Chapter 37 – Ashes in Their Mouths
For almost nine years, they pondered, checked and tried whatever channels they had open to them, but there weren't too many of those. Getting Curtis and Chang back seemed to be more and more of a lost cause by the year. And, truly, there was no guarantee that they would be alive, or what their mental states would really be. And did anyone truly want them back, anyway? It was only the preservation of the timeline that was considered to be a reason to even try to get them back.
The children grew – as children do, and their parents were pleased and happy as more joined their ranks. Rooms were subdivided in order to accommodate them all, for it had become obvious that Amity was not safe for colonization, what with the Imvari around, not to mention the malostrea. Some did settle on Paradise, in shorter term work crews which lived better than the prisoners had, but still worked hard. Sandra and Brooks finally found their niche, managing and leading those settlements.
But the Ikaarans were all declining, even young Corda, and Jay had made cane after cane, and had taught José and Walter how to make them as well. Captain Archer didn't know what he'd do with so many people with mobility issues if the ship was ever truly damaged and an evacuation was necessary. He preferred not to think about it, and instead rotated around the more infirm crew members, giving them time on the surface of Paradise if they could work at all. It seemed the safest thing to do.
=/\=
It was early morning, and so the school day was beginning. The grades were changing over, as it was considered the start of the new semester. Proud parents brought their children over as Victoria took the roll.
Jay, Malcolm and Lili stood with their family, waiting for their children's names to be called.
Victoria called out, "Now, children, when I call each of your names, you'll raise your hand. And you will step behind me. Ready?"
More or less in unison, the children answered that they were ready. "All right," she said, "Henry Archer, Fatima Azar, Willie Dane, Connor Greer, Ali Hamidi, Joss Hayes, Maddie Hayes, Sara Hutchinson, Toru Khan, Yoshiko Khan, Jill Lattimer, Paul Mayweather, Scotty Miller, Brandi Moreno, John Phlox, Pamela Reed, Hanna Rosen, Valleri Rostov, Nick Ryan, Rachel Shapiro, Kimmy Sloane-Chang, Amanda Tiburón, Charlie Tucker, T'Les Tucker and Jeff Woods." All of the children were partly or fully human. Some had Vulcan or Denobulan or Ikaaran blood as well.
Victoria took a breath before continuing. "You will all be in my class together this year. As you know, this is the older class. You'll be studying more advanced concepts. And you'll start to think about what you want to do on the ship, and will apprentice yourselves out to members of the crew. There are all sorts of jobs. You can cook, you can farm, you can hunt, or you can be in Security. You can navigate, you can study to be in Tactical, you can work with the doctors and study medicine. You can do more scientific explorations. And you can even perform translations."
She took another breath. "Your younger brothers and sisters and friends," there were about seventy of them, as opposed to twenty-five in the older class, "they will be studying a lot of the things you have already finished. So they'll be learning to read and write, and they will be doing basic experiments and mathematics as well. Mister Torres and Mister Shapiro will mostly handle that class. I trust you will help your younger brothers and sisters with their studies?" The students grumbled a little, so she added, "Now, don't forget, you all have a place on this ship, and it's all cooperative. We all need each other. So while I know your younger siblings can sometimes be a bit of a pain – and believe me I know, as I have, er, had – a younger brother," she was far away for a second, remembering someone she would never see again, "well, you just need to work together, all right? You're a great bunch of kids. I'm proud to be your teacher." She then called the younger group, who were mostly human-Ikaaran hybrids, the children of later marriages between human and Ikaaran women although one child was Sophie Creighton's with Jobiram.
The assembly was over, so most of the adult crew went back to work. Jay, Lili and Malcolm lingered a little. "Are you thinking of anything, Joss?" Jay asked his son.
The boy shuffled uncomfortably for a second. "It's okay if you don't know yet," Lili said. "God knows I had no idea when I was your age."
"I, uh, Mom?"
"Yeah, Ducks?" she asked him.
"Don't call me that, it's babyish."
"Oh, sorry. What is it, love?"
He led her to a corner and a bit away from the men. "I want you and Chef to teach me how to cook."
"Oh, that's wonderful!"
"But, uh, won't that kinda disappoint Dad and Mackum?"
