Chapter Ten
The Last Sunset
-COPYRIGHT/DISCLAIMER NOTICE-
This is a work of fan fiction and the characters and concepts of Star Trek belong to Paramount Pictures and the Gerry & Silva Anderson respectively. This story must not be sold or distributed for financial gain of any sort.
"I know I'm just a fool who's willing
To sit around and wait for you
But baby can't you see
There's nothing else for me to do
I'm hopelessly devoted to you"
Olivia Newton-John, "Hopelessly Devoted" (1)
"So, how did the meeting with Weyoun go?" Maya could hear the hesitation in Tony's voice, as if he was afraid to hear what she would say. "Did you learn more about your family in this universe?"
She nodded, though she didn't know what to say. It was going to be difficult to explain her plan without giving the full story; Tony probably wouldn't be satisfied with the lies she had told Sisko and Odo. Maya looked down at the table they were sharing and wished she had ordered a drink to keep her hands busy. She was afraid that if she started talking to him, she would end up telling him everything. So she said nothing.
"I'm sorry about this morning," he said suddenly. "What I said about your father."
"It doesn't matter."
There was another pause and then Tony spoke again. "You're very quiet. You haven't been replaced by a Changeling, have you?"
Maya smiled and shook her head. "I'm sorry, Tony. I'm just thinking."
He slid his arm around her shoulder and stroked her cheek tenderly. "Want a nanogram of latinum for your thoughts?"
"I have to stay here," she told him bluntly. Realising she needed an excuse, she added, "I want to be with my own people."
Her heart sank as he removed his arm. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tony run his hands over his face as he took stock of what she had just told him. He finished his beer and signalled to a waiter to bring him another one.
"So if we get a ship and go back to our universe, you want to stay in this one?" he asked finally. Maya nodded silently, but Tony seemed to suddenly cheer up. "Well, that's quite a coincidence, actually. I was thinking about staying here myself."
Maya very much doubted that this assertion was the result of long reflection. "You don't have to, Tony," she said gently, placing her hand on his. "I can take care of myself."
"What makes you think I want to stay here to take care of you?" Tony had resorted to his habitual teasing, but there was an unusual tremor in his voice. He withdrew his hand from under hers as the Ferengi waiter brought him another glass of beer. "It's obvious this place is just crying out for an Italian restaurant!" he declared, waving his hand. "I can just see it now - 'Antonio's' with a prime spot on the Promenade. Considering the potential clientele here, I could probably get away with it, too. And I'm sure the Cardassians would appreciate Italian cuisine if we had to move to Cardassia to be with your Psychon friends."
Maya smiled. This was the Tony she understood, shallow, joking and uncomplicated. "You open a restaurant? You'd poison all your customers."
"Probably," he admitted in mock seriousness, "but at least you don't get any complaints from the dead. Actually, it's a well known fact that when Italians go abroad the first thing they do is open a restaurant. That's why we never get any respect. We invented Western civilisation, but now all we do is feed people." He emphasised his point with another wide sweep of his hand. "Come to think of it, maybe I should go against the stereotype and open a laundry. Catering is too difficult. I spent a summer working in my uncle Gino's restaurant in Torquay, and I can tell you: never again. Poisoning people is hard work!"
Maya laughed; for a brief moment, she imagined Tony running a busy restaurant like the ones they always showed in the movies. She could just see him dressed in a grimy white jacket with a tea-towel over one shoulder, barking orders at his cooks and waiters. It was a ridiculous idea.
"I think you should just stick to what you know best," she advised.
"Ah yes. Brewing," he said, nodding vigorously. "Of course. The fact the Bajorans like my beer is reason enough to stay in this universe!"
Maya laughed brightly, and Tony put his arm around her again. She felt him kiss her cheek, his soft lips pressing against her cheekbone. Using his free hand, he gently guided her chin around until she was facing him.
"You know why I want to stay here," was all he said, his brown gaze meeting her eyes unwaveringly.
Maya hesitated and looked down again, all the joy suddenly drained from her. He was so serious, so desperate to stay with her even though he had no idea why she was staying. The fact that he was so willing to throw everything away when she had so little to offer in return made Maya sick with guilt. It wasn't fair to separate him from the other Alphans for no good reason.
"Tony. You don't have to stay," she repeated.
"If you're staying, then I'll be here with you," said Tony determinedly. There was another silence and then he wrapped both his arms around her, hugging her awkwardly over the edge of the table. "I love you, Maya, I love you so much, I don't think you realise."
Maya was terrified. She didn't know what to do; she knew Tony loved her - he was wrong to assume otherwise - but she didn't understand how to respond to that love. There had been no men for her to flirt with on Psychon, so she had never mastered the mating games which humans played so easily.
Perhaps realising she wasn't going to say anything, Tony let go of her after a couple of minutes and sat up straight in his chair.
