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have been possessed by an alien entity, so she could not trust anyone. | have been possessed by an alien entity, so she could not trust anyone. | ||
On her return, Serah hid the ambassador mere minutes before the attack | On her return, Serah hid the ambassador mere minutes before the attack | ||
while making it look like he had been killed. She also set sabotage devices | while making it look like he had been killed. She also set sabotage | ||
so that when a cloaked Romulan warbird intercepted them, it would be | devices so that when a cloaked Romulan warbird intercepted them, it would | ||
able to send a signal to disrupt the LEX's shields and beam the ambassador | be able to send a signal to disrupt the LEX's shields and beam the | ||
to safety. | ambassador to safety. | ||
Unfortunately, the LEX's Vulcan chief engineer, LT Shaav, found Serah, | Unfortunately, the LEX's Vulcan chief engineer, LT Shaav, found Serah, | ||
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terrified ensign. In order to determine what had happened to Nanclus, | terrified ensign. In order to determine what had happened to Nanclus, | ||
Shaav subjected Serah to a to a forced mind-meld. During the meld, Serah | Shaav subjected Serah to a to a forced mind-meld. During the meld, Serah | ||
relived several key life memories including her last days with Michael and | |||
traumas on Telani VII | her supressed traumas on Telani VII at Blake's hand. | ||
Blake's | |||
To Serah's relief and anger, Shaav turned out to have been recruited by | To Serah's relief and anger, Shaav turned out to have been recruited by | ||
the known 31st Century time traveler LT Daniels. By the time of the meld, | the known 31st Century time traveler LT Daniels. By the time of the meld, | ||
Daniels had already approached Captain Rafe, ensured the sabotage devices | Daniels had already approached Captain Rafe, ensured the sabotage devices | ||
were removed and then brought the involved parties to meet the hidden | were removed, and then brought the involved parties to meet the hidden | ||
ambassador. | ambassador. | ||
On being confronted, Nanclus unexpectedly took Serah hostage and beamed | |||
away to the cloaked Romulan Warbird TERINAX. There Serah learned that the | |||
learned that the Ambassador had never been in any danger. The | Ambassador had never been in any danger. The "assassination" had been a | ||
"assassination" had been a ruse to destabilize Federation-Romulan relations | ruse to destabilize Federation-Romulan relations. The mastermind was a | ||
future version of Nanclus himself. This elder Nanclus and his ship came | |||
from a ruined Alpha Quadrant. He hoped to steer the Empire into a war | |||
that would see Romulus emerge strong enough to deal with the coming | |||
threats (presumably the Borg and Dominion). The younger Nanclus, however, | |||
emerge strong enough to deal with the coming threats. | did not agree with his elder's plan once its full implications had been | ||
disclosed. He was further revulsed by his older self's insistence on | |||
killing Serah who had done so much to further their plans. | |||
Conceiving a desperate plan to save them, the younger Nanlcus had Serah | |||
that | brought to him on the pretense that he would rape and then murder her. | ||
by his | Already terrorized repeatedly by recent events, the threat of this final | ||
trauma pushed Serah beyond the breaking point even as Nanclus assured her | |||
the | that he would not harm her. The damage to her psyche was only compounded | ||
when by neccessity she helped Nanclus lure his older self to the room to | |||
slit his throat. | |||
Serah knew the older Nanclus was ultimately responsible for her suffering | |||
in the last 24 hours and thought she could take pleasure at watching his | |||
death. She was devestated to realize in that vengeful moment that she | |||
could never be the same person again. In an effort to redeem herself, | |||
she persuaded Nanclus not to torture the guard who had brought her in. | |||
Serah's compassionate gesture led Nanclus to first try convincing the | |||
captive Centurion to help him take over the ship and defuse the incident. | |||
Serah was returned to the LEXINGTON where she immediately attempted to | |||
resign her commission. Captain Rafe reluctantly allowed Lieutenant | |||
Daniels to take the battered Ensign back to the 31st Century where their | |||
advanced therapies could help heal the traumas that history had never | |||
meant for her to endure. Serah Riley returned to duty with her | |||
psychological symptoms under control. The lasting damage to her | |||
well-being remains unclear as of SD 2261.018. | |||