Wicked Games

Posted on Sat Oct 19th, 2019 @ 2:21am by Lieutenant Commander Carolyn Corrigan MD & Lieutenant Commander Ariana Monroe-Wayne

2,616 words; about a 13 minute read

Mission: Episode 100 - A Hatred of Atonement
Location: Holodeck
Timeline: MD02, 2245 hrs

Ariana was trying to get some rest, but somewhere close by Andy was plotting. He smiled as he used his Betazoid abilities to get into Ariana’s head sending her pictures of Carolyn, making her believe Carolyn was in trouble. He knew what good friends they were so he knew she’d do whatever he wanted, he watched as Ariana reached for her comm badge.

Ah..ah...I wouldn’t do that!” His mind telepathically linked to hers. If you want to see your friend alive be at holodeck one. with that he severed contact and grinned to himself.

~~~~

Alone on the holodeck, Carolyn had lost all track of time as she sat on an outcropping of rocks, watching as the water gently lapped up onto the shore before the tide caused the water to retreat once more.  Overhead the sky was a sombre grey, the clouds obscuring the hilltops from view as the valley stretched on as far as the eye could see.

It was peaceful.  If a little cold.

Hearing the doors to the holodeck open she glanced over her shoulder, arching her eyebrow in surprise. Given that just the day before the counsellor had been on the operating table and was under orders to rest, Ariana was the last person she expected to see.  

Ariana had slowly and somewhat uncomfortably made her way to the holodeck, finding a program running she walked inside seeing Carolyn. “Carolyn! Are you alright!?”

“Of course I’m alright,” Carolyn told her, sounding annoyed as she climbed quickly to her feet, “what do you think you are doing? You should be in bed, in sickbay!”

With care, she began picking her way across the slippery collection of stones. Nearing the beach, she tried to at least sound calmer. “Come on, let’s get you back before you end up back in the OR. If Hades finds out you were out of medical he’ll -"

What she was about to say was cut short as a familiar, and unwelcome, figure came into view.

"Ladies! Fancy seeing the two of you here!" Andy brashly walked over to them, coming to a stop beside Ariana.

"Forgive the intrusion..." He smiled a sweet sickly smile as he reached a hand to Ariana's hair. "I've just added a new program to the Holodeck and I thought you two ladies would like to try it out with me."

“You need to leave, now.” Carolyn told him as jumped the last stones and headed for Ariana's other side, "or do we need to call security?".

Andy stepped back with a grin as he looked at Carolyn. "Oh come now Doc! Let me show you both my program." With a snap of his fingers, as he'd programmed for ease, the Holodeck interior changed to a familiar house. The one he'd been in the night he'd attacked Freya years earlier.

"What the hell?!" Carolyn demanded as the world around them shifted, transforming in an instant. Gone was the lake, the hills, even the foreboding grey clouds and chill from the air. Instead she was face to face with a solid wall roughly where Ariana had been standing, a sea of ivory with intricate patterns woven through it. She took an involuntary step back, her blue eyes sweeping the unfamiliar room.

A light in the centre of the room showed off display cases full of ornaments and awards and pictures frames, with a corridor which led off into complete darkness. A large oak door dominated the wall to her right, with a narrow window set into the frame revealing only darkness beyond it. Another door was near to where she stood while directly opposite the front door, the stairs.

She was not going up there. Nope. No way in hell...

And there was no sign of Ariana. Or Andy. The latter she was perfectly fine with. Ariana, however, was a different matter.

First things first.

Tapping her comm badge she frowned when all she received in reply was a burst of static. Plan B then... "Computer, end programme," she called out, her command met with silence.

"Ariana?! Where are you?! Are you okay?"

Inside the room Ariana was now on her own with Andy, she was afraid to be alone with him and her first instinct was to try looking for a way out.

"Where are you going Ariana?" Andy smiled. "I thought we were friends? Don't you want to spend time with me now?"

Ariana recoiled as Andy caught her up, touching her hair and face. His fingers caressing her skin. "Ah so lovely, yet such a betrayer!!" He struck her hard sending her flying over a nearby coffee table. Landing stomach first on the hard surface she felt intense pain as she rolled onto her back on the floor.

Andy smiled. "Oh dear, hurt yourself did you?" He grinned. "I'll be back to see you soon." With that he pulled away and disappeared out of view.

"Carolyn!! Ariana held her arm across her stomach as she moved to get up. "Where...are you!?"

