Haunted - Stardate 40315.4

Posted on 09 Nov 2020 @ 2:11pm by Grenkat
Edited on 09 Nov 2020 @ 2:26pm

He was walking down a corridor on the Boston. But this wasn't any ordinary corridor. This corridor was dark with shadows slowly creeping from the corners. The only light left came from the small blue glow of Grenkat's standard Piraktan clothes. His footsteps echoed through the ship as he carefully made his way through it. Where was he going? He didn't really know. There wasn't a need to think of a reason. He just had to keep moving, or else he'd get caught. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. He glanced behind him and simply saw the same dark, shadowy corridor that lay in front of him. What was he running from? He didn't know. He just had to keep moving.

The corridor seemed to go on and on. It never ended. Grenkat frowned, taking another look back behind him. And that's when he saw them. A shadowy figure. His heart fell into his stomach. He had to run. Grenkat immediately turned around and began sprinting down the corridor. As he did, he could hear the thundering footsteps of the figure behind him bounding closer. And they were getting closer.

There! The medbay! He could hide in there! He rushed towards the door and slammed against it as it refused to slide open. No! They were getting closer! Grenkat clawed at the door, attempting to get his fingers in the middle of the doors. They would not budge. He could here the footsteps approaching. No! The door had to open! He began banging on the door.

"Let me in! Let me in!" Grenkat shouted as he began slamming his fists against the door desperately as he hoped someone, anyone, would let him in. And at long last, the doors opened. Grenkat stumbled in to the sickbay.

The doors shut behind him, and Grenkat gave a sigh of relief. Turning around with his back to the wall, he watched the door for a few seconds, breathing heavily as he did. At the exact moment that he finally felt safe, the doors to sickbay opened for his pursuer. Grenkat froze as the shadowy figure lunged forward and grabbed Grenkat's throat, squeezing it hard as they raised him off from the floor. They then slammed him against the wall, and as soon as Grenkat's body hit the wall his legs and arms were suddenly restrained against it. Eyes wide, Grenkat slammed his wrists against the metal restraints in an attempt to free himself.

His heart pounding, and with nowhere else to go, he finally took the time to get a good look at his pursuer that was squeezing his throat. It was... Lounet! He let go of Grenkat's throat and let him hang from the restraints.

"You sure gave me a good chase, didn't you? But you couldn't run fast enough, tsk tsk." Lounet chided.

"Let me go, Lounet!" Grenkat demanded, ableit weakly.

"No, I think you need to learn a lesson." Lounet began lightly pacing before Grenkat, simply smiling at his old friend. "You coward. You couldn't turn around and face me. You had to run. You can't handle pain, can you?"

"I-...stop it! Shut up! I've fought for my people, I would have died for them!" Grenkat yelled back.

"Would you? You ran away. You left them to die. You rushed in to the bosom of Starfleet instead of staying where you were most needed. And you paid the price. You were tortured. You were assaulted. You worked through blood, sweat, and tears to get back to this universe. And for what? So you could continue to live in safety while the rest of your people go through what you only had a taste of in that other universe. What I had to go through."

Lounet took out a knife, and Grenkat's already fast paced heart rate began to speed up even more.

"It's time you learned the punishment cowards deserve." He raised the knife to Grenkat's throat and slashed it. Grenkat's mouth hung open in surprise and he violently convulsed against his restraints as blood began to spill from his neck.

"You are a sheep, a pig, and you will be gutted as such."

The last thing he saw was Lounet's wicked smile before he fell into darkness.

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Grenkat woke with a start. His breathing was rapid, and he quickly reached his hand up to his throat. It was fine, of course. But that didn't stop him from carefully tracing his fingers over where the cut had been. His bed sheets were tossed around and half of them were hanging off his bed. He couldn't stay here. He needed to get up.

He slowly slipped out of bed, taking one step and then another as he made his way into the bathroom.

"Computer, lights."

The lights in the bathroom flashed on, and Grenkat winced as his eyes adjusted to the brighter room. His face slowly came into view. He shivered and turned away from his reflection. He couldn't bear to look at it. Turning on the water, he washed his hands roughly.

He winced. Glancing around, he couldn't remember where he was. He knew he was safe here, but where was here? He went through each step of what had happened. His re-education had done a number on his memory. Rushed and botched, his memories would often get jumbled and he'd have to just keep going as if nothing happened. People couldn't know he was slowly losing it. They couldn't. It'd be perceived as weakness.

The Boston. He had gotten back to the Boston. Now he remembered. Breathing a sigh of relief, he dried off his hands.
He needed to get to work. Get to sickbay. Do anything to take his mind off what he had just experienced. Put distance between him and that nightmare.