Chapter 9 Revelations

Will sat in the seat of the Time Capsule looking over the controls. He
had listened to his log entries describing how to pilot the strange
machine, but he had not revealed that he had never viewed Data's vid on
the operation of the capsule.  He could tell that Lwaxana realized he
didn't exactly know what he was doing, but Deanna was  still so upset
over his refusal to take her that she hadn't noticed his nervousness.
Beverly Crusher stood next to Riker, watching him set various controls.
She wasn't sure, but it seemed to her that he was randomly hitting
various buttons. "I still don't understand, Commander, where in time
will you go?"

"There is only one time I know for certain I went to before. The is the
time the day the genetic engineering procedure was done on Deanna. That
is the day and time I will go back to.  Deanna, look here!"

Deanna peered inside the small capsule. "What is it?"

Will pointed at a rotating disk set on the control panel. "What does
that look like to you?"

"A Klingon clocking device control?"

Riker smiled broadly, "It sure does.  I wonder how that came to be
integrated into this machine.  You know, there seem to be several
innovations in this machine over the one Rasmussen had onboard the
Enterprise. I do believe someone has been trying to improve this
prototype."

"The Betazoid government?" Crusher postulated.

Lwaxana shook her head, "No, no one has been allowed near this capsule
for years.  We should go, we aren't sure what type of security devices
might be guarding this thing.  I don't understand how we got in here so
easily as it is."

"Mother, I wouldn't call transporting ourselves all over creation,
resetting the clock of the entire Transport station back three hours,
cutting all power to the station and supplying the passwords to three
separate security stations "easy".

"No?" Lwaxana asked, "I would. Let's get out of here. Good luck,
William."

"See you in a few minutes, Commander." Beverly waved.

Deanna reached over to Will. "Come back to me, Imzadi."

Will smiled, "Always." Finally he pulled away from her kiss. "See you
soon!"

Deanna backed away from the capsule and it disappeared as the clocking
device engaged. The soft hum of the engine came on, followed by silence.
Deanna immediately transported everyone else back to the rendezvous
point.

Will set the location coordinates and hit the button that he thought
would take the time capsule to the date, time and location he desired to
go.  Sure enough, the machine materialized on the back lawn of the
Jalara Medical Center.  Deliberately he had arranged to arrive in the
middle of the night, several hours before the procedure would start.
Checking the outside monitors he could tell there were no guards or
passerby's to notice him disembarking from the capsule. He moved a stone
to help him find the capsule upon his return and headed for the entrance
to the Medical Center. At the reception terminal he requested the room
number for Deanna Troi, but was surprised to find that the computer
replied no one with that name was in the Center's care.  Thinking again,
he repeated the only other name he could think of, "Location of Deanna
Riker."

"Room 12-34B" It didn't take Will long to arrive at 12-34B, but he was
not prepared for the scene which greeted him.  In the dark he realized
two men were standing in a corner of the room talking in whispers. 
Deanna was lying in the hospital bed.  Next to the bed was a small
encased capsule with various lights and a complicated looking control
pad attached. One of the men called out, "Close top." Slowly the top of
the capsule closed. Taking advantage of the two men's distraction, Riker
made his way around the room, angling towards them as close as he could.
 Both men were big, about his size and Will debated if he should wait
till they left or if he should now try to protect Deanna. As one of the
men walked over to the bed to lean over Deanna, Will made his decision,
tackling the man who remained. The move was a mistake Riker realized. He
was no match for the man who, with the help of the second soon had Will
pinned against the floor. In the dim light of the darkened room, Will
squinted trying to make sense of what he saw.

"I don't believe it!  Another one!  Playing with history once wasn't
enough for me!  All right and just which time period are you from?"

Will watched a younger version of himself glare at him, still holding
him to the floor. "He's from the future, look at him!  He's older than
we are."

Sure enough, both men were younger versions of himself. One was about
the age he was when he met Deanna, the other a few years older. "Let me
guess," the eldest Will Riker began, "You," he said pointing to the
middle version of himself, "are the one that needs to get to Risa and
you are fresh from the Hood?"

