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  Part 5

  Mikel Hudson was furious with himself. True, he had been sound asleep when the commander had called, but that was no excuse. Now he waited by the stubborn holodeck doors with Ethan, too ashamed to admit to Lieutenant Carey that he couldn't remember all his orders. He tried to concentrate. *THINK Mikel! Report to Tuvok, report to Hogan, find Kes, report to Cooper, report to Carey. He gave me another order, right at the very beginning. What was it, dammit?!* "Try again, Mik," said Ethan, concerned. "Hudson to Chakotay." Nothing. When Harry materialized, he was sitting on the deck in someone's uarters, holding one of his muddy boots in his hand. "Harry?!" Ever so slowly, Kim looked up. He had apparently beamed into the captain's quarters, and not only was she there, but so was Commander Chakotay. They stared at him in surprise. Still holding the boot in one hand, Harry climbed to his feet. Concern etched on her face, Janeway rose from the table where she had been having dinner with Chakotay. She approached Ensign Kim, Chakotay close behind. "Harry, are you all right?" "I'm fine, Captain," replied a confused Kim. Looking down, he suddenly realized he was still covered with mud. He must look a sight. "I had a slight mishap on the holodeck." "We've been trying to get you and B'Elanna and Paris off the holodeck," said Chakotay. "They must have tried to beam you out and you ended up here." He knelt down to pick up something off the deck, straightening with two uniforms in his hands, one red and one gold. "Don't worry, they weren't wearing them at the time of the beam out," said Harry, then he colored as he realized how that must have sounded. "I mean," he stammered, "they, uh, well, you see...They were in the pond trying to wash some of the mud off," he ended lamely. "Tom said--" Janeway placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Ensign. I think we get the picture." Chakotay frowned, livid. He wasn't so sure he "got" it. "Permission to go to my quarters and change, Captain?" requested Kim. "I'm afraid not, Ensign. We've been having a few problems since you entered the holodeck. Erratic communications, computer glitches, turbolifts, doors. As of this moment, we are trapped in my quarters. You may very well be spending the night here." Chakotay covered his smile at the look of dismay that flitted across Kim's features. Janeway could empathize with an ensign who was uncomfortable being in his captain's quarters, but she was determined to make this as painless as possible. Still, something seemed strange to her, besides the fact that her pilot and her chief engineer were on the holodeck minus their uniforms, and the only person there who might possibly keep them in line had just beamed into her quarters, covered the mud! "Ensign Kim, this mud is from the holodeck. Why is it still on you?" she asked quizzically. "I have no idea, Captain, but believe me, I wish it wasn't. Perhaps a malfunction with the holodeck matter generators. Instead of holographic mud, they must have used the matter banks to create real mud. Don't worry, as soon as the program ends, *if it ends,* then I can see that the matter used to make the mud is returned to the matter banks so we won't run low." Smiling, she said, "Why don't you go make use of my shower, Ensign? The commander and I will see if we can get the replicator to work long enough to get you a clean change of clothes. Then you can tell us what's been happening on the holodeck while we eat dinner." Hudson's comm badge chirped. "Neelix to Hudson." *Now why would the Talaxian be contacting me?* Hudson wondered, then aloud he said, "Hudson here. Go ahead." "Ensign," came Neelix's voice, "Chief Cooper tried to contact you to update you on the holodeck situation, but he was unable to reach you. He did however get through to Kes and she was able to contact me and now I am forwarding the message to you." Hudson looked at Simms. Ethan just shook his head in exasperated annoyance. The malfunctions aboard the ship seemed to be escalating. "And what is the message, Neelix?" asked Hudson patiently. "We finally have access to the holodeck. I need to go." "Oh, yes, the message. Chief Cooper wishes you to know that he believes he beamed someone out of the holodeck. In fact, he may have beamed all three of them out, but he's not sure. He's still unable to establish contact with Paris, Torres, or Kim, and he feels it would be prudent if you were to take some emergency supplies into the holodeck and check on the status of things." "Understood," replied Hudson. "I'm going to the bridge to alert Mr. Tuvok to the situation," Neelix advised him. "Or Hamilton, or whoever is in charge up there at the moment. I will be certain to let them know that you have gained access to the holodeck. Good luck." *Hamilton?