Whispers from the Past
Posted on Thu Oct 15th, 2009 @ 12:59pm by Lieutenant Commander Eliza McAdams & Captain Elsie Halliwell
1,894 words; about a 9 minute read
Mission:
Shoreleave - Welcoming Old Friends and New
Location: USS Archimedes
Timeline: Current
ON:
It was a lovely sight, really.
Stood by the vast viewport which dominated the entire back wall of the conference room, Sonaata Parr gazed out at the starry expanse and smiled softly to herself. The night sky held particular significance to most Elasians, the celestial heavens having been a focal part of their cultural and spiritual identity for the past thousand years, and she never tired being able to see a fresh array of constellations even though there were nights where she longed for just one glimpse of Tellun. It was true that she missed the sunshine, and the wind and rain, but if there was a consolation to be found, it was in this perpetual starscape, stretching on forever, or at least as far as the eye could see.
Behind her, the sound of doors opening broke her peaceful solitude but the ambassador didn't flinch, her serenity a difficult thing to influence in even the most tense of situations. Though a shift slightly to the left with her eyes may have given some clue as to who her newly arrived company was by way of revealing his reflection, the Elasian didn't need visual confirmation. If anything, she feared it, had no idea what to expect when she faced for the first time the man who had replaced another. The man who had replaced Altir Kerr.
Even he hadn't been able to tell her exactly what to expect.
Then again, that was likely because it was a deeply personal response that followed no strict guidelines. As much as she understood, and she had taken care to do a great deal of studying in the past year, the Trill restrictions on past associations existed as much for those left behind as for the new host and she could certainly understand why. The delicate balance had been difficult to maintain as it was, aided only by distance and melancholy determination but though Sonaata would have admitted that this was very difficult indeed, she had never once considered not attending. Last respects were important, as were sworn promises.
He had asked her to come, after all. But it seemed strange to not fully remember something so important, to not fully appreciate and identify such a commitment (a commitment that spanned lifetimes) as it haunted silently in the dusty attic of his mind. One could only a liken the lingering, ghostly memory to that of walking into a room, not remembering the purpose but knowing for sure that there was one. The more he attempted to search through the waves of thoughts and feelings, still not entirely his own, the more elusive the memory became. Like cupping a cloud in one’s hand, trying to harness and captivate it. It seemed to work against him.
Kerr had only returned to the Archimedes twenty minutes prior, having returned to Earth to place Rory in the care of an Aunt. Now was when the real work began. Ensuring his boat was sea-worthy, liaising with the Fleet Yards, and that the necessary reports were filed from the previous mission, and the correct information for their next was available to him, now was when he knuckled down as best he could, forging on with the life he led before.
As he sat in his ready room, the yellow daffodils he previous favoured now replaced with muted, unassuming green foliage, Coltan Kerr scrolled through text upon text, assimilating nothing but reading on nonetheless. His mind darted about from thought to thought, life to life, as he attempted to clear it and focus on the work in his hand. His efforts went unrewarded.
The chime of his door reverberated around the hollow office as Kerr swiftly shook the unfamiliar images and memories from his mind. “C-Come,� he stammered, looking up at the door as he spoke.
Petty Officer Andrews stepped through, his face officious but friendly.
“Captain... Kerr, it’s nice to see you,� he offered, stepping in just beyond the threshold of the door.
“Well, thank you very much for saying so, Andrews,� the Trill replied, his own face now warm in the company of his administrator. “What can I do for you?�
“Well,� he began, stepping in closer and allowing the doors to automatically seal behind him, “you have a visitor, Captain. A woman who claims that you are expecting her.�
Kerr’s face narrowed with bemusement. He powered up the console and tapped at the buttons, accessing his schedule. “Expecting, Andrews?� he asked confused, focusing on the screen in front of him. “You haven’t entered anything into my timetable, Elliot.�
“I – I know, sir. I don’t quite understand it myself, but her entourage are insistent that you hold a prior engagement with her. Her name is Miss Sonaata.�
Like a lightning bolt that struck his stomach violently, the shock of the name spoken by someone other than the faceless voices in his mind caused him to physically wretch.
