I decided on a somewhat different style with my “edits for canon” this year, and am employing slightly lighter hand than I did with the winners from the 2003 contest. While some might say, “You shouldn’t touch them at all,” and others, “You’ve every right: No one captures the Liberty crew like you do,” I think this way is for the best, in that if I invite people to write a story, it should be as undiluted their vision as possible, while still remaining true to my canon and characters.

Interestingly enough, Michael Gray and I got into a bit of a dispute (entirely amicable) over one of the occurrences in this story… and the opinions I’ve solicited on whose ending would be “better” are evenly split. Last year, I would have made the change over Michael’s protests and allowed the readers to judge for themselves. On this occasion, I’m going to leave well enough alone, and merely add the alterations that bring the story into accord with my established characterizations. Hopefully, this will please everyone, rather than the reverse.

If you wish to take a look at Michael’s original story, it's here.

I also apologize to those of the Jewish faith for my unthinking use of the phrase “Old Testament.” That is, of course, a Christian presumption—one I’ve long been aware is inappropriate in either scholarly discourse, or, as in this case, coming from the mouth of a scientist… and I have made the appropriate correction. Note also that Michael had nothing to do with that faux pas. It’s entirely on me. The fact that I’m a theologian makes it even more inexcusable. Again, I offer my apologies.

"At The Edge Of The Sea"

By Michael Gray

(with Joseph Manno)

Luciano Mantovanni bolted up from the bed in his quarters. The alarm klaxon blared, but it seemed muffled to him, as if it were a wounded animal bleating its final cries before the death stroke.

"Mantovanni to bridge… report!" he demanded from the comm system, doing his best to shake the slumber from his mind.

The deck heaved, tossing him across the room. He scrambled to his feet with far less agility than he'd expected, his muscles reluctant to follow the orders his brain shouted.

His ship was under attack. He had to make it to the bridge.

From the corner of his eye he saw it only a moment before it hit. Out the window where there should have been only stars, a large undulating mass of moist, black flesh smashed into the hull.

Mantovanni instinctively stepped away, but less than a second later realized it was not enough to escape.

The dark, slug-like form smashed its way through the metal skin of the starship Liberty, paused briefly… and located its target.

Captain Luciano Mantovanni stared at the five-meter length of the slithering apparition as it turned toward him and opened what appeared to be a mouth. It lunged for him.

He spun about, making a leap for the door, but was too slow. He felt the creature's mouth close on his waist, his legs kicking at the wet interior of its throat. The slug lifted him into the air and as he slid down deeper into its bowels odd thoughts occupied his mind.

Where was the explosive decompression when it came through the hull? Why wasn't I sucked out into space?

Darkness.

Mantovanni opened his eyes. Rather than drowning in the digestive juices of the creature's innards, he found himself lying on a large bed inside what appeared to be a spacious hotel room. The walls were covered with ornate scrollwork which ran all the way up to the ten-foot ceiling above. Plush chairs sat scattered about in no recognizable pattern. He rolled over to the source of light filling the room. Two large French doors stood open and beyond them a balcony overlooked a calm sea. Bright sunlight came down from a perfect blue sky.

"What the Hell is going on?"

He sat up on the bed and peered out the doors. He noticed a figure with its back to him, standing at the edge of the balcony. The strong winds off the ocean caused the gown she wore to billow out around her. Her long dark hair rose and fell in steady rhythm with her garment.

She turned to him. "Why do you ask questions you know the answer to?"

He found it difficult not to smile. Her bright green eyes gazed at him with such longing he felt as if some magnetic force struck out from them like lightning, pulling him toward her.

She was flawless. Every curve, every detail of her supple figure seemed to be exactly what the human female body was meant to be.

She glided toward him with the grace of an angel, but her eyes were filled with desires far from heavenly. Her hands opened the gown and it slid off her shoulders as she made her way to the bed. Her lustrous skin showed not a hint of imperfection.

She came to the edge of the bed and crawled across it towards him. "Now I'll have what I came here for."

