didn't know what to make of him. She needed to get away from his influence and figure some things out.

"Aww, come on, Ari, we're all heading in that direction," Lonnie coaxed. "I was in such a swivet to get there on time, I didn't even shower when I got up."

But as they walked, Lonnie grabbed Tim's arm and slowed him down, letting Miguel and Ari walk on ahead. Ari glanced back uncertainly, preferring the safety of numbers.

"Ari," Miguel began, hesitantly. "You said that you're convent-bred. What did you mean by that?" Then he added hastily, "If I'm out of line, just tell me. I don't mind."

She sighed. "No, I was out of line, with that comment," she admitted slowly. "There's no way that you could have known it. I was in a convent school in Ireland from the time I was 12 until I was 16." She paused, and Miguel tried to read her expression, but her eyes were hooded with sad memories and her head was bowed. Throwing back her shoulders, she stared straight ahead, continuing. "We were there, in Ireland, sight-seeing and visiting my father's younger sister. She's a nun in a convent on the coast, the Atlantic side. I woke up one morning, not feeling well, and so stayed behind while the others went off without me."

She shook her head with old bewilderment and incomprehension. "There was an accident. An unsuspected IRA bomb, I guess, left over from the bad old days." She was quiet for a long time. When Miguel looked down at her, he found her eyes swimming. "My mother, my father, the twins. There wasn't anything left. And then my aunt was my sole guardian. I stayed in the school there full-time, until I graduated."

Slowly her eyes refocussed and she stopped, half turning to look him in the face. "I was accepted at Sorbonne at 16." She smiled at the memory. "The deal was that I could live with my Uncle Paul while I attended classes if I didn't run away to sea. But I tell you, if I hadn't been there already a couple of years later, when I heard about Lucas on the SeaQuest ..." She chuckled. "Uncle Paul got me through that, but I was sooo jealous of him for the longest time."

"Anyway, when they found out about the convent, there were a lot of guys there who thought, well, they wanted to 'help' me out with my 'hang-ups'." The emphasis she put on the words made it clear just what they thought her hang-ups to be. "I guess I just flashed back on the problems that I had with them when we were talking the other day and I over-reacted. I am sorry."

Before Miguel could respond, the other two had caught them up. "Hey, Ari! Lonnie just had a great idea. Why don't you join us for lunch today?" Tim suggested. Catching the warning in Lonnie's eye, Miguel held his tongue.

"I don't know ... " she started to say dubiously, but the other woman interrupted.

"It would be fun. Sort of like a continuation of this meal." But Ari was still shaking her head.

"Noon is a little too early for me. I'm only then rolling out of bed."

"But we don't have to eat at noon," Miguel started, then stopped, coughing from the jab to his stomach that Lonnie had given him.

"Miguel's right," Tim supported the other man. "We can eat at 1300. All we have to do is arrange for some of the others to go on break before us." Ari regarded the three of them closely, as if testing the sincerity of the offer. Then she smiled.

"Ok. I'll see you all in about 6 hours. Night," And she entered her quarters and closed the door.

*

To her surprise, Ari was the first one in the galley at 1300. After a short time, Lonnie joined her and they started comparing training horror stories. A little while later the two guys entered together. As soon as they were settled, Lonnie leaned forward eagerly.

"What was the big meeting about?" She shot a look at Ari, "Captain Bridger called his command staff in for a conference," she explained. "That's what took so long." Tim and MIguel exchanged glances, then Miguel shrugged.

"Captain Bridger lost his bid," he said cryptically. "SeaQuest is going to be Siebas' guinea pig." Ari's expression sharpened with interest.

"Dr. Samuel Siebas?" she asked carefully, looking from one to the other. Tim flashed a question at the other man, then nodded. She continued, "TSUNAMI has actually been developed to the extent that it can be field tested?"

"You know Siebas and TSUNAMI?" Tim asked, carefully.

As Ari nodded, Lonnie interrupted. "Hello. Why am I the only one who doesn't know what you guys are talking about? What is TSUNAMI?"

"Total Sensory Underwater Navigational Array Methods Implementation," Ari answered. "That is, if it's the same person," she added, eyeing Tim questioningly. Miguel nodded encouragingly, and she continued, "He arrived at Sorbonne as I was finishing up my degree. Went through the labs commandeering equipment and personel. Nothing was too good for him. He took a couple of graduate students from the Wireless Satellite Technology lab, alone. Would have taken more, but ..." she shrugged. "I'm astonished that he's gotten as far as he has, even with all the resources available to him. I really didn't think that the theory was all that sound, or safe."

"What's he like?" Tim asked curiously.

Ari carefully considered before answering. Speaking slowly, she responded, "Those who were least in his company benefited most from his presence."

"Sounds like a great guy!" Miguel interjected nastily. "And we're having him as a guest on our boat?"

"Well, I'm not the best person to ask about him," she apologized. "I had a few run-ins with him before I graduated." After a short pause, Ari queried anxiously, "He's going to be here?"

"Yeah," Tim confirmed. "But at least there's one good thing coming out of it. We'll be stuck in port, anyway, waiting for him to show up and get his gear settled, so the Captain is granting a twenty-four hour leave to the crew." Pausing to take a bite, he swallowed then asked, "Want to do something then, Ari?"

Sighing regretfully, Ari shook her head. "I'm low man on the totem pole, Tim," she reminded him. " I'll probably pull duty watch. Why don't the three of you do something together?"

Lonnie immediately pulled her chair closer to Tim's in order to make plans. As the two of them started arguing, Miguel leaned closer to Ari and spoke quietly in her ear.

"You probably won't get duty for the entire leave. If you want, I can get away and show you around the town. I've got family at New Cape Quest." Ari smiled gently and shook her head.

"I'm not about to make any plans until I know the watch schedule." She said, loudly enough for the others to hear. Shrugging, she continued, "Perhaps I can join you at some point."



PART 9

SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:1850
to:i_adler, ens
from:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
All right, you impertinent pup. The duty roster's up for the upcoming liberty. You have the last 8 hours free. Stop this ridiculous foot-dragging and join us. We'll be at "The Place", downtown, when you get off. And if it's the company, don't worry. Lonnie and I will sit on the obnoxious one if he gets too obstreperous. T.C. Tim


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0110
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
Sorry, old grumbler, but no can do. I really do have plans for that time. I can just make a Mass at one of the downtown churches if I don't take too much time changing. As for you reassurances ... Much though I adore you, my friend, and trust you implicitly ... Lonnie? Defusing any situation? Come off it. She'd make a good Weapons Officer. She likes to watch explosions. C.V. Ari


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0112
to:i_adler, ens
from:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
Mass, hmmm? Which church? Maybe I can join you and show you around town afterwards. The others won't mind. And you may be right about Lonnie. But at least it isn't boring when she's around. T.C. Tim


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0113
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
Too true, it isn't boring. I think you're being a little unrealistic to assume that they wouldn't mind you wandering off on your own, but it's the Church of St. Peter and Paul. I'd enjoy your support, it's kind of awkward and strange to walk into a big church alone. But, Tim, I really do have something planned for afterwards. Something private. I'm sorry. C.V. Ari


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0115
to:i_adler, ens
from:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
Ok, pup, be like that. If you don't trust me enough to tell me ... I'm too tired to argue the matter with you any more tonight, anyway. But tomorrow... T.C. Tim


SeaQuest internal electronic communications. time:0116
to:tim_oneill, lt, j.g.
from:i_adler, ens
Good night dear grumbler and pleasant dreams. And please, don't tease me about this in front of the others. After the big fuss I made with Miguel about the convent and all, well, I'd feel funny if they knew. C.V. Ari


Miquel let the waves of music sweep through him, guiding him on the dance floor. Grinning with happy delight, he looked into the laughing face of his partner. Lonnie was surrendering to the beat, twirling, sending her skirt flaring out and having a great time. Even Tim had been out on the floor once or twice. He looked over to check on him.

Spotting their table, Miguel was puzzled to find it empty. Gyrating around, he scanned the crowd, maybe he was on the floor. But no, there he was, fighting his way to an exit. Where was he going? It was still early. They weren't planning to leave here for a while. Although as crowded as it was, perhaps his claustrophobia suddenly kicked in. People were literally dancing in place, and more were arriving all the time.

He looked again, and his eyes narrowed with sudden suspicion. What time was it anyway? A quick glance at his watch confirmed it. Ari had just gotten off-shift. He tapped Lonnie's arm, nodding toward the escaping officer. She sketched a shrug of puzzlement. Tapping his watch, he nodded again more emphatically and began to dance closer to their table. Her eyes widened with understanding and she followed his lead.

Reaching the street after struggling through the incoming crowd, Miguel stepped to the curb and quickly searched both ways, hoping that Tim hadn't already grabbed a taxi. Lonnie tapped his arm, pointing. "There he is." Sure enough, their escaping friend was striding along the sidewalk. Wasting no breath, he gave a hard nod and took off in pursuit, being careful to stay close to the buildings in case Tim decided to check his back trail. But he seemed too intent on achieving his goal to worry about that.

"He's going to meet her, isn't he?" Lonnie guessed. "The sneaks!"

"So that's why Ari wouldn't join us," Miguel agreed, bitterly. The early morning sessions had continued the past few days, and they'd moved on to other topics. But he still felt that core of resistance in the ensign, her unwillingness to allow him to get any closer. "So much for her 'I've got other plans'." A fierce smile spread a dark light over his face, "Why don't we find out what their plans are?" he suggested. "After all, someone's got to keep an eye on them."

Lonnie laughed her agreement. As they followed the unsuspecting lieutenant, they were puzzled to see him mount the broad steps leading into a large, downtown church. "Where do you think he's going?" Lonnie asked. Miguel took her hand, urging her forward.

"Come on," he said. "He may have spotted us and be going in there to duck out another door." Lonnie pulled back.

"I've never been in a Catholic Church, before," she protested, shaking her head. "I wouldn't know what to do."

"Just do what everyone else is doing," he advised hurriedly. "Except, ... Don't join in any lines."

Pausing just inside the main doors, Miguel blessed himself with water from the stoup and let his eyes roam around the interior. He quickly caught sight of the lanky uniformed figure of Tim O'Neill bobbing down before sliding into an empty side pew. Touching Lonnie's arm, he pointed.

"I don't understand," she whispered. "I thought for sure that he was going to meet Ari. What's he doing here?" More people were entering the church, pushing against the two as they tried to get to their pews. They moved over to one side to avoid blocking the entrance.

"I did, too," Miguel admitted, puzzled. "Maybe he just wanted to come to Mass and was ashamed to tell us?"

"Or maybe not." Lonnie nodded her head as another uniformed figure entered and paused momentarily. Pulling back into the shadowed recess, they saw Ari look around, spot Tim and head toward his pew, face aglow. An intense pain, centered in his midsection and spreading outward, snatched Miguel's breath away as he realized that they had conspired to attend Mass together.

How could they be that close already? Among his people that was something that engaged couples did. He would have known if they were like that, wouldn't he? Watching the two heads together, bowed in prayer, he felt his lungs squeeze the air out of his body. That wasn't the way it was supposed to be. He should be the one there. He would be the one there. Miguel leaned close to Lonnie's head.

"You go down the side aisle," he whispered, "and I'll take center. We'll come at them from both sides." He grinned infectiously, demonstrating with his hands and she grinned back.

"Boy am I glad I made it, Tim," Ari greeted her friend, breathlessly. "The relief was late, and I almost missed the shuttle. I didn't even have time to change," she mourned, indicating her uniform.

"I think you look fine," Tim reassured her loyally.

"Tim, you have no romance in your soul," a heartstopping voice responded. Spinning on her seat, Ari stared up into the devilishly delighted face of her personal nemesis. He slid in beside her, kissing her cheek in an unexpectedly swift movement before continuing, "You always tell a woman that she looks lovely. And you always do, Ari." He smiled widely, putting a hand theatrically to his heart as she looked dumbly at him, stunned speechless.

"Hey, Tim," Lonnie spoke out from the other side, "you ran out on our next dance."

"See, what did I tell you," Miguel spoke regretfully, mischief shining in his face. "You'll never get the girl if you keep acting like that, old man."

"Miguel! Lonnie! How did you ... ? What are you guys doing here?" Tim's face was a study in confusion.

"Why Tim, I'm hurt," Lonnie pouted. "Aren't you glad to see me?" Miguel laughed.

"You need to take some more lessons in covert work, Tim. It was a piece of cake to follow you. Why the big secret anyway?"

Ari, recovered from her shock, shrugged one shoulder, "There's no secret about this." Miguel wondered if the others could hear the slight emphasis she put on the last word. "Tim found out that I was planning to come to this Mass," adding pointedly, "Alone. And asked if he could join me here. We didn't think that either of you would be interested."

"I see. And afterwards?"

"She won't tell me where she's going," Tim responded plaintively. "I was supposed to meet you two at the next place."

"And were you," Lonnie asked from his other side. "Going to meet us later, I mean?" Tim flushed.

"Well, yeah, of course I was. What else?" The chords of the opening hymn quelled any further conversation.

*

After Mass, they stood outside on the sidewalk. "Well, that was ... interesting," Lonnie decided. Ari smiled at her.

"I'm glad that you decided to stay. It is more meaningful to share it with friends." She looked at the two guys. "Thanks, all of you." She paused, her eyebrows drawing together as she considered something. "Did any of you notice the altar server? The one who carried the cross in and out?"

"Not particularly," Lonnie answered. "Why?" Tim shook his head and Miguel grinned at her.

"I was too busy watching you," he claimed. Ari felt the slow rising tide of blood in her cheeks. One of the reasons she'd noticed the server was because the chief had been watching her so closely, and she'd been trying to ignore him. And it hadn't helped because ...

"No reason," she answered uncomfortably. They all looked at her, waiting for more, but she shrugged, then awkwardly added, "Well, umm, I'll see you back on SeaQuest. Enjoy the rest of your leave." As she started to walk away, Miguel reached for her, catching her by the wrist and pulling her back with a slight twirl so that he could get his other arm around her.

"So, this is the secret part, hmmm?" he asked, enigmatically. Ari glared at him.

"Miguel Ortiz!" she snapped. "Get your hands off me. Now!" He laughed down at her.

"Tell us where you're going and I will," he offered. Her eyes flickered, uneasily, toward Tim, then her face took on a mulish aspect and she shook her head.

"If you don't let me go, I'll scream!" she threatened. As he continued grinning down at her, she opened her mouth and ...

"Miguel!" the cry came from the doors of the church, where people were still streaming out. Startled, he loosened his grip on Ari, but kept hold of her wrist, as all four of them stared toward the approaching white-robed figure.

A dark, slender girl danced down the steps, her face glowing with animation and happiness. "It is you!" she cried. "I thought so when I saw you come in. But you never looked at me at all," she accused, her dark, curious eyes examining Ari closely. In Spanish, she added, "Is she your girlfriend? She's not very pretty." Miguel felt Ari stiffen slightly, then relax.

"Carmelita," he answered her repressively in English. "What are you doing here?"

"She was serving the altar," Tim gestured toward her robes, his dry tones leaving no doubt as to his opinion of Miguel's deductive abilities. "Is this the one you meant, Ari?" Carmelita grimaced.

"Mama wouldn't let me call in a substitute," she replied politely in English. "Are you coming to the block party, Miguel? We haven't seen you in so long. And if Mama finds out that you were here when we had it and you didn't even drop by she's going to tell your mother!" The threat made Miguel grin, but he shook his head regretfully.

"Sorry, Entrometida. I'm with my friends, and I can't just walk away and leave them."

"So? Invite them. Mama won't mind. She wouldn't even notice." A cry from the church doors attracted their attention. A pretty, dark, matronly woman was calling for Carmelita in Spanish.

"You get back in here and change. We're going to be late."

Waving, Carmelita called her down, "Mama, come and see! It's Miguel! Invite his friends to the party, Mama," she pleaded prettily in English. "Otherwise, he won't come," adding in Spanish, "the one he's holding on to is his girlfriend." This time Miguel made a swipe for her head which she laughingly evaded.

"Behave yourself, Entrometida," he warned. "Tia Maria, these are my friends from SeaQuest." Nodding to each in turn, he named them, "Tim O'Neill, Lonnie Henderson, and Ari Adler. Guys, this is my Tia Maria, my aunt."

Puffing down the steps, the girl's mother laughed, "Of course they should come to the party. Miguel, where are your manners? You, young lady, get back to the vestry and get changed. Andale!"

"It's very nice to meet you, Senora..." Tim trailed off, then continued. "But we really couldn't impose on a private party." He nodded encouraging to Miguel, "But you should go, by all means, Miguel."

Under his breath, Miguel muttered, "And leave you with the girls? No way!" while Lonnie, giggling a little, agreed with Tim, saying at the same time, "Yes, Miguel. We wouldn't want to get you into trouble with your mother."

"No, no, it is no trouble at all," Tia Maria insisted. "It isn't a family party but one for the whole neighborhood. The more the merrier. Please, I insist, you must come." Several people, relatives from their faces, joined them. Miguel looked at the others, grinning wildly.

"What do you say, guys? If you've never been to a Cuban block party, then you've never lived. Lots of food, lots of music and lots of dancing. You'll have fun."

"Well ... " Tim demurred, but Lonnie pulled on his arm persuasively.

"Come on, Tim. It sounds like a blast."

"Ok. Ari?"

Miguel watched Ari's face anxiously. It still held that sweetly stubborn expression, but then her eyes focussed on something beyond his shoulder, and her face melted into soft, gentle longing. Puzzled, Miguel looked around, almost missing her words of capitulation. All he saw there was his Tia Maria, taking her grandson from cousin Roselita's arms, and cooing over him. He turned back.

"So, it's settled? Tia Maria, we'll need a ride there."

*

Surrounded by his younger cousins, Miguel couldn't get away to join the others until the musicians had finished their tuning. Catching them up, he found Tim and Lonnie alone, no sign of Ari around.

"Hey, where'd Ari go?" he asked. Lonnie, foot tapping, hands twitching the skirt of her dress, answered distractedly.

"She said something about helping out, went inside."

"Thanks, Lonnie." Before he left, he leaned over to add, "They'll start the real music soon." She nodded, smiling her thanks.

Ari wasn't on the porch, where the older men were gathered, discussing conditions in the Cuban Confederacy. Nor was she in the kitchen, helping out the mamacitas with the food. The sound of a raucous soccer game on the viewer in the living room ruled that location out. Somehow, he didn't think she was a big soccer fan. Heading toward the lavatory, he heard a baby wailing in one of the back rooms. Miguel remembered her sudden change of heart about joining the party, and he went to check it out.

Pausing just outside the door, Miguel heard cousin Roselita speaking, in Spanish, over the crying child, "He is very tired, and very excited. I don't think that he will settle down anytime soon." To his surprise, Ari answered her in the same language, with a soft Castilian slur.

"Perhaps the sight of a strange face would quiet him. You would be doing me a kindness, to let me hold him."

"If you are sure ... " Roselita wavered. "Miguel is waiting for you, I know." Ari snorted.

"Miguel doesn't wait for me," she contradicted. "Please." And she held out her arms coaxingly.

"All right," Roselita agreed. She stood out of the rocking chair, set up at an angle from the door, looking out onto the porch and further, to the musicians, the music filling the twilight. Ari took the offered seat and they carefully settled the still crying infant in her arms. Sure enough, as soon as he felt strange arms about him, Fernando stopped his wails and opened his eyes to see what was happening. He gurgled once in surprise, and Ari took the opportunity to pop the bottle nipple into his mouth. Softly, she began singing, not a lullaby, but the Jewish song, "Havah Nagilah".

"He is eating," Roselita exclaimed. Ari nodded, her eyes soft on the baby's face, and she jerked her head toward the door. Pausing momentarily, she suggested, "Why don't you take a break for a moment. I'll call you if anything happens."

"Gracias, senorita. I will tell Miguel where you are?" she offered. Ari, singing softly to the staring child, shook her head. After a few seconds, Roselita edged out the door, almost running into Miguel, peering in. As she started to speak, Miguel put one finger to his lips. A conspiratorial smile on her face, his cousin glanced back at the oblivious Ari and nodded, then left the room and headed toward the front of the house.

Miguel moved quietly into the room. Ari, enrapt with the small form squirming and grunting in her arms, remained compleatly unaware of him and he could watch her to his heart's content. He thought that he'd never seen anything so beautiful, the deepening dusk; the soft, gentle glow on her face, turned lovingly downward at the contented baby; the low, husky sound of her voice. She sang several songs, none of them lullabies, all folk songs from different countries, and in different languages. At last, he cleared his throat.

"He's asleep, you know." She looked up, unsurprised, as if she'd known all along that he was there. And she smiled softly at him, no hint of the coolness that had been in her eyes for the past week or so.

"Yes," she responded quietly. "But I don't know where to put him. If I take him out into the riot, he'll wake up again."

"Come on. I think I know where Tia Maria intends him to go." Leading the way upstairs, he found the crib in the room where it was always set. In silence, he helped her settle Fernando down, covering him up with the waiting blanket. She stepped back and stopped, just watching the baby sleep.

"I didn't know that you spoke Spanish," Miguel commented. She started and shrugged.

"It wasn't necessary for you to know." The slight frost back. The short moment of rapport was gone.

"Ari, I don't understand this," he protested. "I apologized for the scene in the galley. You accepted the apology. You even agreed that you were partially at fault. But you're still punishing me. Why?"

"I don't know what you mean," she lied, not looking at him.

"When you arrived on SeaQuest ... " he began. She rounded on him, interrupting.

"When I arrived on SeaQuest, I hung on your every word, your every action, watching you. What was it you said, Miguel? That you'd introduce me to Tim and he could distract me while you escaped? Well, guess what? It worked. So run away, chief." Miguel's eyes hardened.

"Did Tim tell you that?" he asked angrily, his voice rising. Face flushing hotly, Ari shot a quick glance at the crib, then pulled him by the arm out of the room into the hallway and shut the door. Miguel forestalled her attempt to remove her hand from his arm, putting his other hand down on top of it. "Did Tim tell you that," he repeated more quietly.

"No. Does it matter how I found out?" she asked defiantly. "You said it."

"Yes, I did," he admitted, "and I shouldn't have. I was just spouting off, because I couldn't figure out how I felt about you."

"Oh, and have you figured it out?" she challenged.

"No," he answered shortly. Pulling her into his arms abruptly, he kissed her. The pounding bass of the latin music beat in their veins as his lips pressed down upon hers, demanding a response. To the surprise of them both, she answered with an equal passion of her own. A bright flash caught them, and they jumped apart.

Grinning madly, making her resemblance to a youthful Miguel unmistakable, Carmelita lowered the camera slung around her neck. "Be careful, you two," she warned. "That's how Roselita and Jorges ended up with that." Her head jerked toward the closed door.

"Hey, Miguel. Tio Jose is looking for you. He wants to argue the UEO policy toward the Cuban Confederacy and he's about to start tearing into your friends. And Roselita wants to show you something, Ari, over at Consuela's house." Ari shot a questioning glance toward Miguel. He shrugged.

"It's a few houses down the street," he explained. "I'd better go, Tio Jose can get very virulent." He escaped down the stairs. Carmelita grinned at her.

"Come along. I'll take you there," she offered. As they left by the back door, she added, "I knew that you were Miguel's girl, even though he denied it." Ari made a gesture of denial. "You like him, don't you?"

"No. Yes. Maybe. I don't know! He's an arrogant, conceited, self-assured, self-absorbed jerk. No! I don't like him." Carmelita nodded with satisfaction.

"I thought so. Mama thinks that you are good for him." Ari shook her head.

"Look, Carmelita. I happen to think that Miguel's a decent person, a hard worker and, sometimes, just sometimes, he's my friend. But that's it. He's enlisted, I'm officer. So, what you saw happen was an aberration. Not something normal."

The girl snorted with amusement. "I may be only 16," she advised, "but even I know, That is normal." Ari gave up, as her guide opened the side door to a neighboring house.

Roselita and another young woman were waiting in the master bedroom, the bed, dressers and chairs strewn with party garments. "Good. You are here," they greeted her. "Is Fernando asleep," Roselita asked. Ari nodded.

"He just needed an excuse to quiet down," she explained, absently looking around curiously at the finery, scattered like autumn leaves on every available surface. "What did you want to show me?" Laughing, Roselita pushed her to the mirror.

"This!" she exclaimed. Ari's uniformed image looked back, a look of comical confusion on its face. .

"Yes," she temporized politely. "And ... ?" Laughing, the other two women flanked her in the mirror, their brightly coloured, wide skirted dresses making her look like a crow among peacocks.

"You can't go to a party dressed like that," the unknown woman, who must be Consuela, Ari realized, admonished. "Roselita and I will lend you a dress for the party." Smiling uncertainly, Ari backed away, shaking her head.

"Thank you, but that's not necessary. Thank you all the same." They grabbed her hands and pulled her back.

"Come on, it's a party!" they insisted. "You don't want to insult the New Cape Quest Cuban community by appearing in that, do you?'

"Tim and Miguel are both in uniform," she argued.

"Poof," Roselita threw up her arm, "they are men. What does it matter what they wear."

Carmelita, sitting quietly in a corner, enjoying the conversation, remarked slyly, "Your friend is wearing a very pretty dress." Ari stopped struggling to look thoughtfully at her, noticing again how much the pretty teenager's look of mischief resembled her cousin's.

"Yes ... " she drawled thoughtfully, "she is. Muy bien, senoras. If you are willing, I think I'd like to borrow a party frock." They began to hold up different outfits.

Walking back to the party, Ari had second thoughts about this. It had seemed like a good idea at the time. But faced with the actuality of walking up to Tim and especially Miguel in the outfit that her two fashion consultants had decided on, Ari swallowed hard and wanted to hold back. The top had less to it than the uniform tank top and the skirts contained enough fabric for three compleat uniforms.

As the music grew louder, she walked more slowly, Consuela and Roselita close behind and Carmelita pulling her along, trying to speed her up. Finally, the young girl stopped and stepped behind. Pushing Ari forward, she yelled out, "Hey, Miguel! Missing someone?" He glanced up, the look of polite interest on his face warming with incredulous surprise as he recognized her . Passing swiftly through the crowd as if they were not there, he took both of Ari's hands in his own and twirled her from side to side, his face shining with admiration.

Ari pulled her hands free and smoothed down the dress, eyes downcast to avoid his gaze. "I guess I look pretty silly," she said through the strange shortness of breath that afflicted her. She'd told them that the bodice was too tight. "Not what you'd expect, huh?"

Miguel shook his head slowly, his eyes never leaving her, "You look exactly as I've always expected to see you," he contradicted, sounding a little breathless himself. Lonnie reached them, her eyes wide with surprise.

"Ari! I would never have recognized you. What did you do to yourself? Where did you get that dress?" Lowering her voice a little, she added, "That's a little too much make-up, don't you think?" Shooting her a look of displeasure, Ari responded.

"A couple of Miguel's cousins lent me the dress. And I refused all cosmetics." she added pointedly. The music swelled, and Miguel swung her onto the makeshift dance floor. The evening dissolved into a confusing melange of dance partners, drink and more music. Everytime she tried to grab a bite to eat, someone, usually Miguel, would twirl her back onto the floor. At one point, Ari was dancing with Tim and he yelled, over the music, "I didn't know you could dance like this?"

Laughing up at him, she yelled back, "My mom was a social anthropologist. She used to say 'only man laughs, only man cries and only man dances'." Then the patterns of music swept them apart. The only constant in the confusion was that Miguel was always there, somewhere. Finally, he pulled her out of the crowd.

"Ari, do you know what time it is?"

"Hmmm, no. What time is it?" She swayed a little, giggling, and he steadied her, hands on her shoulders. Giggling up at him, she admired the way his curls fell from his forehead and raised her hand to lightly touch one lock of hair, pulling it gently to straighten it out.

"Come on, we've got to get to the docks in 15 minutes or miss the last shuttle back." For a startled second, she froze, hand up-raised. Then, as his face started to move toward hers, she stepped back.

Looking around frantically, she asked, "Where's Lonnie, and Tim? We can't go without them."

"They left hours ago, come on!" But she still held back.

"My uniform! I've got to get changed!"

"No time for that ... " Consuela was suddenly there, thrusting a bundle of rolled up fabric in her arms.

"Bring the dress back the next time you visit," she suggested. Another cousin appeared, tossing a key chain to Miguel.

"There's my bike, Miguel. Just leave it at the SeaQuest slip and I'll pick it up tomorrow."

"Thanks, Paulo." Grabbing her hand, he ran toward the parked vehicles. He handed her a spare helmet, and she stuck it on her head, starting to kilt the full skirts up in order to straddle the motorcycle behind him, then realizing that the action was unnecessary, and considering the length of the skirts, rather dangerous. Securing the uniform bundle on her lap, she fixed the helmet straps and leaned forward, resting her cheek against his back and reaching her arms around him.

"Wait a minute," he advised. "It's getting cooler. Better take my jacket."

"I'll get mine," she protested, "just give me a moment to open this ...."

"We don't have a moment, cara mia. Here," and he handed his jacket back. Slipping her arms through the sleeves, she relished the residual warmth from his body on her bare flesh. Sighing softly, she leaned against him again, her hands on his bare shoulders before moving down to circle his waist. Breathing in the spicy, sharp scent of him, she sighed again, wishing that the night didn't have to end, and closed her eyes.

The ride through the dark streets was swift and exciting. Arriving at last, and locking up the motorcycle, Miguel took Ari's hand and they walked toward the shuttle point, taking their time. A figure waited in the darkness ahead of them as they passed from light to shadow to light under the overhead lamps.

"Seaman," an unpleasant voice yelled from ahead, "Are you attached to the SeaQuest?" Ari stiffened sharply, as Miguel's head jerked up with surprise.

"Yes. Yes, I am," he responded.

"Well, it's about time! I was beginning to think I was in the wrong place." Walking forward into the light, the man, a little older than Miguel, nodded toward Ari, "Say goodbye to your girlfriend and help me with my gear, and maybe I won't report this trepass to your captain." Miguel's free hand tightened into a fist, but Ari pulled at his arm.

"Miguel," she warned in an undertone. "That's Dr. Siebas." The professor's sternly handsome face shifted into a pleased expression.

"I didn't realize that I was so well-known, even the chiquitas from the barrios know me?" he smirked.

"No," she corrected him carefully. "The women I've just left have much too much sense to get involved with someone like you. Hello, Dr. Siebas." His cold eyes moved upward toward her face and narrowed with recognition. Miguel felt himself grow cold with anger at the older man's expression.

"So, it's the little nun," he sneered. His eyes again dropped to where Miguel's jacket gaped open. "Not quite so virginal, now, are you?" He looked toward the Sensor Chief. "So, tell me Seaman, what is she like? Worth the price of the ride?" Miguel took a step forward, his brows lowering with anger, Ari holding him back. A hail from the sea darkness interrupted them. Turning toward the approaching shuttle, Dr. Siebas dismissed the two from his attention, ordering, "Anyway, kiss goodbye and get my gear. I'm in a hurry."

Ari shook her head at her friend and went to pick up some of the packages piled nearby. Miguel shrugged and followed her.

Captain Bridger jumped out of the shuttle. "Dr. Siebas, I'm glad that you've arrived. I'm Captain Nathan Bridger, of the SeaQuest, DSV." Siebas waved his hand carelessly.

"Yes, yes. Sorry I'm late, but you know how it is. There's always one more person one needs to see. My equipment is over there." Bridger looked and his eyes widened appreciatively at the sight of Ari's outfit. As she passed him, he commented quietly, "That's not regulation, ensign."

Blushing, Ari hurried by, followed closely by Miguel. Samuel Siebas raised his brows. "She's a member of the crew?" he asked incredulously. Then he shrugged. Making no effort to lower his voice, he said, "I guess I owe her an apology, then. I thought that she was one of the local talent."

Keeping firmly in mind the fact that this person was going to have compleat control of his boat's systems, Bridger held his temper in check and signaled for the other crewmen to come help with the equipment, while Siebas strolled past him, empty-handed, into the waiting shuttle. He sighed, this was not going to be an easy assignment.


PART 10

Tim sat perfectly still and seethed behind carefully shuttered eyes while his so-called best friend and closest confidant fidgetted in the next seat, wondering loudly at the hold up. Dr. Siebas was supposed to have started briefing them about TSUNAMI a good ten minutes ago, but there was still no sign of him or the captain. As Tim shot a sideways glare at the sensor chief, who under normal circumstances would have been nursing his hangover in private, the door to the ready room opened and the two missing members of the conference entered.

Shocked out of his own misery for a moment, Tim stared at the captain with surprise. He looked tired and a little beaten, as if he'd just lost an argument of some sort. On the other hand, Siebas appeared to be smug and pleased with life in general and his position in it in particular. Walking with a peculiar gliding step, he took his place at the head of the table and leaned, nonchalantly against the wall, gazing proprietarily around the table at them with an annoying smirk.

This was Tim's first view of the visiting scientist, and he wasn't all that impressed with him. Nowhere near as much as the man himself expected. He was middling tall, built like a college football captain who'd kept up his training into middle-aged. although he looked to be only in his mid-30's, his dark hair was silvered at the temples. Tim wondered about that. You could do so much with artificial aids these days. With an imperceptible shrug, he turned his attention back to Captain Bridger.

Tim compressed his lips tightly. It annoyed him, Miguel's assumption that he knew what was best for Ari. And his deepseated resentment and feeling of betrayal surged up again. But the worst of it was, he agreed. He didn't think Ari should be here either.

He'd been feeling this way since shortly after Ari had reappeared at the party the night before, looking decidedly un-Ari like in that outfit Miguel's cousins had lent her. He wasn't sure how she'd done it, the make-up job was so skillful, but she looked different, exotic, dangerous. Not really beautiful, but ravishing and irresistible. While he was still trying to deal with the surprise, Miguel had stepped forward and annexed her. And she had LET him!

Tim had tried to get some time to talk to her, to understand the bewildering metamorphosis, but after that, there was just no opportunity. Ari was always out on the floor dancing with someone or another, and Miguel hovered nearby, watching her like a hawk, ready to cut in at a moments notice. And who would have guessed that she could dance like that?

And when she and Miguel took the floor together, people moved out of the way and watched them. Tim didn't think that the two of them even noticed the audience. It was obvious from the way her eyes never strayed that she didn't see anything but the Cuban. Tim's fingers twitched, trying to form a fist, and he forced them flat.

Lonnie hadn't helped matters any, either, laughing at him. He would have sworn that Ari was different from all the others. And she had been. The girl who'd returned to the party wasn't the same one he met three, four times a week, to discuss literature and languages. His Ari was cool, collected, thoughtful and precise, not that, that wanton, fascinating, fiery woman who'd appeared like a succubus in a dream, unbearably attractive, but just out of reach.

He'd wondered, after a while, if perhaps she'd been slipped something, while she'd been away from them. Maybe she'd been tricked into eating some kind of mind altering substance. But once he'd finally caught her up, he knew that it wasn't anything like that.

That was what had hurt the most, when he finally got a dance with her. She'd been exactly herself. But it was as if they weren't on the same frequency. Tim examined that thought, nodding his head slowly. Yes, that was it. That was the way it felt, like she wasn't quite present to him, or that he wasn't exactly real to her, that nobody was, except Miguel. It wasn't fair. Now the fingers of one hand did clench together, forming a fist.

Ari was HIS friend. She liked him, and could barely tolerate Miguel. Why was she doing this? Why was Miguel? Ok, so maybe, just maybe, Tim hadn't exactly shown romantic interest in her before last night, but he'd been working up to it.

Shifting uncomfortably, Tim opened his hand, examining it blankly as he considered just what he was feeling. Ari was ... Ari wasn't the woman last night. That was someone sexually exciting, enticing, alluring, fascinating. Ari was ... Ari. His friend. Confusion settling, Tim's features hardened again. And Miguel had no business with her at all.

