The Eyes of the Beholders - A. C. Crispin [71]
He had seen a map once, long ago, that had been copied from one made in the sixteenth century, when man sailed the oceans, not the stars. Channels, passages, and trade winds had been marked, the safe routes that the ships could use to travel to the New World. But there had been other areas left blank, uncharted. Those areas had been filled with fantastic creatures much like the beings of Berengaria Seven, scaled and studded with fangs and wings and forked tails. And the map had proclaimed, “Here Abide Monsters.”
Riker decided that he was trapped in the middle of one of those unchartered regions, surrounded by things much worse than dragons. For the moment he was safe, but only so long as he didn’t move, didn’t attempt to come out. His memories supplied him with examples of times that he had reasoned his way through danger or, as a last resort, fought to protect himself. But these monsters were too strong. Only if he stayed hidden would he be safe.
So he crouched in his tiny, dark refuge, hiding.
He realized, in a dim, faraway fashion, that he couldn’t stay here forever, but the small part of his mind that still maintained any reasoning ability argued that if the monsters didn’t find him for a long, long time, they would go in search of other prey, and then he could emerge. But he would wait until he was positive they were gone.
Of course, there was no way to determine the passage of time here, but Riker didn’t let himself think about that. All he could be sure of was that he was safe, just as long as he didn’t move, didn’t come out of hiding.
Suddenly he sensed some disturbance at the borders of his sanctuary. He grew alert, feeling panic again. The monsters had found him!
Will … Someone’s voice echoed down the recesses of his mind. Will Riker …
The voice (or was it a thought? he could not be sure … ) seemed familiar. But the monsters, some of them, had been clever. One of them could be trying to lure him out of safety with a ruse.
Riker did not respond. Go away, he thought, with as much of his reasoning mind as was available to him here.
Time passed … he had no idea how much. He began to relax again.
Then, abruptly, it was there again, and much closer!
Will! It’s Deanna. Where are you? You must come out, it’s safe now.
Deanna? He had known a Deanna once. They had been lovers for a time, then, more recently, friends. He could trust Deanna … he’d always trusted Deanna …
But perhaps it was a monster, trying to lure him out.
He stayed hidden.
Will! The summons was almost in his hiding place now! Will, come out. You’re safe now, come out. Contacting you is extremely difficult for me. Will, if I stay here much longer, I could lose myself! Will, izmadi, I need you, you must trust me!
Only Deanna called him izmadi. No one else could know that secret endearment. That, and her pleading “I need you!” reached him as nothing else could have.
Deanna? he thought, moving a bit toward the presence in his mind. Deanna, is it really you?
Her response was filled with wild joy and relief. Yes, Will, it’s really me! Oh, God, I’m so glad I found you! Come with me!
But there are monsters there, he said, childlike in his simplicity.
Not when we’re together, there aren’t, was her response. When we’re together, we’re safe and happy, right?
Yes … , he admitted.
Will, it’s dangerous for us to stay here, she said. Especially for me. If you don’t want me to be hurt, you must come now!
He didn’t want Deanna to be hurt. He loved Deanna, would always love Deanna, though that love had changed throughout the years, to the love of a dear and true friend rather than the romantic flame it had been in the beginning. There was no way he could let her be hurt because of him.
A phrase remembered from childhood filled his mind. All right, ready or not, here I come!
He launched himself toward the other presence.
Deanna was there with him, it was really Deanna. Her love surrounded him, keeping him safe, and, like Dante’s Beatrice, she guided him, pulling him along,