Epilogue

Posted on Jan 01, 2017 @ 6:26pm by Captain Siobhan Reardon
Edited on on Jan 01, 2017 @ 6:28pm

Mission: Aftermath

“Epilogue”

(Continued from “All That Glitters Is Not Gold”)



=/\=



I only got you in my stories

And you know I tell them right

I remember you and I, when I'm awake at night



So give it up for fallen glory

I never got to say goodbye

I wish I could ask for just a bit more time



Every step I take, you used to lead the way

Now I'm terrified to face it on my own



You're not there

To celebrate the man that you made

You're not there

To share in my success and mistakes



Is it fair?

You'll never know the person I'll be

You're not there

With me



“You’re Not There”, Lukas Graham



=/\=



Location: USS CENTURY

Scene: Bridge

Time Index: at the end of Jerome’s post “The Last Battlefield”



The CO of the ZHUKOV felt strange asking for privacy on the ravaged flagship, or rather the approximation of privacy, with the two men now standing over by the turbolift. But from the moment she knew Dex had followed through on a collision course between the ship and the last portion of the Aegis Defense System, it would have been a miracle if he’d made it. And her life had never been the sort to have many miracles, especially when it mattered the most.



She kneeled, fumbling with an outer side pocket in the enviro suit. A small non-reactive rectangular case fell into her outstretched gloved hand.



Siobhan brought it as close as she could to Dex’s hand, the one she had been holding on to as he breathed his last, before quickly opening it. A generous foot of her braided auburn hair was taken out and pressed into his hand. Within seconds, it was transformed by the tainted air, its coppery hue stripped to a leaden gray and the texture reduced from strands to ash. Her eyes clouded over with tears again, as another much less tangible part of her withered away and died inside.



She took a few more moments of silence, then rose and walked over to Kane and Morningstar. “Thank you both. Let’s get the hell out of here.”





=/\=



Location: Dreamscape



Siobhan Reardon entered the ready room quietly. Dex was standing near the window, the view of Earth omnipresent from his current vantage point.



The blue and green sphere still bore the black stain of death where Paris had once been. The battle scar would be there for century upon century. But the golden web that sliced into the heart of the Federation’s government was gone. The stratosphere was once again a place where firmament and sunlight dwelled. The veil was lifted, the universe allowed to see the bride’s pretty face after months of a slow, tedious aisle walk.



Edgerton’s reign was over.



She reached over and squeezed Marxx’s massive hand. “I wish I knew what you were thinking.”



He looked down at her in mild surprise, his green eyes even brighter than her own. “You do, most of the time.”



“Oh. I thought I was losing my touch,” she teased. “Come here.”



They kissed, bodies pressed as close together as their uniforms would allow. Dex picked her up, her feet dangling inches from the floor as they held on to each other. After a minute or two, he lowered her to the ground. “I don’t know how much longer I can do this.”



Reardon felt the ache of longing pass over her. “Me either. I’ve been thinking, too.”



“About?”



She smacked his chest lightly with her hand, letting it linger there. “About your offer, you dolt.”



“And?” His smile was disarming.



“I have a solution. Don’t be mad.” Her face had fallen and she was biting her lip.



Dex laughed. “This sounds promising.” She handed him a PADD, still somber. “Hey. You’re really worried, aren’t you?”



Sio nodded. He responded by leaning in and kissing her. “Unless your answer is no, you don’t have a thing to be concerned about.”



The redhead sat on the edge of the desk, still quiet, while Marxx read. “A leave of absence. That gives you a way out.” The request had already been signed off for a provisional year by Starfleet Command. “Wow, Reardon, super romantic.”



She could tell he was mocking her- a little, but she still felt the need to explain. “I don’t have to come back afterwards. It’s an option, that’s all. I just didn’t want to close that door completely… yet.”



“Siobhan, don’t you trust me?”



She took a deep breath. “When I first saw you again, I didn’t. You were the establishment.”



“I was the patsy. But I didn’t know it.”



She crossed her arms. “It’s myself I don’t trust. Besides, you know me and good-byes, whether it be my career or a chance at love. I’m not the best at them.”



“That makes two of us,” he answered gently. He bent down and kissed her.



“Nineteen years isn’t easy to walk away from. But letting you go again is impossible.”



They kissed once more. “You know you talk too much.”



She giggled. “You’re in my soul, Dex.”



Another kiss. “Mine too, except about you. But a year isn’t forever, Siobhan.”



Her eyes watered. “No, it’s not. But I gave up on forever a long time ago.”



He shushed her, placing a finger on her lips. “Then it’s my job to make you believe again.”