At this point in his cogitations, a timid knock sounded on the frame of the door and Ari herself peered around the opening. For a moment, Tim felt his feelings softening, a soft smile curling the corners of his mouth. She looked like herself again, a little pale, shy, and uncertain, as she looked around the room, her eyes signaling to him as they passed. The poor kid probably had a headache from hell after what she'd consumed at the party.

Then her gaze reached Dr. Siebas, lounging against the bulkhead with that self-satisfied smirk on his rather handsome, professorial face, and her entire aspect changed. Tim blinked with surprise as the diffident, faintly pathetic junior officer disappeared and she seemed to coil up within herself, like a cat preparing to spring. No. Not a cat. Like a mongoose, sighting a cobra.

In that moment, Tim knew that her entire attention was concentrated on the good doctor, even as she turned to the captain.

"You wanted me, sir?" He nodded wearily and opened his mouth to respond, but Siebas was already answering.

An unpleasant smile on his face, Siebas had unfolded himself in order to glide toward her. "Yes, Miss Adler," Siebas was saying. "I've reviewed the crew records and they indicate that you are the most qualified person on this ship to serve as my personal assistant." He made it sound like a great honour.

Ari didn't even glance in his direction, deliberately, politely rude. Ignoring him, she waited for the captain to speak. But Tim felt certain that she knew exactly where the approaching man was every minute.

Moving in far too close, he put his arm around her shoulders and tried to lead her toward the only empty seat in the room, between Tim and Lt. Brody. But she stood sapling straight and unmoveable until the captain nodded before allowing herself to be so guided. Tim was aware of Miguel seething beside him, and he felt a shameful touch of vindication at that.

As Ari passed behind Miguel, she lightly touched the tips of her fingers to his back. It could have been accidental, but some of the tension drained out of him. Tim felt a stab of annoyance at this freshl sign of their new-found rapport, even as she did the same passing him.

Siebas continued in the same self-congratulatory, boasting tones. "Your captain has been so kind as to release you from your regular duties for the duration of my visit so that you will be," his hands squeezed her shoulders as he tried gently pushing her into the seat, "available to me twenty-four hours a day."

Miguel stood angrily at this insinuation, but Ari forestalled a scene by abruptly twisting her shoulders sharply to one side and side-slipping out of his grasp in a smooth, almost boneless manuever. Placing the chair between them as a barricade, she regarded him with cool wariness, her chin proudly raised.

"If that's the case, then I must refuse the honour. Dr. Wolenczak is far more qualified than I am, and he's been with the SeaQuest since it's last tour. I only joined a few weeks ago. If it is specialized knowledge in the operation of the wireless satellites that you require, Chief Ortiz has a better practical understanding of them and considerably more experience. Thank you for considering me", she paused, "but, as I am neither qualified nor rated to perform such duties, I must refuse. " She turned toward Captain Bridger. "Permission to leave, sir."

"Permission denied. Sit down. Please." The last word was a plea for cooperation which, combined with the appeal in his eyes, undid her resolve to get as far from the disagreeable Siebas as possible. Ari sat without comment. She glanced over at Tim for some kind of sign of what was going on, but all he could give her was a blank stare in return, hating himself for doing so, especially since Miguel gave her an approving nod from his other side. Ari sighed, folding her hands in her lap and looked straight ahead, apparently ignoring the exultant doctor behind her.

The captain pointedly added, "And ENSIGN Adler, you are relieved from standing watch as of this moment. I expect you to use the time today to familiarize yourself with TSUNAMI and the modifications it will require on the SeaQuest."

Dr. Siebas ignored the pointed hint. Placing his hand on her shoulder again, he replied to Ari's comments. "Your loyalty to Mr. Wolenczak is commendable, Miss Adler, but misplaced. While his degrees in the computer sciences are the more impressive of the two, the very fact that he was incapable of completing the highest degree indicates his obvious unsuitability for the position. Perhaps when he is older."

Ari sat perfectly straight, ignoring the encroaching hand, refusing to acknowledge his familiarities. Frigidly polite, she retorted. "That is unfair, Dr. Siebas. Everyone in the field knows what happened and it reflects in no way upon DR. Wolenczak's capabilities, except, perhaps, in a positive light."

From Lucas's reaction, sitting straight up in his seat and staring at Ari with an expression of surprise, Tim would have bet that the information wasn't as widely known as she implied. And he felt an overwhelming curiousity as to what had happened.

"Dr. Siebas, if you would begin, I'm sure that ENSIGN Adler and the rest of us are eager to hear your presentation. We have been waiting for some time now," Bridger interrupted.

Shooting a cold look of dislike in the captain's direction, the scientist returned to his position at the front. He began, "As you know by now, TSUNAMI is a revolutionary innovation in the field of navigational imaging and location finding." He pulled a stack of manuals out of his briefcase.

"Here are the specific modifications that will be required for each outside sensoring array on SeaQuest. You will notice that you each have only the information that you require. Due to the security surrounding the technique, Miss Adler and I," he smirked at Ari, "will be the only two people in the position of knowing the magnitude of the compleat modifications." He flashed his tight smile around the room, "Furthermore, Miss Adler and young Master Lucas will be assisting me in the modifications to the computer core." A wave of uncertainty swept through the room as the crewmembers looked at one another and the captain.

Ari raised her hand. At his nod, she asked, "Shouldn't Captain Bridger and Dr. Wolenczak have copies of the TSUNAMI specifications?" Tim nodded. That only made sense.

"Unnecessary!" he snapped. "We've already discussed this and the subject is closed. May I continue?" Ari put her hands in her lap, her face deliberately noncommittal.

Having handed out the manuals by division, he began his briefing, "TSUNAMI is a system by which every outside sensory device in the ship will be married together to improve the performance and response of the navigational system. Each system will be fitted with a inter-device communication system, an idcs, which will allow the master device in the computer matrix to direct and refine the information obtained from that device."

His sense of injury and anger at life overcame Tim, and he muttered under his breath, "Idiotics." Several people laughed, including Lt. Brody and Miguel, but Ari barely noticed, concentrating on Siebas with that cool, calculating awareness, to the exclusion of almost everything else.

Siebas uncovered the oddly shaped item on the table. It resembled a small black box with several cables, wires and connections trailing from four of the six sides. They were not able to see the base and the sixth side had a round indentation with a protrubance in the center, rather like half a stacking ring mold. "This is one of the idcses."

Picking up a small, round box, he removed a dark, ring-shaped item. "This is the activator." Smiling drily, he added, "I call it the 'wedding ring'. It fits on the protrubance, the 'ring finger'." And he demonstrated, sliding it into place and twisting slightly. With some difficulty, he removed the activator and handed the item to the Captain, urging him to pass it around. When Ari got it, she turned it over, then passed it onto Tim with a shudder. He examined it as briefly. It looked like an slave ring from some time prior to the US of A Civil War to him.

Turning back, Siebas continued his briefing. Indicating the binders in front of everyone in the room except Ari and himself, he said, "You will, no doubt require several days to read and understand the information located within. So, we will schedule another meeting for that time. However, I will be available to answer any questions before then that you feel are not adequately answered in the material before you." His tone indicated that he thought that rather unlikely. Radiating a palpable sense of satisfaction, he beamed around the room. "Are there any questions." Miguel raised his hand. "Yes?"

Inclining his head toward the inter-device communication system, Miguel commented, "WSKRS are packed solid with sensing equipment. That thing won't fit inside one. How do you propose to handle that problem?"

"Whiskers? Oh, yes. The slang term for the satellite probes. Well, yes, as a matter of fact, I did take into account the specific limitations of the wireless satellites and have prepared a smaller version that should fit in the space currently occupied by the olefactory apparatus." Nodding like a teacher toward a promising student, he added, "Good question." But Miguel wasn't satisfied with this response.

"You can't do that!" he protested. "That's a vital part of the the information gathered!"

Regarding him coldly, Siebas folded his arms. "All these modifications were approved by the UEO high command. If you have an objection, take it up with them." Miguel sat back in his seat, arms folded, glowering angrily. Ari raised her hand. Tim was curious at to her objection. She seemed oddly fearless in facing the rather overpowering scientist.

"Then you did manage to work around the feedback problem that arises when the idcs tries to over-ride a WSKRS signal?" she asked, and Tim knew that she'd used the nickname for the satellites as a subtle jab to the man's pretensions. A curious silence greeted her question, while Siebas's face took on a strained, stricken expression. Quickly, he pasted an affable smile on, ludicrous against his sudden pallor.

"Ah, yes," he answered, avuncularly, "you were there when my initial design caused the failure of the trials conducted by the Wireless Satellites lab, weren't you? Of course I've taken care of that little problem, nothing to worry about." Miguel leaned behind Tim, whispering "What happened?"

"That doesn't matter, young man!" Dr. Siebas snapped testily. "I have taken care of the oversight and it will not affect these tests. Now, I trust that I have answered enough of your questions for now," he stated repressively. "You will probably find the answers to any further questions in the information I am providing," his tone of voice clearly added what he did not say 'assuming that you can understand it'. He stared significantly at Miguel. "I expect, and the high command expects, the necessary modifications to begin as soon as possible. Miss Adler, please stay." He busied himself returning the idcs to it's protective casing, dismissing them by his very rudeness.

Captain Bridger unfolded himself from his chair, "They will, Dr. Siebas, as soon as my people have studied the possible effects on SeaQuest. Thank you for your briefing." Tim gave him a hard stare, wondering at his ironic tone of voice on that last sentence. But Siebas didn't seem to notice. The captain nodded to the others, dismissing them while Dr. Siebas simply waved his hand in irritation, fitting the casing and closing it up. Miguel stepped beside Ari as the others drifted out, low, discontented murmurs filling the air.

"Meet me later, in the galley, at 1900. I want to hear about that mishap." Ari nodded her compliance. With a last distrustful glare at Siebas's unaware back, Miguel left the room. Tim reluctantly following him, leaving the door slightly ajar. He wasn't required anywhere immediately, he thought. Perhaps he could wait for Ari to finish up in there and find out just what did happen the previous night.

Leaning against the wall beside the open door, he heard the doctor say with false affability, "Ah, Captain, don't you have duties to perform?" From the sound of his reply, Captain Bridger intended to get a few things settled. "Nope. Can't think of one." Tim grinned at the sound. Now, that was the Captain!

"Well, that doesn't say much for your leadership," Siebas concluded sulkily. "Now, Miss Adler ... " he began, but the Captain interrupted him.

"That's ENSIGN Adler, doctor."

"Too formal," Siebas complained, dismissively. "May I call you Irene?" he asked in an invigiling tone of voice, mis-pronouncing the name "Eye-reen". Tim's smile grew wider. Ari hated that pronounciation.

"No," she answered repressively, but he continued regardless, saying, "And you must call me Samuel."

Tim wished he were a fly on the wall when the captain interrupted with "We'd appreciate it if you'd use a seat, doctor. Sets a bad example for people in authority to break even the minor rules."

Siebas continued confidingly, "Now, Irene, I realize that this is all a bit overwhelming. But don't worry, I will do everything in my power to make it all easier for you. As my assistant, I will expect you to oversee the modifications, ensuring that they are carried out exactly as indicated, and to report any problems that may arise to me, In addition, you are to be available to carry messages from me to the various parts of the ship." He paused, then added patronizingly, "That's not too difficult, now, is it?" Tim frowned at his tone of voice. He was going too far with that.

Ari responded stiffly, "I will, of course, perform any duties as needed, in the tradition of SeaQuest."

Continuing, Siebas said, "Now I know that many people find it difficult to work with a genius. This will be a consideration as you and young Master Lucas will be going to be working with me quite closely, while modifying the computer matrix. Especially you," there was a pause and the sound of a chair scraping back. "I don't want you to feel overwhelmed. This experience can be a positive one for both of us, if we let it."

Ari's voice, when it answered, caused Tim to start with surprise. She sounded as if she were standing right beside him. "Yes sir, I am aware that some people find it disrupting to be near a real genius, but I don't think that you have anything to worry about. I've always found Lucas Wolenczak very understanding and easy to work with." Tim was careful to be down the hall a short distance when she slipped out the room, closing the door firmly behind her. Unfortunately, he had chosen the wrong direction and she didn't even see him as she hurried off the other way.

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

Trying to hide his amused expression, Captain Bridger rubbed his chin as he sat up in the chair, preparatory to standing. "Dr. Siebas," he said pleasantly, "please try to remember that ENSIGN Adler is a member of my crew and treat her with the respect you would any officer on board." Dr. Siebas blinked blankly at him.

"Of course," he agreed cluelessly. "What else?"

"Yes, there is something else, doctor," standing, Bridger smiled as pleasantly as possible. "I'd like you to submit to a physical examination conducted by our medical personnel." The scientist bristled defensively.

"Surely that is unnecessary. You can obviously see that I am in perfect health."

"Looks can be deceiving, doctor, as you well know. And UEO regulations forbid my taking anyone with health problems down in a deep submergence vehicle. If you refuse, I'm afraid that I will have no choice but to order you off SeaQuest."

Spluttering, Siebas protested, "You can't do that. You have your orders to assist me in any way possible, and additional orders to not counter my requests. You cannot put me off this ship!"

"On the contrary, doctor, if you refuse to allow us to confirm that you are, indeed, fit enough, then I will have no choice, and the UEO would support me in this action. They think very highly of you, doctor, and would regret losing the benefit of your innovation prematurely." ¸

"Is this a threat?"

"No, merely a statement. You have an appointment with Dr. Smith in about thirty minutes. I strongly suggest you find the time to make it." Nodding genially, Bridger turned his back on the frustrated Dr. Siebas, and left the room. Behind him, he could hear one of the chairs fall to the ground. He grinned, then sobered, sighing heavily. There was going to be trouble there before much longer.

*

Some distance from the conference room, Ari leaned against the wall and savored the zing of her last remark. Looking down at the materials in her hand, she idly flipped through, wondering what changes he'd made since the Sorbonne trials. She ought to start looking over the modifications. At least she didn't have to worry about learning SeaQuest's systems from scratch at the same time. Pushing off with her back, she half-turned towards her quarters, then paused. Crew quarters were clearly listed by name and rank in the computer and on the hatch doors, accessible to anyone.

Biting her lower lip thoughtfully, she considered the matter carefully. Lucas would probably be interested in getting an overview of the modifications, especially since he was specifically refused them. She snorted angrily, shaking her head. The gall of the man, refusing to let the captain in on what he intended. And, unless the dear doctor had changed significantly in the past few years, they were stored somewhere in a computer file, as well. He had put everything on computer, back at Sorbonne. That had made it easier to assign blame after the incident. She grinned, rumour had it, he even kept track of his dates and conquests on computer. Even before the thought was finished, she was on her way to find the younger man.

"Hello, Ari," he greeted her on opening the door. "Come on in. What did Siebas have to tell you that was too volitile for the rest of us." Twisting up her lips distastefully, Ari shook her head.

"Nothing much, really. I was wondering if I could use your computer for a while?"

"What's wrong with the terminal in your quarters?"

"Nothing. Except that it has my name on it." After a blank moment, Lucas grinned.

"Ah, and just anyone would know where you are, huh?"

"Exactly."

Pulling the console seat out with a flourish, he bowed her toward it.

"Please, be my guest," he offered, his eyes glittering dangerously.

"No, I couldn't take your very own chair," Ari refused teasingly. "You might need it." Putting the materials down beside the screen, she flipped through until she found the data disk that she was certain had to be there. "Ah, here it is. I knew that He wouldn't be burdening Himself with so much paper."

Seating himself, Lucas held out his hand, " What have you got?"

"I don't know. Yet. Let's find out together."

As the talented fingers of the young man flickered into action over the keyboard, Ari leaned over the back of his seat, watching intently.

"I didn't know that you knew all that about me," he commented conversationally. Ari laughed quietly.

"You? You were one of my heroes, Dr. Lucas Wolenczek."

"ABD," he added. "Really? Why?"

"ABD? Yeah, all but degree." She paused for a moment, then answered the question. "My family got me enrolled in college just to keep me from lying about my age and joining the service. When I heard that you had managed to get on SeaQuest, even younger than I was, not even waiting for that all important fragment of parchment, I was so eaten up with jealousy that they were afraid I'd try to do the same." She sighed. "They have a rather exaggerated opinion of my abilities," she added reflectively.

Lucas appeared not to have noticed the addition. Peering at the screen, he announced, "Hey, this isn't really a data disc. It's more of an invitation, or a key. Uh-huh, here it is," he said as the computer started barking like a doberman. Ari stared at it in surprise. "Looks like he's got a watchdog program here to restrict access. Hmmm, let's see exactly what it does do?" Disabling the warning program, he continued the conversation. "The Navy means that much to you?"

"SeaQuest means that much to me," she corrected quietly. "I've been preparing for her since I was eight or nine and they laid the keel. If my father ..." she stopped. "Nevermind." Leaning closer, she looked at the code. "What've you got?"

"Ahh-hah. Not only does it track how often you access the information and where you go in the file, but your physical location, as well. Looks like he wants to know where you are at all times."

"The jerk." Thoughtfully, she commented, "You know, I really hate being spied on. It makes me testy to have someone looking over my shoulder like that. Lucas, how are your cloning facilities?"

Looking up with a wild grin, he replied, "The best! Just let me finish altering this ... ," his voice trailed off. With a grunt of satisfaction, he finished, "There! Now the gatekeeper will show that you're in your quarters. Now, I'll just ... " once again his voice trailed off. Ari watched him for a few minutes, compleatly wrapped up with his hacking, then, making herself comfortable, settled down to study the hardcopy of the specifications.

Even the most comfortable position gets irksome after a while, and Ari stretched as she rose. Strolling toward the computer, where Lucas still croached over the screen, flipping through pages with an astonishing speed, she asked, "Have you gotten to the computer modifications, yet?"

"Yeah, I looked them over." Shooting her a sideways glance, he uploaded the pertinant graphics.

"What's your opinion of this scheme?" she asked curiously, leaning over to get a better view. Lucas raised his eyebrows.

"Your friend really intends to give his 'master' control of SeaQuest."

"That's what I thought, too. But look here," she pointed to the screen. "And here. If anything were to go wrong with TSUNAMI, those could cause a core crash and shut everything down."

"Hmmm, I noticed a couple of others, as well." He spun around. "Are you expecting the tests to fail?" he asked pointedly.

"No ... Not exactly," she answered uncertainly, "but, this is a new system, untested on anything near the scale of SeaQuest. I can't find any mention of previous trials, not even the one I know of that failed. And Dr. Siebas is so certain of success, he isn't taking any precautions at all." Pacing back a ways, she pivoted, "How could we protect her against such a breakdown?" she asked. Lucas shook his head.

"A firewall would be too obvious with the amount of power he expects to pull and the response time he's demanding." Ari's shoulders sagged, but the young man just continued to look thoughtful. "I might be able to install a circuit breaker." He suggested slowly. Ari looked toward him hopefully as he explained, "That way, if something does go wrong, the damage to the computer won't be as severe. There would be some damage, but it has the advantage of not being as noticible. I think it's possible anyway. I'll get to work on it."

"Shouldn't you get the captain's permission, first?" Lucas' hands froze over the keyboard. Folding them into his lap, he spun around, looking her full in the face in the intensity of sincerity.

"Definately not. Captain Bridger has his hands tied with this one. He not only has to offer full assistance, but he can't countermand, or abridge any part of Siebas' plan. If I went to him, he'd be duty-bound to go to Siebas with it, and the idea would be scratched." Ari looked thoughtful.

"I hadn't realize that."

"Yeah, well, that's how he got you for an assistant. The captain did suggest that I was better qualified, but Siebas overrode his objections."

"I see." And Ari felt that she did see, indeed. A thought occurred to her. "Ummm, Lucas," Ari spoke hesitantly, "with the master in place, he'll have access to all crew records, as well as your programs, memory space, and access here, won't he?"

Pursing his lips thoughtfully, Lucas nodded slowly, "Theoretically, yes. I guess he would."

Pursuing her thought, Ari continued, speaking slowly, "But he's not aware of your set-up down here, is he? I mean, if you erect a firewall around your computer and certain sensitive files, he wouldn't immediately notice it, would he?

His brow wrinkled, he decided, "No. He shouldn't. It would be like a blind spot in the eye." Then he observed, "This guy really makes you paranoid, doesn't he?"

She shrugged helplessly and sighed, "I don't want him in my life, I don't want him looking at my life and I don't trust him at all." Putting a hand on the corner of the screen, she added softly, "Most of all, I don't trust him with SeaQuest."

*

Dr. Wendy Smith was well aware of Captain Bridger's anxious regard, but she continued updating the records before her.

"Well?" he asked promptingly. She looked up at last and half-smiled, pressing her lips closed and shaking her head.

"Dr. Siebas is in perfect physical health, Nathan," she informed him, knowing that this was not the news he wanted to hear. "There is absolutely no reason to worry about the effect of prolonged submergence on his physiology. In fact, he's in better shape than you are." Standing, she circled the desk and leaned against the front of it, crossing her arms over her chest. "But then, he doesn't have the worries that you do."

Nathan Bridger shrugged impatiently, not wanting to get into a discussion about his own health. "What about the other thing?" he pushed. She shook her head regretfully.

"You know that I can't discuss the results of psychological tests with you. Those records are sealed."

"Unless the subject could prove a danger to the operation of the vessel," he reminded her pointedly. She laughed, then conceeded the point.

"Well, I wouldn't approve him for long term service on a submarine, not any sub, least of all SeaQuest, but he's not an immediate danger to himself or others. More like a minor annoyance." Bridger snorted with exasperation.

"Minor?" he contested.

"Or not so minor," she teasingly added, then sobered. "He is frighteningly self-absorbed, to the point of others not being exactly real to him, but the success of this project means more to him than anything else in his life. He will not do anything to jeopardize the tests." Standing up, she advised, "Nathan, you have no choice. You may not like him, but until these trials are over, you will have to put up with him." The captain sighed and turned to go, but Dr. Smith called out to him, looking down at the papers on her desk with a faintly troubled expression. "Nathan?"

"Hmmm?"

"You are allowing him to have ensign Adler for an assistant, aren't you? And you released her from all ship-board duties for the duration?"

"Why, yes, I am and I did. Siebas insisted that anything less would interfer with her attendance on him."

"What about the work she's doing with Darwin?" Nathan looked at the psychic doctor carefully. If the captain is the father to his crew, the young woman standing with the puzzled frown on her face saw herself as it's mother. And she knew how he felt about the dolphin.

"I don't know," he admitted. "I don't see it as anything related to the operation of SeaQuest, and neither does she." He grinned. "In fact, I get the feeling that the less official notice taken of it, the better, in her opinion. She definately hasn't been assigned to work with him."

"I think that you should talk to her. Impress upon her the importance of what she and Darwin are accomplishing. And Nathan," Wendy looked up, caught his gaze in her own, "You might emphasize that the no-fraternization rule applies, and you intend to back it up. Dr. Siebas has no self-control where women are concerned, and no compunctions about abusing his authority." Bridger smiled grimly, nodding.

"I'll talk to her, but remember what happened the last time someone mentioned that rule to this particular ensign." Wendy chuckled softly.

"Yes, but this time, I don't think she would mind. In fact, I suspect that it would be a relief for her to be ordered to obey it."



PART 11

"There she is, finally!" Miguel declared, looking toward the entrance. Tim immediately stopped whatever he was saying and craned his head around.

"Looks like Lucas is with her. Maybe she's been with him all this time. I wonder why?"

Getting up and pulling another chair over, Miguel shrugged, "I don't care. I want to know what this guy, Siebas, is up to. He's too slick to be true." Lonnie twisted her lips into a disgusted grimace.

"That's all you two have been talking about since that conference," she complained. "You'd think that he was some kind of monster. He doesn't look that bad to me. And I think that TSUNAMI sounds like a great idea. It'll be like actually being the boat, if I understand it correctly."

"If it works," Tim cautioned. "Anyway, you weren't there. He was riding the captain so hard, I kept expecting to see spurs." Miguel nodded sagaciously at the metaphor.

"That's what he was doing. Pushing to see just how far he could go." His eyebrows lowered threateningly, "But it was the way he looked at Ari that really bugged me. The unaltered slime." Coming up to the table at this moment, Ari laughed.

"Slime, huh? You must be talking about our big mouthed sea bass," she said, sitting beside Tim, Lucas having already taken the seat next to Miguel. She lightly touched the comm officer's hand before reaching for the salt.

Tim laughed bitterly, "So, you think he's a Stereolepis gigas, do you?"

"A giant sea bass? Works for me," Lucas agreed drily.

Craning around the younger man, Miguel glowered at Ari, "Where have you been? I tried to find you before coming here, but even your roommate didn't know where you were." Unconcerned, Ari took a sip of iced tea.

"Oh, and did Teena give you a piece of her mind?" she gently mocked him. "Miguel, you should know better than to disturb someone on sleep shift. Are your ears still ringing?"

Smiling wryly, he shook his head, "No, but close. She sent you a message and I quote, 'The next time you go Incognita, leave a note on the door for your swans.' end quote." Ari chuckled.

"I wish that I had her gift of the English language. She just sort of invents it as she goes along."

"You still haven't answered," he protested. "Where have you been?"

Instead of answering, Lucas looked theatrically around the galley, like a spy in an old movie. Then, reaching into a pocket, he pulled out three data discs, crouched over, blocking them from the view of the rest of the room with his body. "How would you guys like to be the first ones on the block with your own, your very own, unauthorized, compleat, pirated copy of the great gift to navigation, TSUNAMI?" he asked, spreading them out like cards. Eagerly, Tim, Miguel and Lonnie reached forward, each taking one.

Tim looked at Ari admiration, "So that's where you ran off to after the meeting, huh? Copying Stereo's files with Lucas? Did you plan that all along." Ari started nodding, then frowned at the last question, giving him a hurt look. Shrugging it off, she explained.

"Well, Lucas really did the cloning, I've just been reading through the good doctor's novel. Stereo," she snorted with amusement, adding parenthetically, "that name suits him. will expect me to be letter perfect on it all by tomorrow, and if I'm not, he'll insist on tutoring me privately." The thought of that suddenly nauseated her and she looked down at her plate, pushing it away distastefully. Tim firmly replaced it.

"Eat," he advised not so gently. "It won't do any good for you to starve yourself." She smiled uncertainly at him, and took a small bite. "Anyway," he continued, "Miguel has been waiting to hear about that little mishap you mentioned in the meeting." Ari regarded him closely, hearing the hard edge in his voice at the name, but any speculation on her part was derailed by Lonnie's curious question.

"What mishap is this?" Sighing, Ari shook her head slightly.

"It happened my senior year, at Sorbonne. We were up for some new funding, but the committee wanted a demonstration and ..."

Lonnie interrupted. "We who?"

Looking a little abashed, Ari explained. "Oh, sorry. The Wireless Satellites lab at the University of Sorbonne, France. Anyway, we were all set to put our experimental WSKRS through their paces when three of the four went dead in the water."

"And the fourth?" Miguel prompted.

"That was Baby." She smiled lovingly, her eyes turned inward. "Never had much to say for itself, but it sure put the finger on Siebas." She looked around, her smile widening with the memory, and she explained. "Baby was smaller than the others, about half the size of Junior," she said to Miguel. He nodded, and she continued, "It was designed to record all possible signals and to track and follow the strongest or latest signal it heard. And it wouldn't stop even if the signal cut off. I was intending it to track the larger sea mammals." Now her smile was pure evil,

"When the other three died, Baby took off toward a nearby yacht, crying like a lost calf. We found Siebas there, with his favorite 'assistant' wired up to the computer using modified virtual reality gaming gear, the kind that requires probes to actually penetrate. He said that they were preparing to test the TSUNAMI prototype.

"When his signal overloaded our satellites, the feedback had set up a chain reaction that blew his own computer circuits. That yacht was blind, deaf and dumb, and his assistant was out cold." She shrugged. "He claimed that he had no reason to know that it would happen, that his graduate student had thrown the switch and finally that it was our WSKRS that were malfunctioning and the true culprits." She picked up her fork and took another bite.

"What happened?" Lucas asked. "Did you lose the funding?" Ari smiled brightly, shaking her head.

"No. We got it. The committee was so impressed with Baby's performance, that they gave us another chance with the others. And a search through Siebas's records proved that TSUNAMI was deliberately initiated to interfer with the WSKRS. We got the funding, Siebas was given a reprimand, and the graduate student was expelled." She sighed. "That last is what really bothers me. I never thought that she had anything to do with it, that it was all his doing." Stabbing at her plate, she added, "Not that staying enrolled would have done her any good. I heard that the discharge did some damage to the cognitive functions of her brain, leaving her with petite mal and the mind of an infant."

Lucas looked thoughtful. Pointing with his fork, he asked, "What I don't understand is, why did he make such a big deal about you working for him? It sounds to me as if he'd want to stay as far away from you as possible?"

Blushing, Ari grabbed her tea and took a sip to buy herself a little time. "Ah, well," she licked her lips and looked around the table, as if for guidance. "How do I put this? Lucas, you lack one vital requirement demanded by all of Siebas' personal assistants. You aren't female." She shrugged, smiling wryly, "What can I say? He's distressingly conventional?"

Pausing to get another bite of her dinner, she explained. "He offered me the position as his aide after our lab got the funding." She grinned. "I told him I wanted no positions under him, ever." Paused, she continued thoughtfully, "He must have been delighted to realize that he could order me to accept it now." Chasing down the last bite, she gulped the rest of her tea and stood up. "Well, it's back to the grindstone for me," she announced, adding. "You know, when I received my first assignment, I thought that I wouldn't have to pull any more all night study sessions." She turned to Lucas, "Do you suppose that your roommate is in, so I can get my stuff out of your place?"

"Wait a minute, Ari," Miguel protested, bolting the last of his dinner. "Were you planning to study in your quarters?" Ari looked thoughtful.

"Well, I don't know. I'd hate to bother Teena and I'd really prefer to stay out of reach until I have a feeling for the material, but what other option is there? Why do you ask?"

Tim answered, his glance taking in the other two officers, "We have to learn the same stuff you do, anyway. We were talking about studying together before you arrived. Want to join us?" Ari brightened.

"Hey! That'd be great," then she turned curiously to Lonnie. "But you have to learn this, too?" The other woman shrugged.

"Captain Bridger selected me to be the pilot for the demonstration, and he said that I should be as familiar with TSUNAMI as possible. So, yeah, I'm in on this, too."

Lucas stood up, looking at the three of them, "Where you guys planning on studying?" he asked with interest.

Miguel shrugged. "Off duty lounge?" he suggested.

Lucas shook his head. "Too public."

"What about the conference room?" Tim offered.

Lucas again shook his head. "Why don't we go down to the Moon Pool?" he proposed.

"The Moon Pool?" Miguel was incredulous, while Tim mouthed the word 'we?'. "Why? There aren't any chairs or tables, not to mention the computer situation."

"Wait," Ari put out her hand. "That's not a bad idea at that," she said slowly. Turning to Miguel she explained. "You're right about all that, but there's room enough for all of us, it's fairly quiet, and I haven't seen Darwin all day today." She shrugged, "And if anyone comes looking for me, then he won't know to look there, yet, will he?."

Regarding her with curious tenderness, Miguel moved closer and asked quietly, "We're all off-duty now, why would do you think someone would come looking?"

"I'm on twenty-four hour call, now, remember?" she reminded them all. Turning on her heel, she added, "Get your diagrams and pamphlets and whatnot and meet us down by the Pool." And she left the galley, Lucas following close behind. Miguel stared after her for a long moment, until Tim walked deliberately in front of him, almost bumping him in passage. Lonnie gently touched his arm.

"Come on, Miguel. We've got a lot to do."


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:1300
to:i_adler, ens
from:samuel_siebas, phd
Irene, it is now 1:00 p.m. I am expecting you in my quarters for instructions at 2:00. Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:1440
to:i_adler, ens
from:samuel_siebas, phd
Irene, I have just returned from lunch and found that you are not waiting at my quarters as directed. Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:1500
to:i_adler, ens
from:samuel_siebas, phd
Miss Adler, I demand that you respond to my messages immediately! I will not tolerate this impertinance. When you arrive at my quarters, I expect a full explanation of this behaviour. Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:1600
to:i_adler, ens
from:samuel_siebas, phd
Miss Adler, if you do not respond to my reasonable demands on your time, I will be forced to discuss this matter with your captain. Now, come here immediately! Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:1745
to:i_adler, ens
from:samuel_siebas, phd
I went by your quarters and your idiot roommate informed me that you had not been there all day today. If this is true, then where have you been? Is this the way you obey the direct orders of your captain? I will be eating dinner in the Officer's Mess at 6:00, I expect to see you there, so that we can make plans for starting the installation of TSUNAMI in the SeaQuest computer core. Dr. Samuel Samuel Siebas, PhD.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:1900
to:i_adler, ens
from:samuel_siebas, phd
On my way from dinner, I once again stopped by your quarters. Your roommate again informed me that she has not seen you all day. I find this very hard to believe. Nonetheless, you must return at some point to read your mail. Therefore, you will appear at my quarters, tomorrow morning at 8:00, or else I will be forced to begin proceedings against you for insubordination toward a superior officer. I have a temporary commission in UEO for the duration of the TSUNAMI trials, after all. I might as well use it. This is your last warning, Miss Adler. Ignore it at your own peril. Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD.


Dr, Siebas stormed onto the bridge, interrupting a conference between Commander Ford and Captain Bridger.

"Captain Bridger, I demand to know where my assistant has been hiding all day. I've left countless messages for her with your so-called electronic communications program and been by her quarters several times looking for her. There has been no sign of her. Is this how you comply with UEO commands?" Bridger looked confused.

"Why are you looking for ensign Adler today?" he asked carefully. "She was relieved from duty so that she could study your plans for SeaQuest. There hasn't been enough time, yet, for her to have adequately accomplished that."

Siebas looked exasperated. "Of course not, man!" he snapped. "I expected to tutor her in the intricacies of TSUNAMI, myself. How can she be expected to understand it, if I don't explain it to her."

Turning back to the report in Ford's hands, Bridger dismissed the scientist, saying, "I have every confidence in the abilities of my crew, doctor. She will be available tomorrow."

"She'd better be," the irate doctor blustered, "or you'll both suffer for this!" He turned and left the bridge as he'd arrived. With his departure, the captain dropped his air of unconcern and looked inquiringly at his first officer.

"Well, Cmdr., do you have any idea where the elusive Adler has been hanging out?"

Ford shrugged. "She was with Lucas for several hours after the briefing, sir, then they went to eat in the galley. As of an hour ago, they were all around the Moon Pool, studying." Bridger looked thoughtful.

"Were they now?" Looking up, he inquired, "The usual suspects?"

Nodding, Ford amended, "And Lucas." Captain Bridger put a hand lightly on top of the report.

"This looks good," he approved. "I think I'll go see what's going on at the Moon Pool. You have the bridge."

"Yes, sir." Making his way through SeaQuest, Bridger wondered how he could approach the subject of Siebas, not only when to obey his demands, but how to handle him. He couldn't have her willfully thwarting the man before TSUNAMI had a fair trial, but neither could he allow any person to ride roughshod over a member of his crew. On arrival, he surveyed the room in silence, unobserved by the intent, silent crewmembers.

Tim sat cross-legged, diagrams in hand, one finger holding a place further on in the book. Lonnie was stretched out on her stomach, papers scattered in front of her, while Lucas, also cross-legged, was bent forward over several opened manuals, carefully comparing the drawings. Miguel was almost out of sight, leaning against the rim of the pool, his head awkwardly bent forward. Of Ari, there was no sight. Bridger cleared his throat, and hid a grin as the youngsters became aware of him and scrambled to their feet, then he frowned. All except Miguel, that was, who didn't change position at all.

"At ease, crewmen," he ordered, still regarding Miguel curiously. "I'm looking for Ensign Adler." Tim gave him a disgusted grimace and jerked his thumb toward Miguel, who gurgled and turned away. A soft murmuring sound protested the movement from his other side.

