I do not own nor profit from Star Trek or any of Gene Roddenberrys works.
~TWO YEARS LATER~
There was a gentle wind that early September day. It gently blew Safiyas hair across her full lips as she added details to a program she was developing. The sun bathed her in its warm rays as the wind carried the sweet smells of a new fall. As much of an ass as Admiral Marcus was in her opinion, he was nice enough to allow her to work with a portable server. This let her work on the roof of the tower where Section 31 operated.
The specific problem she had been working on was frustrating her though. She couldn't seem to get two of the components to work with one another, which threw everything else out of balance on her code.
"Safiya!" She heard her name called, as she rolled to her side. Janet, an engineer, was walking briskly towards her with a small group of people.
"Hey Safiya, do you fancy a bite to eat with us?" Janet tucked a blonde lock behind her ear.
"I'm not so sure. I am in the middle of a problem that I can't just leave." She winced, not ready to give up just yet.
"You never come to lunch with us. How about this," Janet dropped to her knees, sitting back on her heels and smoothed her skirt. "You and I will go shopping at Harrods tonight. I'm sure we can find you a dress of some sort, then Friday, we can go out to a club. Please, Safiya, You haven't been out with us in so long!" She grabbed her hands, pouting.
"Oh, alright, enough of the lip, yes?" Safiya rolled her eyes, and turned back to her work, as Janet squealed in excitement, taking her leave.
The radiance of the sun was absorbed as the heat rose. Safiya locked her PADD and laid her head down over her arms, closing her eyes hoping a nap in the warmth of the day would clear her mind enough to finish these equations. And so Safiya enjoyed her catnap, stretching out, enjoying every moment until her communicator rang.
"Kesi, report to Admiral Marcus' office IMMEDIATELY." An annoyed voice blared. She hated the secretaries, and their holier than thou attitudes. Asking them to fulfill any tasks or do any part of their job resulted in their unabashed attitude and loathing.
Wishing she could stay in the sun, she made her way downstairs.
KNOCK KNOCK
"Enter." The Admiral called. He looked upon the young woman in her black Section 31 uniform. Her deep olive tone and raven hair matched her uniform wonderfully. His thoughts twisted as he took in her regal stance.
"Lieutenant Kesi." He sighed, but quickly corrected himself. "I've got a project for you. We have technology that we need to have integrated into our systems. Systems from John Harrison's ship are far advanced than what we have used in Star Fleet to date, however, we need those programs." He kept gesturing to the corner where that man sat.
He was just as formidable now, as he stood back from the conversation, as he was the day Safiya met him in the holding center. The look on his face was unreadable, he just looked pensive.
"I will work with Kesi, on this project." John spoke. His voice just as rich and deep as the very first day, and she reacted much the same. She had seen him around the base, but had never had a chance to talk with him, let alone work with him.
"This will be done." Safiya agreed. "Would that be all Admiral?" She spoke in kind.
"Yeah, that will be all. And Kesi, don't forget. Behave and everything will be fine." Marcus gave her a glance and dismissed them both.
John led her away from the Admirals office towards an empty computer lab. He went to a far computer and opened up a program for her to see.
"Oh, oh my gosh." Safiya whispered, as she scanned over the monitor. "This... This programming is amazing..." her eyes scanned the codes and numbers that flew across the screen. "I have never seen anything like this." She bit her lip.
"Of course you have not. This is technology that myself and my crew used. I would not expect Star Fleet to understand it." He was sitting in a chair beside her, watching her reaction to this information. She appeared enamored. "Though some of our technology is archaic by now, much of it is far advanced." He began.
"This particular program... What does it do?" She looked over some of the writing.
"It allows for vessels to run on their own, essentially. You can have one person running an entire ship." He watched her take notes.
"What about this one?" She pointed eagerly.
"Its for a weapons system." He sighed.
"But... Wow, this-this system is. Wow." She flopped back in her chair. A sudden array of blueprints began to flash across the screen.
"These weapons are... so, formidable. I've never seen intelligent weapons designs like this." She slowed down the images to get a better look. "What the hell?" She wondered aloud. "I mean, these, these weapons are not for the faint of heart. These are offensive, not defensive."
"Of course, Safiya. Do you not know what it is that the Admiral is doing?" John spoke lowly, as if there were other ears in the room.
