Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif
Image of spla3a3a.gif Image of shuttlecrash.jpg Image of emergencylogo2006red.jpg Image of voyagerinwave.gif
                   Fire In The Sky
Image of rjhelmetlookingupmountain.jpg
Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif

      Page Six

Image of rampartemergencysign.jpg Image of rampartentrancemodernday.jpg Image of crewdownstreetcrop.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"Why there?" Janeway asked her second officer.

"Those owners will have been admitted for their ailments and will not
miss their vehicle." Tuvok explained.

Reg stuttered. "But that's theft."

"We'll return it." Chakotay grinned.

They left Rampart eagerly, choosing a beat up old van that didn't
even have fresh dew on it, a recent emergency admit. It still had
bloody towels in the passenger's seat that its owner had used
to stem a bad injury of some kind while he/she drove for help.

::And microsurgery.:: Janeway grinned, kicking them off the seat and
onto the floor. ::That should be an especially long hospital visit.::
she grinned. ::Works for me.::

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Captain Janeway had been right that Tom's absence had been noticed.

Johnny Gage was leaning on the flag pole of the station when Tom Paris's
taxi cab pulled up. "So there you are. You almost missed breakfast."

Tom waved the paper enthusiastically into the air as his excuse.

Gage grinned at him. "You didn't have to call a cab. The nearest
gas station is only a block and a half down." he said, brushing a bit
of cut grass off of his duty uniform shoes.

Tom tipped the cab driver and waved him off. "I....didn't want to walk.
I'm still sore from yesterday's hike and the day before yesterday's
crash."

Johnny frowned with concern. "Want me and Roy to take a look at
you? It'd be no big deal for us to take you into Rampart for a quick checkup
using the squad if there's something that's still bugging you."

"I'm sure I'm fine. Nothing that a long hot shower won't fix." Paris said.

"Suit yourself. And you don't have to use the weak one in the camper.
Cap caved in finally when he lost an arm wrestle with Stoker."

"I don't get it." Tom said, shaking his head.

"We won the right to invite you in to have some food and real
hospitality."

"Would you thank Mr. Stoker for me?" Tom asked.

"You can thank him yourself, come on." Johnny said, making
his way to Cap's office entrance to let them both in. "But first
I've gotta introduce you to Boot."

"Who's Boot?" Tom asked, pretending innocence.

"Our station dog. He can be a bit of a pest but he's all loyal once
he gets to know ya." Gage explained.

::Well I don't know about that.:: Tom chuckled mentally,
remembering how fast Boot had fathomed and scrapped his
paper ploy a few hours earlier. "I'm good with dogs. Usually."
he joked.

"Aw, Boot's harmless. In fact, he's the best rescue dog Station 51
has ever had. The only hard thing is that he never sticks around
long enough afterwards for anyone to really reward him for his
efforts. Believe me, he's a stray with wanderlust."

"I can totally sympathize." Paris said, empathetically.

Image of gageflagfront.jpg Image of stationhalflight.jpg Image of tomcloseoutdoors.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
**************************************************
Subject: Inside Man-- Part One
From:  patti k (pattik1@hotmail.com)
Sent: Mon 5/03/10 1:36 PM

Janeway, Tuvok, Chakotay, and the holographic Reg Barclay
packed into the van which turned out to be a hippy's hideaway;
a custom, complete with hemp curtains, poms poms, and neon
colored flower stickers stuck all over the ceiling. Carefully,
Tuvok drove towards their destination in Bellflower, ignoring
the silver peace symbol chain and charm dangling musically
from the rear view mirror.

The holo Reg, feeling nervous about holding his own very delicately
made portable satellite booster, rode in his seat with his eyes tightly
shut. "Are we there yet?" he asked, grimacing with discomfort.

Janeway turned back from the front passenger seat. She had hung
a jacket covered arm discreetly out the window while she tricorder
scanned the landscape they were passing, searching for temporal
anomalies. "I'm afraid this is a 1970's combustible motor drive, Mr.
Barclay, not a shuttle. It's bound to be a little bumpy." she grinned.
"Besides which, why are you acting queasy? You're a hologram."

"Captain, I'm not car sick. I- I'm... anxious about losing me." he said,
holding up the device that was projecting him between two tightly
clenched sets of fingers. "...er... I mean, this projection of me and the
connection we have with you inside of the time echo. It took most of
a day to establish our link to Tom Paris the first time. We had to hack
the hospital's security camera network for that. And they're very, very
fragile things." he fidgetted nervously.