"They were the last ones back, sir," he whispered harshly. "And then they both had that conference to attend. Ari's been studying the manuals ever since then."

Walking over, Bridger found Ari, curled up beside Miguel, her head pillowed on his leg, someone's, no, Tim's, discarded uniform jacket draped, along with one of the chief's arms, over her shoulders. As he looked down on her, she stirred, and opened her eyes.

"Hello, sir," she breathed. Yawning, she tried to stretch, then froze as she realized what she was lying on. Pushing herself up more carefully, she regarded Miguel, now stirring himself, with amusement. "Hey, Miguel," she cooed softly. He opened his eyes and found her peering closely at him. "Hey," he answered. Ari tried to suppress an impish grin, looking at the other three accusingly, her back to the captain. "You let us fall asleep!"

"Well, I was all for waking you," Lonnie defended herself with a smile, tossing her head at the guys, "but they claimed that you looked so sweet like that, it would be a shame to disturb you."

Carefully sitting up, Ari commanded, "Well, next time, don't listen to them. How long were we out?" She stopped and looked at the captain again. Sitting at attention, she said, with a tone of surprise, "I'm sorry, sir. You really are here!"

"Yes," he replied, "I really am here. And as the apparent adult in charge of this slumber party, I'm declaring a light's out. Get to bed, you guys." Groaning and protesting, they began to gather their scattered belongings. Captain Bridger looked down at her again. "Ensign, walk with me." he ordered. Miguel looked disappointed, and opened his mouth to protest, but a glare from the captain was enough to quell any argument.

While Captain Bridger removed himself to the door to wait, Ari, kneeling to collect her own printouts, spoke softly to Miguel, who was doing the same beside her, pitching her voice to carry to his ears only. "Hey, now you can say something that no other guy can," she teased, "and have witnesses to prove it."

"Yeah?," he muttered out of the side of his mouth. "What's that?"

"You're the only man who can truthfully claim that I slept with him," she mischieviously told him, standing abruptly to forestall any comment. Smiling brightly at his flabbergasted countenance, she joined the Captain at the doorway. "Night, Lucas," she called back. "And thanks again." He waved in response. "See you tomorrow, Tim? Bye, Lonnie, Miguel." Turning toward the captain, she asked, "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Yes, I'm afraid I do." He sighed leading the way out. "Dr. Siebas claims that you were avoiding him today."

Ari considered acting surprised or innocent, but instead responded candidly, "I'm astonished that he noticed. He usually isn't that perceptive." Bridger gave her a twisted grin and shook his head.

"That's not the behaviour I expect from a member of my crew, Ensign."

"No sir, but until I had the opportunity to look over this stuff," she raised the bulk of papers in her arms, "then there was no real reason for me to wait on Stereo. Um ... Dr. Siebas." He raised his eyebrows at her.

"Stereo?" he asked. She looked embarassed.

"I must be more asleep than I thought," she mumbled to herself. Then she elaborated, "Stereolepis gigas. Sorry, sir, I know that he's a guest on SeaQuest, but ... "

He waved the apology away. "Just be careful where you use it," he cautioned. Taking a deep breath, he broached the subject of her orders. "Ensign, you are to be available at all times, henceforth, in case Dr. Siebas requires your attendance. There is no excuse for neglecting this."

They walked a while in silence while he mused on exactly how to approach the delicate situation. Looking down, he found her pacing beside him, her eyes introspective and a soft smile on her face. The expression reminded him of someone he'd known a long time ago. "Ari Adler," he said aloud. She looked at him with curious eyes. "Any relation to Master Chief Buddy Adler?"

Smiling, pleased with this recognition of her father by his hero, Ari nodded. "Yes sir! My father."

Nodding, he continued, a little easier. "I remember him. Good man. One of the best sonar men I ever served with. You don't look like him, except around the eyes."

"No sir, I take after my mother's side of the family."

"I see. Well, Ari ... you don't mind if I call you that, do you? Well, Ari," he repeated after she nodded her permission, "In a way, since I knew your father, I'd like to give you some, well, fatherly advice."

"Yes sir?" If he weren't so nervous, Bridger would have chuckled at the confusion in her voice.

"You know that there are some men who chase after women simply because they are there. They don't really care for the woman as a person, just for the conquest, keeping score to prove their manhood."

"Yes sir. I know that, sir."

"Well, I see that you're getting closer to just such a man, and I don't want to see you get hurt, not personally, not professionally. Remember that as long as you are wearing that uniform, you represent the SeaQuest and so anything you do reflects on her. Don't allow yourself to be fooled or pressured into anything that would reflect badly on that uniform, this vessel," his voice lowered, "or yourself." Ari blinked, the colour rushing from her face, then nodded. Swallowing heavily, her face grew hard and serious.

"Yes sir. And thank you sir, I appreciate the warning."

"Good, good." That hadn't been as hard as it he'd feared it would be. "And finally," he concluded, "I don't want you neglecting Darwin. He gets a great deal of pleasure from the games you play with him, and I think that it is of utmost importance not to disappoint him. A person can understand the demands of an assignment of this nature, but Darwin is a dolphin. All he would know is that you aren't around any more."

"Yes, sir." Ari stopped. "These are my quarters, sir. Is there anything else." Bridger sighed and shook his head, then stopped.

"Yes, Ari, TSUNAMI is important to UEO and to SeaQuest. If it works, it will revolutionize the entire field of navigation. Try not to irritate Dr. Siebas too much, if at all possible."

"I'll try, sir," she promised and waited.

Nodding dismissal, he said, "Then good night, Ari. And check your mail before you go back to sleep." He walked away, relieved to have that duty out of the way and confident that she would be on her guard around Dr. Siebas. That he had warned her properly with no ambiguities. He heard her words of parting behind him.

"Yes sir. And good night to you, too." Closing the door, Ari leaned against it, grateful for the support, feeling as though all of the air had been knocked out of her lungs by that body blow. Miguel? A common gamesman? A low-down, dirty, despicable, fornicating, notch-carving gamesman? Shutting her eyes against the though, the hot tears that had gathered at the corner threatened to spill over.

How could she have been so stupid? How could she have missed the signs? He'd seemed so nice, once she actually got to know him. She writhed at the memory of how she'd welcomed his kisses, his touch, his presence. The way she'd leaned against him so, so wantonly on the motorcycle. She'd wanted so much to ... , to be .... But now ...?

Uncle Paul had always warned her about that kind of person. Gamesmen, he'd called them. He'd told her what they were like, the kinds of things they did. Perhaps, in a way, she had known. Maybe that was why she tried to hold him at arm's length.

Uncle Paul would be so disappointed with this. According to Andrew, he enjoyed the accounts she'd written to him about all of the people here, but he'd most enjoyed hearing about the Sensor Chief. She couldn't tell him. It would be too much for him in his state.

But she so much wanted to run home, metaphorically anyway. Perhaps she could screen Andrew, he'd been the one to help her with the wolves at college, after all, just as he'd helped her when she started her first menses, that time on vacation, explaining the things that hadn't actually made sense before.

The thought of the gentle, kind, soft man who had become almost a second mother to her, was too much for her. The tears over flowed her eyes, leaving hot tracks as they trickled down her cheeks, sizzling as they went. She couldn't tell him about this either. Much as she loved the man, and as devoted as he was to Uncle Paul, he had no talent for deception. He'd tell her uncle and then her uncle would demand the whole story. For a moment, she wondered if that were such a bad thing.

Of course it was! The man was dying, after all. No need to bother him with the petty problems she was having. She smiled bitterly through the still falling tears. Petty problems, indeed. Chief Petty Officer problem.

If it hadn't been for Captain Bridger seeing them together coming back from liberty and then finding them like that tonight ... Miguel must really have a reputation for the captain to be so worried about it. She should be thankful that the memory of her dad prompted him to tell her. If not for that warning ... She could have fallen for him. She would have fallen for him. But not now. Now she knew what he was and she'd be on her guard.

It didn't matter what he tried, now. Uncle Paul had carefully prepared her for this. Mi... Ortiz could do what he wanted, but he wouldn't get anywhere with her. "Well, Chief Petty Problem Ortiz," she muttered around the lump in her throat. "This is one notch that you just won't get the chance to carve."


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:0012
to:samuel_siebas, phd
from:i_adler, ens
I will meet you in the off-duty lounge at 0800 tomorrow, in compliance with your orders. I. Adler, ens.


SeaQuest internal electronic communications time:0018
to:i_adler, ens
from:m_ortiz, cpo
Pleasant dreams, Ari. Hope I see you there. Miguel




PART 12

Miguel ran into the galley a little after 0600. As expected, Ari was there, wearing a wet suit with her uniform trousers, and Tim, their heads bent together over one of the suddenly ubiquitous manuals. As he headed toward the serving line, he saw one of Tim's arms casually drape itself over the woman's shoulders. Quickly, he grabbed a tray and went through the line, hardly noticing what he selected. Putting his tray down down on Ari's other side, he 'accidently' knocked his friend's hand from its perch.

"Morning, Miguel," Tim nodded coolly. Abstractly, Ari nodded toward him, her finger pointing to something on the page.

"What about here, Tim?" she asked, then added. "Good morning, Miguel. I hope you slept well?"

Grinning, leaning over to see what she was pointing at and brushing her arm with his own, he replied, "Not as well as I had been." She looked up at him, then down again as he smiled significantly, moving her arm out of the way.

"I think I was asleep before I made it onto the bed," she confessed, shrugging her shoulder. "Too much partying, I guess." She shook her head, and turned back to the manual. As he ate, Miguel could hear them discussing the modifications to communications, specifically the proposed loss of range and sensitivity.

"But how can I accurately assess the reduction," Tim complained, querulously. "There are no diagrams for either the idiotics or the slave rings," somehow that terminology had replaced the suggested 'idcs' and 'activator ring', "and no way to calculate the signal to noise ratio inherent in either. I'm forced to accept his figures in my numbers crunching." Miguel's interest sharpened, and he wrinkled his brow.

"Those circuits aren't included?" he asked quickly, leaning over to peer at the pages. "Do you have them, Ari?" She was already flipping through her booklet, shaking her head with concern.

"I'm with you, Miguel. I didn't even notice the lack." Her quick search compleat, she turned from one to the other. "I don't see any, here. I'll look more closely when I get the time. Sorry, Tim."

"No, that's all right." His voice filled with irony. "Maybe that's another thing with which Stereo doesn't think that we can be trusted." He bent over the book again, and after a dubious glance around, Ari joined him, her head close to his own. Miguel considered the two of them together with tolerant condescension. It was ridiculous to think of them as romantically linked.

Sighing, he admitted to himself that he had over-reacted, not that he had any reason to, but because he'd become accustomed to Ari being around. He snorted softly, and her head shot up to give him a startled, wondering glance before lowering again. He hadn't really been thinking of her as a person, though, but as part of the background, or like the air around. Always there somehow, but once it's gone, you really miss it. But now ... he shook his head, disgusted with himself. She looked up again.

"Is everything all right?" she asked, solicitiously. "You're not coming down with something, are you?" He smiled reassurance, trying to spark a response from her.

"The only thing bothering me, other than these blasted modifications, are my own thoughts." He put his cup down and leaned forward. "Can I talk to you, after breakfast?" he asked carefully.

"Well, I'm going to spend some time with Darwin, when I'm finished here. Maybe get some swimming done before 0800. You can walk me there, I suppose." Tim shut the book with a hard slam.

"I'm finished," he announced abruptly. "So I'll be leaving. Enjoy your talk." He stood up and stalked away. Perplexed, Ari watched him go.

"What do you suppose his problem is? Another Stereo oversight?" she wondered. "I would have thought he'd mention it to me." Miguel shrugged.

"He gets into moods, occasionally," he offered. "He just needs some time to work it out. Come on, let's go."

They walked along in companionable silence for a while before Miguel cleared his throat and said, "Umm, Ari, something I've been wondering about. What were the plans you had, the ones you abandoned for the party?"

Grinning foolishly, she looked down, peeking up at him from under her lashes. "Promise you won't tell Tim?" she asked, her voice husky with repressed laughter.

"I knew it was something to do with him! Ok, I promise. What was it?" She shook her head.

"No! No, it doesn't have anything to do with him, at all. But he'd be so disappointed with me, if he knew." Her amusement was contagious, and half-laughing, Miguel demanded, "Well? What was it?"

Pressing her lips into a demure smile, Ari answered, "A movie. A movie called 'The Life and Death of Mr. Morden', created entirely from clips from an old series called Babylon 5, with some filler scenes added in later. Including some clips that never aired. It's silly, but ... well, there's something about the character," her eyebrows raised up and she nodded her head appreciatively, "and the actor. He must be about 60 now, but," she sighed, "he still has it."

Shoulders shaking with laughter, Miguel commented, "That was the big, dark secret that you couldn't share with us? That you wanted to go to a movie? I think that even Tim would have understood."

"Oh, what do you know about Tim, anyway?" she asked facetiously, waving him away with her hand. He grabbed it, his face sobering.

"Do you regret missing it, going to my aunt's, instead."

Still bubbling with amusement, Ari replied, "No, you were right. It was lots of fun. And your little cousin, Fernando, was adorable. I really appreciated Roselita letting me feed him that way." Miguel seized the opening, all teasing gone in a flash.

"About Fernando, I mean, about what happened." Ari interrupted.

"You mean when we were putting him to bed? Forget it! I know it didn't mean anything." Miguel blinked with surprise as Ari continued. "Look, it was just the circumstances, the twilight, the baby, singing lullabies and all. Our hormones were on overdrive. It would have been the same no matter who was there. So, you don't have to worry that I'm going to blow it out of proportion." The conversation had veered so far from the direction that Miguel had intended that he had no idea how to get it back on track. Ari took his silence for agreement, and continued, in the same understanding tones.

"Miguel," she said seriously, "You are a very attractive, very handsome man. And I realize that you are accustomed to having women fall for you for no real reason, at all.' She shrugged. "You probably think that because we shared a kiss, I'll jump to the conclusion that it was a declaration of undying love, but I'm not really that silly. Honest! It was just a kiss. The earth didn't move, the stars didn't sing. Only a kiss."

"But, but what about later, during the dancing? On the ride to the docks?" Ari snorted indelicately, her eyes round with disbelief.

"Oh, Miguel, you aren't going to censure me for what happened then, are you? I hardly got a bite of all that wonderful food your aunt and her accomplices prepared, I was too busy having fun. And no one told me the punch was spiked. Carmelita brought me several glasses, herself." She paused. "It's like I said, you have nothing to worry about. I like you, Miguel, you are kind, funny, smart. I like working with you. And I don't want anything to come between us. So, let's just pretend that what happened didn't and go on being friends." They had arrived at the door to the Moon Pool and Ari stepped in, turning around to gaze at him, a silent plea with her eyes, out of keeping with her deliberately light tone.

"Ah, well, if that's the way you want it?" he mumbled. "Then sure. Friends." And he stuck out his hand. One corner of her mouth twisting up in a wry smile, Ari ignored the proffered hand, stepping forward to plant a sisterly peck on his cheek.

"I'll see you later," she promised, stepping back, turning around with fluid grace and walking away. Watching her lean over the pool, slapping the water and starting to get the electronic gear out, Miguel felt his shoulders slump and he collapsed against the side of the doorjamb, confounded by the recent conversation.

Just a kiss? His head moved in rejection of that notion. How could it have been just a kiss? And she had felt it, too. He knew it. The earth did move, and the stars did sing. How could she deny it? Or maybe she didn't feel it. Maybe he was just so used to women falling all over him, that he couldn't tell the difference anymore. He looked at her through the pain, laughing at Darwin, playing with him. As far as she was concerned, Miguel wasn't even here any more.

But Ari was aware of Miguel, leaning nonchalantly against the side of the doorway. Heartbreakingly aware. And while one part of her wished that he'd go away, to leave her in peace, another wanted to shout out that it was all a mistake. That she hadn't meant any of what she'd said. Wanted him to take her into his arms and ... Firmly, she stopped that thought cold, before it heated up too much.

As she set up the equipment, she wondered what God would say about her lies. Saying that it didn't matter, that she hadn't felt anything. Definately one of her bigger untruths. Casting her eyes upward, she silently promised that she'd make it up to Him, she'd do penance for her sins. Snorting with sudden amusement at the direction of her thoughts, she promised that she'd be nice to Stereo, that should be penance enough for anything. Then Darwin was demanding her full attention, and there wasn't time for any more recriminations.

An hour or so later, shooting up through the surface of the pool and grabbing the rim to pull herself out, Ari noticed the figure at the door. Miguel was still there? she wondered, wiping the salt water from her eyes. When they'd stopped streaming, she could see that it was Tim, not Miguel. Smiling welcome, she waved him in, "Hi, Tim. I didn't expect to see you again, so soon."

Tim moved into the room, picking up a towel and handing it to her as she pulled herself up on the side. "Well, I saw you swimming through the tubes and figured that you'd be showing up here before much longer." He knelt down beside the "I say" Equipment.

"You'd said that you were going to be here, and I had some extra time, so I thought that I'd finally take a look at this. You asked me to, remember?" Nodding, she pulled her legs out of the water and started drying them off. Tim swallowed nervously and opened the back of the board. Casually, he commented off-handedly, "I thought that Miguel would be here?"

"Mmmm? No, he just walked here and then left. I guess he wanted to make sure that I didn't blow things out of proportion again, but I set him straight on that." Startled, Tim looked up and Ari quickly hid an affectionate smile. The male preoccupation with machinery. Every one of them who had seen the gear, just had to get down and examine the circuitry, from the captain on down. Her smile faded, except Miguel. She wondered if it meant anything, then shuddered, and finished drying herself off. Slipping off the wall beside him, she nodded toward the stuff.

"I wish I could take some of this in the water with me," she said. "Darwin kept trying to tell me something, and I couldn't hear him, let alone figure out what he was saying. Without the headphones I can't hear the subsonics and underwater stuff and without the board, I can't tell him anything. It's frustrating."

"Interesting set up. Why didn't you use the vocoder, I thought that it worked all over the boat?" She flushed.

"It does, but I forgot to turn it back on when I slipped into the water. See, I'm trying to understand what Darwin is saying without using the vocoder program, that's why the keyboard is rigged to transmit the sounds into the water through the same speakers."

"So you are repeating the noises he makes?"

"No, no, I'm learning his language. And he's teaching me. But it was frustrating, swimming with him. And exhilarating at the same time. Water's cold, though."

"Yeah, I bet it is." Tim agreed with a smile. Then he wrinkled his brow as he finally figured out the wiring. "Ok. Looks to me like the phones are just picking up from the receptors around the pool, right?" At her nod, he continued his thought, "So you should be able to tune one of the underwater wireless headphones to the same frequency. And if you tune another headset to the transmitter frequency from the English end of the vocoder, then that would take care of what the captain wants." He looked up at her for her response, and found her nodding thoughtfully.

Sighing, she commented wryly, "Tim, you make everything sound so obvious, and I feel like an idiot for not thinking about it."

"Did you want to think about it?" he asked pointedly. She smiled and looked down, shaking her head no.

"No, this was just something I could do to get away, to help keep my mind off things." The smile faded, and Tim knew that she was someplace else, someplace sad.

"What things?" She didn't answer, and he thought that maybe it was too personal. But perhaps she would answer another question that had been bugging him. "Ari, why did you join SeaQuest so late? I know that you were scheduled to join us when Lonnie did." She sighed, unhappily.

"I ... I have two relatives. No more. Sister Mary Margaret, my guardian, and my great-Uncle Paul. He's dying. He asked the authorities to delay my posting and give me emergency leave so he could get his affairs in order, make sure that I knew what I needed about them."

"You're close to him?"

For a long moment, he thought that she hadn't heard him, or that she didn't intend to answer the question. But she finally responded in a voice so soft that he had to lean forward to catch all she had to say. "Uncle Paul was the center of my existance. So long as he was there, I never needed anyone else. Knowing that he won't be there much longer ... " her voice trailed off, and she glanced uncertainly at him, as if trying to decide if that was too personal an answer.

Hiding her eyes again, she got up and picked up the board, moving away, as if ashamed by the intimacy of the moment. Opening the storage locker, she started to stow it away. Tim followed, crouching down beside her and putting a comforting hand on her shoulder, but all he said was, "You know, it'd be no trouble to switch one over, a headphone that is. And your keyboard," he added, taking it away from her and turning it over before putting it in the cabinette. "You aren't using all of the keys. So which ones do you actually use to talk with him."

Grateful for the change in subject, Ari spread her left hand on one side of the board, indicating the buttons on the left side. "Only these ones here." Shrugging, she closed the door and stood, brushing off her hands. "I don't even need all of those for the sounds that Lucas isolated for the vocabulary database, but I suspect Darwin of using some outside our range of hearing, that we just don't know." She stopped and leaned back on the wall, looking at him, but with her thoughts elsewhere. "Since I was reminded of it last night, I've been considering the possibility of putting a Baby WSKRS on him, just to find out if I'm right and to record whatever sounds he might make." Tim shrugged, frowning in a considering way.

"Sounds like a good idea to me. You'd have to get the captain's approval, but I don't think that you'd have much trouble with that. He's for anything that helps him understand Darwin better. And I know that Miguel wouldn't complain." He stood up as well, looking down at her with an expression of resigned sadness. Sighing, he added, "Miguel's a very lucky man." To his surprise, Ari didn't accept the compliment, shrugging uncomfortably.

"I guess so," she agreed unconcernedly. "I never thought of it before." Looking at him, her expression sharpened into one of concern. "Tim, what's wrong? Why do you think that he's lucky?"

Turning away, he shrugged hopelessly, "Face it, the guy's got everything. Looks, personality, physique." He shot a glance backwards, "And now he's got you."

"Whoa! You just hold that thought." Ari commanded, indignantly, stepping in front on him and placing an accusing forefinger on his chest. "Let me answer that point by point." Holding up the thumb of her other hand, she lay the pointer finger on it. "First. Yes, Miguel is very good-looking. He has looks that a woman would envy. Do you really think that makes it any easier for him? How many women, do you think, want to be seen with a guy who's prettier than she is? And as for you." She sighed with exasperation. "You aren't exactly chopped liver, you know. When you smile, Tim, I mean really smile with your heart, your whole face lights up and," she shook her head, unable to explain any better.

"Anyway, two." She made an "L" with her thumb and first finger, resting the pointer on that, "Personality. I shouldn't even have to say anything about this. You know, when you talk to a woman, you listen, too. And it's a wonderful feeling to know that you don't just see the outside, but pay attention to the thoughts and ideas that she's expressing. You have no idea how attractive that is, Tim. And, really, you have no reason to be jealous of Miguel on that account. He always has a glib word, a smile to ease the situation. But you look into the situation and attend to what really matters."

Extending the next finger and again pointing to it, she continued, "Three, physique." Pausing, she scrutinized his form carefully, raking her eyes up and down and up again in a considering fashion, making Tim squirm with the intensity of her gaze. "Does that really bother you?" she asked.

Blushing, he misinterpreted her question to refer to the look she was giving him, he answered, "Well, yeah, it does, some."

"Then do something about it!" she challenged. "You know how much time he spends in the gym, working out, weight training, fight training. That's what he does. You spend the same amount of time exercising your mind. Reading, learning, applying your knowledge. Which do you think is going to matter in the long run? Huh?" She shook her head at his obtuseness. "Come on, Tim. You have no reason whatsoever to feel any jealousy of Miguel. You are his equal, or even his better, in almost all categories."

"What about the last point," he reminded her. She sighed, shaking her head sadly at him.

"I'd hoped I wouldn't have to say it," she said with disgust. "That you wouldn't ..." Frustrated with the inability to speak what was in her mind, she paused, giving Tim time to recover.

"I saw the two of you at his aunt's party. You didn't even notice that I was there, you were both so wrapped up in each other," he accused her bitterly.

Sighing, she took a deep breath and plunged in. "You're right, things were strange at the party. Understand this, Tim, I do like Miguel. I do like you. You are both very attractive men. And Miguel was paying me a lot of attention at the party. In combination with the music and the dancing," she grimaced, "and the drinks, it went to my head. So I was flirting with him something outrageous, playing up to him. But it didn't mean a thing," she insisted for the second time that morning. "It was just, oh, hormones, atmosphere, you know," she concluded helplessly. Dropping the points hand, she place her other hand, fingers splayed, flat on his chest. Tim could feel the heat from it spreading out, warming him in all parts of body. "I am my own person, Tim. I don't belong to anyone, and I don't want to."

"Anyway, you know what Miguel's like," she concluded sadly. "I don't want any part of that."

But he wasn't listening anymore. He reached up, gently taking her hand in his own, removing it from his chest. Looking into her face, turned up toward his own, her eyes trying to plead understanding, he slowly bent down, pulling her toward him, waiting for any resistance or outrage. Slowly, his lips met hers, felt them quiver, surrender. He closed his eyes, the world too bright to tolerate and lost himself in the gentle waves of emotion that swept through him.

A strangled sob recalled him to the present, and he immediately released Ari, who jumped back, her face stricken. "What is it?" he asked, bewildered. "Did I hurt you? Oh, God, Ari, I'm ..." she quickly interupted him.

"Don't you say it," she warned fiercely. "Don't you dare apologize! That's the worst thing that you could do." She sniffled angrily, trying to get herself under control. Tim reached out, wanting to comfort her, but she twisted away, hugging her arms to herself. "Tim, I can't handle this right now. There's just too much happening with ... with TSUNAMI and Dr. Siebas." She looked back, over her shoulder, her eyes glittering with unshed tears. "Please try to understand. I can't deal with anymore. Please?" A lone tear rolled down her cheek, filling him with the desire to wipe it away.

"Of course. Of course we can wait. I don't want to make things harder for you. I'll help in anyway that I can, Ari. You know that." She smiled at him, a small, strained smile that almost broke his heart even as the intensity of her reaction made it swell.

"Thank you, Tim," she said through the lump in her throat. "Would you please leave now. I need some time alone, I think."

"Ok, I'll see you at lunch?" he suggested hopefully. She nodded.

"Unless Stereo demands my attendance on him," she cautioned. Turning away, her back tense, her arms still hugging herself, she stared into the water. Tim hesitated, then left.

Lonnie passed Tim in the hallways, looking both smug and upset at the same time, and she wondered about that. Miguel had said that she'd probably find Ari at the pool with Darwin, and since that seemed to be where Tim was coming from, he was probably right.

Entering the room, she found Ari kneeling at the rim, one hand trailing in the water, her shoulders shaking. Lonnie tripped against something, and Ari dove in.

"ARI!" she called out. "It's me, Lonnie. Where are you going." Ari turned herself in the water.

"Oh, hi Lonnie," she piped cheerily. Lonnie looked at her suspiciously, with the water running down her face, it almost looked as though she was crying. "What's up?"

"Well, it occurred to me that you're going to be operating on a first shift schedule, from now on. At least until this thing is finished. So, I was wondering if you'd like to bunk with me for the interim? That way, you won't be waking Teena up at odd hours when you have to use the terminal or go in to take care of stuff for old Stereo." Ari swam over to the edge and leapt out, seating herself. Lonnie hoped that the other would accept this. For some reason, it was important to her that she did.

"Lonnie, that's incredibly generous of you. Are you sure you want to?"

"Yeah, besides, that means I can pick your brains about all this anytime I want. And I think I'd like having you as a roommate. Like being back in college." Offering the dripping ensign her hand, she urged, "Come on. Let's get your stuff moved in now. Ok? Well, I mean, if you're finished here and," her voice faltered momentarily, "you want to." Ari accepted the lift with a smile of gratitude.

"Ok. I do want to," her smile broadened. "I would like rooming with you, too. Thanks Lonnie. Thanks a lot."




PART 13

Despite her conversation with Lt. James Brody about the weapons targeting systems, Ari immediately knew when Dr. Siebas entered the off-duty lounge, full of sound and fury. But she ignored him until he was almost upon them, then sprang out of her chair and stood at modified attention, startling him.

"Good morning, sir. I hope you spent a pleasant night?" she said, trying to use the same tone of voice that she would toward the captain, although it was most difficult.

"What do you mean, flouting my orders this way?" he demanded. She contrived to look at him with puzzled interest.

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean, sir. I have been here since 0800 waiting for your arrival." She looked down at Brody, watching the interaction with interest. "When Lt. Brody came in, I asked him some questions concerning the weapons arrays and how the TSUNAMI modifications might affect them. I didn't think that you would mind, sir."

"That's not what I'm talking about! What are you doing here? I told you ... No. I ordered you to attend to me in my quarters." Lt. Brody stood up, interrupting.

"I'm sorry, sir, but it's not permitted for junior officers to meet privately in their superior's quarters. Ensign Adler is just following UEO crew policies in this." Ari awarded Lt. Brody an admiring glance. She hadn't really warmed to the security officer before now although she did enjoy serving on his watch. She found herself wondering why that was.

Perhaps because he reminded her ... Halting that thought unfinished, she looked surreptitiously from Dr. Siebas to Lt. Brody. Both rather tall, to her anyway, good-looking in an All-American, self-satisfied, solid way. Both so compleatly at ease in any situation, and fancying themselves something of gamesmen, as well. She coughed, hiding an incipient laugh.

"That's ridiculous!" Siebas was spluttering. "He can't do that! I'm not a Fleet officer."

"Excuse me, sir," Ari corrected, politely, "but you mentioned in one of your messages to me, yesterday, that you do have a temporary commission in the UEO, for the duration."

"Then just where am I supposed to meet with my assistant?"

"Well, there's here, sir," the lieutenant suggested respectfully.

"Here?" he echoed, eyes raised disbelievingly as he looked around the room filled with chatting, relaxing crewmembers. "Impossible!"

"You may be right," Brody admitted. "But for now, the Officer's Mess isn't too full. And perhaps the captain will permit you to use the ward room?"

Taking a huge breath and letting it out slowly, Dr. Siebas nodded reluctantly. "Thank you, Lieutenant. If you are finished with Irene?" Brody's brow wrinkled with perplexity.

"Irene, sir?" he queried. "I think I've finished this discussion with Ensign Adler, if that's what you mean, but ... Irene?" Turning to leave, he grinned down at Ari, throwing her a quick wink before walking away. In that moment, Ari thought that Brody could very easily be her favorite officer on board, except for the captain. And ... she turned her thoughts away from Tim. Time enough for that later. She didn't quite dare return the impudent gesture with Siebas was still standing there, still glowering, but no longer as angry as he had been on arrival.

"Very well," he decided, "Let us remove to the Officer's Mess. I like my eggs, sunny-side up, sides of bacon and toast with marmelade not jam and a glass of orange juice. And a cup of coffee." Under his breath, he said to himself, "I have a feeling I'm going to be needing it." Ari grabbed up her manuals and led the way.

Sliding the tray in front of Dr. Siebas, Ari waited, standing beside his chair. He looked up quizzically. "Well, sit down, sit down. I can't talk to you if you're hovering over me, like that."

"Yes sir," she agreed, slipping into the seat across from him. "It is hard to concentrate when someone is hovering over you." But the comment went right over his head as he surveyed his breakfast. Picking up his fork and knife, he looked at the table in front of her.

"Where's your breakfast?" he demanded.

"I ate sometime ago, sir," she replied.

"Well, eat something now. You can't just sit there watching me."

Hiding a smile, Ari stood again. "No sir." She disappeared and quickly returned with a small pot of tea and a cup. Pouring her tea, she picked it up with both hands and blew on the surface, breathing in the fragrant aroma and savoring it.

"So, where were you yesterday, Irene?" Siebas asked, his belligerence blunted by the food in front of him.

"Sir, I room with another ensign who is on third shift. Normally, I am on-duty for second shift. Since we do not share the same sleep cycles, we try to stay out of the room while the other is asleep. Captain Bridger ordered me to familiarize myself with the details of TSUNAMI yesterday. I did not wish to be interrupted while I did so, and for that reason, did not leave any word as to my whereabouts. I apologize for the inconvenience to you, sir, but it did not occur to me that you would require my presence so quickly." Siebas' mouth curled up into a sneer.

"Sir, sir, sir, " he complained petulantly. He leaned forward, smiling invitingly, "Don't be so formal. Call me Samuel."

"I'm sorry, sir, but I can't do that. Captain Bridger has ordered me to extend to you the same courtesy and respect that I normally show him."

"And if I order you to call me Samuel?" he asked curiously.

"Then I would refuse to obey."

"I see," he responded drily. Ari waited in case he had anything more to say, then opened the book. "Close that!" he ordered, irritation in his voice. She looked up with surprise.

"Sir?" Siebas swallowed heavily, trying for a more relaxed attitude.

"Don't read at the table. It's rude. Talk to me, converse."

"I don't have anything to say, sir."

He took an angry bite of bacon, followed by a sip of juice. "Why don't you tell me what one of Sorbonne's most promising graduates is doing, rotting her mind on board this ship?" he suggested.

"Respectfully, sir, the SeaQuest is a boat. Not a ship." He waved away the distinction.

"That doesn't matter. What are you doing here?" he repeated.

"The question is irrelevant. It implies that I started out on one path and changed in mid-stream." Pausing, Ari considered what she wanted this person to know about her. "I was too young to join the Fleet when I graduated high school. Because I already knew that I was interested in sonar and sensor, I applied to Sorbonne in order to study at the Wireless Satellite labs there until I was old enough to enlist." She shrugged. "That's all there is to it, sir."

"But why?" incomprehension caused him to raise his voice. "Why, Irene?"

Ari hesitated. Captain Bridger wanted her to work with this man, and leaving him in error as to her name would not make conditions any easier when he discovered his mistake. "That's not my name, Dr. Siebas," she finally confessed.

"What?"

"My name. It isn't 'Irene', and has never been so." It bothered her to pronounce it so harshly, 'eye-reen'. She'd always preferred the softer, more melodic three syllable European form.

"Well, then, what is your name." Ari remained silent. "Ensign Adler, I demand that you answer me."

"If I tell you my name, sir, you will feel compelled to call me by it. I would prefer to be addressed as 'Ensign Adler'."

"That's preposterous! You, there!" Siebas called out to Commander Ford, who had just come in for a hot drink. Ford looked up with interest and approached. "Do you know this woman."

"Yes sir," he answered promptly. "Ensign Adler."

"Tell me what her first name is." Ford blew on his coffee.

"Well," he drawled. "It isn't Irene." He turned to leave.

"Wait! Wait a minute. You mean that you refuse to tell me her name? Why?"

"Sir, it's like this. The captain would prefer that you call her Ensign Adler, Adler or ensign, not by name. And that's the reason."

Siebas gave him a twisted smile. "Just one big, happy family, is that right?"

Nodding sagaciously, Ford responded, "Yes sir. That's a good way to look at it. Just think of Ensign Adler, here, as the kid sister to about 90 mean, suspicious, touchy, battle-trained soldiers, just spoiling for a fight, and you'll have no trouble, sir." Touching a finger to his head, he walked behind the suddenly thoughtful doctor, pausing long enough to turn around and flash a big smile, before walking away. Ari blinked with surprise. Commander Ford was a very attractive, handsome man? Why hadn't she noticed that before? Recollecting herself, she turned her attention to Dr. Siebas. But he had a great deal to consider and confined himself to finishing his breakfast in silence.

"Excuse me, sir," Lt. Brody interrupted not long after, "but with Captain's compliments, he offers you the use of the ward room for any interviews that you may need to conduct, sir."

Wiping his lips and tossing the napkin down, Siebas stood up. "Thank you, Lieutenant. Ensign, return my tray to the galley and meet me in there." As he turned to go, he stopped and looked back, "Oh, and bring a carafe of coffee with you. It's going to be a long day."

