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Within the Bonds

by Zlanna@AOL.com

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

Kinna wore a cruel smile on his face as he glared at Deanna and Will Riker on the other side of the force field that blocked their cell. Slowly the smile faded. Kinna liked to feel the fear of his victims. These two didn't show any signs of fear, but he knew that would change soon. He motioned with the phaser. "You, half-breed. On your feet." He held the phaser pointed directly at Will Riker almost inviting him to try something stupid. Will watched Deanna stand and go to the door. She turned briefly, but their good-byes were silent. The force field lifted and she exited. No chance for an escape yet, perhaps later, assuming Riker mused, that he was still alive when she returned. His thoughts jolted Troi as she realized that he was losing the ever present optomism. She wanted to reassure him but she had nothing to say. Kinna watched, his smile slowly returning.

Riker watched the front of the cell, waiting, praying that he would see something that would provide an opportunity for an escape. Nothing appeared. After an hour, he felt Deanna's presence returning to him, followed shortly by Deanna escorted by two guards and Kinna. Kinna opened the cell again, stepped back with a phaser pointed at Riker and let her enter.

No words were exchanged between the two Imzadi, but mentally Deanna projected, "They know." That day there was no experimentation period. Will realized he would miss the twice daily blackouts of the room. At least they had provided brief spells of privacy and in a curious way, protection.

Several days passed, but still no one came to terminate the life form of Will Riker. Deanna's terror at the sound of the guards' boots as they struck the stone floor each time they made their way down the hall tore at Will's heart, but there was little he could do to allay her fears. They both knew that at some point the click of the boots would end at their cell and Will Riker would be the one the guards pointed their phasers at. Holding his breath, Will waited as the sound of the boots paused momentarily outside the force field to their cell, then continued along their way further down the row of cells. Within a few minutes they heard the announcement. It was always the same. "Your experiment is terminated." Then the sound of the phaser. There was never more than one execution a night. Relaxing Will pulled Deanna closer to him. She didn't need to say a word. He knew what she was thinking, "Not tonight. Tonight won't be the night they kill him."

They were quiet for a long time. "Will?"

"Yes." he answered in the blackness of the cell.

"Do you have a plan?"

Sighing, he started to lie, but he realized, it would do no good to lie to her. "No. They vary their routine every evening. The guards are well trained. I've seen no slip-ups. Everything is done by the book." he was cataloging all the points that he had considered in looking for an escape, but he still had no ideas. "Everything is run like clockwork."

"What if we upset their clockwork?"

Riker shifted on the bed, "What do you have in mind?"

"I don't know yet, but I think I'm beginning to be able to read one of the guards. Maybe that will help us figure something out."

It would keep her mind off of his impending execution, Riker thought, so why not let her try? "You know," she reminded him, "once the baby is born, they will kill me too. I don't want my, our, child growing up in a prison to spend her life in one experiment after another." Deanna smiled in the darkness. She had deliberately slipped in her speech to renew his determination to escape. She wasn't disappointed.

"Her?"

Somehow the panic was unmistakable. "Uh-huh."

Riker was quiet for some time. "You're sure?"

"Well, as sure as I can be, given that the doctor reveal anything today except to confirm the preganancy.

Deanna waited but Riker offered no further conversation. Instead he clung to her tightly all through the night.

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

"Fifty-seven seconds, fifty-six seconds, fifty-five seconds." The Riker changeling listened to the reading of the numbers. A couple of months ago, he would have welcomed an end to his miserable existence, but now just as he had assumed an identity that fit him so well, now that he had realized he that he was in love with Leeaoni and had been for quite some time, now he mourned his own death in the few seconds remaining him. He was so absorbed in his last thoughts that he didn't notice the hum of the transporter as it locked onto him beaming him out of the fighter just as it exploded.

Materializing in the form of Will Riker was not an easy task for the changeling, but he had been well trained. Concentrating he managed to maintain the form despite the transporter's attempts at arranging his molecules according to his real DNA pattern. It was an amazing feat and one that few changelings would have been able to achieve, but his ability to do so was one reason he had been chosen for his current mission. Taking a moment to orientate himself, he found himself staring at a kindly looking Vulcan. "Greetings, Commander Riker. We meet again."

The changeling tried desperately to remember the figure in front of him. He was sure he recognized the elderly man, but he could not place the name. That was the risk he had taken when he had abandoned the form of Will Riker in the fighter. Since he had reverted to his own form even though only briefly, he would go through another adjustment period before the memories and personality of Will Riker became strong. Respectfully, Riker nodded, "Sir." he replied neutrally, hoping that he could bluff his way through this new challenge.

