Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;

Posted on Sat Jul 6th, 2024 @ 3:51am by Lieutenant JG Miraj Derani

Mission: Season 6 HIATUS
Location: Miraj's QUarters
Timeline: MD09 1900
532 words - 1.1 OF Standard Post Measure

MoveRunFlee.

It was instinct, the words in her mind well after she started to crawl, cold grit and colder ice cutting her palms. It was dark, but everything was swimming in her eyes so it didn't matter

"You stay where I put you."

The voice was angry, hard, frustrated. Then she was sliding back over the cave floor. then she was on her back looking up. The figure was blurred, hooded in the thick parka they all wore to keep out the cold.

A foot rose, and fell, and then there was only pain.



Miraj jerked awake, then lunged for the table to stop toppling off her chair. The padd she'd been rereading clattered forward, and set the whole pile of padds, books, and plates crashing to the floor.

For a moment she just sat. She must have drifted off. It was the first time since The Thing that she'd dozed off without her improvaline. Was that what happened to her? Her conscious memories were a big black hole, but had her subconcious remembered?

Her heart wasn't calming down, her pulse was thumping in her ears, she was shaking. It had been so real, She knew that voice. She just couldn’t place it. It had pitched weirdly through the ringing of her ears, and now her ears were ringing again, her chest tightening as she tried to hang on to the memory, she couldn't breathe, all over again. She tumbled to her door, breath and vision going ragged, and fell through it.

"Lastachka?" CPO Igor Zakharov looked round at the door opening. She collapsed onto him, heaving for breath. He carefully guided her back into her quarters and sat her down. "What happened?"

"Dream," she wheezed. "Saw."

"Okay, this is panic attack. Is fine. Breathe with me, in, and out. Nice and slow. In…and out." He made exaggerated breaths "In… and out. You are safe here. This will pass. In… and out…" It took a few minutes, but eventually she calmed.

"So you had nightmare? Of that night? I thought you had medicine?"

"I do. I just fell asleep at my desk."

Zakharov nodded. "And you saw who it was?"

Miraj's face scrunched up. "Sort of. No. Yes. Like almost?" The CPO regarded her, and she tried again in the face of his patient silence. "Its like when you can't recall someone's name. I'm trying, but Its just not there."

"I see." He sat back, contemplating. "Well. Now we know that there is actually something to remember, I think you should see telepath. Doctor telepath I mean. They may be able to help you remember."

"I don't know. I'm not sure I want to."

"Miraj. There are sixteen hundred people on this ship, and one of them is happy to beat young girl to death. Who knows when someone else annoys them to that point again? Maybe cadet makes wrong mistake? Maybe child who cries too much because their parents are gone?"

Miraj sniffed a bit. "That's cheap."

Zakharov shrugged. "I am security officer. Cheating is part of job. But you know what I mean."

"Alright. I'll go."

"Good. I make sure Gretick gets you there in morning."