"Yes sir." She gave Brody an amused grin and began to get the tray. With an affable smile, Brody forstalled her, grabbing it himself as he said in an undertone, "I'll take care of this. I'm heading that way, anyway. And don't worry about the coffee, the captain's already taken care of it." He nodded his head toward the door. "Go on, take a few minutes for yourself. As he said, it's going to be a long day." With a grateful smile, Ari thanked the lieutenant and, picking up her things, hurried out.

Several minutes later, in the ward room, Ari found Dr. Siebas regarding with bemusement a huge coffee urn, primed and perculating, with a stack of cups beside it. Turning toward her, his lips twisted into a surprisingly real, unaffected grin, "Looks like your captain has his own ideas about the order of the day." Ari smiled back.

"He usually does."

"Well, shall we get to work," he suggested, sitting down and placing a laptop computer case on the table. Ari carefully settled her manuals down in front of the next seat over, an action which he regarded with some disfavor. "Don't you have a computer?" he asked irritably.

"Not exactly, sir. I do have use of the SeaQuest's though, when needed," and she pushed the commands to get his screen image displayed on the overhead. She stood behind him. At this moment, a diffident cough near the door caught their attention. Looking up, Ari felt a momentary flash of confusion at the sight of Lt. Tim O'Neill. Quickly, she lowered her eyes again.

"Excuse me, sir," Tim said, "but I have some questions regarding the proposed modifications to the communications array. Would this be convenient time to ask?"

Shooting an amused glance in Ari's direction, Siebas gestured almost affably, for him. "Of course, Lieutenant. Take a seat. I'd offer you a cup of coffee, but I don't think that it is quite ready, yet."

*

Feeling marginally better after an ion shower, Lonnie limped toward her quarters. She'd slacked off on the exercise program too many times in the past week and it had all caught up with her tonight.

Quietly, she opened the door. Ari was seated, cross-legged, on the top bunk, another one of those blasted TSUNAMI manuals on her lap, listening to something on the phones. Smiling a little, Lonnie took a moment to examine her new roommate closely.

It had actually been Tim's idea that Lonnie suggest the room change. He pointed out that the other girl would over-do it on the work bit, and wear herself out. And it appeared that he was right. Ari looked horrible, a huge contrast to the way she was at the party, tired and tense with dark circles under her eyes. Lonnie could well believe that she was fatigued. Watching Ari watch Siebas had exhausted her in the time she'd spent with the two of them. And after spending a day at Siebas's side, listening to his pontificating lectures, the girl was still studying.

Well, that was one of the reasons that Lonnie had thought the idea of sharing the room was such a good one. If anyone knew how to distract a bookwork, it was she. Smiling, pleased that the other still hadn't noticed her, she reached out and pull the headphone leads from the player.

Queer hollow booming sounds filled the room and Ari looked up with a startled, instantly alert expression. Seeing Lonnie, she relaxed down and smiled.

Turning off the sound, Lonnie turned to her. "What was That?"

"Russian sub, Viktor class from the sound of her, with a loose off screw, about 500 m above and to port, performing a Crazy Ivan." Her voice sounded politely off-handed, as if the identification was obvious. Without pausing, she added curiously, "Why do you put yourself through such a hard program in the gym?"

Moving cautiously, Lonnie headed for her dresser. With another person staying here, it would make sense to wear something to sleep in. "To keep my edge. I want to earn my promotion as quickly as possible and that means I'm going to need all the experience and accomendations I can get. And I like going on missions off SeaQuest, and getting physical and so, I have to stay in shape." Looking at the younger ensign critically, she added, "You should spend more time in the gym, yourself." Ari shrugged.

"Want me to rub liniment in?" she offered.

"Ooooh, would you? That would be wonderful. It's in the cupboard over there." Loosing the sash of her robe, she removed it and lay face down on her bed.

"The blue and white tube?"

"Nah, this isn't too bad. Use the grey one." Selecting the proper tube of ointment, Ari knelt beside her friend and began gently massaging the cream into the sore muscles of her back, wincing sympathetically at the sight of bruises already beginning to show, and a few older, discoloured ones underneath. "So. What was that about a Victorian sub." Ari was quiet, puzzling out the question, then she laughed gently.

"Viktor, a Russian sub. That's a recording of old sonar programs. My dad was preparing to teach a class at Groton when he ... when he died."

"What good are they for?"

"Now, nothing. The computer analyzes the sonar data and plots it out on the screens, the WSKRS give visual information and pick up on the satellite navigational markers. This is like sitting down and plotting a 3-D picture by hand using a slide rule instead."

"But how do you have it? How did you know what it was? Are all the sounds on that tape from this Viktor sub?"

Smiling reminescently, Ari shook her head. "No, it's from the duty logs of a routine mission, from an American sub in the 1990's. Like I said, my dad was working on it when he died, and I just kept his private copies. He used to practice his class lesson plans on me, to work out any problems before he had before he needed to face all those cadets and recruits."

Lonnie got up on her elbows and twisted her torso around to look Ari in the face, certain that the smaller woman was pulling her leg. "You're joking, right? Your dad didn't really train you in sensor operations, did he?"

She nodded, her grin growing wider, "Yeah. Yes he did. I thought all kids play that game with their dads. But only when he was home. He never left the tapes around while he was on assignment. That would have been a breach of security."

"Then how did you end up with them." Ari sobered. A little reluctantly, she responded.

"I was twelve years old, had just lost my family, stuck in a place I'd never really been before, with a bunch of women who wouldn't talk! And when they were allowed to talk, they'd give me the line about them all 'being in a better place' and needind to 'get over it and on with life'." She sighed. "When they came to take my dad's stuff, I hid his computer files and the audio-tapes."

"Oh." Lonnie lay back down, and Ari continued rubbing the knots out of her back in sober silence. After several minutes, punctuated only with moans and groans of pleasure or pain as the kinks were soothed out of her muscles, Lonnie finally broke into her reverie, asking, "What happened this morning, at breakfast."

Ari paused momentarily, then continued her kneading movements, "At breakfast? Nothing. Why?"

"Tim and Miguel were acting so strangely, today. I usually know when they've had an argument. Tim goes for icy formality and cutting remarks, and Miguel snipes at him." She shook her head, "But this? I just don't know. It was really weird. Almost, almost as if they'd switched places, or characters, or something, with one another. Tim was cheerful, smiling and cracking jokes all over the place." Shrugging her shoulders slightly, she added parenthetically, "Not that I understood most of them, but he was. And Miguel was quiet, thoughtful, almost withdrawn. Tim did most of the talking at lunch, mostly about what you're doing with Darwin. So, I thought that you might know what was up with them." She shrugged again. Ari moved down her legs.

"I did see them both at breakfast," she said carefully, "and they were both as usual then. Except, ... Well, Tim was a bit, sharpish."

Once again, Lonnie craned her head around, regarding Ari closely, sensing an implied lie. She gave a sudden laugh, lying back down. "Oh, be that way. I'll find out, though, you just wait and see," she promised.

"And don't worry about Tim. He gets that way sometimes." She smiled fondly. "He's too moody for his own good."

Deliberately casual, Ari asked, "You and Tim are close, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I guess so. We've gone out a couple of times, and I like him a lot."

"That's what I thought." There was another period of silence. Finally, Lonnie suggested, "Why don't you tell me about spending the day with old Stereo. Did he chase you around the tables." Ari laughed.

"When? We weren't ever alone for more than ten minutes, tops. I thought that he'd pop off when Brody came in right after Tim, but by the time you showed up, he seemed resigned to the interruptions. In fact, I think that he welcomed them. Certainly made his lectures easier to take."

Pausing thoughtfully, she added, "Although, he did revert type when Lucas dropped by. Positively nasty." She patted the woman's hip. "Ok, done with this side. Do you want me to do the other or would you prefer to do it yourself?"

"Are you sure you don't mind?" Lonnie asked uncertainly. "I mean, you've got great hands for massage, really gentle, and my bruises thank you. I'd love for you do the front. But are you sure it wouldn't make you feel strange?" Ari shook her head.

"It's just common courtesy," she said off-handedly. Gratefully accepting the offer, Lonnie flipped over, and Ari began her slow careful treatment starting with the calves of her legs, gently kneading the overworked muscles and working the ointment in, relaxing the tension, and working out the knots. "I really do appreciate you letting me room with you while I'm on this duty," she commented.

"Ummm," Lonnie purred. "It's nothing. Siebas does seem to ride Lucas hard, doesn't he? I wonder why?"

"I think that he's jealous of him."

"What?" Lonnie opened her eyes and stared at the contemplative ensign with considerable surprise. "What does he have to be jealous of Lucas?"

"Dr. Siebas was a 'wunderkind' in his time. They predicted great things from him. Now he's in his mid-thirties, and where is all that promise? Wrapped up in the untried, uncertain, and innovative TSUNAMI. I think Lucas makes him feel like an old failure, so Stereo cuts him down to build himself up." Ari concentrated on the massage.

Woof", Lonnie released a luxuriating sigh. "You are good. You make me feel sorry for poor Miguel, though." She yelped as Ari pressed in too hard.

"Oh, apologies. I didn't mean to do that. Why would you feel sorry for Miguel?"

"He was working out even harder than I was, tonight. I don't know what it was. Probably the same thing that was bugging him earlier today. But it was like he had some kind of monkey on his back and had to fight it off. Anyway, with all the hits he was taking and the falls he was making, he must be even more sore than I am."

She half-sat up, giving Ari with a mischievious look from under her lashes. "I bet he wouldn't mind if you offered to rub him down," she suggested. Ari shrugged, her throat closing up with the thought of Miguel's naked body beneath her ministering hands, instead of Lonnie's. She turned her attention to what she was doing, eyes downcast, hoping that the other woman wouldn't be able to read her reactions. Satisfied, Lonnie lay back down and closed her eyes to enjoy the unexpected luxury.

After the lights were out, Ari lay on the top bunk, staring at the ceiling through the darkness. "Lonnie," she called out. An long, interrogative murmur answered her. Taking it as encouragement to continue, the young, confused ensign asked, "Do you suppose that men and women can be just friends?" The soft, slow, siblant susurration of sleep was her only answer. Her thoughts keeping her company, Ari lay wakeful for a long time, until the sound lulled her into unconciousness.

*

Trying to squirm into her wetsuit quietly the next morning, Ari didn't want awaken her slumbering hostess but kept bumping into furniture in the unfamiliar room, in spite of her best efforts.

"Ummm?", sleep sodden, Lonnie raised herself up on one elbow and regarded the other ensign with heavy eyed inquiry.

"Sorry to disturb you," Ari whispered. "I'll be out of here in a few moments."

"No. No. Wait. I want to come to breakfast with you. Hold on. Hey, you know that most people keep their wetsuit down at the moonpool?"

"Hmmm, yeah, but I've got the other stuff in my locker. Ahh, the guys may not be there in the galley this morning," she whispered warningly. Inside, she was praying that they weren't there. Thanks to Stereo's insistance on her presence until quite late, she hadn't had a moment alone with either man since the previous morning. Not that it mattered, she had no idea what she could say to them if she did meet them.

Especially not if they were together. Her words, though so far from encouraging Lonnie to go back to sleep, had the opposite effect on her. Opening her eyes, wide awake, she looked at Ari with increasing suspicion.

"So, something did happen yesterday," she accused. "And you know what it was. Now I'm definately coming to the galley with you!" And in less time than Ari would have expected, the two women were on their way.

Tim was already seated, eating slowly and studying something, a single page on the table ion front of him. As Lonnie and Ari entered, Miguel, looking somehow different, rushed over from the serving line and plopped down in the seat next to him, instantly in the middle of an animated conversation, Tim nodding occasionally or putting in a quiet word.

Lonnie nodded her head in their direction knowingly. "Those two are up to something," she warned. "Let's find out what." Swiftly, she wended her way through the tables, ending up with a hand on the shoulder of each of the two friends, bending down to get a look at the mysterious paper, and singing out cheerfully, "Good morning, Tim, Miguel! And how are you today." Ari followed reluctantly.

Lonnie's efforts to get a peek at the plans were thwarted when Tim flipped it over and rolled it up, stuffing it into a pocket. "Morning, Lonnie," he observed. Standing up, he smiled at Ari, "Good morning, Ari. Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, thank you. Hello, Miguel."

Tim patted the paper in his pocket and beamed at them, "Well, I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got some things to do." Looking at Miguel, he assured him mysteriously, " I'll get right on it." Miguel saluted him with a cup. ¸

"Ok, Tim. And we'll be down in a short while." Tim nodded and left. Lonnie sat down in his vacated seat and leaned toward Miguel.

"Give, Miguel. What are you two up to?" He shook his head, lower lip pushed out thoughtfully. Ari's eyes opened with surprise as she suddenly realized what was different about him. Like herself, he had his wet suit on under his uniform.

"Nothing, Lonnie. We're as innocent as newborn babes. Go get something to eat. I'll wait for you."

Returning with their selections, Miguel nodded approval at Ari's choice of toast and jam. "Good." he said. "It's a bad idea to eat too much before going into the water. I noticed that about you yesterday."

"And I notice that you chose much the same thing, yourself, today," Ari observed carefully. "Are you going swimming as well?" Miguel grinned.

"I asked Darwin if you'd planned to join him this morning and he invited me to come along. I didn't even have to ask."

"I see." she responded noncommittedly, uncertain as to the meaning of this. "Don't I get any say on the subject?" He shrugged.

"You weren't around to ask, yesterday." Raising his chin, he looked over her plate. "Done? Good! Let's go then."

"Wait!" Lonnie wailed. "I'm not done! I want to come, too." Quickly gulping down the last of her drink, she rolled up her pancakes and wrapped them in a napkin. "Ok," she concluded. "Let's go!"

The walk to Darwin's pool was much less tense than the last one Ari had taken with Miguel. Lonnie maintained a cheerful chatter about fighting techniques, wrestling throws and weapon characteristics. At last, she asked, "You took some pretty bad falls, last night, Miguel. How are you feeling today?"

"Not too great, to tell the truth. I feel black and blue all over. How about you?" She shrugged, her face alive with trouble.

"Since I wasn't trying to beat myself senseless, I wasn't as bad as you in the first place. And then I had a expert masseuse waiting for me in my quarters." Miguel shot a sideways glace at Ari.

"Oh?"

"Huh-huh. Would you like me to lend her to you. She's got magic fingers." Ari felt herself blushing brightly. It was no comfort to her that Miguel's face had flushed, as well. Lonnie, looking from one colourful facade to the other, gave a satisfied smirk and shrugged. "No? Oh well. Your loss."

Ari looking into the room and seeing Tim croached over her gutted keyboard, gave a cry of outrage and rushed in protectively. "What are you doing? That's mine!" she yelled. Tim looked at her with mild surprise.

"I'm just changing a few things so that we can join in." He looked down, rummaging in a haversack. "Here," he said, handing her a colour-coded underwater headset. "Put this on. Darwin's been miked so that we can keep track of him even if he goes outside. This is set to the frequency that his mike broadcasts on, so you can understand him while you're swimming. Here's yours, Miguel, tuned to the vocorder and mike here, so you'll be able to understand him as well, and hear us. Oh, and Ari, your headphones will pick up the same signals that Darwin will get. This way, we'll all be in contact with one another." He sat back, satisfied that he had explained everything to perfection.

Ari looked dubiously at the headset in her hand, then up at Tim. "What are you doing?" she asked again, slowly and dangerously.

Kneeling down beside her, Miguel gently took the headset out of her hands and placed it on her head. "It's very easy," he explained patiently. "You wanted to understand Darwin while you were swimming with him yesterday. Darwin wanted to play games. Well, I pointed out that you couldn't keep up with him, even if you could hear him. So, I'm going to be your playmate." Ari looked up, face flushing, her mouth opening to protest. Miguel stopped her with a light touch of one finger to her lips.

"You and I are going to be in the hydropressure tubes, away from here, with Darwin acting as referee. With the headsets, Tim and Darwin will be able to hear and speak to us. But, where I will hear everything in English, you will only get dolphin noises." He shifted position slightly, and put his hand on her shoulder momentarily to steady himself.

"Darwin has been given five items, which he has hidden in various tubes. We will be told where the next item is hidden, but won't be given the final clue until in position. Whichever of us comprehends the clue correctly, and obtains the item, first, wins. We'll also get points for being first to know where we're going." He smiled, just for fun. "Tim, here, will be keeping score, as Darwin relays it to him." Standing up, he pulled her up with him. "Come on, don't be a spoil sport," he wheedled coaxingly. Seeing him standing there, in his skin-tight wetsuit, his hair crimped by the headset, and with that look on his face, Ari felt her indignation at their usurpation of her game melt away. She grinned back, feeling as though she were falling into his twinkling eyes. Then she raised her chin in challenge.

"Wins what?" she asked abruptly. Miguel shot a sudden sly glance toward Tim before stating the stakes.

"Loser treats the winner to dinner next liberty." His face brightened impishly, "And a movie of the winner's choice." She grinned back.

"An offer that's hard to resist. In that case, last one in's a rotten egg," she yelled, suddenly diving over the edge of the pool, into the water. Darwin yeeked happily as, a second later, another splash signaled Miguel's entry into his watery world. Ari heard the splash, but she was already on her way out, wriggling through the tubes and away, with Miguel in close pursuit.

As she raced ahead, she could hear the mechanical tones of an exchange between Tim and Lonnie, translated and transmitted through the headphones, and she slowed marginally as she worked through what they were saying in English.

"A bet sounds like a good idea, Tim. My money's on Miguel."

"No, I think in this case, Ari has the advantage. Miguel's so sore, he can barely walk."

"Same stakes then? Loser treats winner to dinner and movie."

"You're on! And I already know what movie we're going to see."

After an exhilerating game of chase, with Darwin traitorously cheering Miguel on, Tim's dry voice sounded through the headphones. "Ok, you two delinquents. If you are ready?" For the next half hour, Darwin and Tim kept them busy, swimming from one part of the sub to another, Ari usually responding more quickly to Darwins's commands, while Miguel had the advantage when Tim was in control. And even though Miguel was the faster swimmer, Ari was more agile and manueverable. Finally, Tim's voice called them back. "Take the quickest way possible back," he directed. Head above water, Ari hesitated, caught hold of Miguel as he started to dive.

"Wait a minute," she cautioned. "That way leads through the captain's quarters. We can't go there."

Shrugging, Miguel pushed his wet hair back, out of his eyes. "Why not?"

"He might be asleep. And it wouldn't be right to just swim through his living space." Tim interrupted the discussion.

"The captain says not to worry. He's not there, he's here and, as left everything tidy, there should be no problem. Come on back." Sharing a startled glance, they bobbed underwater, Ari following Miguel's lead.

"Captain Bridger," she called out, hanging on to the side, waiting for her fatigued muscles to regain enough strength to pull herself out. "How long have you been here, sir?" Miguel, pulled himself up, sitting on the rim, and with a small smile on his face, reached down and pulled her out, while Lonnie waited, towels at ready.

"Long enough, ensign. Very impressive work out there. We were able to track your progress on the computer screen." Ari shot a surprised look at Miguel. She hadn't known that they had been bugged. He shrugged back, wry expression on his handsome face. "Tim," Captain Bridger continued, oblivious to the exchange. "I notice that you recorded their response time according to who gave the command."

"Yes, sir. I wasn't sure if it would be significant or not."

"There appears to be a slight lag in their responses depending on the source of the order. Do you have an opinion on that?"

Tim pressed his lips together, a gesture that indicated he was considering all possibilities. "Well, sir, I'd like to research the question more fully, but I'd guess that there actually is a slight delay while the AI is translating the instructions back and forth, not that we are aware of it normally, but then, how could we know. None of us ever tried correlating the sounds Darwin was making to the words that we heard." Bridger nodded thoughtfully, his hand stroking his chin.

"Interesting. I would be interested in seeing an analysis of that." He looked toward Miguel. "And Miguel, I received your proposal last night. Why would you want to put a WSKRS on Darwin, just to record the sounds he makes underwater? I'm not sure I understand a need for it." Ari stared at Miguel, her face a mask of perplexed betrayal, which she then cast upon Tim.

"Your proposal? But, but I was thinking about that." she asked incredulously. "Tim? You gave him my ideas?" While Tim shrugged uncomfortably, Miguel easily explained, "I wasn't planning to take anything from you. I just wanted to give you with something special. It was going to be a surprise." Captain Bridger observed the exchange with interest.

"You know something about this, then, Ari?" he asked.

"Yes, sir. It was my idea." She glared at the two conspirators impartially. "We seem to missing a lot of the meaning in what Darwin actually says. Sometimes, the microphone would pick up an underwater echo from the vocorder, and it wouldn't sound right. And now that I've been out there, hearing what Darwin hears, I feel even more strongly about it than before." She looked at the communications officer apologetically, "Sorry, Tim, but your accent is flat, and your usage is stilted. There's a world of nuances and intonations missing in the vocorder responses," tightening her lips together in a balked expression, she shook her head. "I just can't describe it. But it comes through the speakers clearly." The captain nodded.

"Very well, then," he decided. "You two have my permission to design and release a research satellite to follow Darwin." Raising one finger cautioningly, he added, "Provided that Darwin agrees and isn't discomforted by its presence." He raised a second finger, " And you do not to allow any of your other duties suffer."

"Yes sir," they agreed in unison. As he exited, he could hear their excited voices making plans behind him, Miguel's predominant among them asking, "Do you still have the plans for Baby?" while Lonnie was indignantly inquiring, "Then who won?" Smiling indulgently, he shook his head. He did have a good crew.

Later that day, while heading toward the conference room from an errand for Siebas, Ari was grabbed and pulled to one side of the corridor, out of sight. Looking at the grabber, Lucas, in surprise, she asked "What? What's up?"

It appeared as if he hadn't slept since she'd seen him the day before. "It's done," he mumbled hoarsely. Ari stared at him, uncomprehending.

"What's done?" she prompted. He swallowed heavily, then yawned.

"The circuit breaker between TSUNAMI and SeaQuest's essential subroutines and the firewall around my stuff. The firewall was easy, but I had to design some hardware for the circuit breaker. We're going to have to get it in while we're installing the Master controller."

"Lucas! That's great! I didn't expect you to get it finished so quickly." He shrugged, trying to look blase, but he was clearly pleased with her admiration.

"It won't save everything if the Master blows," he cautioned, "but it should be enough. I just wanted to let you know." She looked at him with concern.

"You look really awful," she observed tactlessly. "Are you going to make it to the briefing?" At his look of incomprehension, she realized that he hadn't heard the news, yet.

"Stereo has decided that we've got a solid enough understanding to start on the work of bringing TSUNAMI online. So he wants to do the final briefing at 1500. Will you be able to stay awake and attend?"

Grinning on one side of his face, he answered, leering ridiculously and stumbling against her. "Yeah, but I might need some help getting to my quarters, afterwards." She nodded.

"I'll ask Dagwood to carry you, then" and she walked away, enjoying the sound of his chuckles behind her.




PART 14

Private Communications
from: Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD
SeaQuest, DSV
to: Adm. Benjamin Sommerby
Day One
Hey Ben, That was some party you threw the other night. I'm still trying to recover from it. If you're wondering about the header, I'm dating my letters according to how long I've been stuck in this tin can. I feel like a sardine, except they're all swimming freely outside. Actually, some of them are swimming around inside the thing. Did you know that there are these great glass tubes filled with water running all through SeaQuest. I saw a giant fish in one of them last night. What do they do when something like that wanders in? Just leave it? Seems dangerous to me.


Anyway, I arrived at the pickup point very late, as expected, but, man, was she worth it. You really know how to pick them! The docks were deserted. The driver dumped my equipment and gear on the end of the wharf and took off. Even the lights down there were off. Then, as I'm beginning to think that I'm in the wrong place or maybe SeaQuest has already left, I hear the raucous roar of a motorcycle, and see this returning sailor heading my way. But not alone. From the looks of it, he's been celebrating a bit too much, and he even has his doxy with him. They're stumbling along, stopping every now and then to fall into a clinch. I almost envied them.

You should have seen her, Ben, your tongue would have been lapping your toes. She was hot. Not too tall, but wearing one of those short, short full skirts that Hispanic women wear sometimes, showing her legs all the way up. And they were well worth the show, too. And her blouse was barely there. Not that I could see much of that, she had the sailor's jacket wrapped around her shoulders.

By this time, they were close enough for me to call out to them, and he confirmed that I was where the SeaQuest shuttle would be stopping. I could see that he was Mexican or something, which is what you'd expect, considering what she was wearing. Not wanting to see him get into trouble, I suggested that he say goodbye to the girl and send her away. No need to get her picked up by the military police for solicitation on UEO property. To my surprise, she suddenly lets loose with the most incredible language, disparaging my ancestry, my morals and my looks.

Naturally, I had no idea what to make of this, except that the two of them must have been drunk. Then, to totally flabbergast me, I recognize her as a graduate of Sorbonne. Now I understand her diatribe. She must have been one of those star-struck undergrads I had to gently discourage. It was a shock to see one come down so far in the world. Again I tried to turn her away. What good would it do to have her arrested?

But it's too late, the shuttle has arrived. Now the exasperating little chit picks up a couple of my bags, staggering under the load of alcohol she's carrying in addition, and making me worry that she might drop it, and she boldly walks onto the shuttle. And Captain Bridger doesn't even try to stop her. He looks her over appreciately, mumbles something to her, probably the location of his cabin, and lets her pass. Then, he informs me that she's a member of the crew, one of his ensigns. Oh, yeah, I just bet that she's one of his ensigns!

I've got a briefing to attend in a few hours, so I'd better check into the records of these mental "giants" I'll be dealing with. Are you sure this is the best venue for a full field test of TSUNAMI?

Sincerely, Samuel



Private Communications
from: Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD

SeaQuest, DSV
to: Adm. Benjamin Sommerby
Day Three

Well Ben, I seem to be settling in. I must admit, my first look at the group to whom I was entrusting TSUNAMI was not a promising one. The WSKRS operator is the same Mexican I almost came to blows with on the docks, and he's only an enlisted man. And the computer "specialist" on board is a kid! Not even a member of the services. What kind of fleet are you operating here, Ben?

But you remember that Sorbonne graduate I mentioned. I looked up her records, and she did a double major in Wireless Satellite technology and computer systems analysis, with a minor in marine science. Graduate level coursework in all three. I don't know why she didn't do anything real with it. So I drafted her to keep the grunts on their toes and to help me out with the details. I'm still bugged that Celestine wouldn't join me on this. She's been working with me for years, and I thought that she'd be just as excited as I am to see TSUNAMI put through it's paces. Her excuses were so feeble. I mean, there are hundreds of women having babies in underwater colonies all over the world. There's nothing inherently unsafe about pregnancy onboard a sub. Silly cow should have taken precautions anyway. She should never have gotten herself pregnant.

Anyway, the first briefing was fairly disappointing. Not only did I have a group of suspicious, hostile Philistines to deal with, but the only gleam of comfort, the little girl from Sorbonne, showed up in a uniform so highly starched that I don't see how she bends to sit in it. She must be hoping that if she goes overboard on the protocol thing that I'll forget what she's really like.

Immediately after the meeting, she runs off and disappears for the rest of the day. This is after Captain Bridger has specifically ordered her to be available at all times. If it weren't for the fact that I saw that Mexican up on the bridge several times while I was searching the ship for her, then I know where I would have guessed her to be. Maybe he isn't the only string on her bow, though?

I finally tracked her down before breakfast the next morning, flirting outrageously with one of the officers, and politely request her company for breakfast. While I'm trying to find out what she knows about the procedure already, she starts trading smiles and nods with yet another officer, who proceeds to issue some veiled threats toward me! I tell you, Ben, I don't know if this girl is going to be worth the trouble, it seems to follow her around like perfume on a cheap hooker.

But she appears to have calmed down now that she realizes I'm not going to fall for her wiles. And, truthfully, she is very helpful. We had the crewmembers who will be involved making the changes in to see us yesterday for individual briefings and she was just great at drawing out of them their reservations about TSUNAMI. I feel that we are in a good position, now, to actually begin implementing it. So, I've called for another meeting and will release the equipment to them. I'll let you know how it goes.

Sincerely, Samuel



Private Communications
from: Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD
SeaQuest, DSV
to: Adm. Benjamin Sommerby
Day Five
The modifications are begun. And Ben, that girl is a marvel. She's everywhere, supervising, advising and actually getting down and lending a hand with the mechanics of the changes. I'm not actually seeing all that much of her, as it turns out. It seems that she's always somewhere else when I show up to check on the work, having just left to see to another problem. But when she is with me, she knows exactly what progress has been made and where the potential problems are. The installation of the Master Controller to the computer core will have to wait until all of the idcs are in place, I'll be working full time on that, when we start. As for now, I've initiated the simulation runs for the navigator Captain Bridger chose. He's really one for the ladies, Ben. I hadn't expected that from your description of him. This one is cedar tall and slender with a certain delicate quality to her that is quite piquant. Beyond that, she is surprisingly good at the job. The other choice I was offered was some convict. I wasn't about to let any criminals get close to my brainchild. Oh, blast! I'm being paged for something or other. I'll write more later.

Sincerely, Samuel



Private Communications
from: Dr. Samuel Siebas, PhD
SeaQuest, DSV
to: Adm. Benjamin Sommerby
Day Nine

Ben, everything is installed and we are heading for the coordinates you sent, for the test. Is everything in place on your end? I haven't told Captain Bridger what the obstacles are yet, I felt that might not be a good idea. No need to borrow trouble and he'd only try to fight it. As we go, the system operators are cautiously turning the idcses on for short periods in order to accustomed themselves to the inevitable signal reductions engendered by the new equipment. Don't worry, Ben, these are not inherent to the system, and I will get sensitivity back up to former levels in almost all the outside sensoring arrays before much longer. The important thing now is for TSUNAMI to prove itself. Ensign Adler proved to be an inspired choice on my part. Her professional demenor and quiet efficiency certainly kept the project rolling. I'm thinking of stealing her away permanently. Any chances of this?

Actually, re-reading this, I find that I am in error. We are not quite finished. On my final inspection a few hours ago, I discovered that that Mexican seaman had deliberated disobeyed my orders concerning the idcs and had mis-installed the devices in two of the satellites. I have called his attention to the fault and have him correcting his error, with Ensign Adler supervising to ensure that it is done correctly this time.

Sincerely, Samuel


Lonnie paused at the entrance to the work bay, watching as Ari and Miguel operated on the beached satellite. The past week had been a hectic one, with simulated drills for hours on end for herself, and the others working almost non-stop to get the equipment installed.

She sighed softly and leaned against the wall, glad to have a few quiet moments. Siebas hadn't been as difficult to work with as she'd feared from Ari's report of him. Oh, he'd been unbearably obnoxious at first, rather insultingly so, in fact. But after a couple of days, he seemed to become almost human. Maybe he's just one of those shy ones who need time to get used to people.

The four of them had continued to meet for breakfast. Because of the shortage of time, they'd decided to drop the literary discussions for the time being. Not that they were eating much, though, what with swimming with Darwin afterwards. Now that everyone was in the water, it was a lot more fun playing scavenger hunt, switching off partners every other day.

Lonnie looked fondly over the two heads, bowed together over the opened probe, carefully removing something from inside. From the way the two of them had been all over one another at the party, she'd been certain that they'd let their obvious infatuation get out of hand and create an incident that the captain would have to acknowledge. But it hadn't happened. They'd pulled back and were playing it cool. She could hear the soft rumble of conversation, and wondered idly what they were talking about.

Ari held out her hands to take the removed olefactory apparatus from the opened Wireless Satellite. "Stereo sure was insistant that this be the part removed from each of the WSKRS," she observed. "I thought that he'd have a heart attack when he found out what we'd done here."

"Huh-huh," Miguel grunted, reaching in to make some minor adjustments, "Hand me that, ... " he pointed vaguely toward the tool chest. After a week of working with him, and the others, on the the various systems, Ari could make a good guess as to what tool he needed. "Thanks. Yeah, but funny thing, he doesn't remember the discussions we had about this, and he doesn't remember giving approval for the changes." Pulling his attention away from the opening, he looked at his helper, an involuntary smile pulling across his face. He hadn't had as many chances as he would have liked in the past week to enjoy this view. She had a smear of grease across one cheek and was turning the removed apparatus over with a small thoughtful frown. Pulling out his handkerchief, he rubbed the grease from her face. Immediately, she put her hand up to cover the spot and reapplied the mark. He laughed, and looked around for the idiotics.

"Seriously, though, what bothers him so much about this particular analysis system? Is there anything unique about it, Miguel?" She turned to him, it was nice to see him dry for once. Their early morning swim sessions had replaced more formal games of "I say", with Lonnie and Tim joining them in the water. Darwin seemed to be enjoying it, and that meant that Captain Bridger was happy, too. Ari shook her head, lately Darwin had started acting as if he were the leader of a pod, and they were adolescents under his protection. Miguel found what he was looking for on the ground around him and looked up. For one heart-breaking moment, their eyes met, then dropped assidiously to their respective tasks.

"Maybe Stereo can't smell anything, so he doesn't want a machine to out perform him?" Miguel suggested playfully. Ari teasingly slapped him on the shoulder. As Miguel caught the offending hand, beginning to pull the ensign toward him, Lonnie pushed herself off the wall. Time to let them know they had an audience.

"Into male-bashing, now, Ari?" Lonnie laughed, coming up behind them. "You can go on record for that," she warned. "Need a witness, Miguel?" She dropped to her knees beside Ari, watching as the young ensign hid her confusion by turning the rejected WSKRS device over in her hand. "What's that?"

"The olefactory portion of that satellite," Ari explained absently, nodding toward Miguel without actually looking at him.

Grinning, he turned to them and said, "Look at it this way, Ari. At least it opens a channel that we can use for Baby's data." Reaching out, he firmly removed the apparatus from her hands and put it to one side, explaining, "Without this information, we have an unused frequency. All we have to do is tune Baby to send on that frequency, I'll get it through my board and redirect it to the storage file located on Lucas' computer, just as you wanted. Now, how about handing me the idiotics?"

As they installed the new component, Lonnie raised a controversial subject. "Ari, I still don't see why you and Tim are being so stubborn about the bet?" Since the first time, they'd kept to fairly innocuous wagers, like doing one another's laundry. Due to some rather underhanded manuevers on Ari's part and superior swimming on his, Lonnie was stuck with hers this week and Tim with Miguel's.

"Because Miguel didn't win," she responded automatically, as she had for the past week.

"But I did get to the general vicinity of the hiding spots before you did, everytime," he reminded her once again.

"Yes, but that was only because you swim faster. And anyway, getting there first was a minor part of the game. The whole point was in comprehension. And I found three of the items. You only found two."

With an air of sweet reasonableness, Lonnie suggested, "Well, then, I agree, it was draw." At Miguel's sharp movement of protest, she laughed, "Hold on, let me finish. I think that going Dutch is a perfectly fine compromise. But why do we have to go Double Dutch?" Ari's eyes darted between the two, allies in this argument for the past week. She knew why she wanted to double date on this. There was safety in numbers.

She felt a little foolish when she remembered the set down she'd given to Miguel the day after the party, letting him know that she wasn't interested in playing any games with him. In the past week, he'd made it clear that he saw no difference between her and Lonnie, treating them both with an exhilerating blend of friendly flirtation. It was a little disappointing, in fact. Especially since the person he was revealed to be was sweeter and more considerate, more sensitive than almost any other man she knew.

She sighed. He made it most difficult not to fall in love with him. And the morning swim sessions weren't really helping, either. You'd have thought that familiarity would breed contempt, but every time she saw him in that skin-tight suit ... she cut the thought off short as she realized that both were waiting for her response. Blushing, furious with herself for doing so, she gazed defiantly at them both.

"Because we do make a good team, a good foursome. Did you know that the captain and Commander Ford call us 'The Usual Suspects'? Come on, you guys, you know that you'd enjoy it, too." Ari suspected that the lanky communications officer favored the idea of a double date because he didn't trust the sensor chief alone with her, and he didn't want to leave them alone together. She sighed again, quirking her lips in a rueful smile. He didn't trust Miguel, and she didn't trust herself. but it worked out the same way.