Tuvok lifted an eyebrow. "Mr. Barclay, I assure you my repairs are of
more solid construction than twentieth century Earth's."

"Well, I...didn't mean t--" Reg stuttered, immediately embarrassed.

"You doubt a Vulcan?" Chakotay mocked Barclay, teasing.

Barclay winced, but then remembered that Tuvok's feelings
couldn't easily be hurt. He came up with another explanation for
his high flying worries. "I'm just trying to say that the admiral's
still very keen on being kept up to date with this entire...."

"...extremely dicey.." Chakotay chimed in.

Barclay nodded eagerly in agreement. "....situation...." he said.

Janeway and the others heard muffled yelling as the indistinct voice of
the admiral came over Reg Barclay's audio pickups as he shared  
unhappy thoughts and other rapid fire orders with the scientists at
Project Pathfinder.

Reg shrank at an unseen tirade. "...as soon as it happens." he clarified.

"I'm flattered." Janeway said dryly, not amused. "But making sure you
stay online isn't one of my priorities. And Komachy knows that." she said,
pegging Reg with a firm stare as she raised her voice so that she
had been heard by her real unseen target, the man in charge with the
cluster pins. Then she turned her eyes back onto the road ahead of
them. Another bump in the pavement made her jump and grab the
dashboard in front of her with her free hand. "I am reading something
odd in the direction we're heading. A... void of sorts, something the
tricorder can't quite make sense of." she reported, double checking
her safety belt unnecessarily.
Image of barclayfreaked.jpg

Image of tuvoktruck.jpg Image of tuvoktominvan.jpg Image of crewmeetvince.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"How big?" Chakotay asked, eating heartily of the dried rations they had
supplied to him, in between slugs of bottled water. The bad axles of the
van didn't seem to phase him in the slightest.

"About building sized." Janeway said, studying her tricorder. "Sixteen
kilometers ahead of us. To the north and west."

"That is our current trajectory. Any visual spectrums?" Tuvok asked,
spinning the fake fur steering wheel of the van nimbly as he drove
and turned where he needed them to go.

"Hmmm.." Janeway considered as she played with buttons and
different scans. "Just a minute. I'll see if I can glean out anything
more." she told him.

Soon, they were on a freeway, filled with other cars and trucks that
were moving along at top speed. Janeway relaxed as the van started
moving at atmospheric shuttle velocity. ::Well, well, well. At least
there are no traffic jams today.:: she thought happily, watching the
vehicles flow around them as they freely broke California speeding laws.

Reg thrust an unreal but much more updated Earth holotricorder of his
own swiftly around Janeway's seat and shoulder a second later, aiming
it at the windshield. "No. It's totally masked." he stated. "But it has
a physical surface boundary."

Kathryn made an amused face over Reg's eager to help antics. "Thanks
for the report, Lieutenant. Keep us posted." she said, putting away her older
ship's tricorder. "Well, at least we know something tangible's out there.
Maybe we'll be able to breach it."

---------------------------------------------------------------

At Station 51, Tom Paris leaned back in his wooden chair and stretched.
"Wow, do you know how long it's been since I've stuffed myself on
homemade pancakes?"

Stoker smirked. "No. How long?"

"Almost seven years." Tom told him soberly. He was still relishing licking
off the syrup from his fingers.

"Oooo." Cap sympathy winced. "Active duty takes a lion's share of sacrifices,
that's for sure."

"Us more than most." Paris said, quietly, morose. But then he shook himself.
"Uh, Captain." he addressed Hank. "What should I do if you guys get called
out to handle an emergency? Should I stay? Or go?"

Hank thought about it. "Got that covered. I cleared you with Headquarters to
be an unofficial official observer. Used your military history for the paperwork
that Gage provided."

Tom glanced back at Johnny, who waved a guilty hand. "I.....figured you wouldn't
mind. It'll be hours yet before Chakotay's awake enough for a visit from ya." he
explained lamely.

Paris grinned. "I appreciate it. I love fire supression unit-- I mean... fire stations.
Where do I ride?" he guessed, eyeing up the gas combustible vehicles just
in view, from the kitchen, where they parked in the apparatus bay.

Roy replied. "In the squad with us. We'll grab ya a helmet to wear and an
Observer's name tag that'll keep the police off you at all our scenes. We just
ask that you keep back, keep safe and don't interfere."
Image of cappickupphonekitchen.jpg

Image of johnnycook.jpg Image of tomjacketleft.jpg Image of royclosekitchendrugbox.jpg Image of marcochetlookupcoffeewaitaminute1.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"Oh, believe me.  Non-interference is tops on the lists of both my boss and me."
Tom gushed, holding up reassuring hands.

