Archive of Our Own

The USS Cerritos was in peril. Alarms were blasting, and systems were failing everywhere. Crewmen were running around trying to keep the ship functional, spread too thin while dealing with these fires.

As surprising as this attack was, no one could find a reason for this madness. There were no demands or threats preceding this insane and targeted attack. To what end, no one could guess. As soon as this threat appeared, it destroyed their defenses and engines, leaving them as sitting ducks.

"How is the engine holding up?" Captain Freeman contacted engineering from the bridge.

"We are still trying to stabilize the core." Billups answered. "Until then, we won't be able to start repairs."

"Goddammit!" The Captain slammed the armrest on her chair, more than frustrated over this encounter.

Yet, while the rest of her crew was in peril, a group of Ensigns barged into the bridge. They were distressed, looking worried and scared. Even her daughter couldn't hide behind her usual demeanor. "Captain, they took him!"

"They didn't come for our cargo, it was something else entirely!" Rutherford joined in. Frantically rushing to the Captain's chair along with his friends.

"What are you going on about?" Carol tried to calm them down to get all the facts.

The only one able to put their ramblings into sensible words was Tendi. "It's Boimler! They kidnapped him!"

"What?!" The Captain was shocked hearing this. For many reasons, most of them stem from one question. "Why would they do all this just for Ensign Boimler?" The whole group looked out the window up front. Right at the looming threat in front of their disabled ship.

The attacking ship kept its distance from them as if taunting them to stay put or else. Inside, the Captain of this vessel gloated over her victory against Starfleet. "Ha! Let this be a reminder to everyone. This is what happens when you go against the mighty, Vindicta!"

The entire crew gleefully cheered for their Captain. Filling the bridge with applause and praise, except for one person. "You will never get away with this!"

Suddenly, the whole place went silent at the audacity of their prisoner. "I already have, Boimler." Vindicta turned her chair around to meet him face to face. "Not only did I manage to capture you, but after the mess I made out of their ship, they are more than hopeless." She let out another maniacal laugh, which only sent shivers down Brad's spine. "How does it feel, huh?! To get something so important taken away from you? You goddamn, weasel!"

It was clear this pirate wasn't the usual kind. To go as far as target the Cerritos, a ship Brad held so close to heart; what kind of maniac does that? "Why are you doing this? I have never done anything to you!"

"That's where you're wrong!" Vindicta arose from her seat and walked towards her prisoner. "You have no idea what you've done to me. The betrayal I've suffered at your hands! You're beyond forgiveness!"

Still, the poor Ensign was so confused over this. "What are you talking about?!"

"You see, Bradward Boimler, I went through all the trouble of capturing you and bringing you before me over one justified reason." Boimler held his breath, not knowing what to expect anymore. "You left me to go to the Titan!"

"...What?" Understandably, Brad's reaction was rather lackluster. Her words only serve to fill him with even more questions. "Like, no, I'm still in the Cerritos, and...Wait, why would that matter to you?"

Vindicta sighed, just now realizing the flaw in her plan. "Pause the program." Immediately, the whole world around her stopped, and she stood in place, talking to the air. "Computer, didn't I tell you to upload all Boimler's logs?"

"Ensign Boimler's logs end without any mention of his transfer to the Titan." The holodeck's computer answered.

"Goddamn, the one time he doesn't leave a useless log..." Mariner thought for a second. There had to be a way to solve this, or at least go around it. She couldn't have a revenge fantasy if her target didn't know what they did wrong. "I've uploaded my logs on him leaving. Make this Boimler as if he just accepted the transfer and add any necessary changes."

It took less than a second for the program to adapt. Quickly changing Boimler's uniform to reflect his promotion and awaiting Mariner's signal to continue. "Good, now resume program..." She raised her hand, leaving it ready. "Now!"

The second the program started running again, Mariner struck holoBoimler's face with the back of her hand. "Don't lie to me! You know what you've done!"

After recovering from the pain, Boimler began pleading like she wanted. "Yes, you're right! I was going to abandon my friends for a stupid promotion!"