=/\=



Location: EARTH, outskirts of St Louis, Missouri, Reardon family farm

Scene: Bedroom-> Kitchen



Sio reached for the other side of the bed and met the edge before she found the warm body she had been longing for. Her eyes flickered open to the thin shafts of natural light streaming in her upstairs bedroom, washing them in dawn’s amber glow. She was home. And she was alone.



Her father had crafted the genuine wood furniture decades ago, and she had picked out the purple bedspread and accessories, and that’s how things had stayed. It was a frozen time capsule, a place she could always come back to. It was too bad her baggage had to make the trip as well.



The dreams weren’t as frequent as they had been in the immediate days following the loss of Dexter Marxx. A brief smile crossed her face when she realized she had gotten to kiss him this time. Some of their imaginary exchanges ended in a colossal argument, with one of them storming off, things unresolved. She would wake up in tears, lost. But today would be a better day.



The part about taking time off was real, though. Rear Admiral T’Sen had tried her Vulcan best to convince Siobhan not to take a leave of absence, and that she would regret it and come running back within a month, but if there was anything Reardon knew right this minute, it was that her edge was gone. The part of her that could make decisions and take action was impaired, and without it she would be a piss poor Commanding Officer. And only she would know when her spark was back.



She sat up and tossed her hair over her shoulder, the new length freely brushing against the bottom of the straps of her yellow cotton camisole and falling over the top of her chest in tangled waves. It was far different from having to put it up at night to avoid sleeping on it. She clenched her left hand, feeling the wedding band she’d started wearing again. These things were touchstones of what she never wanted to forget. But occasionally the thought crossed her psychologically educated mind that they were also tying her down to a sadness that one day it would be best to let go of. Today might have been a better day, but it was not *that* day.



Sio stood and slipped a light, drapey lilac robe over her cami and boy shorts and went downstairs. If she hurried, she could finish watching the sun rise.



There were pleasant smells and noises coming from the Kitchen already. Her mom had always been an early riser so it wasn’t a shock that she was already awake. But seeing her son placing table settings down when she passed through the doorway, that wasn’t expected.



“Morning, Mom,” Drey said. “Here. Have some breakfast.”



The table was full of food. Pancakes, spinach and mushroom frittata with gruyère, bacon, biscuits and sausage gravy. Coffee had been her only thought as a necessity to start the day. This was much more. “What’s all this?”



Drey poured some ginger ale into flutes of orange juice. He was wearing the new black watch plaid flannel pajamas she’d gotten him for Christmas, and they complimented his pale green skin. His brown hair was sticking up in all different directions. “We. Are celebrating.”



Sio sat down, grasping a cup of coffee that had been waiting for her and gulped the sweet, creamy concoction. Was that real vanilla? “I’m impressed. Did you do all this yourself?”



“Gran helped,” he admitted grudgingly. “She’ll be back inside in a minute. Something about tending to her plants on the porch.”



Sio looked over the spread again. “I thought I recognized those biscuits. What are we celebrating?”



“I guess being free of an evil dictator is pretty cause-worthy, but I was thinking about something else.”



Unable to resist any longer, she took a bite of the frittata. “I’m all ears.”



“Ahem.”



She looked over at him quizzically. “You okay?”



His mouth twitched. “The correct way to respond would be, ‘I’m all ears, Cadet Reardon.’”



Siobhan slowly put her fork down as she felt a buzzing in her head. Her face looked sad, but her eyes were lit with surprise. It was another example of the dichotomy of being a parent. “When did this happen?”



“I’ve been studying and taking preliminary tests this whole time. Come on Mom, you know that already. Once we got back here, I touched base with some of the instructors who handle the remote lessons. I met with the Board of Admissions and took a couple more tests on site. I didn’t want to get my hopes up, so I didn’t say anything. My acceptance came in this morning. I’ll be starting after the winter break.”



A mix of pride and heartache settled over her. “This is moving much too fast.”



“Mom, you do know I’m only *half* human, right?”



Sio smiled. “I don’t think about it like that- you’re my son.”



“Well, I don’t have that luxury. For every year, I age almost three. Even if I can fast track and graduate in three years- that’s like eight plus years for any average human. I can’t waste any time.”



She shook her head. “No, I suppose you can’t. I just thought we’d be getting some quality mother- son bonding time over the next few months.”



Drey sat down next to her. “You know, just because you’re not on a ship right now doesn’t mean you should just stay here waiting for me to come home from class every day. You deserve a vacation.”



“Where would I go?”



“Surprise.” he gave her a gold embossed sleeve with a slender data card inside. “Your passage has been booked to RISA on the pleasure yacht SIREN’S SONG. You better pack- it leaves in two days.”



“And what makes you think i’m going?”