"I can tell you one thing, though, Maya," he said, running his hands through his hair and trying - rather unsuccessfully - to recover his usual aplomb. "When this is all over, I think I'll go to Australia and apply for a job in a soap opera! I seem to be getting soppy in my old age."
"Soapy?"
"She speaks," he exclaimed, evidently quoting something. "O! Speak again, bright angel."
Maya smiled and relaxed a little; another crisis over. "Is that Shakespeare?" she asked. Most things the humans quoted seemed to be from that author.
"Romeo and Juliet," he replied with a nod. Maya rolled her eyes: the Alphans always laughed when that play was mentioned. Tony chuckled; he sipped his beer and then his expression became serious again and he took in a deep breath. "Tell me something, Maya. Is there actually a point to all this?"
Maya's mood was dampened by the bitterness in his voice. "All what?"
"Me being in love with you." He looked away, only chancing occasional glances at her as he continued. "I mean, I know you're an alien, and I do realise you haven't exactly got lots of experience with men, but... well, it gets a bit confusing, sometimes. You know, I'm a pretty basic guy and sometimes, I don't know if I'm coming or going. Obviously, I keep reminding myself I should give you more time, and it's true, there's no hurry. I mean, it's been four years but it could be forty. I really think you're worth it. You're worth anything I need to do to be with you." He lifted his head and looked her straight in the eye. "But now you tell me you want to stay here and I'm supposed to be going back to our universe, it sounds as if it's make or break time. 'Cause if I go back into that wormhole, we're never going to meet again. So I guess my question is... do you actually love me?"
The word that sprang to Maya's lips, unbidden, was 'Yes', but she stopped herself before she could utter it. She wasn't sure if that was the truth. Tony had never asked her about her feelings before, so she had always been able to ignore the problem. She knew that he meant a lot to her, that she would be heartbroken if he died - but she could say the same for John or Helena, and she was pretty sure she wasn't in love with them.
In any case, it wasn't a question of whether or not she loved him. Maya was aware that she was giving Tony very little in return for his affection; she wished she could do more, but it was as if something had kept her paralysed for the past four years, making her incapable of even acknowledging his feelings for fear of making him unhappy with an inappropriate reaction. She didn't know what to do when he kissed her, when the sickness seized her, or what she should say when he told her he loved her. She didn't want to lie and say she loved him when she wasn't sure.
One thing Maya did know: she couldn't let Tony abandon his friends and his career just for her. So she shook her head and answered his question as truthfully as she could.
"I don't know."
She might just as well have slapped him in the face. For a moment, Tony was too stunned to think straight. He just stared at Maya's beautiful features. Her large eyes were downcast, the white makeup on their lids glittering in the dim light, the long eyelashes nearly resting on her cheeks.
Four years, and she didn't know if she loved him?
He wanted to tell her again how much he adored her, as if yet another impassioned speech about his feelings would convince her to return them. But he decided he had made enough of a fool of himself for one night. Tony stood up and mumbled something about his dinner downstairs. He was so distraught that the world seemed to be spinning, and he even thought he saw one of the empty glasses on another table shimmer golden for a moment. Without waiting for Maya to say any more, Tony walked away, heading straight for the toilets, the first place that came to mind where he could be alone with his shock.
He didn't know how long he stayed in there. Part of him wanted to go back and see Maya, to ask her if 'I don't know' could possibly mean 'Maybe', while the rest argued that she had just said she didn't know because she didn't have the courage to say outright that she didn't love him. It wasn't impossible that she didn't love him, after all.
But there was nothing to be done about it now. He had asked her straight and she had given her answer. If she didn't love him, then there was no point moping around; he had to steel himself and try to get over her - and that wasn't going to be easy. After checking his reflection in the mirror to make sure his hair was tidy and he didn't look as if he had been crying, Tony took a deep breath and went out to get on with his life.
Bill Fraser, Alan, Miles and Julian were playing darts in the corner of the lower level; Sandra was sitting at the edge of the bar, keeping an attentive eye on the young doctor, who was throwing from a greater distance than the others for some reason. Looking around, Tony could see that the place was now jumping with Alphans. Kate and Yasko were having a laugh with the large alien Tony had noticed at the bar earlier that evening. Alibe and Shermeen were talking to some tall black man Tony didn't recognise. He looked very young, but Alibe had evidently found what she was looking for, judging from the looks she was giving him.
Maya was now sharing a table with John and Helena under the upper level. She looked very calm and collected, and although Tony knew she was apt to put on a placid exterior even when she was troubled, he felt hurt that she didn't look more affected by what had just happened. In spite of his meditative sojourn in the toilets, he still felt like rolling around on the floor and bawling like a two year old. Alternatively, he was strongly tempted to go to the bar and take full advantage of the Federation's largesse.