"You must give my regards to Captain Picard when you return." the Vulcan replied. If the Vulcan suspected anything was wrong he revealed nothing. Riker stood, somewhat awkwardly debating what to say next, fearful that he would slip and reveal his deception.

"Ambassador Spock! We have little time. We must return to Romulus now if we are to go back across the border before the tracking station comes back on line." a young Romulan stood next to the Vulcan with near panic on his face. Ambassador Spock. Even the changeling recognized the name. The former First Officer of the Enterprise would feel a kinship to the man who currently held that position, the changeling guessed. Had they compared notes at an earlier time? It was obvious they had met before.

Shrugging Spock carefully studied Riker. "I apologize we have such little time together. Please return this message capsule to your Captain, and Commander," Spock paused for emphasis, "Good luck."

"Thank you, Sir. The same to you." Riker answered. "I don't know however, how I'm going to return to the Enterprise. My ship self destructed."

"Yes. An very imaginative method of throwing off the Romulan cruiser that had spotted your signal. We were amazed that you had such confidence in our ability to transport you off your fighter. You were still slightly out of our transporter range."

"Actually, Ambassador," Riker replied candidly, "I didn't expect to be transported off the fighter."

"Indeed." Spock stood in silence. Riker waited, wondering uneasily if the Vulcan would trap him in the verbal logic that had made the Ambassador so famous. Finally Spock replied, "We have another waiting for you." A second Romulan rushed into the room, uttering something in the Romulan tongue. Nodding, Spock turned to Riker, "Live long and prosper, Will Riker."

Riker raised his hand in the traditional Vulcan manner, "Peace and long life."

After a quick meal, Riker was ushered to another fighter, though this one was of an earlier vintage than the last. The middle-aged Romulan who accompanied him appeared uncomfortable. "I'm sorry Commander, this is the best we have. I'm afraid it is not the quality of the LS-501A computer system but it should get you where you want to go."

"I'm sure it will." Riker replied, climbing into the pilot's seat. He was anxious to leave the base before anyone might catch him on some minute detail that would reveal he was not Riker. In a few minutes he was ready to depart but his destination was not the Enterprise.

Leeaoni watched Chandra carefully as she approached the planet of Xaria. It had taken two weeks to reach her destination, having hidden inside a neighboring nebula for three days until the Enterprise had given up and headed off in another direction. By now she was certain the Riker changeling was dead. Still, somehow her mind refused to believe him to be dead. She felt his presence in a way she could not describe, not in a way that made any real sense. Perhaps she would always feel him as part of herself now. Perhaps it was just that she carried his child that she felt as if he were close to her. Her hand rested on the minature phaser that lay hidden in the pocket of the pilot seat. She stayed alert to any change in the emotions of the Chandra changeling. Finally it came. Chandra turned toward her, "Hey! This isn't our home base."

Leeaoni didn't wait. Drawing the phaser out she declared, "How observant, Chandra!"

The Chandra changeling kicked her foot out, knocking the phaser to the far corner of the shuttle surprising Leeaoni. Cursing Leeaoni started to crouch in the Klingon fighting style, but landing a fist on Chandra was nearly impossible. The telepathic changeling knew each move that Leeaoni intended before Leeaoni could complete the move. Laughing, Chandra lunged, twisted and landed a fist in the stomach of Leeaoni. Rushing past Leeaoni Chandra grabbed the phaser and pointed it triumphantly at the Troi changeling. "Sorry, girlfriend!" Chandra laughed. The sound of a phaser went off and Leeaoni closed her eyes, her last thoughts returning to the Riker changeling. She waited. Slowly she opened her eyes to see the Riker changeling standing before her.

"Looked like you needed a white knight to save you." he laughed. "Riker always did love playing the part of the hero saving the damsel in distress as I recall." Leeaoni stared at him. He was in his natural form, not posing as Riker at all. He was a good foot taller than Riker, his golden fur was thick and glorious, hanging in long ringlets and his face was handsome, his eyes kind in their sincerity. His wide smile beckoned her to him and she went gladly. Softly she kissed him remembering their lovemaking aboard the Enterprise. "Leeaoni," he whispered, "change for me. I want to see you as you are."