She still didn't know what she was going to do about Tim. He hadn't mentioned the incident in any way, but it was obvious that he hadn't forgotten, either. What was she going to do? Tim was nice and that didn't help matters.

Miguel snorted and Ari's head shot up in startlement. "Hand me the panel," he directed. "Hold it in place." He started bolting it on, then continued his argument. "Look, Ari. Getting the four of us to agree on someplace to eat would be a miracle. To agree on a movie would be impossible. I know what I want to see, and I suspect that its the same thing you want." He glanced up at her, devilish smile on his face, and mouthed the words "What do you want?" at her. With that smile on his face and his hair pushed back like that, he was almost impossible to resist. Her heart pounding loudly in reaction to his nearness, she smiled back. "And as for a restaurant, well, my aunt wants to know when I'm bringing you back. Oh, that reminds me, I got pictures of the party from Carmelita." Ari closed her eyes and groaned, while the other two chuckled.

"When do we get to see them?" Lonnie asked eagerly, while Miguel was saying "And you have nothing to worry about, Ari, you were beautiful, and everyone knew it. That's why they all wanted to dance with you." Ari snorted, shaking her head and suppressing a grin.

"No, they all believed Carmelita, tu prima Entrometida, Miguel, when she said that I was your girlfriend. They were trying to figure out what the attraction was."

Shooting an amused grin at her, Miguel agreed, "You're right. My aunt wants to make sure that I continue make a good impression on you before you discover what I'm really like." Then he answered Lonnie's question, "How about tomorrow, at breakfast."

"Sounds good to me," she responded, standing up and brushing off her knees. "When do you think you'll be done here?" she asked, adding, "Just in case Stereo asks. I've got another simulation run with him coming up and he saw me heading this way."

"How's that going, anyway?" Ari asked as Miguel considered the question.

A bright smile blooming on her lips, Lonnie answered, "More fun than I'd expected. If TSUNAMI comes anywhere close to what he expects ..." her voice trailed off as she shook her head in amazement. "I'm really looking forward to the test drive." She looked toward Miguel again. "Well?" she prompted.

Lips pursed thoughtfully, Miguel answered portentously, nodding his head in a grave manner. "Probably not for another couple of hours." Lonnie nodded and left, while Ari stared at him speechless, an amazed expression on her face. When the other ensign was out of sight, she finally found her voice, protesting, "It's not going to take us that long to do the other one."

"Well, I know, and you know, but Stereo doesn't know it, does he? And that gives us an hour or so to work on Baby." His eyes brimming with mischief, he bent again to the business of closing the panel of the modified WSKR. Keeping the plate steady against the drill's pressure, she smiled at his bent head, admiring the curve of his ear, outlined by the springy dark hair pushed behind it.



PART 15

Captain Nathan Bridger looked at the face on the overhead communications screen with dislike mixed with resigned exasperation. "A minefield?" he echoed, as if to ensure that he had, after all, heard properly. Nobody on the bridge was making any pretense of doing anything except listening to the exchange.

Adm. Ben Sommerby smiled affably, his heavy face gleaming with oily satisfaction. "Now, Captain Bridger, it's not really a mine field. They only contain a minimum charge, hardly even a mosquito bite for the SeaQuest hull. It's just enough to let you know that you've hit one, nothing more."

"Let me get this straight, Adm. Sommerby. You have," he paused, visibly seeking the most politic words possible, "arranged an obstacle course utilizing a three-dimensional solution, composed of neutral buoyancy minimum charge mines, scattered in a random pattern, at random depths, and you expect me to trust my boat to an untried navigational design in order to traverse this path?"

Sommerby beamed, "Exactly, Captain. With the crew you have on board, we knew that we had to make it as challenging as possible." Bridger let out a deep sigh, glancing around the bridge. Dr. Siebas was standing beside him, almost quivering with excitement about the approaching tests of TSUNAMI. Looking further around, he caught sight of Ari, up behind the sensor station, as she always was when her services were not required on the bridge, but her presence was. His visual scan compleat, he turned back to the screen. Pressing his lips together in disgust, he nodded.

"Very well, Admiral. We will initiate TSUNAMI start up procedures now." He nodded toward Lucas.

Ari looked closer as an unfamiliar red light flashed on the console. "What's that?" she whispered, leaning over his shoulder to point toward it. Miguel glanced up, then went back to setting the WSKRS adjustments for the idiotics.

"That's Baby, making her hourly report. It'll be finished in just ... There, done now," he said as the light blinked off. Ari waited until his hands were still again, her hands resting lightly on his shoulders.

"It's been two days now since we launched HIM," she commented, her voice emphasizing the pronoun. When the little satellite had been compleated, Miguel had declared that it was obviously female, a real sweetheart, but Ari insisted that she could see the boyish qualities in it. Neither one wanted to give in to the other. They were enjoying the banter too much. "Is there any interferance with the other WSKRS?"

"Naw, smooth as silk. I wish all of the satellites were as trouble-free as SHE is," he teased back, his lips folded into a half smile. He fiddled with a knob. "They've been sluggish since we relaunched them after compleating the modifications." Ari sobered, then pointed to the view with her chin.

"I don't think that I could get used that resolution, not after what it was before," she said. Miguel reached up, adjusted a few buttons in a vain attempt to improve the gain, and ended up with everything back the way it had been.

"Yeah, well, what I miss is the chem analysis in the 'nose'. I'd feel so much better if I could have kept it in at least one."

Lucas called out, "Conditions all green for TSUNAMI, captain."

"All right, Lucas. On my signal." The captain turned back toward the screens. "Put a WSKRS view of the boat on the screens, Chief Ortiz, and transmit it back to the Admiral." Siebas, looking around proudly, frowned as he noted his assistant on the upper part of the bridge.

"Ensign Adler," he called out. Intent of her thoughts, wondering what Miguel's ear would taste like if she nibbled on it, just a bit, Ari responded absently, "Sir?"

"We are about to begin the trials. Would you please attend to me?" Ari looked up, slight confusion in her eyes, not having heard a word of the command. "Yes sir?" she inquired again.

Captain Bridger stepped over to Siebas, calling out "As you were, ensign." Aside to the other man, he advised, "Doctor, we are about to witness your personal triumph. Be generous in it. You've kept her off the sensor station and away from the WSKRS for more than a week now."

Frowning his disapproval, convinced that the console was not what occupied her attention at this time, Siebas nonetheless turned back to the screens. Bridger looked toward Lonnie, wearing a form-fitting suit containing sensors and transmitters. A helmet, like one worn by a knight of old, was on her head, hiding the wires attached with surgical glue at the small, shaved points around her skull. The front panel was opaque, to prevent any confusion between what TSUNAMI required and what was actually before her eyes. "Are you ready, Ensign Henderson."

"Yes sir, I'm all hooked up." Gesturing at Lucas, Bridger commanded, "Turn it on." The lights dimmed slightly, then came back up as the computer compensated for the drain. Lonnie yelped joyously, the sound echoing oddly over loudspeakers through out SeaQuest.

"Woo-hoo! This is great. I feel, I don't know, sleek, powerful. Like I am SeaQuest. And I can see everything. Full 360 mark view. This is much more intense than the practice." After a few seconds to grow accustomed to the sensations, Lonnie spoke again, "Ok, Captain, I see the first buoy. Shall I go forward?"

"Yes, Henderson, take us through this field and try not to pick up any daisies on the way."

Lonnie moved her hands forward, swaying slightly, she swerved to the left, then up. As she did so, she maintained a running commentary of what she saw, how she was avoiding the ubiquitous mines and the heading changes she was making. "There's another one right there, oops! Where did that come from?" she asked as she ducked. They heard a faint ping and Miguel called out, "Impact forward, sir." "Sorry, Captain," Lonnie winced. "That one slipped past me."

"Just take it slow and easy, ensign. Steady as she goes."

Finally, she sighed, "Done sir. We're out of the mine field." She touched the VR field off and removed the helmet, her face flushed with pleasure and excitement.

At this, the crew let out a roar, laughing and slapping each other's backs and generally letting off steam, shouting and cheering. In the confusion of victory, Ari leaned forward, tightening her arms around Miguel's neck as he reached behind to circle her with his own. Siebas's face was beaming brightly, compleatly oblivious to anything except the success of his mission. Through the shouts of relief and celebration, Tim sang out from communications, "Admiral Sommerby, sir."

"On screen, Lieutenant."

As soon as he appeared, Siebas crowed, "I told you it was a sure thing, Ben. Did you see? We made it through without any mistakes! TSUNAMI is a success. No one can deny that now."

The admiral coughed drily, smile broad on his face. "Well, we did record one hit, but seems you were right, Samuel. SeaQuest out performed any other sub we put through it An outstanding feat. Congratulations to your navigator, Captain."

"Thank you, sir."

"And now, for the second half of the test." Both Siebas and Captain Bridger's heads jerked up in surprise, the doctor's expression mixed with confusion. Around the bridge, the crew came to attention, wondering what would be next. "There's a fissure just ahead of you, Captain. We've measured it carefully. It's a tight fit, but it is large enough for SeaQuest to explore it to a distance of about five miles. We left a buoy in there and I want you to take her in and retrieve my buoy."

"And how are we to turn her around, again, sir."

Shaking his head with mock disapproval, Sommerby answered, "Now, Captain Bridger, you've boasted that you can move that thing backwards and forwards and even sideways. There's no room in there to turn around, you'll have to back out. With TSUNAMI you should be able to do it easily. We'll be watching." And the image disappeared.

Bridger turned again to his crew. "You heard the man. And Henderson?"

"Yes sir?"

"Let's show him what we can do. Back her in." An elvish grin lighting the bottom half of her face, helmet hiding the upper, Lonnie responded emphatically, "Yes, sir!"

The bridge was a quieter place this time, because the stakes were much higher. The fissure was wide enough and high enough, but only barely, and the slightest error on Lonnie's part would translate into severe hull damage, not a minor sting.

Five minutes in, Tim called out, "Admiral on the line, sir."

"On screen, Lt." The image that appeared was noisy, jerky, breaking up.

"...loosing your signal ... fix this ..." Captain Bridger turned to Miguel, adjusting the gain, trying to filter out the interference.

"What's happening, Mr. Ortiz?" Miguel glanced up, then back at the displays.

"Minerals in the surrounding walls are interfering with the WSKRS signals, sir. with the sensitivity loss induced by TSUNAMI, I can't compensate."

"Don't blame your incompetence on me, young man!" Siebas bristled, reacting to the insult to his creation. "Ensign Adler, get down here."

"Belay that!" Bridger ordered sharply, fed up with the other man's self-absorption. "Can you do anything to compensate."

Ari bent down, "Perhaps setting them up in a line of sight transmission relay?" she suggested quietly. Miguel gave her a hurried smile and passed the suggestion on.

"Do it. And Ensign, assist in any way possible." Ari bent over the board, the two sets of hands flashing as one, positioning the satellites properly, while maintaining a view of SeaQuest's progress. After explaining the situation to the Admiral, the atmosphere on the bridge reverted to the quiet, tense, waiting one interrupted by the call.

Half an hour in, Lucas looked up to report, "Ensign Darwin has left the sub, sir." Bridger waved a hand, his attention focused on the displayed WSKRS view, watching the walls of the canyon as SeaQuest slid and slithered her way in.

"Yes, yes, he did say that he wanted to watch from outside. I would have expected that before now, though." A little after that, Tim, who's eyes had not left Lonnie's sweating, grimacing face and tense body since the start of this portion of the test, left his station and picked up a water bottle beside her couch. Leaning over the supine body of the navigator, he placed the nozzle into her mouth, and squeezed. Gratefully she drank, then drank some more. Taking a clean handkerchief, he wet the cloth slightly and wiped the sweat from the visible portions of her face. A strained smile reached her lips, "Thanks, Tim," she whispered. His face showing deep concern, he replaced the bottle and returned to his station.

At long last, the taut, rigid body relaxed and she smiled with relief. "We're here, Captain. I can see the marking buoy they put up for us."

"Very good, ensign. We'll rest here for a few minutes to bring it aboard, then you can take us out again."

"Yes, sir," she said, cutting off the field before reaching out, blindly, for the waiting drink, but Tim was already beside her, holding it to her lips. The crew reaction this time was a muted one, they were only half-way through, although it had been the harder half, backing in. Nonetheless, no one fooled themselves into thinking that the return would be easy. With a muted background murmur of released anxieties, Ari noticed a red flash from the sensor console.

Without warning, the bridge was plunged into darkness as lights blew, all at once. Captain Bridger called for back-up, but the consoles flashed and sparked, arcing and catching fire. Down below, Lonnie screamed in agony, her body lit by the dancing will-o-wisps of electrical fire. In the light of the flare-ups, even as Miguel grabbed her away from the sparking sensor station, Ari could see Tim frantically pulling the VR set off Lonnie's body, frighteningly limp except for the uncontrolled jerking. The shoosh of the ventilation system stopped, the respiration of SeaQuest ceased, and Lucas's stoic, frightened voice issued from the half-dark, "The computer is down, Captain. We're dead in the water."




PART 16

A long heartbeat later, the ventilation gasped and spluttered back into life, then began a steady aspiration as the lights over the individual stations came on. The sound of pent-up breaths being released struck Ari as being somewhat humourous, and she choked down a giggle, no time for hysterics now. She noticed that Dr. Smith had somehow managed to find Lonnie in the dark and was looking her over carefully, Tim hovering, helpless, beside her.

"Lucas, what have we got?" Captain Bridger barked out. Lucas shook his head.

"Not much, Captain. Life support, some power," he shrugged, repeating, "Not much."

"Tim, can you open a line to Adm. Sommerby?" Tim raced back to his ruined station and, wiping the goo from the extinguisher off it, began working his board.

"Nothing, sir. My controls are dead," he laboured a while longer, then looked up, shaking his head, "Nothing. No external or internal communications, sir." Captain Bridger turned to Miguel, already working over his station.

"Can we get any information from the WSKRS?" he asked.

For a brief moment, the tell-tales flashed on, then with a sudden sizzle, a cascade of sparks erupted from it, as Miguel threw himself back and out of the way. Getting to his knees, he looked toward the captain. "No sir."

From somewhere outside, like a picture within a picture, Ari saw herself stepping forward, commenting, in a conversational tone of voice, "It doesn't matter, does it, Dr. Siebas? They're out of commission, anyway. Just like the ones from the lab." He stared at her uncomprehending, eyes wide and unseeing with the shock of having his victory snatched away. She continued.

"When you said that you had solved the problem that had affected TSUNAMI at the Sorbonne trial, you didn't mean that you had fixed TSUNAMI. You meant that you had emasculated the Wireless Satellites." Her breath had started to catch in her throat as her voice raised, "You knew this could happen, didn't you? Didn't you?" Mouth opened, Siebas backed away, head shaking slowly is a paroxysm of disbelief, of denial.

"Ensign Adler!" Captain Bridger snapped, his voice commanding, "Report!"

Ari closed her eyes, shuddering as she fought for control. Even with her eyes shut, she saw Miguel step up behind her his arms out and knew that if she turned to rest her head on the solid comfort of his chest that he would enfold her in his arms. She held her hand up, to stop him. He paused just behind her, and put a companionable hand on her shoulder. The warmth from that hand radiated downward, providing a contact with reality.

Gratefully, she took hold of that life line, struggling to regain possession of herself against the unreasoning panic that threatened to drown her in darkness.

Expressionlessly, Miguel took up the argument. "We were ordered to remove the olefactory apparatus from every WSKRS used in TSUNAMI trial, to replace it with the inter-device communications system. The data collected by that chemical analysis transmitted along a unique frequency, no other operation used it. Since we weren't going to be using that channel for a while, I assigned it to an hourly download information from an independent satellite." He turned his cold gaze toward Siebas. "She's right, isn't she? You knew that this could happen." Ari opened her eyes, the curious double sight was still present, still threatening, but she was in control.

"Sorry, Captain." Raising her chin proudly, she added, "I noticed the signal from Baby just before the lights went out, sir." Siebas flinched at the affectionate nickname for the satellite while Captain Bridger nodded his understanding.

Turning to face the stricken scientist, he asked, "Well, doctor, can you answer these allegations?"

Breathing heavily, sweating profusely, Siebas, faced his accusers. A snarl of hatred distorted his face. "Can't you see it, Captain?" he asked. "Those two have been conspiring to destroy me since I came on board. They've criticized me, slandered me and now they have sabotaged the SeaQuest. Can't you see it?" he appealed to the silent watchers around him. Pointing his finger at Miguel and Ari, he yelled, "Look at them! They've been waiting for this moment for years!" He walked forward, his eyes glittering wildly, talking to Ari. "I've seen you," he accused, low voiced. "Seen you in the darkness, watching, plotting, waiting. You never could accept me, could you? Never could accept my genius, my right to be alive. And so now you've done your best to destroy me. But you can't! TSUNAMI works. It was a success. You can't take that from me. You can't!" He stopped below them, his arms upraised threateningly. Miguel pulled the shocked and staring ensign away from the edge.

"Lt. Brody," the captain's cool, sane voice ordered. "Escort Dr. Siebas to his quarters and assign him a guard to ensure that he remains there."

"Yes sir." Jumping up, Brody approached the distraught scientist. "Come this way, sir." As he half pulled Siebas out into the corridors, they could hear him wailing, "Can't you see it? It's all her fault. It's always been her fault. Someone has to do something, before she destroys us all!" His voice died in the distance.

Ari shivered involuntarily as the double vision abruptly ceased, and she almost fell, knees collapsing, Miguel's strong arms helping her keep her balance. Turning toward Lucas, she observed normally, "It appears that the circuit breaker worked. Do you suppose that the firewall held, as well." Bridger looked from one to the other.

"Circuit breaker? Firewall?" He paused, the doubt planted by the scientist's words blooming in his mind. "Ensign, is there any truth to Dr. Siebas' allegations? Did you deliberately sabotage TSUNAMI?" The shocked voices of her crewmates raised in tones of outrage around her as Miguel squeezed her shoulders, his hands involuntarily trying to form fists.

"No sir," she answered levelly. "But I knew that TSUNAMI had failed before. A prototype, crude and unsophisticated, perhaps, but it wasn't all that long ago. Dr. Siebas's assurances that he'd solved the problem didn't seem convincing to me, so I discussed the matter with Lucas."

"She was right, Captain," Lucas broke in fervently. "He wasn't taking any precautions against failure. And you'd been ordered to do everything his way. So we set up some protections."

"I see. Without my knowledge and against orders." After a pause, he asked, "And what form did these protections take?"

Lucas looked uncertainly toward Ari. She invited him to continue with a gesture. "Well, ah, I put up something to protect parts of the SeaQuest computer ..." Bridger interrupted.

"Like life-support, obviously, what else?"

"Not much. Emergency lights," his eyes flickered upward, then toward Dr. Smith. "Some medical. But the Master controller drew heavily on too many systems to protect more than that. Siebas would have noticed and it would have all been lost." The captain nodded. Swallowing heavily, Lucas continued, "And I installed a firewall around my computer, my files."

"His outside line." Ari added. "It might be unaffected," she offered the hope. Bridger looked up, his eyes accepting the gift. Gesturing with his head, he ordered, "Try to access it, Lucas."

Turning to the computer console, Lucas shrugged, "Not from here, captain, too much physical damage." He looked up at him through his bangs. "I'll have to go to my quarters."

"Ummm, Sir?" Tim interrupted. "Even if it is unaffected, we won't know. The interference from the chasm walls ...?" Captain Bridger sighed with exasperation.

"Ok. But check it out anyway, Lucas. Take a PAL and report back." He looked around, as the boy half ran from the bridge. "Ok, folks, we've got a lot of work to do. Tim, Miguel, I want a complete analysis of communications and sensor arrays. Find out why they aren't working and what can be done to get some response from them.

"Piccolo, take a reconnaissance team outside, make sure that SeaQuest didn't sustain any damage, and anchor her against drifting. Commander, issue a battlestations. I want the entire boat analysed for whatever systems we have remaining to us. By the end of the next hour, I want to know exactly what we have to work with and what can be done to get SeaQuest out of this hole." His slow rotation ended when he came in sight of Lonnie, Dr. Smith still beside her. He moved quickly there.

"How is she?" he asked, concern heavy in his voice. Reaching down, Dr. Smith gently pushed aside Lonnie's hair, showing the blistering where the VR electrodes had been attached.

"She'd already turned off the field when the program crashed, Nathan. That's the only reason she's still alive. But she was still hit with a massive current. I won't be able to fully assess the damage to her neural pathways until I can examine her in sickbay. Assuming that I have any equipment that is still working." Bridger nodded at a couple of crewmen.

"Help Dr. Smith transport Ensign Henderson to sickbay," he ordered. To her, he continued, "After you finish examining Henderson, check on Siebas, try to get him calmed down. He may have some information that can help us." She nodded, and followed the crewmen, carefully carrying the unconscious ensign, out. An electrical crackle filled the air, and Lucas' disembodied voice spoke.

"I've got Adm. Sommerby, Captain. He's about half-way in, in a mini-sub. He wants to talk to you."

"And I want to talk to him. Commander Ford, you have the bridge. I'm calling for a briefing in one hour, and I want to know of what we are capable. Ensign Adler, you're with me."

Unhappily, Ari left the opened computer panel she was examining and fell in behind the captain. As he headed for the Maglevs, she reminded him, "They're down, sir." He grunted and changed directions.

"Means we'll have to take the long way." After a short silence, he shortened his step, encouraging her to catch up. "How certain are you of your assessment back there," he asked. Ari licked her lips nervously before answering.

"It's funny, sir. Funny weird. But back there, I was compleatly certain that I was right. I knew that it was the correct solution. But now?" she shook her head slightly, indicating bafflement. "It stills feels right, sir, everything that has happened is very much like what occurred during the test at Sorbonne. But until we can examine the evidence, it's only a theory. Dr. Siebas might even be correct. It could have been sabotage."

"He also suggested that you were the saboteur," Bridger pointed out drily. Ari shrugged.

"So, he's not infallible," she responded with Yiddish intonations, surprising a bark of laughter out of the captain.

Before entering Lucas' quarters, Captain Bridger cautioned Ari, "Don't volunteer any information unless specifically asked for it. Don't speculate. Understand?"

"Yes sir."

Entering the room, Bridger sat in the hastily vacated seat in front of the terminal. Adm. Sommerby, looking very annoyed, immediately began demanding, "Captain Bridger! What is going on there? Your WSKRS suddenly stopped sending information about twenty minutes ago. I've been trying to get you on-line ever since and when I do, I find this ... this child manning communications. What is happening?"

"Admiral, it appears that TSUNAMI had some hidden flaws."

"What? Impossible. It came through the limited tests with flying colours, this was merely a formality. What could have gone wrong?"

"That's what we're trying to determine now, sir. As well as trying to figure out a way out of here. Is there any chance that SeaQuest could be towed out of this fissure, sir?"

Sommerby shook his head gravely, calming down as the implications of the question hit him. "It's not possible. You saw how narrow the way is. I would never have suggested this if I'd had the slightest inkling that anything could go wrong." He paused, sighing with regret, then asked, "How bad is the damage, Captain?" Bridger shook his head in turn.

"I don't know yet, sir. My entire team is working to assess the damage. TSUNAMI blew out and took the computer out with it. I don't know what else is gone, yet. I have one man down and Dr. Siebas has had to be restrained."

Looking shocked, Sommerby gasped, "Samuel? Why?"

"He became disoriented after the shutdown, and seemed to be a danger to himself and others. My ship's doctor will be looking in on him, shortly."

"Who's down? Was there a collision? An explosion?"

"The navigator. She was incapacitated by an electrical discharge generated when the computer crashed. Admiral, would you find what information you can concerning a similar accident at Sorbonne ... " he looked over toward Ari for the information.

Stepping forward, she continued, "Sorbonne Wireless Satellite Technology Labs, under the supervision of Professor Jules Argent. The accident occurred in the Bay of Sienne 22 June 2019. A graduate student under Dr. Siebas was injured in the accident, one Marie Harfleur." Bridger nodded as Ari stepped back, saying "Thank you, ensign."

"You think that this may have some bearing on what has happened now?"

"I don't know, sir, but it should be investigated." Bridger responded levelly.

"I'll get what I can concerning it. Nathan, I can help with the evacuation of your crew, but if you can't swim her out yourself, SeaQuest is lost. I'll get back to you." The screen when blank.

Spinning the seat around, Captain Bridger regarded the two before him. They had deliberatedly and knowingly ignored the chain of command and had disobeyed orders, implied and stated, in doing so.

"Have you two considered the possibility that your interferences may have precipitated this crisis?" he asked. Lucas looked stunned, but Ensign Adler stood at attention, staring straight ahead, and answered, "Yes, sir. I had. And if this proves to be the case, I want to go on record as being entirely responsible for what has happened. I suborned Lucas' assistance in this matter and I will accept any penalties that may encrue."

"Hey! That's a load of ..." the younger man cut statement off short, leaving the rest unspoken. "Captain, I did this of my own free will. Ens. Adler mentioned a couple of worries that she had, and I came up with the solutions on my own time. I didn't tell her about it until I was finished. I should be held responsible."

"Since it currently appears that you've saved the immediate lives of your crewmates," the captain interrupted drily, "I suggest that you argue the blame or credit later. Right now, we have to get this boat moving. Since the two of you installed the Master controller, and you work so well together, I want you both to look the computer over. Find out how bad the damage is and what can be done to re-route around it. I want helm control and navigation back on line. Enough to get her out of here. I'll expect your report in an hour, on the bridge." Ari, still at attention, saluted, and Lucas nodded. Bridger, sighing heavily, stood up and left the room.

"Well," Lucas commented, "you heard the captain. Let's get to work." Ari nodded, but as they were hurrying toward the computer access panels, she veered off toward the moon pool. "Hey! Where are you going?"

"To get some lights. I don't remember any emergency lights inside there, do you?"

"Well, yeah, a few, but, hold up! I'll come with you."

Grabbing a flash, Ari shoved it in her pocket, along with a couple of spare batteries. She noticed Lucas doing the same. As she turned to leave, Lucas put up a hand to stop her. "Why don't you take your dolphin equipment?"

"This is no time to play games," she snapped, then stopped. "I'm sorry, Lucas. That was uncalled for. And since it's likely that we'll need cannibalize parts from every keyboard before we're done ... " she shrugged, and removed it from it's locker. Lucas looked as if he wanted to protest her conclusions, but just shook his head and shrugged. She was probably right, anyway.



PART 17

Captain Bridger looked over the worried faces on the bridge in front of him, then at his watch. "Well, Dr. Smith isn't here, yet, but I think we can begin. Mr. Piccolo, report."

Seaman Anthony Piccolo, a slender, slight young man with the air of tough city sparrow, stood up. Looking a little vague and unsure of himself in such company, he licked his lips nervously before beginning, "Well, sir, I, ah, I swam outside and SeaQuest is ok, sir. She's not banged up into anything or bumping anything out there. Me and a couple of guys got her tied up to some, I don't know sir, ah stalagtite things, sir, so that she wouldn't drift. The water's not too cold, either."

"Thank you, Mr. Piccolo." As the seaman sat down thankfully, Bridger continued, "And what is the condition of the engines, Commander Ford?"

"No damage, sir. Ensign Henderson had her in full stop before the accident, and TSUNAMI never interferred with them directly. Also, we do have full power, sir, once we have helm control again."

"Very good, Commander. But we haven't determined that TSUNAMI was the cause of the problem, yet," he reminded his second. "Lucas, Ensign Adler. Where do we stand with the computer."

Lucas remaining seated, looked down at his feet then craned his head upward, "Well, sir, From the burn evidence, I don't see what else it could have been except the TSUNAMI. It looks like the Master Controller imploded and tried to take every connected system down with it. The amount of damage depends of the degree of hard contact. Navigation comp is fused solid. We'll have to get it replaced it in drydock. Helm is somewhat better. It was buffered, to some degree, by the re-routing necessary to use the virtual reality hardware, instead of the normal controls. We should be able to re-route and re-wire enough to gain some manueverability. Maybe a day, with teams working around the clock.

"Communications and sensor data processing comps have varying amounts of damage. With enough time, we should get some capability on-line, but not if we're concentrating on helm," He sighed unhappily, "And, the circuit breaker wasn't entirely sucessful. Life support, lights, they suffered some damage due to arcing and physical damage. We may experience local failures in both." Bridger nodded, turning toward Miguel.

"What about sensor arrays, Chief?" he asked.

"We'll have to replace all of the circuitry surrounding the idiotics, ah, inter-device communication systems, sir. The rings fused when they blew. But aside from that, the actual sensing equipment, the sonar and radar arrays, are still functioning, after a fashion.

"We retrieved the modified WSKRS, the ones that were out at the time. They're total losses. We still have the four unmodified satellites remaining, five with the specialized one. The problem is that during the shutdown, the console suffered some physical damage, as well the computer," he shrugged, "and we don't have the programs to retrieve and process data nor screens to display it." The captain cast an inquiring eye toward Lucas, who was shaking his head at the implied question.

"Not possible, Captain. We'll be doing all we can just to get helm control."

Ari, catching sight of Dr. Siebas' discarded briefcases, suddenly blurted, "What about private personal computers?" Everyone looked to her. Shrugging her shoulders, she suggested, "We need to know what's out there more than any other analysis. Why don't we set up a network of PPC's, personal computers, to retrieve and process the information from sonar and radar data?" Nodding thoughtfully, Miguel agreed, "That could be possible, Captain. But it would be awfully limited. All we'd be able to manage would be three-dimensional line diagrams of our surroundings."

"If that's all we can get, we'll have to use it. Good. Check into it, Chief. Requistion any unused personal computers on board that you need." Facing Tim, he inclined his head to him, "O'Neill, report."

"Communications are down, sir. The masts are untouched, but the console was destroyed in the resultant fire. I'm sorry, sir." Ari felt numb. While she'd been paralyzed by the darkness, he'd been burning his hands pulling the VR gear off Lonnie's screaming body. That was how his station had sustained such damage. Everyone else had been at their own with fire extinguishers. A new voice entered the discussion.

"Your actions saved Lonnie's life, Tim. If you hadn't pulled her out of that suit, the inputs would have electrocuted her," Dr. Smith smiled at the young man, then, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, she said to Bridger, "We have another problem, Nathan. Dr. Siebas is loose."

After a moment of shocked silence, Bridger asked curtly "How did that happened?" The doctor shrugged her shoulders, palms turned up.

"After getting Lonnie settled, I went to check on Dr. Siebas. I found Coulter unconscious in the hallway in front of the doctor's quarters. I don't know any more than that."

Jerking his head up, Bridger ordered, "Brody, get a security detail out. He may be dangerous." Dr. Smith nodded. He continued, speaking to her, "And how is Ensign Henderson?"

"She's been badly hurt, not entirely physically. The psychic shock of the accident has driven her deep into hiding, inside herself. She needs quiet and comfort before she can be persuaded to venture out again."

"And the physical damage?" he pressed. She sighed, shaking her head.

"Not as bad as it first appeared. First and second degree burns. Nowhere near as bad as it could have been. Tim's speed removing the equipment saved her from more serious injury." O'Neill beamed, lowering his eyes to the table to treasure his pleasure. "But something that interests me," turning to face Ari, Dr. Smith asked curiously, "Have you ever been tested for psi potential?"

Sitting straight up, outraged, Ari responded indignantly, "No! Never! I'm no telepath." Dr. Smith smiled sadly.

"No, I guessed you hadn't. I'm scheduling you for testing when this is over, Ensign Adler. Your reactions on the bridge after the failure of the trial convince me that there is, indeed, a need for you to be tested." Captain Bridger's expression was curious but concerned.

"In what way, doctor," he asked before Ari could protest the fiat.

Nodding toward the upset junior officer, she answered, "Ensign Adler was close to panic just after the lights came up again, contrary to her psych profiles." He shrugged.

"Sailors facing danger for the first time often choke in a crisis," he pointed out calmly. "That's no reason to assume any other cause."

"No, but given her uneasiness about the entire project, her apparent intuition as to the cause of the disaster, Dr. Siebas' collapse, his accusations that she 'watched him in the darkness', and her remarkable recovery on his removal from the area, I'd say that there was a definate telepathic connection between the two of them." The doctor ticked off her points on her fingers as she made them. A damaging collection. The last comment was too much.

A disgusted expression spreading across her face, Ari announced, "That is the most repugnant thing I've ever heard." At the doctor's startled glance, she flushed, and stammered, trying to explain herself, "No insult intended, doctor. I don't mean the psi part, exactly, though that's pretty bad, but" her nose wrinkled up, "Dr. Siebas and me. Ew!" she shuddered and everyone laughed, releasing the tension slightly. A squeal sounded from the pool. Turning toward Darwin, Ari laughed too, shaking her head slightly. Bridger nodded toward the dolphin.

"What did he say, Ensign." Ari looked up, startled, then, realizing that with the computer down she was the only one who could understand Darwin, she replied, "He's just glad to see some smiles around here, Captain." As the dolphin continued squealing and clicking, her forehead wrinkled, in concentration. "I'm not getting it all, but I think he wants to know what's going on." She shook her head with frustration, "I'm sorry, sir, but without the pickups ... "

"Could you explain the problem to him?"

She shrugged, "I could if I had my stuff, but that's ..."

"Here." Lucas finished for her, handing over the board. "You brought it up for parts, remember?"

"Yes, Lucas," she said with exaggerated patience. "But without the pick-ups and headphones, it doesn't do much good." Miguel grunted slightly, drawing her attention to him. He was leaning over, reaching into the pool behind Darwin.

"Hold on a moment," he advised, then said, "Come on, Baby, come to Daddy." as he grabbed the small satellite, still following Darwin around, and pulled it to him.

Ari went over to join him. Making some adjustments, he explained, "I gave her speaker and mike systems while you were busy with Siebas. There, that should do it now." And he released it. "Try it now," he suggested, turning and smiling into her eyes.

Shrugging, Ari sat down and began to type, with the immediate result of a happy whistle from Darwin. Grinning, she reported, continuing her typing, "He's happy to hear something from us that he understands. I'm explaining to him now." After a response, she snorted, shaking her head. "He says 'I can swim out easily, even in the dark. -- Something -- is big enough for SeaQuest swim out, too'. I'm think he means there's enough space around. I'm telling him about the accident. Hmmm, well, that's a new word for me. Ok, sir, done."

Captain Bridger nodded and turned, collecting the attention of his crew. "Well, now, we need to figure a way out of this trap. I'm open to suggestions."

Miguel sat down beside Ari. Intent on trying to give Darwin some idea of what the discussion was about, all she knew was that he was fiddling with something, until he reached up and put a headset in place. As Darwin's voice suddenly came to her ear clearly, she realized that he'd retrieved his own set from the ruined console and fixed the frequency. She smiled her thanks to him absently, fingers flying.

"What about the minisubs, sir," Ford was saying. "Could we replace the SeaQuest navigational system with what we can get out of one of them." Lucas answered, "No way. The minisubs depend on SeaQuest computor for most of their locational information. They're going to be operating on line of sight to swim out of here, themselves."

"Unless we have them retrieve the navigational directions from another source, Adm. Summerby's flag ship, for example." Ford countered. "Then perhaps they could lead SeaQuest out, like seeing eye dogs." The captain nodded thoughtfully, "It might come to that, Commander," But Tim, surprisingly enough, was shaking his head in negation.

"I'm sorry, sir, but that wouldn't work. We needed the WSKRS to relay our signals out before the accident. With them down, we can't reach them."

"Well, can't we just send the other WSKRS out in their place?" Tony asked.

"Not with the SeaQuest computer down, Tony. The ones on the subs aren't designed for that kind of control," Lucas answered.

"Definate design flaw," Bridger muttered to himself. "I'll have to have a stiff word with the architect."