Mantovanni's mind urged him to get away from this woman, but his body, now aroused, would obey no such thoughts. He found himself staring at her perfectly rounded breasts as she straddled him. "Do I know you?" he asked.

She chuckled. "You will." She tore his shirt open and ran her slender fingers over his chest. "You're going to enjoy this." She reached down and licked at his nipple.

He ran his hands over the silky skin of her back, losing himself in the moment—that is, until he felt her teeth bite down on his chest.

"Hey!" he pulled her head off of him. "Take it easy."

She regarded him a moment with a grin. "That's not what you want, Cicero." She reached up and pushed his arms away, above his head. "We're going to do this my way."

He tried to pull away, but she was stronger than she appeared. He took a deep breath and, with an effort of both strength and self-control, began to ease her off him.

Her hand came across his face with a slap. "Do as you're told!"

He set his jaw. "Little tip for you: That’s not customarily a line men hear in their fantasies—at least not this man." Mantovanni tossed her aside. "Now, who are you?"

She’d barely kept herself from rolling off the bed, but didn't appear discouraged. She smiled and pulled at his pants. "The woman you've always wanted."

Again , he fended off her hands, and then sat up on the bed. "Sorry, but… I’m fairly certain I’d recognize the very few that qualify under that statement… and you’re not one of them. Now… let’s have a helpful answer."

"You'll have all the answers you need when I fuck you."

He frowned and stood. "Better, but… while that… predatory attitude is some men’s fantasy, it’s few women’s reality."

She watched as he walked toward the doors to the balcony. "Am I going to have to get rough with you?"

At that, he couldn’t help but flash a brief smile: Despite his own partial nudity, the idea of a naked woman—any woman, for that matter—overpowering him was amusing.

“Why don’t you save the ‘rough stuff’ for the paying customers?”

She stood from the bed and took a deep breath. "You're going to regret this, Mantovanni. All you had to do was come over and talk to me."

For some reason that statement resonated. He spun about and stared at her. That face... He did know her. But only the face was right. He searched his memories for the place and time, but whenever he came close, his thoughts evaporated. "Who are you?!"

She shrugged her shoulders. "You had your chance."

The next moment, he stood upon the sands of a desert which stretched unbroken to the horizon in every direction.

"What do we have here?"

Mantovanni turned to the source of the voice and looked upon an impossibility. Making its way toward him, a three-and-a-half-meter long ant walked across the sand on six legs.

Momentary fear and wonder gave way to reason. He smiled. "You can't exist."

"And why is that?" the large figure asked as it stopped a short distance from him, its antennae twitching rhythmically.

"Ants—assuming you're supposed to be that insect from Earth—don't have lungs. At your present size, you'd suffocate."

The ant's compound eyes stared at him a moment. "Perhaps you're smaller.”

Mantovanni shook his head. "Nice try, but… with my mass so concentrated, I would have sunk into the sand… only there wouldn’t be any ‘sand’: each ‘grain’ would be the size of a boulder."

The ant tilted its head up, looking off into the distance. "Crawl onto my back."

"No, thanks; I’m not fond of horses, either."

"Aren't you curious to find out what I'm doing here? Since I can’t exist, it’ll be a short ride, right?"

He didn't have too many options… and had to admit it did have an adventurous attraction to it.

Mantovanni approached the creature, looking for a way onto its back.

"Try between the middle and back legs," it told him.

He followed its directions and crawled up onto its thorax, kneeling like a trick rider rather than trusting to his newfound steed. "Where are we going?"

"Back to my nest. It’s being threatened."

"Are you sure that's wise?"

"I'm an ant; it's what I do."

Minutes later, the pair came over a hill and stopped. A large ten-meter wide cylinder crashed down out of the sky into a mass of ants and sand down in the valley below.

"What is that?" Mantovanni asked as he dismounted.

"An attack from beyond," the ant told him, watching his fellows, scrambling around the invader from above. "I do not think we shall survive this time."

"Then run… get away."

"This is our home," the ant replied as the cylinder dug deeper into the ground. Ant bodies flew in every direction.

"Why would anyone do this?"

