Febwhump Day 9 - Necromancy
A/N: Julian is forced to participate in a ritual by a Bajoran cult, becoming a vessel for a malicious being. Set in mid-season 2.
If I had a strip of latinum for every time my body become somebody's personal vehicle, I'd have two strips.
Which isn't a lot, but it's ridiculous that it's happened twice to the same man.
When Vantika had taken control of him, he'd lied to his colleagues about the experience. That he'd had no memory of what had occurred or how long he'd been possessed for. At the time, it'd seemed like a good idea; it did save him having to write a lengthy statement for Sisko, after all. He didn't feel like talking about the experience, instead hoping to repress the memory and move on, despite the fact he'd watched his own hands carelessly murder another person.
This experience was no different. He could see everything around him; he felt his muscles and vocal cords working without conscious effort; even his breathing was no longer his to control. The only difference this time were the circumstances of the actual possession. Vantika had taken control during his sleep; this being was violently thrust into his cerebrum after observing a Bajoran ritual.
It had seemed innocent enough. A gravesite of an important Bajoran religious figure had been discovered, and (to his surprise) Commander Sisko had invited members of his senior staff to attend the blessing ceremony with him.
What no one had realised, however, was that the whole affair was an elaborate scam. Despite the apparent legitimacy of the deceased's identity - Kira had never heard of a Kai called Hender, but admitted that historical knowledge wasn't that advantageous during the Occupation - the doors of the temple were locked as soon as the ceremony began. Weapons were drawn on Julian and his colleagues, and he found himself being dragged away by a group of hooded figures. He was shoved onto a stone altar and strapped down with heavy ropes before an ominous Bajoran chant began to fill the air, sending chills down his spine.
He wasn't sure what was going on in the exact moment the entity took control, but his last voluntary act was to scream; not so much out of pain, but more so from terror.
He felt the entity's rage within moments of it asserting dominance. Random thoughts of violence, impatience and irritation were fighting alongside his own terrified ones in his cerebral cortex. What if the others don't find me? What if this time it's permanent?! What if they can't stop me and they have to-
Silence.
Julian was stunned. The entity was personally addressing him. Vantika had never done that. Excuse me, I'm the one in charge of this flesh…machine.
Not anymore you're not. I've been waiting too long for this.
"Eminence?" The leader of the hooded figures spoke. Julian thought he could detect a touch of hesitancy in his voice.
"It…is…I," The entity croaked. It initially struggled to work his human vocal cords, his own tongue feeling heavy in his mouth.
"We wish to offer our apologies for the delay in your return, Eminence," The figure pushed back his hood to reveal a young Bajoran man around Julian's age. He moved towards Julian and began to cut away the ropes binding his body. What set off alarm bells for him, however, was the sparkling red earring dangling from his right ear. "I-It took us time to ensure the events of the prophecy were occurring as foretold and-"
"This…body," The entity pushed his body off the table, breaking through what ropes had yet to be cut. His eyes cast downward as the entity used them to inspect his hands. "It…is…foreign."
"The ritual called for a young host from an enemy nation in order to ensure your resurrection," The leader explained nervously. "W-We could not use one of our own, a-and the Occupation ended-"
"Excuses," The entity hissed. It piloted his body off of the altar and walked slowly towards the leader, his legs wobbling as though they had not been used in months. "This…being…I am…weak."
"It will take some time before you feel comfortable in this new body, Eminence," The leader made a half-decent effort to sound reassuring, though Julian could easily tell he was frightened. "It has been many years since the day of your sentence-"
The entity whipped his head up, widening his eyes despite Julian's furious attempts to stop him. "How…long?"
A tense silence filled the chamber before the leader answered. "Five hundred years, four months and twelve days."
Julian barely had time to process this response before the entity emitted a furious roar, his vocal cords straining under the pressure. He watched as his hand was curled into an unnaturally tight fist and slammed into the leader's nose, the pain signals caused by the gesture seemingly going unnoticed. "That is…too long!"