Rather than stand like an idiot staring at Maya, Tony went to get himself another drink and then walked over to watch the darts game. A quick glance at the scoreboard told him the Alphans were losing.
"Where is Maya?" was the first thing Sandra asked when she noticed Tony standing beside her.
"We're not joined at the hip," he pointed out, taking a large swig from his beer. He felt the alcohol seep into his veins as the sour taste filled his mouth.
"Is something wrong?" Casting a quick glance at her, Tony could see the concern in her large black eyes.
He just nodded; he knew there wasn't much point pretending. Of all the people on Alpha, Sandra probably knew the most about him and Maya. Although there had never been any question of romantic love between them, Tony had been going out with Sandra when Maya joined the Alphans and she was the one who first noticed his interest in the new arrival. To some extent, it was thanks to Sandra that he had first fallen in love with Maya. He didn't feel much like thanking her right then.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Tony shook his head. "After a few more of these, I'll probably be telling you all about it anyway." That reminded him that he had better watch his alcohol intake. Shrugging to dismiss the topic, he turned and watched the others playing darts. "Why is Julian throwing from so far away?"
"He is genetically engineered," she said simply.
"What?" Tony nearly spluttered on his beer.
Sandra's expression suggested she was similarly shocked. "Apparently, he has perfect hand-eye coordination. Miles told me that when I asked; he said it is illegal, but that Julian's parents struck a deal with Starfleet so he could continue to work for them."
"They're evidently very big on tampering with people's genes in the 24th century, aren't they?" Tony looked at the doctor, trying to determine if there was any obvious sign of the genetic engineering. He couldn't see any; the young man was a perfectly ordinary looking Middle-Easterner. "He looks pretty normal, though. Quite a good looking guy, I suppose."
Sandra nodded enthusiastically. "Oh yes. I think he is beautiful," she said frankly. "Those eyes, that skin, that body..."
"That genetically-engineered hand-eye coordination," completed Tony with a grin.
"I do not think he is interested, though," she said wistfully.
"He must be nuts," said Tony. "It's a well-known fact that no one can resist you, Sahn."
Sandra smiled at his remark, but then her expression changed; she indicated with a nod of the head that he should turn around. Nerys was coming towards them, elbowing her way through the now considerable crowd.
"Hi," she said as she approached. "I see all your colleagues are settling in well." She looked at Sandra and then at the darts players before turning her attention back to Tony. "I came over to tell you what I've just told Commander Koenig; the last of your technical teams has returned from Alpha, so all 223 of you are over here now. The Bajoran mining crew will be there in a few minutes." Her expression became more serious as she added, "the order to destroy the Moon will be given first thing tomorrow morning, at 0900."
Tony sighed. "Okay. Thanks for the information."
Nerys opened her mouth as if to say something else but then looked at Sandra and simply smiled. "Well, I'd better go. I'll probably see you later," she said finally, turning to leave. She had no doubt remembered their earlier conversation about not spending too much time together.
Tony watched her for a moment as she pushed her way through the crowd. There was definitely something to be said for that red uniform.
"You fancy her," said Sandra confidently. She was observing him with a sly smile on her lips.
"Of course I do," he replied, shrugging his shoulders. "She's a cute girl. I think she's very attractive."
Nerys was now talking to Dax; as Tony watched her, she looked over at him, before hastily averting her eyes.
"The feeling is obviously mutual," remarked Sandra.
"Hmm." Tony nodded; that was currently a big point in Nerys' favour.
"Is that why you are not getting on so well with Maya?"
"Oh no. It's not that simple." He decided he was drunk enough to hint at what had happened. "I... I think I overestimated Maya's interest in me."
He felt Sandra's hand on his shoulder. "Oh, Tony. You know she loves you."
"You think she loves me?" he said dubiously; Sandra nodded. Tony leaned close enough to whisper in her ear. "Well, maybe you should tell her, because she doesn't seem to know that."
"Do not be silly," said Sandra tenderly, placing her hand on his cheek. "I have been watching the two of you for years now, and it is obvious she loves you. Maybe she just does not realise how much."
"You'd think that after four years, something would seep through to that super-intelligent brain of hers," he replied ruefully.
"It is not like you to give up so easily. You know you are irresistible, Tony! Major Kira and I cannot both be wrong," she said teasingly. "In fact, maybe you should spend some time with the Major, and let Maya see what she is missing."
"You know, Sahn, that is by far the worst idea I've heard in a long time," he laughed, putting his empty beer glass on the bar. "In all the years I've been going out with women - and that's nearly thirty by now - that particular plan has never worked. If a girl is not interested, you just can't make her jealous. All she'll feel when she sees you with another bird is relief!" Sandra laughed, and he added, "Besides, I'll have you know that Nerys is already going out with Constable Odo. He hates me enough as it is: I reckon he'd chuck me out of an airlock if I so much as laid a finger on his girlfriend!"
