Rediscovery

Posted on Sat Sep 26th, 2020 @ 1:17am by Captain Rhenora Kaylen & Chief Petty Officer Remal Kajun

Mission: Welcome Aboard!
Location: Misc

He smirked at the thought of reasoning with a Vulcan’s logical mind then took a bite of his spring veggies. They were surprisingly fresh and the mild crunch they made was almost perfection. "I have always found argueing my emotional wants against a Vulcan’s logic is like talking to a computer. They may study to find every conceivable loophole but they don't know everything about ingenuity or intuition. And they certainly don't understand an emotional drive to rebel like we Bajorans. It's been ingrained for so long it has become a part of who we are."

He stood up and moved to the replicator behind the counter. "Computer, two Angolian Teas, add a squeeze of lemon and a double shot of Bajoran Spring Wine, any vintage will do." The computer worked and then two tall glasses appeared containing a golden liquid that sparkled like glitter when he picked them up.

As he set them down on the table, one in front of each of them he added, "I tried this at that bar on the station, uh, DS9 I think they call it, anyway the flavor is unique but the texture is what I find interesting. It's smooth but coarse. And it has the same caffeine content as three cups of coffee."

“ Tea with wine...for breakfast?” Her eyebrows rose a little at the thought, although it looked a picture to the eye. Who knew what the alcoholic content was like but who cared? They were off duty.

She took a tentative sip, letting the flavours linger on her pallet for a few seconds before swallowing. It was indeed smooth but yet not, a complicated series of tingles and tangs that were hand to pinpoint. It was definitely interesting.

“ It’s…. Different - a good different” She admitted, taking another sip and seeing how things changed.

“Right? It’s not coffee, but as a temporary replacement to appease the overlord of health, it could work right? And that’s just the beginning. There are other drinks and options if you choose to stick it to that logic sounding board.” He stood and began to pick up their dishes, dropping them into the matter recycler. As he wiped down the counter and put away any left over veggies he continued, “So, are you feeling up for a trip in the holodeck or would you rather head back to the room?”

She smiled softly, becoming lost in the quiet world that was her husband. The yin to her yang, the water to her fire.

"You could read the com directory and I wouldn't care." she replied softly, before mulling over the idea. "Let's take a walk in the holodeck shall we?"

He winked, “You sure, there are only 600 or so on board right now. The Com directory would only take, what, an hour or so to get through?” He laughed at his own silly joke. When he was done he asked, “So where shall we go today? Interested in seeing the Trelberd Halls of Vintok IV, or maybe a celestial walk through a methane nebula?” As he asked the questions they walked the short distance to the nearest holodeck. Looking into her forlorn eyes he had a brilliant idea, “Oh, I know.” Plugging in the information into the computer took but a moment, then the doors opened before them.

“Program ready.” the computer alearted.

He held out his arm for her to take, “M’dear?”

She closed her eyes for an instant and trusted him to guide her, her steps only slightly hesitant. There was a mutual trust that would take time to re-establish.

She opened her eyes to see a vast wilderness, pristine as the day the Prophets made Bajor. Trees towered overhead, a lake glistened nearby and tall mountains surrounded the horizon.

"Where are we?" She asked in awe, drinking in the sights.

“You don’t recognize it?” He huffed, “Of course you don’t.” He pointed out over the horizon, fresh young trees dotting the landscape. “Do you remember, about seven or eight years ago there was a huge firestorm on Bajor, ravaging the Musela Province?” He leaned on a wooden rail post marking the path. “It took you and your team days to put it out, but it took a corp of Starfleet Engineers weeks to get it back to a livable condition and years for it to return it to its former glory.”

He could see the doubt in her eyes. “Don’t believe me? Look up.” He pointed to the sky where even though it was late evening one could not mistake the wormhole, bright blue and ever present, opening in the distant sky. “The prophets are shining down upon you this evening.”

“ How the hell did I not recognise that?” She whispered to herself, ashamed at just how much she’d forgotten over the years. She looked at the surroundings again with fresh eyes, letting the details sink into her brain. The Engineers had done a fantastic job in resetting the ecosystem and allowing the natural vegetation to recover.
“ Shall we?” She pointed to the boardwalk designed to reduce the impact on the surface of the ground and let the vegetation recover.

He took her arm in his, an old familiar feeling. They walked at a comfortable pace through the atmosphere controlled holodeck, and as they moved down the path the daytime turned to dusk. She was glowing, he could see her face beaming as he stole glances in her direction. In the distance an occasional firework was shot into the evening sky and as they got closer music could be heard.

"A celebration?" She asked, curious as to where the music was wafting on the breeze. The moon rose slowly in the sky casting everything in a pale silver glow as day gave way to night.

“Oh, that would be the Spirit Festival in the small town of Bjoreth, I think. We could go, but I’d rather just walk if it’s all the same to you.” He pressed on. “You know they are also celebrating you at that festival, you and your crew. The Sunfire saved them, brought them a new life and a happy harvest. It was people like them who reminded me that this galaxy was in need of people like you.”

"Are you sure it's not the Emissary's birthday, I'm sure they play that song for his birthday every year, or the Day of the Prophets?" She danced around the subject a little, not believing him regarding the nature of the celebration. She had thought nothing of saving thousands from the ravages of wildfires 10 years ago. They'd licked their wounds and continued on their way through the galaxy as though nothing had happened. It appeared this province of Bajor felt differently.

He smiled at her modesty, “Pretty sure this is my simulation and I’m pretty positive I got the dates right. And as such I’ve helped a number of these families recuperate from the trauma those fires inflicted upon their families.” He stopped briefly and reflected. “Do you know how hard it was for me to hear person after person cry about what they’d lossed then they turn around and sing your praises?”

"I'm so sorry you had to do that, we should have stuck around and helped with the rebuild. There's half a dozen things I can think of right now we could have done better or differently. " She admitted out loud, often very judgemental of her own shortcomings. "A festival though? Seems a little...over the top?"

“You don’t have to be your humble self around me. I’m just trying to show you, out there…” He pointed to the stars as a firework exploded above them. “... is where you belong. And you know it. Unfortunately it took me a bit longer to catch on.” He continued walking again.

"At what cost? It's not fair for you to be dragged around the galaxy if it's not your thing. At least on the Liberty we have more room, more families. Have you thought of what you'd like to do if you chose to stay?" There was a glimmer of hope that she was clinging onto like a mad woman.

“You can stop that right there. I do not consider being with you as being dragged around the galaxy, not any more. Originally it was more of a concern that you were going to go down to some planet and never come back up again. But I came to see, having our time apart, that I would rather spend every moment I can with you before I lose you rather than know I gave you up to the stars without ever seeing you again.”

He admonished, “As for what I’ll do? I hadn’t thought about anything other than being your husband. You know that is a full time job sometimes.” He smiled broadly, truth oozing from his lips.

That brought a giggle that hadn't been heard in 6 years. The happy laugh when she could truly just be herself. Not the captain, not a Starfleet officer, just a woman in the presence of the man she loved

"The minute that stops being a full time job, I know there's something wrong. "
She smiled at him, simply enjoying his presence.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in tight, her warmth adding to his. “Then that is my official title, Remal Kajun Captain’s Husband. And that’s all that I need to be, and that’s good enough for me.” He bent over and kissed her lips in a soft, tender embrace as somewhere above their heads another firework burst into golden plumes. The fire within still burning strong, their heart beat as one. In that moment they had found one another again.