She hadn't hacked into the S31 project since the time she was apprehended for it, as she had access to everything, but it would seem that the plans were changing.
"What are you saying John?" She turned to him, catching his gaze.
"I think you know what it is that I am saying, Safiya." Their eyes held on one anothers, neither wanting to break the moment.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCKI
"Safiya! Are you ready? The Admiral said you would be... down..." Janet stood in the doorway, watching the two, feeling as though she interrupted something important, she was unaware of the contents of their moment, but it made her uncomfortable.
"Are you still ready for Harrods?" She managed to ask.
"Yes, I'm ready." Safiya broke the gaze. "John, I will look over this information some more, and write down any questions or concerns I have." She spoke to him. He simply nodded in agreement and watched as she walked away.
"My my, does EVERYTHING have to be so expensive here?" Safiya gasped, as she looked at the tags on the dresses. "I mean, do people need to spend their entire paychecks on one little item? On one little dress?"
"Oh Kesi, you don't know the meaning of shopping, do you? It's an indulgence, of course you spend more than you should on something you probably don't really need." Janet giggled, enjoying being a woman. "Besides, I'm not the one paying for it, so I won't worry about the tags." She whispered suggestively.
"What?!" Safiya was shocked.
"Well, I've been seeing someone, and he wants to take care of me." She smirked. "So, he told me to have a shopping date." She held up a plastic card, with an excited grin.
Safiya found a dress that she liked, and walked around, finding a pair of shoes that matched, and following Janet as she seemed to buy up the store.
"So, we are going to go to Galactic on Friday. It's only like, the hottest night club right now." Janet rambled as she graded her outfit int he mirror.
"Isn't there a wait list every night for that place?" Safiya looked up, not wanting to spend her entire evening standing on the street waiting to be deemed good enough for entry.
"Yeeeesss, but it just so happens, that I have our names in that list." She grinned.
"Hurry up Janet. You've tried on nearly every dress and I'm hungry." Safiya urged, holding her growling stomach, sending a somewhat excited smile to her friend.
"Oh, gross, that is that?" Janet looked at Safiyas plate as she sat down.
"This would be saffron rice, fish baked in cabbage, and baked sweet potatoes. It's delicious." She took a bite of the potatoes.
"Well it looks disgusting to me. It smells, odd." Janet turned her nose up, instead turning to her meal of meatloaf and green beans.
"Well this is general fare back home for me." Not interested in the assessment of the blonde. It reminded her of her mothers cooking, who would teach her how to roll bread so it would bake up properly, and which seasonings made up the best curry. She sighed, thinking of all the times her mom made garbage plates. Anything they had in left in their cupboards when times got tight, her mom would manage to turn into a delicious meal.
"Where are you from exactly? You never talk much about yourself." Janet took a sideways questioning glance as she tucked into her meat.
"I'm from the high desert of Egypt. Near Abydos." She offered.
"Well, that explains your tan. You know how many women have been going to the tanning booth to get your color?" Janet chuckled, stirring her beans around.
Safiya shook her head.
"Well, I for one, think your skin is gorgeous." Janet spoke matter of factly.
In light conversation, the two women finished their meals and return to their own flats.
The sun reigned down on her. She soaked up the rays, and it warmed her soul. Her naming Ceremony was that day. The elders would finally give her a proper place.
"Child, come along." Her mother spoke, grabbing her tiny hand, her voice just as silky as her own had grown to be.
The green fabric blew in the wind, across her legs, and in her shining black hair. Her mothers own black hair was covered in a yellow shawl, allowing a fee tendrils to peek out of the front. She adored her mother. Tall, lean, and strong willed. The daughter of their leader, she carried herself with pride. Her families pride and strength reflected in her.
"Mama, I am scared. What will they do?" The child whine, unsure.
"The elders will look into your heart, and will find the name your soul calls out." She ran her fingers through the gentle curls that ran down her daughters back.
"They did the same thing for me, when I was your age. I emerged from the ceremony as Ain Omari. It means 'Priceless, High Born. Omari is our family name, which will be handed down to you, my heart." She kissed her daughters head reassuringly, and led her to the main hall of their people.