Maeve Reardon had been standing by the door that led outside to the porch. Sio hadn’t noticed her come in, or how long she’d been standing there. “Listen to your son, honey. The trip will do you good.”



“But I just got home,” she protested.



Maeve smiled. “I wish it was, but you’re wrong. Space is your home and you know it. You need a ship under your feet, even if you aren’t the one in charge of her. We will be fine.”



Drey wrapped his arm around his significantly shorter grandmother. “We’re only a subspace call away.”



Sio felt outmanned and outgunned. She slumped a little in her seat. “I don’t see either of you two taking ‘no’ for an answer.”



They sat down with Siobhan and started passing plates around. “You’re eating a full breakfast too,” her mother fussed. “None of this ‘just coffee’ nonsense.”



Sio pointed at Drey. “He saw me take a bite of the frittata.”



“One bite does not a meal make.” He handed her some biscuits and gravy. “Eat this and then we’ll talk.”





=/\=



Location: Spacedock

Scene: Near Civilian Gangway

Time Index: Two days later



Siobhan walked slowly through the crowd, taking in the movement and noise around her. She felt like an impostor in the cream wrap sweater, brown leggings, and brown boots she was wearing. She ended up totally caving on the hairstyle, a perfectly regulation french twist which would have suited her uniform much better than it did the causal clothes.



She looked down at the boarding pass once more, then tucked it in the pocket of her carry on bag. Two transparent aluminum covered escalators north of where she was standing, she saw an older gentleman was holding a placard which read “Reardon” in script lettering. He was wearing a crisp Porter’s suit and hat in dark navy blue with gold buttons.



He was holding the sign so high most of his face was obscured, which was unorthodox, but Sio just mentally shrugged and approached him. “That’s me, Cap- I mean, Siobhan Reardon. Are you with the SIREN’S SONG?”



A friendly, gruff, and familiar voice responded. “Indeed I am. Now tell me lass, are you ready for an adventure?” He winked and lowered the sign to reveal a kind, wrinkled face, a scruff of beard, an earring, and greying hair pulled back in a short queue. It was Sylvester Kinderman, Commanding Officer of the USS SUMTER.



“Kinderman!? Don’t tell me you gave up your command to be a bellhop?” she joked.



He grunted in the negative. “I would have already been out to pasture if Edgerton hadn’t decided to play games like the scalliwag he was. But no, this ruse-” he continued, gesturing to his outfit, “was for your entertainment only. I am now the venerable Captain of the SIREN’S SONG, the most beautiful space yacht ever constructed. If you’d like to grab lunch before we board, I’d be pleased as rum punch to tell all about her.”



Sio looked confused. “Don’t we have to disembark? What about your other passengers?”



Sly laughed heartily. “Milady, the SIREN’S SONG does have four guest rooms should the need arise. But we only have one passenger- that be you. So there’s no need for worryin’.”



“Did you put Drey up to this? Or did he put you up to this?”



“Mari and I had always wanted a little ship of our own, and I wanted to share that news with ye. Yer boy was the one who happened to pick up our call, and we hatched the plan together. “



Sio’s mouth opened in disbelief and irony. “It seems as stubborn as I am, I appear to have family and friends who make it their business to be more stubborn. Well then, are you saying you have an opening for a washed-up Starfleet Captain?”



“No, I have an impeccably appointed room for an honored guest. This be the ship’s maiden voyage and I’m itching to show the grand lady off to ye. I believe it takes one special lass to appreciate another.”



“Then I don’t want to wait any longer. This ship of yours has a galley, right?” She grabbed his arm and led him towards the escalator.



“Aye. And replicators. And a bar.” They began the ride towards the vessel, its oblong, bubble-like hull gleaming in dark gray tinted with an iridescent cobalt.



“Then I will make the whole crew lunch and we can catch up. My crab and pasta salad with peas always goes over well.”



Sly looked uncomfortable. “Before that- I wanted to express my condolences. He was a fine officer.”



“That.. he was.” She reminisced. “How long is it going to take to get to RISA, anyway?”



“Ah, that. If ye fancy the likes of bending an old sea Captain’s ear, milady, we can take as long as you like.”



“The weather’s good all year round, so no need to hurry.,” she joked, the pleasure planet’s climate systems well known for their consistency. “And you know too well my penchant for good conversation.”



“That ticket’s good fer anywhere ye got her heart set upon, my fair Siobhan. Even if that means taking a ginormous loop around the Sol system and never gettin’ anywhere, except closer to one’s purpose.”



She squeezed his arm. “Good. They always say it’s not about the destination, but about the journey.”





=/\=

NRPG: Happy New Year!!!



Susan Ledbetter

Writing For



Siobhan Rose Reardon

On leave