"What about moving the computers from all the shuttles to SeaQuest?" Brody asked. "Wouldn't that give them enough power?"

"Yes it would, Lt." Bridger responded. "And we may come to that. But I'd like to keep it as a last resort. We're going to need the shuttles for evacuation purposes, and I'd like to try Cmdr. Ford's suggestion, first. Using the subs to lead her out."

"What about having the shuttle computers transmit the WSKRS signals to SeaQuest," Ford added. Addressing Miguel, he asked, "Would it be possible to set up a PPC network to get location information from the visual data off that?"

Miguel shook his head slowly. "I might, possibly, get enough detail with the computer to back me up. The undamaged computer," he emphasized. "But not with any number of PPC's."

"Wait a minute," Tim suggested. "That's a way to punch a communications signal out, perhaps using Lucas's line."

Captain Bridger nodded. "You and Ortiz, see what you can do with that."

Lt. Brody suggested, "Perhaps we could set up proximity warnings along SeaQuest's hull, that would give us some warning of impending collisions." Nodding, the captain, agreed, "Yes, but it's still not enough."

Tim, watching Ari interpreting this to Darwin, muttered, "Too bad Dawin can't navigate the boat." Bridger looked up, interest engaged.

"What was that, Lt. O'Neill?" Tim blinked his eyes in surprise.

"Nothing, sir. I was just thinking out loud."

"Well, that's what we're doing here. If you have an idea, Lieutenant, share it with us."

Shrugging, trying to dissociate himself from the wisecrack, he repeated, "I said, it's too bad that Darwin can't navigate the boat. Dolphins navigate under water by echo-location, using a form of sonar. He wouldn't need anything except the sonar arrays." Ari's head shot up, surprise in her eyes.

"I don't either," she said, matter-of-factly. There was a moment's silence while they all looked at the young woman disbelievingly. She flushed and insisted. "My father taught sonar operations at Groton several times before the accident. He practiced his lessons on me."

"Ensign," Captain Bridger said carefully. "That had to have almost a decade ago, and you were just a child."

"He was revising his lesson plans during the trip to Ireland. And I went through the course more often than his other students did. And besides, I've kept in practice since then. I kept all of his tapes and notes, and Lucas and Miguel know I kept his programs."

"Is that what Lonnie was talking about?" Tim asked. "She said that whenever things got too bad, you'd put on these weird sounds and meditate on them." Ari smiled faintly.

"Some of them. I think that the whale songs freaked her most, though."

"Let me get this straight," Ford leaned forward. "You're saying that you can navigate by sonar, without the visual plots or computer analysis." Ari bit her lips.

"Not exactly. I mean, I ... I can. Theoretically. I've never done it before, you understand. But I've kept up the training, and ... I'd need to practice before hand."

Captain Bridger mused, hand on his chin thoughtfully. "It'd be a step back in time, to the old boomers, and it would take some time to work out the details. But it might work. It just might work. Buddy Adler was the best sonar op I ever worked with, and the best teacher the Navy had for it." He nodded. "Ok, that gives us something to go on.

Ari repeated, anxiously, as the reality of the idea crept up on her, "We'd have to ... we'd have to test the idea, first, sir, before we could even think of involving SeaQuest. Find out if it is possible. I don't know."

"Of course, ensign." The dolphin's high pitched squeal interrupted them and Bridger realized that during the argument, Ari had stopped her interpreting. At his curious glance, she looked down and explained, "I can't talk and translate at the same time, sir. Sorry."

"What does he want?"

"He's wondering why we're making a big fuss over this," she finally reported, a pleased smile spreading over her face. "He seems to believe that it's not that difficult, that I can do it. He's says that he'll help, too."

Standing up, Captain Bridger commented. "You said that we'd have to test the idea, first, Ensign. You are mistaken, the best test is success. Our first order of operation is to gain control of the boat. Lucas, you and Adler are in charge of re-routing the damaged computer pathways. Commandeer all the help you need, but that work is to go on round the clock. I want helm control."

"O'Neill, open a line to Adm. Sommerby using the computer in Lucas' quarters for now. He should still be heading this way in the mini-sub. Tell him that I'm taking on that offer to help with evacuation. After that I want some kind of internal communications. We'll need to coordinate our efforts here, you'll be in charge of that.

"Commander Ford, set up the evacuation order. Coordinate with Adm. Sommerby for the loan of additional minisubs, and make sure that we get ours back here, I want experienced sub pilots to remain on board, they'll be on watch, dogging us out of here.

"Ortiz, we'll need to have the outputs for sonar and radar routed to the bridge, raw data. I don't care how you do it.

"Lt. Brody, set those proximity alarums along the hull, upper, lower, and sides, I want to know where any danger may be coming from. So arrange a board to keep track of them during the trip out. And Commander, you and Brody see what you can do with weapons. It may be necessary for us to widen this rabbit hole in order to get back out, Give me the means to do so. Once we have better command of our situation, Commander, you, Ortiz, and I are going to work out exactly what equipment our sonar operator will need."

Miguel lowered his eyebrows at that. "Shouldn't Ensign Adler be included in that discussion, sir?"

Pursing his lips, the captain shook his head. "No. We need her on computer repair. Ok, folks. Let's get this done!"

A choir of "Yes, sir!"s answered him, and they scattered to their various positions.



PART 18

Standing up and stretching her shoulders, arms and back as extravagantly as possible, Ari tried to relieve her aching, cramped muscles. "I can't go on much longer, Lucas," she admitted, bending back over the board she was re-wireing. From another pool of light in the darkness, he answered, "I'm almost blind, too. But we'll be done soon. Just, what," he sighed, "ten more boards."

Ari groaned. "Is that all?" she asked with weary sarcasm. "What is that, another three hours?" The captain's voice answered her, "Lucas, Adler. How's it going?" Taking it as an opportunity to rest for a while, Ari collapsed against the wall, rolling her head and rubbing her neck while listening to Lucas's response.

"We're three quarters done, Captain. Maybe another four hours work." Leaning forward, pressing the palms of her hands on her eyes, Ari groaned softly to herself. Most of the nonessential crew had already been transported off the boat, and all unnecessary lights were off, leaving areas of deepest darkness all around. In spite of the reduced draw on life support, temperature control was erratic at best, in some places frost forming on surfaces, others were sweltering sweat boxes.

Those crewmembers remaining worked until they could no longer keep their eyes open, then crawled off to find a place to sleep until needed again. Ari didn't think that she'd been in the quarters she shared with Lonnie for the past 24 hours. Her eyes closed, she considered the thought of sleeping in her own bed again, surprising herself with a deep shudder of repulsion. She jumped when Lucas touched her shoulder. She hadn't heard him approaching.

"The captain's ordered us out, he's sending another team in." Lucas grinned sardonically, adding, "And if you can sleep in that position, then you certainly need some time off."

"I wasn't asleep," she protested, half-facetiously, "I was just resting my eyes."

"Yeah? Well, let's go find someplace more comfortable to rest them." He nudged her to start and she got up, knowing that he would follow close behind. Since Siebas had gone missing, Lucas, Tim or Miguel seemed to always be around. She wondered where Miguel was at this moment.

Walking through the dark corridors, the only light from the flashes they carried, Lucas broke the silence, his question seeming almost to echo her thoughts. "Is it serious, between you and Miguel?"

Ari swallowed heavily, grateful for the darkness that hid her reactions. Trying for a tone of amused outrage, she answered, "Lucas! There's nothing between us. He's enlisted." A disgusted silence followed, then he prompted, "And ...?"

Sighing slightly, she nodded. She and Lucas had been working closely together for several weeks, preparing the sensor simulations and then with TSUNAMI. He did deserve more than that from her, as a friend. Knowing that the shadows made it easier, she confessed, "I don't know. I just don't know."

"How can you not know?" he demanded, outraged to the depths of his teenaged soul at what he saw as another evasion. She stopped, forcing him to stop a step later.

"He's enlisted," she repeated seriously. "I'm officer. What chance?"

"That's just an accident of fate," he dismissed the distinction. Groping to explain, he continued, "Do you know, whenever the two of you are in a room together ..." he took a deep breath, then finished, "You're together. A unit. Right after TSUNAMI died, when you were facing Siebas down, it looked as though Miguel was the only thing keeping you sane. " Smiling wryly, knowing that he couldn't see her, she nodded grimly.

"Not the the only thing, Lucas. Not the only thing. Captain Bridger helped. But what good does it do?"

"He could go 'mustang'," the youth suggested. Ari snorted, bitter amusement showing.

"Go for officer training? Why? He loves his work here. One thing I do know, you accept someone for who they are when you love them, not for who they could be. Miguel is ... Miguel. He's happy, contented and perfect for his position. I wouldn't want him to try something that might make him miserable, just for me." Lucas allowed the silence to grow, satisfied that she had answered his question. They were passed by a security detail, with Siebas on the loose, they were considered essential personnel.

Just before entering the bridge, though, Lucas dropped a hand on her shoulder, stopping her briefly. As she glanced at him in inquiry, he remarked, "You don't have to be an officer or even a member of the Navy to be on SeaQuest." Ari's face froze in shock, and she almost stumbled into the room.

Commander Ford and Captain Bridger were standing toward the front, conversing in low tones. As the sound of her awkward entry reached them in the dim room, the two men looked up.

"Good work on routing the helm controls, you two," the captain said. "You've accomplished enough that the back-up teams can compleat it. Get some rest, Ensign Adler. That's an order. I want you to report back here, to the bridge, in six hours. We'll need your talents before we try taking SeaQuest out."

"So we are going to go ahead with it. How do you plan to do it, captain?" Lucas asked, eternally interested in spite of his fatigue.

"We'll send Commander Ford out in a shuttle to test the directions before we proceed. More like a red-tipped cane than a seeing eye dog."

Lucas moved forward to find out more. Ari hovered behind, until Captain Bridger, smiling benignly, ordered, "Get some sleep, ensign. Head for your quarters, I'll detail someone to fetch you when it's time." As Lucas joined them, the three began murmuring, arguing and brainstorming.

Ari considered the captain's suggestion. A real, satisfying sleep in a real, soft bed. Down all those dark corridors, ending in a quiet, soft bed. All those dark, shadowed corridors and the black room at the end, the cold bed, cold as death. Lonnie's lightless room, only the flash for company, alone and vulnerable and that empty, lonely bed. At the thought of that lonely bed, her eyes were drawn automatically to the sensor station. Her face lit up, a smile pulling the corners of her lips, as she recognized Miguel's uniform jacket draped over the back of his seat. With the temperatures so unchancy, people were stripping their jackets off or pulling them on as needed, provided that they could remember where they dropped it last time.

Looking back at the three intent males, quietly carrying on their conversation, she climbed the steps and picked the jacket off the chair. A faint aroma of masculinity reached her nose, and she lifted it, breathed in deeply and happily. If she folded it up, it would make a nice pillow, she thought. A nice, fragrant pillow. She lay down behind the sensor chair, smelling the spicy, exciting odor that signified Miguel and safety. Something crackled under her head, in one of the pockets. Curious, she sat up removed the square of stiff paper, and slipped it into her own jacket pocket. No need to return it crumpled up. Then before lying down again, she removed her own jacket, draping it over her shoulders. At last, hands folded under one cheek, she lay down, closed her eyes and, lulled by the rise and fall of that rumbling exchange, fell asleep.

*

"No need to send anyone to her quarters," Miguel called over his shoulder, "I've found my jacket." He knelt beside Ari, reaching out in the dusk that covered the bridge to gently caress her cheek. She nuzzled his palm, opening her eyes slowly to smile up at him, content that her dream should continue this way. She pressed her hands down against the deck, pushing her torso up and Miguel's hand naturally followed the line of her cheek down, along her neck, tracing her bare shoulder as the jacket slid off.

"Well, that's nice, Chief Ortiz," Ford's slightly sardonic tones answered, "But I still need someone to waken Ens ... " the word trailed off as the Executive Officer understood that Miguel was not alone, that the shape beside him was a person. "Oh. Ensign Adler, there you are," he announced unnecessarily. "Captain Bridger and Mr. Piccolo with be here shortly to begin the practice."

Smiling down at her, Miguel answered absently, "Yes, sir."

Her eyes holding, being held in his, Ari called out, more rationally, "I'll be ready as soon as I wake up, sir."

"You have time to get to the galley and get something to eat. But be back here in fifteen minutes. Get her awake, Chief. Fifteen minutes." They heard him walk away. Looking downward with a small smile, Ari pulled up the strap of her tank top. "You're not part of my dream, are you?" With a soft sigh, she added, "I guess I'm not asleep anymore."

"Yeah, guess so. Pity." She looked at him open eyed.

"Why's that?"

"Because if you were still asleep, and I were part of your dream, then I could do this." And he leaned forward and pressed his lips softly to hers. a gentle, non-demanding gesture. Lifting her face to him in invitation, one arm snaking around his neck, Ari closed her eyes. Miguel's breath caught in his throat, taking the offered invitation.

His lips rejoined hers, becoming hungrier, more demanding, his hunger answered, part for part, with her own, igniting a heat that spread like wildfire along her nerve endings, leaping and spreading to his as passion flared up and they lost themselves in the awareness of one another.

Twining her other hand up into his hair, she felt her inner inner resistance, her core of control melt and she shivered at the flood of sensation that overwhelmed her senses. Miguel, feeling her surrender to his will, shifted his weight forward, allowing her to pull him down and down still further into their shared, forbidden desire.

The clank of a dropped tool and a muffled curse brought them back to the awareness of their surroundings with a startled suddeness as they drew apart and looked for the danger, twin expressions of surprise on their faces.

Ari snorted gently, a swift explosion of humour. "I'd say that I'm awake now, Chief," she commented facietiously, and then the full folly of their position hit them with the force of farce and they began to giggle uncontrollably.

"Well, I'm glad to hear some hilarity onboard," Captain Bridger affably announced, stepping onto the bridge.

"Captain Bridger!" Ari gasped, as Miguel jumped to his feet, then extended a hand to help her up as well, before standing at attention. "Sir!" he saluted.

"As you were," he paused, then corrected himself, "or rather, not as you were. Did you have a pleasant rest, Ensign." Pressing her lips together against unseemly laughter, Ari managed to respond, "Yes, sir. Thank-you-for-asking-sir." She folded her lips closed and bit down on them, hard.

"Captain, Ensign Adler was just found sleeping on the bridge. Requesting permission to escort her to the galley for food and coffee, sir." Miguel's formality struck Ari as being absolutely, unbearably funny, after the way they were almost discovered, and she bit the inside of her cheek, trying to hold in the laughter bubbling up her throat.

"I don't think that will be necessary, Chief," the dry note disapprobation in the captain's voice sobered Ari, making her aware of their position. "I'm sure that Ensign Adler knows the way there and back by now." He turned away, dismissing her with the words, "I'll expect you back in thirty minutes, ensign." He headed toward the helm.

Miguel picked up Ari's fallen jacket while she retrieved his from the ground at her feet. Shaking the folds from of it, she placed it over her arm, leading the way to the exit. With a quick glance at the captain's oblivious back, she jerked her head toward the the shadowed corridor. There, she held the jacket out, with the remark, "I think we'd better trade, mine definately won't fit you." The repressed amusement glittered in her voice and her eyes. "Thanks for the loan of it," in a lower voice, she added, "and for the dreams."

"Anytime," he paused, rubbing his cheek against her jacket before passing it over. "Shame though, yours smells better than mine." She spluttered with laughter.

"You shouldn't tell lies, didn't your mother teach you that. But thanks anyway. What I wouldn't give for a shower. Spit baths in the lavatories just don't do it!" Miguel shrugged.

"Captain said to shut off all unnecessary systems," he reminded needlessly. But her attention was fixed on his waist, where he'd begun fastening the garment.

"Then it really was a gun!" she blurted, blushing as he chuckled at the implication, his hands checking its position. "Why? Why are you carrying a firearm, Miguel?"

Gently pushing her toward the galley, he answered seriously, "Brody found a weapons locker broken into. With Siebas still on the loose, it seemed to be a good idea that we go armed. We'll have to stop and get you issued one, as well." Ari shrugged uncomfortably. As she turned to go, he called out, "Wait. Here, take mine. I'm going to be in there getting things set up, I won't need it for a while."

"Thanks Miguel. And Miguel ... " A shout from the bridge interrupted them. "Chief Ortiz, if you don't mind."

"Coming sir. Bye, Ari." He turned but she forestalled him.

"Thanks." He nodded once, then ran onto the bridge. After a short pause, Ari went to find the promised coffee, passing a harried-looking crewman Piccolo heading in the opposite direction.

*

Pausing outside the galley door, Ari considered where to go next. She still had a few minutes left of the captain's deadline, but Commander Ford's was long past. She was so close to her quarters, it seemed a shame not to dash there and change into a fresh uniform. But if she did, then she'd most definately be late, dead late, getting back up to the bridge. She was dithering on the doorway, feeling most unlike herself, when Lt. Brody walked past.

"Ensign Adler," he greeted her, "heading for the bridge? I'll be up there, myself as soon as I finish talking with the security patrols." Taking a deep breath, she suddenly decided, "Yes. Yes, I'm on my way there now. Any news on Dr. Siebas?"

Shaking his head ruefully, Brody confessed, "There's been no sign of him. We've looked in all the unsecured areas of the boat, and haven't found anything. I'm wondering if he snuck aboard one of the loaner subs during the evacuation." He pressed his lips together, nodding in the direction he was heading, "I've discussed the matter with my opposite on Adm. Sommerby's staff alerting him to the possibility." Indicating the weapon at her waist, he approved, "But keep that close. There's no telling where he might be."

"I just don't understand it," she said, sighing slightly. "Why is he behaving this way? What does he hope to gain from it?" Brody smiled down at her, twisting his shoulders up, "From what Dr. Smith said during the briefing, you'd have a better idea than anyone else." That memory of that suggestion, that she had a telepathic line to Siebas' psyche, like the carrion laden breath of ghoulish nightmare, sent a shiver down Ari's back.

"I don't think so, Lieutenant. I surely hope not, anyway." She paused, then added, "I'd better head on up to the bridge. I wouldn't want to disappoint Commander Ford, now, would I?" He laughed.

"Commander Ford's not on the bridge. He's out in one of the minisubs. The captain wanted him to be close enough to see if this idea of yours will work."

Shrugging, Ari commented, "Doesn't matter where he is. He knows everything that goes on around here." Laughing, they parted, heading their separate ways.


PART 19

Tim, having just completed the communications relay to the bridge, looked up as Ari walked in, her eyes blinking at the unexpected brightness of the scene. He grinned at her expression, they'd imported lights from various parts of the boat and it had to be almost unbearably bright after the gloom of the corridors.

Not only that, but compared to the rest of SeaQuest, it was almost crowded, Miguel now presided over three separate personal computers, each carrying a label bearing the name of one of the WSKRS. He was muttering to himself, furiously trying to get the most out of his equipment. Tim, himself, sat on the opposite side, yet another PPC in front of him. He'd have felt more comfortable at his usual seat, but it was a total mess. The captain stood near helm, where Tony was examining his jury-rigged controls with an expression of dissatisfaction.

"Hey, Ari," Tim called out cheerfully, "I've got something for you." Picking something up off the floor by his seat, he walked toward her, tossing it when he got close enough. "I was missing some uniforms and remembered that Lonnie was folding them last time I saw them. So, I dropped by laundry to see if they were there and they were. Apparently, something distracted her, and she just left these there and forgot about them."

A bright look of comprehension as she noticed his crisp, khaki uniform and then her face blossomed in a smile of gratitude. "Oh, Tim, you angel! A clean uniform. Thanks, thanks a lot. Siebas must have called Lonnie away before she finished. Do I have time to change?" she asked, glancing around anxiously.

Feeling protective, he jerked his head toward the corridor, just off the bridge, saying, "I found a set of Miguel's too. He and I changed over there, in the Mag-lev chamber." He nodded his head encouragingly. "Go on in, I'll guard the door for you."

"Who's going to guard the door against YOU?" Miguel called out, half-teasing, unabashedly watching the exchange.

"If I can't trust Tim, then who can I trust?" Ari answered pointedly, ducking out before he had time to answer. Tim threw the Sensor Chief a smirk before following her.

Ari smiled indulgently at the sight of the dissimilar piles of discarded clothing on the seats. She knew that the neatly folded ones were Tim's, the others, carelessly dropped on one another as removed, had to be Miguel's. Beginning to undo her jacket, she heard the sound of paper crackling in one pocket. For a moment, she was perplexed, uncertain as to what it could be. Then she remembered that she'd taken it from Miguel's jacket when she'd lain down it hours earlier. Perhaps she'd better give it back, it might be important.

Removing the piece of light-weight cardboard, she glanced down at it. A picture. Wondering if it was one from the party, hoping it wasn't the one Carmelita had taken outside of Fernando's room, Ari turned it over. Not that one, but somehow, even more personal and intimate. This had not been in the batch that Miguel had shared with them.

The picture had been taken from the porch, looking into a dim room of his aunt's house. Ari could see herself clearly, sitting in the rocking chair, an expression of almost syrupy sweetness on her face, cooing down at the bundle in her arms. But standing behind her, looking like a Joseph to her Mary, stood Miguel, and the expression on his face was more open, vulerable, and naked than she could bear. No wonder he hadn't shown this any of the others. Ari wondered why he hadn't destroyed the photo, it had to be too revealing to keep. There was no way that she could just hand it over to him. Perhaps she should just slip in with his stuff, and pretend that she'd never seen it. Wishing that she had a copy, she tucked it into his jacket pocket, folding it and the rest of his clothes automatically, putting them in a neat pile beside Tim's.

"Ari," Tim's voice came through the door, "Better hurry. The captain wants to start." With a quick glance back toward the door, she swiftly changed, placing her folded uniform alongside the other two. Then she left the room, back to the bridge.

Ari's remark about angels reminded Miguel of something, and he felt his uniform pocket. Darn, he must have left it in the other one. As Ari re-entered the bridge, he stood up and started towards her.

"Where are you going, Chief Ortiz?" the captain asked warningly.

"I forgot something, sir. I'll be right back." Passing Ari, he touched her shoulder, feather-light. She flushed a little as his hand pressed down, then sighed with relief and smiled at him. Wondering slightly at her reaction, he hurried into the little room and looked around for his stuff. He chuckled indulgently at the sight of the tidy piles, then pawed through his things, disturbing their recently acquired order, and took the photo out of the pocket. No harm down. It was there, all right, had been all along. About to head out, he paused, then stroked the top of Ari's piled clothing. With a slow, regretful exhalation of breath, and a rueful thought as to his own folly, he patted it once more, then stepped quickly out.

Tim watched as Miguel trotted back and slipped into his seat. With Captain Bridger standing behind the sensor station, Miguel began to check his boards once more. Lt. Brody, in his corner, continued adjusting the proximity warning lights. They'd need those once they started moving SeaQuest. Ari had taken her place at sonar, an oscilloscope from the workshop near by, as well as some other equipment from there. She was checking her contacts, fiddling with the gain controls and testing the switches for the various sonar arrays. And, he thought fondly, looking a little scared and nervous.

"I said, 'Are you ready, Ensign Adler'?"

She looked up, eyes large in a pale face, and swallowed before answering the captain. "Yes, sir. I'm ready to begin."

"Very well. Mr. Ortiz, on my signal, I want you to send out a ping. Ensign, when you receive it, give Mr. Piccolo his instructions. These instructions will be relayed to Commander Ford in the shuttle, and once he has okayed them, then SeaQuest will follow. Is that clear?"

Ari swallowed again, crossing herself fervently before nodding, "Yes, sir."

"Mr. Ortiz, are the WSKRS in position above SeaQuest, so we can confirm the ceiling?"

"Yes sir!"

"Commander Ford, are you in position?" The reply returned immediately over the open PAL circuit. "Yes sir!"

"Then let's get started. Finish removing the anchors from SeaQuest. he turned to Lt. Brody, "And are the proximity warnings functional, Lieutenant?"

"Yes sir, they're set to maximum, 3 meters."

"I hope that's warning enough, Lieutenant Brody." He nodded, grimaced grimly and ordered, "Then begin. Mr. Ortiz, if you please." PING The sound filled expectant silence. PONG The surrounding walls echoed the wave back immediately. Ari listening intently winced and put her hand up to the earpiece, but didn't pull it off.

"The ceiling is dips down 3 to 5 ft for every 10 yds for about 500 feet then levels out. The right wall narrows, ummm, I'd say about the same rate," she responded, her voice husky with nerves but firm. One hand clutched at a medallion around her neck, the other still held the earpiece and her eyes were tightly closed, a look of pain on her face.

Captain Bridger looked over toward Miguel, gazing at the fuzzy lines filling one screen. The CPO nodded, and the captain raised his PAL.

"Did you catch all that, Mr. Ford?"

"Yes sir."

"Then proceed." There was another tense silence, punctuated only by the reassuring respiration of the ventilation system. Then Ford's voice returned. "It checks out, Captain."

"Very well, Commander. Continue moving ahead on reception of Ensign Adler's directions. Try to maintain a distance of 150 meters. We will follow as you confirm the way. Mr. Piccolo?" He turned to give the command to Piccolo. "Ahead one third, Mr. Piccolo, 2 degrees down on plane."

"Aye sir. Ahead one third, planes 2 degrees down." Slowly, SeaQuest slid forward in the water.

Tim looked back at Ari. She'd dropped her death's grip on the medal, and had relaxed, a faint smile on her face. As the Captain began to order a second ping, Ari raised her hand.

"That won't be necessary, Captain, and would probably be counterproductive. I've got what I need." Confidently, the same small smile on her face, she described the way ahead. There was a movement behind him, and Tim turned around. Lucas jerked his chin forward.

"How's she doing?"

Tim glanced around before answering, noticing that Miguel had arranged his computer screens with a gap, just large enough to keep an eye on Ari. But he didn't seem to be taking advantage of the opportunity, being occupied with getting the most out of his rudimentary equipment. As he continued scanning the bridge, Tim stopped when his eye hit Ari. She was listening intently, her brow wrinkled with concentration, but her face was relaxed and her lips curled up microscopically at the edges. It almost looked as though she were enjoying the exercise.

"She seemed a little scared at first, but now she's doing all right." he whispered back.

"Looks like it, Lucas answered absently, his eyes fixed on the young woman. He continued conversationally, in the same quiet voice. "Darwin wanted to go out, so I strapped his air tanks on him and opened the doors manually. Don't know how I'll know to let him back in though."

"He'll manage."

"Mr. O'Neill, Lucas," the captain's quiet voice contained a note of warning. "No chatter, please. We don't want to distract Ensign Adler." Tim acknowledged the reproof with nod. Lucas moved away, but Tim noticed the younger man settled down with a good view of Ari, as she sat concentrating on the sounds from outside.

It had taken the SeaQuest less than three quarters of an hour to go the five miles into the crevasse. Now they were traveling about a mile an hour, slow and easy, with frequent stops while Commander Ford checked the way ahead, and to give Ari a breather. The strain was telling on her, but once they were in radio range of the Admiral's ship, they'd be able to get real navigational information in a relay from their satellite pick-up.

After three hours, with an electrical crackle, the WSKRS screens went down, and with a yelp, Ari jumped up, pulling off the headphone.

"What is it? What happened?" Bridger testily demanded. Retrieving the headset, she began to cycle through her inputs, testing gains and modulations, while Miguel worked frantically to get the displays back up.

"I'm not sure, sir. They just went dead." He replied while Ari responded, "I've lost the sonar, sir!"

"Sir!" Tim called down. "There's a fire in engineering. Apparently some of the insulation gave way, short circuited."

"Damn! All stop. Commander, are you able to raise the Admiral, yet?"

"No sir. Want me to move closer to the entrance?"

"No, not yet. Come on in. We need to discuss this."

"Captain. The passage dog-legs to the left at an angle of 120 degrees, the ceiling remains constant but the floor rises fractionally." Ari interrupted. Captain Bridger sighed with relief.

"Good. You got them back. Commander Ford?"

"I'm on it, sir." After a brief silence, he responded again. "Confirmed." Ari swallowed heavily, and Tim noticed that her face had gone pale again, faint traces of perspiration glistening on her forehead as SeaQuest slipped forward in the water again.

From time to time, the repair crews interrupted to report on their progress. Another thirty minutes after that slight set-back, the repair chief reported in.

"We'll have sonar back in just a few minutes, Captain. We've found the problem there." Bridger's head jerked up and all eyes except Tony's turned in the small ensign's direction.

"All stop!" he barked, then, in a dangerously quiet voice, he asked, "Ensign? Why does Jameson think we don't have sonar?"

"Because we don't."

"Then, where are we getting the directions from?"

"From Darwin, sir."

"Darwin?"

"Yes, sir, in a way. We'd been using his echo location pulses since after the first ping, sir. It was, ... The ping was too loud in these enclosed areas, it was too hard to 'see' anything. Like a bright light that blinds. So, I started listening to Darwin and calculating the directions from his signal. Then, when the sonar array went, I ... I switched to the signal from Baby, and just continued as I had been."

"Without informing me?" She swallowed, and looked down guiltily.

"Yes sir." There was a long moment while he regarded her closely. Finally, lips tight, he nodded.

"Proceed, ensign. We'll discuss this later." Ari reached down and typed a message to Darwin, then listened carefully to his response, and gave the next set of instructions.

At last, they emerged from the hole, limping, injured, in urgent need of repair, but under their own power. SeaQuest was free.




PART 20

Commander Ford's voice issued through the speakers, the words they'd all been wanting to hear, "Ok, sir, we're out."

"Full stop, Mr. Piccolo," the captain ordered. Ari closed her eyes and slumped against the back of her seat, letting out a long sigh of relief. The past six hours had been excruciating, listening, trying to see with her ears, knowing that the slightest mistake could be fatal. It had been a comfort to know that Commander Ford was outside, checking on her work, and Darwin's presence had helped, but even so. She felt hands on her neck, rubbing the tension away, and she arced back into them, opening her eyes to look up. Tim laughed down at her as she blinked with the surprise of seeing him there.

"Lt. O'Neill, would you please open a channel to Adm. Sommerby. I'd like to arrange passage home," Captain Bridger ordered drily.

"Yes sir. Right away, sir." Tim scrambled to obey, and Ari carefully turned her attention toward the Sensor station. Captain Bridger had spent a significant portion of the time there, watching the screens showing SeaQuest inching her way out of that hole. Now, that he was finally descending the steps, and she was no longer responsible for the safety of them all, she could risk taking a look. Immediately, she dropped her eyes in confusion. She wasn't the only one taking advantage of the break.

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Bill, do you read me?"

"Nathan, it's good to see the SeaQuest again. I had no idea that something this hare-brained was being considered as a test for TSUNAMI. How'd it feel relying on sound to get out. Did you feel like a jig, again?"

Bridger smiled wryly at this reminder of their youth, shaking his head. "Not an experience I want to repeat anytime soon, I can tell you that!" He turned, giving Ari a hard look, "And it wasn't exactly the same, either Bill. We had a little assist from Darwin."

"Darwin? How's that?"

"Seems the ping was too loud, so my sonar operator decided on her own iniative to tune the arrays to his signal. Then when they blew, she switched to a remote probe and just continued what she'd been doing without telling anyone."

There was a long silence. Finally, Noyce asked, "And it worked? How did she know it would?"

"Because she's been working on an un-authorized dolphin communications project for the past few weeks, ever since she came aboard. I only found out about it before you unloaded TSUNAMI on me."

"Unauthorized, hmmm? I'd keep an eye on this one, Nathan. She'll either rise to the top of the promotion ladder, or crash out of the service."

"I intend to Bill. Anyway, what chance of a tow to base, so we can assess damages and start repairs?"

Noyce grunted, "I've got tugs heading your way already. Sydney is the closest with the facilities you require. And Nathan? Congratulations to you and your crew. That was an outstanding feat of engineering and navigation."

"Thank you, Admiral. Any word on Dr. Siebas?" Ari felt a shiver run down her back at the question.

"Sorry, no. It doesn't appear that he made it off SeaQuest. No one here's found any sign of him. He has to be there, still. Were you planning to evacuate the rest of your crew?" Captain Bridger looked around at their tired, relieved faces.

"Yes, I am. Until we get life support reliably operational again, she's just not as comfortable as she should be."

"Then once you're all off, you can flood ventilation with sleeping gas, and go through level by level until we find him. He's got to be there, somewhere."

"All right, Bill, thanks. Bridger out." He looked around the bridge again, a proud expression on his face. "Good work, crew. Ensign Adler, I' putting you in for a commendation for this. Outstanding work. But you realize I have to include a disciplinary note. On this occasion, your personal iniative did not have injurious consequences. But next time, you have to let your commanding officer know what you are doing." She nodded, looking wan and drawn. With a heavy release of breath, he continued, "Why don't you take off now, go to your quarters, start collecting your gear? And pack up Ensign Henderson's, as well. There's no need for you to wait for the tow." Hesitantly, Ari stood out of her chair, swaying a little.

"Begging your pardon, Captain," she said softly. "but I'd really prefer to stay, if you don't mind. I've been here this long, it would be a shame to miss the end." Nodding judiciously, he replied, "Very well, Ensign." Ari moved over to the pool, but just sat there, staring into the water. After a while there was a slight jerk and the pool water rippled.

"Adm. Noyce, sir," Tim announced.

"We've got you secure, Nathan. And have begun to tow."

"Well, that's it, folks," Bridger announce. "You're all dismissed to your quarters, pack up and we're heading out." Ari was still staring, almost mesmerized by the action of the water, when Miguel touched her shoulder.

"Come on, Tim and I will walk you to your quarters," he offered, concern colouring his voice. Wordlessly, she rose and joined them. After a while she asked, "What was the last word on Lonnie?"

Tim sighed unhappily, "I got word before Noyce retook the line. She's still in a coma. Dr. Smith doesn't think that it's organic, just funk. She says that she needs the proper stimulus to convince her that it's safe to come out. But the doctors haven't come up with anything that works, yet."

Softly, to herself mostly, Ari quoted a line from an old movie, " 'To wake young love with love's first kiss'." Miguel snorted with wry amusement.

"You mean, Sleeping Beauty? Then where's Prince Charming. Or should we toss a coin for the priviledge?" Ari sent a sly glance sideways, away from the chief, and Miguel hooted, "Tim?!" She shrugged, as Tim blushed a solid red.

"It could work," Ari insisted. "You'd have to ask Dr. Smith about it."

"I don't think so," Tim demurred. "There's nothing between Lonnie and me. We're just friends."

"If you say so," Ari was too tired to argue. "But are you sure that there's nothing between you and Lonnie?" As he looked down at her, his face a mask of puzzlement, she shrugged one shoulder. "In any rate, don't bet her life on it." She paused outside her door, one palm flat on it and quoted again, " 'The grave is a fine and private place, But none do there, I think, embrace.' I'll see you two later, ok?"

"All right." "See ya, Ari." Tim started walking along the corridor, then realized that he was alone. "Miguel?" he called, turning round to find his friend still halted outside her quarters. "Come on, we have packing to do."

A disturbed expression on his face, Miguel held up his hand, "Wait a minute. Do you hear that?" His eyes opened wide, and he began to batter at the door, trying to open it. Tim, surprised, hurried back. "Call security, Tim. NOW!" Miguel yelled as he got the door open and plunged into the darkness inside.

*

Ari paused just inside the door, wishing that she didn't have to close it. Sweeping her flash along the inside, checking the room, she gasped at the mess all around, even as she heard the door slam shut behind her. Spinning around she saw a face, a hideous face, with huge smears of makeup all over it, mask-like. Before she could scream, a cord was wrapped around her neck and the light kicked out of her hand.

"You were always there," the whispering voice hissed grotesquely. "Always criticizing, finding fault, tearing down. But I stopped you before, I can stop you, again. You can't destroy me. You've never been able to destroy me. I won't let you." Ari kicked backwards, her foot connected, and her assailant grunted in pain and let the cording loose.

