Chapter Twenty-One: Next Stage

Our wedding was untraditional in a way since it was held in the same holodeck program where Data and I began our friendship. We both thought it would be fitting to hold the ceremony there. I was so happy to have my father escort me down the moonlit path of rose petals to give me away to my future husband. Our closest friends and family sat on either side of the aisle. Data's mother was seated in the front next to my mother. The looks on their faces when they saw me made me fight back tears as I saw that they were both already dabbing their eyes.

I wore a slim-fitting, white flowing gown with a semi-cathedral train. The fabric had a subtle iridescence that shimmered in the soft moonlight. Instead of the traditional wedding march, Data recorded a violin melody he composed himself for our special day. The beautiful melody seemed to penetrate my very soul and I felt the love that brought it into existence. I felt myself quake with emotions inside and as I walked towards the altar, my heart fluttered. I couldn't believe I was about to be married to the man of my dreams; the love of my life. My father gently rubbed my arm and told me I would be alright… after offering me a chance to escape first.

"No, Dad," I answered, "I already made that mistake once."

Finally, I was standing beside Data, who was dressed in his formal, slate blue uniform which was trimmed with silver along the collar. His pants were black. The cut and color of the uniform accentuated his fiery, golden eyes and masculine physique. I found myself shamelessly admiring his body and almost forgot where I was for a moment. I looked up at his handsome face and he smiled tenderly.

"Kadalynn, you look beautiful!" he whispered as he leaned over to kiss me, but the captain interfered.

"Not so fast, Data," Capt. Picard replied after clearing his throat, "I believe there's a bit of business we must attend to before you can indulge yourself."

"Yes, sir." Data replied after he thought for a moment.

Several guests briefly joined me, Data and the captain in heartfelt laughter. The captain wore his dress uniform and stood in front of a lattice canopy draped with sheer fabric and flowers. The peaceful pond and lush trees served as a backdrop. The faint sound of crickets soothed my shaky nerves.

"In all my years as captain, I have joined many people in sacred matrimony. Every one of those ceremonies were very special and it was a great pleasure and an honor for me to be a part of them. However, the pleasure and honor of joining my first officer, Data in marriage with Ensign Graham, surpasses them all. As we all know, Data has been in constant search of humanity. It has always been his dream to become more human. Tonight, we're all here to witness a monumental occasion and I am overjoyed that my valued officer and dear friend has finally found true love; something which often eludes many throughout their entire lives, and in finding true love, I believe he has also achieved his goal of finding humanity."

Tears trailed from my eyes as I looked at Data, who was choking back tears of his own. I briefly turned for a moment and saw that Juliana was also crying proud tears and was being held by my mother.

"Thank you, sir. That was a remarkable statement. I am honored." Data replied quietly.

"If I understand correctly, the two of you have prepared your own vows?" asked the captain.

"That is correct, sir." Data answered as I nodded. The captain gestured for Data to begin.

Facing me, Data said: "Kadalynn, things have not always been easy for us. We have overcome many obstacles to get to this very special moment. The love we have for one another has weathered times of great difficulty, uncertainty and danger. Someone once said, 'Love is blind'. I disagree with that idiom, for loving you has made everything so much clearer than what I had previously known. After I installed my emotion chip, I thought I had finally uncovered the meaning of love. However, after we began our relationship, I quickly realized that my definition of love and what I believed it to be, had been insufficient. I discovered the true meaning of love when we found each other. I have saved your life many times and in return, you are saving mine by becoming my wife. I will be forever grateful for filling my life with deeper meaning and profound happiness. In return for all you have given me, I give you my solemn vow to love, honor and cherish you for as long as I exist."

Data also revealed that his speech was the message on the isolinear chip which was made specifically for the PADD he gave me when I left for the Stratus. At that moment, I all but fell apart. Data never ceased to amaze me with the beauty in the love he declared for me. For a moment, I sobbed happy tears before reciting my vows.

"Data…" I said softly, my voice trailing off a bit as I fought back another round of sobs. With a gentle touch of his thumb, he brushed the tears from my cheek before I finally continued, "Data, you've saved my life more times than I can remember. Not just in the physical sense, but spiritually as well. You have been my rock during my most trying times and darkest hours. You've put up with me when I refused your help, even when you were saving me from myself. I never thought a love like ours was possible. You make me proud of who I am; which is something I've never been able to do before I met you. You've helped me to find myself and to figure out exactly what I wanted… and needed. Data, you mean so much to me and I love you more than words can possibly express. For all these reasons and more, I give you my promise, to love, honor and cherish you everyday for the rest of my life."

