The Fog of War

Three

Beverly sat absently staring at the lake, ruminating over her half-eaten chicken salad sandwich. It tasted the same as the tuna she'd had yesterday, and the turkey from the day previous. She'd never acquired a taste for anything non-Terran in origin, try as she might. So many things had been so hard after Arveda, and eating the food she'd grown up with made her feel somehow closer to the family that had been so brutally taken from her.

She worried that the Federation might soon be gone too. It was her only family, one that she had been devoted too for decades, ever since childhood. But a lot of officers were considering leaving, migrating to remote parts of the galaxy with their families in hopes of escaping Romulan rule. It felt cowardly to her, but in her heart she yearned for stability. She longed for the security of a partner and children. She hoped the war would make up her mind for her.

There was now another Romulan offensive on the western front of the continent at Aeron V. She paid close attention to the military maneuvers in order to prepare her teams for surges in casualties – and there had been a lot lately. She met weekly with the strategic command team, and it wasn't just the haunted look in their eyes that told her things were not going well. Troops were deployed in an aggressive defensive pattern around the farthest perimeters of the region – but they were losing ground - foot by foot, battle by battle, and life by life. The Fleet lines of defense were constricting rapidly - which was good because there were fewer and fewer officers to hold them.

In the six months she'd been on the ground she had been on almost 50 recovery missions, always bringing back more dead than alive. They were losing on Aeron V. One way or another she would not see a year at this post. Either she would be killed or they would lose the planet. She supposed it wasn't very noble, but she hoped it would be the latter. It wasn't very noble because Starfleet couldn't really afford the loss. Describing the war as a tie was generous at best. It was technically true that the Fleet and the Romulans held approximately the same number of disputed planets. But a lot more of them looked strategically like Aeron V. Starfleet was outnumbered, and Aeron V was likely to be the first in a rapid succession of losses for the Federation. After the Romulans had won the ground war, they would be able to turn their Warbirds on the beleaguered Federation fleet. And after that – well, Beverly didn't want to think about what would happen after that.

She looked down at the bedraggled remains of her lunch and wrapped it back up. She would save it for tomorrow. Maybe it would get better with age. She knew Jack Crusher had.

"I'm confident we can hold the cloak sir. The problem will be beaming on and off the planet. We'd need to de-cloak to make the transport." Yar clicked off the monitor at the head of the observation lounge and regained her seat at Picard's right hand. "It doesn't help that the Roosevelt has been re-diverted."

On his left Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge chimed in. "There's a chance we could outfit a shuttle with a cloaking device, but that would be quite risky." His tone didn't convey confidence. "There's a possibility that the cloak would interact with the planet's atmosphere. And at that point the shuttle's a sitting duck."

"And the Romulan's ears perk right up," Commander Riker added glumly.

At the head of the briefing table Picard stood. "However you do it, figure it out. You've got 24 hours." He glanced sternly at his officers. "Those officers need our help."

"Aye sir." The tactical team stood and filed out of the conference room.

Beverly and Jack had only been a few years apart at the Academy, though he hadn't known it. His head was already in the stars, or turned around by the latest pretty young girl to cross his path. Beverly had noticed him occasionally, it was hard not to. He'd been the top of his class in everything. And the command kids were the star of the show as far as the Federation was concerned. Jack had always been palling around with this particular commander – a captain now, but a commander at the time. Beverly had not known his name, but the two of them together had been a force, a compelling one to her. They were easy to spot on campus, walking brazenly in the center of every path, with the expected gaggle of young cadets following behind. Cadet Howard had always thought them pathetic, but had acknowledged that there was something about the pair.

But she had been far too concerned with her studies and far too introverted to give either the time of day, had they even asked. They had spoken briefly once at the Quarterdeck bar near campus one evening. She had been standing at the bar and Jack had turned to ask her name. She'd responded and he'd smiled - but he was suddenly tapped on the shoulder by a willowy older woman with long, dark hair. She was quite forward in her advances, and Beverly was long gone by the time Jack turned back to finish their conversation.

