Boogeymen - Mel Gilden [35]
Wesley looked around uncertainly. “Is this the real holodeck or just another simulation?”
Heartily, with great optimism, Picard said, “I suggest we call for an exit and find out. Computer—”
Before Picard could say more, the twin doors of the holodeck exit grated open, giving Lieutenant Commander La Forge just enough room to force his way onto the holodeck sideways. He regained his balance and smiled as he walked toward them quickly. Picard said, “Good to see you, Mr. La Forge.”
“Same here, Captain. We’ve been trying to get onto the holodeck since we lost contact with you.” La Forge looked around. “You must have been pretty bored stuck on a blank holodeck all this time. What’s so funny, Wes?”
Wesley shook his head.
Picard said, “It’s a long story, Mr. La Forge. Data can fill you in on any technical details. I want every holodeck on the ship sealed until we discover what’s wrong with this one.”
“Aye, sir.”
As Data and La Forge walked off together, already deep in conversation about chips, memory capacity, computing speed, and energy flow, Wesley said, “What about me, sir?”
Picard studied Wesley for a moment, deciding how hard he should be on the boy. He said, “Go home. Think about what you’ve learned today, not only about computer programming but also about the dangers of doing an experiment that you have not thought through completely.”
“Yes, sir,” Wesley said dejectedly.
Picard almost suggested Wesley go help La Forge and Data, but he thought better of it. Wesley always enjoyed a technical problem, the more tangled the better, and no doubt he would have something to contribute. But just for the moment, Picard thought it would be better if Wesley had some time on his hands. Let him ponder his errors in judgment. Maybe he would learn something.
Picard squeezed through the partly open holodeck doors, smiled, and nodded at the crew that was cleaning up the mess La Forge had made while attempting to force the doors open. As he approached the cross corridor, he hesitated for a moment, chided himself for being silly, and walked on.
Alone aboard the turbolift, on his way to the bridge, Picard’s paranoia got the better of him for a moment. He called, “Exit holodeck.”
No exit appeared. The computer said, “Null command.” Picard sighed.
No one was in sickbay but an orderly, who told Wesley that Dr. Crusher had gone to Ten Forward with Counselor Troi. While watching for Boogeymen he knew were not there, Wesley walked the corridors, rode the turbolift, smiled at the people. Being back in the real world was such a relief, he could barely believe he was really there.
The captain had told him to think. He would have done that anyway. Counselor Troi told him that he sometimes thought too much. His thinking went like this: Creating the Boogeymen had seemed like a good idea before, and it still did. If Wesley was to deal with the unknown, he needed more interesting adversaries than computer composites of Romulans or Ferengi. Starfleet used simulations to test their cadets. Why couldn’t Wesley use them to test himself? The idea was sound.
Wesley believed that he could have made a programming error, but he refused to believe that Data was fallible in that way. Besides, no programming error, no matter how horrendous, could have caused the problems they’d had on the holodeck. A program so deformed would simply not run at all. No, something else was wrong. Wesley needed more facts. He’d have to join Geordi and Data.
While Wesley was on his way to Ten Forward, the turbolift shuddered, almost knocking him down. Despite his wild first thoughts, he knew the Boogeymen couldn’t be the cause. This was the real Enterprise. Still, a malfunction of that type was unusual. He touched his insignia and called Maintenance. The crew member on duty said she’d take care of the problem. Wesley was certain she would, but he could not help worrying.
He arrived safely at deck ten and walked into Ten Forward. He stood at the door, allowing his eyes to adjust to the low light while searching for his mother. She found him first