The revelation caused a supernova-sized explosion in the commander's anger as the full force of his rage burst out, impossible to tame.

"How dare you come to my ship and accuse Deirdre of something as awful as that? You know that she is going through a lot and false accusations are the last thing she needs," Nevedre raged against Sherlock.

Watson, however, knew his boyfriend well enough to be sure that if he had made an accusation, he would have enough evidence to support it. Still, he felt sorry for the poor father, who clearly loved his daughter very much.

It made him wonder if parenting was worth the effort with all the worrying it entailed. For the briefest of moments, he questioned if Sherlock and he would ever have the chance to find out. Then, he shook his head and focused on the current issue.

"Why don't I give you something to calm down, and then Sherlock can explain what he found," Watson said calmly, addressing Nevedre.

Nevedre was possessed with such intense fury that the wave of heat radiating from him was almost palpable.

"I don't want to calm down! I want this mockery of a detective to admit his mistake and stop saying things that make no sense," Nevedre said.

"Sherlock," Watson said meaningfully.

Before the commander could do something he would regret, they pinned him down and administered the calming agent. Watson wasn't happy with the situation. However, having in mind that Lororians had a very volatile nature when enraged, it was necessary.

The way they moved was so in sync that the man didn't even see them coming. Before Nevedre could understand their plans, the medicine was administered, and he was calmer.

"I am guessing you didn't know," Sherlock said coolly.

"You were risking your life by testing a Lororian?" Watson asked, shocked that his boyfriend would dare make such a risky move.

"There was no real danger. I saw you pack the calming agent when we decided to come here. I also thought that your military training would pay off. More importantly, I knew that we would make a great team," Sherlock said, winking at Watson flirtatiously.

"Alright then, let's go back to the case. What made you think the commander's daughter was the one responsible for these murders?" Watson asked.

Nevedre stayed in quiet disbelief as calm spread through his system, unwilling to say anything else as Alpha males in the species often had anger control issues.

"When I first learned of the crimes and realized that there was no obvious cause of death, I suspected poison. When I eliminated it as a possibility, I realized all they had in common was using Holodeck," Sherlock said with deep concentration.

"As a matter of fact, they were both found dead inside Holodecks," Sherlock said.

"What does that have to do with anything? Especially with my daughter?" Nevedre said through gritted teeth.

"Patience," Sherlock said, locking eyes with Nevedre.

He rarely did that, but it showed people he was telling the truth no matter how improbable it sounded. Watson was the only person he shared prolonged glances and deeper connections with. Yet sometimes, he needed to show his sincerity to other people.

"As there are no coincidences, I realized their murders were connected. So, it made me wonder who could use the Holodecks to kill," Sherlock said, mapping things out for them. "The logical conclusion was either someone who lacked the necessary strength to commit the murders or someone who wanted to make the deaths look accidental."

"Or both," Watson said, starting to follow Sherlock's line of thinking.

Sherlock beamed at him as people rarely understood how his brain worked and failed to see the invisible connections it made.

"Exactly," Sherlock said, looking at Watson with unbridled affection and desire. "However, I didn't know that at first. All I knew was that there had to be a way to murder someone using Holodecks, but I had to prove it."

"That should have been impossible," Nevedre said, too engrossed in the storyline to remember how annoyed he was with Sherlock.

"Well, apparently not impossible enough," Sherlock said firmly. "Still, I had my doubts until I remembered that psychology conference we went to. Especially that part about being able to trick your mind into believing certain things. I realized that the perception of reality depended entirely on the brain and how it interpreted the stimuli. Thus, it could be tricked into believing something untrue. After all, it has happened before. Delusions and similar conditions are just some of the examples of the altered sense of reality."

"Then why didn't everyone who used the Holodeck die?" Nevedre asked with annoyance.

"That was the question I asked myself as well. Especially having in mind that no violent programs were found," Sherlock said with a faraway look in his eyes. "Then, I remembered that we all see the world differently. Where I see a cool labyrinth to explore, someone else might see a boring distraction from...other matters," Sherlock said, looking at Watson teasingly.

"That was one time. In my defense, that labyrinth was tiresome, and there were better things we could have done," Watson said unapologetically.

"Exactly. And that is what gave me an idea. What if a subroutine targeted one specific experience, one fear for each person?" Sherlock said triumphantly. "I checked with your tech guys, and they said it was possible. So, I told them to dig into the last things our deceased saw."

"And?" Nevedre asked.

"It turned out that Gareth had an underwater simulation, a more vivid one than normal. While Jackson had an Arachne invasion one," Sherlock said triumphantly.

"So?" Nevedre asked, confused.

"I went through Gareth's files. He was terrified of water, having almost drowned more than once. And the planet Jackson was on was invaded by Arachne. He barely escaped with his life when he was merely a hatchling," Sherlock said.

"That doesn't prove anything," Nevedre said nervously.

"No, it does not. However, the fact that Gareth was your daughter's partner and you chose to hide that information from me spoke volumes," Sherlock said calmly. "What's more, Jackson was her best friend since childhood. She knew all his fears. It would have been easy for her to make just the right hologram to cause a fatal outcome."

"She would never do that. I didn't tell you about her connection to them because it is irrelevant." Nevedre said.

"You didn't tell me because you knew she had means, motive, and opportunity to commit the murders. You were pressured to bring in an expert, but you were hoping I would fail," Sherlock said with fire in his eyes. "Well, I am sorry to disappoint, but Sherlock Holmes always solves the mystery."

"She couldn't...she doesn't know how to make those things," Nevedre said with desperation.

"Father, that is quite enough. They have all the files. They know I have the necessary knowledge to make the subroutines," Deirdre said, appearing from the adjacent room. "I admit... I killed them. They were part of my life, of my very soul, and they betrayed me. What's worse, they betrayed me with each other."

"Is that why you let the other partner live?" Sherlock asked, intrigued.

"Yes. I'm done. You might as well arrest me. My life was over the moment they chose to cast me aside as if I was somehow less worthy," Deirdre said passionately.

"I am sorry you had to go through that. No one deserves that type of pain," Watson said kindly.

"Thank you," she replied, happy that at least someone understood her pain.

After that, Melrose was called in to arrest the culprit while Sherlock and Watson hastened towards their shuttle, overwhelmed by the heavy atmosphere that permeated the ship.

"What do we do now?" Watson asked as they started up their shuttle.

"How about we travel the universe and solve crimes?" Sherlock asked, smiling like a small boy wanting a new toy.

"Well, it was quite... stimulating to watch you work," Watson said seductively as the shuttle settled and they could move around once again.

"Was it now?" Sherlock asked, smirking. "Maybe we could try mixing business and pleasure a bit more."

As he said that, he trailed a finger down Watson's chest, making the need rise in Watson as it always did, with every touch, every breath.

"Hm, sounds interesting," Watson said, kissing down Sherlock's jaw. "Maybe, that way, we will see more sunsets together."

"That sounds good to me. Just you and me and our cosmic adventures," Sherlock said. "And some of those adventures could transpire in our sleeping chambers."

Then, he moved them towards the tiny sleeping quarters on the shuttle.

"They could also take place...naked..." Sherlock added, lowering Watson on the bed while gently nibbling at his lower lip.

"Mhm, that sounds amazing to me," Watson said breathlessly.

He pulled Sherlock even closer, and they became like one star burning bright like the Earth's sun, which they had left behind a long time ago.