Chapter 12: XII
Lor'vah, a strong Klingon who had fought and lived through many battles, listened to his younger brother as he gave a report of the attack on the Ya'Vang as well as the injuries that his daughter had sustained while fighting off the Jem'Hadar. It was not the first time that he'd been contacted with similar reports in the last year since K'nera had been assigned to the ship. It was, however, the first time that the news had been quite so dire. Once the official business was completed, Lor'vah then moved his brother in the direction of more private matters; matters that he could discuss as his brother and uncle of K'nera rather than a ship's captain or her commanding officer.
Lor'vah found the part about one of his brother's crew members being the one who had insisted that K'nera should be sent off of the ship for treatment to be of a particular interest to him. Add that to the fact that M'jaK had already shared his suspicions in previous transmissions that he thought that the man held some affection for his daughter and now he was more than just a bit curious about him. After all, few of his kind had yet to really express an interest in K'nera as of yet due to the fact that she was not really a Klingon. Inter-species relationships were still frowned upon by the vast majority of the Klingon race. While Lor'vah had not faced any opposition in caring for K'nera when she was orphaned, it was clear that she could never really be fully accepted into Klingon Society. Not only was she not a Klingon but she was a telepath as well; a second black mark against her.
Of course, Lor'vah had thought that when she had been on Celyn Four, she had found an individual who had been willing to overlook both of those issues. He had been one of the telepaths who call the planet their home and had been in the mist of jak'tahla when K'nera had been there last just before joining the KDF. In the end, however, he had chosen to end the relationship with the young, teenaged K'nera in favor of one whom his family would be more supportive of instead. That had given K'nera her first taste of a broken heart and showed her just how difficult it would be to find one among the Klingons who would overlook both the fact that she was not Klingon by blood and the fact that she was an advanced Betazoid.
Hearing of the man who was now under his brother's command and how he had been quite emotional in regard to K'nera's treatment made Lor'vah wonder about the young weapons' officer. He asked M'jaK about him and waited as his brother tried to decide just how best to describe him.
"He is… an unusual young man," M'jaK finally said. "He looks fully Klingon, but he has the heart of a Human. It is my understanding that his mother was half-Human and raised him as one even before her death; after which his father continued much in the same way. In fact, I doubt that he'd spent much time among other Klingons prior to his enlistment into the Klingon Defense Forces."
"Why is that?"
"T'knehzoR is the son of Worf, the son of Mogh."
"Worf?" Lor'vah inhaled deeply as he leaned back into his chair. "A Starfleet Officer… A man who has refused to live among his own kind but repeatedly has had an influence on the politics of the Empire. How ironic. He is even responsible for our latest change of power from one chancellor to another if the stories being told about what has transpired on Deep Space Nine are to be believed."
"Yet according to his son, Worf has no desire for power for himself. Instead, it would appear that he is driven by something else entirely. Though I do find that hard to believe," M'jaK said with a snicker. "In recent years, Worf has gone from being the head of a newly re-instated House in the Empire after years of dishonor to once again falling out of favor with Gowran and losing all of his honor once more. He backed the Federation when Gowran pulled from the Khitomer Accords, betrayed his people and proved that when it really matters, he is a Starfleet Officer first.
And yet, now he backs Martok. He seems to be more willing to work alongside the Federation while fighting against the Dominion than Gowran had but his record shows that he is loyal to the Empire and a successful general. He has even taken Worf and his son into his House, which now makes them both members of the Ruling House of the Klingon Empire."
Lor'vah stroked his beard as he considered what his brother had told him. If this T'knehzoR spent his formative years among Humans and others within the Federation, then it would explain his apparent acceptance of a potential relationship with an alien. Still, Humans weren't exactly known for fidelity which, as a father, concerned Lor'vah. Of course, now that his daughter was no longer on the Ya'Vang, such concerns weren't likely needed anymore. Should there come a time once again that his daughter could entertain a possible relationship with the unusual young man, there was one more thing that bothered him.
From what he had heard, Martok's wife has never held any love for non-Klingons. He wondered how Sirella took to the knowledge that one of the new members of her House was a hybrid. For one whose House heralds from the Ketha Lowlands Lor'vah has always found her to be very prideful, even aristocratic in her behavior; a great contradiction for the actual homeland of the House of Martok. He supposed now that she is the Lady of the Ruling House of the Empire, such high opinions of herself will only heighten.
Lor'vah has heard that she has never cared for off-worlders very much. Having Worf and his son brought into her House couldn't have made her very pleased. This meant that even if the young yaS turned out to be a good match for his daughter there was still the Lady of the House to contend with.
