The IN BETWEEN

Posted on Mon Aug 1st, 2022 @ 6:57pm by Lieutenant JG Patra Rommel

Patra woke with a start to the sounds of birds chirping. She sat up and looked around, she was on an old bench made of logs and wearing her dress whites. As she slowly got her bearings she realized that the bench was in the middle of a meadow surrounded by trees. It reminded her of the Black Forest in Germany where she had grown up. “Very astute” said a voice she recognized immediately. She turned and there standing in the meadow was First Lieutenant Sabine in her camouflage fatigues, her red hair however was flowing down. “Sabine, how can I be seeing you, are you here to haunt me again?” Sabine smiled at Patra gently, “No, I have never ‘haunted’ you. All those times you thought I was it was your PTSD and Survivor’s Guilt getting to you. You really need to talk to a counselor about that, now that I am no longer available for you to unload on.” Patra looked around again, “Just what the hell is going on?” she asked. “Am I dead?” Sabine shook her head softly back and forth, “No, you may die or you may live. The choice will be yours. You are currently in the IN BETWEEN. The place were a person goes when they are at the brink of death but have not let go of their mortal coil. Few actually make it here, just those who have somehow sustained injuries or illness that hold them suspended between life and death. Right now there is a medical team and very many other concerned people busily trying to save you.” Patra cocked her head to the side “Then why are you here?” Sabine again smiled sadly “I am to be your sounding board or guide. You must decide which way you will walk on the path in front of the bench. One will lead to whatever afterlife you believe in the other back to life and all the pain and suffering you have suffered and will suffer.” Patra considered what she was told, she looked down at her dress uniform and saw the Tristar Cluster on her uniform “You know Starfleet awarded me the Tristar Cluster and a second Exceptional Performance of Duty Award for that FUBAR of a mission we where on. I would trade everything in the universe if I could only have you back Sabe. If I chose to follow the path towards my afterlife, will you be there?” Sabine again looked at Patra sadly “I cannot honestly say, I was allowed to come to the IN BETWEEN to guide you, but each and every being in the universe has their own version of the afterlife, mine may be different than yours.” Patra thought that over, “What if I chose not to follow the path in either direction, but remain here with you?” Again Sabine shook her head “It doesn’t work that way my beloved, I have a very limited time in the IN BETWEEN. I can already feel the call and force to return to my afterlife. I will soon answer the call and fade back to it.” Patra felt a tear run down her check “Tell me, is your afterlife a good one?” Sabine smiled brightly a gently touched the tear on Patra’s check, “Yes my beloved it is. I feel my time growing short. I will be leaving soon. I implore you to return to the living, find a new love, see a counselor for your PTSD and survivors guilt, reconcile with you parents and brother.” Patra turned and looked at the pathway in front of her, “Why, why should I not follow my path to my afterlife?” There was no answer, Patra turned and saw nothing but an empty forest glade. Tears flowed down her checks as her heart broke yet again at losing Sabine. She felt lost and bereft of direction. Why should I chose to live? She thought. I have done more than my fair share.? Then she sighed the Wayfarer needed her. She couldn’t leave Tezassaurez with all those young pups to repair the Wayfarer. The landing struts alone where going to be a bear of a problem to repair, she was not even sure they could save the front strut. The true nightmare was the damage to the primary hull, decks two and three and to add insult to injury the Wayfarer’s primary sensor pallet was trash. She sighed again though, she was so tired and she hurt both physically and mentally. She lay back down on the bench, I’ll decide later.

To be continued…