Chapter 16: Autumn Colours
"I thought I'd find you here." Trip came up behind his friend, and sat down next to him against the tree.
"Lucky guess."
"Actually, your sister pointed me in the right direction." Trip grinned.
Malcolm gave a half smile, "Traitor." He absently picked up one of the many leaves that littered the woodland floor, and twirled it between his fingered, momentarily entranced as the yellows and reds merged together as they span.
It was a year to the day since Katrina's death, and Trip had managed to persuade Malcolm to take some time off while Enterprise was still in Jupiter Station for repairs. He had taken him to England, where they were staying with Malcolm's sister and her husband. Of the two options for family support, Trip figured her a better bet than his parents. The pair would be returning to San Francisco the next day to help with prepping the Enterprise on which both of them once again served. Richmond had already been filing for a transfer to a new colonial research station even before Malcolm had returned, and Archer had offered him his old position unconditionally.
Trip wrapped his jacket around him as the wind got up, causing the dead leaves to skip up into the air in small tornado-like spirals. So many things had changed since the crew of the Eclipse had stopped the invasion. Their lives, for one, had undergone a huge upheaval. Last he had heard from Jamie and Alex, they had settled down in Melbourne, Australia. Alex was now a practicing doctor, and Jamie was a ground engineer. Only a week earlier, they had met up with Sara, who was living in a shared apartment with Ryan and some other kids in San Francisco. She had an aptitude for languages, and was attending school there, while Ryan was attending the academy, training with the hope to go into munitions.
They sat together for a while, watching as the weak sunlight played over the ground and trees. Before long, it turned to a deep orange hue, bathing the whole clearing in a beautiful tint that made time seem to stop still. "I can see why you like it here." Malcolm smiled, but didn't reply. "So, you ready to return to life in space?"
His friend seemed to genuinely consider the idea, which gave Trip a split second of panic, before he answered, "Yes. Just give me a moment, will you?"
Trip nodded, and made his way back through the wood in the direction where he knew he would find the gravel path. Malcolm rose, and stood in the middle of the clearing. He pulled a small object out of his pocket. It was a jagged shard of an Oribium crystal, the last sample of the spare crystals that Jamie had retrieved before the Eclipse had gone on its last mission. He had stolen it from a Starfleet lab; his last act as the Malcolm of the other galaxy. Weighing the shard in his palm, Malcolm watched as the light reflected in patterns off its surface. "Thank you." He murmured.
Malcolm raised his arm, and threw the shard as far as he could through the branches of the trees. With a slight smile, he turned and walked towards the path where he knew Trip would be waiting.
FIN
Author Notes: That's it. It took me long enough, I know. I've really enjoyed writing this story. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read it. I would love to know what your final opinions are.