The ant turned to him. "I would very much like an answer to that question, little Luciano."

Mantovanni stepped back at the dark tone in his companion's voice. "I'm not responsible for this."

"Aren't you?" His antenna reached forward. "Don't you remember?"

Liberty's captain now saw the ant had been joined by others. They’d surrounded him, and now moved closer.

"A little boy is up there. He's just read about the queen in an ant colony from an encyclopedia entry on Earth life-forms. He's searching for her with little concern for the thousands who are giving their lives to protect their home." The creature's mandibles opened. "And now, for the first time, we can stop him."

Mantovanni did his best to remain calm. There was an answer here. He had to keep his wits about him.

"Your curiosity has consequences, human."

Thirteen sets of razor-sharp jaws fought for their chance at the small fleshly thing before them.

Filled with sudden fear, he cried out.

He opened his eyes.

He was back in the hotel room.

The woman was atop him, riding him for all she was worth… and from her expression, thought the ride well worth it. He nearly pushed her off, but reconsidered: confusing as this was, unwilling though he was, it did beat being torn limb from limb.

She looked down at him and smiled. "Better?" She leaned down and touched her lips to his. "You've wanted this for so long. Why fight it?"

Ariel... Ariel Berne... That was her name.

"Captain?" a woman's voice asked from light years away.

Mantovanni tried to place it.

"Cicero!" the voice shouted, this time with a tug at his shoulder.

He tilted his head and saw Sera MacLeod standing next to the bed. "Commander?"

"You can see me?"

"Yes, but what are you..."

Ariel kissed him again, with fervent desperation. "Don't listen to it! Stay here with me!"

"Captain," MacLeod said, regaining his attention. "Concentrate. Employ the mental disciplines you learned from Sevek."

He closed his eyes and began the preliminaries. It wasn’t easy, considering the circumstances… but he managed a tentative control. After a minute, his rigid… attention… started to wane.

The woman making love to him, looking quite frustrated at his loss of… interest… closed her eyes and rolled off him.

“Morpheus interruptus,” observed Sera.

Mantovanni stood, and turned to Sera. "I assume you've figured out what's going on."

“Don’t I always?” She raised an eyebrow… and lowered her gaze, an impish grin in evidence despite the situation.

“Is that her fantasy… or yours?”

He looked down at himself… then matched her arched brow and replied, “Art imitates life, Commander.”

Wisely, she decided not to continue their banter. “I would strongly suggest clothing yourself, sir. You will have to use your mind to either find the clothes or..."

Before she could finish, Mantovanni once again wore his Starfleet uniform.

“Considering your reference, I’ll assume I’m dreaming.”

She glanced over at the woman on the bed. "Evidently, some dreams are more engrossing than others."

"There are worse experiences." He considered for a moment. "If I am dreaming… are you a construct of my mind, or…?"

“We are currently bound together in a mind meld, anchored by Admiral T’Kara—who is no doubt a spectator.” She stepped onto the balcony, saying, “I’ll give you a moment with the ‘lady.’”

Mantovanni turned to Ariel, hoping for more answers, any answers… but before he could say anything, she vanished.

He joined Sera outside. She was all business once more, and launched immediately into her report.

"You were found unconscious on the floor of your quarters forty-five minutes ago. Thus far, all means to awaken you have failed. Twelve other members of the crew are in similar circumstances. Since I knew you had been trained in Vulcan mental disciplines, I decided to attempt a mind meld with you, hoping we could communicate." She joined his gaze. "Oddly enough, the others are here with you as well."

"I've seen no one else from the crew. How do you know they're here… and where is ‘here’?"

"When I calm myself and listen, I can hear their thoughts in whispers."

Mantovanni tried it, but heard nothing. "What caused this?"

"The admiral and I were in engineering…”

Dryly, he interjected, “Well, that’s almost explanation enough.”

She ignored him.

“…and we speculate that our fluctuating warp field attracted a number of alien entities. They approached the ship and then vanished."

"What sort of ‘alien entities’?"

