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Captain Riker has summoned me to his ready room. I have never been on the bridge or inside the captain's ready room. Although it is not normal for children to be permitted on Deck 1, I feel no pleasure in the honor. I haven't been asked to come here for a commendation. No, I suspect some of the crew members would rather send me to the brig, if it were possible to contain me.

I step inside the captain's private room without pressing the annunciator. Why bother with protocol as if it would better my predicament?

"Shannara," Riker says with a smile. "Have a seat."

"I'd rather stand if that's all right with you."

I sense his discomfort in my choice, but hold my ground. Placing my hands behind my back, I let him know that I am neither afraid nor concerned about his judgment.

"As you're probably aware, I spoke with your parents a little while ago. They're concerned about your recent behavior. Your father tells me that you went against his wishes and spent several hours at one of the Alkalain villages."

"That is a parental matter. Why should you be concerned?"

"You know why."

"I wasn't hurting anyone. In fact, he should be pleased that I managed to make a couple friends. Their families are requesting transport aboard the Enterprise."

"Shannara, this isn't about making friends. You accepted a gift from Q and even after your father explained why you shouldn't use it, you went ahead and magically healed him. Starfleet medical technology would have produced the same results if you had complied with his wishes."

"At a much slower rate. I didn't want my father to suffer, while I searched for a doctor."

Alth thisough Riker brings his hand to his mouth as though musing over the logic of my statement, I sense frustration from him. "If you can't see the moral wrongness in this on your own, then I don't know how to make you see it. You're not behaving like your normal self. Even Data has come to me, expressing his concerns."

"Maybe I should leave the Enterprise."

With a grave expression, the captain asks, "What's stopping you?"

"Not much." Without waiting for a dismissal, I turn abruptly and walk out of his ready room. I don't need anyone to tell me how to manage my life. They believe I don't know what's best for me. They're wrong. Q has enlightened me to the possibilities that lie out their beyond a mortal persons reach. I do not wish to be confined to this starship, nor this mortal existence.

If only I knew where I *do* want to go.

Deciding I can't return to my quarters, I opt to visit Data. He is far more intelligent than anyone else on this starship and if someone is to understand me, he will. As an android he is quite possibly immortal.

I find him listening to a Mozart composition, painting his interpretation of a Bolian thunder storm, and analyzing an encrypted message downloaded to his data padd. His multi-tasking skills used to amaze me when I first became his student. Watching him now, waiting for him to respond to my presence, only makes me feel restless.

"Shannara, did you have a question concerning your last lecture?"

I shake my head. "No. I'm ready for a test on mitosis."

He chuckles as he sets his pallet down. "Hold on. There is no rush. There will be plenty of time to review on Monday."

"I don't need a review or any time to study. Don't you understand? I was ready for testing the minute you finished your lecture."

His smile fades as he realizes what I'm telling him. "So it is true? You've accepted Q's power?"

"Do you hate me now?" Of all the people I've known and cared about during the nearly twelve years of my existence, I value Data's opinion of me the most. Without Data, I would have nothing left to tie me to this universe.

"Of course not," he says, obviously surprised by the question. "I only dislike your recent behavior. Lately you have been arrogant, presumptuous, and disobedient of all authority."

"You're upset, because I no longer see you as a role model. Don't worry; I still like you too." I turn away from him, placing my hands on my hips. "You see, Q has helped me realize my full potential and there's nothing wrong with exploring that. I know you've tried, and you've been a good mentor, but now I'm ready to expand beyond anything you can teach me." I turn back toward him. "Don't be sad."

My commbadge chirps before he can respond. "Shannara Rozhenko, this is your Mother. Please acknowledge."

Rolling my eyes, I tap my commbadge. "Yes. What do you want?"

"We have visitors who wish to speak with you."

As she finishes, I suddenly sense their presence and gasp in surprise. "I have to go!" I tell Data and rush out of his quarters.

When I enter our quarters, I find Mother sitting at the table with Medic Parkin and another Akodian, a young male. Our guests stand to acknowledge my arrival. "Greetings, Shannara Rozhenko," Parkin says. "It is good to see you again."

"Likewise," I respond, though I eye her suspiciously. Why are they interested in me now? If they think I'm going to allow them to run more tests on me, they're going to be disappointed.

"Please, let's all sit." Parkin gestures toward the seat on Mother's left.

Shrugging, I walk around to the other side and comply. There's no harm in listening to what they have to say. It ought to give Q and I something to laugh at later. We don't need their wormhole. With a mere thought, the Q can already travel to more places than Akodian wormholes can take us.

"We understand that you have formed an alliance with the Continuum," Parkin says as though it is common knowledge throughout the galaxy. I turn toward Mother, expecting some type of response from her. With her arms folded, she doesn't even blink her eyes. Stoicism is unbecoming of her. Has she not only blocked her empathic abilities, but her own emotions as well? I probe her mind for any feeling and momentarily drop my guard when I realize she has given up hope of winning me back from the Continuum. I never thought of Mother as such a weakling.