Taking a deep breath, she started to yell, "Miguel!" but the garotte was back, digging deeply into the flesh of her neck. She heard the sound of someone at the door, and, the thought of Miguel reminded her of the gun she still carried. She reached down, but the madman behind her had better darkvision. Even as she raised it out of its holster, he knocked from of her hands, and the door broke open.

Miguel stood, silouetted by the dim light in the corridor, beyond. Ari heard him order something, but the rushing of blood in her ears made it difficult to hear anything. As the person behind her switched to one hand, she reacted, sending her elbow deep into his gut. A flare from a sidearm lit the darkness from beside her, and she saw Miguel go down, and stay down. Fury filled her.

Ari spun away, grabbing at the hand with the gun, twisting it angrily. But she was still groggy from lack of air, and it went flying, out of her reach. Sobbing, she lashed out against the murderer, kicking him and hitting him, but even her frenzy was no match for his insanity, as he wrestled her to the ground, both hands around her throat now, squeezing, cutting off her air. He giggled.

"So, I got you both, didn't I? You weren't content to just destroy me, were you? Oh, no. You had to make me watch you with him, didn't you? Well, he's gone, he's gone and it's just you and me. And soon, it will just be me in the darkness, again. Only me. You'll be gone again." I wonder what he means by that, she had time to think, as the darkness rushed to claim her.

*

As Miguel went down, knocked off balance by the shock of the missile's impact, pain blooming in his shoulder, he hit his head against the corner of the door. Vaguely, from some distance, he could hear Ari fighting, could hear the insane babble from her attacker. He knew that if he didn't do something that she would fail, and the thought of her death galvanized him, brought him back from the edge of unconsciousness. Something came flying out of the room, hitting him in the stomach and, with a soft grunt at the impact, he reached over and picked up the sidearm that had shot him. Moving carefully, he approached the sound of the struggle, placing the muzzle of the gun against the muttering assailant's temple and said, with supressed violence, "Let her go."

The figure in the darkness laughed and slapped the weapon away, pushing Miguel back. Miguel grabbed its arm, the pain in his own shoulder almost making him vomit, and he twisted it back, visciously, until he heard the bone crack while monster in the dark howled and screamed. Lights shone in, making the entire scene too bright to see, and Brody's voice called out from behind them, "Hold him, Miguel. We've got him." Two security men rushed in, grabbing the madman by the arms. Miguel let him go and collapsed beside Ari, holding her to his chest and crying out her name.

*

Dr. Wendy Smith stood up abruptly and regarded the still figure on the hospital bed in the evacuation ship's sick bay with an expression of exasperation. Shaking her head with frustration and exhaling slowly, she turned to the door, thinking, No response. She should be conscious by now, there's no medical reason for this dull greyness. But no response. Opening the door, she looked into the glum faces of the two SeaQuest crewman waiting there.

"How is she, Doctor?" Tim asked eagerly, hoping for good news, Miguel braced himself. She shrugged, shaking her head sadly.

"I've tried everything, calling her both audibly and telepathically. She's just not listening."

With a quick, sideways glance at his companion, Tim suggested hesitantly, "This is a little odd, Doctor, but it was suggested, well, that maybe, you know," he concluded a trifle helplessly, "like Sleeping Beauty?" Dr. Smith hid a small smile, while Miguel growled. ¸

"Tim, that was just a silly idea. She was spouting off. It would never work!"

"I don't know about that, Miguel," Wendy contradicted him. "It has been proven to work, sometimes. That the presence of someone dear, with whom there are close ties, will bring a victim out of a self-induced coma."

He gestured angrily, "This isn't like that. It isn't self-induced. She didn't just wake up one morning and decide to hide away."

"No. But then, nobody does," the doctor agreed placatingly. "On the other hand, it can't hurt to try it. She's closest to you two, of anyone on the ship. Go on in, see if you can get her to answer you." As they passed her in the doorway, though, Dr. Smith touched one of them on the arm, murmuring, "I'd like a word with you, for a moment."

The other went in, his attention focused on the woman lying there, the white, high-necked nightgown and the pallor of her complexion dramatizing the dark bruises around her eyes, her arms crossed on her breast, the injuries to her hands and head brutually apparent.

He thought about trying the approach they'd been discussing, and kissing her awake. But, remembering the "real version" of the story, he couldn't bring himself to do it. It would have been too much like forcing her. Instead, he took a deep breath, trying to inject some degree of jollity into his voice, and said, "Hey! Doc tells me that you're goldbricking. How're we supposed to get SeaQuest back in condition if you aren't there to help?"

The response was gratifyingly quick. Ari's eyes snapped open, disbelief and cautious optimism warring for control. "Dead!" she croaked and at the sound grabbed her throat with one hand as she immediately began coughing, a hideous rasping sound, helpless to stop. Miguel grabbed the glass off the heavy carafe beside her bed, cursing the awkwardness of doing it one handed. Pouring the water, he held to her lips, helping her up to take a slow sip, calming her fit.

Ari handed the glass back, opening her mouth to ask the questions burning in her eyes. Quickly, Miguel replaced it, and put his hand on her lips. "Shhh," he cautioned, his own voice almost a whisper. "Your throat is pretty raw. Don't try to talk." She nodded, then reached out, a butterfly touch on his wounded shoulder. "Yeah, you did see him shoot me. If you hadn't grabbed the gun away, I'd be dead." Her grave eyes examined his face. "When I fell," he chuckled humourlessly, "I hit my head on the wall, got knocked silly for a bit. That's why I didn't get up immediately."

She placed the back of her hand against his cheek, her eyes sombre and filled with pain. Reaching out with his right arm, his good arm, he pulled her to his chest. "Hey!" he soothed her gently, "I won't die on you. As long as you need me, I won't die on you. That's a promise." Her eyes glittered up at him trustingly and she pulled slowly back, sitting upright again. He took the hand she was pulling away and kissed it lightly on the palm.

Ari let him hold it for a minute, before retrieving her hand from him, placing it in her lap. She swallowed and raised one shoulder. Nodding he answered, "Tim managed to run into a patrol. I don't think that I could have held him myself." He shook his head, "The guy's strength was unbelievable. It was like he didn't have any controls on him. No fear, no inhibitions. He wasn't afraid of pain or anything." She continued to stare at him, eyes wide with fear. "It's ok. He's not onboard. They've already got him under psychiatric care and he's on his way back to France."

Ari nodded, then looked toward the empty bed next to hers. Miguel nodded, "Lonnie's all right, too. She woke up a little while ago. If she hadn't, we would have tried out your idea on her." She glanced at him, eye brows raised, and Miguel laughed, "I know that you were only joking, but ..." She pushed him with one finger, he looked down, then grinned broadly, "Oh! Yeah, We flipped a coin. Tim won. But if he hadn't ... " She glanced downward, dimples peeking out of hiding and looked up through her lashes. Then she looked at the other bed again. "Hmmm, Lonnie. Dr. Smith had her air-lifted to a hospital in Sydney a little while ago. You've been out for almost a full day, you know." Ari shrugged, then shivered.

Resisting the urge to hug her again, Miguel answered the unspoken question, "Brody thinks that he was hiding in your quarters most of the time. The place was a mess. He must have torn it apart while waiting for you! And my cousin's dress is ruined. He literally tore it to pieces." She closed her eyes, inhaling deeply and holding it, then raised her shoulders.

"Well, Jim's really sorry about that. He'd checked the quarters that you'd shared with Ensign Svarbo several times, but he didn't know that you'd been bunking with Lonnie. And as far as he knew, Siebas had no reason to hiding there."

"Actually, he should have checked all the crew quarters, first off," Captain Bridger interrupted from the doorway, startling the two on the bed. Ari jumped back, pulling away from Miguel and pressing her back up against the head of the bed. "Sorry as I am to interrupt this fascinating conversation, I think that's my cue." He glanced down at Dr. Smith, who was standing beside him with her glowing with satisfaction. "It's almost like listening to half an old-fashion telephone conversation," he remarked.

"Sir?" Miguel asked, while Ari's brow creased with confusion, mystified by the random, obscure comment. Bridger laughed, shaking his head, "You wouldn't understand, you're both too young." He nodded grimly, "But Lt. Brody should have had all the crew quarters thoroughly searched as the boat emptied, and secured them properly. The only excuse he has is that he thought it was being done." Doctor Smith entered the room, pressing past the captain, a smug, proud expression on her face as she regarded Ari proprietorially.

"I'd say that there was no question but that she has a strong psi factor, Nathan," she commented over her shoulder. "Especially if she can get Miguel to understand her so easily." Ari drew herself up sharply, her eyes sparking with indignation.

"No!" she barked, the word catching in her poor, abused voice, seeming to nearly finish the job started by Dr. Siebas. Quickly, Miguel grabbed the glass of water, handing it to her. But when he tried to move closer, to help her as he had before, she waved him away.

After she had the fit under control, Ari glared imperiously at Dr, Wendy Smith, making writing gestures on the palm of one hand with the other. Looking around the hospital sick bay, Wendy found a clipboard and pen, which she gave the upset ensign. Scribbling furiously, she thrust the board at the doctor, waving for her to read what was written thereon.

" 'If" the word was heavily underlined, "I had any telepathic abilities, doctor, I think that I would know it by now. I assure you, that I do NOT!' " Looking up, the doctor shrugged. "Actually, most people have no idea that they are telepathic until something triggers an incident." Ari pressed her lips together angrily, Retrieving the board, she wrote again.

"In adolescence! I am well past that stage now!" Captain Bridger hid a small smile at these words. To him, the crew of SeaQuest was only barely out of childhood, the ensigns most of all.

"Yes, most incidents do occur at that time. But that's only because it is a time of great emotional changes, and only if nothing occurs to block the ability. According to your records, you lost your family just at the start of pubescence, didn't you?" Ari nodded warily. The doctor grimaced sympathetically, continuing her argument, "An event like that could very easily prevent the emergence of the developing talent." Ari shrugged, shaking her head stubbornly. "Very well, then," the doctor challenged her. "How do you explain what Captain Bridger and I just witnessed, Miguel understanding you without any words to go on?"

With a look of apology toward the uncomfortable non-com, Ari bent her head and wrote, "Any competent sensor or sonarman, by necessity, developes the ability to extrapolate an entire picture from a few pixels of data. Chief Ortiz is the best sensor operator in the UEO fleet, and his gifts in this department are close to magical."

Blushing slightly with pleasure at this accolade, Miguel added, "Besides, we've worked together so much in the past few weeks on the TSUNAMI modifications, that we just learned to understand each other's body language." He gave Ari a wickedly sly glance, which she refused to acknowledge. Both looked up with surprise at the sound of Bridger's knowing chuckle. Wendy looked at each in turn, trying to figure out the undercurrents flowing between them.

Unable to understand the joke, she shrugged, then pressed her attack. "But why is it that you never went to your quarters during the crisis, thus avoiding an attack by Dr. Siebas." Uncomfortable, Ari pressed her lips together and looked down, veiling her eyes from them. Taking a deep breath, with a half-frightened glance at the captain, she wrote.

"In addition to knowing that Siebas was roaming about somewhere on SeaQuest, I happen to suffer from a touch of nyctophobia. The thought of walking down those dark corridors, when he could be hiding anywhere, was enough to keep me in the lighted areas, with other people around." If an admission of any kind of phobia ended up on a young officer's record, it could mean a roadblock on the ladder of advancement, especially something like this on a sub. It was almost as bad as admitting to claustrophobia.

Shifting nervously as his captain looked toward him, Miguel seconded her comment. "I noticed that at the time. She was always either working or sleeping, curled up like a kitten in some corner." He shrugged, uneasily. "I didn't think much of it at the time, most of us were doing the same thing." He nodded at the captain, "Including you, sir."

"That's true enough, Wendy," he agreed.

"And that's the only reason?" Dr. Smith persisted. "It wasn't really out of your way, with some of the areas you were working. You must have had some reason to avoid going there?"

After several seconds of quiet, Ari shrugged, surrendering. She wrote. "Every time I thought about going to lie down in Lonnie's quarters, I would remember her sprawled out after the accident. Her khaki uniform disheveled and messy, burns on her hands, neck and face. I couldn't use her room, not knowing how she was doing, what was going on with her. So I stayed away. It was superstitious, perhaps, but I felt that if I went into her room, that I'd somehow jinx her recovery. That she would die."

On reading this, Dr. Smith looked up, her expression slightly puzzled, "Irene, Lonnie didn't have any burn marks on her neck." Ari shrugged, it didn't matter.

"No," the captain seconded, "not on the neck." Meanwhile, Wendy Smith had taken a small mirror from one drawer in the room. Handing it to the unconvinced ensign, she undid the first few buttons on the other's high necked gown. "Look here," she urged.

Cautiously, Ari pulled the fabric away, examining with fascinated horror the bruises around her own neck. Pressing her advantage, Wendy asked, "Are you sure that you were seeing Lonnie, and not yourself?" Ari shook her head, lips pressed together in a mulish expression. Dr. Smith looked toward Bridger triumphantly, "It looks like a case of clairvoyance, to me. I want to take her to the Chathem Center for Parapsychology for evaluation." Ari shook her head emphatically. Retrieving the board she wrote, I must stay with SeaQuest!" Troubled, the doctor turned to Bridger, who shrugged his shoulders.

"You can't force her to go, Wendy, not even for testing. If she does have the ability, then it isn't interferring with her duties, and I won't order her to do something like that against her will. I haven't got the right."

"But Nathan, she could do so much with this. She has the potential! If she can do this without any training whatsoever, what could she be able to do with the necessary control?"

"Not unless she agrees, Doctor." He put his hand on her shoulder, urging her up. "We'll discuss this later."

"Captain. Doctor, one moment, please," Miguel requested, observing Ari scribbling away. She passed the clipboard to Dr. Smith, looking from the captain to her with a questioning expression.

Wendy Smith read aloud, " 'Dr. Siebas claimed that he'd killed me before, watching him in the dark, that he would kill me again. What did he mean?" With a worried glance at the captain, the doctor paused before answering.

"We investigated Samuel Siebas' past. Turns out that he was born one half of a pair of fraternal twins. At birth, his umbilical cord wrapped around his sister's throat and she died before she could be delivered. Then, when he was about twelve, his mother had another child, another girl. That one was the victim of sudden infant death syndrome, or so it was believed." Ari blanched,

"You think that he smothered his baby sister?" Miguel asked, disbelief clear in his voice.

"There is no evidence to that," the doctor said repressively. "But in consideration for the difference between your ages, Ari, we think that he saw you as his little sister. And since both of his sisters died ..." she shrugged.

Ari considered this possibility, closing her eyes and hidding her face in her hands. It was all too much for the moment. Too much, She sighed, and it turned into a yawn.

"I think that's enough for now," the doctor suggested, turning toward the captain. "We'd better go, Nathan. Don't stay too long, Miguel."

"Chief Ortiz," Bridger amplified the situation, "Ensign Adler needs plenty of rest to recover fully. Ten minutes, maximum."

"Yes sir." Ari waited until they'd left the room, Tim peeking carefully in, to giggle painfully through her sore throat. Miguel grinned reluctantly.

"Yeah, he was laying the rank on rather thickly, wasn't he?" he agreed. Raising his voice, he invited, "Come on in, Tim. I think you're supposed to chaperone us." Ari laughed, then began coughing violently and any response to that the remark was lost in the confusion of helping her get her breathing back under control.



PART 21

Curled up in a hospital visiting chair, feeling the seabreeze blowing through the open window and staring out into the night toward the Tasman Sea, and SeaQuest, always SeaQuest, Ari considered her options. The letter from Andrew hadn't been unexpected, they'd all known that Uncle Paul was dying. But the report of Andrew's collapse had been. And now Uncle Paul's lawyers were urging her to return, to resign her commision and come back to handle the estate.

Ari shook her head, ignoring the slow roll of tears down her cheeks. Uncle Paul had visited them two, three times a year, no matter where they were stations. And he'd always spending several weeks with them at a time. She remembered the first time her parents had agreed to let him take her back with him, a whole glorious summer spent exploring Paris with him and Andrew.

After the tragedy, Uncle Paul and Andrew had tried to get custody of her. But since her parents had died in Ireland, the case was decided there. And a nun certainly made a better impression on the judge than two debonaire men who shared quarters. Ari sighed, wondering what her life would have been like if they'd won. Probably not much different.

Her earliest dreams had been of being Navy, specifically sonar and sensor operation, just like her father. And one of his idols had been Nathan Bridger, with all of his his radical ideas. Ari thought back to the day the high brass had first approved the plans for SeaQuest, a small smile of pleasure on her lips.

Daddy had come home that leave and he'd grabbed Momma, spinning her around and around. Then he'd picked Ari up and put her on his shoulders, declaring that someday, she'd be serving on SeaQuest, just you wait and see! The three of them had gone out to dinner that night, leaving the babies at home with a sitter, and Ari had watched her parents dancing late into the night. She'd fallen asleep, and she remembered that the music had woven into her sleep until she saw SeaQuest like some great, big, friendly whale, singing her a lullaby.

Ari's smile melted away. But they hadn't even survived to see SeaQuest launched. She managed to make her father's chance words a reality, and there, on board, she'd found a home and a second chance for family. Sighing sadly, she thought, she didn't really belong. Looking over the past few months, she wondered if she'd gone about it the wrong way, approaching the assignment more as a scientist instead of an officer. She should have been spending her time getting to know the people, not hiding in the moon pool playing with Darwin. Her shoulders twitched convulsively. If she hadn't spent the time with Darwin, though, the whole question would be academic. Her lips turned upward at the pun.

Glancing over her shoulder at the other bed, where Lonnie slept peacefully, no worries bothering her, Ari wished that she could get up and pace. The real problem wasn't her place on SeaQuest, the Fleet or even in the world. Sighing unhappily, she compleated the thought. Her real problem was Miguel Ortiz. Senior Chief Petty Officer Miguel Ortiz, Sonar/WSKRS operator, enlisted. Enlisted, she repeated to herself bitterly, and gamesman extraordinaire, if Captain Bridger was to be believed..

If she'd been old enough to enlist out of high school, there wouldn't have been any problems. If wishes were horses ... It seemed like such a perfect compromise, she thought sadly. Join ROTC, study the technology behind the Wireless Satellites, maybe get in a little marine science, computers, all very useful subjects. And maybe, just maybe, qualify for SeaQuest. Daddy would have been so proud of her, not only to achieve his dream, but to be an officer.

And it had been exciting, learning not only how things worked, but why. But now? Her eyes filling with tears, Ari thought of what he would say if he knew what she was thinking. It wasn't enough that he had to be enlisted. She shook her head slowly, officers and enlisted did not become romantically involved, not ever, not and both remain in the service.

She shook her head. Not only was he off-limits as enlisted personnel, but he was a Casanova, a Lothario. Just like Siebas. Well, maybe not just like him. Closing her eyes, she remembered how he'd come bursting into that shadow filled room, risking his life to save hers. And then later, in the sick bay of the Eleanor Rigby. He'd been so sweet. And even before that, he made her feel, attractive, special, loved. How could he do that if he didn't actually mean it? It just didn't make any sense.

Her eyes filling with tears, Ari thought about the past few weeks. She shook her head slowly. With the shock of Uncle Paul's passing, and the confusion of events, she wasn't even sure what she was thinking. But one thing she knew. Even if Miguel was to be trusted, officers and enlisted personnel were forbidden by regulations from becoming romantically involved. She slammed her fist into the palm of her hand, biting her lip.

"Hmmmm?" a sleepy interrogative dragged out of the shadowy figure. "Ari? What is it?"

"Shhh, nothing," her voice was sounding somewhat better now. Almost her "Whiskey Voice", as Daddy had called it, but a little harsher and more painful. Dr. Smith still didn't want her using it too much just yet, though. "Go back to sleep." Lonnie raised herself up on one elbow.

"Have you been asleep, yet?" she asked, yawning widely.

"Of course, I have," Ari lied. "I just wanted to check that it wasn't too cool, that's all." She adjusted the window, then lay down on the cold, empty bed. "Night, Lonnie."

"Night, Ari. And Ari?" Lonnie paused, yawning, and Ari thought that she was already fading. But the other woman continued breathily, "Don't worry. It'll all work out, you'll see." She heard Lonnie roll over and then her breathing slowed again. Ari stared up at the ceiling unseeing, silent tears forming at the corners of her eyes and rolling, unheeded, down her cheeks. It will all work out. The question was, how?

*

"Oh, ouch! These blasted bandages just keep getting in the way." Lonnie glared at the dressings on her hands. The electrical burns didn't bother her much anymore, but the wrappings on them pulled and itched, especially when she was trying to brush her hair, trying to avoid the places where the electrodes had been. When it was combed properly, they weren't even noticible. She'd insisted on that. Ari laughed, taking the hairbrush out of her friend's hands.

"Here, let me." Lonnie was glad to hear her sounding so merry, although her voice was still very husky. Dr. Smith was letting them out today, together, in the hopes of them keeping one another out of trouble, or so she said. Lonnie had her suspicions about that one.

"It feels good to be in uniform, again," she remarked, enjoying the pampering attentions of someone else brushing her hair. Looking up at her friend's reflection in the mirror, a small frown touched her brow. Ari's eyes were still shadowed, her face and neck still marred by the discoloured bruises left over from the attack. But more worrisome was the suspicion Lonnie had that the other woman was hiding some secret, that nibbled at her mind and kept her from sleeping.

Forcing a grin on her face, Lonnie caught the other's eye in the mirror. Nodding, she announced impishly, "I know a way you could get Miguel in a lot of trouble." Examining the reflection closely, Lonnie could see the signs of sparked interest, carefully hidden, as Ari answered noncommittedly, "Ummmm?"

"Have a picture taken of you like that and send it to his aunt with the caption that he beat you." Ari winced and gave her a disgusted look. Putting down the brush, she turned away to pick up her pack. Lonnie felt a sense of satisfaction to have gotten that much out of her. "I hope that Dr. Smith shows up soon to get us released from here," she complained. "I want these ribbons off my hands, and I want to get back to work!" Ari shrugged without turning around.

"No argument from me," she concurred, huskily. A sound from the doorway drew her attention.

"Then I guess I should get started," Dr. Smith announced brightly. "Lonnie, if you will?" she said, gesturing to the inner bed and pulling the curtain around it for privacy. Ari walked over to the window, concentrating on not eavesdropping, but unable to really block the sounds out.

"Ummm," she heard the doctor murmur, "not bad. The burns are healing nicely. I think that we can reduce the dressings to a minimum." Another short silence, then she remarked, "No obvious signs of physical damage to the neural cortex. You were a very lucky young lady, you know."

"So I can go back to duty?" Lonnie asked eagerly. Wendy chuckled indulgently.

"Yes, I will agree that you are fit for duty," she conceded. Ari heard a whoop of pleasure and the sound of the bed springs, then Lonnie appeared at the opening of the curtain.

"Well, I'm out of here," she announced happily. "I'll wait for you out in the hallway, and we can share a ride back." Ari acknowledged the suggestion with a wave, her attention fixed warily on the doctor, pulling the curtains back, growing even more cautious as the psychic followed the other ensign and closed the door, leaning her back on it to regard Ari closely.

"Well, ensign Adler," she began. "Let's see if you are fit for duty." Doctor Smith closely examined the younger woman's eyes and throat, finally concluding, "Yes, there is nothing physically wrong with you to prevent you from going back on SeaQuest." Putting her probes away, she sighed, "But I'd feel a lot better if you'd agree to go the Chattem for testing."

"I'm sure you would, Doctor," Ari agreed forcing herself to keep her voice light. "But I'm the patient, here. I'm the one who needs to feel better. And I just don't see the need."

"You are ignoring all the evidence that indicates the presence of paranormal abilities in yourself. Why are you so intent on denying it?" the doctor insisted passionately. Ari paused, wanting to find the words that would settle the question once and for all.

"I'm not ignoring anything, but I feel that this question is very much a non-issue." Taking a deep breath, she tried to explain. "My life is very full at the moment, full of ideas and issues that I have chosen to pursue. or that have chosen to pursue me. And it is complicated. You are asking me to drop everything and chase after a phantasm that you perceive, one in which I have no credence. Speaking frankly, I think that your data is flawed by your preconceptions and hopes. And even more frankly, Doctor Smith? Your position there is to provide counsel and advice to the crew of SeaQuest. If you persist in pushing your agenda on me, how can I trust you enough to come to you with my problems?"

Wendy Smith winced, closing her eyes and holding her hand against her stomach. Ruefully, she nodded, acknowledging the charge. "Very well, Irene. You are correct. But if you ever find yourself experiencing a psychic event ..." Ari grinned with relief, "I'll let you know," she promised. Picking up her bag again, she gestured toward the door. "Want to share the fare back to SeaQuest with Lonnie and me?" she offered.

"Thanks, but I've got a few things to clear up here." Smiling broadly, she added, "and I don't think that it'll be too high a fare." As the ensign opened the door, the doctor called out a reminder, "And don't forget to stop at the front desk to sign out. It's just a formality, but one you shouldn't neglect." Ari paused, her hand on the edge of the door. Looking back she nodded then said, "Well, thanks, Doctor."

Walking down the hall, smiling gently to herself with satisfaction, Ari looked around for her companion, seeing her at the a turn in the corridor, laughing and talking. Speeding her step, she hurried to catch her up, only to stop short when she found Tim and Miguel waiting there. Her heart jumped into her throat, and for a moment, caught there, preventing speech. But pride held. With a smile of welcome, she asked, "What are you two doing here? How did you con your way off SeaQuest?"

Smiling broadly, Miguel walked up to her, his left shoulder still strapped, but not as tightly as before. He started to put his arm around her, answering, "Captain Bridger let us out to pick you two up. Didn't want you getting lost in a strange land." Ari, seemingly innocently, evaded his grasp, moving forward toward the check-out desk. At a loss, Miguel continued, "So he let us take a UEO vehicle to come get you."

Waiting for the nurse to notice her, Ari said brightly, over her shoulder, "Oh, that was nice of him. Who's driving?" Both men pointed to the other claiming, "He is!" Laughing, Ari informed the receptionist of her identity and signed the necessary papers. Turning back to her friends, she accused, "I don't think these two trust our driving, Lonnie. What do you say we make it even chance?"

Catching the mischief dancing in the smaller woman's eyes, Lonnie nodded, her own eyes gleaming in response, , even though her brow was wrinkled with wonder at what the other was intending. "Sure. What do you have in mind." Ari turned back to the person behind the desk. "Could I have a small square of paper, please, and a pen," she asked. Quickly tearing the paper into four equal pieces, Ari wrote the letters, "D" and "F" on two pieces, for Driver and Front, and "B"s on the remaining two, for Back. As she began twisting the first of the four slips of paper up, hiding the letters, Tim put out his hand to stop her, placing it over her own. She looked up, surprised, question in her eyes.

"I don't think that you need all four. You and Lonnie aren't really in any shape to drive back," he stated gently. Ari shook her head with disagreement.

"We've both been cleared for duty by the doctor, Tim." She smiled with amusement, "Do you really think that Dr. Smith would allow Lonnie to drive SeaQuest and deny her the pleasure of driving a vehicle?" Tim's eyebrows rose, and his lips folded into a little secret smile, a small indentation on the upper lip. He shook his head slowly.

"Then, for us," his other hand included Miguel. "We came very close to losing you both. We want to do something for you." After a second, searching his face carefully, she shrugged, gracefully giving in.

"Ok, then," she marked the back of the "D" paper and reached to do the same to one of the "B"s, only to find that Miguel had beat her to it, reaching around her to do so. As she folded the slips up, trying to get them as similar as possible, she cocked an eye at Tim. "Satisfied?" she asked ironically.

He smiled broadly back, waving a hand at the markers. "That depends," he replied, his eyes twinkling behind his glasses.

Ari swept the slips into one hand, covering them with the other. Miguel was standing so close to her back that she could feel the heat radiating off him. At Tim's comment, though, she paused, giving him a searching look out of the corner of her eyes. "On what?"

With a shrug, he smile tightening into a smirk, he said, "On who sits where and with whom, of course. Are you going to drop the slips, or not?"

She looked at each of her friends in turn, then dumping them out again on the counter, she invited, "Take one, any one."

Miguel chose first, waiting until Tim took the other marked slip, then Lonnie and Ari selected from the plain pieces. Opening his choice, Miguel groaned, "I'm driving."

"I got shot-gun," Lonnie piped up cheerily. Tim grinned at Ari, "Looks like you and I are in the back seat, together."

"I don't even want to know how you feel about that, Mr. O'Neill," Ari stuck her nose in the air and intoned loftily. "Just have the man take our bags to the cahr." But it was Tim who picked up the bags, leading the way out of the hospital, Lonnie close behind him. As Ari started to follow, Miguel took her arm, pulling her to one side.

"What are you doing?" he hissed. "I had it all arranged. Tim was going to drive, and we'd be in the back together." Ari looked pointedly down at his hand on her arm. More than anything, she wanted to pull him closer but she forced herself to respond lightly, with a small chuckle.

"Nothing. I'm not up to anything." She shrugged, "I just though that it would be fair, this way." Miguel examined her face closely, his eyebrows lowering. Ari could feel her heart trying to beat its way out of her chest, and she imagined that she could feel his, as well, through the intervening space. Deliberately, she stepped back, twisting her arm out of his grasp. Licking her lips, she stated calmly, "The others will be wondering what has happened to us. Shall we?" And she walked out of the building, unhappily conscious of Miguel stalking out behind her.

Tim had already stowed their stuff in the boot of the open UEO jeep, and he and Lonnie had seated themselves. Ari grinned at her erstwhile roommate, "Waste of time to brush your hair, I'd say."

Lonnie smiled back, apparently unconscious of any dangerous undercurrents among them. "I don't care, I intend to enjoy the breeze. Come on, Miguel, let's go!" With a glare of warning to the back, Miguel got in and started the car.

Once they were underway, Tim leaned toward Ari, jerking his head forward. "Thanks for giving in on that." Ari grinned back.

"S'alright. I should have known better than to try to get between a man and his machine! How're the repairs to SeaQuest going?"

"She's almost ready to put out again. Dr. Smith really didn't have any choice about releasing you two. If she hadn't, the Captain would have ordered you back on board, anyway, or lost you." Ari's eyebrows shot up with surprise.

"That quickly? I thought that it would take weeks!"

"After the way the brass pushed TSUNAMI and Siebas on us, they couldn't do enough to help us re-fit." he spoke loudly, against the wind and the sound of the engine. "They had to cover up their embarassment somehow. The Nav computer was the worst hit, but a replacement was waiting for us when we arrived. The biggest task was all that re-wiring that you and Lucas had us doing. We had to go through and either replace the boards or put it back."

Miguel, hearing this, yelled back over his shoulder, "Yep, she's almost ready to go, back to normal." Ari mouthed these last words to herself, "back to normal" wondering, exactly what normal was, anyway?

"By the way," Tim leaned closer, to make conversation a little easier, just as the jeep swerved, pushing him back. "Captain's given you a bunk to yourself. A corpsman moved all of your stuff in for you." Ari's eye's opened with surprise.

"I thought there wasn't enough space," she protested, disbelief alive in her voice. "I ... I don't know what to say." Tim laughed.

"Ari, that's great!" Lonnie enthused. "You'll love having private quarters." Ari laughed back, saying "And you'll love having your own back, again. Not that I blame you", she added honestly.

Tim looked at the dimunitive ensign soberly, "I think that the Captain has his reasons for the change. He wants to see you as soon as you get settled. And did you know that we're getting a new crewmember. Some ensign is being flown here from New Cape Quest?" Ari nodded.

"Umm, yeah, I knew. Captain Bridger told me about her earlier this week. She's some scientist who's supposed to help me figure out what I'm doing with Darwin." Ari grimaced and shrugged. "Apparently, I've got to start quantifying it all."

"Really? You didn't tell me?" Lonnie was twisted around, eagerly listening to the conversation in the back seat.

"The Captain asked me to keep it quiet. Her name's Treysa Barlow and she's an ensign, spent the past few months at Groton preparing for sub duty. She also has a degree in anthropology, a doctorate." Tim frowned.

"A doctor?" Miguel yelled back over his shoulder. "Is she going to take the whole thing away from you, Ari?" Ari frowned uneasily at this thought, but Tim shook his head with decision.

"I seriously doubt that, Miguel. Anthropology doesn't sound like an appropriate degree for dolphin research. If they were taking the project away from her then someone from Malcolm Lansdowne's research field would be more appropriate." Ari shrugged, forcing herself to lay the idea aside.

"Well, anyway, Tim, thanks for telling me." By now they were pulling into the parking garage at the shipyard. The two men began arguing about who would carry what as they got out of the vehicle. But Lonnie and Ari settled matters by quietly grabbing their own duffles while the of them were signing the jeep back in, and making silent tracks to the SeaQuest shuttlepoint.



PART 22

Nathan Bridger looked up from the file on his desktop at the sound of a light rap on the wardroom door. "You wanted to see me?" the young ensign asked, almost timidly. Bridger half stood gesturing her in.

"Come in, Ensign Adler. Yes, yes, I wanted to see you." He reseated himself, gesturing her to a chair. Shaking her head no, Ari stood at ease opposite of him, the table between them. "You haven't been with SeaQuest that long, have you?" he asked, opening the conversation.

"Almost two months, sir," she replied proudly. Pursing his lips thoughtfully, he nodded.

"I know that it's a bit early, but I'd like to review your record, to date. You've made quite an impact in the short time you've been here." Ari looked a little nervous at this comment, but nodded gamely.

"You seem to have started out slowly," he noted. "Kept pretty much to yourself the first two weeks."

"Yes, sir. I felt that I was behind the rest of the crew, due to my delayed posting, and I wanted to familiarize myself with as much of the boat as possible."

"Then you feel that machinery is more important than crew?" Ari, creasing her brow, shook her head no.

"No sir. But knowledge of one's duties and the ability to carry them out without the need to stop and remember how they are to be done, both are important in a crisis situation, more important that a 'Most Likely to ...' whatever award." She shrugged, "I wanted to show that I could do my job, sir."

"I see," he commented drily. "And is that why you had a public fight with one of the senior members of the enlisted crew?" Ari flushed.

"No sir," she answered staring at a point just over his head, clearly this was not something she wished to discuss.

After a few minutes, Captain Bridger sighed and leaned forward, commanding, "Would you please explain the circumstances surrounding that?"

Without looking at him, Ari stated flatly, "I misunderstood some comments Chief Ortiz made, thought that he was insulting my up-bringing, morals and religion. I over-reacted, sir." Nathan hid a grin and looked down at the record again.

"But you made peace with him just as publicly and demonstrated that there were no hard feelings. That was well done, ensign. You probably averted a ship-wide feud with that behavior."

"I merely followed the advice of some friends, sir. And once I had the opportunity to talk with Chief Ortiz, I discovered my mistake, so it was only right that I do what I could to contain the damage." Bridger nodded, impressed with her reticence, not attempting to shift the blame or take too much credit. He changed the page.

"I attempted to block your assignment as aide to Dr. Siebas, you know," he remarked.

"Yes sir. Thank you for that." His lips twisted into a rueful grin and he scratched his ear.

"Actually, you proved me wrong. Knowing Siebas's reputation, I expected you to slap him down, causing trouble between him and the crew. But you behaved with exceptional politeness and respect, and in doing so, you buffered the rest of the crew from his arrogance and over-bearing ways, facilitating the rapid installation of the TSUNAMI equipment. Every one of the system chiefs filed glowing reports on your helpfulness both in dealing with Dr. Siebas and your work during the transition. These have been placed in your records, as has Dr. Siebas's original request to UEO that you be released to work with him in the private sector." Ari blanched at this thought. Bridger turned another page.