"There it is." Mariner made no effort to hide her delight. "And what do you have to say in your defense?!"

"It's just...It's my dream, the whole reason I joined Starfleet..." Earning him another slap from a furious Vindicta.

"You join Starfleet to help people and do the right thing! Not turn your back on friends!" Those words coming out of his mouth got her so worked up. "What about them, huh?! Do you feel no shame for leaving the way you did?! Of course not! You're nothing but a spineless idiot!" Anyway, she didn't want to waste her energy on tongue lashings. "Take him to the torture chambers and strap him down. I'll deal with him after I tie some loose ends."

Mariner sat down again, gleefully staring at the disabled ship through her window. "Prepare to fire torpedoes." She got the green light from her henchmen. They were only waiting for her orders. "Nothing personal this time, just revenge. Fi-"

However, before she could give the order, alarms began blasting everywhere. Followed by a quick hit of turbulence that shook the entire ship. Almost making her fall off her seat. "What was that?! Did they shoot back?"

"No, the damage didn't come from the ship." Vindicta's henchmen scrambled to determine the source of this problem. "It's from under the ship; explosives just blew up a hole in our hull."

Which didn't make any sense. "What?! How did they get so close to us?"

"They used a shuttle. They are boarding us!" It didn't take long for them to dispatch security to look after the intruders, but Mariner wasn't about to let this go.

"A rescue team, then. They sure gathered themselves quickly, I'll give them that." Deciding to deal with this on her own, Mariner made her way down to that area. Picking up a couple of blasters before leaving. "It'll be faster if I deal with them myself. Send more men to guard the torture chambers, don't let them get to Boimler."

True, she could simply pause the program and fix everything behind the curtains, and she should probably do that, all things considered. But Mariner's current state was anger, and she could use every chance to quell that feeling. All it took was a short elevator ride down before arriving in the middle of a firefight. With her crew kept at bay by phaser fire, pinned down in the middle of that hallway, preventing them from moving forward.

Mariner moved behind cover to assess the situation. The pirates on her side were brave, she'll give the computer that much, but clever thinking wasn't their strong suit. "C'mon, guys. Don't just run into their line of fire." Scanning the other side of the hallway, she could make out two people in space suits shooting at them and quickly formulated a plan. "Computer, I need smoke grenades."

With those fresh grenades at hand, Mariner divided them amongst her crew. "On my signal." Soon after, the space between them and the intruders was littered with these grenades, followed by a thick curtain of smoke to hide their movements. "Advance!"

Her group moved forward, losing a couple under blind fire, but it didn’t take long for Mariner to reach the intruders. Grabbing one by the wrists and flinging them around, disarming them with that one move. "Nice try." She raised her phaser, about to end this hologram, only to be tackled by the other intruder. "Get off me!" The two of them struggled on the floor, spinning around, trying not to get pinned and grappled until Mariner kicked the intruder away from her.

This intruder flew backward and directly into the wall, knocking the helmet out of them. "Wait, what the hell?!" Before her laid her friend Tendi, stunned over that hit to the head, but not as much as she was over this reveal. "Why are you here?"

"Tendi!" Coming from behind, the second intruder attacked her, trying to hold her in place. Luckily, Mariner managed to give them the slip at the last second.

"Wait, I know that voice." She reached for the helmet and actually took it off after another quick struggle. "Rutherford? Not you too!" The image of her friends standing against her was shocking at first. But that shock was soon replaced by confusion. "Don't tell me you're here for Boimler?"

For an answer, holoTendi threw a punch at her face. Not much of a sucker punch, but Mariner was so distracted she couldn't brace for it. "That's right! We came to get our friend back!"

And before she could recover from that hit, holoRutherford punched Mariner again, making her fall backward. "You only caught us by surprise before. Let's see how well you do against us."

Mariner got on her feet and kept her distance from those two, which was easier said than done when they were so determined to stop her. More so, it didn't matter if these were holograms of her friends; her first instinct wasn't to fight back. But that didn't mean they didn't get on her nerves as the fight went on. "Give us back our friend!"