"The members of the Continuum have accepted me into their fold on probationary terms," I explain. " They understand my need to better myself and to escape this mundane existence."

This receives a slight turn of the head from Mother, though she still offers no comment.

"Probationary. Good," Parkin says, bringing her hands together as in prayer. "Then you are not a full member yet. My people are prepared to make you a counter offer. Markum?" She holds a hand out toward her colleague and he hands her a data padd.

"Counter offer!" I laugh mockingly at the notion. " You're no match for us." Raising my feet to rest them on the table, I lean back. " However, you may proceed. It will be humorous to listen to your proposal."

"I assure you this is a very serious offer."

"She takes nothing serious anymore," Mother breaks in. "We mean nothing compared to her high Q standards."

"We share your concerns, Deanna. The Continuum corrupts unconditionally, because it is governed by the philosophy that power and knowledge are synonymous. My people believe that if you seek harmony, knowledge will follow."

"But you're mortal!" I interrupt.

"The Q may be immortal, but that doesn't necessarily make them omnipotent. Why else would there be so much heated competition among them?"

"They only want us to believe they're immortal," Markum says with a sneer.

I smirk at this and lift a hand to my chin in feigned interest. Actually, I don't want to let them know that I also doubt the Q's claim of immortality.

"We are not here to debate the Q's immortality," Parkin says. "My duty now is to explain the virtues of choosing a different lifestyle. We want you to serve as a spokesperson for our people."

"But you already appointed Captain Picard as your liaison."

"We were thinking of offering you an Ambassadorial position. My leaders have decided that it would be in our best interest to select an off-worlder as our icon. You could better our relations with other races and thus strengthen our influences throughout the galaxy. Should you accept, you would have to undergo years of rigorous training."

"Where would I live during all this?"

"On our homeworld, Aki."

I should jump at the opportunity to live on a planet, but something holds me back. Would I miss my parents or little brother? Would I miss spending time with Data and learning from him? Maybe, I decide. However, what is really holding me back is thoughts of betraying Q.

There is much you do not know about my people. That's our fault, I admit. Even when we agreed to forge an alliance with the Federation, we kept certain information classified. Perhaps that was an error in our judgment, but we didn't want potential allies like Captain Picard to suspect we were anything like the Q. Truth of the matter is, my people have evolved rapidly over the past several centuries and the Q are becoming jealous of the competition."

"Competition! What power could you offer me that could even closely match the gift Q gave me?"

"Nothing like the arrogance that you seem to display with pride. A little respect for others would do you good. The Q are liked by no one, including one another. In your arrogance, you want to know what we can offer you besides respect and loyalty. I'll forgive you for being so demanding, because you're a new Q and hopefully can still be persuaded away from the Continuum. The Akodians have developed a technique called ' mind convergence' and I believe with your telepathic skills, you can develop this talent."

Mother lets out a hearty Betazoid laugh. "Mind convergence! Why does that sound so much like mind rape? I thought you said you were better than the Q."

I feign boredom by folding my arms and staring off into space, but cannot deny the intrigue I feel.

"Hear her out, please," Markum says.

"For all their power and control," Parkin continues, "the Q have never had any telepathic abilities among them." She pauses for effect and I am unable to resist the urge to meet her gaze. "Until they made Shannara a member. They may have resisted you, even ridiculed you at first, but the truth is they're desperate to have one of your kind among them."

"You want me to believe that throughout the entire Continuum there has neither been a telepath born, created or invited to join?"

"Invited, yes. Until you joined, none had accepted admission. The Q have felt threatened by our growing strength for many years now. We have abilities that have been unobtainable by anyone inside the Continuum. I believe that's why your Q sought you out, as a prize to his people."

"Prove can't these abilities of yours are so wonderful," I demand. " Prove you can do something, anything better than a Q!"

She lowers her head slightly and raises her eyebrows to stare at me, piercing my mind. I feel her probing my thoughts and then a moment later, I'm sensing her and feeling her emotions. Inside my mind, I see flashes of her life: childhood, adolescence, her years of medical school, meeting her husband, having his children and suffering as he lay dying in the bedroom they shared.

I stand up abruptly, breaking the connection between us. " I've seen enough. I require time to think."

"Don't choose to live a life of arrogance and loathing. We among the Akodians appreciate all living things."

"I thought I taught her the right values as well," Mother interjects.

I walk around the table dismissively and as I approach my bedroom, say, " I'm going to my room. We'll continue this conversation when I'm ready. " As the door slides closed behind me, I growl low in my throat. The Akodians only want me, because the Q already have me. They probably expect me to serve as a double agent for them, someone who can provide them with a direct insight into how the Q developed their superior powers. I don't have all the answers yet and if I did, I'm not sure I'd ever want to play a pawn in their mind war.

