2371: Federation Shuttlecraft / Earth
REUNION
This must be how Keela felt when she was on Terok Nor, Damar thought to himself. This world was so alien. As the shuttle entered the orbit of a planet named Earth, he caught sight of a large, white celestial body. It was marked with craters and reflected every last bit of the main sequence star's bright light. A natural satellite, Damar concluded. The moon.
The moon promptly shifted out of view and Damar's watchful gaze was met by a sea of satellites and space stations all orbiting the planet below. He wondered why the humans had never bothered to remove the simply colossal amount of space junk from Earth's orbit. And then, he remembered what Keela had told him. The people of Earth valued exploration ever so much. Their ancestors' vital work and research in the fields of science, astronomy and mathematics would forever live on in their creations which still, hundreds of years later, would be guarding the planet. The sides of what was now space junk were plastered in a multitude of symbols and flags and signs: NASA. ESA. JAXA. USA. UK.
At last, the planet which he had waited so long to see for real. Earth. The blue marble that lay serenely in amongst a sea of space debris, shipping docks, and a system of lifeless other planets and a dark blanket of stars. He smiled and studied, as best he could from such a great distance, the surface of the planet. Most of it was covered in a deep blue ocean, but that feature was neatly interjected with tall mountains, orange deserts, ghostly white polar ice caps, grey city centres, and lush green woodlands. For a moment, he was reminded of Bajor. Forcing that memory away into the depths of his expectant and anxious mind, he braced himself for the landing. He had never been in a Federation shuttlecraft before, nor did he ever particularly want to be in one any time soon.
As he stepped out of the small warp-enabled craft, he breathed in the air deeply. He had visited many planets in his life, but none were as full of life as this one was. Earth seemed to be so much more different than the others. He guessed the strange feeling he had was due to the fact that he would be seeking Keela... and Alexander very soon.
He took out his PADD and called up a few documents. Looking through the plethora of files, he soon found the one that he was looking for. He read the document and nodded, understanding. It was an address. He knew he had landed in some place called San Francisco. But, that was basically all he knew. He wasn't certain of much else. Just over the horizon, he manage to make out the outline of a bright red object; a bridge. It was majestic and dominant. Damar was impressed. Staring intently at the PADD, he wondered what the address could mean.
Earth was so different to Cardassia. No one had ever told him what exactly it was like. Of course, he had seen many photographs and holographic recreations of it, and Keela had told him many facts concerning it, but none of that could have possibly prepared him for the sights he was seeing. Everyone who walked pass him seemed to be smiling and happy. Children of all ages, and of many species, had grins on their faces. The elderly were hobbling about quietly, but content.
Cardassian seemed so dark in comparison, and Bajor seemed so wet and too bright. That is, until the Occupation, of course. Sure, not everyone who met his gaze was all that receiving. He understood why. He understood very well. Who would want to have anything to do with a Cardassian? After not only carrying out an apparently brutal and rights-breaching Occupation of a harmless and defenceless people, but actually failing to uphold it. He shuddered at that grossly compelling thought and then stuffed the PADD away.
He saw a computer terminal. Or, that was what he guessed it to be. "Computer," he said in a firm tone of voice. "Tell me where ninety-four Clarendon Street is."
The computer system chirped an then a monotonous female voice replied, "Ninety-four Clarendon Street is located half a mile west of your present location. Estimated journey time is-"
Damar shook his head and interrupted the automated voice. "That's enough," he said gruffly, before leaving the terminal briskly.
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a large building complex. After a moment's more scrutiny, he noticed that it was Starfleet Academy. And, right next to it were Starfleet Headquarters. He also saw numerous Starfleet officers walking by him. Most of them gave him glowers and glares, but he ignored them, not caring less what it was they thought of him or of his people.
He started on the short journey to the address that Keela had given him. The sun was hot on his back, but he was pleased for it. Bajor was too cold, and its sun was oddly too bright. It rained too often there, not to mention the locals. He felt perspiration start to drip down his forehead and he groaned in annoyance.
At last, he reached the appropriate address. Before going up to the front door, he took a moment to take in his surroundings. The street was quiet, with only a few hovercars travelling past every now and then. Trees were in full bloom as summer was at its height. Taking a deep breath, he pressed the panel which was on the wall adjacent to the door. He heard movement inside the house and then the door slid open.
He looked down and caught sight of his son. His only son. He had grown so much since he had last seen him personally - two years ago.
It was then that Keela entered the room. Her jaw opened wide at the sight. "Corat?" she exclaimed. "It's you!" She almost squealed with joy. "Alexander," she said softly to their son. "This is your daddy."
Alexander looked up at Damar with large, expectant eyes. Damar smiled and scooped the child up. "Hello, son," he said softly. "I've missed you so much." He took Keela into his arms, too, and said gently, "I have missed you, too."
Keela smiled lovingly and blinked back tears of happiness. She sighed happily and kissed Damar's cheek.
"Where did you go, daddy?" the three year-old child asked, cocking his head to one side inquisitively.
