<<Commander Epic Terrakians Quarters>>

Epic lay flat out on the floor of his bedroom staring at the blank ceiling. It had been an emotionally exhausting day and the cool isolation was just what was needed. Still, faces haunted his unfettered mind. R'Laurent. Kaede. Arda.

Arda had been on his mind since they parted this afternoon. "`I trust you, Epic Terrakian. Some may not, but I do.'" She had said those words to him only a few hours ago. They echoed in his mind like a song.

All his life, people had told him they loved him, they hated him, they respected him, they feared him. No one had ever said, "`I trust you, Epic Terrakian.'" He didn't even know how important such words were to him until he heard them for the first time. It amazed him how strong it made him feel.

"`I trust you, Epic Terrakian.'"

He smiled. And because he was alone, he knew the smile was genuinely his own. It wasn't borrowed from the joy of another. He wondered what Arda was doing for dinner.

With a grunt of exertion, he rocked himself up into a standing position and moved to his desk. Only then did he see his message light blinking. He stabbed the retrieval button with his finger. The display showed a personal message from Lt. Comm. Janice Hargen.

"Uh oh.", he whispered, then wondered why he said it. He had nothing to fear from Janice Hargen. But, still, he knew he had upset her earlier. He couldn't feel it, but he saw it with his eyes. He was not aware androids could shed tears.

The message played:

=^= Commander Terrakian. I believe it would be of some interest to you and I both if we meet and talk. How is dinner tonight? If this time is convenient, please meet me in my quarters. I hope to hear from you. =^=

Epic stared at the silent screen for a long moment. The timber of Janice's voice was strong, her demeanor confidant. Dinner? In her quarters?

Two scenarios competed in Epics mind.

In one, the least likely, Janice Hargen had been so impressed with his commanding air and devilish good looks that she simply couldn't resist him.

In the other, the one he suspected would be the case, Janice Hargen, after determining that her `secret' was compromised, intended to beat him to a pulp and feed his pieces into the Hydroponics soylent.

He shrugged. Either way, he had to respond. Besides, it would be refreshing to get to know someone on a purely intellectual level. His whole life, he had always been privy to the emotional motives of others. Maybe tonight, he could just be himself, without the sympathetic emotional responses that seemed inevitable under ordinary circumstances.

"Computer.", he commanded. "Personal message to Lt. Comm. Janice Hargen...."

For a long while, he considered the best response to give, but decided to make his response short and concise. Whenever he tried to be loquacious, he always said something wrong.

"Commander Hargen. I will meet you at 19:00. See you then."

He stabbed the button again and sent the message.

`Feed my pieces into the Hydroponics soylent?', he snorted as he considered his own thoughts. `The weirdest crap pops into my head sometimes.'

He got up and headed for the shower. He still had an hour.