Two other figures began moving towards him before the leader raised a hand to halt them. He wiped the fresh blood that had begun to spurt from his nose before facing the entity. "Eminence, we have faced trials in trying to restore you to a physical form. M-Many of us were persecuted after your sentences…W-We've been forced to retreat underground-"
The leader's words quickly vanished as the entity wrapped the same hand around his neck. Julian's panic only grew as he felt his grip growing tighter on the man's windpipe, his lips quickly beginning to show signs of cyanosis. Stop stop stop stop! Stop it! Let him go!
The entity ignored him and squeezed even harder. He felt the man's trachea tremble and collapse under his fingertips. Stop it! He's helped you, now let him go!
No.
Julian saw the life leave the man's eyes as his neck snapped, the nauseating sound echoing off the ancient stone walls. The entity's grip loosened at last, and he watched in horror as the leader collapsed in a heap at his own feet.
He desperately wished he could vomit. Even my chemoreceptors won't obey me! Unbelievable.
Silence. Your thoughts are irritating.
Julian scoffed. My thoughts are irritating?! I'm the one who has an unwelcome guest in their head!
The entity turned to face the remaining hooded figures, most of which had already retreated from their leader's corpse. He could feel the intensity of the entity's emotions, swirling around his head as it tried to process its next move. "Who is our…current enemy?"
Dammit. It's gotten better at speaking.
When the room remained silent, the entity slammed his fist into the altar, ignoring Julian's mental cry of anguish as the bones in his hand splintered. "WHO IS OUR ENEMY?!"
"The Federation, Eminence!" One of the figures declared, running forward and removing his hood. "I have just received word that they are attempting to break in and prevent the ritual from continuing!"
"Then they must…be…eliminated," The entity
Julian decided he was in desperate need of context. Who are you? What the hell is going on?
It is none of your concern.
Damn right it isn't! This is my body, and I demand to know who the hell is controlling it!
The entity was silent for a moment. I am the Emissary.
Julian couldn't help but laugh. Nice try. My commanding officer has been given that designation-
I am the Emissary. The entity bellowed. I am the chosen subject of the Pah-Wraiths. I am the one who will destroy the Celestial Temple and restore Bajor.
He decided this answer only provided more questions. But you're not Bajoran?
I am of Bajor.
But you're not a Bajoran, Julian retorted. You can't even get my body to function efficiently, which tells me you have either never possessed a physical form, or it's been a damn long time since you did. Both of which are also impossible, however the concept of consciousness-
I am of Bajor, and I will restore it.
Julian was about to ask it to clarify when the doors to the chamber were blown open, the sound resonating against their stone surroundings. Debris and dust were scattered, only parting as the group of senior Starfleet officers and Bajoran militia forced their way into the room, phasers at the ready. Oh, thank goodness-
"Doctor!" Sisko emerged from the newly-created entrance, phaser in hand. "Are you alright?"
Julian felt the entity twist his face into a sinister smile. "You…are…the…false one."
The warmth in Sisko's face evaporated instantly. He pointed his phaser at Julian's chest. "Identify yourself!"
"I…am…the…Emissary," The entity announced, raising his hands in triumph. "I…have…returned -"
"You're a false prophet," Kira snapped. "Leave this man alone - he's not even Bajoran! Why are you using him?"
Julian watched in simultaneous horror and awe as his body began to levitate from the ground. The entity tilted his vision away from his friends (who had refused to back away from the unnatural sight), instead glancing at the roof of the chamber. He could vaguely sense what it was intending to do, but he had no way of stopping it.
Please, please, please…just shoot me!
You have to kill me to stop it, there's no other way!
"It's a Pah-Wraith!" One of the militia officers shouted, firing his phaser at Julian. The beam slammed into his chest but the entity was unbothered. Julian's nerves still processed it, however, and he screamed silently as his body came alight with fire.
"I…have…returned!" The entity roared proudly.
"Oh yeah?" He heard Kira shout. "We'll see about that. Open fire!"