"Why are you here? What did I do wrong this time? The middle Riker
asked.

"Yes, why are you here?" The younger Riker repeated. "I thought you said
you had everything all figured out!" he challenged the middle Riker.

Will hesitated. "There was an accident. I have no memory of my life.  I
am trying to learn what happened on this mission." He knew he had to be
careful not to disturb the time line anymore than he might have already.

"How far in the future are you from?" The younger man asked
suspiciously.

"I'm not sure I should reveal that.  Far enough." Will replied
cautiously.

"Far enough to know about the Borg?" asked the younger man who should
never have known of the half human/half android race.

Will studied the man carefully. "How do you know of the Borg?"

"That is why I am here." answered the middle Riker.

Will started to listen to the middle-aged Lt. Commander Riker describe
how he had been recruited for the mission, but his gaze followed that of
the younger Lt. Riker to the small enclosed capsule. None of the Lt.
Commander's words registered once Will caught the first glimpse of his
daughter. Lt. Riker put his hand gently on the Commander's shoulder.
"You don't remember anything?"

Will shook his head, but though he opened his mouth no words came.
"Capsule open." he heard the Lt. announce. "Here, you can hold her if
you want, she likes to be held."

"I should have brought Deanna." Will said softly, thinking how much
Deanna would have wanted to have this chance to know the presence of
their daughter.

"It's just as well you didn't. I tried that," the middle Lt. Commander
Riker announced. "I went forward in time and brought her back and she
immediately collapsed in a coma just like she is here. I was afraid I
wouldn't be able to get her home."

Lt. Riker picked up the small child and brought her to Riker, placing
her gently in his arms. The tiny hand clung to the strand of hair, just
as in the picture, but there was no sight from the eyes. Details were
what Will noticed. Minute fingernails. Delicate eyelashes against the
smooth skin. The rise and fall of the small chest as it struggled to
breathe. "Is it okay for her to be outside the capsule?" Will asked.

The youngest man answered, "For short periods of time. It doesn't matter
much at this point. The capsule will sound when you need to return her."

"Can she hear us?"

"No, she can't." Lt. Riker drew a hand across his eyes. "I don't
understand," he said releasing a long breath, turning to the middle Lt.
Commander Riker, "what happened when you went back and married Deanna?"

"You are married to Deanna?" Will asked the Lt. Commander.

"Look, I know you both have a lot of questions," the middle Lt.
Commander began, "but Lwaxana will be arriving soon prior to the genetic
engineering procedure.  We have to get out of here."

"Why are you going through with that procedure?" Will demanded.

"It is the only way to protect the time line. Come on. I'll explain
everything when we get out of here. We do not want to be caught.  That
will bring the Borg for sure." A small, pleasant beep began to emit from
the capsule. The younger Lt. Riker reached over to Will taking the
infant from his arms, their eyes locked as Will realized how difficult
it was to surrender the baby.

"Sorry, she has to go back now." Will bent down and gave her a kiss
before handing her off. With the top of the capsule closed again, Will
stood over the bed to see Deanna. After a few moments, he felt a hand
tap his shoulder gently, "Commander, we have to go." Lt. Riker
announced. Will wondered at the younger, quiet version of himself he was
looking at. It was obvious that this young man's life was much different
than Will's own. Nodding he brushed his hand tenderly across her cheek
before kissing her for the final time. He lingered beside the comatose
form of Deanna briefly, whispered, "I'm sorry, Imzadi," then departed
after the other two Will Rikers.

"I have a time capsule." Will volunteered.

"So do I." said the middle-aged Lt. Commander Riker. "It's over here."
The two capsules as it turned out were resting side by side. Cramped
inside the capsule under possession of the middle Lt. Commander Riker,
the three men stared at each other for a moment. "My orders," the middle
Lt. Commander Riker began, "basically were to conduct a suicide mission,
but I was never a great fan of the Kamikaze movement.  My superiors sent
me to the last known time, place and location of the time travelers from
the 24th century with the intention of detonating an explosive device
and they hoped, close the portal through time the time travelers had
created.  Little did they know that the time travelers were Star Fleet
personnel whose orders were to obtain a drug which provided the last
defense in defeating an enemy known as the Borg. I arrived at the scene
of a great battle which takes place 20 years from today. That battle
determines the future of the Federation. As soon as I materialized I
knew I had only seconds to escape the time capsule before it would self
destruct.  I had already set the onboard transporter for transport, I
saw a star ship near me, entered the coordinates of the ship and beamed
myself out.  Seconds later the capsule exploded. The coordinates I chose
placed me on a ship that has not been built yet."