"They'll be fine with it, I'm sure," she said. They returned to where the rest of the family was.
"I wanna go into Tactical," Madeline said.
"I would be delighted to instruct you," Malcolm said, "You truly are a sensible girl. Now what about you, my love?" he asked Pamela.
"I want to work with Phlox and Andy," she said.
"I remember that, somehow, someone told me once," Lili said, "that you would be a doctor, Pamela. But for the life of me, I can't remember who that was."
"Not a lot of options here," Jay said, "we could take a survey."
"Oh, it's not important," she said. "It might even have been you, yanno."
"Me? Nah. But it's all good, Sparrow. Look, I gotta go, and it's Malcolm's day anyway. So I'll see ya in a few days." He smiled at her and departed.
=/\=
Lili and Malcolm left together. "So tonight I was thinking," He said, "we could go to my cabin. Let the children do, uh, whatever and, well, then we'd do what comes naturally, my love."
"Oh? Do you even notice that I'm fifty-seven?"
"Absolutely not," he said. "You're twenty-seven, right?"
"You need to get your eyes checked. But don't ever change the color. The deep blue sea! Just amazing."
"Yours are the exquisite ones," he said, "I am merely here to reflect you." They kissed, her backed into a wall in the hallway as he made her well aware that he was aroused and not too terribly interested in waiting for that evening.
"I love you," she breathed, as excited as he was. "You gotta know what you do to me."
"What you do to me is rather obvious," he said, kissing her neck. "Perhaps there's an unused laboratory somewhere."
"Naughty!" she exclaimed. "I like it."
They found an unused lab – no mean feat, as a lot of space was converted to nurseries, for either people or plants. She smiled at him. "I swear it's like you're randy all the time. Getting older; it doesn't seem to matter with you."
"Well, I have the perfect partner", he said. "Every time we are together, it is an adventure."
"Adventure?"
"Oh yes," Malcolm said, "you see," he talked as he removed her top; "your exterior is that you're a proper mother. You're a fine and upstanding and responsible member of this crew. And you are, well, almost a wife."
"A wife?"
"Do you ever think of it?"
"Sometimes, sure," she said, "but who would I be? Mrs. Reed or Mrs. Hayes?"
"Perhaps we can retain the schedule," he said, stepping out of his uniform jumpsuit.
She laughed a little. "I think of weddings sometimes; I admit it."
"You in a white gown, you hair parted over to the side like I like, a veil, a train, all of that," he said, "Madeline and Pamela as your attendants, in your favorite shade of dark blue, almost an indigo shade." He interrupted himself repeatedly as he spoke by kissing her neck.
"A white dress?" she chuckled. "I am scarcely untouched, yanno. And Joss needs a part, too."
"He can be Best Man. And if you won't wear chaste white, whatever will you wear?" He gazed at her, as they were both completely nude.
"My blue dress – and only a little bit of a veil. I would stand between you, and say I do to both of you! We should ask the captain or something. But first …"
She kissed his chest and moved further downwards. He fought to stand, but his knees were getting weak. She got him near the brink, but not quite there. Ten years before, he would have been helpless and would not have stopped, although he also would have been ready to go again a lot more quickly.
He gently laid her down. It wasn't exactly the most comfortable place where they had ever made love, but it was fine. Lying side to side, they merged. Every kiss lasted, sweet and loving. Every push was hot and satisfying. His hands on her breasts, and then on her waist; she felt soft to him, like love and home. Her hands on his hips, and then on his face; he felt like love and happiness to her. She made noise, louder than she'd been in years. She had been suppressing that so as not to awaken the children in their adjoining rooms or generate questions from them. But that day, all caution was flung to the wind and abandoned, and she gave full throat to her passion.
When they climaxed, they lay together, entwined. When she had some of her voice back, she looked at him and said, "I'd like to thank Aidan MacKenzie."
"I beg your pardon? Is he in here with us somewhere, Darling?"
"Ha, no," she laughed, "he's on the Bridge. And that's why you can be here."
"Did you ever want Aidan?"
"For maybe five seconds, when I saw him for the first time. But I gotta tell ya, I can't be happier. It's impossible. I love you."
"I love, you, too, Miss O'Day, almost Mrs. Reed."
"Don't forget; I'll sometimes be Mrs. Hayes."