"Sir?" she asked before he could continue. At his inquiring look, she continued. "I heard that Dr. Siebas was removed from the Eleanor Rigby soon after he was caught. I expected to be contacted for my testimony concerning his actions. The Judge Advocates Officers were assidious enough in taking my deposition and checking my accuracy and recall. But, I haven't heard anything about it. What is the status on that?"

He leaned forward, templing his hands in front of him. "I'm not surprised that you haven't heard. The ship transporting him was attacked while in transit to France, near the Indian Ocean. Evidence indicates that the Choudai jumped their own border for some reason and destroyed it, but there is no proof of that. It's listed as an attack by persons unknown. Dr. Siebas is presumed dead, along with everyone else onboard."

"Presumed ... dead?" her voice emphasized the first word, pausing before the second.

"We haven't been able to retrieve all of the bodies, Ensign. The vessel was cracked open, broken apart. There's no way he could have survived." Captain Bridger watched her for a few moments as she thought about that, her eyes turned inward in silent contemplation. When she didn't seem to wish to continue the subject, he sighed and picked up the file again.

"Your rapid and accurate analysis of the TSUNAMI failure was also most impressive." He paused, looking at her closely, wondering exactly what had her on such a tight spring. "You were told that your analysis was correct, weren't you?" he asked curiously.

"Yes sir. But sir?" He gestured for her to continue. "I am not happy with my behavior in that incident. I came very close to having hysterics on the bridge and it was only through your intervention and the interruption of another crewman that I managed to control myself. I feel that this reflects very badly on my emotional stability." His eyebrows raised with surprise.

"But Dr. Smith explained that ... " he began, contrary to her rigid politeness up to this point, Ari interrupted. "That explanation is only suitable if you accept her premise, which I do not. Additionally, what good is a command officer who is subject to such outside influences? I'd prefer to believe that it is something inside of myself that with training, education and counseling, I can control." Bridger nodded his understanding. The identification of his own strong psi factor was a sore point with him as well.

"I see. But I still think that you are being too hard on yourself. Forgive me for pointing this out, but you are a young officer on your first tour of duty. It is understandable that you would be shaken by a failure of such magnitude." From her posture, it was clear that he had failed to convince her. Sighing, he turned the page. This was going to make the rest of the review all the harder.

"I also included a commendation for your attempts to contain the damage before the incident. I would feel more comfortable if you had reported your doubts and reservations to one of your superiors, but considering the orders we had been given, personally, I just as glad you didn't." He turned the page.

"Once again, during the crisis, I have good reports from every person with whom you worked to get SeaQuest moving again. They say that you worked until you could no longer stand up-right, then collapsed in an out of the way place until you could work again." He glanced at her. "An extreme reaction, but understandable in light of your youth." Pausing, he wondered if he should bring that up now. Shaking his head, he decided no.

"However, your impulsive decision to rely upon untested procedures during our attempts to escape the chasm, ignoring the chain of command and leaving all of us in ignorance of your actions, was imprudent and ill-advised." As she opened her mouth to refute the statement, he held up his hand. "Not your actions, ensign, your decision. It never should have been your decision. The proper course of action would have been for you to advise me of the difficulties that you were experiencing with the mechanical pinging, and informing me of your intention to use a less overwhelming source. I'm not faulting your actions, but the way you went about it." Ari nodded, her lips pressed tightly shut.

"You did good work getting us out. I have put that in your record. But Ensign, henceforth, inform me before you do anything like that. SeaQuest and her crew are my responsibility, you know."

"Yes sir. But sir? Initially, it didn't seem to matter where the signal originated. Darwin's echo-location was clearly audible over the sonar, and more comfortable than the ping. After the sonar went down, ... I didn't see the need to worry you, sir. We had been doing it all along."

"I understand. But, whether you see the need or not, inform me next time. Don't spring it on me like a surprise birthday party." He muttered quietly to himself, "I always hated those."

"Sir?" He shook his head, continuing with the notes in front of him.

"Admiral Noyce is very impressed with your ability to understand Darwin, you know. He's discussed the matter with Dr. Malcomb Lansdowne of the Caicos Reef Dolphin Research facility and given a great deal of thought to the matter. The assistant he's assigning you will be here before we sail. Did you finish reading the files I gave you? He wants the two of you to have a research proposal synopsis on his desk within two weeks, outlining what has been done, what your plans are and what you expect to discover. He also wants me to let you know that you have a free hand to do the work you've started.

Leaning forward, he emphasized, "With the number of underwater colonies increasing every year, it is important that we learn as much about the natives of the deep as possible." He reached behind, pulling a thin sheaf of papers out from under some books. "And a Professor Bontriomphe of Sorbonne University in Paris has contacted me on this matter, as well. He informs me that you had taken several graduate level classes in Marine Science, while an undergraduate, and feels that you should have the opportunity to continue that course of study, by correspondence if necessary, doing the research here on SeaQuest."

Ari opened and shut her mouth, finally saying, "Yes sir, I had discussed the possiblity with him. I'd sent him a precis on what I was doing with Darwin, asking for his advise. He was most helpful."

Bridger nodded at the papers. "Well, here's the application he sent for graduate studies at Sorbonne. He's getting together your first semester's course load now, ready for reception of that. If you hurry, he can get them sent here before we sail." He paused, looking at her closely. "Ensign," he asked gently, "This is something that you want to do, isn't it?"

"Yes sir," she answered breathily, trying to make sense of events.

Do you have the money to fund this step? UEO can help, you know, if you need the assistance." Ari shook her head.

No sir, my parents left me well provided for in case I chose to proceed with my education. It's ... It's all just happening too quickly." She faltered, "Am I being removed from SeaQuest, sir?" He laughed.

"No," chuckling he continued. "But I am making some changes to your duties. According to Chief Ortiz, you know almost as much about sensor and sonar as he does, and probably have since before you arrived. But you have not yet taken your engineering exam, which you must do before you can be rated as a submariner."

He paused, eying her carefully. With a nod, he prompted, "And about Chief Ortiz." Something in his voice must have warned her. She turned her head, looking at him warily out of the corners of her eyes.

"Chief Ortiz, sir?" she asked in a failing away voice.

Captain Bridger folded his hands on the table and leaned forward, in a confidential tone of voice, he asked, "Do you have any idea what it takes to get Mr. Piccolo to drop his tools?" A tide of bright crimson flooded Ari's face, then receded, removing all colour with it from her complexion as she understood his reference. She swayed, and the captain half stood with concern, leaning toward her. "Sit down, ensign! That's an order." Gratefully, she sat down hard, bracing herself with her hands on the table.

"Sir, I can .." she began, but he waved her into silence.

"I know all about it, ensign. I've discussed the matter with the Chief, and, in fact, I place the majority of the blame for that incident on his shoulders. He is older, with more experience. He should have known better. I just want to make the point that young people, under stress, tension, and in danger, often turn to one another for comfort and support. The Navy understands this, and we don't expect to carry a crew of angels. But a sub is not the place for public displays of affection. Those must remain on shore. Do you understand me?" he asked. Ari blinked with surprise, her face a mask of bewilderment.

"No sir." she admitted.

"It's very simple, Fleet policy forbids onboard romances. liasons and affairs. This is especially crucial in a sub like SeaQuest. All public displays of affection are therefore forbidden and must remain on shore, not here. Is that clear?" This time, it was no question, but a warning. Ari nodded, deeply puzzled.

"But, sir," she stuttered, her face confused, "Chief Ortiz is enlisted personnel. And you said.. You said that he ..." Bridger pursed his lips thoughtfully, nodded and smiled, "Yes, yes he is." He turned his attention to the record, flipping pages, dismissing the subject.

"Thanks to Siebas, you have a good grounding in the mechanics of almost every sensory array system on board. I'm assigning you on rotating duty in every department on SeaQuest except sensor and sonar, twice a week in engineering until you pass the test. With the proviso that you are to substitute for Chief Ortiz whenever his duties call him away from his station. I'm also switching you to first shift. Dr. Webster in Marine Sciences has agreed to supervise your research, you are expected to keep that up, you know, and he will be reporting your progress to Dr. Bontriomphe."

"Now, about the attack on you in your quarters." She shifted suddenly and he looked up, pleased to get a reaction from her. "You wish to say something," he prompted. She sighed, and looked at him.

"I ... I should have been better prepared for that, sir," she confessed. "I'd been nervous about Siebas the entire time, I had a weapon," she paused, "Chief Ortiz's weapon. I should have been battle ready, had it drawn. But by the time I remembered it, Mi ... Chief Ortiz was already in the room, and he'd knocked it out of my hand. If I were better at hand to hand combat ... ," she stopped, fighting emotion. "I could have gotten Mi ... Chief Ortiz killed, sir." Looking thoughtful, he shook his head.

"I think you are forgetting that you'd just completed six excruciatingly grueling hours of concentration, ensign. Don't try to take on more blame than you deserve."

"However, it happens that I agree, you should have been more ready. Therefore, I'm ordering you to take self-defense lessons three times a week, until Lt. Brody judges you capable of handling yourself, lesson content at his discretion. After that, once a week should suffice." He closed the file with a smile of satisfaction. "I think that's all, ensign Adler."

Standing, he walked around the table, encouraging the thoroughly confounded ensign up as well, putting the application into her hand, and walking her to the door. "On the whole, an exceptionally fine record. You should be prooud of what you've done so far. And I'm sure that you will continue to improve on it. For now, your orders are to compleat the application and get it sent before we sail. Dismissed." Ari saluted automatically, and left the room, still dazed by the passage of events. Bridger closed the door smiling, chuckling to himself and shaking his head. She'd do fine, he was sure of it.

*

Ari closed her eyes, considering the question before her. How could she justify the trouble of graduate school by correspondence to the university in such a way that they would accept it? Someone spoke to her and, because she was thinking in the language, she absently-mindedly answered him in French. "Allo, mon ami," continuing in the same tongue, "Pull up a seat."

"Bien entendu." Pointing to the papers over which she worked, he asked, still in French, "So, what are you doing?" Ari looked down, shrugging her shoulders and smiling,

"Applying for permission to take graduate courses from Sorbonne, long distance. One of my old professors suggested it, and he seems to think we can pull it off." Craning his head around to read the first lines, Tim nodded, pursing his lips out, considering the matter.

"Marine science, emphasis in marine mammals. Yeah, I'd say that you can do it." He stood up. "Hey, I'm going to fix some tea. You want some?"

Picking up her pen again, and writing, she replied, "Oui, merci." A short time later, a hot mug was placed at her elbow and Ari picked it up, closing her eyes in pleasure as the flowery fragrance of jasmine tea filled her senses. Opening her eyes, she smiled at Tim, seating himself next to her, a similarly steaming mug in front of him.

She smiled happily, sipping the tea. "Tim, this is marvelous. Thank you. I haven't had any jasmine for a long time."

Smiling back, his face lighting up, he asked, "So you like it, then?"

"Ummmm. Oh, yes. But I can't find a good supply anymore." Ari pointed to her application. "I'm almost done. What do you think?" As he leaned forward, pulling the paper around, Ari notice how his fine brown hair fell forward, and how he absently pushed it back. It didn't look as coarse as Miguel's, she thought, wondering how it would feel to brush it back. His lips were thinner than Miguel's and... She flushed, wondering why these thoughts were occurring to her.

He was a friend, her best friend. And she still hadn't figured out what to do about his advances a few weeks ago. With any luck, he'd forgotten the whole thing. But lately, it was as if someone had applied sandpaper to all her nerve endings, making everything so sensitive. Making her see people, men, in a distorted light. Tim was her friend. Period. Miguel was, or should be, only another friend. She started to get up, to move away, but he was pointing to something she'd written.

"You might want to explain that a little better," he suggested diffidently. By the time, Lonnie joined them, they were arguing pleasantly about wording, and Ari had forgotten her momentary discomfort.

"Hey, you two! Try English," she suggested with half-serious irritation. "You're going to make everyone think that you're talking about them."

"Oh, sorry." Ari looked up to greet her. "Hey, Lonnie. Guess what? I've got first shift duty, now. Decent hours! Yay!"

"Yeah, but all over the boat," Tim put in glumly. "Not in any one place." He brightened slightly. "But you'll be standing watch on bridge three days out of the week."

Shrugging, trying not to feel to lost about it, Ari replied mournfully, "But not sensor." Sighing, she continued, "I'm going to miss the WSKRS." A hand came down on her shoulder at these words, causing her to jump a little.

"And me, too, I hope?" Miguel suggested meaningfully, plopping down beside her. "So, what's up?" he asked, nodding at the almost compleated application. Ari explained quickly, wishing that he'd remove his hand from her shoulder. Not that she really wanted him to, but the warmth from it made her feel very strange, and made it difficult for her to put her words in order. As she explained, Miguel did remove his hand, crossing his arms over his chest and slumping back in his seat, a dissatisfied expression on his face.

With a small frown of disapproval, he asked, "And you want to do this?" Ari nodded, puzzled. "What does it mean in terms of SeaQuest?" he persisted. Ari narrowed her eyes, regarding him closely, the closed them and shook her head, lifting her shoulders in a shrug.

"Nothing. It just means that when I go to present my research on Darwin's language as Adm. Noyce wants me to, I'll have a more professional standing. The experts won't be able to discount what I say." She smiled, "Captain Bridger says that I'm to stay on SeaQuest for the term of my tour." She settled back herself, sitting up-right again when she hit another hand. Puzzled she looked from Miguel, whose arms were still crossed, a folded newspaper in one hand, to Tim on her other side, preparing to stand, his mobile face projecting amusement at her confusion and the unexpected reaction. He jerked his head toward the open galley.

"Let's get something to eat," he suggested. "You guys coming?"

"Yeah, sure," Miguel answered unhappily, standing abruptly and dropping the paper on the table. Lonnie joined them.

"So what's with the paper, Miguel?" Ari asked, trying to tease some good humour back into him. It worked, too. The reminder seemed to cheer him and he smiled secretively, biting his lower lip.

"Well, we'll get liberty before we leave," he started. Ari blinked with surprise.

"All of us?" she queried, suspiciously. Miguel nodded. Tim backed him up. "Ok," Ari conceded, trading glances with Lonnie. What were they cooking up, now? "And ..."

"You'll see." he promised. Ari looked from Lonnie to Tim, who grimaced and shrugged his shoulders. She shook her head with amused exasperation and followed the others through the food line.

Once back at the table, Miguel sat with Ari beside him, the other two crowding behind him. Picking up the paper, he held it up, angling the print toward Ari and pointed. "See," he announced proudly. Ari, identifying it as a movie section, read aloud, slowly, not sure why he thought that she'd be interested.

"'The Last Jedi Alive'? So someone's finally finished the last movie. Ok, but," she shrugged. "What's the big deal?" Miguel shook his head with mock disgust.

"No, not that one. The next one down." He moved his finger.

"The Life and Death of Mr. Morden," Tim read from behind Ari, leaning over the back of her chair. "Hey, that was playing back at New Cape when we picked up Siebas. I'd thought about going after Mass, but we all went to Miguel's aunt's instead." He shrugged fatalistically. Ari gave him a startled look.

"You were planning to go see it?" she asked incredulously. "I wanted to see it, too. But I was afraid you'd laugh at me." She added, her face glowing. "We had the compleat series and the movies, too, when I was a kid. I used to pretend that I was Ivanova the brave."

Tim shrugged, his supple lips twisted up with amusement. "I could never decide whether I wanted to be Marcus or Lennier. Neither one of them had much luck." He smiled broadly, suddenly, "Sometimes, I pretended to be Morden, just to see what it felt like."

Scowling slightly, Miguel interrupted the reminescing, "ANYway, would you like to go see it?"

"Yeah, I'd love to go see it, Miguel." Ari grinned at him. Tim seconded the idea.

"Where's it playing? Lonnie, you coming?"

"Hey! Wait a minute, here," the Sensor Chief protested. "I'm asking Ari, not you two clowns." Ari sobered, her face uncertain. But before she could express her doubts, Tim was talking.

"Come on, Miguel. We can split expenses."

"And it would be fun," Lonnie wheedled. "And besides, we never did collect on that bet." Miguel shot disgusted looks from one to the other, but when he looked at Ari, and saw her troubled expression, his annoyance melted and he nodded, reluctantly.

"Ok," he conceded. "But we split up later, right?" Nodding, they made their plans, arguing about where to go to eat and which showing would be best for their schedule.



PART 23

"Wooo-Hooo!" Ari yelped as they walked out of the movie house. "That was fabulous!" She spun around, walking backwards to look at the others, her face shining. "Hey, we've got a couple more hours. What do say, we see it again?" Tim broke out laughing, shaking his head in disbelief.

"You're kidding, right?" he asked. Miguel and Lonnie shared puzzled glances.

"Let me get this straight," Miguel asked. "You really like this, this Mr. Morden guy, right?" His eyebrows were raised doubtfully. Ari grinned back.

"Huh-huh. I think he's great. The way he walks, the way he talks, and when he turns that predatory smile on you, ohhh! It sends shivers down my back just to remember it." Miguel shook his head in puzzlement. She looked at him, her head cocked to one side. "You know, you look a little like him, around the eyes."

"I do not!" he retorted indignantly. Ari shrugged.

"Ok, then, I guess you don't." She spread her arms, laughing and spun around happily.

Miguel returned to the source of his puzzlement. "If you like him so much, then why are you so happy about the movie?" he asked. "The guy died." Ari shrugged again.

"Well, yeah," she agreed. "He had to, there wasn't any other way for that to end. But he came back later."

"He was a ghost!" Lonnie protested.

"But was he?" Tim joined in the argument, "You see, that's the beauty of the show. It's never really explained. And, as the agent of darkness, he's forced to serve as a guide to an agent of the light. But, was he telling the truth, or not?" Suddenly, he reached out to Ari, still walking backwards, warning, "Ari! Watch out!" and grabbing her just as she stumbled over a curb, pulling her close.

Giving a shaky half laugh, she stepped away from him, thanking him and adding, "My drama teacher used to tell us that no one walks backwards. I should have listened to her." As Tim let go of her shoulders almost reluctantly, Lonnie seized his arm, pointing.

"Look, Tim. An ice cream stand, over there, by that park. Let's get an ice cream cone?"

Shrugging good-naturedly, Tim demurred. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. How about a soda instead?" Then he asked the other two, "Want some, too?"

"None for me," Ari refused, laughing, still walking on air despite her near accident. "I'm too full of excitement from the movie to want anything to eat. You guys go on. I want to walk in the park."

"I don't want any, either," Miguel added. "I'll walk with you, Ari." Tim started to protest, but Lonnie pulled him away, toward the kiosk.

The walking paths through the green space were overgrown with flowering bushes, grassy plazas occuring when ever two or more paths crossed, with statuary and fountains. Cul-de-sacs for private conversations abounded. Ari was walking along in a euphoric haze, enjoying the cool sea breeze from the near-by waterfront and allowing the scent of the flowers to fill her soul. Miguel, walking behind, barely even noticed, his eyes on her. Finally, he reached out and took her hand.

"Let's go this way," he suggested, leading her down a dim path. One way was as good as another, so she followed. Out of sight of the main walk, Miguel turned. "Why are you acting this way?" he asked irritably. Ari shook her head, raising her shoulders.

"What way?" She smiled a little at her private thoughts.

"So distant and formal. You've been avoiding me since you left the hospital," he accused. She sighed, pulled back to reality.

"Did you know that someone saw us on the bridge, after you woke me up?" she asked quietly. Miguel nodded.

"Yes, I did. Captain Bridger talked to me a couple of days ago and told me so." He snorted at the memory, "Read me the riot act about proper ship-board behavior and Fleet regulations." Ari regarded him with puzzled annoyance.

"Then why didn't you warn me?" she testily asked.

"You didn't give me a chance!" he countered, heatedly. "I was going to tell you on the trip back to SeaQuest, but you had to play your little game of musical chairs, and that was that."

Nodding ruefully, she sighed, "You're right. I did. Ok, I'm sorry for that. Anyway, he apparently gave me the same kind of talk he did you." She paused, studying his slightly petulant expression. "And he's right, you know. It isn't proper behavior to get romantically involved along the chain of command in any Fleet vessel. And, that's all there is to it. End of story." She moved away, toward one of the blossoming tropical plants, adding over her shoulder at him, "So, I figured a little distance would be a good thing." She fingered a nearby flower, bending to sniff its perfume. Miguel moved closer.

"But we aren't in the same line of command, anymore," he pointed out reasonably. "You are going to be standing watches every where on SeaQuest, except sensor and sonar." Ari looked up to find him standing much closer than she'd expected. With him so near, it was to remember her reasonable decisions. She waved a hand, sweeping his argument away.

"But no public displays of affection are permitted onboard a vessel at sea. No romance allowed."

"What exactly did he say?" he pressed forward, backing her into the bush.

"Umm, that is what he said," she replied, voice faltering. "No PDA's on board."

"And ... " he prompted, one hand reaching up to twine in her hair. She took a deep breath, and her senses filled with the smell of him.

"And to keep it on shore." she admitted. Miguel kissed her forehead.

"See," he pointed out, the voice of sweet reason. "Captain Bridger removed us from a direct chain of command with each other and pretty much gave us a free hand, provided that we keep it off his boat," He shrugged, concluding, "We have his blessing." Ari broke away. "Don't you trust me?" he asked.

"No! No, I don't trust you. I don't trust myself around you. Every brain cell I have is telling me to walk away from you and just keep walking." As she started back toward the well-lit path, as if following the advice of her intellect, Miguel grabbed her hand and jerked, using the momentum to spin her back, pressing her against his chest with so much force that the breath was knocked from her body.

"And every instinct I possess tells me to hold you close and do this," he began raining kisses down on her face and hair, holding her closely against him.

"No," she protested feebly. "That's not fair. I can't think when you do that."

"Good! You think too much!" he retorted.

"Miguel, I ..." but his mouth found hers and silenced all her arguments, while his hands probed her defenses, until, undermined by her own body's responses to his liberties, she gave in, her resistance broken, her body sagging against his as her mouth eagerly sought his caresses. Miguel felt her surrender, and gave a low, husky chuckle of victory. A mistake, for at that sound, Ari's pride arose. Swiftly, she shoved hard against the muscular Chief, his grasp weakened by her recent acquiesence, and he fell backwards into a low sprawling plant.

Stepping back, gasping for breath as if she'd been running, and furious tears running down her face, she hurled angry words at him, as if every one was an armed missile. "You must think I'm some kind of doll, that you can just turn on, and I'll do anything you want. Well, I'm not! Go find yourself some other dollie to play with. It shouldn't be that hard." She pivotted on one foot and fled back towards the lighted paths, leaving Miguel trying, ineffectually, to release himself from the grasping branches.

*

Tim didn't see her until she suddenly appeared directly in front of them, pushing between him and Lonnie. The path twined too much for any more warning than that and the bushes were too tall. This was the second time that Ari had run by him as if he didn't exist, the second time that Miguel had upset her so much that she hadn't even seen him. But this time, he was going to do something about it! Pausing long enough to thrust his soda at Lonnie, hearing sounds of Miguel yelling up ahead, he tersely ordered, "Go see what Miguel's bellowing about!" then he was off, running after Ari.

She was already out of sight, when he reached the branch in the walkways. One path led upward, to the top of the rise, a good view of the water, the other, darker, unlit, ran down to the boulder-strewn beach below. Tim paused, wondering briefly which way to go. He knew where he'd head, if he were upset. With a shrug, he headed in the direction that he would choose, if it were him.

*

Lonnie looked down at the cup in her hand, and then at Tim's rapidly disappearing back. Shrugging with resignation, she headed up the path, following the sounds of profane protest until she found Miguel, still trapped by his ungainly posture inside the plant. Laughing, she put down Tim's drink, and gave her friend a helping hand out.

"So, what did you do this time?" she asked, amusement dancing in her eyes.

"Nothing!" Miguel answered angrily. "Absolutely nothing. We were just, well, talking, then she went ballistic on me. Again!" Lonnie regarded him skeptically.

"Just talking?" she echoed.

Wincing, Miguel shrugged, "Ok, we weren't just talking. But I don't understand it. I wasn't forcing her to do anything. She was giving back as good as she was getting." Lonnie, her laughter gone, shook her head sadly at the density of male grey matter. "She wanted me as much as I wanted her," he insisted, trying to convince himself as much as the woman in front of him.

"Miguel, I think you'd better sit down. You've got some things you need to learn about women, especially ones like Ari."

*

Tim peered closely around the dim beach. The tide came up to the base of the rise, here, no way to put in lights. It was supposed to be closed after sunset, anyway. He shrugged. This was a fool's mission. When was the last time he'd correctly predicted what any girl would do, anyway? She probably took the upper path, that was the smart thing to do.

Listening carefully, walking away from the open path, he thought he heard a strangled sob from up ahead. "Ari?" he called out. Deafening silence answered him. With an oddly pleased smile, he headed in the direction of the silence, toward an oddly shaped boulder, on the edge of the water.

"Ari," he called again, more confidently.

"Go away," her strangled voice responded. "Go away, I don't want to see you."

Clamouring up on the rock behind her, not a very large rock at that, Tim arranged his long legs on either side of hers, putting his hands on her shoulders for balance. "Ok," he agreed amiably. "It's dark enough that you don't have to see me, if you don't want to."

With a sound that was half sob and half laugh, Ari turned toward him, burying her face in his chest and began to cry as if her heart would break. Tim put his arms around her, patting her back and murmuring the inanities that men everywhere use when a woman they care about is spilling tears on them. Inside, he was cursing Miguel's name, wondering what the idiot had said this time, and forlornly wishing that she cared enough about him to react this way to something he did.

*

Miguel shook his head with disbelief. "Let me get this straight, you think that I'm pushing too hard? I'm not pushing anything. I tell you, Lonnie. She wants me. I know."

onnie disagreed, "Yes, you are, Miguel. You're probably right that she wants you, but that's part of the problem, don't you see? Do you realize that you are probably the first guy who's ever gotten any kind of sexual response from her?" He grinned, a proud, macho expression.

"Well, yeah. I know that. I like it."

"Then think, you idiot." Lonnie sighed. Giving advice to the love-lorn was not how she'd envisioned the evening ending. "You've seen Ari prepare for a new watch duty. She studies every pertinent manual she can get her hands on until she can recite them waking or sleep. And she doesn't do anything until she's sure that she knows what she is doing. Right?"

"So?"

"So, she's cool, collected and careful. She studies every situation the same way. And now? This is something that she doesn't know anything about, and there are no manuals. You're acting like you know all the answers, and she can't even find the playing field. She's off-balance, feeling things that she's never experienced before, and you are forcing her to face them all at once. She's scared, Miguel. And so," Lonnie shrugged, "she runs."

Miguel's eyebrows twisted together. "I'm scaring her?" he asked uncertainly.

"Probably not, exactly," Lonnie shook her head encouragingly. "She's probably more frightened of her own responses to you. But if you push, she'll disappear."

Miguel rejected this line of reasoning with an emphatic shake of the head. "No way, Lonnie. I've seen my sisters, my cousins. They all grew up knowing all about how to play the game. It's instinct." Lonnie laughed, not unkindly, and contradicted him.

"It's culture, Miguel. You probably grew up knowing the rules, too. But look at Tim. Would you say he plays by the same rules you do?" Miguel hooted at the idea, then sobered as the notion triggered a line of thought.

"Wait a minute. Wait a minute. You think that Ari grew up with the same rules that Tim did?" he asked, slow suspicion blossoming in his mind. Lonnie pursed her head and nodded thoughtfully.

"Yeah, probably. It's a good thing that he went after her to calm her down, he has the best chance of doing so." Miguel stood up quickly.

"Come on!" he ordered harshly. "We've got to go find them." Despite her protests, he took off down through the overgrown walkways, Lonnie trailing behind, very confused.

*

After a while, the gasping sobs stopped, and Ari pushed away, wiping her eyes with the backs of her hands like a child. An endearing gesture, Tim thought. "I'm sorry, Tim," she apologized. "I don't know what came over me."

"What did he do to you?" Tim wasn't sure if he wanted to know, but it couldn't be as bad as his imagination painted it.

"Miguel?" she shugged, half a laugh choking her. "Provided the flashpoint for a lot of stress, most likely. When you bottle it up, it tends to build." Tim nodded, this he could understand.

Still, "So, what happened?"

"Nothing really. He, we, I guess we were necking, making out."

"You guess? Don't you know? Weren't you there?" Now this made no sense, whatsoever.

"Yes! Yes, I was there. Yes, we were kissing. But ... I don't know. I didn't really want to, it's like," she paused, frowning, frustrated in her attempts to explain. "He doesn't listen to me. As if we speak different languages, and he thinks that he knows what's best for me." She gestured with one hand, "Everything is black and white with him, yes or no, on or off. There are not shades of grey, not nuances of meaning. I just don't understand him." Sighing with resignation, she concluded, "Why can't he be more like you?"

Tim jerked convulsively, his arms tightening on her shoulders almost painfully. "Tim?" she half turned her torso toward him, concerned. "What it is? What's wrong?"

"Why should he be more like me?" Tim responded bitterly. "What do I have that he doesn't? That he needs? I'm a loser. He's got it all!"

"We've discussed this before," Ari answered slowly, a trifle uncertainly, remembering where that conversation had ended up.

"Yeah, I remember!" he replied, his bitterness increasing. "What a chump! I believed that line you gave me, about waiting until TSUNAMI was finished. And when it was, what do I find, but you and Miguel have somehow bonded more tightly than a molecular weld. What am I supposed to think?" Ari bit her lip.

"You're right. I was unfair." She paused. "I'm sorry. I was scared, in the dark, and Miguel was there, offering comfort. All the time, it seems." A sigh of regret issued from her lips as she continued softly, "And when he's around, I find it difficult to think straight."

"Look, Ari," Tim pleaded. "I know I'm not as exciting as Miguel, I don't know all the moves or the right things to say, but we do speak the same language, you and I," he snorted suddenly, with self-mocking amusement, "several of them in fact. We know the same jokes and like the same things. Do you think, maybe, that you could care for me?" Ari sagged back with surprise, then started forward again as the warm body against her back reminded her of their position. But his arms kept her close.

"What of Lonnie?" she asked, cautiously.

"What about Lonnie?"

"I thought that you two, well, that you sort of liked one another. She likes you. And she seems to regard you as .. as hers, you know." Tim snorted with disgust.

"Yeah, I guess I'm nice to have around, to take her out, to be with. I like her fine. But there's no real spark there. She's just a friend. We're too different. It's like you and Miguel. We don't speak the same language." Ari, licked her lips, thinking quickly. The warmth from his body soaked through to her, warming her frozen pride, and the emotions that Miguel had stirred up were still boiling below the surface.

"I can't guarantee anything," she decided at last, "but if you're willing to experiment, I guess I am, too." She turned toward him, wanting to study his face, his reactions to this statement, and so was in perfect position as he lowered his head for a kiss.

The soft, gentle kiss took her by surprise. Tentatively, they changed position, their lips seeking one another, taking their time, not pushing, not demanding. It was a different reaction. Not a flaring up like a wildfire, she thought, but more a creeping advance like the tide. And nothing can stop the tide, she thought, her last rational thought for a long time.

After a while, they came up for air. Tim sighed with satisfaction, his arms tightening around her for a brief hug. "Feel like running away?" he asked, offering her the opportunity. Ari snuggled back. He felt good. Warm, solid, dependable and comfortable.

"No." she responded briefly. He smiled smugly.

"Feel like stopping?" A brief silence greeted him as she considered the question. His smile slipped. "No," she concluded. "I think that we need more data." And the waves continued to lap against the rock on which they sat.

*

"Miguel," Lonnie complained, looking around the top of the park. "We've looked everywhere. Maybe they've left the park." He scanned the surrounding area from the rise on which they stood.

"I don't think so," he called over his shoulder. "I've got the keys to the jeep." He looked down toward the water's edge, and his eyes narrowed.

"Well, maybe they grabbed a shuttle," she suggested. He shook his head, already walking toward the downward path.

"No," he answered, disgust in his voice. "They're on the beach, come on." Lonnie pressed her lips together and shook her head. What a comedy, she thought.

*

Tim pulled away, a little reluctantly. "Ari, I think that we should be going now. The base of the boulder's covered with water." She looked down and laughed.

"Yeah, I guess it is. I wonder where Miguel and Lonnie are? What time is it anyway?" Tim checked the luminescent dial of his watch.

"Time to be heading back to the base," he announced, unfolding himself and slipping off the rock into the ankle deep water. "Want a lift," he offered. Ari shook her head, slipping down beside him, and taking his hand.

"Naw, I'm fine. Let's find the others and get out of here." A sharp voice answered them from the shore.

"No need to find the others, we're here. What have you two been doing?" At the implied accusation in his voice, Ari stiffened, starting to pull her hand from Tim's, but he held on and squeezed encouragingly, pulling her toward dry sand. She released the rising tension with a long, slow exhalation.

"Probably just what you're imagining," she answered, striving to remain cool. "Do you have a problem with that?"

"Yes, I do!" he replied angrily. "I thought you were my girl! And here you are with my best friend. Damn right I have a problem with that."

Ari squeezed Tim's hand, smiling up at him, before pulling her hand free. "I'm not your girl, Miguel." She didn't see it, but Tim smirked proudly behind her. A smile that melted away with her next words. "But I'm not Tim's, either. I belong to myself, and I intend to stay that way. I do like you, you know, but I like Tim and Lonnie, and Darwin, too. Especially Darwin." Tim strangled a laugh, and Ari threw a sideways kick at him, which missed in the darkness.

She continued. "I'm not ready to settle into any kind of relationship with anyone, except friendship. And I would like to be friends with you. If you can't handle that, it's ok, I understand. I'll understand if you don't want anything to do with me. I'd regret it, but I'd understand. I won't allow myself to be pushed into anything that I'm not ready for, not by my own body and not by emotional blackmail."

Perhaps if Lonnie hadn't talked to him earlier, Miguel would have exploded with anger or tried to change her mind, but instead, he nodded, "I don't like it," he conceded. "But I can live with it. Provided that you can." he added pointedly to Tim. Tim shrugged.

"Ladies choice, Miguel. This is news to me, too. I can't say that I'm all that happy about it, but she has the right to decide. I plan to do everything that I can to persuade her to chose me, though."

Ari shook her head, laughing at him. "Not on SeaQuest, you won't." she warned. She smiled up at him again, tenderly and quietly added. "But I'd like that." Miguel growled, and she turned to him, raising her voice, "From both of you." She quieted, her smile fading, as she seriously added, "But mostly, for now I just want to forget about all this for a while. Go back to SeaQuest, and work together, without worrying about romance or sex or anything like that."

Lonnie laughed, shaking her head negatively. "Uh-uh, kid. They're men. They don't forget things like that. Come on, I can tell you a few things, if you're willing to listen." As the two women walked away, toward the lights, Miguel and Tim faced each other in the surf.

"Friends for now." Miguel said, glaring at Tim. "But I'm going to change her mind. I plan to win on this." he warned him. Tim held up his hands, shoulder high, an odd grin on his long face, then extended one hand.

"Agreed, Miguel. But I'm going to be trying, too. May the best man win?" After a few seconds, Miguel suddenly relaxed and grinned, taking the other man's hand and clapping his free hand to Tim's shoulder, hard.

"May the best man win," he agreed, as Tim winced and rubbed his upper arm. While this was going on, Ari and Lonnie were toiling up the steep slope toward the park entrance.

"Ari," Lonnie asked quietly, glancing backward where the guys were turning toward them. "Who do you really like better?" Ari looked back also, a small smile on her face.

"Seriously?" she countered. Lonnie nodded, and Ari laughed silently to herself. "Then, in that case, I have to admit. I like Mr. Morden, best of all." The sudden burst of laughter from the two ensigns startled the men below, and alerted them to the fact that the ladies were already more than half-way up the path. With bellowed oaths, they started after them, yelling as the other two began running, laughing and trying to get to the jeep first.


T H E E N D
(For now)