Tony looked back at Nerys. The alcohol in his brain made her look even more attractive than she really was. "Not that I'm not sorely tempted..." he concluded sombrely.
"I see Casanova is looking our way," said Jadzia with one of her knowing smiles. "Evidently someone to add to your long list of admirers."
Nerys followed her gaze and saw Tony leaning close to Sandra Benes, whispering in her ear. "Yeah. And he's in for a disappointment like the rest of them," she said airily, hoping that would put an end to the conversation.
"He seems to have found someone else anyway," said Jadzia. She watched the two Alphans and added, "I thought he was going out with Maya, though."
"So did I," admitted Nerys. She was wondering what was going on; the last time she had talked to him, Tony was planning to get one of Maya's dresses repaired as an apology for their argument that morning. But now Maya was sitting with the Koenigs, while Tony seemed to be chatting up Sandra. Something had evidently gone wrong.
"I can't see the attraction myself," remarked Jadzia, leaning on the bar. She smiled politely as Tony looked their way again; her smile faded when the Alphan turned back to his colleague.
"You have to admit he's good-looking," said Nerys. "And he has a great sense of humour." It occurred to her that those were two characteristics she couldn't attribute to, say, Odo.
Jadzia smiled indulgently, and Nerys knew she was going to be treated to yet more wisdom from the 300-year-old Dax symbiont. "Nerys. I've met literally thousands of young men like Verdeschi. He's cute and he has a sense of humour, but that's all there is to him."
Nerys allowed herself another look at the Alphan and grinned as she remembered him lying on the Risan beach. "Does he really need anything else?"
"Nerys!" Jadzia laughed. "You aren't serious?"
"Of course not," Nerys assured her. "I'm already involved with Odo."
"But if you weren't..?"
The Bajoran shrugged her shoulders. "You're the one who always says there's no harm in looking. I happen to think Tony Verdeschi is a very nice young man."
"I'd say that's a good description," agreed Jadzia, although Nerys had a feeling she didn't mean that in a good way. "He's 'nice'. Nothing more. He probably has a lot of ambitions, but ultimately, he'll never do anything remarkable or achieve great heights. He's another of these young men who will talk up a storm about what a mark they're going to leave in the galaxy, but just wind up settling down into their comfortable little life with a wife and kids... I know, I was once exactly like him. Torias had great ambitions of becoming a famous lover and pilot, but when it all came down to it, all he wanted was to marry Nilani and settle down." (2)
Nerys didn't see why that should affect her interest in Tony, although she did understand why Dax didn't like him. "And? I'm not interested in knowing what Tony's going to become. I happen to like him as he is right now. He'll be gone in three day's time, anyway. And we're only talking hypothetically." She paused and then added, "If you were free, which one of the Alphans would you choose, then?"
Jadzia thought about that for a moment. "If I had to choose anyone, it would probably be Commander Koenig."
Nerys guffawed. "I was forgetting - with your taste in men, I should take your opinion of Tony with a good sprinkle of sugar. Commander Koenig? He probably frightened babies as a living before going to Alpha!" she exclaimed, using an expression from her home province.
"Oh Nerys," sighed Jadzia. "What you're missing is that Koenig is a real man, not some vain young guy who probably checks every mirror he goes past."
The Bajoran burst out laughing; she had to cover her mouth with her hand. "Good point," she admitted once she had stopped laughing. "That's very true. But I'd still take Tony over Koenig any day. He's just more... I like him," she concluded.
"Poor Odo," said Jadzia with a chuckle.
Poor Odo indeed, thought Nerys.
Sisko did not usually frequent Quark's in the evenings, preferring to retire to his quarters to read or study. With the Alphans on the station, however, he thought he should put in an appearance. The place was full; it seemed that the Alphans had lost no time finding the bar. Or getting to know the station's residents.
The very first thing Sisko saw as he entered Quark's was his son talking to two of the Alphan women. One was a pretty black woman with wide eyes and closely-cropped hair. The other, a white girl, looked little more than a teenager. Jake was in mid-conversation as his father approached from behind.
"Absolutely," exclaimed Jake enthusiastically, answering something the white girl had said. "Seen from today, the 20th century is just a series of meaningless events that all seemed to take place one after the other - the Second World War, the beginning of the space era. But meeting you puts everything into perspective. It brings it all to life; these are events that you and your relatives actually lived through. That's what's so fascinating... Oh hi, Dad."
Sisko smiled as his son finally noticed him. "You should be ashamed of yourself, Jake, boring these poor ladies." He looked politely at the two women, waiting for his son to introduce them.
"This is Shermeen Williams, Alibe Kurand," said Jake, indicating the two women. "This is my Dad, Captain Sisko." The Alphans shook hands with Sisko, and Jake added, "Shermeen used to study writing in college!"