"On Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. And on his birthday and on Joss and Madeline's birthdays as well." He kissed her neck again. "And you are Mrs. Reed – or, rather, you shall be – on Sundays and Mondays and Tuesdays."
"And on September third 'cause you and Joss have the same birthday and on Pamela's birthday, too."
"For all time," he said.
There was a communications chime. "Excuse me, my love," he said, "but I expect Mister MacKenzie is requesting my presence back on the Bridge now."
The chime was louder. He found his communicator and flipped it open. "Reed here."
"Malcolm," It was, indeed, Aidan. "We've got an Imvari ship out there. And it's got two human biosigns on board. It's been confirmed."
He stood up and handed his communicator to Lili. She kept it open and near him so he could have both hands free and get dressed a lot more quickly. "Huh, what does the captain say?"
"He's in Sick Bay, sir," Aidan answered. "I think Ebrona got a lot worse."
"It must have happened after the school assembly." Lili handed the communicator to a fully dressed Malcolm and quickly dressed herself.
"What do Tripp and T'Pol say?" Malcolm asked.
Tripp's voice could be heard in the background. "Get up here, Reed! We need to take out their defenses and board that ship."
Remembering that Gary Hodgkins – and two Ikaaran men – had died on such a ship, Lili looked at Malcolm in fear. "I got a bad feeling about this one, like it's a trap or something."
"I can fairly well guarantee that it is one, my love," he told her. Then, into the communicator, he said, "I'll be right up. But let's talk about this first, before we send anyone on board that ship. I know the captain's got a, a situation, but we need his input first." He closed the communicator.
"Promise me you won't go on that ship," she said.
"I can't," he said, "But I will swear to you that I shan't go anywhere without thorough and proper preparations. My self-preservation is very important to me," he smiled at her.
"I just love you," she said, "So no foolish chances."
"Never," he said, "for all I want is to come home to you. I love you." He kissed her and left.
=/\=
In Sick Bay, it was a somber scene. Jonathan just sat near Ebrona's bed. She was wheezing and could not really hold her head up. "I should … have … told you," she breathed.
"I'd have married you anyway," Jonathan said.
"Sweet … talk."
Diana flipped open a communicator. "Jones to Vicki Dietrich Slater. Yeah, send Henry Archer here to Sick Bay right away."
"Trouble?" asked Victoria, who was working with the older children on a series of math problems.
"I'm afraid so. It's Ebrona."
"I'll send him right over." Turning away from the communicator, her voice was a little fainter but she was heard to say, "Henry, go to Sick Bay. Your parents need you."
=/\=
On the Imvari ship, Chang and Curtis were barely recognizable, but at least they were in a holding cell together. Thin as rails, they, too, were dying, but it was not due to any sort of genetically engineered decline. Rather, it was due to malnutrition and overwork.
"Why'd ya think we were put back on this ship?" Tristan finally asked. There was no window, so they had no idea they were anywhere near the Enterprise.
"Dunno, man," Dan said. "Maybe we're being returned. You know; defective merchandise, or something?"
Tris was about to answer him when the ship dropped to a lower speed.
=/\=
In the Captain's Ready Room, Tripp, T'Pol and Malcolm conferred.
"I don't care for this one bit," Malcolm said, "It feels very much like a trap. And no one here can even say whether Chang and Curtis so much as want to return."
"They're still our people," Tripp said, "we can't just leave 'em out there, if there's any possibility of retrieving them."
"Leaving the two crewmen out there risks further contamination of the timeline. In any event, we should retrieve them even if they die in our custody. After all, if their remains are found on, say, Andoria in 2102 that would be problematic," T'Pol stated.
"I still think it's an unnecessary risk to personnel," Malcolm said. "Would it be possible to beam them aboard?"
"We tried before you got to the Bridge," Tripp said, "but there's some sort of a dampening field. We'll have to send a shuttle or two, like we did when Hayes and O'Day were captured."
"We lost Hodgkins that day," Malcolm said. "And Lili and Jay wanted to return. What if Curtis and Chang actively prevent our departure? You cannot say that that's outside the realm of possibility."
T'Pol was about to answer him when the ship was rocked. The three of them raced out of the Ready Room and back onto the Bridge, where Aidan had been in command.