As much as he hated the fact that his daughter had been so severely wounded, Lor'vah was beginning to wonder if it wasn't for the best. She will be sent to the Betazoid Refugee Camp to work once she is healed. There K'nera will be exposed to others of her own kind for the first time in almost two decades. Perhaps even find a man who could accept her for who she really is; a powerful telepath who had been raised by Klingons. Such an arrangement would be the best thing for her.
DS9
Alexander stared at the view screen while sitting at his station more out of wanting to avoid the odd glances that he knew were being sent his way than for any real need to concentrate on the panel. The ship had finally been repaired enough to go to Warp Two and was on its way to the nearest shipyard for further repairs. The Ya'Vang was now deeper in Klingon space so the likelihood of finding an actual target on the weapons' computer screen was slim at best. Still, he felt strange knowing that his newly raised status within the Empire now caused much of the crew to eye him differently; more so than they had already begun to as Martok gained notoriety as an excellent general.
The moment that the news of the previous night's events spread throughout the ship, those who had already begun to treat him differently as Martok's fame had grown redoubled their efforts in regard to him this morning. It seemed that besides the captain, only his few friends from the Rotarran had not changed their treatment of him. Perhaps that was because they had seen him through the roughest times of his adjustment to living in the Empire and because they have met Martok when he was a general without the fame that he'd gained after his imprisonment in a Dominion Internment Camp. His friends knew the man, not just the legend.
It was those men and women that Alexander would hate to leave behind if he took the captain's suggestion and asked to be transferred to another ship. He had worked hard to earn the respect of Katogh, Koth, Kornan, and most of all, Ch'Targh. If he left the ship, he would feel as if he was throwing all of that hard work away. Theoretically, Alexander understood the captain's suggestion. In practice though, he felt that it would be best to remain where he was.
True, the remnants of R'njol's friends on board have remained a constant thing of concern for him at times and would likely continue to be so. If the ship could be rid of those few officers, Alexander couldn't see why he wouldn't be considered safe just where he was. He wasn't Martok's family by blood like Drex so the Ya'Vang should make for a fine ship to remain on, despite its now wrecked condition. After a week or so in the shipyard, the Ya'Vang will be as good as new. Of course, all of that was providing the fact that Captain M'jaK wouldn't object to his continued presence on the ship.
DS9
M'jaK waited as he was forwarded to a view screen that would show his niece. Apparently, she was now awake and was eager to learn of the condition of the ship and the rest of its crew. Not only that, but she was already requesting to be returned to duty; claiming that she was fit to carry out her job aboard the ship as if the attack from the day before had never even happened. That meant that he would have to inform her of her new assignment just a bit earlier than he'd planned.
When the screen returned to life, M'jaK was greeted by the sight of his adoptive niece trying to look much stronger than he knew she had to be feeling. He'd seen her hide too many injuries while growing up to not notice the symptoms. The strained look in her eyes, the way she held her posture, even by the way that K'nera would fix her gaze as she spoke. Such a shame to have the heart of a Klingon yet lack the strength to follow it, M'jaK thought to himself.
"Captain," K'nera tried to straighten her stance in her seat as she saw the connection had gone through. In doing so, she was forced to fight back a wince.
"Relax, you are not on duty," M'jak leaned back in his own chair as he spoke. "I am glad to hear that you will recover well from your injuries. How are you feeling now?"
"I'd be feeling better if the nurses didn't keep trying to give me Bolian Tonic Water. They claim that it calms the nerves of humanoids. My nerves are just fine. I only wish to leave so I can return to duty."
"Do not try to rush your treatment, K'nera. You are well aware of the fact that your system does not heal as rapidly as those of your friends and comrades. Even DedaJ will not return to duty for at least three days."
"DedaJ?" K'nera's brows furled in concern for her friend from the ship. "She was hurt as well?"
"Minor injuries by comparison, I assure you," M'jaK said knowing that the blonde woman before him would be concerned for her friend on the ship at the mere mention of her being relieved of duty. "By the time that she is to return to duty the Ya'Vang should be docked in the shipyard and awaiting repairs so she'll be more than ready before we face the Jem'Hadar once again."
"I'm glad to hear it." K'nera breathed a slight sigh of relief knowing that DedaJ would be fine, but she still had no idea how Alexander had fared in the battle. Nor did she have any idea of just how to bring him up to her uncle. "So, the rest of the crew are alright, I assume."
"We had a few casualties but not as many as we could have had." If the Romulans hadn't arrived when they had, M'jaK added only in thought. The fact that he owed his crew's lives to the Romulans irked the captain of the Klingon ship. "You nearly joined their numbers, K'nera."