"Tell the Central Command that I want 5,000 more troops for the front. We can spare them, and I'm tired of playing around with these Federation dogs. We will take Aeron V, and there will be no one left here to resist after we do. We will spare neither civilians nor Federation troops. We will take this mud hole of a planet, and we will move on with finishing this war once and for all."

"Yes Commander R'Nau." The young male, soft in his countenance for a Romulan, bent slightly and hastily retreated from the room. The imposing older woman had suddenly deposed the previous Commander at Aeron V only days ago, and had made drastic strategic changes since. Their casualties were staggering, but they had quickly captured several battle fronts that had been contested for months. She was tall and very thin for a Romulan, and refused to wear her dark hair at standard length. In contrast to her very masculine bearing, her delicate features and long black hair softened her stature. But they did nothing to diminish her unquestioned authority.

R'Nau smiled primly and turned to the display on the wall. Federation forces glowed in blue and Romulan in green against a midnight black background. Her eyes flashed deep violet, then blue and green before finally darkening to a black that matched the display. By her estimates an additional 5,000 Romulan troops would crush the Federation within a week. The re-deployment from other planets might cost the Empire slightly, but she did not care. Her one concern was the imminent demise of Jack Crusher. He was a cocky one, and would never think of abandoning his troops on the front line. He would stand and fight until the last, and die in obscurity. And most importantly, he would die without ever fulfilling the budding relationship with Beverly Howard. That was, of course, only if everything went according to plan. And she was far too old to think that they would. Already she was devising an alternate strategy.

A cool mist settled over the lake as Jack and Beverly sat to eat. She shivered slightly and pulled her coat tightly around her. The sun was setting over the western edge of the water. Despite the chill the evening was still comfortably warm – warm enough to enjoy a quick dinner with the Commander.

"You and I were together at the Academy? It's hard to think we wouldn't have met. I can't believe I don't remember you." Jack took a large bite of his meatloaf, chewed and waited for her response.

"I was very studious. And you seemed quite," she raised a brow and fixed with a steady gaze, "distracted. By other cadets and by that commander you were always with."

Jack laughed heartily and easily. He was a compelling man – even more so like this, when the weight of his responsibilities seemed absent. Beverly found that she felt for him in a way that she had not felt for anyone in many, many years.

Jack cast his mind back through the years to his days at the Academy – they were thrilling. He had looked forward to his service, spirits unhampered by the death of hundreds of friends and colleagues. War was a specter that filled him with an undefined fear, but also a thrill of excitement. He would be tested, and his entire body had tingled with anticipation. The drinking and the women were tools he used to keep his anticipation at bay – they were substitutes for the real rush he knew awaited him.

"I was a different man then, Doctor. I was a boy. And it could have been a lot worse if it weren't for Jean-Luc Picard." He smiled ruefully.

"That was the man you were with so often?" Crusher nodded at Beverly's question. "What happened to him?"

Jack looked up and pointed to the sky. "I think he's in orbit right now."

"He's the Captain of the Enterprise?" Beverly couldn't say she wasn't impressed. First that Picard was still alive, and second that he was Captain of the Federation's flagship. Maybe there was more to Jack Crusher than she'd thought.

Crusher set down his fork and laid his hand on Howard's. It was a bold move, but neither of them had time to indulge in romance. An invitation to dinner was an invitation to something more – and both knew it. "Beverly, I think you can understand how much a man can change in 20 years. Especially when it's 20 years like this." He tilted his head toward the camp.

She met his gaze and nodded. "Sometimes I don't recognize myself in the mirror. My grandmother's hair was fire red until she was almost 90. Mine is already streaked with white."

Crusher passed a hand near her cheek. "Well, it suits you." He smiled confidently as he did so.

"Still smooth as ever, it seems." Howard pulled her hand back from the table and crossed her arms. But she smiled back openly.