Endless Sorrows

Posted on Nov 15, 2016 @ 1:56pm by Ensign Sofia Andersson
Edited on on Nov 15, 2016 @ 1:56pm

Mission: Aftermath

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“Endless Sorrows” (Continued from “Open Doors” written by the talented Jamie)
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LOCATION: EARTH SD: [2.16] 1115.1235
SCENE: Versaille Triage Center
TIME FRAME: Overlapping with the ANUBIS posts "Friend in Need" and "Digging Through Memories"


Second day on the job and Sofia had to keep reminding herself that things would get better. She had cried so much that the clear face screen of her HAZMAT suit had been stained by her tears. Leaning over the bodies and personal effects of those who had perished in such a horrible way had made it impossible for her not be emotional. Every person and item had a story to tell, and it had been her responsibility, her punishment to take in those stories to the bitter end.

The thalaron radiation had been merciless leaving behind barely recognizable forms when it actually left something behind, yet one by one she did her best to find something on them that would help identify them. In the majority of cases the radiation had destroyed the victims' DNA making a genetic identification impossible, again when a body had been found. This left more conventional means but still these took time and Sofia wanted to help put a name to the bodies as quickly as possible. If not for the sake of the victims and their families, at least for her own sake and sanity.

At least dealing with scorched bodies had been a step up from looking as the ashes being tossed around by the slightest breeze. Although Paris had been quite a good walking distance away, the ash clouds could still be seen making it clear that nothing had survived.

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Excerpt from Hanali's "A Friend In Need"
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"Excuse me, can you help us?" a woman wearing a HAZMAT suit asked, her eyes having caught the deformed face of one of the victims from the Paris attacks, the sight had been almost enough to make her run back to the shuttle that had brought her here.

"I can try," the blonde woman said, her voice filled with a sadness that could not be reproached.

"We are here to help," the raven haired woman said making sure to keep eye contact with the other woman.

"Is he your security escorte to make sure you don't run?" the golden haired woman asked as she looked at the man standing next to the woman who had spoken.

"No," came the stunned reply. "Actually I'm the Security Officer and he's Chief of Operations. We just came to help in whatever way we can."

"So you came here on your own will?" the blonde woman asked in disbelief.

"Yes," the man confirmed with a hesitant smile. "Just tell us what we can do to help you."

"You want to help me?" Sofia asked barely able to hold back her tears as her head dropped. Kindness had not been something she had expected at this point or at any point within the near future.

"My name is Ya'Han, and this is Jayson," the raven haired woman stated as she extended her hand clearly seeing that the person in front of them had needed their help first and in ways that they had not expected to give.

"I'm Sofia," came the grateful reply. "Come with me, I'll get you started."

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End of excerpt
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The two new arrivals followed Sofia with an interest and drive that she had not expected to find in the middle of the desolation of the triage center. The two had come together but their mannerism had indicated that they had not been a couple. As far as she could tell they had either been good friends or work colleagues.

After a quick orientation of the facility, one that had been far more comprehensive than she had received upon her arrival, Jayson, Ya'Han and Sofia returned to primary triage area to continue the work.

"You are not from EARTH are you?" Sofia asked of the raven haired woman, something about her features leaving the possibility that she had been something more.

"I am not," Ya'Han replied without hesitation. To this alien, EARTH had been just another sphere orbiting a foreign sun, yet she had been here to help, not because she had been told to, not because she had been ordered to, but because she had wanted to. The presence of the offworlder had made Sofia reconsider everything that she had heard during the countless Neo Essentialist gatherings. Aliens had been portrayed as a plague that needed to be removed from not only planet but every location controlled by Terrans.

"You being here is amazing and puzzling," Sofia chimed. "The Neo Essentialist wanted to save this world saying that it would be alien that could lead to its destruction, and instead we were the ones who killed missions and it is those they feared that are coming to help."

"We?" the Chief Security and Tactical Officer said having easily picked up on the slip made by he blonde haired woman.

"By we I meant Humans," Sofia quick corrected. Maybe in time she would admit to the affiliation
that led to her being condemned to being here to make amends.

"Looks like Jayson is having problems," Ya'Han said having accepted the woman's explanation without question before causing the attention of the two women to fall upon Jayson.