"Seriously, Rutherford? You and Boimler were so close you were basically his second best friend." Maybe she should've uploaded their logs for this program. "And, Tendi? You barely knew the guy." It was so frustrating how they didn't seem to care about Brad's actions. "You realize he left you too, right?"

Still, those two kept fighting, never minding the words of this insane pirate. "Shut up! We are happy for our friend!" Rutherford exclaimed without a hint of doubt in his words.

"Yes, he was so happy after being offered that promotion. How could we be angry that he took it?" Tendi added as she connected another right hook against the pirate. "We are sure he'll be alright without us!"

"Yeah, in fact, we are happy to see him move up!" And Rutherford was quick to knock Vindicta down while she was disoriented. "He's gonna be a great Officer!"

"No, he's not!" Mariner stood up, getting angrier by the second. "He would've died a million times if it wasn't for me!" Yet, her words fell on deaf ears. "He didn't even say goodbye! Wouldn't even call us back once to tell us he's ok!" And she quickly dodged before getting hit again.

But holoTendi's words still hit the bullseye. "Well, maybe if Mariner didn't send him a dozen angry voicemails a day, he would!"

"Oh, you did not just say that!" Having hit her limit, Mariner began to fight back for real. Not just avoiding their punches but countering them and treating this like a real fight. "For your information, Brad can tell me everything!" Or as real as this fight could get with the safety measurements on. "Had he done so, We could've talked him out of doing something that stupid!"

"You're crazy!" Her friends yelled back as they tried to tackle her down.

However, Mariner managed to trip Tendi and get on top of her. "Who are we to hold him back? He deserves to be-" Delivering a couple of hits to her face to keep her down.

"Get off her!" Rutherford got Vindicta in a headlock from behind. "And get off Boimler's case too!" Nonetheless, the pirate managed to throw him forward and into a pile of crates.

With the intruders down, Mariner was quick to summon reinforcements. "Guards!" The rest of her pirates dropped on top of them, holding them down. "Great work supporting me back there, by the way." At least she could put this whole thing behind her and ignore their arguments completely. "Could we get these alarms to stop now? We got the intruders."

One of her pirates stepped forward with bad news. "Captain, reports say there are more hostiles on board."

"What?!" That truly caught Mariner off guard, but she could join the dots by herself. "These two were a distraction!"

"That's right!" Tendi threw back at her while being held down. "We came to rescue Brad by any means possible."

Mariner grumbled under her breath before turning to her crew. "What are you still doing here?! Look for the rest of the rescue team. Stop them from getting to the torture chambers."

Out of nowhere, their commbadges went off, and Rutherford answered. "You got that?"

"Loud and clear." A voice spoke from the other side.

"For fucks sake!" Mariner couldn't believe what just happened. This stupid program managed to trick her in such a dumb way. "Keep them here while I deal with the intruder!"

On that last note, she rushed towards the torture chambers. Thinking about how she should program better pirates to deal with these situations, this thought was only reinforced when she arrived at the doors and saw her crew knocked unconscious. Not a single guard was left to prevent the intruders from getting in. "Seriously?!"

Throwing caution to the wind, Mariner ran into the room phaser at hand. Staying alert as she crossed the threshold, she searched for her counterpart everywhere. Even coming across holoBoimler while he was strapped to one of the devices.

Aside from being somewhat at ease that he was still in place, she mostly ignored her former friend. Until he called out to her. "Mariner!"

Turning towards him unconsciously. "Shut the hell up. I'm busy!"

Before feeling a hard shove from behind that caught her by surprise. Like she was kicked from the shadows. As she rolled on the ground, disoriented, a familiar voice addressed Boimler. "Thanks for almost giving me away."

From her spot, Mariner saw a holoversion of herself free Brad from his restraints. The image alone was so shocking for her that she stayed frozen, unable to move as she tried to process it. "I'm sorry. I was just so surprised to see you."