DeSoto smiled. "Want to call Rampart and see how Chakotay's doing?"

"You bet."

"Use my office, Tom." Hank suggested. "Requires no dime."

"Thank you, sir." Paris saluted. He left for the bay.

The gang chuckled.

"Man, he's a weird one." Kelly remarked.

"What makes you say that?" Marco asked.

"He talks funny, acts funny, and eats like there's no tomorrow." Chet
checked off on his fingers.

"What do you expect? He's from the military." Cap shrugged.

"Yeah, active duty." Gage agreed. "Sometimes I think they brainwash
soldiers into acting like that when they're back visiting civilians."

"Gage, you've never served like the rest of us. You were too young.
How would you know?"  Chet wondered.

Johnny knew he was on the spot. "Well, I... it makes sense. Can't let
that combat edge dull down, it'd be bad for business." he smiled crookedly,
self conscious.

"You're right." Cap defended. "We were taught to stay guarded. Took me
years to settle down after I finished my tour."

"There, see?" Gage said, looking at Chet.

"I'm not arguing with ya today. I'm too full." Kelly said and he got up to go
do the dishes.

Boot woofed.

"Who says I'm arguing?!" Gage insisted, getting up in arms. "You're the one
who started finger pointing."

The rest of the gang just sighed and let Johnny rant.

Roy DeSoto smiled, until he felt a twinge in his chest. "Ouch." he said.

Gage immediately broke off. "What? What's wrong?"

"Oh, it's one of those." replied Roy, taking in a deep testing breath. "I just felt
a twinge. It's nothing."

"What do you mean nothing. Two weeks ago, you almost died on a wire,
Roy. If it wasn't for Karen Overstreet, you'd be pushing up daisies right
now." Johnny said with exasperation, focusing on Roy's face intently.

"Don't remind me." DeSoto said seriously. "I hate thinking about it."

Gage ignored him. "So are you having cardiac symptoms or aren't you?"
he said, grabbing Roy's wrist for a pulse check.

Roy just sighed and let him check. "Dr. Brackett said I'd feel spasms every
now and then while my heart finishes healing. It did receive a hefty
shock at that house fire."

"Twice." Chet chimed in.

DeSoto chuckled. "Yeah, first from that electrical wire and then from
the Datascope paddles after I rolled off the roof."
Image of gagevictim.jpg

Image of johnnycoffeesipkitchen.jpg Image of roycprkarenoverstreetfinal.jpg Image of roychairscloseup.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
Johnny let go of Roy's wrist.

"So how am I?" DeSoto asked in amusement.

"It's normal." Gage groused.

"You're still sore somebody else got to me first that day, aren't you?"
Roy asked, teasing.

"No, I... I had my hands full with that victim. I couldn't just leave her. I knew
Karen and Marco had ya under control with that CPR."

"But it still rankles." Roy said, narrowing his eyes with a grin.

"Well, yeah, you're my partner. Ain't ya? And- and- and what firefighter wouldn't
feel overly protective in a situation like that." Gage said. "You were dying right
in front of my eyes."

Cap smirked and just winked at Kelly as the argument played out.

Roy missed the exchange completely. He just looked at Gage calmly.
"Johnny, thanks for worrying. But I'm A okay. You can check my pulse all you like."
Roy said, refolding his newspaper neatly. "These are just angina bouts. Temporary.
And not dangerous at all or I'd never have been returned back to active duty."

Gage eyed him up critically. "Okay. But tell me when each one comes. I
wanna know if you're having arrythmias or BP changes during them."

"Deal. I promise I'll cooperate with followup on-the-scene vitals checks."

Johnny still wasn't comforted.

Roy threw up his hands. "Oh, for Pete's sake. If you're so concerned, how
about you driving the squad for the rest of the month?" he said, holding up the
squad's keys. "That's how long Brackett said these things would come and go."

Gage immediately broke out of his fake frown. "Deal." he said, snatching them
up. "Remember you offered!" He kissed the keys in celebration.

Chet crowed. "Oh, that was beautiful, Johnny boy. A real gem! Glad we
collaborated on that. I win the bet."

"Worth every dollar." Gage said, pocketting the keys.

It was Roy's turn to frown. "You guys set me up?"