“Sir,� Elliot shouted, stepping forward to place an arm on his shoulder. “What’s wrong?�
Recovering, Kerr righted himself and took in a succession of rapid, shallow breaths. After composing himself, and wiping his brow with his shaking hand, Kerr fixed his look upon his yeoman. “Clear my afternoon, Elliot. I am to see no one for the remainder of the day.�
The man simply nodded, a questioning looking falling on his own face. “Aye, sir.�
Kerr dismissed him, rose slowly from his chair, and made the short walk over to the conference room in silence where his friend was awaiting him. As he walked unhurriedly to the room, the confusion of memories, past, present and beyond, overwhelmed him. He felt the beat of his heart quicken as he was to be faced with the first physical form of his past. The most important physical form of his past, he may have argued. Sonaata.
He stepped inside the sensor range of the door, and it silently parted.
The ensuing silence wasn't so much awkward as particularly poignant. Though hardly an expert, Sonaata knew well enough to realise that she had the upperhand for once in terms of information because she and Kerr had spent some time talking about what she might expect the next time they saw each other face-to-face, as it were. That didn't make it easier and truthfully nothing could have prepared her for the constriction in her chest once the doors had closed behind him and the pair were alone in a vast room, the distance between them now nothing like what had already been endured. Altir's visitation had been difficult enough but this...
The weight of it had reduced her somewhat, her already slight form diminished by the burden she carried. Sonaata was tall enough not to be considered petite and her naturally slender hourglass figure provided her with a reasonably curvaceous physical presence but there was a willowiness to her that seemed more tied to her demeanor than anything else. There were times when she carried herself with such little intent to intrude that she seemed almost inconsequential, quite a contrast to the ease with which she seemed to handle the spotlight when thrust into it. Graciousness could be bred but deep down, it was simply who she was. She didn't like to put others out.
As much as this had been prearranged, she couldn't help but feel that she was doing that right now. Kerr's new host had responsibilities and people depending on him, this residual baggage from a life before his own hardly seemed a fair burden to expect him to shoulder. Still, it was Kerr she had come to fulfil a promise too and Sonaata didn't make promises lightly. With her arms folded lightly across her stomach, the Elasian continued to gaze out of the viewport as she gathered her thoughts and remarked softly, "It's a lovely ship."
“Thank you,� the Trill managed, his hands lightly hung by his upper thighs, swinging loosely to the beat of his encouraged heart. “It’s… nice to see you, Sonaata.�
The words fell from his mouth like cannonballs. But her name soared through the air from his lips like an arrow. He walked over to her, stood rigid by her side and followed her gaze to the planet outside of the window. “She’s… served me well, up until now. She might be slight but she carries us to where we need to be and for what.� He turned to face her, his boyhood eyes searching the face of the woman he dared to love, and allowed the comfort of familiarity to wash through him. “I had almost forgot of your visit, you know,� he said calmly, and with a dash of familiarity. “I hope the journey wasn’t too much of an inconvenience to you.�
As enigmatic as her expression was, there was no disguising the warmth in Sonaata's smile even when only her profile could be studied. Truthfully, she had never quite figured out how this day was supposed to go and no amount of discussion or forward planning had prepared her for it. How could it, when her presence here meant the end of something precious and the start of something unknown and yet still so familiar? This was awkward for both of them but at least part of him had forseen that and she had been given some warning, and some advice, in regards to how to proceed. How much he recalled himself remained to be seen but then he'd warned her of that too.
With a slow, steadying intake of breath through her nose, Sonaata turned her head.
The woman's eyes held a docile quality that could be soothing or irritating depending on whether you were trying to glean any specific information regarding her thoughts from her expression. Infinitely gentle and exuding a patience that seemed indestructible, the hazel depths also contained a deep sadness that lingered beneath a veneer of benign benevolence. As much as she had perhaps thought she would find the new features difficult to gaze upon at first and as much as she might have expected to spend considerable time categorising the differences between the two hosts, Sonaata found that she actually looked no further than Kerr's new set of eyes. Aesthetically, they were different, but there lingered beneath the surface a vague nuance, a hint of deeper wisdom and understanding, that was surprisingly familiar. He had told her that too, now that she came to think of it. Her lips curled in a faint smile as she set herself back on the path they had previously arranged.
"It will come back in time." The words were plucked from the air as if she was attempting to reach into his mind and guess at his thought processes. "Each joining is different and therefore unpredictable but you will remember at least something in time." Her smile strengthened slightly. "And there's no use pretending you understand more than you do, you already out-predicted yourself in that regard." Wistfully, her smile faded and for a brief second, her gaze was seeped in melancholy resignation. "At least in a manner of speaking."
“I hope to,� came his simple reply. “I dearly hope to.�
OFF:
Captain Coltan Kerr
Commanding Officer
AND
Sonaata Parr
Elasian Ambassador to the Federation
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