"Soul of a Socialator"
	(By Sharon Monroe)

     "Over here, Cassiopeia!"
     Cassie smiled hurriedly at the man in the life pod and dashed to
Dr. Salik's side.  It was another of the technicians from the fire
control team.  They'd managed to control the potentially deadly and
explosive fires near the solium storage pods, but there were over two
dozen men and women injured.  Life center was swamped with burns,
broken bones, minor concussions, and smoke and chemical
near-asphyxiation.
     Salik grabbed the pain-killing hypo from her hand and continued
his examination of the pale youth on the exam table.  "Tell Paye not to
put away the bone laser yet.  This kid's got a broken arm, and some
hairline fractures through the wrist bones.  Go ahead, Jenna can help
me with the burns."
     Cassiopeia nodded and ran to get Dr. Paye's attention.  In a
moment, Jenna was dashing by for more bandages, and the two blonde med
techs were helping Paye set up the bone laser for the injured young
man.
     "Cassiopeia!"										
     Cassie looked up and saw Salik beckoning to her from across life
center.  Her shoulders drooped for just a micron, then she smiled
apologetically at the group around the bone laser and hastened away. 
This whole duty shift had been one long dash from patient to patient,
and the rest of the staff was as harried as she was.
     "Yes, doctor?" she asked, pushing aside the hair she hadn't had
time to brush in centars.
     "Help this young man to a bed in the other chamber, then take a
break.  You've been working pretty hard.  There's only a few people
left here, and we can manage them in a few centons."
     Cassie nodded, and dropped a professional smile on the
golden-haired man sitting on the table.  Man?  He wasn't really much
more than a boy.  Cassie doubted he was really eighteen yahrens old.
     "Hi.  I'm Cassiopeia," she said, introducing herself as Salik
hurried off to another patient.
     He smiled back, very shyly, almost blushing.  "My name is Dillon,"
he blurted out.  He rose to unsteady feet, and nearly fell back on the
table.
     "Oh, careful!"  Cassie offered him an arm, helped him to a
steadier stance.  "I heard some of the others mention your name.  I
understand you're a bit of a hero."
     The time, the boy did blush.  "I just did what I had to," he said,
looking embarrassed through his shrug.
     "You saved two of your friends' lives, if I heard right," she
continued with just the right amount of praise in her voice.
     The boy seemed tongue-tied, and didn't say another word as
Cassiopeia helped him to the next chamber, then into a bed.  He pulled
the blanket over his bare chest as if he were afraid she might notice
his maleness.
     "I'm a med tech, Dillon.  You don't have to be embarrassed around
me," she said, trying to be professional and reassuring at the same
time.  "You just get some rest for now.  I'll drop in on you later, if
you like."
     He nodded and buried his head in the pillow, eager to obey her
instructions.
     "Thanks, Cassiopeia."  He watched her walk away with longing in
his blue eyes.
     "Hi, Cass.  Ready to go?"
     Cassiopeia looked up in surprise.  "Starbuck!  Oh, no!  I forgot! 
Do you think we could postpone that excursion of yours?  I've been so
busy here, I really think I'm too tired..."  She turned her most
appealing gaze on the handsome warrior.
     Starbuck managed to hide his disappointment, shrugged his
shoulders, and smiled.  "Okay, I guess, if you're too tired.  Can I
walk you back to your quarters?"
     She smiled gratefully and took his arm as they left.

* * * *

     Cassiopeia made a point of stopping by the shy young man's bed at
least once every duty shift.  For some reason, Salik didn't release him
when the others were gone.
     "Hi, Dillon," she said gaily.  "How are you today?"
     "Hi," he responded eagerly.  "I feel great, but Dr. Salik wants to
keep me here for a few more days.  I want to get back to my team."
     "You have to obey doctor's orders," she told him a smile.  "Excuse
me for a moment, will you?"
     Dr. Salik was still frowning when she reached his desk.
     "Is something wrong, doctor?  I was just talking to Dillon..."
     Salik silenced her with a wave of his hand.  "No, nothing's wrong
with that."  He sighed deeply.  "Poor kid.  We just finished all of his
exam and lab reports.  In saving those two friends of his, Dillon
exposed himself to some severe pluton radiation.  He's got maybe a
secton to live."  The unhappy man threw the readout to his desk.
     Cassie turned pale.  "Oh, no," she whispered.  "Have you told him? 
His family?"
     Salik shook his head.  "That's what's even harder.  He was the
only survivor of his family.  There's no one left to tell.  And there's
no one to tell Dillon, either."
     "What do we do?"
     Salik looked her square in the eye, drawing a deep breath. 
"*I'll* tell him.  I'm his doctor, much good it's doing him."
     Cassie watched in silence as the doctor slowly walked over to
stand at Dillon's bedside.  Salik spoke quietly for a while; she
couldn't hear what he said, but it was obvious when the young man knew.
     "No!" Dillon shrieked, nearly throwing himself at Salik.  "You're
wrong!  You've got to be!  I feel fine!  I'm not dying!  I *can't* be
dying!"
     It took a sedative - and two med techs to administer it - to get
Dillon's hands off the doctor's throat and get him back in bed.
     Before she went off duty, Cassiopeia stopped to see Dillon.  He
was lying very still, staring at the ceiling, eyes wide and
tear-filled.  Seeing the lost, lonely agony there, it was all she could
do to keep herself from crying.
     "Hi, Dillon," she began gently.  The room was on night simulation;
his pale face turned to her, nearly sobbing.
     "Did you know?"
     "Not until the moment before he told me," she said very softly.
     "I don't want to die, Cassie, I'm afraid of dying.  Please don't
let me die."
     His words went straight to her heart.  He reached out a hand and
touched her arm pleadingly.  She put both arms around him, holding him
close.  After a moment, he grabbed her tighter, in an almost painful
clutch, the hold of a fearful child clinging to the only good thing
he'd ever know.
     "I wish I could help you," she murmured.  "I wish there was
something I could do to make you safe and well."
     "I'm scared of dying.  I'm scared of the dark.  I don't know
what's on the other side, and I don't want to find out.  Don't let me
die, don't let me die..."
     "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."
     Cassiopeia stayed on duty late, waiting until the young man
finally fell asleep before leaving.  When she arrived at her quarters,
she found an annoyed Starbuck waiting for her.  She couldn't muster a
smile; her heart still ached with Dillon in life center, dreaming of
death.
     "You forgot again.  Must've been another hard shift."
     "Harder than you know, Starbuck.."
     "Would've been nice to let me know.  I'd've taken Apollo and
Boomer up on their invitation. I'm sure Athena would've been free to
join me."
     "Starbuck, please.  I don't have time for it tonight.  If you want
to take Athena to the triad finals, go ahead.  I just don't feel up to
it."
     "You don't feel up to a lot of things these days.  Besides, the
game's half-over."
     "I'm sorry, Starbuck.  That's all I can say."
     After a moment, Starbuck nodded.  "Me, too, I guess.  Didn't mean
to upset you.  I understand about duty shifts being tiring.  Sleep
well, Cass."
     She gave him a grateful look.  "I'll try.  Good night, Starbuck." 
A gentle kiss, and Cassiopeia was glad to retire.  Starbuck drifted
back to the pilot billet.  Suddenly, he didn't feel much like watching
the triad finals, either.