"Non-corporeal, and emanating energy of a kind…”

“Let me guess… ‘never before encountered.’”

She nodded.

“A brief analysis enabled me to determine that the patterns were self-organizing, and that they were certainly intelligent."

"Do you believe these entities are responsible for my continued dream state?"

She looked out at the endless sea as waves crashed on the beach below. I'm not certain. But you and the others affected were asleep at the time of the encounter. I think it logical to assume they are in some way responsible."

"Do you think this is a means to seize control of the ship or merely some failed attempt at communication?"

"Unknown; our warp systems have been nonfunctional since encountering them. I theorize their energy state and emanations are antithetical to the formation of a warp field."

The warm breeze blew past him. It was entirely, perfectly pleasant… but this dreamscape had, for him, already lost its appeal.

"How would you suggest we..."

A sound caught his attention.

"Luciano..." it whispered.

The next moment, Sera MacLeod stood alone.

"Captain?"

"Luciano," the female voice said in his ear... or, rather, the ear of the man on the bed—though he could hear the whisper in his own. "Tell me again how much you love me."

The blonde’s position, astride him in a manner similar to the one Ariel had employed, and enjoyed, gave him a good view of her petite breasts. He was strangely passive beneath her, moaning as she worked her hips… and, no doubt, a few other muscles he couldn’t see.

That’s three women who all know what they like.

He studied them for a long moment—more a clinical appraisal of technique, and wryle noting that this time he could hear, but not feel.

"You like?" she asked wickedly, leaning toward “him.”

Only now did he recognize junior officers quarters.

"Lieutenant… Aronow?"

Startled, she turned to see him beside the bed—beside the bed and beneath her, both.

Her eyes widened. "Oh, my God." She grabbed for her shirt. "Oh, my God!"

Sera MacLeod appeared nearby, looking highly entertained. "Are all of your dreams of a sexual nature?"

Why? Waiting your turn? an irritated Mantovanni thought. He then raised an eyebrow and stood up.

"This isn't my dream, Commander."

Sera turned to the lieutenant, who’d pulled her shirt on with the desperate speed of embarrassment. "You are one of the twelve unconscious crew members."

"Lieutenant Katherine Aronow from engineering."

MacLeod regarded the younger woman for a moment, the teasing with which she’d been skewering Mantovanni now nowhere in evidence. "How did you break out of your dream state, Lieutenant?"

"Evidently I was a part of it," Mantovanni stated.

Aronow cringed. "Sir, I didn't..."

His eyes joined hers. He could tell she was mortified. It was understandable; Captain’s Crushes weren’t exactly uncommon. Some commanders kept themselves carefully aloof from their crews, in order to avoid such entanglements. He’d always thought that an extremely wise stance. Still, Mantovanni could imagine how he'd feel if the real Ariel Berne had happened by earlier whilst her dream self had been atop him. "It's OK, Lieutenant. None of us are responsible for our dreams. Trust me, I know how they can have a life of their own."

She gave him a brief, slightly relieved smile. "Thank you, sir."

Sera's eyes narrowed. "She's still deep in her dream, Cicero." She turned to Aronow. "You have strong feelings for him, don't you?"

The lieutenant turned away from them.

"Commander, I think she's been through enough for now," Mantovanni said, hoping to deflect further embarrassment.

"No, sir. This is too important to set aside just to protect her feelings or your sense of propriety."

Aronow gazed at Mantovanni.

As she did, her expression softened.

"Yes.

“I love him."

He didn't know what to say. The last thing he wanted to do was to send reality crashing down upon the girl—especially since Sera thought questioning her was important.

"These aren't just dreams, sir," Sera began. "They appear to rise out of unconscious desires. It could be that someone is manipulating you, touching off these feelings."

"Experimenting?"

"Perhaps," Sera agreed. "You should be careful not to trust any emotional responses you might have."

"But why?" Aronow pleaded.

Both Mantovanni and Sera turned.

"Lieutenant, none of this is real," Mantovanni stated.