=/\=
"We've got a situation!" Aidan yelled. Karin was at Tactical and she was getting a little flustered. Malcolm quickly relieved her and she stepped aside.
T'Pol got over to the Science station, where Nyota Warren Dane was. "Report," said the Vulcan.
"The human biosigns are fluctuating. Then that ship just opened fire on us. I can't tell if the two things are related."
"What's goin' on, Mac?" Tripp asked.
"It's what Nyota said." The ship was rocked again.
"Return fire!" T'Pol commanded.
Malcolm hit the controls. "Launching a torpedo spread."
The torpedoes hit their marks. T'Pol continued to peer into her scope. "The biosigns are somewhat weak. It's difficult to determine whether that is due to some sort of technological cover or if Chang and Curtis are dying."
"Are you certain that the biosigns are them?" Malcolm asked.
"No," she admitted, "but this is the best lead we have had so far."
"Why would they be on one of those ships?" Hoshi asked. She had been monitoring communications but the Imvari ship, as per usual, did not answer their hails.
"Logic would dictate that it is to lure us to the Imvari ship," T'Pol said. "But an alternative explanation could be to simply return the men."
"Why wouldn't they just let 'em die wherever they were workin'?"
The ship was rocked again. "Return fire!" T'Pol called out.
Tripp looked at Hoshi. "Get me Rostov."
"Go ahead."
"Mike, man the transporter! We gotta see if we can get Chang and Curtis back! I'm comin' down there!" He departed.
T'Pol and Malcolm looked at one another. "I think you're coming to the realization that this is a lure and a lost cause, Commander," he said.
"Get me the captain!" T'Pol called to Hoshi as the ship was, again, hit by enemy fire.
=/\=
"My life … has … no … regrets," Ebrona said, "Henry … you must … look after … your father."
"Of course, Mom."
"And … when a … girl gives … you a … living gift … have a … a happy … life."
"Yes, Mom."
"Like … our … life … to … together … has … been."
"I love you, Ebrona," Jonathan said. He gripped their son's shoulder with one hand and held her hand with the other.
"My … ancestors … they … say … you … were … best … for … me," she paused and looked up. "I … I … see … them. They … wait … for … for … me. They … tell … me … this … will … happen … again. Do … not … grieve. I … will … never … leave … you."
"I love you, Mom."
"Ebrona, I love you." Jonathan choked the words out.
"Forever," she said softly, and that was it.
=/\=
Diana answered the wall communicator. "Sick Bay, Jones here."
"T'Pol needs to speak with the captain," Hoshi said.
"Can't it wait, even a little bit?" Diana asked.
"It's an emergency."
Diana said quietly. "The body isn't even cold yet. And I am speaking literally, Hoshi."
Hoshi looked at T'Pol. "What do you want me to do?"
T'Pol came over. "I must confer with him. I will go there myself. Mister Reed, you have the Bridge."
=/\=
At the transporter, Tripp and Mike Rostov tried everything they could think of. They boosted power as much as possible, without reducing the polarization on the hull plating or compromising the Enterprise's speed. "Let's try 'er again," Tripp called out as Mike flipped switches.
There was a slight buzz of static and a bit of shimmering, but then it stopped.
=/\=
On the Imvari ship, in the holding cell, Tris was, for less than half a minute, in the transporter pattern buffer. And then he wasn't, and he was back in the cell with Chang. "What the hell just happened?" asked Curtis.
"Someone's trying to beam us outta here, I think," Dan said. "But they must be having trouble."
An Imvari guard came over, fiddling with controls in order to get the translator to work. "Your people will not succeed in transporting you off. You make excellent bait."
"We're near the Enterprise?" Curtis asked.
"We are near a ship with your kind. And soon we will have many more of your kind to sell. And there will be higher priced females to sell, too." He smacked a panel and translations were, again, lost.
=/\=
In Sick Bay, the doors swished open. T'Pol entered. "Captain, I must speak with you."
He turned to look at her, eyes crimson. "What?"
"I apologize. But we believe we have located Chang and Curtis."
There was another rocking as the Enterprise again took fire from the Imvari ship.
"My God," Jonathan said, "what's our situation?"
"Captain," said the Vulcan, "we have been attempting to retrieve Curtis and Chang. But so far we have been unsuccessful."