One by one he felt the phaser beams pummel into his body, each time sending a ripple of excruciating pain throughout his body. By the fifth strike, he could feel the entity's grip on him beginning to wane, and he decided now was a good time to wrestle back control. He pushed against the mental barriers in his mind, attempting to drive the entity away. You don't belong in here!
A fifth phaser blast hit him, and the barrier gave way.
The entity growled in frustration, trying to claw its way back into position. I will not be-
Oh shut up already.
A sixth phaser blast collided with his chest.
His body arched backwards as the entity was finally ejected, using his voice for a final scream before dissipating into the air around him.
The seventh blast came from nowhere.
He heard his own scream erupt from his throat before he quickly slammed into the ground, blissful unconsciousness finally claiming him.
****
The relief he experienced upon awakening in the infirmary was indescribable, but so was the pain.
The pain in his broken hand was roughly the same. He vaguely remembered one of his nurses holding him down as a sedative was pumped into him, but the next time he was fully conscious he found the pain had been reduced to a faint ache. Bone and muscle regenerators lay next to his biobed, and he quickly deduced it had taken multiple sessions to repair the damage.
"You, Doctor Bashir, are certainly a lucky man," Nurse Jabara had joked. "I don't think I've ever met a doctor who's ended up as a patient in his own practice as often as you."
He knew she was trying to make him feel better, but he didn't feel much like laughing. "Will I regain full function?"
"With another two or three sessions and some physiotherapy, yes."
The senior officers paid him a visit a few hours after that conversation. Sisko expressed more apologies than he thought he'd ever heard come from his superior officer, while Kira and Dax both had visible guilt in their eyes.
He also realised the situation was serious if Kira was drinking a raktajino at 0400 hours and off-duty.
The same sorts of questions after Vantika had been destroyed came to the conversation. What had happened after he was dragged away, what he remembered, what he could and couldn't control; he decided this time they needed to know the truth, and gave the most comprehensive descriptions he could. The blood drained from their faces as he spoke.
"For some reason, it had trouble forming certain words more than others, even after a decent amount of time in my body," Julian commented, leaning back in his seat. "I'm not sure if it's something to do with the structure of human vocal cords, or whether it was trying to speak Bajoran through my universal translator, but it struggled to communicate. Perhaps the current Bajoran dialect was unfamiliar to it."
"It's probably a good thing we'll never know," Dax answered. "It took seven phaser hits before it was incapacitated."
"Believe me, I know. I felt all of them." Julian said dryly, his expression softening upon seeing the flash of guilt in their faces. "I-I know, I know you weren't sure if it was me or not. I'm not holding any grudges. If anything, I appreciated being knocked out. It took the pain away."
Kira was staring into the bottom of her empty raktajino mug, a troubled expression across her face. "I've heard rumours for years that this cult was still active, but to actually see them…To see what lengths they were willing to go to…"
"I agree. It is disturbing," Sisko turned towards the doctor. "Is there anything else you can tell us about this entity; its name, its intentions?"
Julian shook his head despondently. "I could barely get any information out of it, sir. It only spoke to me when I seemed to genuinely annoy it."
"You couldn't peer into its mind or anything?" Dax asked.
"I'm afraid not," Julian paused for a moment, trying to think of the best analogy. "It was like constantly knocking on a door, and only getting to see or hear anything through the view hole. If I'm entirely honest, I'm not even sure it was a Bajoran. It seemed to act more like a spirit than anything."
"I think it would be a good idea for you to meet with some of the vedeks down on Bajor," Kira pushed her mug aside and gave him a serious look. "They'll have more knowledge about what that 'thing' was than any of us on the station, and they should be able to find out more about the ritual they tried to put you through."
Julian gave her a nod before an involuntary yawn escaped him. He flushed with embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, I-"
"No idea to apologise, doctor," Sisko interrupted gently. "We'll let you get some rest."
His colleagues departed with empathetic smiles and well wishes, leaving Julian alone with his thoughts.
And he was grateful that now, only one set of thoughts occupied his head.