Damar sighed and tried to formulate an appropriate response in his head. "I... I was at work, son," he said, grimacing at the awful answer.
The child frowned. "Work?"
Keela cut in, before Damar could attempt another answer. "Yes, Tom. I've told you this, daddy's got a very important job. Cardassia is very far away."
"Are you staying?" Alexander inquired, looking up at his father.
A muscle in Damar's jaw twitched and he said tightly, "We'll see."
Keela was about to add something, before Alexander announced, "I'm at school now." He beamed.
"School?" Damar repeated, alarmed and confused. Even on Cardassia, where education was practically everything, children were not schooled at the mere age of three.
Keela shook her head and smiled. "It's not exactly school," she iterated. "It's only nursery."
For a moment, Damar paused, and then he nodded and set the child down on the floor gently. "Is he attending this... nursery now?"
Keela nodded. "Yes. It's every weekday." She gestured to a door to the far right. "Tom, go make sure you've got your pencils for nursery."
Alexander Sejan went off and Keela tuned her attention back to Damar. "How long are you staying?" she inquired, hope shining through.
Damar shrugged. It felt odd. He had never been without his armour for so long. He felt almost vulnerable. "I have no idea," he answered honestly. "Not as long as I would like."
Keela smiled sweetly and kissed his lips. Damar found it hard to let go. He had longed to have her small form so very close to his. To touch her lips with his own. To hold her dearly. To caress her supple skin as it done in the dancing light.
A few minutes later, Alexander emerged from his room and looked up with expectant eyes at his parents. "Can daddy take me to nursery?"
Keela shook her head, saying, "Daddy doesn't know the way. I'll promise he will take you soon, though."
Looking glum, Alexander nodded in submission and Keela took his hand, before kissing Damar goodbye. "I won't be long," she told him, before leaving the house and stepping into the hovercar which was parked outside the building.
Damar studied his surroundings, taking it all in. There were many photographs hanging on the walls. Pictures of him, Keela, and Alexander all together; pictures of Keela's family; pictures of rolling hills and bright blue skies, all flooded his vision.
He went into the Alexander' room. It was medium in size and was adorned with pictures of dinosaurs and building blocks. There was a large square window which let in beams of yellow sunlight on the opposite wall. The walls were painted light green, and the floor was soft underfoot.
Next, he went into the master bedroom. It was large, but not quite as big as his had been on Terok Nor in the years previous. There was a holographic rod on one of the items of furniture. After a moment of hesitation, Damar picked it up and pressed the release key. He was almost overwhelmed with sadness and joy - all at the same time - when he saw the image it contained. Him. His newborn son. Keela.
Shakily, he returned the rod to its original location in the room and then he went back into the main room. The atrium.
He jumped when he heard the door slide open.
"You're back?" Damar asked of Keela as she entered the room.
"We ran into one of Alexander' friends along the way, so the two of then went into the nursery." She smiled fondly. "In fact, he seemed quite keen to get rid of me."
"He has friends?" Damar asked.
She smiled and laughed softly. "Yes, he has." She went up to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "You don't need to worry about him not fitting in."
Damar put his hands around her delicate waist. "I missed you so much. Both of you," he said solemnly.
She leant up to kiss his lips. "I've missed you, two. Alexander, every day, he would ask about you."
"What did you tell him?"
"I told him what a good man you are. And that you were always thinking of us. That you'd always return to us," she told Damar, but he could just about make out slight uncertainty in her voice.
Damar kissed her forehead and said softly, "How is your family?"
"They're well," she answered softly. "They are asking about you as well. But, to tell the truth, I didn't really know what do say. Sorrowfully, she hung her head. "I didn't know if you would come back or not," she continued, holding back the salty tears. "If something had happened to you, I didn't think anyone would tell me."
Damar pulled her back from him and took her small face in his hands. "Of course I would come back. I would never leave you, or Alexander. I promised you that."
Sniffing, Keela nodded. "I love you."
Damar pulled her close and pressed his lips to hers. "I love you, too, Keela. I always will."
Keela stepped back from the embrace and took his hand, leading him to the bedroom. She sat on the bed and pulled him toward her. Damar kicked off his boots and noticed that Keela, too, was removing her clothes. He stared appreciatively and wonderingly at her delicate, perfect form.
With one hand, she massaged gently the ridges that ran down his neck and to his shoulders, causing him to shudder with pleasure under her touch. Damar wrapped his arms around her small waist and kissed her neck. Nuzzling her and stroking back her maroon hair, he pressed his lips to hers.
Keela held him back from her. She sighed. "There's no rush. You'll be staying for some time, won't you?"
Damar made an agreeing noise and then kissed her neck.
"Can we just... lie here? Together," she said.
Damar pulled her against him, and kissed her hairline.
Keela drew small circles on his scaly chest and sighed.
"I've missed this," Damar told her.
Keela rolled her eyes. She knew what Damar was like. "I'm sure you have."
"No, no," Damar, surprisingly, countered. "I meant just laying here with you. Waking up to see you."