Data and I leaned in very slightly towards each other, but remembered we couldn't kiss until the ceremony was complete. The captain had Data and I exchange rings and we each replied: "This ring is a symbol of our sacred, eternal bond. With this ring, I thee wed."

"If anyone wishes to object to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace." The captain said to the crowd.

At that moment, Data faced the crowd as well and said: "That would not be advisable."

I nearly fell down laughing. Everyone else was in hysterics for a few moments. There were a few stray chuckles as the captain completed the ceremony.

"Well, with the power invested in me, as captain of the USS Enterprise, I now pronounce you, husband and wife. Data, you may now…"

Data didn't wait to finish the sentence as he held me close and kissed me passionately on the lips. This act incited applause, jubilant cheers and whistles from our guests.

The reception was held in Ten Forward. After Data and I shared our first dance and cut the wedding cake, the captain proposed a toast that rivaled his speech at the wedding. There were jokes, laughter and dancing. Data even dedicated a song to me. Afterwards, Data and I made our rounds thanking our guests and friends for their attendance. We soon came to Geordi, who had an interesting tidbit to share with me.

"Kadalynn, I knew you had to be someone special when Data told me he was in love with you; and that was only within the first few weeks of knowing you. I mean, the poor guy was absolutely smitten with you! He made me swear not to tell anyone though."

"Geordi, I believe you have just broken that promise." Data replied.

"Well, Data, there's no reason to keep it a secret being that the cat's already out the bag." Geordi chuckled.

"Indeed." Data replied with a warm smile and understanding expression after a brief pause.

"Kadalynn, I tried to get him to tell you, but he was a bit nervous. He set you up with all those mismatched dates to get you to see that you were compatible with him. Then when you set him up with Cynthia…" Geordi chuckled and shook his head, "I tried my best to talk you out of it without telling you the truth, but Kadalynn, you were so determined. You were completely unaware that Data already knew exactly what he wanted."

"I knew you couldn't have been so clueless when it came to matchmaking! You sly fox!" I exclaimed, playfully nudging Data's arm as he gave me a mischievous smile.

Cmdr. Riker gave a brief speech of his own, closing with an announcement:

"Data, since you already have my old job, I figured it could double as your wedding gift." Commander Riker chuckled, "All jokes aside, I would like to present the newly married couple with a trip to Risa. It's sort of a joint gift from me and the captain. I provide the trip and he selects the duration. So captain, what did you decide?"

"Well, unfortunately, my new first officer is still in the process of getting acclimated to his new position. So I'm afraid the best I could do is grant two days leave." Capt. Picard.

"Yes captain, I understand." Data reluctantly replied.

A two day honeymoon? I thought. So much for sleep!

I didn't know very much about the planet Risa, but I knew that it was known as the 'Pleasure Planet'. However, I wasn't sure if many married couples vacationed there.

Cmdr. Riker walked over to Data and clamped a hand on his shoulder.

"Data, Data! If you're going to be a good first officer, you're going to have to learn how to negotiate." Cmdr. Riker smiled before turning to Capt. Picard, "Come on, captain. Surely you can do better than that."

Based on the expressions on the faces of the captain and former first officer, it became clear that the two were putting on a show.

"Number…" Capt. Picard stopped himself from calling his former first officer 'Number one', "Cmdr. Riker, you're putting me on the spot. However, I believe I can grant an additional day or two."

Before Data could accept, Cmdr. Riker cut in.

"That's better, but still not quite good enough, huh Data?" Cmdr. Riker asked, to which Data shook his head, getting into the spirit of things. As for me, I was still lost.

"Alright, how about eight days? Is that sufficient?"

"I am afraid not, Captain." Data promptly answered.

"Data, don't push it. Eight days is a standard amount of time for a honeymoon." I whispered cautiously through a nervous smile.

Cmdr. Riker laughed while raising his eyebrows before saying: "I think I created a monster."

"Data, I'm afraid that's the best I can do… unless there's someone here who is willing to fill your shoes during your leave. However, there is only one person here who's qualified for the task, but I'm not sure if we would get along very well." Capt. Picard said with a smile and a knowing glance to Cmdr. Riker.

"I'm sure we'll manage. After all, Data will only be gone for…" Cmdr. Riker replied, glancing at Data, prompting him to name his own trip duration.

"Fourteen days!" Data immediately answered with a broad smile, inciting whistles and chuckles from the crowd.

"Fourteen days?!" I gasped quietly as I glanced at Data.

"You drive a hard bargain Mr. Data… but consider it a done deal." The captain answered.

I was still stunned. Being a workaholic, I've never had a trip as long as fourteen days, much less a honeymoon; and a potentially exhausting one at that!