Commander Riker understood. "The Enterprise-E."

"Yes!" The middle Lt. Commander Riker confirmed. "Everyone was so
preoccupied by the battle that no one noticed my transport onto the
ship. They were looking for Borg, not humans to transport onboard, and
especially not a duplicate of a crew member. I decided the best place to
hide out was my quarters, but when I arrived there, I found out that it
was the married quarters of Deanna and Will Riker."

Will looked over at the younger Lt. Riker. "I'm not sure it is a good
idea to let him hear this."

"It doesn't matter," the Lt. replied, "this time tomorrow, I won't
exist."

The middle Lt. Commander Riker continued, "I met Deanna and confided to
her what I was doing in her time period. During the battle one of the
Federation time capsules was slightly damaged and brought into the
Enterprise's bay. She helped me get into that capsule and return to my
own time. Commander, I have been going back and forth through time,
creating problems in the time line and then trying to fix them usually
just creating even bigger messes. The Lt. here exists because of my
first mistake."

Commander Riker scrutinized the younger version of himself who he had
already grown to like for his gentle ways in the hospital. Turning back
to the middle Lt. Commander Riker, Will asked, "What mistake was that?"

"When I left the battle to return to my own time, I went back a little
further, than I should have..." the Lt. Commander dropped his eyes,
unable to look directly at the Commander.

"How far back?"

"Back to the night Deanna and I returned from the Jalara Jungle."

"What! You tried to change history?" Commander Riker's voice rose as he
tried to grapple with the implications of the middle Lt. Commander's
confession. He couldn't believe he would have tried to interfere with
the time line, even for Deanna's sake.


"I didn't think it would matter much."

"What did you do?" Riker was pretty sure the middle Lt. Commander would
say he had sent Wendy Roper away on that fateful night.

"I went back and sent a message from Deanna to Sergeant Tang to tell Lt.
Riker to meet her outside her house upon his return. I dated and timed
the message so it would arrive between the time Deanna and Lwaxana sent
me away and I arrived back here."

Commander Riker regarded the Lt. Commander for a long time. His voice
was low, filled with contempt, "Deanna came out of the house a few hours
later full of remorse and you were there waiting."

"When the transfer to the Hood came through,  I got an extension on my
assignment to Betazed and we were married.  We found out Deanna was
pregnant, only in that time line, I had a bad feeling about the
Triloxide and convinced Deanna not to use it.  Alyssia was born without
any problems. I was later assigned to the Potemkin and my career
continued. Eventually I was promoted to the First Officer position on
the Enterprise." The middle Lt. Commander stopped for a moment.

Commander Riker waited, then prompted, "What happened?"

"Alyssia grew up and fell in love with a young boy on the Enterprise,
Wesley Crusher."

"Wesley Crusher! That little?" Commander Riker caught himself. "Little
Wesley Crusher?"

"It was a disaster." Lt. Commander Riker continued. Commander Riker's
fatherly instincts kicked in, "Why? What did he do to her?"

"He became a Time Traveler.  Alyssia was only one quarter Betazoid so
she didn't have any empathic or telepathic abilities, but she did have
some sort of strong psychic link to Crusher. When he became the leader
of the Time Travelers and enlisted their help to defeat the Borg, he was
captured by the Borg. They used his link to Alyssia to," the middle Lt.
Commander stopped, wiping his dry eyes. "If you thought it was hard to
see her in the hospital, you can't imagine seeing her turned into that
thing, with all those pipes..." Riker sat in silence watching the middle
Lt. Riker cry openly at the memory.

Finally Commander Riker spoke, his voice a bit gentler this time, "so
you came back in time and didn't send the message."