"What do you need from me?"
"We need to know whether you wish for us to continue in this pursuit."
"Have you tried beaming them aboard?"
"We have," she then flipped open a communicator. "T'Pol to Commander Tucker."
"Go ahead," Tripp said.
"Have you had any success?"
"None," he said, "we'd have to divert a lot more power. We'd either lose hull plating polarization or speed, or both."
"What about weapons?" Jonathan asked. "Let's get Malcolm on the line."
T'Pol hit a few keys and Hoshi was included. She quickly patched Malcolm in. "Hull plating and polarization are holding. Torpedoes have had little effect. As I recall of these ships, the arms are for docking and the interior contains the cells. Firing at the arms is all well and good, but we'd lose the ability to dock a shuttle. Firing at the interior risks injuring our crewmen." There was another hit. "I must go soon."
"Wait," Jonathan said, "I, I want us to go after Chang and Curtis. Or at least Chang. I know it sounds crazy, but," he was teary, "Henry here is going to grow up without a mother. And, and I can't see making Kim Sloane-Chang go through that, and never, ever really know her father, if we can't at least try to do something about that."
"Sir," Malcolm said, "the risks are great and the chances of success are extremely limited."
"The only real purpose we have," T'Pol said, "is the one you have articulated. Either that or we destroy that ship. Because if human remains are found on any of our allied worlds, even fossilized remains, it will damage the timeline. It could be significant damage."
"Then we'll need to send a boarding party," Jonathan said, "Two shuttles, like before, like when O'Day and Hayes were captured."
"If I may, sir," Malcolm said, "only one shuttle this time. We, well, if this is as much of a trap as I suspect it is, then it makes little sense to send more men to either their deaths or to enslavement."
Reluctantly, the captain nodded. "Get to the MACO training area and call in everyone from the MACOs and from Security. Select your team from them. You'll be leading the assault."
"Very well," Malcolm swallowed hard. "Allow me a few moments at my quarters and then I shall be there."
"Don't dawdle."
=/\=
Malcolm got to his quarters in record time and changed his boots to the lighter ones as he figured he might have to do a lot of running. Then he sighed for a second, and dictated.
=/\=
Malcolm Reed's Personal log, June thirtieth, 2052
I am dictating this right now as I suspect – in fact, I can fairly well guarantee – that this will be my last-ever entry.
I do not wish to go to my death. But the captain wants us to at least make an effort to retrieve the two missing crewmen. It is for Kimberly Sloane-Chang's sake, in part. And T'Pol is right; even their remains, if found later, could irrevocably damage the timeline.
And so I shall go.
I will ask for the minimal number of volunteers – four. Plus a pilot. That will be Christian Harris. My apologies to him, but I can't see putting Travis through that. If we are to attempt to protect parents, then at least Paul Mayweather will have his father, even if my Pamela cannot have her own.
As for my last will and testament, they are already done. Everything I have belongs to Lili O'Day and Pamela, our daughter.
I have never loved anyone as much as I love them. And I feel I also love Madeline and Joss, even though they are not mine, not biologically. And in a small way, as a kind of brother, I even love and care for the Major. He will take care of her – of both of them – I know. He has been generous and thoughtful. And, I suspect, a bit self-sacrificing. I am unsure, but I suspect that he had a hand in assuring that Pamela would be fathered by me. And so I thank him for that.
I wonder if, in 2154, the real crew – including myself, and Lili and Jay – if they will meet this ship and our descendants. If so, I hope they look at our logs and our records and look at us with a bit of charity. We have all done our level best. We have been imperfect. And perhaps we have made poor decisions and taken foolish chances. But this is who we are. I hope they will judge us kindly.
If this is to be my final recorded communication, then I will end it with love for Lili and for Pamela, beyond my death, if that is at all possible.
=/\=
At the MACO training facility, Jay and Malcolm looked at a lineup of everyone in the Security department and in the MACOs. "I suspect that this mission has a poor chance of success," said Malcolm, "I require four volunteers."
"Me, sir," said Susie Money Lattimer, "I can't have kids anymore."
"You sure?" Jay asked.
"I'm sure about that," she said.
"I meant, are you sure about going? This might be a one-way ticket, yanno."