"Yep." they both said.

The rest of the gang laughed, including Boot.

Roy decided in the end, to just laugh along.

***************************************************
Subject: Inside Man-- Part Two
From:  patti k (pattik1@hotmail.com)
Sent: Tue 5/04/10 11:09 AM

##EEEeeOHHhhOOOooooo.## came Station 51's call tones. The gang
immediately bolted from their breakfast seats for the trucks.

They hurried even faster when the tones continued, into a second
and then third alarm, calling out three other stations.

##EEE OOO*spap* EEE OH*spap*, EE UH*spap*##

Tom Paris, who hadn't even touched the phone, pretended that
he was, by picking it up and holding it to his ear as he heard
the gang rush by. Johnny came to get him from Cap's office.

"Come on, come on! Let's go. That's us. And it's a big one."
Gage said, getting excited.

"How can you tell?" Paris asked, following Johnny back to
the squad at a run.

"The number of tones. These are long, so somebody already
knows what we're heading into." Johnny shouted over the din.

Finally, the tones died away and Sam Lanier the dispatcher,
came over the intercom. ##Station 51, Truck 127, Battalion 9,
Stations 24, 99. Structure fire at the museum.  9834 Flora Vista St.
9834 Flora Vista St. Cross street, Bellflower Blvd. Timeout: 7:47.##

Hank shouted out in a wail. "Oh, no."

Image of stokerenginedriveoutbay.jpg Image of e-speakerclear.jpg Image of tomparissquad.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"What?" Chet shouted back. "Did we forget something?" he
asked, thinking of hanging hose or refilling air bottles.

"No. We're fine with our equipment. Don't you guys know where
that is?! That address we got is the Los Angeles County Fire
Museum." Cap quailed, quickly throwing on his turnout jacket
and helmet.

"OOoo, all those old fire trucks?" Roy sympathized.

Gage had a sad face. "Afraid so." he said, buckling in.

"There goes our history, up in smoke." Chet bemoaned.

Marco was more optimistic. "Not if we're fast about it."

Stoker just took action. "Hang on everybody. I'm putting
the pedal to the metal."

"Do it." Cap ordered, swiftly. He already had his walkie talkie
glued to his ear, connected with the chief, who was also
speeding to the scene. "That building's in a risky spot."

Inside the squad, Tom shrank under his fire helmet. ::Not good.
Oh, not good. I wonder what's happening. My crewmates are there!.::
the Voyager pilot worried. He didn't even feel Johnny clipping the
observer's I.D. to his shirt pocket.

Tom Paris didn't have long to wait. Soon, Station 51 was across
town and flying down San Gabriel Freeway 605, heading
quickly towards the row of palm trees which delineated Flora Vista
St. from the rest of the warehouse district surrounding it.

They were the closest assigned; easily on the way to being the first
station to get there.

Cap got on his HT. "Anybody seeing any smoke?"

##Squad 51, negative.## replied Gage from Squad 51.

Firefighters from the other companies on the way in didn't see
anything yet either, reporting in the negative over the airwaves, in
reply, from their different, still travelling vantage points.

Stoker flipped up his driver's visor. "Just the smog line, Cap." he
said, tipping his helmet rim up as he rushed Engine 51 off of the
freeway ramp.

"Okay, when we get there, we'll scout around in the trucks first.
Nobody gets off until I say!" Hank ordered firmly.

##Squad 51, 10-4.## replied Gage.

Hank finished his line of reasoning. "That block is a little too crowded
alley or road space wise for our trucks. I want the widest safety
margin possible right from the get-go, even if we have to set up
in the park a block away, and hoof it in. There's active chemical
store warehouses surrounding three sides of that museum! Last
thing I want is an explosion cascade happening, with us right in
the middle of it."

Battalion Nine's voice rang out over the fire channel. ##I concur,
Engine 51. Staging will be in Flora Vista Park. Parallel flank
the main drag into the picnic area, then start tapping hydrants
wearing full turnout, including airbottles.##

"Engine 51, Battalion 9. 10-4." Cap replied. "Will you assume I.C.
from me on arrival?"

##That's the plan. I need you with your crew.##

Image of batallion14closecarmic.jpg Image of museumstreet.jpg Image of engine51rollsstreet.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Janeway and the others pulled up into the small parking lot of
the CLAFMA museum at its front. The birds were singing, and
the air was still quiet with morning stillness. Traffic could be heard
on the freeway, but it was just a slowly growing hum of noise
in the distance.