Williams grinned and brushed a curl of light brown hair out of her eyes to look up at Jake. "I only did one term. It was just an evening class. I was really studying bioengineering."
As Sisko watched his son laugh with the young woman, he felt a compelling need to warn Jake against getting too attached to someone who was only going to be on the station a few days. On the other hand, Jake was now a grown man who could make his own decisions. Sisko smiled and chose to leave the sermon for some other day.
His smile faded as he noticed someone in the crowd beyond Jake. It was the same elderly Alphan he had seen before; the man was standing in the middle of the crowd, staring intently at Sisko. The captain knew that no one else was able to see his vision, but he still watched the man, trusting his son to explain what was happening to the Alphans. The noise of the crowd in the bar had magically died down as the Prophets took hold of his senses and focused them on the mysterious Alphan. Sisko took a deep breath and tried to relax, waiting patiently for the apparition to speak.
"There is a new world to save Bajor," said the Alphan in a husky English voice. Sisko wondered why the Prophets had chosen this particular form, so well-defined, and yet so unfamiliar to him.
"How will the Moon save Bajor? If we let it continue on its present course, it will be destroyed, and kill thousands of Bajorans in the process," said Sisko. He talked in a calm, measured voice, hoping that the Prophets would understand his concerns and answer them.
"No," replied the vision. "The Sisko's friends will bring peace to Bajor, and themselves find a new life in peace."
"In peace?" Sisko heard someone say. Surprised at this unexpected intervention in his vision, the captain turned towards the voice and found that Commander Koenig had approached. Sisko was vaguely aware of the presence of Doctor Russell beside her husband, but his perception was not able to expand beyond the apparition and now, Koenig.
The Alphan Commander barely glanced at Sisko before continuing. "You keep saying we're going to find a new life here. But we can't, Victor; our world is going to be destroyed."
At least that answered the question of who the Alphan was. "There is no need to destroy a world that is going to be saved," said the Prophet. Having evidently decided this was enough information, the vision disappeared.
The last thing Sisko was aware of was Doctor Russell screaming "John!" before the world went black and he hit the floor.
The Infirmary had become quite crowded now that the senior officers of both Alpha and Deep Space Nine had come to see their respective commanders. Julian ushered out everyone except Helena and Jake, although he allowed Tony and Kira to attend, indicating they should stay at the entrance.
Julian scanned Sisko first, and it only took one pass from the tricorder to confirm what he - and no doubt most of DS9 - already suspected. Sisko had been contacted by the Prophets again. And they wanted to make sure he listened.
Jake was looking down at his father with concern. "Is Dad having visions again?" The young man was understandably worried; some of Sisko's past messages from the Prophets had caused conditions that required surgery.
The doctor simply nodded and turned to Koenig, who was lying on the next bed with Helena leaning over him. As he scanned the commander, Julian was surprised to find he was getting virtually the same readings.
Helena tore her green eyes away from her husband's face and lifted them to Julian. "What have you found, doctor?"
"It looks as though your husband and Captain Sisko have both been contacted by the Prophets," he said thoughtfully.
Helena didn't look surprised. "Commander Dax mentioned the Prophets earlier." She turned to her husband again. "So that's it. These Prophets have been trying to communicate with John for the past two nights, but their message has been unclear. We don't even know why did these aliens are talking to him."
Jake suddenly plucked at Julian's sleeve. "Doctor, Dad's waking up."
"So is John," said Helena as the doctor went over to check Sisko's health. Julian decided to let his Alphan counterpart take care of her husband for a moment.
Tony and Kira approached as their commanding officers recovered.
"What's going on?" asked Tony.
Kira had witnessed enough of Sisko's collapses to know what had happened. "Captain, have the Prophets talked to you again? What did they say?"
"I think..." started Sisko groggily, sitting up with the help of his son. "I think the Prophets deliberately brought the Moon here."
"Who are the Prophets?" asked Tony.
Julian shook his head. "But why would they do that? It's on a straight course for Bajor VIII."
"Surely they wouldn't want thousands of Bajorans to die," completed Kira.
Behind her, Koenig had also recovered enough to join the conversation. "I think their message is clear, though. Whatever their intentions, I'm now certain that they don't want the Moon to be touched." He looked at Sisko curiously. "You've been having the same visions?"
Sisko nodded. "This isn't the first time the Prophets have talked to me," he explained to the Alphans. "But I didn't realise they were communicating with you as well, Commander. At least we now know they don't want the Moon to be destroyed. Unfortunately, we still don't know why. As always with the wormhole aliens, their motives are obscure."
"The wormhole aliens are the Prophets?" asked Tony.
"We have to trust them, though," said Kira earnestly. "Whatever their plan is, we must follow their orders and let their designs unfold."