"If I hadn't been sent here to the Bolian Starbase," K'nera said for her uncle with an uneasy feeling in her stomach wondering just who had been among those killed by the Jem'Hadar. Still, this did give her an opportunity to find out the answers to some of the questions that she'd had since she'd first woke up after her surgery. "Why was I sent here in the first place, though, Uncle? I would have expected to be treated as any crew member on the ship, Klingon or not. What caused you to send me here?"
"You can thank two factors for that," M'jaK couldn't fight the chuckle that rose from his chest as he answered her. For most non-Klingons, such a question would seem strange but K'nera had been raised as a Klingon and knew and accepted their traditions and beliefs as her own. "One of which, I'll admit, was because it was the only way I knew to rid the surrounding space of the Romulan War Bird that was circling the Ya'Vang like a Casnic Vulture."
"I'm glad that I could help," K'nera shook her head as she realized that her uncle found amusement in her question. "So, what was the second factor? And don't tell me that you just felt sentimental at the time."
The Klingon snickered since it was a common thing for his niece to point out to him that he was indeed more sentimental than most would assume him to be. It was only her Betazoid traits that enabled her to see that part of him that he kept hidden from most others.
"The second factor goes by the name of T'knehzoR. It was at his insistence that I agreed to have the doctor place you in stasis and sent to Federation Space in an effort to treat your injuries."
"T'knehzoR…" Alexander; if he was the one who had fought for her to be sent off the ship then that had to mean that he was not severely wounded in the battle. Nor could he be among the casualties that her uncle had mentioned only moments ago.
"It would seem that your friendship with him has left quite an impression." M'jaK's laughter was renewed when he watched K'nera's pale face turn an unmistakable shade of pink in embarrassment. He wasn't sure which he gained more entertainment from; watching his niece's discomfort in regard to the budding relationship with the young weapon's officer or the young man in question working overtime to not do anything that would be seen as a disgrace in the eyes of K'nera's familial representative. No, that wasn't right. Watching the young man under his command was more humorous than K'nera. It was clear that he intimidated the weapons' officer; he never had instilled an appropriate level of a fearful respect in his niece.
"I see…Well, I'm sure that he wouldn't have liked to witness anyone die of injuries that could be treated elsewhere. That's all."
"Of course, it is," M'jaK said with a show of amusement in his eyes.
"Anyway," K'nera shifted uncomfortably as she moved to change the subject, "has Dr. Zyctalir informed you as to when I'll be allowed to return to the Ya'Vang?"
"You will need to allow your system to repair itself and recover before being returned to duty, K'nera," M'jaK repeated with authority. "Though you should know that when that does happen you've been reassigned; you won't be returning to the Ya'Vang."
"Reassigned? To where?"
"The Betazoid Refugee Camp on Talceus Prime. There are few Klingons who feel comfortable around the telepaths. With both your own abilities as well as your training at Celyn Four, you are the obvious choice to have stationed at the camp."
K'nera inhaled deeply. She understood the logic of having her stationed at the camp but that didn't make accepting the position any easier. Since her encounter with Ambassador Troi, along with the others that the Ya'Vang had rescued during the attack on the Betazoid home world, K'nera had begun to slowly explore her Betazoid heritage quite reluctantly. Of course, she found it easier to do so in private than she did while being thrust out into the galaxy to do so. Yet, as an officer of the Klingon Defense Forces, K'nera couldn't refuse an order to be stationed on Talceus Prime. Still, she may not push to be released by her doctors any faster than they planned to on their own.
"Am I to assume that I will be stationed on Talceus Prime for the foreseeable future?"
"Yes," M'jaK said simply to negate any discussion over the assignment. "It is the hopes of all involved that this war will not last much longer. Once we have beaten down the Dominion and shown them the might of the Klingon Empire you will be able to put in for a different post. Perhaps even take a long overdue sabbatical within the mountains on Celyn Four."
K'nera briefly thought of her home away from home fondly. The terrain was harsh, and the temperature was bitterly cold on the surface. The monks who had first settled the planet had chosen that planet on purpose. A planet that most Klingons would find distasteful on many levels thus left the small group of telepathic Klingons in peace. Below the surface, an entire sub-ecosystem had been devised over the years to make living there more comfortable for those who did brave the icy planet, but life was still difficult there. As she thought of that home, K'nera also had the brief thought of wondering how Alexander would react to the small colony where she had learned to suppress her telepathic abilities when she was still very young.
For the next several minutes, K'nera and M'jaK spoke on a variety of topics, including the captain's latest conversation with the head of the House K'maj'ik (K'nera's adoptive father and M'jaK's older brother), Lor'vah. It was only after the transmission had been cut and K'nera was left in the silence of the recovery room that she'd been given as a room until her discharge is scheduled that it really sunk in. She would not likely see her friends, her uncle, or (most importantly) Alexander until after the end of the war with the Dominion.