"Q!" I call out. "I need to speak with you now."

"What is so important that you had to interrupt a game of planet crochet?" he asks as he flashes onto the edge of my bed.

"Are you aware that the Akodians are interested in stealing me away from you?"

"Did you resist? Did you turn them into Gretekain toads?" He doesn't sound overly concerned. Why does he have to perceive everything as a game?

"Resist, yes. I haven't taken any drastic measures. I want something from you first."

"From moi? Do tell."

"I want you to prove to me that the Q are immortal."

"Throw yourself out an air lock or jump inside a plasma stream. Either ought to convince you."

"Or kill me, so it wouldn't matter. I don't think so. Find another way."

"Very well. If you wish to put the Q on trial, I'll call witnesses in our defense." With a wave of his hand, he brings Captain Janeway before me. "Pardon the intrusion Madam Captain."

"Q, why have you brought me here?" Janeway demands. She glances at me with the same accusatory expression she affords Q. Has he told her already of my acclamation into the Continuum?

"This child wishes to have proof that all Q by nature are immortal. After you've satisfactorily answered my questions, I'll return you to your little ship." He stands and faces Janeway. "When we first met, you freed another Q from entrapment. What did he desire more than anything?"

"To die."

"But because of his immortality, he couldn't commit suicide, correct?"

"Yes, that's why he requested asylum aboard Voyager, so he could become mortal and end his life." She nods toward me. " Did you tell her that once he became mortal, you assisted in his suicide by providing him with hemlock?"

"He needn't since you've told for him," I say. " Thank you, Captain Janeway. You can return to wherever and whatever you were doing." With a wave of my hand, I send her back.

Q turns toward me expectantly. " Now do you believe me?" Q asks.

"I can't pass judgment based on one testimony. You said ' witnesses.' Bring on the next one."

"Fine. If you insist."

Taking Janeway's place, Captain Jean-Luc Picard looks around the room in bewilderment. "Q! Why have you brought me aboard the Enterprise?"

"I want you to tell Shannara a story about the time the Continuum threw me out and made me vulnerable to all your human frailties."

"Made you mortal, you mean."

"See?" Q says, favoring me with a grin. "He corroborates my claim as well. Fill her in on the details, Jean-Luc. Do tell her the horrid story."

"He handled mortality miserably. He didn't know how to eat or sleep. When his life was threatened, he behaved cowardly." Picard sighs, resigned to add more. "That is until he realized the only way to save the Enterprise was by sacrificing himself to his enemy. He stole a shuttlecraft and piloted it toward the Calamarain. Just before he could complete this kamikaze mission, however, the other Q stepped in and reinstated his membership. Once again, he was made immortal, all-powerful--and annoying."

"Quite enough," Q says. " Thank you, mein Capitone." He waves Picard out of the room.

"No more interviews with Starfleet captains. The Continuum has to have had a beginning. I want to meet the first Q. Let me see if he's still alive and agile or old and decrepit."

Q shakes his head. " You really don't want to meet him."

"Yes, I do and you want me to as well if you really want to convince me."

"It's quite difficult to get in to see him. He's a very busy Q. Why the last time I placed myself on the waiting list to meet him, it took nearly a year for my number to come up. He doesn't react kindly to misuse of his time either. He will tell you that any respectable Q would accept their immortality on faith."

Any respectable Q wouldn't back down on a fight either, I think. Folding my arms, I say, " I don't care. Get me a number. I'll wait a millennium to see him if I have to."

He sighs heavily. "You are a most stubborn Q." Do I hear pride in his voice? "Very well." With a snap of his fingers, we exit the Enterprise and enter the Continuum. Following Q down another corridor, I notice two figures standing outside a closed door. As we draw closer, they focus on us, each curious about the nature of our visit, but maintain their stance like loyal soldiers. "Good evening, Q," my Q says with a lilt. "How long is the waiting list for Q today?"

"There is no waiting list," the one to our left responds. " He stopped receiving nearly two centuries ago."

"Why?" My Q tries to walk past the other two only to have them move in closer, blocking his path. "Has he gone into asylum?"

"No," I reply, surprising everyone. I'm sensing someone in agony inside the room. "He's dying."

The guards share a look of surprise. "This is our new budding telepathic Q," my Q explains. "She can sense whatever you are feeling and the Q you are keeping inside that room as well."

"It's been kept a secret for far too long," the one on the right says to the other. With a nod, they both step out of the way and permit us passage.

Even sensing the first Q's pain, I'm not prepared for the ghastly sight that awaits us. Lying on a bed, hooked to several medical gadgets, is an old man barely clinging to life. He is conscious, but disoriented and unable to keep his eyes open for more than a moment at a time, though the room is bathed in a soft light. My Q and I step up to him, assuming positions on opposite sides of the bed.

