Dark Mirror - Diane Duane [22]
“He doesn’t know what to make of all this,” Deanna said after she had finished a description of Stewart’s reactions. “He thinks it’s some kind of test of his loyalty—apparently such are common, where he comes from. In fact, I believe he thinks we’re really all part of some elaborate illusion, and that he’s actually on his ship’s holodeck. But his reactions to his officers are not—anything like what we’re used to.” She shuddered, glancing at Crusher and La Forge. “You two hardly matter to him. In Commander Riker’s case, the imagery that comes up is of brutality, a kind of gluttony—” She broke off, uncomfortable. “The captain—he’s afraid of, and hates; but at the same time, you’re a symbol of something Stewart wants, I think. I didn’t understand it. … And he’s more afraid of me than of anything else that could happen to him.”
Picard shook his head. “And that was all you could find out?”
“I don’t know, Captain. He says things that would probably be most illuminating—if I knew how to take them, if I understood the context. But this is definitely one of those times I wish my mother hadn’t been half of a mixed marriage. Right now I would exchange a lot of diversity for being able to hear what that man was actually thinking.”
“”Security officer,” he called you,” Geordi said. “Except in the abstract— what’s that supposed to mean?”
Deanna shook her head. “I got the sense it was a command-level title. Other than that—there’s no telling.”
“Conclusions?” Picard said.
Deanna took a long, shuddering breath—she was still having some trouble with control. “Captain, unlikely as it seems, I at least am left with the conclusion that this man is from another Enterprise; and one very like ours, for clearly, he knows us, or some of us—and he knew this ship’s structure well enough to move around in it fairly easily before he broached a security area and we were alerted to his presence. He was sent here to spy on us, to report, and possibly to return—though I’m not too sure about that last, for much more care seems to have been taken preparing to get him over here than for preparing him to come back. At least he was forthcoming about what information he was after.” She looked at Geordi.
He nodded. “I got them. I should be able to find any others he got at the same time, too, since anytime a file is accessed, there’s a tag added to it, a bookkeeping trace. I’ll check all the tags changed within that time frame.”
Picard sat thoughtful. The pool of organization and sober thought that spread from him was reassuring, and Deanna felt, at that moment, that she could use all the reassurance she could get. That wave of fear was still beating at her back. “Doctor, Mr. La Forge, I’m going to want a department heads’ meeting in about two hours. I’ll be on the bridge if I’m needed.”
Geordi went out, heading back to engineering; Crusher stepped out into the main sickbay area to see about her other patients. Troi sat there, looking at the captain; his unease at the way she looked touched her. She shook her head.
“What kind of people are we there?” she said.
Picard looked briefly off into the distance. “Another Enterprise …,” he said softly. “Another Troi …”
“Another Picard,” Deanna said. “Cold, he saw you. A grim, quiet terror, hard, like iron. And another Riker—cruel, and liking the cruelty.” She breathed out, feeling Stewart’s fear still clawing at her back.
“And you?” Picard said.
“Death,” Deanna said, “in an odd uniform. And worse than either of you.”
Picard stood up and looked at her with compunction. “Two hours, Counselor,” he said, and went out.
She sat there, wondering, What would it take to turn me into a murderess? … and worse? For Stewart’s emotions had hinted that there were things worse than merely being killed. You spend your life, Deanna thought, being grateful that you’re no worse, as a person, than you might be—and then you find out what you might be.
She got up and went after Picard, heading for the bridge. As she passed the bed, the man on it didn’t open his eyes, didn’t move, but she felt the