Disclaimer: I have not used any of the Star Trek characters, but the alien species in my story don't belong to me. For that matter, Jala and Sisma don't belong to me either since they are my friends' screen names.

A/N: As a reminder, this weird version of Star Trek is based on my life, so there's no telling what will happen because life is unpredictable.

Ode to A Starship

by Lina Shay

Chapter Thirty Six: Gone Wrong

I took a long shower. As soon as I got out, I got dressed and sat on the chair in the family room. Teffan was sitting at her computer and mom was going through some papers.

"You're going to get dirty today," my mom told me. "I would put on some older clothes."

"Dirty? What do you mean?"

"You're going to help me fix the waste processing system," Mom informed. "You or Teffan."

"I worked all day," Teffan reminded. "Today's my one day off. Oh, by the way, Lina, you have an interview Monday at fourteen hundred hours."

"I need to get my work visa renewed," I muttered.

"You should have done that earlier," Mom said.

"She had a lot of other things to do, Mom," Teffan defended.

I was surprised that my sister actually stood up for me. When I was younger, it seemed that Teffan was always the one attacking me, and Mom was the one defending. When did it change?

After Mom had fed Dad, she told me that I really needed to change so I did. I followed Mom outside. While she crawled under the house to the waste processing unit, I sat near the house and waited for orders. I mostly just got tools when she asked me to. Sometimes she had me go ask Dad what she was supposed to do about a certain problem. Dad would stare off into space a moment, ask me what the question was, think some more, and then mumble an answer.

When mom had gone to the market to buy parts for the waste processor, Dad sat up and decided he wanted to go for a walk. We gave him his crutches. Teffan and I had to stand on either side of him his phaser rifles. He checked each one over. I wasn't very comfortable with him playing with phasers when he was on medication.

When Mom got back, she insisted that he couldn't go certain places he wanted to go. He kept wanting to go down paths that were dangerous to a man on crutches.

Acting like a child, Dad said, "You never let me do anything."

His back began to hurt, so we helped him back into the house.

Mom came in the family room the next day, grumbling, "It broke again."

"What broke?" I asked.

"The waste processing unit," she told me.

"You just fixed it," I complained.

"I know!" She exclaimed. "We'll have to do that later, though. We have to renew your work visa before your interview with the First Contact Commission."

I got dressed in nice clothes. When I came back to the house, Mom had set Dad in his chair.

"Give me my crutches," Dad said, reaching for them.

"No, you don't," Mom argued. "You aren't going to be walking around by yourself. Just stay there and read or something."

Mom and I went to the Office for Employment. The woman there told me to fill out an application. Once I did, she imprinted my DNA in the computer and looked up my work history.

"Starfleet, huh?" She asked. "Don't see many of your type back here."

She scanned the visa into the computer and then handed it to me. "This will be valid until you leave the planet for over a year."

I nodded and went back with my mom to the transport. We arrived at the First Contact Commission after a hot and stuffy ride. I was glad to get inside the building. The woman there told me to wait, so I did. My mind was wandering when a tall man with dark hair came out of the back room. He waved to me.

"Kenned!" I cried, surprised to see him. I got up to hug him. "I didn't know you worked here."

"Well, I've worked here for a while," he told me, looking around as if he was nervous.

"If I get a job here, we could see each other every day," I pointed out.

His eyes lit up in a handsome way. "That would be cool."

"Lina, Major Seu will see you now," the secretary announced.

"I got to get back to work anyway," he muttered, and then disappeared into the back room without really saying goodbye.

I went in to see Major Seu. I think the interview was all right, but I kept thinking about Kenned and remembering old times. I met him in school, before I had even left for Starfleet. I tried to get him to come with me to Starfleet academy, but he wouldn't. He wanted to work on his art. Before I left for the academy, he told me that he loved me. I had loved him at a point as well, but it seemed that we couldn't be in love with each other at the same time. I still deeply cared for him, and I even found myself daydreaming about kissing him after my interview. That would just make things complicated, though.

Just as Mom and I got back to the house, my brother, Aax, Penby and Anthon arrived at the same time. Anthon hugged me only on Penby's request. It wasn't too horrible that he didn't recognize me again. I never was good with kids anyway. Penby was huge, about ready to give birth any week. Mom talked with Aax while I went up into the house. When I opened the door, I glanced at the chair first and dad was gone. Then I saw him lying on the ground.

"Daddy!" I cried, kneeling down beside him.

Mom came in instantly and got beside him as well. Dad was crying, saying we had to get his leg off. Mom pulled off his bionic leg. I got up and out of the way, because I was always in the way in these situations. My mom called Aax to come help her. The two of them was able to get him into his wheelchair.

"What were you trying to do?" Mom demanded. "I told you stay where you are."

"I wanted to get to my chair," he breathed, his scarred face all red.

I am so helpless.

A/N: Sorry the last couple chapters were underlined. It was an accident. Ta-he!