Hearing Ariana's voice, Carolyn ran to the door nearest to her, trying the handle but it wouldn't turn. She pushed against it with as much strength as she had but the door didn’t so much as budge an inch. "Ariana! Ariana, I'm right here, I promise but the door is locked," Carolyn called out. "Are you alone? He isn't with you?"

"No..." He's gone Carolyn! I don't know where!!" It was then she saw blood on her hand. "Carolyn I'm bleeding!!"

"Ariana, listen to me," Carolyn said quickly, hearing the panic in the other woman's voice. While it was useless to try, she turned the door handle again, but it was useless. She tried to keep her voice calm, reassuring. "I need you to use all of your training, every technique you've learned and use it to stay as calm as possible, okay? Deep breaths. In.. and out... do that for me okay? Look around you, find something to keep pressure on the wound."

At that they heard a bang somewhere in the house.

Ariana crawled to the nearest corner, she was terrified beyond belief and in serious pain.

"Just focus on you, okay?" Carolyn encouraged, even as she looked up towards the ceiling. Sure the noise had came from upstairs. As if to prove her right another bang - louder and closer -made both of them jump. It was decidedly closer than before but harder to pinpoint.

"Ariana, focus on your breathing and I'll be right back, okay?" she told Ariana.

"Carolyn! Don't leave me!" Ariana was truly terrified of what Andy just might have in mind for them.

"I wont go far, I promise. I’ll try to find another way to get to you," Carolyn assured her, trying to quell her own fears as she took a towards the front door, half expecting Andy to jump out at her. She was able to see more clearly now some of the trophies in the cabinet, school awards too and family photographs. She wondered idlily if this was Andy's home.

She had barely taken a second step when the light went out, plunging the room into darkness. A fraction of a second later she heard a footstep, turning towards the sound as a hand clamped over her mouth. She reached for the door handle, thinking of Ariana on the other side, but she couldn't quite reach, her fingertips barely brushing the cold metal of the door handle as she was dragged into the dark.

Ariana was trying not to panic but she wasn't doing a good job. She jumped as she heard a loud crash, lots more smaller crashes followed it. For a moment all was quiet before there were more crashes and amongst it all. "Carolyn! Where are you!? I need you!!"

The door to the room opened barely a minute later. Stepping into the room, brushing off fragments of broken glass, some of which had peppered his face with tiny cuts, Andy stood for a moment. Wiping blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, his attention fell on Ariana.

Ariana’s eyes looked Andy over he looked like he’d been in a good fight with someone and that had to be Carolyn. “Where’s Carolyn!? What have you...done with Carolyn!?”

The smile on Andy’s face said it all. Without wasting any time he started towards Ariana. He planned some enjoyment for himself and no matter what he was going to get it.

Ariana saw Andy coming towards her but moments later she was unconscious on the floor, her re-opened surgical scar was losing blood fast.

Andy smiled, he'd leave Ariana alone to bleed out and he wouldn't have to lift a finger to kill her.

As she came round Ariana knew she had to try something, she clamped her hand over her wound and cautiously moved around the room putting what she could between them. She made it as far as the hall before collapsing, the pain making it impossible to go any further.

Just as he was about to step out into the hall, the sound of glass breaking underfoot made him pause. In that fraction of a second he caught a blur of motion as he was tackled around the waist, the force carrying Andy and his assailant back into the lounge. Powerful, well placed blows struck home as Liam O’Connor's came to the defence of the two women.

Ariana breathed a sigh of relief for a moment, before another wave of pain washed over her. Trying not to concentrate on it she dragged herself up to look for Carolyn. "Carolyn! Where are you!?"

Hearing Ariana, Carolyn bit down on her lip to silence the pain that shot up her side as she cautiously picked herself up off the floor. Tasting blood in her mouth while broken fragments of glass and heaven knew fell from her clothes as she stood. For a moment she stood leaning against the wall, trying to make the world focus, her hand tentatively exploring the wound in her side.

She had to move... steeling herself she pushed away from the wall and moved cautiously to Ariana’s side. “I’m right here..." she breathed. She wiped blood away from her eye as she looked over the counsellor, at the blood soaked clothing. "What happened to you?"