Chakotay sneezed again in the daylight. "Ah, is that smog?"
he asked, covering his nose in distaste.

"Probably." Janeway said deadpan, taking out her tricorder once
more from her pocket to join the holo Barclay in scanning
the building. "I've heard it was usually heavier in the mornings."

"Smells like smoke." Reg commented, sniffing the air.

Nobody paid any attention to that remark.

Chakotay reported a finding on his own scan. "There's nobody
about. Not for blocks."

"I'm putting the EMH online then." Kathryn replied. "We could
use another pair of eyes." She tapped her combadge that was
linked to the hidden escape pod's hiding place. "Computer, activate
the EMH." she said, fingering the holoemitter she had placed into
her open hand. It jumped into mid air and stuck itself there.

The balding blue and black uniformed, brown eyed holodoc reappeared
at once. "Please state the nature of the-- Oh, we're here." he broke off,
seeing the shimmering void effect which shrouded the fire museum. "What
do you want me to scan for?" he asked, tapping the side of his forehead.

Janeway decided to be vague. "An old man. In there, if you can." she pointed
to the temporal boundary that was making the building in front of them shimmer.
"Our tricorders can't penetrate the event horizon."

The EMH just harrumphed in his throat. "First things first, captain. If you'll excuse
me." he said. Then he turned to the commander. "Chakotay, how are you doing?"


Image of chakjanewaywalking.jpg Image of museumentrance.jpg Image of emhemitter.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"Fine." Chakotay replied. "I ate. I had some more water. I'm good to go. Your
instant surgery worked."

"I am equipped with the memories and experiences of several hundred of the finest
doctors in the history of Starfleet. I sure hope it worked." grumbled the holodoc.
"I have to check on my handiwork because the body can still react to changes
adversely, despite being recently healed." he said, pulling out a medical tricorder
to sweep Chakotay from head to toe. Then he put it away when no trouble was
found. "Now, I can play your bloodhound, captain, with a clear conscience."

Janeway grinned ruefully. "Tally ho." she said, sweeping her hand at the museum's
nearest margin wavering wall.

Barclay was still scanning the area with his unreal modern holotricorder he had
the computers at Project Pathfinder whip up. "There's nothing out of the ordinary
going on around us temporal wise." he remarked.

"Plasma fire?" Chakotay asked out of the blue.

"No. Nothing." Reg replied.

"I agree." said Tuvok, scanning for time distortions as well.

The holodoc broke off from his squinting, by eye examination of the museum
mirage in front of them. "Why am I looking for an old man?" he asked the group
at large.

Tom Paris just rolled his eyes. "You were too busy working on Chakotay here
to pay much attention to our conversation at the hospital. You see, on Page
Three B of a newspaper, we found the image of a man we already know from
this time echo, a paramedic by the name of Roy DeSoto."

"He's one who helped save me." Chakotay clarified.

"And the old man?" the EMH asked.

"He's also Roy DeSoto." Kathryn shared. "Forty years older."

"And that's the kicker." said Chakotay.

The EMH blinked.
"I see. Now you want me to play space monkey and go traipsing off into
that time field to look for a living, breathing, human anomaly."

Janeway held up a pair of hands in placation. "Doctor, you know we
wouldn't ask you to risk your program if our lives didn't depend on it.
Now there's a very small chance this version of Roy DeSoto is one
of the away team's ancestors."

"A very remote possibility." the EMH huffed.

"But it has to be checked regardless." Janeway said, no nonsense.
"Would you rather one of us step through there first? I don't think aging
forty years in a few seconds would be a very pretty sight, Doctor."

Another voice spoke up from behind the van. It was Boothby.
"Captain, you're forgetting. You are all originals. This place,.."
he said expansively to their surroundings, "..and that place." he
pointed to the wavy illusion of the museum. "are just an echo
and an isolated new ripple outside of your real original timeline."
said the wrinkled Nexus ribbon traveler gone gardener/cadet
tracker. He was wearing a straw sunhat and white overalls.
He stooped to smell one of a decorative pink flowered bush
which lined the parking lot's curbs. He gave a bloom to Janeway
and bowed at her in re-welcome.

"Wait a minute. How'd you get here so fast." Chakotay asked
him. "We didn't scan anybody in the area."

"Were you scanning for El Aurien?" Boothby challenged.