"Is anyone listening to me?" muttered Tony good-naturedly. Julian was probably the only one who heard him.
Sisko winced thoughtfully and scratched his temple. "I know we should trust them, but it isn't easy. On the face of things, the Moon is going to collide with Bajor VIII, potentially killing tens of thousands of people... Bajoran people. I've already spent most of the day trying to convince Starfleet Command that sending one ship into the wormhole poses no threat. It would take a lot more than visions from the Prophets to convince them to let the Moon continue on its present course."
"Sometimes a leap of faith is necessary," intervened Koenig. Julian noticed that he exchanged a look with his wife and then Tony - they evidently both knew what he was going to say. "Some years ago, the Moon was on a collision course with a planet called Astheria. I... was contacted by the ruler of that world, Arra, who told me that the two worlds had to collide so that Astheria could move onto a different plane of existence. As far as the other Alphans were concerned, the Moon was going to collide with Astheria and be destroyed; they didn't believe me when I told them what Arra had said." (3)
As Julian watched her, an expression of regret, perhaps even shame, crossed Helena's features while her husband continued. "The other Alphans rebelled against me, and attempted to change the course of the Moon. Ultimately, it came to a fight between me and the others. The two worlds collided, and Astheria vanished, leaving the Moon intact."
"You're suggesting the Prophets have similar plans for the Moon this time?" asked Sisko seriously.
Koenig smiled grimly and shook his head. "I don't know your Prophets, Captain. And Arra gave me a reason for my faith in her. She told me exactly what would happen if I allowed the Moon to continue on its course. My faith was based on the confidence she inspired in me through her clear message. The Prophets have given us nothing but riddles."
"They do that, the Prophets," said Sisko wryly.
"But the basic message is that the Moon is supposed to collide with Bajor VIII?" asked Tony, clearly puzzled.
"Or that it won't," said Koenig, looking at Sisko. "Maya did mention the possibility that the two worlds would miss each other completely. If the wormhole opens..."
"The chances of the Moon changing course by tomorrow morning are too remote," said Sisko, shaking his head.
"What about the Moon changing course within the next day or so?" asked Helena. "That may still be a possibility; the collision is only supposed to take place in two days' time. Maybe the Prophets know something we don't."
"Yes," agreed Kira, turning hopefully to Sisko. "After all, they couldn't be asking you to do something that would harm Bajor."
Koenig nodded in agreement. "The issue here seems to be whether you trust the Prophets enough to follow their instructions."
"No... It isn't the only issue," said Sisko with a sigh. "As a Starfleet officer, I also have to follow the orders from Starfleet Command. And right now, the Prophets' visions and my orders are in direct conflict."
Julian noticed the ironic smile that appeared on Koenig's lips. "I was forgetting about Starfleet Command," he admitted, exchanging an amused glance with his wife. "It's not the sort of thing that I've had to worry about for some time."
Sisko merely acknowledged the remark with a thoughtful hum. "If I am going to disobey my orders or ask Starfleet Command to change them, I'll need conclusive evidence that the destruction of the Moon isn't necessary. And right now, I have absolutely nothing."
"Perhaps Maya or Dax..." started Helena, obviously concerned at the thought the Moon might be destroyed for nothing.
"Yes. They might be able to find something," agreed Sisko, standing up. "But they have less than ten hours until tomorrow morning."
After being apparently baffled by the whole conversation, Tony now seemed rather amused. He exchanged a glance with Kira and grinned. "Maybe your Prophets will be clever and send you a sign."
Maya watched as Dax hurried down the corridor, returning to her quarters. The Trill's husband had returned late that evening, and Dax was naturally anxious to go and join him. She was lucky, thought Maya enviously. After what she had told Tony earlier, the Psychon knew she had no one to go to.
The two women had run their calculations again, but there was still no indication that the Moon could be saved. The best the two science officers could suggest was to delay the destruction to see if the Prophets would do anything. Sisko had contacted Starfleet Command, but their answer, predictably, was the same: the Moon had to be destroyed the next day at 0900. They were concerned that any delay would allow the debris from the Moon's destruction to enter the Bajoran system.
Maya didn't feel like going back to her quarters. The sombre brown walls and subdued lighting felt unfamiliar and depressing after the bright white and primary colours she had grown accustomed to on Alpha. She had already spent one miserable night in the dark apartment, worrying about Tony and wondering what Weyoun wanted from her. Now, she knew what Weyoun wanted, and Tony was healthy and, thanks to her, heartbroken, but the Moon was going to be destroyed and she was planning to leave the Alphans she had lived with for four years. Maya was certain she wouldn't get much sleep if she went back to her quarters.
She went to the Promenade and wandered around for an hour or so, looking through the windows at the closed shops and stalls; the only place that still seemed to be open was Quark's. Maya avoided the bar for a while, but having walked the whole circumference of the Promenade, she finally decided some company would be nice.
