Admiral Picard stood outside the double doors of the shuttle bay and stared at it for several moments. No matter how many times he gave a eulogy, it was never comfortable. Today's would be even more so. What do you say about a man whom you knew differenly than his current crew? Jean-Luc had already talked to several of the crew. They had found his old crewmate to be cold, detached, and stubborn. That was certainly not the man he remembered. But... with the events of the past few days still weighing heavily on his mind, Picard had found it difficult to organize his thoughts. At last, the time for the memorial service had come, and he still had no idea what he was going to say. Reluctantly, Jean-Luc took a deep breath and let it out before approaching the doors, which slid open with the sound of heavy gears behind them.

At the center of the floor was a large torpedo casing resting against the shuttle launch catapult. Standing around the makeshift casket with a Federation flag draped over it was the Warlord's senior bridge crew; Commander Kirk, Commander Richards, Lieutenant Commander T'Nia, Lieutenant Davies, Lieutenant Moreau, Lieutenant Kelly, Ensign Bristol and Doctor Rass all dressed in their dress uniforms. Also surrounding the casket was the remainder of the diplomatic team; Ambassador Solek, Admiral Callis, Doctor McIntyre, and Ambassador Riss. Standing against the walls were several off-duty crew as well as an ensign holding a trumpet. They all stood virtually motionless save Commander Kirk, who was pulling at his collar as T'Nia barely rolled her eyes. As Picard walked through the doors, they turned to face him somberly. An intentional gap had been left at the front of the torpedo.

"Thank you all for coming," Picard stated slowly as he approached the gap. He took another deep breath. "We come here today mourn the loss and celebrate the life of Captain Andrei Alexandrovich Bolerov, and I think it's important we do both. While I'm certain you will remember him in your own way, I'd like to share with you a few of my memories of him when we served together aboard the Stargazer. You see, my knowledge of the man you called 'captain' are well over thirty years old... when we both had less experience," he absently ran his fingers over his hairless head, "and more hair. He was a fresh Starfleet Academy graduate; wide-eyed and ready to set the galaxy on fire. I was actually the person who gave him his orientation." He smiled with the memory. "Believe it or not, he made friends quite quickly and earned our trust and respect the very first time he sat at the weapons console."

Jean-Luc paused for several moments to collect his thoughts and memories of their time together. "I won't bore you with all the details of his service. What I will say is this; I served with Andrei for almost nine years before he was transferred to the Vigilant as its first officer. To this day, those who served with him and under him consider themselves truly priveleged. It is my hope that, in time, each of you will take something positive from his brief command of this ship and therefore preserve his memory. He may not have had any blood relatives anymore, but his Starfleet family will miss him dearly."

Picard nodded to Lieutenant Kelly and Ensign Bristol, who were standing at the far end of the casket. They reached down, removed the flag, and in following with the centuries old tradition, carefully folded it into a triangle. Instead of giving it to the nearest relative, Tom Kelly was instructed to simply hold it under his arm. It would be officially presented to Starfleet Command upon their return.

Picard straightened up and took another deep breath. "We now commit the body of Andrei Bolerov to the vastness of space and all its wonders and possibilities. May you finally have the peace you so desperately deserved." He took a step backwards to signal his conclusion.

Kirk turned to Kelly and nodded. Slowly, Tom walked over to the bay control panel. Turning back to Ensign Louis, he nodded again. The young ensign with the trumpet began to play Taps. Once Lieutenant Kelly reached the console, the giant domed doors of the shuttle bay opened; glowing blue lights around the periphery of the doors indicating a force field was in place. Beyond the doors was the black of space dotted with numerous stars flying away from them. Once Taps had concluded, Kelly tapped the button that released the catapult. The normally quick moving block began heading towards the open doors slowly, carrying the torpedo casket with it until, after several more seconds, the torpedo finally reached beyond the protection of the force field around the opening. Silently, it flung itself into space.

So passed Captain Andrei Alexandrovich Bolerov.