"Q, I had no idea this was happening to you," my Q says.

Another Q walks into the room, wearing a white cloak and a stethoscope around his neck. " I've been treating him, but I'm afraid the end is inevitable."

My Q slowly pulls his gaze away from the dying man to meet the doctor's. Nearly in tears and fighting emotional collapse, he asks, " How long does he have?"

"One, maybe two."

"Years?!"

"centuries, actually. Apparently, our deaths are marked with a longevity paralleling our lives. I wish I could tell you he isn't suffering."

The dying Q mumbles something inaudible and I lean toward him to listen more closely. " Don't," he manages.

I puzzle over this single word delivered with great insistence and realize he is begging me not to spread news of his fatal illness throughout the Continuum. Doing so would quite probably unravel the already-thin threads holding their universe together.

"We should let him rest now, please," the doctor says, ushering us out with a wave of his arm. He could send us away inside a Q-flash, but instead allows us to walk out freely.

For a long moment, my walk down the corridor with my Q, neither of us speaking. I sense his bewilderment and ability to voice what he's feeling right now. I must give him time to analyze his internal conflict and let him come around on his own terms. Finally, he stops and with a wave of his hand, creates a bench for us to sit on.

"I've always believed all Q were immortal and omnipotent," Q says, bowing his head. " Since you came along, you've managed to dispel a fantasy an entire race has been living for millions of years. Does this give you any amount of satisfaction?"

"No. I'd give anything to take back my demands," I reply. Placing my hands between my legs, I try not to fidget. " Maybe I'm not fit to be a Q. I hereby relinquish my membership in the Continuum. " I stand and turn to face him.

"You can't be serious! If anything, you've proven your worth more today than ever before. You didn't back down from your challenge and you won. Why aren't you taking pride in that? Gloating even."

"When I leaned down to listen to the first Q, he managed to utter a single word clearly: ' don't.'"

"I heard him."

"Then how can you talk about gloating? We must honor his wishes. Letting the other Q know would only cause chaos throughout the Continuum. There's too much animosity among them already. Revealing this would probably cause another civil war. I know you don't want that."

"Of course not. And I don't want to see you leave either."

"If you make a pact with me now not to divulge his condition with anyone, I'll reconsider staying in the Continuum." Now I'm resorting to giving Q an ultimatum. Have I come this far only to repeat my history? Suddenly, I begin to realize why Mother has been so upset with me. It's almost as though I'm standing in front of a mirror again, only this time instead of looking for physical changes I'm peering into my soul. The dark image shames me.

Q looks up at me, his eyes filled with mixed emotions. "Consider my lips sealed," he says. " Your reasoning is sound. You would make a great politician among the Q. Maybe you will serve as the cohesive agent our people have been seeking for the past several millennia."

"Another offer. I will require time to think over my options. Let me return to the Enterprise without your following me and I will give you my answer soon enough."

I glance at the chronometer before stepping out of my room. Sometimes when I visit the Continuum, I lose time when returning to this universe. Fortunately, it's only a little later than when I left. The Akodians are still sitting at the table with mother awaiting my answer. A part of me regrets having to face them with my decision to decline their offer.

As I approach them, Parkin makes to stand and utters, " Greetings." I hold a hand out before she comes to a full stand.

"I'm sorry, but I've decided not to accept your offer. The Federation is a large organization, so I'm sure you'll have no trouble finding someone else suitable." From the corner of my eye, I notice Mother's disappointment. So she would rather I go with the Akodians than stay with Q.

"This disappoints me more than you will probably ever realize. The offer will remain open, should you change your mind."

"I assure you I won't. Now if you would excuse me, it's time for my tutoring."

"Ha!" Mother lets out a nervous laugh. "If you're omniscient, then why are you wasting Data's time?"

I shake my head, not wanting to deal with her medling right now. "He's the only friend I have aboard the Enterprise. He does not feel as though I'm wasting his time. Don't worry, I'll be back in about to hours."

*****

Data is surprised to see me. "I was under the impression that you no longer required my mentoring."

"Please, forgive me for my earlier behavior," I say with a slight whine. Although I sound pathetic and neither deserve his forgiveness nor his understanding, I stand before him begging for both. "My friendship with you means more than anything to me, and I'll hate myself if I've jeopardized it."

"I would like very much to remain your friend. However, Shannara, you must realize that if you continue along this path you've chosen, you will find it difficult to make any new friends."

As long as I have Data, I don't need anyone else. He is my mentor, role model, friend and companion. For Data, I will remain on board the Enterprise. "Thank you, Data. I'd appreciate it if you'd give me another music lesson today."

He smiles and retrieves our instruments. Together, we sit on his sofa and play Mozart. For a couple of hours, I'm able to live the fantasy that there's no better home for me than in this universe aboard this ship.