Disclaimer: Some of the characters are mine, some are Paramount's.
I'm doing this for fun not money.
Hope you enjoy:
INTO THE NEXUS
Prolog
As the shockwave from the Veridian III's destroyed sun approached,
Enterprise Counselor, Deanna Troi stared in horror. She knew they
were all going to die. She was clinging to the Enterprise's Head of
Security, Lt. Commander Worf. Their feelings for each other had been
obvious to everyone for several months. She glanced over at First
Officer, Commander William Riker who was holding the unconscious form
of Lt. Rebecca Smith, who he had been dating for several months. He
was looking the other direction, past Deanna and Worf. Deanna turned
her head to see what he was looking at and saw another wave
approaching. This one actually looked closer than the shockwave.
Lt. Commander Data looked in the direction Riker and Troi were
looking. He knew instantly what the second wave was. "It is the
Nexus." He announced. "It appears that it will reach us before the
shockwave reaches us."
Deanna caught Will's eye and smiled. They weren't sure what would
happen when the Nexus wave hit so they said their good byes
silently. Will kissed the top of Lt. Smith's head and muttered
something to her unconscious form. It looked to Deanna like he
said, "I love you". She turned and buried her head in Worf's
shoulder. She realized she had never stopped loving Will; and now,
at the end, he had fallen in love with someone else.
Moments later the Nexus wave hit the survivors of the Enterprise D's
crash landing.
Part 1 – Deanna's Nexus
Deanna opened her eyes. She was sitting on a porch in the woods.
There were birds chirping, and she saw what looked like a Bald
Eagle. Where was she? She felt a kick in her stomach and looked
down and saw she was pregnant. If looks were anything, she was quite
far along. She rubbed her stomach with her left hand and saw what
looked like an old-fashioned, earth-style diamond engagement ring
along with a traditional gold wedding band. Could she be in the
Nexus? She had heard that in the Nexus, things were what the
individual wanted them to be. She was obviously married and
pregnant. She was living, or at least vacationing, at a cabin in an
area where there were Bald Eagles.
"Mommy!" a little boy yelled as she ran out of the house. He was
about three years old with dark curly hair and blue eyes. He climbed
up on the porch swing next to Deanna and wrapped his arms around
her. "Aunt Kessa is trying to get me to take a bath and I don't want
to."
"Kyle you get back in here and take your bath and don't wake your
mother. She needs her rest!" A dark-haired woman said as she came
out of the house. She smiled when she saw Deanna. "Which one woke
you up?"
"Neither." Kestra. Her sister was alive. When Kestra saw the
confusion in Deanna's eyes, she became concerned and sat down next to
her.
"What is it?"
Deanna shook off the momentary disorientation. "Nothing. I must
have dozed off and had a dream." Deanna realized she was in the
Nexus that Captain Picard had spoken about. This must be what she
wanted the most. Looking at her son, she realized she was married to
Will. Kyle looked very much like him. Her sister was still alive.
She realized in her head her father was also. Deanna suddenly
smiled. Kestra knew that Will was near. She never ceased to be
amazed by the bond that developed between Will and Deanna. Despite
the fact that Deanna was ½ Betazoid and Will was human, it was as
strong as her bond with her husband, Mark.
At that moment Will round the corner followed by 6-year old Andrew,
Ian Andrew Troi, Mark Xerx, Kestra's husband, and their son Mark,
Jr. They were each carrying a salmon. Kyle climbed down and went to
examine the fish.
"So, ladies, who wants to do the honor of cleaning the fish?" Will
asked. He knew what the answer would be, especially since he
promised to grill the salmon for dinner.
"You." Deanna and Kestra answered together.
"Can I help?"
"Sure, just be careful and listen to the adults." Deanna said.
Will handed Kyle his fish and then sat down next to Deanna. He
pulled her into his arms. Kestra just shook her head. She knew what
he was up to.
Deanna snuggled as close as she could. "You know seven months ago,
you wouldn't have gotten away with this."
"I know. So, beautiful, how are you feeling? Anything yet?"
"No," She shook her head. "I can't believe you can call
me `beautiful' when I look like a beached Orca."
"Because you are beautiful." He kissed her and stood up. "I'm
going
to clean the fish and then take a shower before I start grilling."
"OK. Some get me when you're ready to go inside."
"Sure." He leaned over and kissed her again before going around back.
Kestra smiled. "I can't believe your libido right now. I was never
anxious to make love with Mark when I was this close to giving birth
to Mark or Lwaxana."
Deanna smiled. Deanna had a feeling she was going to go into labor
soon and knew it might be their last chance for several weeks.
Will came around the corner.