"I know," she said, "but I want to do this. For Kimmy's sake."
"You'll have your phase rifle on kill," Malcolm said, "and you may find yourself turning it on any one of us if the situation becomes that desperate."
"I understand," she said.
"Me, too," said Eddie, "I'll go. Minatka is dying, and we never had children. I don't like leaving her, but at least a kid won't be without a Dad."
Malcolm nodded, a lump in his throat. "Thank you."
"Same here," said Lloyd Ketcham, who was in Security. "Steffie is close to being done. And we never had kids. She's a good person. Someone, I hope, will, you know, do the right thing."
Gavin Prentice stepped forward. "I got the same reasoning as Ketcham. Tara's a nice girl. I only want the best for her after, uh, you know."
"Let's bring them in, and Mario Lattimer, and Minatka," Jay suggested. "And Lili, too, and the kids. Make your good-byes. I hate to say it, but we gotta be quick about it."
=/\=
Lili ran over, joining Mario and Tara and Stephanie. Minatka was slower, as the decline made it difficult for her to get around. Jill Lattimer joined Pamela and Madeline and Joss, who came, too. "Oh God," Lili held Malcolm's hands in hers. "What the hell are they thinking?"
Malcolm leaned over and kissed her hands. "I have left a log entry for you. And there are other things, notes and poems and whatnot that I never sent. Take them, take everything."
Lili stepped back so that the children could make their good-byes. Jay put an arm around her. "Sparrow, it feels all wrong."
"I know," she said, "like it's all hurtling along in space and we're just plodding behind it at five KPH."
Malcolm looked at them both. "Marry her, Jay," he said.
"What?"
"You should. We spoke of this, today, as a matter of fact. Lili, if you cannot be Mrs. Reed, then at least be Mrs. Hayes, all right?"
Lili nodded, weeping. "Don't go."
"I have to," he said, "There's but the slightest chance. I do this for Kimberly Sloane-Chang."
There was a communications chime. "We've softened them up with phase cannon fire," said Aidan. "Now would be a good time for you to go."
Malcolm turned to Lili. He held her and kissed her, lingering. "I love you beyond all reason, beyond all hope, beyond all belief and beyond all faith."
"I love you forever," Lili said back to him.
"Forever."
One more kiss, and they were gone.
=/\=
On the Imvari ship, it was as before. They found the holding cells and shot at the locking mechanisms in order to get them open quickly.
The Imvari ship rocked and pitched as it fired at the NX-01 and fire was returned. Curtis looked up at Susie when they finally broke through. "What the hell –?"
"C'mon," she said, "I don't intend for this to be a suicide mission."
He tried to follow her but he was too slow. She ended up picking him up in a fireman's carry. Eddie then ended up lifting Chang the same way. "You guys are like feathers."
It was true. They were as thin as concentration camp survivors. Malcolm led the way as Gavin and Lloyd turned behind them in order to lay down more fire. As quickly as they could, everyone ran to the shuttle. Malcolm flipped open a communicator as he went. "We've got them," he reported to Chris.
"I'm ready for you," was the reply. "I'll contact the Enterprise." He flipped a switch to hail the main ship. "Almost there!"
Hoshi responded. "We're gonna try transporting!"
Jonathan, despite how he was feeling, was in the command chair. "Tripp, do what you can."
In Engineering, Tucker and Rostov worked the transporter's controls. "I can't get a lock," Michael said, "the biosigns are fluctuating, some of them. And the others, it's that masking again."
"Keep trying," Tripp commanded. "Do everything." He opened his communicator. "Get closer. That's the only thing I can think of to do."
They came closer, and ended up taking fire again. This time, Aidan fired torpedoes at all of the Imvari ship's docking arms except for the one being used by the Enterprise's shuttlepod.
For a little while, the firing ceased. The team made it to the shuttlepod. "With all due speed, Mister Harris." Malcolm then flipped open a communicator. "Cover, if you please, Mister MacKenzie."
The Imvari ship, once the shuttlepod was clear, twisted around and managed to whack the shuttlepod with one of its damaged arms.
"I'm losing her!" Chris yelled.
"Grappler! Get the grappler!" Malcolm yelled into his communicator.