"Yes, what the hell are you doing here!?" Mariner finally found her voice, calling out the hologram of her for this out-of-character moment. "He doesn't care about any of you, but you still rescue him?!"

Annoyingly enough, holoMariner simply gave her a dismissive wave of her hand. "Yeah, yeah. I heard your ramblings while you were fighting Tendi and Rutherford." And she managed to free Boimler without much issue. "I don't know what your problem with Boimler is. But it ends here."

"It ends when I say it does!" Mariner picked up her phaser and fired at them. Making them jump behind cover and stay there to avoid being hit. Still, she kept angrily shooting until she was sure they were pinned down. "Listen, I only want Boimler. You can take your friends and leave. I'll even let your ship go free."

Nonetheless, she should know better than to bargain with herself. "As if!" HoloMariner was quick to kick the crate she was behind, but the pirate was even quicker on her feet and moved out of the way. "Boimler, find Tendi and Rutherford. They'll take you back to the Cerritos."

"But what about you?" HoloBoimler couldn't leave his friend behind. "I can't leave you alone with her. She's crazy!"

"Oh, you're so getting killed!" Mariner raised her phaser again, but HoloMariner managed to kick him out of the way. "C'mon!"

"I can handle her; get out!" She pleaded again, and holoBoimler was sensible enough to follow her orders.

"No, you don't!" Too bad Mariner wasn't about to let him go that easily. They were in her torture chamber, after all. She needed only to reach out and grab an electric whip to stop him. "You better stay put!" Whipping and wrapping the whip around holoBoimler's ankle before giving it a hard pull to trip him. "And I don't wanna hear you whine while we fight!"

On that note, she turned her attention to her holoversion. Just in time to dodge another kick too. "Let him go!" This wouldn't go like last time; Mariner was sure of it. Even as they exchanged a few blows, she was confident she could win this fight with one hand tied behind her back.

"Alright, explain it to me..." She kept dodging and hitting back as she spoke to her counterpart. "Why are you here?"

It just kept bothering her that this holoMariner would jump to the rescue after she uploaded her own logs. "I don't know how things are where you come from, but in Starfleet, we help our friends."

"But you two are no longer friends!" Mariner kept rehashing this point. "He left, didn't even stop to question it for a second, and didn't care enough to tell you he was leaving!"

"And because of that, I should just let you kidnap and torture him?!" Damn the computer for messing up this hologram so badly.

The more she spoke this nonsense, the angrier Mariner got. "It sure would give you some catharsis, don't you think?!"

And it just kept going. "He was just excited and didn't think it through!"

And going. "Then why does he keep ghosting you?!"

And going. "Maybe he's ashamed about how he left and needs time to come up with an apology!"

Until she had enough. "He should be ashamed, and I don't care if he apologizes!" Wanting to get a straight answer out of her, Mariner opted for extreme measurements by shocking Boimler with the whip. A good taze to get him to scream and whine.

But most importantly, to make holoMariner stop for a moment. "Stop that; you're hurting him!"

"All you've done is give me excuses for his wrongdoings, and I don't buy the 'friends' bullshit." HoloMariner wanted to rush to help her friend break free of those restraints, but Mariner only needed to wave the handle at her to make her stay put. "Why even care for him after he abandoned you?"

Apparently, holoMariner had no answer to her questions. She simply remained in place, frozen and looking distressed. For a second, Mariner thought she had broken the computer with how long the hologram stood there. Maybe another shock will reboot her, and she so enjoyed filling the room with holoBoimler's screams. "Stop it!"

She tried to tackle her, but Mariner easily moved out of the way and yelled back. "Answer me!"

Reaching the peak of her frustration holoMariner shouted. "Because I love him, alright!"

There was a long moment of silence that swept across the entire room. Even the alarms blasting seemed to have quieted down while Mariner processed this. Not just for Mariner, but holoBoimler also got hit hard by those words. "What?!" The confused Ensigns shared a look, both equally surprised and confused into more silence.

