Remembering Those We Lost...

Posted on 09 Dec 2016 @ 2:41am by Captain Harvey Geisler & Jadzia Melcox

1,219 words; about a 6 minute read

Mission: Click Three Times
Location: Starboard Observation Lounge
Timeline: MD 8

With the particulars of the mission sorted and preparation underway, Harvey found himself with a some extra time on his hands. It would be a while before members of his senior staff reported back to him, and there was not much he could do in the meantime.

It did occur to him that he hadn't heard anything regarding the ship's civilian complement. He knew Selah, the bar manager, was alive and well, as was the school teacher. But there was still the partially assimilated Trill that he hadn't heard from in a while. Perhaps it was time for someone to make sure she was all right. "Computer," Harvey said, tapping his badge, "Locate Jadzia Melcox."

"Jadzia Melcox is in Starboard Observation Lounge three," the computer replied.

Walking in the corridor, Harvey quickly adjusted his course for a nearby turbolift. Thankfully he wasn't far from one, nor was the ride long to the observation level. Captain Geisler soon found himself inside the lounge. He stopped just inside the door and began looking around for the Trill.

She was easy enough to spot - she was the only one in the small lounge. She had her feet kicked up on another chair and an open bottle of brandy next to her and she was sipping from a glass of the amber liquid. Had she not been staring out the windows she might have noticed the Captain, but she was lost in thought.

Spotting the only occupant of the room, Harvey approached the bar first, picked up an empty glass and walked towards Jadzia. He purposely approached her from the side, not the back, as to not surprise her. "It's a hell of a night to drink alone," Harvey said as soon as he was sure he was within her sight. "Care for some company?"

"Sure," Jadzia replied, sliding the bottle over a bit so it was easier to reach. "Twenty two forty seven. One of the oldest bottles in my collection. Also one of the smoothest brandies from Earth you'll ever find. What brings you out to this remote little observation lounge? I didn't think anyone else knew about it."

"There's a lot of places to hide on the Black Hawk," Harvey said, accepting the bottle and pouring himself a double of the amber elixir. "One of the best views on Deck Seventeen. The windows are so massive, it's like you're floating in space."

"I find it relaxing and calming. We just need some light death metal music playing in the background and it would be perfect." Jadzia spoke with a lopsided grin, taking a sip from her glass after another moment of reflection.

"I didn't realize there is such a thing as light death metal music," Harvey countered with a grin of his own. Though his grin was from a newfound hesitation with the woman.

"There's a band on Trill that redoes old Earth death metal from the late twentieth century as soft classical pieces that I enjoy called 'Gothentrill'. Imagine Louis Armstrong singing 'Angel of Death' and you get the idea." Jadzia studied the Captain's face for a moment to see his reaction before returning to her drink.

"There's a unique image," he said with a grunt. "And sound." He took a sip of the brandy and marveled in the smooth taste. "So, is this what you've been up to the last few days? Seeking solitude in the Observation Lounge?"

"After hours, yeah. Helps me think." Jadzia didn't elaborate on that, but the way she said it left no doubt that a lot was on her mind.

"With a brandy like this, one can only wonder what you have to think about," Harvey remarked. "Though, I can't say I blame you. Days have been rather rough as of late. There are days I'm just thankful to be alive."

"I enjoy the taste. Unlike most Borg, my nanoprobes never truly left the sterilization stage of assimilation so they process the alcohol almost as fast as i can drink it." Jadzia replied, then after a moment added more. Which is one of the things I was thinking about. All the changes since the incident. All the people we lost to the Borg. Wondering how I survived."

Harvey shifted in his chair, trying to find a more comfortable position. "Drinking without the nasty side effects. If you could find a way to manufacture and market that, you'd put the Ferengi out of business," he deadpanned. "What exactly happened that day?" he asked, wondering if it were even appropriate to ask.

Jadzia took another sip of her drink and almost didn't answer. after a few moments of silence, she began. "A smaller cube popped out of a transwarp conduit right in front of us and rather than ignore us, a bulk freighter, they decided we had valuable enough cargo to use in their repairs. They locked on with a green beam, the ship split in two, drones beamed over..." She had to settle herself a moment before continuing. "We rushed to the escape pods but they were already offline. I watched them assimilate my lover as the nanoprobes coursed their way through me. Then there was a searing pain in my head and they decided the risk of infection from my symbiote was too high to even recycle me so I was left there, dead on a dead piece of ship. The Ferengi found me somewhat still alive. Planned to sell me off. Then a Starfleet ship found them out and rescued me."

By this time, Harvey had leaned forward in his chair. Instead of holding the glass in his hand, it sat on the table in front of them while he listed to her story. When she finished, Harvey really didn't know what to say, at least for a few moments. "I know it's not easy, losing a loved one so tragically. My wife was killed in the Dominion War at the hands of the Jem'hadar. It's a senseless death, really, and I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye."

Jadzia sipped her drink again before responding. "Not the first lover I've lost, but the others... I wasn't emotionally involved with them. Lost one to a Naussican unhappy with his delivery. Another to a Ferengi arms dealer. Conway though... He was special. Not every day you fall in love I guess. This was after the joining, which is wholly another fucked up story, but he had his own ship and a good plan for the future. Even had a few Federation contracts through that portal thing to the Delta quadrant. Neither of us had popped the question, but we both liked the idea of a small wedding on Risa." Pausing, she sipped her drink again. "Now he's a Borg drone and I don't flirt with my other love. Flying."

"It's certainly not every day," he remarked, picking up the glass and looking at the remainder of the amber-colored liquid inside. Finally, he looked over to Jadzia, taking a careful moment to study the implants the Borg had forced on her to live with for the rest of her life before raising the glass and declaring, "To lost love."

Jadzia raised her glass in salute and downed the rest of the drink without a word before pouring herself some more.

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