**** Starbase Kinsi **** Rangi had never tried to run backwards out of a wardrobe before and she made a bad job of it now. So great was her surprise at seeing the chest, she stepped sideways, half turning as she did so, missed the slight step, stumbled, took three teetering steps back and crashed to the floor with a resounding thump. By the time the luggage was maneovering itself through the gaping wardrobe doors,Rangi was half on her feet and already thinking of escape. From the corner of her eye she saw it step over the edge into the room, the clotheshangers swinging in crazy momentum above it and the door rebounding from its farthest point.As she reached the main door and glanced back with wide open eyes, she saw the luggage begin to follow and slammed her hand onto the 'close' button before the door had fully opened. Rangi bolted through the door like a whippet from a trap and ran a good three yards along the corridor before she slowed, stopped and looked back the way she had come.Taking a long steadying breath, she stood staring warily at the door to the VIP quarters. It remained closed and slowly Rangi relaxed her rigid posture Cameron had been wandering about the station for some time now. He had long since left the promenade. It had gotten quite rowdy on the promenade, many people milling about and several fights seemed to break out every where he went. He had lost track of where he was and ended up having to find his way through the guest quarters area. As he turned a corner he spotted a woman standing in the hall, motionless. Her breathing was a bit erratic. He decided to ask her if he could help and walked up behind her. "Everything all right miss?" he asked to the back of her head. Rangi had pushed back her hair and was smoothing her tunic, trying to instill some semblance of calm to her shattered nerves when a sudden voice made her almost jump out of her skin. "What!" she gasped taking two sudden steps sideways and realized she was addressing a tall grizzled man who looked at her quizzically. Cameron jerked slightly as the woman turned and barked out her word. He must have startled her for some reason, or something had already startled her. She looked familiar. He searched his thoughts for the reason. Rangi felt herself under scrutiny and hesitated a moment before replying."Yes...no...yes...well...no not exactly." She darted a glance at the sealed door and returned her eyes carefully to his face as though half expecting him to have sprouted two heads. Cameron leaned back at her reply and looked puzzled. She did not quite seem to know what was up and what was down. He then recognized her form the corridor some time before, the woman who seemed to have an imaginary friend and seemingly jubilant about it. As he looked her over, she seemed to be more familiar than having seen her down a hall. He still could not put his finger on why so he continued to look her over and search his memory. Looking puzzled a bit, and with a smile, he responded. "Are you sure? I mean . yes . no? You don't seem to be sure of your self." He motioned to her face, "But by the looks of it I would say no. Is there some thing I can do to help?" Rangi considered the offer and smiled weakly in response. "Thankyou for the offer..." she replied "...but I'm not exactly sure what the solution is." She looked back at the closed door for a split second, returned her attention to Cameron. "I was trying to get away from something...and I think I just might have" She smiled again, this time more brightly. "It may sound strange........" "Something?" he said quizically. He looked behind Rangi and then around the hall. Looking back to her he smiled, "Well I dont see something, I dont see anything. Looks like you have. What was it you were trying to evade?" Rangi hesitated, wondering how to phrase it."Well...it might sound weird to you but I ..well..I believe I'm being followed by some luggage...actually its a wooden chest...originally from a b..." "Luggage? " interrupted with an unbelieving tone. He looked around again and then continued: "You see moving luggage? how can that be frightening? After all what can luggage do? Spit cloths at you?" he said in a joking manner. Rangi smiled feebly at the jest."Its not quite as simple as that." she explained "It follows me...or turns up when I least expect it." Cameron nodded his head, "So were you talking to that luggage earlier,near a turbo lift a few hours ago? I happened to see you, or at least I thought it was you, talking to some one, but I saw no one." he asked. "Yes...I managed to evade it...but it tracked me down to our quarters..." Cameorn frowned a bit, "That was not nice." he looked down to Harvey, "I am glad you are not so mean Harvey." Rangi, glancing once more toward the door, looked sideways at Cameron and slowly down at the floor.She gave Cameron a wary look. "Harvey?" she asked quietly in a doubtful tone. Cameron heard Rangi mutter Harvey's name. In a bit of surprise he looked up, "Oh excuse me. I was feeling so at home on this base I forgot you cant see him." he smiled. He pointed to the floor where his imaginary companion was. "Harvey is a rabbit. He is a halucination of mine, from an injury long ago.Though most of the halucinations seemed to be eradicated, for some reason Harvey is still with me." He smiled and leaned in to whisper: "He is harmless, but dont let him know that, the thinks people are afraid of him and he likes the feeling of power." Rangi grew still. She slowly looked down