Shyly, Leeaoni met his brown eyes. "I can't. I am carrying the child that we created on the Enterprise in human form. To change now would destroy the child."

The Riker changeling fell back a step as if she had physically struck him. "Child? How? Is this possible?"

Leeaoni grinned, "Apparently. Even Doctor Crusher didn't realize it was a changeling child."

"A child." he repeated. "I never expected." He turned away from her. She waited but still he did not face her.

Worried, Leeaoni placed her hand on his broad back, resisting the urge to run her fingers through the fur. "Are you angry with me?"

"No, Leeaoni." he remained facing away from her. "I am not angry." His voice wavered and it was only then that Leeaoni recognized the emotion that his words carried. Going to him she grabbed his shoulders and he turned back to her, the tears in his eyes. "A child?" he repeated yet again.

Laughing Leeaoni brushed the long hair from his face tenderly. "Yes, a boy. We need to give him a name." She closed her eyes and concentrated on using Troi's empathic abilities to sense his emotions, but she could not sense anything from him.

"First," he proclaimed, "I want you to give me a name."

"That is easy. You are Jarendo."

Jarendo peered at her. His dark brown eyes, haunting in their pain. "Why" he growled lowly, "why do you pick this name?"

"I don't know. I have always thought it was a name that suited you." she replied honestly.

"It was my father's name." Jarendo said quietly. Slowly he metamorphized back to the shape of Will Riker. "I dreamed only of reuniting with you Leeaoni."

"But you came here to Xaria." she noted with mock amusement.

"We owe them that. I could not go on with my life knowing that I was responsible for them being here on this planet. Now, I have an even larger debt to repay Will Riker." he replied. He brought his hand to her chin pulling her back to him. "I want you to stay here though. It will be dangerous, especially if you cannot change forms."

"But you might need me."

"Yes, Imzadi" he smiled, kissing her, "I might need you to beam us out very quickly."

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

No one aboard of the bridge of the U.S.S. Enterprise moved. Silently all eyes were on Captain Picard as if he magically had the power to undo the tragedy that the explosion of the fighter had wrought. Picard sat as dumbstruck as the rest of the bridge crew. "Will Riker dead." He didn't realize he had said it aloud until Data's voice responded.

"I do not believe so, Sir."

"What?" Picard asked confused. He turned toward the android who was rapidly hitting the console buttons, examining the influx of data.

"I am receiving strange bioreadings from the brief period when Commander Riker disappeared from the fighter. I have cross analyzed them and there is no doubt. Commander Riker was not aboard the fighter when it blew up."

"You mean Riker got off the fighter before it was destroyed?" Picard asked. He would like to think that Riker had managed to evade death's door yet again, but secretly his mind rejected the hope.

"I mean," Data carefully worded his response, "that the being aboard the fighter was not Commander Riker and just before the fighter exploded, that being was transported out of the fighter."

Picard jumped out of his chair, crossing over to Data, his concern evident on his face. "Just where would the 'being' have transported to?"

"There were several Cardassian fighters in the area, Sir. The other possibility is that the the Romulan underground managed to retrieve the being although he was slightly out of transporter range."

"Who do you think the 'being' was?"

"My readings indicate that it was a changeling, Sir."

"A changeling." Picard recalled his earlier fears regarding Riker and Troi. Doctor Crusher."

"Crusher here."

"Doctor, I want you to review all your data that you collected on Troi and Riker while they were on board. I want to know if there is any possibility they were changelings." Turning toward Data, Picard continued, "There is no way to verify the underground's involvement since they have departed for Romulus, I'm sure." Picard stared out of the viewscreen. His main worry was that Riker had been a changeling and had picked up the secret information from the underground, intending to divert it to parties that would use the information against the Federation. "Data, I think now would be a good time to follow the shuttle's signature path. Let's see where Counselor Troi and Chandra were off to."

"Do you believe they might be going where the Riker changeling went?"

"I don't think he would have joined the Romulan underground. If Riker and Troi came on board together, the chances are good they are planning to rendevous somewhere together. I want to be there when they do."

Jarendo materialized just outside a great building made of shiny, black stone that glistened in the moonlight appearing cold and foreboding. A chill filled the air and he wished he was in his own shape with his thick coat of fur to keep him warm. Although there was much he admired about humans, he always felt naked in their flimsy clothes. Naked and unsafe. Watching closely he saw what appeared to be a number of guards approach his position. One guard, waved at his companions and headed off to a patch of woods near the building, that Jarendo could only surmise was a medical facility of some sort. Jarendo followed the lone man silently.