"Mark, Ian, and the boys are going to clean the fish. He said as he
helped Deanna to her feet and then scooped her up in his arms, barely
noticing that Deanna was 11.5 kg heavier than before she became
pregnant. He turned to carry Deanna in the house.
"Have fun!" Kestra called.
Will barely had the bedroom door closed when Deanna kissed him. He
carried her over to the bed and sat down still holding her and
kissing her. She began to remove his shirt.
"Wouldn't you rather wait until I take a shower?" He asked although
he knew what her answer would be.
"No, because I'm coming with you."
An hour later, while Will was dressing, Deanna was attempting to
brush her hair with minimal success. She was ready to give up and
let it dry as it was when Will took the brush from her.
"Here, let me." He said and started to gently comb through her hair
detangling as he brushed each section.
"I'm glad you have the patience to do that especially since you
caused the tangles."
"Me? I'm not the one with the increased libido."
"Like you mind?" Deanna said with a laugh. She enjoyed the
attention that Will was lavishing on her. When she remembered where
she was, she smiled sadly. She knew that in the reality she had
left, Will was in love with someone else.
Will noticed her sad smile. "What is it?"
"Nothing, I was just thinking about how if this baby is a girl, you
may lavish all your attention on her instead of me." She hoped she
sounded convincing.
"Don't worry you'll get your share of attention too." He
smiled. "Especially when we're alone." He leaned over and kissed
her on the cheek.
"I hope so." Deanna said with a smile. "I wish we had more time."
"Oh? Well, we'll have time tonight. Remember Kestra's taking the
boys so we won't have to worry about them when you go into labor.
So, unless you go into labor before they leave, we'll have time
later."
Deanna smiled again. "I'm looking forward to it." She rubbed her
stomach where the baby was fidgeting a bit. "You hear that Little
One. You can start listening to your father before you're born.
Don't plan on coming too soon. "
Will put the brush down. "All done."
"Thanks." Deanna started to stand up. Will took her hands, helped
her up, and then pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
"That should hold you over until later."
"I hope so."
"C'mon let's get dinner started."
They went downstairs. While Will was making dinner, Deanna sat and
watched him attempting to teach the boys how to grill salmon. She
smiled. She had always had a feeling Will would be a wonderful
father. She was again struck with the realization that this was her
Nexus. In Will's, he was most likely with Becky Smith doing exactly
what he always wanted. She turned her attention inward to her unborn
baby. She realized that this little angel was ready to come into the
world very soon – maybe sooner than she realized.
Deanna was suddenly overwhelmed with a feeling of disorientation.
The Enterprise D was crashing again.
Part 2 – Will's Nexus
Will woke with a start. He sat up in bed as his companion rolled
over. Deanna. He must have looked confused.
"You OK?" Deanna asked.
"Yeah, just a bad dream." He noticed she was pregnant possibly
fairly close to giving birth. "You go back to sleep. You need your
rest. I'll be right back." He got up and walked out into the living
room. He realized he was captain of the Enterprise, married, with a
child on the way. He also realized he was in the Nexus. He smiled
because he loved Deanna but had always assumed she was in love with
Worf. In Deanna's Nexus she was probably with Worf. While he was
standing at the window, Deanna came up beside him and put an arm
around his waist.
"Are you sure you're OK?"
"Yes. My dream was pretty unsettling. I'll be fine." He turned and
wrapped his arms around her. "You, my dear, go back to bed. This
little one is due soon and you need your rest now."
"Beverly said it would be at least 2 weeks possibly more."
"But you're full term for a human baby and since you half human and
the baby three-quarters human, it could be any day now."
Deanna laughed. "Why don't we both admit that we won't know until I
actually go into labor."
Will smiled and kissed her. "No matter what, you look gorgeous."
"You say that all the time." She kissed him back. "Flattery will
get you anywhere."
He picked her up effortlessly, carried her into the bedroom, laid her
gently on the bed and lay down next to her. Deanna curled up next to
Will as best she could. Soon both fell asleep.
"Data to Captain Riker."
"Yes, Data." Will answered groggily. He hoped this was important.
"You have an incoming personal communiqué."
"Put it through." He got up out of bed. Deanna rolled over.
"I'll bet it's your mother since mine called yesterday." She said
groggily.
"You're probably right." He leaned over and kissed her before going
into the living room. He sat down and tapped the comm. Button. It
was his mother. He should have known his mother would still be alive
in the Nexus.
"Good morning, Mom." He smiled. "Nothing yet." Will was
thrilled
to see his mother again. She looked just as he always imagined she
would look.
"Do you have any idea how much longer it will be?"