"But I'm real and my emotions are very much real." Aronow stepped up to him. "I love you. It doesn’t matter how that was revealed; it only matters that I do. "

He shook his head. "Lieutenant, once we're out of this you'll think differently."

She smiled, and at once he realized what she was about to say.

"No… I won’t. I've loved you from the moment I came aboard Liberty. I just never had the courage to say anything. You are the captain, after all. Having a crush on your CO isn't something most people are proud to admit to."

"You don't even know me."

She placed a hand on her chest. "I know you in here. That's all that matters."

It would have been insipid, if she hadn’t been sweet, and pretty… and now, desperate.

"Lieutenant, don't indulge this," Sera said. "You have to stay focused so we can find a way to get you and the others out of here."

"I've done my best to bury this for the last year, but I... I can't do it anymore." She touched Mantovanni's cheek. "I don't want to."

"Katherine," a voice spoke softly from the bed.

They all turned to see another Mantovanni.

"We're losing her," Sera stated. "She's sinking back into the dream."

"Lieutenant Aronow," Mantovanni said. "Katherine."

Katherine Aronow turned back to her real captain. "Yes, my love?"

Sera frantically yanked him towards herself.

“Tell her you love her.”

Mantovanni stiffened. “What?!”

“Cicero… tell her you love her or we’re going to lose her.”

He drew back. “I won’t do that.

"I'm sorry," he said, to one or both he wasn’t sure. “I don’t love you, Katherine.”

She smiled. "I know that now." She pointed to the phantom on the bed. "But he does."

Mantovanni reached for her, but knew the illusion had far greater power than he did.

"Luciano, I do love you so," Aronow said as the other Mantovanni began removing her clothes.

"We can't help her now," Sera said, her tone full of anger and remonstration. Silently, she turned and exited the lieutenant's dream quarters.

For a moment, Luciano Mantovanni, feeling sick, watched Katherine Aronow as she fell into an abyss of her own making.

Out in the faux corridor, Sera for long moments attempted to find her center, to contain her indignation at what he had done—at what he had failed to do.

At last he rejoined her, but before she could speak her piece, he ordered, “Not now, Sera.”

She obeyed, though her glare in reply spoke eloquently enough. It said, “This is not over.”

“Very well, sir.” She continued her analysis. “While you’ve shown the capacity to avoid being swallowed up by this place, we have yet to determine how you may be awakened."

Contrasting him with Katherine Aronow had earned her one of his patented glowers, but at the moment, she felt immune—at least until his next statement.

“You may withdraw from the meld if you wish, Commander. For all we know, you’re at risk, too.

“I’ll go it alone.”

He’d stunned her with that… and she realized that he had not easily left Aronow behind. Still, he had done so.

She wasn’t about to do the same.

“Since you’ve given me the option… I’ll stay.”

He seemed visibly relieved—which, in and of itself, bespoke far more of his mental state than anything that had gone before.

Mantovanni did his best to fight off the gnawing, growing anxiety. For all they knew, there wasn't a way out of this. They were outside of the normal laws of the universe. Nothing here could be trusted—not even themselves.

All he had was logic.

Logic…

He smiled.

That was it. If there was an intelligence at work here, despite the apparent chaos, there had to be an underlying purpose or method to it. It might not follow their rules, but it would have its own… and even more so if this were some sort of experiment.

"We confront this directly by going to its source." He closed his eyes and concentrated on Ariel Berne.

"Stay with me, Sera.”

She took his hand. "I'm here."

He looked out and saw the desert again.

"Interesting," Sera said.

"Whatever happens, don't let go of my hand."

Over a nearby hill, a horde of three-and-a-half meter long ants streamed towards them. "The boy must die!" they cried out in unison.

"I'd be fascinated to see what part of your psyche this comes from," Sera stated as the insects were nearly upon them.

"Guilt," he said. "The guilt of a child whose wonder about the small creatures he found unknowingly destroyed many of them one sunny afternoon while visiting the home world of his species." A thoughtful smile came to his face. "It’s curious the things which stick with us through our life."

"Kill the boy!" the lead ant cried out, and his rallying call was taken up by the others.