"I came back in time and made sure Deanna didn't get pregnant from our
time in the jungle."

"Okay. That should be all right." Commander Riker said.

"No, that didn't work either.  She still had a baby only three years
later. That girl still grew up to fall in love with the Crusher boy."

"So you returned and delayed marrying Deanna until even later."

"Yes, but that still didn't help.  Every time Deanna and I were married,
our Imzadi link grew stronger. Our thoughts become almost like one. I
was captured in the battle with the Borg twenty years from now.  The
Borg used my link with Deanna to capture her also and turn her into one
of them as well."

Commander Riker's face lost all his color. "You mean I am captured in
the battle.  I become a Borg?"

"In only one instance did you avoid capture."

"Which instance was that?"

"In the original scenario. Deanna and I had just gotten married the day
of the battle with the Borg. We were supposed to leave for Risa the next
morning. There hadn't been time yet for the Imzadi link to become so
strong. During that battle, Picard and I were cornered at the same time.
I jumped in front of Picard to try and protect him from a phaser blast
from a Borg, was hit, but survived. My actions gave Picard time to send
an erroneous withdrawal message to the Borg collective. That message
confused the Borg collective momentarily, giving the Time Travelers
several seconds in which to attack the Borg,  successfully ending the
battle. In all the other time lines I visited, I was distracted by the
danger that Deanna was in because of our bond. That split second
hesitation doomed Picard, Deanna and myself - we all ended up part of
the Borg collective which defeated the Federation."

"Why did you come back in time and subject Deanna to the genetic
engineering procedure?" Commander Riker asked, determined to tie up all
the loose ends of the mystery.

"Because even in the last scenario there were three times when Deanna
ended up pregnant - once after a card game on board the Enterprise, once
from a Thomas Riker, whoever in the hell he is, and once after I lost my
memory in an accident." Lt. Commander Riker smiled as he mentioned the
last instance, obviously realizing where the Commander Riker in front of
him fit into the time line.

"One more question," the Commander asked, "What role does Mr. Homm play
in all this?"

"Homm is a Time Traveler.  His assignment is to guarantee that Deanna
and Will Riker do not end up married until they are supposed to." Lt.
Commander Riker stopped. "In all the time lines, I remember these events
after my return. I don't know why. I don't believe I should be able to
remember them, but I do. Now, I have to go back and miss my trip to
Risa."

Commander Riker patted the middle Lt. Commander on the back, "at least
you know it all works out in the end.  What about young Lt. Riker here?"

"I have to take him back to his time to get drunk and play the fool.
This Lt. Riker won't exist. Instead, I, we, are all doomed to hurt
Deanna all over again. You, apparently, Commander are the only one who
will live to see a happy ending to this story."

Will Riker stepped out of the Time capsule and listened as soft drone of
the capsule engines took off bearing the young Lt. Riker and the middle
Lt. Commander Riker to their destinies.  Entering his own capsule,
Commander Riker tapped out the coordinates for his as well.

Will checked all the monitors before climbing out of the small time
capsule. There were still no guards around the capsule. Moments later,
he felt himself in the grips of a transporter beam out.

Deanna watched Will as he materialized in the Troi mansion. Satisfied he
was in one piece, she came over to him. "Well?"

"Counselor, how would you like to marry me in eleven months?" Will
smiled.

"What difference will eleven months make?" Lwaxana Troi turned to Kyle
Riker, "They act like we have nothing to say about the matter!"

"We don't Lwaxana." Kyle said. "Come, now show me your garden and leave
these two alone. You too doctor."


"So did you reverse the procedure?" Deanna asked. "No." Will said
carefully. He was surprised she didn't ask any more questions.

"I see. Well, marriage, I'm not sure we are ready for that." Deanna sat
down on the couch of the Troi living room, trying to decide how to
explain her reluctance in a way he would understand. "Will, if we were
to get married, our link would become much stronger. That would not be
good for our careers."

Riker nodded. "That is what you have been afraid of, isn't it?"

"Sometimes, not always, and maybe not for us since you aren't Betazoid
and I'm only half Betazoid, the link becomes so strong that it is hard
for the two people to maintain totally independent thought."

