Science Experiment
By ralst
Icheb sat, legs folded, in the middle of engineering. His skin was unusually flushed and his eyes refused to meet any of the enquiring glances aimed in his direction.
"Icheb?"
The boy forced himself to look at the man's shoulder. "Yes."
Joe Carey shared a baffled look with Susan Nicolletti. "Is there something wrong?"
"No," the boy squeaked "nothing."
Susan knelt down next to the young man, a gentle hand placed atop his shoulder. "Would you like us to call Seven?"
"No!" Icheb jumped up, knocking Susan on her behind in the process, and began frantically pacing back and forth. "You c-can't call S-Seven," he looked towards his right hand, "she's b-b-busy."
Joe offered his hand to Susan but the younger officer had already regained her footing. "What's that in your hand?" she question Icheb.
"N-n-n-nothing."
Joe began to fear that the boy's vocal sub-processor had malfunctioned. "Are you..."
Susan made a grab for Icheb's right hand. "Give it."
The two younger members of the group began tussling over the mysterious object before Carey intervened and confiscated the object.
"What's this?" He asked.
Icheb's skin became an even brighter shade of pink. "M-my science project."
Susan poked at the object. "What's it do?"
"It's a telepathic security devise." The two officers looked at him sceptically. "It enables a person to hear the thoughts of other individuals within a specific area."
"If you believe that I've got a wormhole in the alpha quadrant I can sell you," Susan mumbled.
Carey held the device to his ear.
"Don't!"
It was too late. Joe's cheeks suffused with colour and he began gulping audibly, before losing all feeling in his hands and dropping the device to the floor.
The others looked at him as he slowly slid to the ground and began rocking back and forth.
Susan picked up the device. "What...?" As she raised the device to her head a cascade of colour, noise and feeling engulfed her mind. "Ohhhhhhh"
Bending, Icheb picked up the device from where Susan had dropped it, his normally impassive features showing signs of smug satisfaction. "I tried to warn you."
"B-b-b-b-b," Carey burbled.
"S-s-s-s-s," Susan stammered.
Icheb nodded. "I thought setting up the experiment in Lieutenant Torres' office would enable me to convince both she and Seven of it's validity." He looked over towards the office doors. "I did not realise their noon meeting would be quite so...so..."
"S-s-s-s-"
"E-e-e-e-e"
"X-x-x-x-x-"
"Y-y-y-y-y"
"Precisely." The boy nodded.
Looking down at the traumatised officers Icheb let his eyes wander back to the device. It was a terrible invasion of privacy. A look into the most intimate aspects of other people's lives.
He smiled.
A chance to see what B'Elanna looked like naked and sweating.
Sitting down, cross legged, he held the device up to his ear. "Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"
The End