"Oops." said Barclay, widening his surveillance sweeps to
include the whole Starfleet database of aliens. "Widened to
include Borg." he whispered to Janeway.
Image of insidemn0072.jpg

Image of chakclosesuit.jpg Image of boothbyjanewayrose.jpg Image of tuvoktricorder.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
Kathryn nodded in acknowledgement. "So we'll be perfectly
safe going in there, Boothby?"

"Sure, why not? You're safe out here, aren't you?" he countered
wisely, with a grin.

The EMH ignored their banter. "Let's just get this over with.
If this senior aged Roy DeSoto turns out negative in the genetic
similarity scans, I still have a whole city metropolis to search for
your lost ancestor." he snapped.

"I just want to know how he figures into all of this." Janeway said,
pointing at the museum.

"Are you sure he's really in there?" the EMH asked.

Tuvok replied. "There is a good chance that he is. The older Roy was
photographed standing in front of historical fire fighting artifacts from this
city."

"I...think ...I am 'seeing' one individual inside that building." reported
the EMH.

"How can he do that?" Reg asked, totally surprised.

"He's wearing twenty ninth century technology." Janeway told
Barclay smugly, tapping her own shoulder in the place where
the portable holoemitter sat on the holodoc's arm. "Comes in
handy."

"Phasers out." Chakotay ordered. "We're entering."

"Careful with those toys and any E.M. fields.." Boothby warned, like
a scolding school teacher.

The last of the away team and the two holograms disappeared under
the wavering effect of the temporal anomaly, when the first fire sirens
began to grow in the distance. Station 51 and the others, were coming.

Unseen above the time cloaked museum, a spinning roof chimney had been
spewing out ordinary furnace fire smoke, but some embers and sparks had set
the roofing tar on fire. The newly growing flames were orange. Escaping
smoke rose out of the temporal pocket and into the time echo sky of 1976.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"HELLO?!... " HELLo... HEllo.. Hello..hello...o...?" Janeway called out.
The sound of her voice echoed through the dim, almost non lighting of
the interior of the museum.

The away team was surrounded by ghosts of the past. Silhouettes of
ancient fire engines and horse drawn apparatuses surrounded them
in neat rows, circled by plastic chains and labelled signs.

"Is anybody here?" Chakotay shouted, too.

There was no answer.

"Whereever he is." said the EMH. "He's alive."

Reg Barclay pointed. "I think I'm seeing more light over there.
Yeah, somebody's turned on a light switch."

The away team advanced cautiously, holding their phasers before
them in a careful guard.

They reached the circle of bright light. The source of illumination was
from ceiling spotlights and they were aimed at a pair of very special
fire apparatuses, the Ward La France and 1970's Dodge, Engine
51 and Squad 51. They were parked neatly next to a fake set
of a fire station's wall made of brick. A red dome light set above
a green chalkboard full of hasty notes and scribbles, was glowing.

Janeway pointed to the two trucks. "Anybody know what these
two are?" she asked, noticing the modern city name of Los Angeles
County emblazened across their doors. "Station 51?" she read.

Image of museumengines.jpg Image of chakjanewaywindow.jpg Click image to visit the real life museum

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"I do." said a voice from the darkness. It was gravelly with age,
and very tired. It was the old Roy DeSoto, wearing a dusty cardigan
sweater and gray trousers. "I think I used to drive that one. But the
paint's the wrong color." he said, pointing to the red squad. Then
he staggered, suddenly weak, grabbing at his chest.

The away team put away their phasers and rushed forward.
"Roy?!" Janeway asked. "Easy.." she said. "You're hurt."

Chakotay and Tuvok caught DeSoto, and set him down on the running
board of Squad 51.

The EMH already had out his medical tricorder, scanning the head
drooped figure. "He's been injured." he reported.

"Where?" asked Janeway.

"It's his heart." the holodoc replied.

Tuvok spoke. "Captain, I advise caution. We are sharing information."
he said vaguely, glancing down at their tricorders significantly.

Boothby spoke up, curious about the squad. He opened one
door of it and pulled out an orange biophone. It was a prop. "I don't
think it matters in this case, Captain. He's not really real." he said
mysteriously. "Just splintered."

"Care to elaborate?" Janeway said, still holding the ailing Roy's wrist
at a pulse point.
Image of oldkevinnight.jpg

Image of olderroy.jpg Image of museumset.jpg Image of emhtuvoktreat.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"How else would you explain him?" Boothby said. "If out there is
just an echo of 1976. What's in here?" he asked.

"I don't know." Janeway replied. "Do you?"