The perfect opportunity for holoMariner to step in and overpower this crazy pirate, freeing holoBoimler in the process. "Are you alright?" She rushed to help him to his feet.

It took him some effort, but holoBoimler managed to stand up. "Yeah, but my ankle is all messed up. I can't run like this." Nonetheless, merely looking his friend in the eye after hearing that was challenging. "Mariner, I...never knew..."

"Let's talk about this later." Good thing they had other matters to focus on right now. "Lean on me. Tendi and Rutherford should have an escape pod ready by now."

However, even after being thrown around by her holoversion and hitting the ground hard, Mariner couldn't come to terms with that. Those words, the kind she never thought would come out of her mouth, not for someone like Brad. As if her brain was entirely unable to come to terms with them, much less having seen herself saying them. Yet, as soon as she saw those two fleeing the place, that confusion made way for newfound rage.

She rushed to pursue them, almost tripping back down in her feistiness, and found those two in the hallway. Tackling her holoversion from behind and slamming her head on the floor. "Take that back!" Mariner screamed at the stunned hologram. "I'm not in love with Boimler!"

"Get off her!" From the sidelines, holoBoimler tried to rush over to help before stumbling down thanks to his injury.

"You see? He's pathetic!" Mariner pointed out at the defenseless guy on the floor. "So stop lying!"

"I don't have to explain anything to you!" HoloMariner tried to break free, but instead, she sent them tumbling down the hallway in their struggle. Only stopping when they crashed into a pile of crates left unattended.

Separating them upon impact. "Why are there so many freaking crates on this ship?!" Yet, Mariner had no time to be irritated before getting kicked in the head.

Followed by more insane arguments from her other version. "He's my best friend, of course I would develop feelings for him."

Which she just had to shut down in any way possible. "You're not in love; listen to me!" She swept holoMariner's leg and tried to pin her down again. "You have abandonment issues and latched onto the first dork that gave you attention!"

Still, this hologram seemed so set in this mindset. "That might've been the case at first, but our relationship grew into something more."

"Yeah, and see where that took you." She couldn't believe how irritating arguing with a computer was. "Boimler couldn't wait to leave your ass the first chance he got. Are you seriously telling me you still 'love him' after that?"

"You think that didn't break my heart?!" For some reason, Mariner got a strange sensation in her gut hearing that. "And yes! I'm going to kick his ass after we are done with you. But one mistake from him doesn't destroy our friendship."

They kept fighting and arguing for a second time. With way more sloppy mistakes from Mariner this time. This conversation wasn't just distracting but constantly got her emotions twisted into a mess. Couldn't really process holoMariner's answers without getting hit by a truckload of feelings each time she opened her mouth. "I would probably accept him with open arms if he came back."

"Ok, now I know you're malfunctioning." Gaining the upper hand, Mariner decided to end this confusing mess before it got worse. "Get it through your head. I. Don't. Love. Brad!" She kept hitting herself over and over. "He's spineless, a bootlicker..." Pouring more of her anger and frustration into each punch. "A weasel, a useless worm, won't ever amount to nothing..." Beating her holoversion even after she was down on the floor. "He can rot in the coldness of space for all I care!"

Until holoMariner could barely move anymore. Not like that stopped her from speaking. "And yet...You went through all this trouble to capture him..."

"..." Mariner looked at herself, beaten and gasping for air, but not even that made her feel better. "I'm done with you." She stood up, dusted her clothes, and spoke up again. "Computer, phaser." Instantly, a fresh new phaser appeared on her hand, and she took aim. "I'll see you in therapy."

However, just as she pulled the trigger. "Mariner!" Out from the side, holoBoimler jumped in between them. Shielding holoMariner and taking the phaser shot.

Immediately afterward, his body hit the ground motionless. Shaking both Mariners to the core. The one on the floor sprung up first, rushing to his side to check on him. "Brad!" She cradled his head in one hand and tried to stop the bleeding with the other. Unable to fight back tears seeing him like this. "Look at what you've done!"