"That would make any separation difficult." he agreed.

"It would make leading away teams difficult. It would make keeping
patient confidentiality difficult. It might mean your reactions might be
slower at a crucial time, putting you or others in danger."

Riker looked up at Deanna who looked way quickly. "You know!"

"What?"

"You know what happened when I came forward in time! Right?"

Deanna sighed. The truth was she was tired of pretending she didn't know
what would happen. It was tempting to deny the truth, but she had always
promised herself if he ever asked, she wouldn't deny her knowledge.  "I
don't know specifics. I couldn't answer your questions about holes you
found in your past, but I met you once when you came forward in time. I
know at some  point you were on a time traveling mission. I didn't know
until recently when it started or what it was about. I only know that it
is important that we don't get married and that we don't have children.
I also know that our link caused you and I both to die."

"Deanna, if we are married, our link does become stronger and does
result in our facing a fate worse than dying."

"The Borg. You told me that there was a battle with an enemy of half
robots. I forgot that. I never realized it was the Borg."

Riker debated with himself if it were ethical to tell her what he knew.
"If we delay getting married for eleven months, then we both survive the
Borg as does the Federation."

"Eleven months?" Deanna smiled, then immediately frowned, "but there
still is the problem of our link interfering with our careers."

"In the future, it appears we decide to risk it." Riker leaned over to
kiss her tracing his finger along her bare shoulder. "This link, why
does it grow stronger after you are married - is it because we have
more, physical contact?"

Deanna smiled, "Yes."

Riker sank back against couch, "I was afraid you would say that."

"Eleven months isn't that long, Commander, I think you will survive."

"It feels right now like a long time, Counselor."

****************

"Commander we have a Borg ship at 10:00 o'clock." Lt. Worf announced.
"Not returning our hail, Sir."

Will watched in terror as the gray metallic cube approached
relentlessly.

"They are powering up their weapons." Wolf continued.

"Raise shields." Commander Riker ordered.

"Direct hit! Commander, our phase inducers are off-line!" Geordi LaForge
cried in terror.

"Casualties coming in, now, Sir. On decks 6, 8 , 11." Worf repeated. A
terrifying blast rocked the bridge sending sparks flying. Darkness
engulfed the room, followed by a flickering red light that finally
stabilized. The silence was punctuated for a moment by the solitary
crackling sound of energy desperately trying to ground itself. The smell
of burnt plastic filled the air. Reports came over the com system from
all stations, commands being heard over the intercom, Crusher reporting
injury statistics, in the background cries of crew members.  Riker stood
calmly in the middle of the bridge, "Lieutenant, send a shuttle out at
8:00 and another at 3:00 on my mark. Now!"

Worf looked at Geordi who shrugged his shoulders, "shuttles launched,
Sir."

"Prepare to jump to Warp 10. On my mark. Heading 8.4.7."

"That is directly into the Borg ship, sir!"

"Precisely, Ensign, do you know another way to defeat the Borg by
ourselves?"

"No, sir."

"Engage."

"Borg ship destroyed. Enterprise destroyed." Picard came sauntering out
of the observation station.

"That was, a rather imaginative solution, Commander."

Will stood waiting to see whether the Captain would judge him fit for
duty or not. "Congratulations. Report for duty at 0700 hours tomorrow."

"Actually, Sir, it has been a bit boring sitting around.  I was hoping
to maybe start the second shift tonight." Will offered.

"Granted. Oh, and by the way. I understand congratulations are in order
on your engagement."

Will smiled over at Deanna, "Thank you, Sir."

"Eleven months. Such a long wait is rather old fashioned isn't it?"

"It's in the best interest of all, I believe, Captain."

"Very good." Picard offered his hand out, "Welcome back Commander, we
missed you."

"It is good to be back, Sir."

Will glanced briefly at the smoldering holodeck. This was one battle he
could hardly wait to begin. Looking up he caught Deanna's eye as she
walked up to him. Taking his hand in hers they left the holodeck
together, the faint smell of battle still lingering in the air.

The End.