"Beverly said yesterday that Deanna is full-term for a human. It's
difficult because Deanna is half-Betazoid and the baby is three-
quarters human. She's done some investigating and there is no clear
trend. Since the baby isn't in position yet, she's leaning toward a
week of two."
"Is the nursery ready?"
"Yes."
Deanna wrapped her arms around Will's neck and leaned over."
"Good morning."
"Good morning you to." Mrs. Riker said. "How are you feeling?"
"Great."
"Getting anxious yet?"
"Not really anxious, but I can't wait to hold this baby." She moved
around and sat on Will's lap. He wrapped his arms around her and
kissed her on the cheek.
Mrs. Riker smiled mischievously. "So, after the baby's born you, two
won't have as much time alone."
"There's always the holosuite." Will said.
"Beverly volunteered to baby sit." Deanna added.
"OK, well I'll let you two go. You need to get ready for the day.
Keep me informed."
"We will, talk to you soon." Will said
"OK." The screen went blank.
Deanna turned and kissed Will. After they parted, Will helped Deanna
to her feet and then got up.
"C'mon, we have time for our showers. How `bout if I take mine first
and then make breakfast while you shower." He said.
"I've got a better idea." Deanna said as she took Will's hands and
started toward the bedroom. "Why don't we shower together and then
make breakfast together." She stopped, let go of his hands, and
started to remove his robe.
Will smiled, pulled her close, and kissed her. He couldn't believe
her libido right now, but he wasn't complaining.
They eventually made it to the bathroom and into the shower. As Will
pulled Deanna close for a kiss, he felt an overwhelming sense of
disorientation. The Enterprise D was crashing again.
Part 3 – Reality
The U.S.S. Farragut was in route to Earth after picking up the
survivors of the Enterprise D crash on Veridian 3, Enterprise 1st
Officer, William Riker was returning to his quarters. He had given
his statement to Starfleet Command regarding the destruction of the
Enterprise. After he finished, he stopped by Sickbay to check on
Rebecca Smith. Dr. Crusher said she was doing well and would be
released when she woke up.
He had just changed into sweats and laid down on the sofa to listen
to some music when the doorbell sounded.
<<Figures, just as I lay down.>> He sat up. "Come in."
The door opened. It was Deanna. She looked like she had been
crying. In fact, she looked like she was on the verge of tears again.
"What is it?" He was concerned for her.
"I just need a friend to talk to. Beverly is still busy in Sickbay.
I hope you don't mind being second choice."
Will smiled a little. "It's OK. I don't mind being your second
choice." He patted the sofa. "Have a seat."
She was reluctant to sit on the sofa but knew if she started to cry
again, she would have a strong shoulder to cry on. She sat down on
the sofa fairly close to Will. He didn't make a move to hold her.
"What happened?" He had a feeling that something happened with
Worf. Why would Deanna have gone to Beverly first and then him when
she wasn't available.
"Worf broke off our relationship." She said calmly. Will didn't say
anything. He waited until Deanna was ready to talk. "In his Nexus,
he was with K'ehylar and Alexander. They were living on Earth
serving in the Klingon consulate."
"Where were you in your Nexus?" Before she could answer, the
doorbell chimed again. "Come in." The door opened. It was Becky
Smith. Deanna started to get up.
"No, it's OK, Counselor. You needn't leave. Will may need you after
I leave." She took a breath and looked at Will. He had a feeling
what was coming next. "We can't see each other anymore."
"Why?" Will asked. He had a feeling it had something to do with the
Nexus.
"We weren't together in my Nexus. Were we in yours?" He shook his
head. She smiled. "Were you with Counselor Troi?" He nodded slowly
but didn't smile. She looked at Deanna. "Were you with Commander
Worf?" Deanna shook her head. She knew where this was
leading. "Were you two together?" When Deanna nodded, she could
feel Becky's overwhelming pain and grief, but also sensed that she
really didn't want to do this.
Becky started to the door. Will got up and grabbed her arm just
before the door opened. "Please don't go. Just because we weren't
together in each other's Nexus, doesn't mean anything. That wasn't
reality. This is!"
Deanna could sense Will's hurt. It had been obvious to her that Will
and Becky loved each other and still did. Deanna couldn't figure out
why Becky was doing this when it was obvious she didn't want to.
"I know that you two are Imzadi. I have a friend who explained the
concept to me. Yes, we could be extremely happy together but you
would always have that special relationship with Counselor Troi. You
two are meant to be together." She pulled away and kissed Will. She
turned as the door opened. "Be happy together." She was gone.
Will sat down on the sofa and put his head in his hands. Deanna
moved closer and put an arm around his shoulders. She could feel his
pain and grief so strongly that tears were beginning to form in her
eyes. He looked over at her. She could see that he was holding back
tears.