The real Mariner was equally as stunned at the sight. "I...But..." Her hands shook, and dropped the phaser as her eyes stared in awe. "Why..." Just hearing Boimler's pained grunts coupled with her own cries crushed her heart. Giving her a sickly feeling down her gut. "Why...did you jump between us!?"

"Because he's not a goddamn monster!" HoloMariner cried out while glaring back at her.

"But..." Still, she couldn't process this. "He doesn't care about anyone but himself. He...He doesn't love..."

"Mariner..." Suddenly, holoBoimler's voice resonated across those hallways. "I'm sorry..." Instinctively, Mariner focused her full attention on him. Drawn to his words in that dying state. "She's right...I left all of you..."

"Do you think I care about any of that?" Even now, those words from her double made Mariner feel so strange. "Please just...hang in there. I'll take you back home."

She tried to pick him up, at least help him to his feet, before he yelped in pain again. It was clear he wasn't going anywhere. Mariner herself tried to step forward and help, almost unconsciously, only to be loudly denied. "Stay back!" Getting hit by that angry glare once more. "I won't let you hurt him anymore!"

It didn't matter if she tried to explain herself. "I'm trying to..."

There was no way holoMariner was going to hear her out. "I just got Brad back, and you're trying to take him away!"

"No, I'm..." Again, Mariner couldn't handle these thoughts and emotions boiling inside her head. "It's just that...Goddamn Boimler..." She wasn't just lost for words but thought as well. Didn't arrive at a big realization like last time, only more confusion and anger. A lot of pain too. Pain she couldn't get out or express anymore. Not with the entire program taking this heavy turn. "Why did he...I wouldn't have been mad..."

Ending with a loud outburst from her. "This is so stupid!" Commanding the holodeck one last time. "Computer, end the program, and get me out of here!"

With that said, Mariner angrily walked out of the holodeck. Steaming and grunting to herself all the way to her bunk. Putting a sour end to her little revenge fantasy.

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Nonetheless, Mariner couldn't stop thinking about that encounter. Even hours later, at the bar, she couldn't focus on her drink; all her thoughts were reserved for that event solely.

Maybe it was this contemplating state or the constant frowning that got the attention of one of her friends. "Mariner!" Tendi slid into the seat beside her, quickly setting her drink down, and got ready to talk. "How have you been?" Yet, she received only a short grunt as an answer. "Well, I was asking 'cause I saw you going to the holodecks...in the Vindicta outfit..." Considering the last time Mariner donned that disguise, it wasn't uncalled to worry about that. "So...are you alright?"

"Yeah, whatever..." Mariner answered, not wanting to get into details.

"Good. I uhmmmm…" Tendi had no idea where to go from there. Especially knowing she would get another curt answer. "I'm…glad you're not dwelling on Brad anymore."

There was no way she could know how wrong that comment was. "Dwell on him?!" Mariner went from zero to a hundred in an instant. "I don't dwell on scum like him, you hear?!"

"Alright, I was just…" But Mariner wasn't having any of that.

"Listen if someone should dwell on him that should be you and Rutherford!" She exclaimed out loud, probably working on some of her previous holodeck frustrations. "Neither of you seem bothered that he abandoned us. I'm beginning to think I'm the only one that took our friendship seriously!"

Tendi put her hands up, trying to calm her friend down before she did something crazy. "Look, it's not that we don't feel sad, but…"

"Sad?! You should be angry that he left us!" Mariner slammed her glass against the table as she said that. "He cared more for a promotion than us!"

"I mean…if you want to put it like that…" For once, Mariner paused, as if daring her to finish that thought. "I'm saying that…" Which wasn't easy for Tendi when she had that angry glare directed right at her. "Maybe…you're forcing yourself to hate him?" Nonetheless, she kept staring back at her in silence, waiting for more. "It's…fine if you also feel sad that he left…just saying…"

Something about that argument made Mariner pause for a moment. Tendi's argument made her think. Not just about Boimler but how that session in the holodeck went. But she still wouldn't stop angrily staring at her friend for saying such words to her.