"Andy...he pushed me over the coffee table!” Ariana kept her hand over her wound. “What's...happening Carolyn!?" Her hair was damp with perspiration as she brushed it to one side.

Before Carolyn could reply, there was a huge crash from the next room and she was one hundred percent sure that window was now in a million pieces. Listening, she was sure the fighting had moved beyond the lounge and out into the night. "Comms are down, I don't know what he did," she said to distract the woman as she took over trying to stem the bleeding. "Try not to move, there is glass everywhere and you are losing a lot of blood... Talk to me. Keep talking okay?"

Ariana sat back as they heard fighting going on nearby. "You're hurt" She looked at Carolyn's wounds. "What are we....going to do?"

"Shhh," Carolyn urged, "nice deep breaths and try to think of chocolate fountains and mountains of ice cream. We will get you to sickbay and you will be as good as new and ready for the next nappy change."

Behind them, someone was running through the house, a thick Irish accent calling out. "Carolyn?!"

"Through here," she called back over her shoulder. She offered Ariana a reassuring smile, squeezing her hand. "It's alright, he's a friend. Ariana, I think you met at the wedding but this is Liam. Liam, Ariana. "

Entering the room, Liam took in the sight before him as he crossed the room. "He ran," he told them. He flashed them an apologetic smile, "I couldn't just leave you both here. Carolyn your-"

"I know," she said quietly, nodding instead towards Ariana. "We need to get Ariana to sickbay but comms were down..."

"Yeah, took me forever to get in here. You are fortunate I'm a man of many talents," Liam commented with a wry smile. Looking at Ariana he added, "if you promise not to fall for my Irish charm, do you mind if I carry you? It'll be faster."

"Once we are out of the holodeck we can beam you straight to sickbay," Carolyn added. God she wanted out of this place.

Ariana nodded. "I don't think...I can walk anyway!" She looked at Carolyn. "Let's get the hell out of here!"

Still with a somewhat apologetic smile, Liam leaned in and lifted her. “Just maybe not mention this to your significant other, I get in way too much trouble with spouses,” he grinned. He looked at Carolyn, “it isn’t too far. I can come back...”

“Just start walking Romeo,” she told him, hauling herself back to her feet and keeping as much pressure on her side as she could. The word spun and she could taste the blood in her mouth but nothing would stop her getting out, even if she had to crawl. “I’ll be right behind you."

"It's nice to...meet you Liam" Ariana smiled. As he carried her she slowly started to relax, slowly drifting into a drowsy state with her head against his chest.

Liam said nothing as he kept walking, keeping his pace slow but steady so that Carolyn could keep up. He tried not to look at her too much, because it made him far too angry. And his outlet for that anger had ran like a coward. Besides, with the counsellor in his arms he had no physical way to help them both.

As he emerged into the corridor a passing ensign stared at them, eyes wide as he took in the sight of him carrying the counsellor out of the holodeck.

"Easy now," Liam said as he carefully set Ariana down so she could lean back against the bulkhead. He glanced back at the ensign, "you stay right there and nobody goes near her, got it. "Counsellor Monroe? I'm going to help Carolyn and we'll get both of you to sickbay and get security, alright?"

Ariana managed a slight response but she was fast losing consciousness. The pain she was experiencing had lessened considerably but she wasn't feeling well at all.

Quickly getting back to his feet, Liam moved back towards the entrance of the holodeck just as Carolyn got there. The brighter lights showed of every cut, some bleeding far more heavily now they had walked out of that little house of horrors.

"I will kill him," Liam growled, thowing in a few choice expletives as he hurried over to help her. He wasn't sure where to touch without making it worse so had to just do his best. "Slowly."

Carolyn wasn't sure if he meant for her to walk slowly or if he was planning out some revenge, either way she was not arguing. Taking one look at her friend, Carolyn used her good hand to tap her comm badge, relieved to not hear static this time around. "=/\=Corrigan to sickbay, I need you to lock on to my comm badge. Three to beam to sickbay, including Counsellor Monroe. =/\="

"Carolyn!" Ariana looked to her friend. "Call my Dad...please!"

"I will, I promise," she assured Ariana as the transporter took hold of them, beaming them away from the corridor and leaving one very confused and slightly horrified ensign behind.


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