* thought Hudson. *Hadn't Commander Chakotay said something about Hamilton?* Try as he might, he just couldn't remember. "Mik?" Hudson looked at Simms. "I thought I had remembered what else it was the commander told me, but..." He shrugged. Ethan hoisted his pack and patted Mikel on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it," he said. "If it was important, I'm sure you would have remembered. Come on, let's check out the holodeck and make sure no one's still trapped in there." As they entered the holodeck, the door that Carey had forced open slid shut behind them. Stopping, Hudson said, "Wasn't the door supposed to stay open?" Eyes wide, Simms replied, "That's what Carey said. You don't think...surely--?" Speaking up, Hudson said, "Computer, reveal exit from Holodeck 2." Nothing happened. Harry's holoprogram was still up and running. The exit didn't magically reappear as they hoped, and the computer remained silent, not even acknowledging their repeated requests. "Mik," said Simms slowly, "this could get really embarrassing. I mean, we're supposed to be the rescuers. If we end up being the rescuees..." Hudson shook his head. This had definitely not been a good day. And it had just gotten worse. B'Elanna Torres couldn't believe she was standing shoulder-deep in a holographic lake taking a bath with Tom Paris. *Well,* she thought to herself, *it's not really a bath. More like a swim. Except he's doing all the swimming, and I'm standing here in five feet of water on one foot like a stupid flamingo.* Tom, on the other hand, was thoroughly enjoying his "bath". The cool water felt good and the mud had come off easier than he'd thought it would. He looked over to B'Elanna, however, and noticed that she didn't look like she was having such a great time. "You okay?" he asked her. "Yes, I'm okay! I wish everyone would quit asking me that!" "Okay," he said in mock hurt. She splashed him. He looked at her, smug, almost smiling, so he splashed her back. She laughed out loud this time, and a giant splashing fight ensued until finally, after dunking him underwater and getting no retaliation because he was concerned about her injured ankle, B'Elanna was laughing so hard that she almost choked on the lake water. Tom was laughing too, and they stood there holding their stomachs laughing, B'Elanna almost losing her balance trying to stand on one foot. After his own laughter had dwindled down to a chuckle, Tom watched her and realized he hadn't seen her so lighthearted in a long time, maybe never. She was strikingly beautiful, all wet in the water, smiling. He wished she would smile like that more often, because he'd never seen this particular smile before, and he felt almost honored to have been there to hear her laugh. B'Elanna, calming down, glanced at Tom and realized she hadn't had this much fun in a very long time. "Harry, maybe this program isn't so-- " she started, but when she turned to speak to Harry she discovered he wasn't there. Tom turned and was also surprised to find that Ensign Kim was nowhere to be seen. "Where did he go?" he asked, not really expecting an answer. "I don't know, he was just here," B'Elanna said, confused. "Harry! Where are you?" Her voice echoed in the surroundings and no reply came. Tom swam to the bank, stood in the waist deep water, and looked around. "Hey!" "What?" came B'Elanna's curious reply. "Our uniforms. They're not here, and neither is Harry! Is this some sort of joke? I must confess, I didn't think he had it in him!" B'Elanna dog paddled as best she could into the shallower water by the rock, and Tom helped her out. Her sudden concern for Harry was reflected by her near panic over her state of undress. She looked around for where Harry might have dropped her uniform, but the garment was gone. Sitting again on the rock, she then lifted her foot up to examine her ankle, and noticed that the swelling had gone down a little, and the pain was easing off a bit, but she still couldn't move it. Tom took a look at her ankle and noted, as if to confirm what she was thinking, "It looks a little better." "Yeah, but where are our uniforms? Joke's over, Harry! Come