* * * *

     Several days passed quietly.  Cassie spent a lot of her time on
duty, in life center, and often found herself stopping by the dying
fire control technician's bed.  Dillon was always glad to see her,
almost pathetically so.  He was barely eighteen, and he was very alone,
and he saw her as an angel.  When she was there, he felt brave enough
to face anything.  When she was gone, fear closed in on him like a
vise.
     One evening, dark and quiet, under night simulation, he knew the
time had come.
     "Cassie?" he whispered.
     Across life center, filling in medical reports on the techs
already released, she heard him.  Cassie left a word half-entered to
stand by him.  "Yes, Dillon?"
     His eyes were strangely bright blue in the dim light.  "Can I ask
you a favor?" his weak voice breathed.  His health had deteriorated
almost before her eyes that last day.
     "What is it?"
     "There's nobody else to do it.  I don't have any family, and I
wasn't with Fire Control long enough to make any close friends.  Would
you stay with me?  I think it's almost time."
     "Of course I'll stay with you," she whispered back, and took his
hand.
     After several moment, he spoke again.  "Would you sing something
for me?"
     "What do you want to hear?  A passing song?"
     "No."  He shifted quietly to a more comfortable position.  "I'll
never get a chance to love, or to seal to anyone.  But I think I
would've liked sealing with you.  No one's ever sung me a love song... 
Cassiopeia, would you sing me 'The Sealing'?"
     She smiled through tears and nodded at his entreaty.  "Anything
you want."  Her voice was low and husky at first, rising quickly to the
beautifully clear tones she always sang with.

            "In the stars in the sky,
            See the love with lover's eyes;
            In their light there lives tomorrows yet untold..."

     Her voice was an angel's; he held her hand tightly, eyes bound to
her face, wide and glowing...

* * * *

     "Aren't you bringing Cassie?" Apollo asked in astonishment.  "I
don't believe it.  We're going to the Rising Star, and you're going
alone?"
     Starbuck shrugged, trying to avoid commenting.
     "Something's definitely wrong," Boomer probed with raised
eyebrows.
     Sheba stared at the two men.  "You mean you don't know?"
     "Know what?"
     "At least Starbuck respects Cassie's grief.  One of the boys in
the Fire Control team two sectons ago has pluton poisoning, and it's
hit her pretty hard.  He's just a kid."
     "What?" Starbuck broke in.  "What happened?"  He grabbed Sheba's
arm, astonished.
     "She didn't tell you, either?  No wonder you've been walking
around like a cloud of doom!"
     He didn't hear any more.  Convinced she was losing interest in him
and perhaps gaining it in someone else, it hadn't occurred to Starbuck
to look for any other answer.  Now he hastened to life center; he knew
she'd be there.  "What an idiot I've been!" he cursed himself.  "I
should've known!"

* * * *

            "Love me forever, or else forever dies,
            But love me for today, Love,
            And each day the sun will rise..."

     Cassie's voice died away at the end of the beautiful sealing song. 
The hand clenched in hers was still.  His eyes had closed only a moment
before.  Tears blurring her own vision, she checked for a pulse.  There
was none.  She lay his hand gently at his side, and stooped to leave a
kiss on his cheek.
     "Good bye, Dillon.  I wish I could have done more."  Her voice
broke, and she turned away, blundering into somebody who'd entered the
room in absolute silence.
     "Cassie..." Starbuck whispered, putting his arms around her
tenderly.  "I didn't know.  I didn't understand about Dillon.  I'm
sorry.  Will you forgive me?  I just didn't know..."
     "Oh, Starbuck, he was so young!"
     She couldn't continue.  Cassiopeia buried her face against
Starbuck's chest and let herself cry.  He held her close, and let
himself shed a tear for this young man, and remembered other young men.
     "I know.  I'm sorry..."  The darkness had never been so empty.

- The End - 

[Lyrics to "The Sealing" used with the permission of the artist, Julia
Ecklar.]