In a few minutes, the guard rejoined his companion. Waving, but not saying anything he re-entered the building with another small group of guards that were apparently just coming on duty. Little known to the other guards, this was not their companion at all. He lay unconscious in the woods, a victim of a changeling's wrath.

Jarendo needed to find the Starfleet couple quickly. He was not certain how long he could continue his to pretend to be a guard. He had studied Will Riker for six weeks prior to his actual replacement of Riker. Reproducing Riker's physical form was not difficult, but it had taken a great deal of effort to learn the First Commander's mannerisms, voice, and a hundred other details prior until the memories came into focus. Here there was no opportunity to know what language the guard he was imitating was speaking, whether he was married, athletic, a good poker player? there were a thousand ways to slip up and be detected. Wandering the halls, trying to act like he knew where he was going, Jarendo finally found the room he had hoped to stumble upon. "Information Systems Center." Jarendo waited patiently. Finally a tall women dressed in a blue and white lab coat exited the room. Jarendo preferred to assume male forms, but he had assumed a female shape on more than one occasion and if there was no other option...Fortunately another option soon presented itself. "Hey! You! Come here!" a burly looking Xarian came up to Jarendo. "Give me a hand in here."

Jarendo followed obediently. Inside the room, luck finally smiled on the changeling. Apparently the Information Systems Center was also changing shifts. Jarendo and the Xarian were the only ones in the room. A few minutes later, the Xarian was safely dispatched in a storage closet and Jarendo was entering commands into the main computer console.

Species? Human/Betazoid
Sex? Female
Cell 23-A
Deanna Troi

Jarendo was surprised that the names of the two officers were in the computer banks. Usually the Xarians could care less that their captives had names but apparently even the Xarians realized that these two were no ordinary specimens. The force field on the cells were controlled by the computer and by a hand held padd that must be deactivated. Jarendo was not certain how to gain access to the padd, but he decided he would go to the cell first, worry about obtaining a padd later. Often, he had found, in such circumstances, it wasn't worth worrying about such things. They usually had a way of working out themselves. He deactivated the computer's portion of the force field.

After studying the layout of the facility, Jarendo left the center in the shape of the guard he had imitated before and headed to Cell 23-A. Unseen in the darkness of the corridor, Jarendo recognized the Commander and Counselor. They were unaware of his presence. No wonder. Betazoids could not read or sense changelings. Jarendo retraced his steps to the entrance to the cell block. He watched in the shadows, until opportunity came knocking for him.

"Hey Siinko! I will return in 5 minutes." one of the two guards that stood outside the cell block entrance announced.

"Do not take too long. Kinnea is making his rounds tonight and he can't wait to waste the guy in 23-A."

When the first guard returned from his 5 minute break, Siinko was safely dispatched in an air duct, while Jarendo having assumed his form stood stoicly outside the cell block.

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

Slowly the artificial lights dimmed in the cell block that held Will Riker and Deanna Troi. There had been no more executions for three nights, the longest stretch so far with no deaths. Each evening that passed without an execution made the next night even more frightening. This night they sat on the bed listening, straining for the sound of the guards as they entered the long hall that ran the length of the cell block. They waited for several hours. Then, finally, in the distance, they heard the sounds of the guards boots against the stone floor. "Are you ready?" Riker asked Troi.

"Yes" but she wasn't ready at all. She was scared, wishing they could just go to sleep and fearing that this night must surely be the night the guards would stop at their cell. Louder the click of the boots came, then stopped in front of their cell. Before Kinnea could say anything Deanna Troi groaned loudly, clutching her belly and began to vomit on the floor of the cell.

Kinnea waved the phaser wildly at Will, "Get back! Get back right now!" Riker obeyed turning his back to the nervous Xenian. Jerking his head in the direction of Troi, Kinnea ordered a guard to take her to out of the cell. "Now, Will!" Troi mentally called out to Riker. Without turning around, Riker kicked backwards, landing a foot in the back of Kinnea's knee sending him to the ground. His victory was short lived though as Kinnea stumbled but recovered, still clutching the phaser, determined to kill the annoying human. Kinnea's sneer had returned as he twirled around to end the life of Will Riker, but he never had the chance to fire. Only one guard stood at the entrance to the cell and he now pointed a phaser at Kinnea, firing without hesitation. Kinnea collapsed to the floor. Looking over at Riker, the guard asked simply, "Should I kill him?"