on, give 'em back," she said, furious. "Where is he? With the program malfunctioning, Harry wouldn't have just wandered off. The program could have deposited him anywhere in this make-believe forest, if he had. Harry!!" she shouted, nearly frantic. Tom, for his part, was too busy noticing a wet B'Elanna to worry over a missing Harry. The cold water had pasted her slate blue turtleneck to her body like a second skin. *Whoa, Tom. An officer and a gentleman, remember? Don't cause the lady any further embarrassment.* He backed off, hoping to regain some control before she spotted him gaping at her and drowned him in the lake. B'Elanna turned back to Tom and her concern for Harry was, for a moment, pushed aside by the sight of a bare chested Tom Paris. She was horrified by the thoughts that came unbidden to her mind. This was ridiculous. They were stuck half-dressed in a holodeck, Harry was missing, and she was behaving like some kind of out-of-control 15-year- old kid, not a starship Chief Engineer. She snatched up her boots and snapped crossly, "Now what?" Harry would have preferred to get himself clean in a dry way, but the captain's sonic shower was, of course, malfunctioning. He wouldn't really have minded the old-fashioned water kind, though, if the water hadn't also been stuck at a temperature that he was sure was only one degree above freezing. But the choice was either use the shower or stay filthy, so he gritted his teeth, stripped off his muddy uniform, and stepped into the icy water, determined to make this as quick as he could. As the mud came off, he thought, shivering, *I should have stayed in the holoprogram. The pond was warmer than this, and it would've been more fun. I mean, Paris and B'Elanna were sure enjoying themselves, even if they were bickering like little kids half the time.* Once again, he wondered exactly what was going on with those two. *Maybe--* His speculation was painfully interrupted when the water streaming down on him suddenly went from icy to burning hot. "Aaagh!" he yelped. Trying to scramble out of the scalding spray, he slipped on the wet surface, lost his balance, and fell, cracking his head against the wall on the way down. Captain Janeway looked up, startled, at a strangled yelp from the next room, followed in quick succession by a bang, a thud, and something that might have been a groan. *I'm almost afraid to ask,* she thought, *but--* "Mr. Kim? Is anything wrong?" More noises, then Harry responded, sounding slightly dazed, "No, it's okay, Captain. Uh, the shower is operational, but I think the temperature controls could use some adjusting." "Noted, Ensign." "I'm afraid the replicator isn't working very well either," Chakotay called from beside her. "We've got fresh clothing for you, but it's not exactly regulation." "As long as it's dry, Commander, I don't care." Chakotay picked up the pile of clothing in front of him and tossed it into the shower area. "Here, this is what it gave us when we asked for a Starfleet uniform." Janeway heard quick movement and the rustle of cloth, then a pause so loaded she could all but see the look on Harry's face as he got a good look at the outfit. "And before you ask," Chakotay continued, "the civilian clothes came out worse." Walking along the trail, Simms said, "Do you think they're still on the holodeck?" At his side, Hudson shrugged. "I don't know. Nobody answered when we called." Looking around, he commented, "This is a nice program. Reminds me of Earth." "I'm all for nature walks, Mik, but you do realize you woke me out of a sound sleep for this?" Hudson shrugged again. "I figured since we did such a bang up job helping out the lieutenants last time on that Borg ship you'd jump at a chance to improve on our performance." Privately, Hudson thought that Paris and Torres had done a better job protecting himself and Simms on that Borg ship than the other way round, and that they had let the lieutenants down. Lieutenant Tuvok had assured him that given the situation, there had been nothing more they could have done. But Hudson still wasn't happy over the whole incident. "Well, at least it's not the Borg this time," Simms commented. Hudson's face clouded over. Noticing this, Simms frowned. "You still having those dreams?" "Not every night." "But you're still having them?" Simms pressed, concerned about his friend. Hudson shrugged. "It's getting better. I just wish I could make more sense out of them." Hudson was about to comment further when the ground beneath his feet suddenly disappeared. With shock, he realized that the trail next to the hillside had crumpled. Hudson felt himself going over the side. His hands flailed out in hopes of finding a purchase but nothing but the slippery hillside came to his fingertips. Then a strong hand clamped on to his, halting his progress down the hillside. Hudson looked up to see Ethan laid out flat on the ground above him. "I've got you, Mik--" The whole trail suddenly gave way and they both went over the side, tumbling down the hillside. About halfway down, just as Hudson thought he might be regaining some control, the grassy hillside turned to mud. Both men's tumbling bodies picked up speed, sliding uncontrollably down the hillside.