However, her mood did change the moment Rutherford came into the scene. "Hey, I checked that issue you asked about."

"Alright, Rutherford!" Immediately coming to life as if those were the magic words. And Tendi could finally breathe easily. "So, what was the issue? Flawed code? Dirty filters? The holograms went sentient? Speak up, man!"

"Well..." Rutherford shared a quick look with Tendi, almost dreading giving his answer. "Sorry, but I went over everything and couldn't find an issue."

And Mariner's good mood turned upside down instantly. "What?! But I'm telling you, that thing was malfunctioning like crazy!"

Still, no matter how much she asked him to go through the machine, there was so much he could do with limited information. "Maybe if you tell me what was wrong specifically, I would be able to fix it."

"No way!" Mariner received strange looks from both her friends, but she didn't care in the slightest. "What? I don't go around looking into your private programs!"

"It's not that..." Tendi tried to calm her down, not wanting her to blow up again. "But, maybe if we go in with you..."

However, Mariner scoffed at the idea. "I'll figure this out on my own." With nothing more said, she downed her drink and marched directly to the holodeck in question. Ignoring her friends as they tried to get her to open up some more.

There was no way she could tell them what was bothering her. Not after that talk and definitely not before she got to the bottom of this.

Still, she had a few changes before trying this out again. "Computer, load the program I was using earlier from the moment I left. But don't run it until I tell you." Instantly, the place shifted to the last scene from before. Meaning she had to see herself holding a dying Boimler once more.

Good thing she could focus on the data on the computer, trying to pick up any anomalies. When that didn't show anything, she tried another approach. "Could Brad survive?"

"No, the phaser hit too close to his spine, and they won't be able to get him to medbay before he bleeds out." The computer quickly answered.

Giving Mariner new ideas. "Maybe if...Computer, run the program but leave me out of it. I don't want the holograms to be able to see me. And only run this scene, I don't want anyone to interrupt them." Seeing the program running might clue her into the issue.

The holograms didn't react much to her absence once the program began running. "Alright, she's gone, let's go back…" HoloMariner tried to get the injured Boimler on his feet, but was soon met with a painful grunt from him. "C'mon, lean on me, we can do it." It seemed obvious to anyone that holoBoimler could barely move, much less put weight on his legs, but she persisted. "This should be nothing for a badass Officer like you. Barely a flesh wound."

Until holoBoimler fell on his back. "Mariner…"

"No, don't say anything!" The fear on her face felt so real to Mariner. It made the knot in her stomach turn just seeing herself being such a mess. "I'll bring you back to the Cerritos, I promise!"

"...She got me good; I can't feel my legs anymore." HoloBoimler tried to laugh it off, but even that was painful. "I just couldn't…"

"If you can't walk, I'll carry you. But don't ask me to leave you here." She cut him off, still clinging to hope.

Yet, he knew how this was going to end no matter what. "Please, listen to me..." Mariner couldn't remember the last time she saw the real Boimler look this serious, if ever. Nonetheless, that could be chalked up to his current condition. "I know what I did was stupid, leaving the way I did. I never considered how anyone else would feel..." Even that apology felt so empty to her. Of course he would act like this under these circumstances.

Not like her holoversion seemed to mind. "Forget about that! You took a shot for me; that should leave us equal."

Surprisingly enough, that got another laugh out of Brad, and both Mariners were taken aback. "No, that's no excuse. I just felt so guilty for letting you down that I jumped without thinking. It's all my fault for being so stupid."

"I don't care!" HoloMariner held him close, barely able to fight back tears. "I forgive you, alright? There's no way I'd care about that now that you're back." Another line that screamed at Mariner that something had to be wrong, but the readings showed nothing.

"I...honestly thought you would never let me forget that..." HoloBoimler smiled; at least that didn't cause him pain, but it was a short-lived gesture. That heartfelt smirk soon turned worried as he asked something important. "What you said before...was it true?"

Mariner froze for a second, considering the best way to answer. What could she even say to that? She's never considered feeling anything like that around him.