"I'm sorry for this. You've got to be hurting too."
"It's my job to comfort those who are grieving."
"We're friends. We're supposed to help each other."
"I know, but right now I'm worried about you. As Ship's Counselor,
I'm ordering you to tell me what you're feeling."
"OK. On one condition…" She looked at him questioningly. "That
you
tell me what you're feeling and since I'm your CO, you can consider
that an order."
"OK"
"Becky and I got engaged a few days ago. We decided to wait to tell
anyone on the ship so as not to take away from Worf's promotion." He
put his head in his hands again. "Dee, I love her so much."
"I know. When you two first started dating, I thought you were
attempting to make me jealous; but soon I could sense the love you
two felt for each other."
"I know it didn't always look that way, but I was happy for you and
Worf."
"I know." She rubbed his back. "Tell me what you're feeling right
now."
"Hurt, grief. I feel like someone has torn my heart from my chest,
ripped it up, and put it back. I feel like I can never fall in love
again. I think I know how my father felt when my mother died."
"It will heal in time. You'll fall in love again. One of these
days, that special someone won't hurt you." She secretly hoped she
would be the one. She knew she could never hurt Will.
He turned to her. "OK, your turn."
"I'm not sure my grief is as strong as yours is." She could sense
his curiosity. "I loved Worf but when he proposed to me the night
before his promotion, I turned him down. I told him I wasn't ready
to settle down with him yet. I was hurt, but not overly surprised
when he ended our relationship."
"You looked like you had been crying when you came in."
"I had been. I was hurt, just not surprised." Her voice started to
crack.
Will pulled her into his arms. They sat like that for a long time
each allowing themselves to feel the grief they shared.
Will pulled away first. "Feeling better?"
Deanna smiled. `Yes. How about you?"
"Yes." He got up. "How about an ice cream sundae for you and
Alaskan crab legs for me. I think we both need our favorite comfort
foods right now."
"Sounds good to me."
While they were eating both remained quiet. They both realized how
lucky they were to have each other.
"You know something?" Will asked as he reached across the table and
took her hand. "Someday, we may feel ready to take our relationship
to the next level."
"Just not right now." She squeezed his hand. "We both need to
recover from our hurt right now."
"Not to mention make sure our careers aren't over because of this."
"Right."
Epilogue - 8 Years Later – Opal Sea – Betazed
Will and Deanna had finally had their ceremony on Betazed. They were
disappointed that of their Enterprise family only Beverly had been
able to attend. Finally, Will and Deanna were alone on their
Catamaran on the Opal Sea. Will was sitting on the edge with his
feet dangling over the edge. Deanna came over with two Arcturian
Fizzes and sat down next to him. He was amazed how quickly Deanna
had recovered from the mental rape by Shinzon. She told him it was
his love and support that helped. So far, their honeymoon was quite
romantic. Will put his arm around her and she laid her head on his
shoulder.
"You know, you never told me what our lives were like in your
Nexus." Will said.
Deanna smiled. "You never told me either. All we know is that we
were together."
"You go first."
"I'm not sure if we were living or vacationing in Alaska. We were
married. My father and sister were still alive. We had two sons, 6
and 3. I was pregnant with our third child. I was due very soon but
don't know if it was a boy or a girl." Deanna said. "Your turn."
She really hoped his Nexus was very similar.
Will smiled. He realized there were some similarities in their
respective Nexus'. "I was in command of the Enterprise. We were
married. My mother was still alive. You were pregnant with our
first child. You looked gorgeous and as for your libido…"
Deanna looked up at him. "Now that you mention it, I had a pretty
strong libido in my Nexus too. So there were four similarities – my
libido, your enjoying it, we were married, and I was pregnant." She
put her drink down and took Will's from his hand. She got to her
knees and kissed Will on the cheek. He smiled and pushed himself
back from the edge before pulling Deanna on to his lap for a kiss.
After they parted, Deanna snuggled in closer. "So, how many kids do
you want?" Will asked.
"Why don't we let nature take its course." Deanna said before
kissing him again.
"Don't you think we ought to go to our cabin?"
"Why? We're alone." She pushed him down and kissed him with even
more passion than before.
Later, as Will lay holding Deanna, he couldn't help but thinking how
good his life was. He was soon to take his first command and married
to the first woman he truly loved. If it was their destiny, they
would have children. Deanna smiled as she "heard" Will's thoughts.
She was also happy and married to her first true love. She was
looking forward to being a Captain's wife, ship's counselor to a
whole new crew, and possibly a mother. Deanna looked up at Will who
had just dozed off with a smile on his face. She smiled and said "I
love you, Imzadi" both aloud and telepathically. She realized that,
at least for now, life was perfect.
End