"No!" shouted Deanna, her eyes imploying Riker to spare the life of the Xarian.

Riker shook his head in answer and sized up the guard. "Why are you helping us?"

Jarendo met Riker's stare, the blue eyes that had once looked back at him from the mirror now strangely unsettling the changeling. "I have a debt to repay. Come, we must hurry, though I tell you, we should kill him."

"No, let's just get out of here." Troi begged.

Jarendo looked around the cell and saw the evidence of Troi's unsettled stomach. "Are you sick?" he asked, fearful for the life of his son if Troi had some disease."

Riker laughed as he put his arm around Troi. "Good acting, Deanna!"

"I wasn't acting!" she protested, trying to pull away from his embrace. "Not entirely."

Don't worry." Riker replied to Jarendo, "You can't catch what she has."

Remembering the computer file and its reference to fertility experiments in cell block 23, Jarendo understood Riker's joke. Jarendo pulled out a small communicator, Federation issue. "Leeaoni! We are ready." Commander Riker was still trying to determine how the guard would have a Federation issue communicator when he realized he was being transported somewhere.

Somewhere turned out to be a shuttle from the U.S.S. Enterprise-E. "Thanks for the rescue," Riker began, "but just who in the hell are you?" No sooner had Riker asked the question than he realized he was facing two versions of Deanna Troi. One wearing the medical facility garb provided by the Xarians and one wearing a Starfleet uniform.

"I'm afraid we are the ones responsible for your capture, Commander Riker." Jarendo answered.

"Jarendo, We have trouble!" Leeaoni announced, a galaxy starship is approaching on our port side."

Jarendo looked at the screen, Riker at his side. When Riker looked up, he was confronted by an exact duplicate of himself. "Changelings! You are both changelings!"

"You must help us." Leeaoni pleaded, desperately looking from Troi to Riker.

"Why should we do that?" Will announced. He was already trying to determine how to contact the Enterprise and what charges could be brought against the two changelings.

"Because she is also carrying a child, Will." Deanna replied softly.

A form materialized on the shuttle. None of the four occupants moved to protect themselves, believing that the outlines of the two figures were crew members from the Enterprise. Instead, a guard along with the sneering form of Kinnea greeted them. Kinnea wasted no time, he fired rapidly at Riker point blank range. The body of the Commander fell to the floor, then instantly changed into the motionless figure of Jarendo. The guard fired a disruptor at Leeaoni, sending her collapsing in agony onto the floor. Weaponless, Riker kicked the disruptor out of the guard's hand, while Deanna landed a hard fist into the stomach of Kinnea. Riker took advantage of Kinnea's momentary distraction to retrieve the disruptor, turn it to full power and disintegrate the Xarian. Deanna fell to the side of Leeaoni. "Will! Contact Doctor Crusher!" There was no need she realized to scream at him. Riker was already on the com channel. In a few seconds Doctor Crusher appeared, medical bag in hand.

One look at the prone body of Jarendo and Crusher met Riker's gaze. "I can't do anything here." she announced." Moving to Leeaoni, Crusher got out her medical kit. "I take it she is the changeling that was posing as you on the Enterprise." Crusher asked Troi, who only nodded her head. "Well, I don't think I can do much for her. The disruptor will break down her DNA, cell by cell.

"My baby!" Leeaoni shouted. "Please."

Crusher shrugged. "I can't transport her. The transporter would accelerate the effects of the disruptor."

Will turned to Crusher, "I have already requested a med team meet us at the shuttle bay. We will have you in your sickbay in a few minutes."

Crusher nodded. "I could save the baby. I could transplant the baby, but it would need a Betazoid/human host." she waited for Troi's response.

"Transplant?" Troi asked confused, looking to Will as if he could explain the concept to her.

"No." Will replied, "Bev, Deanna is also pregnant."

Crusher leaned back on her heels for a moment, thinking, then addressed Troi. "I know, I ran a scan on you when I first arrived. In fact you would have to be pregnant for this to work. Of course it is your decision, but the risk for you, Deanna, is quite low."

Troi's eyes met Riker's. Riker groaned loudly, "Twins?"

Smiling Troi nodded at Crusher, "Yes, Bev, go ahead."