Before remembering, he wasn't speaking to her. "Of course..." HoloMariner paused for a moment. Staring down at his bleeding stomach with worry, or dread in this case. She kept questioning herself, wondering why she no longer tried to fight what was happening, this impending end coming for him. And Mariner knew she was thinking that because she was questioning that herself.

Even as a hologram, no way she would stay put and let Boimler die. "...Fuck."

But she couldn't dwell on that thought. HoloMairner was about to answer. Despite those doubts, she spoke up. Looking way more sure about her words now than earlier. "I do love you."

Then, holoBoimler took his time as well. "...Why didn't I see it?" As if shocked to learn he heard right the first time. "Had I realized it before, I would've never accepted that transfer."

"Don't say that. Honestly, it took you leaving for me to figure it out." The scene kept playing out like a heartfelt drama. At least from Mariner's perspective, it did. She was way more focused on seeing it play out than watching for readings. "This isn't fair! I just got you back!"

"And I should've never left!" The Ensigns could no longer hold back their tears. Holding each other close and tight as their emotions hit that breaking point. "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry..." Nonetheless, apologies didn't matter much right now. Not when he had bigger things to discuss. "Mariner...Beckett..." Especially when his breath was becoming shorter by the second. "I'm not...saying this because I feel I have to..."

However, unable to wait for him to say it, holoMariner decided to cut to the chase and kiss him. Holding his face with both hands before planting a huge kiss on holoBoimler's lips. An act he didn't stop but reciprocated immediately. Their emotions finally hit that peak where words wouldn't make them justice; only actions could convey what their hearts wished to say.

Not like Mariner could understand any of that from her perspective. Merely witnessing herself kissing Boimler with such passion made her nerves jump. Could barely watch for a few seconds before her eyes shot down, and she had to turn around. No matter how much she's seen until now, there was no way she could see that image and react normally.

"Computer, pause the program!" She did this to get a quick breather as she thought about what to do next. If there ever was a moment a malfunction would show itself, it would be this.

Yet, even before she looked at her PADD to check the readings, something inside told her it didn't matter. That looking at that screen wouldn't change how she felt in the slightest. Not like she cared much about proving her friends wrong at all.

But how did she truly feel about all this? Did she want to kiss Boimler? Not with the way he's been ghosting her. Would she feel bad if he died? Sure, there was no point denying that when she was alone with her thoughts. But those were two huge opposites in the scale of feelings. What if he came back? Would she be happy or even angrier? If he apologized, would she accept it? Did she want to forgive him, to begin with? What if he never came back; how would she feel then?

Mariner sighed, then asked herself the big question. Did she love Brad?

The more she thought of that word, the more unsure she felt. Feeling scorned and hurt by his leaving was one thing, but she wasn't sure if that meant anything more. It was the first time she was this conscious about the pain, about how much it had poisoned her. She could barely even call Brad his friend now.

"Dammit, Brad!" She punched the wall in a fit of rage, grunting and raging at the mere thought of him. "Why..." And that pain spread from her heart all over her body, turning into an odd sense of grief. "Why did you have to do something so shitty..."

She dammed him for leaving like that. Hated him for making her feel so confused. But then resented herself for hating him. As if a small part of herself still refused to hate him, and no matter how much she wanted to snuff that side, there was no way she could fully hate Boimler. It felt as impossible as forgiving him at that moment.

The more she seethed over him leaving, the more she wanted him back.

"..." Did it even matter, though? No matter what she did, be it leaving countless voicemails or torturing a hologram of him, the only one that could make Boimler come back was himself.

"Computer..." Maybe she did love him, and that's why she felt like this. "Erase this whole program. I don't want a speck of data left." Maybe the computer was up to something, but she felt better not knowing. Or it could be something else entirely. The pain of losing such a close friend and the grieving of their friendship.

But as the scenario began to fade around her, one thing was sure as she turned around to face the kissing couple. They did look kinda cute together, if you ignored all the blood, that is.