Mantovanni stepped forward, Sera still at his side.

"I am Captain Luciano Mantovanni of the Federation starship Liberty. I wish to speak to the intelligence which has approached our vessel."

The giant insects hesitated, uncertain.

The next moment, they were gone.

"Come and make love to me, Cicero."

Mantovanni and Sera found themselves back in the hotel room. They turned to the nude woman upon the bed. "We are explorers from a collection of worlds called the United Federation of Planets. We mean you no harm," he told Ariel. "Please, we wish to speak with you."

Ariel frowned. "That won't be nearly as much fun."

Mantovanni concentrated, and the room faded away, replaced by the grounds of Starfleet Academy.

"I assume this is your doing," Sera said.

"Not exactly, but I can't say I'm surprised." He looked about the grassy lawn. "She should be..." He pointed toward the large building ahead of them.

Ariel, now wearing a 23rd-century cadet's uniform, approached them. But behind her, the horde of murderous giant ants came from around the building.

"Now what?" Sera asked.

"When does a dream end?" he asked with a slight grin.

Sera looked at her captain. "When it ends."

"I mean when you're being chased in the dream."

She watched the large insects draw nearer. "Whatever it is you have in mind, I would suggest you do it soon."

"We're not going to do anything."

She sighed. “I was afraid of that.”

"One way or the other, this is going to end."

“I prefer a metaphorical ‘end,’ rather than a literal, if you don’t mind.”

Ariel walked ahead of the ants. "You are a killer, Luciano Mantovanni."

He gave a nod. "Yes, I am. A killer of many things both great and small."

"Some of those things would like a chance at justice."

He stood his ground. "So be it."

Sera took a single step back… but Mantovanni tightened his grasp.

"Whatever you do, don't let go," Mantovanni said as the army of insects streamed past Ariel, ever closer to their goal.

"Fortunately for us, this isn't real," Sera said.

“Well…”

Sera's eyes darted toward him. “‘Well,’ what?"

“I enjoyed a few of those moments with Ariel before… and if you can feel pleasure…”

Sera followed his conclusion.

“…then the pain is probably not a metaphor, either.”

And it wasn’t.

The ants took their vengeance.

Mantovanni’s eyes opened to a blue sky.

He glanced to his left; next to him, still holding his hand, lay Sera MacLeod.

After a few moments she stirred, and murmured, "Remind me to spend less time at literary criticism."

They both sat up to discover they’d lain on a beach looking out at an endless ocean. The lazy tide rolled in and out, providing a soothing chorus of calm.

“I note recurring themes, here: Beaches and bedrooms. Have I ever told you to expand your horizons?”

“Actually… I’ve never liked the beach.”

“Well, that limits you even more.”

Mantovanni stood, and then helped Sera to her feet.

"So far, so good," he said.

"Why did you allow yourself to be killed?"

They turned; along the shoreline, a lone female figure approached.

Liberty's captain smiled. "You're Ariel Berne, an Academy acquaintance."

With an air of sadness to her voice, she said, “Yes… an acquaintance—because you wouldn’t allow it to be anything more."

He remembered the first day he'd seen her across the lawn in front of the Sciences Building, how their eyes had met, how he’d felt a connection, a rapport… and how he'd turned resolutely away, feeling quite virtuous at having resisted temptation.

A touch defensively, he countered, “I was with Demora. It wouldn’t have been right.”

Ariel shook her head, her expression pitying. “You’d already known Demora wasn’t the one. You were with her because she was safe; she was in love with you, and you were rather fond of her. It allowed you to control things. There was no risk.”

He glanced at Sera. She shielded him from her disapproval, but he knew her too well… and she knew that sounded exactly like him.

Still, she tried to spare him any more, even as he had for Aronow.

"Who are you, really?" Sera asked.

Ariel nodded with a grin. "We are explorers, seeking out life."

"So are we."

"But you are so very strange," Ariel replied. "And confusing. You called out to us and we came to hear your song."

Mantovanni looked at Sera. "The warp field?"

Ariel nodded.

"But why bring us into this dream world?" Liberty's captain asked.