The large grey alien who seemed to live at the bar was lumbering out as she approached.
"See you tomorrow, Morn. Now go and get some sleep," she heard Quark's sharp voice advise from within.
The alien seemed to sigh and turned to look regretfully at the bar, before casting a glance at Maya. She smiled at the creature, but it just walked away silently, treading heavily in the quiet of the empty Promenade.
"Miss Maya." Quark's voice was full of surprise as he looked out at her from behind the small bar that opened onto the Promenade. "I didn't expect to see you up so late. I thought you were working with Dax or something."
"I was," said Maya, though she wondered how the bartender knew that. She doubted this information would have been the subject of a public broadcast. "We didn't find anything interesting... and her husband has just come back, so we called it a night."
Quark's expression darkened. "Hmm, Worf." He spat out the name with obvious disdain. "Of all the lumbering idiots in the universe, she had to marry him."
"Were you hoping she would marry you?" asked Maya innocently, leaning on the bar.
The Ferengi lowered his black-rimmed eyes for a moment and then shrugged his shoulders. "Well, if her taste is for lumbering idiots, I suppose it wouldn't have worked anyway... So, you thought you would have a night stroll through the Promenade... Not much to see as you can tell, and not much company to be had. I'm just closing the bar myself; some of your colleagues were in for a late night session in the holosuite, so I stayed open until they left. Morn thought it was his birthday!" he added nodding in the direction the alien had gone.
"Which of my colleagues were they?" Maya wondered if whoever it was might still be awake and ready for a conversation - anything rather than return to her quarters.
"I don't know. There were four Alphan girls but Jake and Nog were the ones who booked the holosuite, so I don't know who the women were. I can say one thing, though: I had no idea 20th century women were so good-looking," he declared, nonchalantly scratching one of his large ears. "Yourself included. I think I should be brushing up on my history!"
Maya smiled and decided there was no need to remind him that she wasn't from the 20th century. It was hardly an important detail.
"I'm surprised that young man of yours isn't keeping you company," continued Quark with a studied innocence that immediately made Maya suspicious. "Where is he, anyway?"
"Tony? I don't know." Maya tried to sound unconcerned, but she had a feeling the Ferengi was getting at something.
Quark picked up one of the glasses behind the bar and inspected it critically. "This one's broken too..." he murmured. "Well, if you want my advice: I should keep an eye on what that young man is doing, and who he's doing it with, too."
Maya stared at Quark in surprise. "What do you mean?"
The Ferengi shrugged his shoulders as he threw the broken glass into the recycling unit under his replicator. "I just get the impression that your Mister Verdeschi is becoming very friendly with a certain member of this station's senior staff. And a lot of people don't like that... For a start, the lady is already taken and, of course, so is Mister Verdeschi from what I've heard."
"Oh." Maya frowned and tried to think who Quark was talking about. It suddenly struck her. "You don't mean Major Kira..? But she's..." She interrupted herself, shocked at the thought.
"Oh yes, I do," said the Ferengi, conspiratorially leaning over the bar. "And yes, she's involved with our mutual friend Odo. While you two were on Alpha talking to our favourite enemy, Mister Verdeschi was making friendly with the Major, right here in this bar!"
Maya felt as though her heart had stopped. Tony... with someone else? Flirting with some woman he had only just met? "That's not possible," she said involuntarily. "Maybe they were just talking..."
"Maya, I'm a bartender. Believe me, I know the difference between 'talking' and 'flirting'." He paused and then added, "I even hear they were holding hands in the Replimat at lunch time."
That was unbelievable. Maya did remind herself that she had all but told Tony she didn't want a relationship with him earlier that evening. He would probably feel that he was free to flirt with whomever he liked now. But he hadn't known that at lunch time, and he hadn't so much as mentioned Major Kira when he was making his impassioned speeches about wanting to be in the same universe as Maya that evening. The Psychon clenched her teeth firmly, determined not to show her anger to Quark.
"I suppose he's free to do what he wants," she said slowly.
"Well, of course, Mister Verdeschi's morals are your problem. I'm far more concerned about the effect this will have on Odo. The Constable is a good... well, no, not exactly a friend... But I know how much Kira means to him and if she... Well, it would break his heart."
The Ferengi sounded genuinely concerned, but Maya was still too shocked... too outraged to pay attention to what Quark was saying. "I, ah, I... think I'll go to bed now," she stuttered, her sudden inability to speak only adding to her anger.
"I thought you should know," called Quark after her as she made her way back to the Turbolift.
Yes, I certainly needed to know, she thought irritably. That solves a few problems.
As soon as she was back in her benighted quarters, Maya pulled out the holographic projector Weyoun had given her and activated its implanted communications device. She punched in one Psychon word - "horazi", I will help.
