In An Ordinary World

[T'Prise 0]

Standing to one side to allow the medical personnel to perform their duties, T’Prise watched as Drs. Chalice and t’Tamarak attended to Lieutenant Commander Escher, her demeanor even more clinically detached than theirs. She could only conclude that Escher’s current condition was the direct result of his attempts to cope with the stresses placed upon him in the last few days; his propensity for imbibing as a coping mechanism was somewhat excusable, given the circumstances. His fortitude in allowing her to initiate the meld and willingness to participate could only be commended, but for a species as emotional as humans, a mind meld could be very disconcerting (hence her decision to stay with him and ensure he did not suffer any serious side effects). The mind meld in and of itself was still extremely puzzling to T’Prise. She was still uncertain as to how her subconscious had determined that the meld would aid in returning her to a lucid state, and how it had chosen Escher to guide her through the memories. Like Lamoreaux, Escher had somehow changed from colleague to friend without T’Prise being fully conscious of it — that was the only logical explanation for what occurred.

 

Despite its being a fairly well known Vulcan telepathic ability, few species realized or recognized the significance of a meld. It was a highly personal event, exposing each participant to the other’s innermost thoughts and leaving each with an understanding and awareness of the other. While it helped to give participants a new perspective and establish a rapport between melders, it was very rarely done between individuals who were not related in some way, or with individuals of another species.

 

To expose oneself and be exposed in such a manner was not considered an inconsequential event by a culture that valued logic and control above all else. A meld was a type of physiological merging for Vulcans. Humans who experienced a meld, however, sometimes attached an emotional connection to it, which was irrational, as Vulcans had no emotions to engage. Perhaps this explained the subtle differences in Escher’ss attitude and manner towards her of late. Obviously it was a manifestation of the human attraction towards that which they perceived of as different, a side effect experienced as a result of the meld. Otherwise, he would never mistakenly believe he had any emotional ties to someone who, in his opinion, was the equivalent of a sophisticated computer and was unable to accommodate his emotional needs. Logic dictated this to be the only rational explanation for his behavior. Notwithstanding his inaccurate assessment of his own feelings, Escher was her friend and she would protect him, in any way she could. She would not fail him the way she had failed Lamoreaux.

 

Her friendship with Lamoreaux had been a contributing factor in the engineer’s death; he had protected her without thought for himself, a truly illogical response spurred by emotion. She would not allow the same thing to happen with Escher. While it was not logical to conclude that her friendship with Escher would ultimately result in his death, it was now very apparent that what happened aboard the Wanderlust was not an accident. She needed to assume responsibility for what happened and ensure that the truth of the matter was brought to light. However, discovering the truth would introduce new variables T’Prise had yet to consider. To that end, she needed to start protecting Escher, even if it meant allowing Dr. t’Tamarak to have her way. Stepping forward, she moved to the biobed where her friend was now resting.

 

“I believe that the Commander would benefit from a neurological scan, to ascertain if he is suffering any side effects from a mind meld.”