Crusher smiled and went back to work. Within minutes Troi and Leeaoni were lying side by side in sickbay. Working quickly, the medical team had soon sedated Troi, then performed the two operations necessary for the transplant of the baby from the body of the changeling to Troi. Finally, Crusher looked to Will who was hovering outside operating station. Smiling she allowed him to approach the bed. Leeaoni had assumed her natural form as soon as Crusher had removed the fetus. Riker glanced at her briefly wondering if she were dead yet. As if in answer to his question, Crusher shook her head sadly, "No, but I doubt she can last much longer." Deanna was still unconscious, and looking a slightly larger than she had earlier.

Satisfied that Deanna was doing well, Riker left the operating station and entered the somber morgue of the sick bay complex. There lying on a slab was the body of Jarendo. Riker stood gazing at the changeling. He had had time during the operation to review his logs trying to determine how much damage the changeling might have inflicted, both in terms of operations and in terms of mishandling many of Riker's duties. He had found, to his immense surprise, that the changeling had kept the ship and crew running as smoothly as he himself might have, but he had learned much more too. Interspersed into the logs were the changelings thoughts, observations, musings of life aboard the Enterprise, his life and Riker's life. Riker could not help notice the parallels in his life and that of the changeling. The truth was he felt a great kinship to this changeling that despite the rocky road life had dealt him, managed to still maintain such a strong love of life. Lost in thought in the silent morgue, Riker jumped when he heard a voice call out, "Commander. Where is Leeaoni?"

Seated upright was the changeling. Speechless Riker watched him swing his legs off the slab and approach. It was not unlike a ghost appearing suddenly. "I'm sorry to surprise you." The changeling surveyed the morgue, laughing, "I guess Beverly was unaware that changelings can regenerate vital body parts. We are very difficult to kill, Commander."

"We don't know that much about changelings..."Riker began. He stopped abruptly remembering the changeling mentioned in his logs that he had no name.

As if reading Riker's mind the changeling offered, "My name is Jarendo. I assume you have read my entries into your log by now." Jarendo hesitated. Riker could tell he was waiting for confirmation.

"Why do you presume that?"

"Because Commander, you forget, I know you very well." Jarendo's laugh was filled with irony, "Very well indeed. I never answered your question on the shuttle."

Thinking back to the hectic moments of the shuttle Riker remembered asking what the changelings were doing impersonating him and Deanna. He started to repeat the question, but stopped himself. This man thought much like Riker did. He had expected that Tom Riker would think like him, but he hadn't. This changeling was much more like Riker than his own transporter duplicate, but somehow that knowledge didn't bother Riker. He felt instead like he had met someone who was destined to become a close friend. "There is time for that later, Jarendo. Come with me. Leeaoni was shot with a disruptor immediately after you were hit. She is dying." A curious look crossed the Commander's face. "We think." he added.

A look of understanding, RaBeem, Deanna would call it, replaced the defensive posture of the changeling. Nodding his thanks, he quietly followed Riker back to the operating station. Upon entering the station, Jarendo went immediately to the bedside of Leeaoni. Riker returned to his seat beside Deanna and watched the changeling bend down and gently kiss the hand of the female changeling. Behind him Riker heard Beverly Crusher's shocked, "What the? You are supposed to be dead!"

Jarendo turned, his face devoid of humor, "Reports of my death are grossly exaggerated." he deadpanned. "Doctor?"

Crusher, still speechless nodded her confirmation.

"What is her status?"

Beverly approached the biobed cautiously as if still afraid she was dealing with a ghost. "You had no pulse rate, no brain activity, you should not be walking around."

Jarendo replied, "Changeling physiology is different from that of humanoids."

"So I gather." Crusher answered. Taking a moment to collect herself she turned back to the female changeling, passing a medical sensor over the body. "This is strange."

Smiling Jarendo offered, "her brain activity is up, pulse is returning to normal and the DNA breakdown has ceased and in fact, you can find no evidence of the effects of the disruptor."

Facing Riker, Crusher nodded her confirmation. To her surprise, Will replied, "Then she is going to be all right?"

"Apparently."

His own relief at the news made Will uneasy, but he was genuinely happy for this couple. From the logs he had learned they had endured a great deal of prejudice and ridicule in their lives, he wished there could be a happy ending for them, but he knew Starfleet would treat them harshly. His gaze returned to Deanna for a moment. She was sleeping peacefully, but he felt he knew the message she was trying to send him. He had to find a way to help these two.

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I only do this for the pleasure of Imzadi fans. If you enjoyed the story or if you have suggestions, please send your comments to Zlanna@AOL.com.