At 0400 that night, Deep Space Nine's ever vigilant external sensor grid was busy tracking and identifying every object within an 8 billion km perimeter. Every second, the computer dispassionately observed its surroundings - the 273 planets, moons and asteroids in the Bajoran system; the transport vessels and warships patrolling the sector; the comet now drifting out of sensor range. Following the instructions its operators had fed into it, the computer paid particular attention to the portion of space facing the Cardassian border, and also kept a close watch on the relative positions of the Moon and Bajor VIII. Any drastic, unexplained change in either area would set off a warning alarm.
As it scanned its perimeter, the computer picked up an unidentified object just entering its field of vision. Within a couple of seconds, the UFO had been thoroughly inspected and identified as the detached remains of an Alphan Eagle. Its course and speed was plotted, and the computer determined that the object would hit the centre of the wormhole in fourteen hours. None of the instructions in its databanks suggested this was a crisis situation, so the computer merely sent a message to the engineer on duty to signal the presence of the object, and added the Eagle cockpit to the long list of items to be tracked.
By 0850 the next day, most of the Alphans had congregated on the upper level of the Promenade, where they could crowd around the windows and watch the Moon. It appeared as a pale disk outlined against the faint light of the Bajoran sun, little more than an oversized asteroid lost in the vastness of space. It had seemed much larger just a week ago, when it was their only home.
John swallowed hard as he remembered everything he and his companions had lived through. He had never imagined, when he first took command of Moonbase Alpha on September 9, 1999, that his tenure would end with the destruction of Earth's erstwhile satellite 400 years later, to save an alien planet in an alternate reality. Fate played strange tricks.
The Moon had gone through multiple galaxies, visited dozens of worlds in its erratic journey through the universe - Astheria, Piri, Psychon, Arcadia - and encountered wonders no human eyes had ever seen... The Alphans had battled mysterious forces and countless enemies, even themselves at times, in order to preserve their life on the runaway asteroid that had become their only home. There had only ever been one birth on the barren little world, and so many deaths - Victor, Paul, Kano, Tanya, little Jackie Crawford himself... And yet, for six years, the Alphans had called the place 'home'.
But now, the Moon had taken its last journey.
Drawing his eyes off the barely visible asteroid, John looked down at Helena, standing beside him. Alpha hadn't brought him nothing but unhappiness and the burden of command; it had also given him the love of a woman he adored, a love which had survived through thick and thin, which had sometimes seemed like the only shield between him and insanity.
Helena's features were drawn and tired, but she smiled weakly when he looked at her, communicating in a subtle change of expression all the affection she felt for him. He put his arm around her and leaned down to kiss her lips. Whatever happened to the Alphans from now on, he knew he would always have Helena. Their love would be Alpha's legacy.
Maya was one of the last to arrive on the Promenade just before 0900. Like Helena, her face was pale and pinched, her large blue eyes bloodshot and underlined with dark circles. Unkempt and unwashed, her abundant red hair lacked its usual lustre. It was clear from her appearance that Maya had slept little, if at all, that night.
John expected her to go over to Tony; the man was standing a few meters away, comforting Sandra, who, like some of the other women, was already crying. But as on the previous evening, Maya chose to stay with John and Helena. Even with Sandra in his arms, Tony had been watching Maya ever since she first appeared on the Promenade, but the Psychon seemed reluctant to look at him. John promised himself he would discuss this with Helena later, and let her decide what they should do to help Tony and Maya. Right now, he had other things to think about.
The Alphans never heard Sisko give the command that destroyed their little world. All of a sudden, they saw the first explosions ripple silently across the surface of the distant grey asteroid, weakening the structural integrity of the Moon.
John slid his arm around Maya's shoulder, holding her close as she began to cry. He felt Helena grip his other hand and glanced at his wife. She was dry-eyed, her face locked into the impassive mask she put on when her emotions became too much for her. John felt his own eyes fill with tears as he watched while the tiny world he had commanded for six years was reduced to nothing.
Outside, hundreds of thousands of kilometres away, the destruction was continuing. A second set of explosions, triggered by the first one, swept across the weakened surface of the Moon, breaking the asteroid into tiny pieces which spread out into a large sphere of particles.
Maya buried her face against John's chest and he reluctantly drew his hand out of Helena's to hug the weeping Psychon, rocking her gently like a child. Understanding his gesture, Helena put one arm around his back and stroked Maya's hair comfortingly. The humans had lost their home world forever in September 1999, but Maya had seen hers destroyed, and to see her second home reduced to rubble was no doubt bringing back some painful memories.
Before the dust from the explosions had time to scatter too far, the Defiant and another ship shaped like a flying swan swept into view and ran some kind of disrupter beam over the debris, until there was no trace of the Moon left.
In less than ten minutes, Alpha was no more.