Anotherwhere Otherwhere, Mirror Mirror

UUUUUGE update today. I really wanted to get the story to this point so I've been rendering images and writing like crazy. I broke it up into three entries due to the image limits on blogs. Please read this one LAST. Read Anotherwhere 4 first.

************************************************

“She has no broken bones and no indication of a brain bleed,” Forest said, studying the scanner outputs with more than just visual senses.

Colin stood tensely at Rory’s feet, quietly holding one, needing the physical touch. Still in his blood-covered armor, he hadn’t left her side since they brought her back onboard the Dragonstone. She lay, naked and vulnerable, on the med bay table.

Rock had brought the grav cannon into play, firing danger-close to the group, obliterating the vast mass of the spider-creatures as they emerged, then fired directly into the portal itself, causing it to immediately snap closed.

“It was a calculated risk,” he later said. “I believed it would either seal the breach or rebound on us. Given you were about to be over-run by the alien life-forms it seemed an appropriate course of action.”

Dragonstone was again safely in warp and en route to Nueva Madrid station. Nueva Madrid was Dragonstone’s home port and a major trade hub for the Nueva Espanola system. Built into an asteroid it functioned as system-defense hub, naval base and trading port.

“Then why is she still unconscious?” Colin asked.“

That is an interesting question,” Forest replied.

The NCI looked human to all but a close examination. His ‘skin’ wasn’t quite ‘natural’ looking but you had to look very closely to notice. It was more due to a lack of imperfections than imperfections per se. He appeared to be a middle-aged, fair-skinned human with a shaven head. In actuality he was a three hundred year old AI temporarily residing the the NCI body.

“There’s no reason for her to be unconscious,” Forest went on. “And I’m not sure she’s technically ‘unconscious.’ Her brain activity is quite significant at the moment. Were it not for the evidence before us, looking at these readings I would say she was both conscious and interacting with someone.”

Rory walked through blackness. She was naked but felt no discomfort, neither cold nor hot. She wasn’t sure why she was walking but ‘knew’ there were answers in this direction. Answers to what, she was unsure, but answers.

A figure appeared in the distance, walking towards her.

“Just a reflection,” she said, getting closer, “But what’s reflecting back at me?”

As she got closer she realized that it wasn’t a reflection. It was her, but not. There were subtle differences. Her hair, how she moved, how she held herself. Close but not exact yet the not-mirror image of her had the same look of wonder on her face. They came within reach of each other and both Rorys reached out.

Their hands touched.