Aidan deployed it as quickly as he could, and the Enterprise came closer. The Imvari ship whipped around again, and the Enterprise had to retreat or it, too, would have been hit.
In Engineering, they suddenly had a lock, and a very surprised Susie Money Lattimer materialized, along with Dan Chang.
"Go again!" yelled Tripp. He and Michael Rostov worked the controls as quickly as possible as Susie hustled herself and Dan off the pad.
On the Bridge, Jonathan yelled, "Ready about! Fire at the other side of the Imvari ship!"
Aidan used the forward phase cannons, but this made the Imvari ship spin even faster. It was as if it was losing its structural integrity and its means of maintaining artificial gravity, which was likely through revolving.
A figure began to materialize on the transporter pad. "Almost there, almost there!" Tripp yelled. Gavin blinked several times as they shoved him off the pad so that they could try again.
On the shuttlepod, Malcolm and Chris had noticed their fellow crew members being beamed off. "It won't be long, sir," Chris said.
But just then the Imvari ship brought the arm around one last time, and it broke the shuttlepod apart before it, too, was destroyed. It was a millisecond, and Malcolm knew it was all over.
=/\=
In his head, he heard a voice. "Jay?" he asked.
"Almost," replied the voice.
"I've died," Malcolm said.
"Yes."
"What is this, then?"
"The afterworld," said the voice. "She's okay and the kids will be all right. I know it. And now you will, too. You've done well by her, but then, you always do."
=/\=
Lili knew the moment that Captain Archer came to see her in the galley. Jay was right behind him. "Oh God!" she screamed. "God, oh God, oh God! What the hell were you thinking? Was it worth it? Was it? Was it?" Both of them collapsing in sobs, Jay held her as she shook.
Victoria brought over their children. "Mom," Pamela asked, "what do we do now?"
Jay was the only one who could look up, and not be completely overcome. He looked at Jonathan as he held his family together as best he could. "Marry us," he said softly. "It was Malcolm's last wish. Do it now. Do it today. Or all of this is for nothing."
"Yes," Lili said, almost mechanically. "It was his wish. Here, do it here, do it now." Craig was nearby, and she grabbed his sleeve. "You'll witness this."
"Of course," he said.
Jonathan stood there in disbelief. "Do you take Lili O'Day to be your wife?"
"Yes."
"Do you take Jay Hayes to be your husband?"
"I, I do."
"By the power –"
"No, wait a second," Jay held up his hand. "Sparrow, I wanna do this. I want us to commemorate him, and be one at the same time."
"How?"
"Take his name. Let's all be Reed-Hayes, even the kids. Don't let anybody dare forget him."
"They better not," said Joss.
"Then I declare you, by the power vested in me by Starfleet, Mr. and Mrs. Jay Reed–"
"Jay Douglas, sir," Jay corrected the captain.
"Jay Douglas Reed-Hayes," Jonathan said. "Please kiss the bride."
"Sparrow," Jay murmured softly, "this is not how I would have planned this."
"Doesn't matter," she said, "I love you both. And if it wasn't obvious before, it sure as hell is now." Briefly, they kissed as the children stood by, in a little shock and disbelief at how the day had unfolded.
=/\=
In Sick Bay, right before he died, Kimberly Sloane-Chang saw her father and told him that she forgave him.
=/\=
In their quarters, Lili looked at Jay. "It's our wedding night."
"Yeah, but you know, you don't have to. I totally understand."
"But I do have to," she insisted.
"You sure?"
"I am," she said.
"I will go slowly," he said softly. "Sparrow, you will tell me if you change your mind at all. I know how you must be feeling."
"I feel awful," she said, "but I also, yanno, I want to show him, I think, that his last wish was not in vain. That we love each other. And we can express it. Even in our, our darkest hours."
She undressed and got into bed, and he followed. They kissed. She touched him, a little tentatively, as if they were new at it. He caressed her, getting her aroused. They lay on their sides, just as she had, earlier that day, done with Malcolm. They merged. He looked her in the eye. "You're an amazing woman. And I am not just lucky. I am blessed."
Together, they moved, surrendering to their feelings and pleasing each other, even as they remembered what had happened that day. When they were both satisfied, they broke apart. "I love you, Sparrow. I will never stop saying it," Jay promised. "You are my wife and you deserve to hear it, as much as you want to hear it, any time, any day."