at the floor half expecting to see a rabbit looking back at her.She leaned away slightly as Cameron bent to whisper in her ear. "He does?" she responded. "Right." She moistoned her lips and shifted her position. "Mr Sikes...has anyone else ever seen ..Harvey?" Cameron leaned back. "Of course not!" he said indignently, "he is part of my imagination! dont be silly." he smiled. "So where is your little friend?" he asked as he looked around. "Its not my friend!" Rangi said. "..and I really hope it doesnt come back.Its from a book....its a wooden treasure chest..with little feet." she added feebly. "Shane has a picture of it and somehow..its come to life and is latched on to me" She waited for Camerons reaction. "A chest with feet? no wonder you are so disturbed. That must be the most unusual thing around." Cameorn looked down at Harvey. "I agree I dont want to be around when it shows up." he looked back at Rangi. "May be you would be safe on my ship? well The ship I serve on... it is docked here at the station." Rangi smiled politely. "Well...thankyou for the offer...but I want to find Shane. He will know what to do with it.....I hope." Cameorn nodded, "As you wish, but if you change your mind we are docked at docking port 5 outer docking ring, section 3 level 12." It then dawned on him where he might have seen her. He interrupted the conversation for confirmation of where he had seen her before. "Excuse me. Have we met?" he asked realizing it sounded like some kind of cheap come on line. Rangi stopped in mid sentence and looked at him for a moment, taking in the gaunt face and slightly unkempt appearance of the man. "Errr....no....I dont think so." she answered with a slight shake of her head. "Sorry, But I really do think we have met. Are you perhaps a officer of Starfleet? Or once were?" He asked quizzically. Surprise at his persistence caused a small puzzled expression to cross Rangis face."Well...you're correct. I'm a Starfleet officer..currently aboard the Chimera which is here for R&R" He frowned at the her response of the ship posting. "I am sorry but you resemble some one I saw back on starbase 742. She was a medical officer there, an ensign if I remember right. Cant really remember, my time on that starbase was a difficult one and my memory fuzzier than a tarkalian pussy cat." "Aurora?" Rangi asked "742..Aurora...yes I was there...my first posting was as AMO to that base. I'm CMO now.." she smiled " ..and LtCommander...forgive me...but I dont recall your name...you are...?" Cameron bowed in a gentlemanly manner, "Cameron Sikes at your service." he returned to his normal posture." I was once in starfleet. A lieutenant commander on the starship Archer." his smile faded and a concerned look passed over him. "I had an accident on the Archer during a mission. I suffered head trauma and had delusions." he paused for a moment. "We might have met. Once on Aurora, I slipped in to a bad episode and beat up some Bajoran man on the base. I spent some time in the sick bay there and on the base under observation, so I am told." Rangis expression revealed a dawning recollection."Mr Sikes!" she said and held out her hand."I'm sorry..I'd almost forgotten the incident.It was just before an ASN course I took...but I checked you into the infirmary.Dr Audette was CMO then" Cameron smiled, "Ah so you are you.Good, then you are not an illusion from my trauma." He grinned and shook her hand in return. He then pointed over his shoulder, "This is quite a jolly place is it not? At first when I arrived I thought this was some stuffy drab star base run by the federation. But after having walked around a bit, I see there are quite a few nuts on board, is there an assylum near by and they have brought them here for holiday?" he asked wondering about the strange but comfortable behavior he had noticed. A thought struck her and catching back a mischievious smile she said:"An asylum?...err..no...I dont think so. Mr Sikes?The Bajoran man you mentioned.He is now a Colonel....and the Commanding Officer of Chimera. Bretam Keylor." Cameron leaned back and looked puzzled. "Really now. Well to be honest I never knew the man and never met him durring or after my recouperation. Glad to see I did not hurt him too badly. So you know him well?" Rangi gave a small shrug and smiled "Fairly well yes.He's an excellent commander... a marine." Cameron nodded. "Hrm.. well that is nice." He looked around a bit and then continued. "Well I should probably be going. The promenade is getting rather wild. I hope this SHANE you are looking for is not out there. Would hate to see you hurt, or all of those people scared by your footy chest." He smiled and winked. Rangi slowly smiled back thinking that Mr Sikes was a strange man but quite harmless. She looked down at the floor where a rabbit should be and up to Camerons smiling face. "I'll perhaps see you again Mr Sikes" she said Cameron nodded. "Aye. and remember, if you need a place to go.. there is the ship." He then looked around one last time. "Well the coast seems clear no chest in sight. Take care." He then motioned to Harvey, "Come on old boy lets get home." He then walked around Rangi and down the hall. "Bye..." Rangi said to the retreating figure. She watched Cameron walk away and saw him look down at his side from time to time and speak to something. For a fleeting moment, she thought she saw ...........a rabbit. *** End Log *** Cameron Sikes Former Federation Officer & LtCmdr Rangi Summers CMO/2XO USS Chimera