"Not yet." the caretaker answered. "But I intend to find out." Then
he was captivated by Squad 51 again. "I've seen a lot of these trucks
at Rampart. Yeah, this is one of the fire department's rescue squads."
he said with increasing familiarity. "Oh yeah, this's my favorite station. Number 51.
I've seen Johnny Gage and Roy DeSoto before, talking it up with that foxy Nurse
Dixie McCall."

In their arms, the old Roy began to laugh. "She's hot, and I'm a married man."
Then he began to cry. "Oh, Joanne." he mourned.

"Who's that? Your wife?" Kathryn guessed.

"Yes." sobbed DeSoto. "I haven't seen her for so long."

Janeway looked up significantly. "How long has it been, Roy? Can you tell us?"

Boothby set down the biophone in his hand, and opened it by flipping back
its dusty orange and silver chrome lid. He plugged in the antennae and then he
picked up the black phone. The line was dead. He held up the receiver meaningfully,
pointing to some dry rust and metal corrosion.

Tuvok nodded in understanding and began to look around.

DeSoto started gasping, which prompted the EMH to inject him with cordrazine
to help his breathing. "Breathe normally." the holodoc told him.

"I need..oxygen.." gasped Roy.

"Not any more, you don't. That medication will help you compensate." the
EMH promised.

Janeway felt protective. "Just try to relax. You're in good hands."

Roy smiled and finally opened his eyes and lifted his head from where he
was slumped against the driver's door of the squad. "Johnny always says that."
he said sadly. "I really miss Gage. Can you tell me where he is? I've-- I've been
looking for him for ages."

"Easy, we're trying to help you." Kathryn said, squeezing one of his dry hands.

The holodoc finished his scans and closed his tricorder. "It's not a heart attack.
It's damage from electricity."

"What? How old is the injury?" Kathryn asked.

"Two weeks at the most." the EMH said. "But it's been untreated."

"Do what you can." Janeway said.

The holodoc nodded, then knelt and opened another medikit.

Boothby walked around the fake set of Station 51 that backdropped
the Squad 51 and Engine 51. He paused in front of the green chalk board
and began reading the notes that Roy DeSoto had written. It was
a crude calendar, marking off days and months and then years of
confinement. He was still counting a tally when Tuvok emerged from
the museum's curator office with a modern paper calendar. He held
it up for everyone. The year on it, said 2010.

"Oh my G*d." said Janeway. She turned back to Roy DeSoto, who
was resting and starting to freak out at the sight of the unfamiliar
tools and gadgets the doctor was using on him. "He's been in here
for thirty four years."

"For him, it only feels like it." Boothby decided.

The EMH agreed. "His outer body shows that kind of aging. But my scans
show his internal clock's only been metabolizing for two weeks. His cardiac
insult has only been here for a short while, too. For the same period of
time."

"What's going on?!" Roy startled, trying to summon up the energy to
stand and panic. "Who are all you people?"

"You can tell him. He's a different kind of echo." Boothby shared.

Chakotay crouched by Roy and helped hold him steady. He and Reg
got Roy to his feet carefully. Then they backed away, offering
him some personal space, showing empty hands.

"We're travelers." Janeway began. "From a faraway place on
a ship. We are trapped here, just like you. But we want to help."
she explained simply.

Chakotay, too, put on a reassuring smile. "I was hurt, but Johnny
Gage helped get me to Rampart."

DeSoto seemed to relax as he stared at Chakotay's familiar looking
features. "You look so much like Johnny. What's your name?"

"Chakotay. Nice to meet you." he said, offering the old man his
hand.

In confusion, Roy shook it automatically, and then he began to
really study the faces of everyone surrounding him. "You seem like
good people. Are you here to help me get out of here?"

"Yes." Janeway promised."Will you let us try?"

Roy nodded, reluctantly, but he stopped trembling with weakness
and fear. He took on a more confident semblance of his younger
self. "I.. I.. can't leave. I've tried to go out the door, but somehow,
I always end up back here." he said in bewilderment, indicating the
swathe of light framing the two fire trucks and the fake set of Station 51.
"I've.. been sleeping in the office on the couch. The frig never seems like
it runs out of food. The trash never piles up. See?" he said, smiling,
offering Janeway a glass of wine from inside and one for himself.

Janeway smiled back and toasted him with it to try and win his confidence.