"I love you, too, Jay. And Malcolm, wherever you are, I also love you."
=/\=
As she slept that night, she heard a British-accented voice in the pitch darkness. "We had a good run, you and I. Jay will be the husband you want and need and deserve."
"Will I be widowed, or will he?"
"You will, but not for long."
"I see. How soon?"
"Not for another thirty years. The Sparrow and the Blue Jay will see grandchildren and even some great-grandchildren as well. You will lead happy and fulfilling lives."
"I still love you, Malcolm."
"I shall always love you, Lili. That has not changed."
As before, a hand touched hers, and then her hand was kissed. She touched the mouth and briefly felt the lines on his face that she knew so well before she awoke in the middle of the night to find Jay dictating a log entry.
=/\=
Jay Hayes's Personal log, June thirtieth, 2052
This will be the last time I use this name. From now on, my name is Jay Douglas Reed-Hayes. Lili and I are married now, and Malcolm is gone. For all the times I wanted him out of the picture, it hurts beyond hurting for it to have really happened. He was a good person and he was my friend and my brother.
Doesn't the Bible say something about a man taking to wife his brother's widow? And so I have, but it's not out of duty. It is out of love.
I never told Susan I loved her. And it was because I didn't love her. And I rarely told Lili, because those words were still scary. But they aren't scary anymore. She needs to hear it. And I need to tell her, I feel. I love her forever. Malcolm, wherever you may be, know that she's in good hands. And I love our children, too, and they are gonna hear it from me until I embarrass the hell outta them. And that means Pamela, too. She can call me Dad if that works for her, or Jay, if it doesn't. But she needs to know that I love her as much as I love Joss and Madeline. They're in good hands, too, buddy.
I will be the rock. I will be the one who will stand there and be their shield. You can count on me.
=/\=
Charlotte Lilienne O'Day Reed-Hayes's Personal log, June thirtieth, 2052
My life is all mixed-up right now. I barely understand it. Malcolm is; he's gone. Just, gone, just like that. I can't blame Captain Archer. I know he's hurting, too. Ebrona is gone. Eddie Hamboyan is gone. Tris Curtis is gone. Lloyd Ketcham is gone. Chris Harris is gone. Dan Chang is gone. And soon the other older Ikaarans will be all gone. This feels, in many ways, like a ship of death.
I shouldn't have hope. I shouldn't dare to. Yet I do have hope. I have more love for Jay than I think I ever have, and more for our children, as if that was even possible. And for Malcolm, yes. He may be gone but that does not mean my feelings have diminished in any way. I love him more than ever. It transcends the end, I feel.
=/\=
Jonathan Archer's Personal log, June thirtieth, 2052
For Henry, I will keep it together. For the crew, I will deal with things, like I always have. But I know that this has been a grave lapse in judgment.
Protecting the timeline was our concern, yes, but it wasn't enough to send six people out there. And now four of those who went out are gone. And Chang, who we brought back, at least he was here for a moment. I suppose we did right by Kimberly Sloane-Chang, who never deserved any of this. But I have lost my good friend and Tactical Officer. Aidan MacKenzie will, of course, be promoted, and Karin Bernstein-Rosen will become a Lieutenant and then I'll find someone else to do extra piloting, maybe Colleen Romanov Novakovich. I don't know just yet.
And the part I have not mentioned, because it is a pain that I have never experienced before, that is of Ebrona's passing. I want Phlox, T'Pol, Miller, Jones and everyone else in Science and Medical to dedicate their time – when they aren't dealing with pregnancies or births or pediatrics or injuries – I want them to devote their time to curing this damned decline. I don't want to bury my son, too. Life is too damnably hard without that, too.
=/\=
Patti Socorro Slocum's Personal log, June thirtieth, 2052
Curtis and Chang's deaths do not make me feel any better. I had wondered, years ago, when it would finally really hit me, the near-rape, and everything that it entailed. And I've held it together for so long that that was natural. It made sense to suppress it. Well I can't suppress it any longer.
Will tries to talk to me, but I fight him. I can't stand to be with him. I can't stand to do anything, talk to anyone, or listen to anyone. It all feels like, like ashes in my mouth.