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Excerpt from Jayson's "Digging Through Memories"
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"It does get easier," Sofia said in a gentle and calming voice having noticed the man's trembling hands through his HAZMAT suit. "At least that is what I keep telling myself," she added making she that he saw her smile. Truth be told the gesture had been entirely meant for him as she herself could not feel anything at this point.

"How does someone so kind find her way here?" Jayson asked thinking that a break from the death that surrounded them on all sides had not been a bad idea.

"I could ask you the same thing," Sofia replied in return, the arrival of Ya'Han and him having made her impossible task actually bearable. "You two did not need to be here, and yet here you are."

"You didn't volunteer to be here?" Jason asked, figuring that the poor blonde woman had been forced to be here because of a unique skill set or because it had somehow been her responsibility. "Alright, let me guess," he continued thinking that this had been far better than dealing with the situation that surrounded them both, at least for the moment. "You are a Doctor and needed to help these people one last time? It's either that or you pissed some high ranking douche who sent you here as punishment."

"Yes," Sofia simply replied certain that her new found friend would likely not find the truth all that appealing. The truth being that he had been right on both account.

Jayson smiled a pure ray of joy, one that actually took Sofia a little by surprise. She returned his smile, this time feeling something herself, something that she had never expected in this realm of death and destruction.

"Who was she?" the golden blonde hair woman asked, having seen something in the man's eyes.

"Who?"

"The woman that you just thought of," Sofia answered, closely looking at Jayson's face for signs of any reaction that would answer her question should he decide not to offer a verbal reply. "The woman that I somehow reminded you of."

"Her name was Leena," he replied without hesitation, the words having come across as far less painful then he had expected them to be. "She was my wife."

"No," Sofia cried in a half whisper, her knees once again ready to collapse from under her. Had she helped in hurting this man? Had she been responsible for the death of his wife? Had he been here looking for her, to have one last chance to be together before saying goodbye? "I'm so sorry," the sentenced woman managed through her tears before running away and leaving Jayson behind, confused and beyond the ability to understand what had just happened.

"Nice job Romeo," Ya'Han quietly snarled. The Sec/Tac had noticed the attraction between them and she had thought it best to give them the room they needed, at last that was until she saw Sofia bolt for the main building of the triage center. "What did you say to her?"

"I don't know," Jayson pleaded in shock. "She asked me who she reminded me of and I answered truthfully."

"You idiot," Ya'Han hissed as she punched his right shoulder through the HAZMAT suit. "What did you think would happen by telling a woman that she reminded you of your dead wife?"

"Not this."



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She ran without looking. All that Sofia wanted was to get away, to hide, to die. There had been no way for her to know that the woman Jayson had mentioned had died over 5 years ago. There had been no way for her to understand that his admission had been an acceptance of what ha been and what could have been. To her that single death meant more than the other 28 million because it had hurt a person that had shown her kindness.



"Where do you think you're going?" one of the security officers in charge of the Versaille Triage Center demand as he took hold of the woman's arm, the strength of his grasp having been enough to make her recoil in pain.



"I just want to die," Sofia admitted out of grief and sorrow.



"You are not getting out of this that easily," the man snarled as he threw the woman down onto the ground on her hands and knees where she remained. "You think you get to just die and make it all better? You think that your life is worth the lives of the 28 millions who died here? Do you think yourself to be that high and mighty that you think your death will make amends for everything that happened here?"



As much as she had cried earlier that morning, Sofia found it within her to release a steady stream of tears following the verbal barrage of the security officer. He had been absolutely right, her life had not been worth that of 28 million others, in fact she considered her life has having been worth less than the one life she had mistakenly taken blame upon herself for.



How would she ever be able to face Jayson again? How would she ever be able to make amends? How had she deluded herself into believing that her being here would undo all that she had done and help to bring about?



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NRPG:



I would like to thank Hanali and Jayson for making this little crossover possible. Through three posts we explored different sides and views of the same scene, adding various details to better explain what happened to each individual. Hopefully this will not cause any problems on either side of the writing forum as I truly hope to be able to do this again soon.


Jerome, thanks. The bio looks great. As for the Versaille Triage Center, it is but a single location of what I would suspect to be many others, and we have not gone into Paris yet, so everything is possible. I will incorporate more of your notes to further flesh out the outlining scenery and might even venture into Paris at some point, but right now I think Sofia has her hands full


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Tiffany Reeve
Ensign Sofia Andersson
Currently sentenced to the
VERSAILLE Triage Center