"These are your minds as we found them."

"But you could have contacted the others of my crew who were conscious instead."

"Others?" She turned away as if looking into the unseen depths of the sea around them. "There are six hundred or so organic machines within the shell, but their minds appear to be off."

"Dead?"

"No, they still function, but they are not true living beings."

Sera nodded as she realized what the being was saying. Though she saw Mantovanni nodding, too, for clarity’s sake she said, "What we think of as our unconscious minds, is the awakened state to them."

The woman stared at them. "Is this not your true selves?"

Mantovanni smiled. "Not exactly. Usually, we're like the others on our ship."

"Astounding," Ariel stated. "But you did not answer me earlier. Why did you let yourself be killed?"

"To end the dream," Mantovanni said.

"Why would you want to end it? Were you not enjoying yourself?"

"Not exactly… but I suppose that might have been my own fault," he said. "In the world we live in, space and time follow stricter rules than they do here."

"And you wish to go back to that?" Ariel asked, appearing incredulous.

"Yes, indeed we do."

She walked up to him. "Even if you were able to meet the real Ariel?"

He looked into her eyes, still drawn to them. "I have a life I want to live."

She nodded; then, her gaze grew clouded, as if she were seeing something distant and indistinct. "You ignored your heart all those years ago, Luciano Mantovanni," Ariel said. "Don't ignore it this time."

“‘This time’?"

She smiled… and, for an instant, The Fool knew precisely what he had missed with Ariel Berne.

"Captain, a member of your crew has asked to come with us when we leave."

"I don't think that would be a good idea." He paused a moment, wondering what this being was up to. "If we ever find our way home, how could they ever return?"

"You assume they would wish to."

"No," he said. "I don't think I can allow that."

Ariel considered that. "Interesting. You thwart the happiness of others, forcing them to conform to your standards of propriety."

"That's not what I'm doing," he insisted. "I can't allow a member of my crew to risk themselves like that."

"It isn't your choice."

She turned and walked into the ocean.

"No!" Mantovanni shouted. "This isn’t right!" He tried to follow, but his limbs had sunk into the sand.

"Goodbye, Luciano Mantovanni and Sera MacLeod. Our kind has been enriched by this meeting."

A wave crashed over them… and his protests were drowned in the roaring waters.

"Welcome back," Erika Benteen said, looking down at him.

For a moment, he struggled to focus... and, with his internal editor still disabled, groggily said the first thing that occurred.

“Well, while I wouldn’t have minded a look at your breasts, Erika, it’s just as well you’re clothed.”

“W–What?” She gaped at him. Her captain had never before been sexually untoward.

“Excuse me, Commander. I’m a little disoriented.”

Still too stunned to be truly offended, or even complimented, Benteen simply nodded her forgiveness.

“The other twelve… are they okay?"

She hesitated a moment. "Eleven of them are fine; they woke up several minutes before you did. But we had one casualty.”

As one, he and Sera said, “Katherine Aronow."

Benteen’s eyes narrowed. “Now you’re both scaring me.”

As she withdrew to speak with Nurse Carson, Mantovanni turned to address the accusatory tone that had again crept into Sera’s voice.

“She was your responsibility.”

He nodded.

“But I was her commanding officer, Sera—not her father… and certainly not her lover.”

“She wasn’t in her…!” Embarrassed at the outburst, she lowered her voice. “She wasn’t in her right mind.”

“You know better than that, Commander. I may not like some of the things I learned today… but all of it’s true. It follows that it was thus for Katherine, too… and she couldn’t deal with reality.”

“She wasn’t separated from her ‘reality’ by two decades, Cicero.”

He considered her point.

“There is that… but, ‘You know the truth... and the truth shall set you free.'"

Appalled at his seeming pithiness, Sera hissed, "Don't give me Scriptural platitudes, Cicero. Death is not freedom."

Mantovanni smiled grimly, and glanced back at the still form of Katherine Aronow.

In that moment before Carson pulled the sheet over her head, she seemed to be smiling.

"That, Commander, depends on your life."