Barclay marveled. "Temporal recursion."
Image of boothbystand.jpg
Image of museumold.jpg
Image of johnnydixieroyhallchat.jpg
Image of spla3a3a.gif
Image of museumoffice.jpg
Image of museumengine1.jpg

Image of chakotaywine.jpg Image of janewaybooks.jpg Image of oldroywine.jpg Image of emhwine.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
"Yes." said Boothby. Everyone looked over at him where he was
tending a bar full of wine and sipping a glass. It had suddenly
sprouted into life next to Squad 51 along the wall. "Handy effect. If
you know how to put your mind to it."

The old Roy blinked at the alien with total incomprehension."I've.. I've even
tried to reach someone indirectly. By lighting the furnace out of season,
flashing the lights at night. But nobody ever sees it. And the phone doesn't work.
I even tried calling the station, but all I get is the day/time temperature
recording." he said angrily.

Boothby raised a guilty hand. "Ah, that was me. I had to keep your time
bubble from polluting the echo or real 1976 timeline until I figured out
what to do with you."

"I've been here so long." Roy said, tears filling his eyes. "Feels like forever.
And I know I don't like what I see in the mirror." he snapped, pointing at
his own face.

"I'm sorry." Boothby apologized. "Now we can try to help you. I've found my
friends."

DeSoto went on with his horrid recollection, shaking a confused head.
"I can't tell if these are signs of an early stroke or... memory problems."
he said, pulling the dusty biophone into his lap, trying to make it work again.
"One of the two." he reasoned like a good paramedic.

"Neither." said the EMH kindly.
Image of boothbypoursbrandy.jpg
Image of janewayroydrink.jpg

Image of emhsmile.jpg Image of janewaylaugh.jpg Image of biophone.jpg Image of olderroyclose.jpg

Image of spla3a3a.gif
Tuvok replied with more. "This is something called time dilation. You
would call it an hallucination."

"But you're real." Roy insisted to Janeway, reaching out to feel the
carotid pulse in her neck.

"Yes. We are." Janeway said. "And we'll help you get back to your crewmates
and your wife. Just let the doctor treat you some more. I know his medical
gear is strange seeming to you. But it's okay. He won't hurt you."

DeSoto's focus wavered again. "I want a BP cuff." he said, taking his hand
off Janeway's throat.

Janeway left him in Barclay and the holodoc's care. They led him back to
Squad 51 where he had seemed the calmest and sat him down onto the driver's
seat. The white haired DeSoto clung to the door as if his life depended on it.

Kathryn rose to her feet and addressed Tuvok, Chakotay and Boothby.
"So much for non-interference." she grumbled.

Tuvok raised an eyebrow.
"This is a special case. Like Boothby said. He is not real. Mr. DeSoto could learn
absolutely everything about us, our lives, our history, in here. But if he tried to leave,
all of that would be wiped out."

"He'd return 34 years into the past.." Chakotay said.

"Is it that simple?" Janeway thought hard. "Roy said he couldn't leave, couldn't
walk out of the museum on his own."

"We must find a way." Tuvok said. "Logic suggests if a trapped entity leaves a time
bubble, then that microuniverse has no reason to go on existing. It is Roy himself who's
powering this museum recursion."

"But when did this bubble begin to happen?" Kathryn agonized. "There has to be a
starting point."

Boothby demurred. "Captain. If I may. What's the only thing that can go wrong outside?"

"A plasma fire." she answered swiftly.

"Yes. One started by an electrical discharge. Maybe an event like that's the trigger."

"Roy was hurt by an electrical discharge." Janeway remembered. "The doc just said so."

"So let's go ask him how he got hurt to learn more about that." Boothby told her.

Janeway went back to Squad 51. Roy was leaning on the steering wheel, arms folded,
with his head resting on his hands in a sleeping driver's pose.

"Just keep taking deep breaths." the doctor encouraged. "I'm healing your myocardial
tissues." he said brightly, sweeping a deep probe through Roy's back right through the
sweater he was wearing.
Image of museumsquadlights.jpg

Image of museumsteeringwheel.jpg Image of oldroyenginebyerinj.jpg Image of beamleft.jpg Image of emhlecture.jpg

Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif
Image of rampartstatusboard.gif
              Click the Rampart status board
               to go to page seven
Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif
                   Fire In The Sky
Image of rjhelmetlookingupmountain.jpg
Image of spla3a3a.gif Image of shuttlecrash.jpg Image of emergencylogo2006red.jpg Image of voyagerinwave.gif
Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif Image of firebaranimated.gif
<BGSOUND src="eccodotfbythegreatwhite.mp3.mp3" LOOP=INFINITE>