A large fire roared in the middle of the hall, her grandfather sat at the end of the hall, high above his subjects, her grandmother beside him. She looked like her daughter, only older, wiser. Before the fire, as if coming from the shadows themselves, seven hooded figures stood in front of the fire, blocking her view of her grandparents. Her mother stepped away as the figures surrounded her.
Something held her gave to the figure before her, and she could not have looked away even if she wanted to. A pan flute began to play, and drums began to grow in the background. The sun began to fall behind the dunes, and the young childs eyes burned. She had been unable to blink, and her eyes begged for lubrication.
"Saaaaaaafffiiiiiiiiyaaaaaaaaaa." The figure finally hissed, repeating itself over and over. They figured stopped, and backed away, the figure before her pointing a gnarled, pale finger at her. "Keeeeessssssiiiiiiiii."
There was an audible gasp that erupted through the hall. Her mother broke down in tears, and her own grandfather stood suddenly from his throne. She was hurried away back to her home. "Stay here until I come get you." Her mother choked out. She was left alone.
Safiya would have that dream often. Not understanding at the time why Kesi had caused such tension. Omari had been the family name for more generations than they could really remember. She was the first child born in the kings bloodline, who was not an Omari. She was instead, bestowed Kesi, and nobody, not even her mother, would explain what that ancient name meant. It was a name pulled from Many thousands of years before her time.
She rolled over, listening to the gentle rain on her window. Her tank top hung snugly to her lean frame and round breasts. Her underwear hung low on her hips, riding high on her rotund bottom. She laid there, listening for as long as she could, meditating and centering her mind.
She missed home, perhaps she would go back and visit soon. See her mother, bring another PADD or two back for the children of her home. When she was younger, she had to take a sandcat from her home to Luxor, or Aswan to learn about advanced technology, and about current events. Even though her people had technology, and were very well off, the big cities had more of it, and more advanced versions of what she had.
Of course it was in Aswan, when she caught her first glimpse of a Star Fleet officer. He was tall, commanding, and carried himself with power and intelligence. She knew there, listening to him speak with other officers, that she wanted to be in Star Fleet. She wanted to break free of her homeland, where she was little regarded, and find a place in the big world.
As she got older, the more time she spent in the big cities, learning, following, observing. Her experiences made her grow faster than her peers. She developed to be of a far advanced mindset than those around her.
Her 14th birthday sent her into a frenzy. This was the day she was able to enlist in Star Fleet. She dressed in her loose wrap clothes, and threw her hair into a knot before taking off to the city.
There, in Cairo, the tall glass and titanium building loomed, with the Star Fleet symbol above the door. She puffed her chest, and entered, in awe of the men women and aliens in their uniforms around her. She walked up to the main desk.
"I-I wish to enlist in Star Fleet." She spoke softly, peering up at the man who sat behind the desk.
"Name kid." He spoke, looking at his screen.
"Safiya. Safiya Kesi. Of Abydos." She spoke, trying to catch a glimpse of the screen.
The man shot his head up, and stared right at her. "You have been restricted from Star Fleet until age 16."
Her heart sank. "But, why? What did I do?"
The man shook her head. "I don't know, but you are barred coming directly from Admiral Marcus. If you want to know, you ought to see him about it." He offered her.
"Well, where is he?'"
The man smirked nastily. "San Francisco, California, USA."
By the time she got home, she her anger began to die down, but more than ever she wanted to find this man, and learn why he barred her early entry. But that night, all that pounded in her mind, was "Kesi. Kesi. Kesi." Over and over, screaming at her, accusing her.
"Kesi!"
"Kesi! Kesi, open up, we have work to continue!" Safiya heard loud knocking on her door. She must have slept well through the night, and overslept in the morning. Without a thought, she stumbled out of bed opening the door for the guest. Her hair tickled her lower back, as her tank top rode up a little.
John stared at her, as she walked away from him, having finally opened the door for him. Her body was nearly on display, and he felt it was far too perfect. He shook the thoughts from his mind, and stepped in.
She was making coffee, having put on loose sweatpants, her breasts still bounced under her tank top.
"So, I am pretty sure I will be able to convert this equation." She scratched at her head softly. "I've isolated a syntax that can be retrofitted for our systems." She shook her head.
John just sat across from her, looking at her mumble on. She had been very lucky to be brought aboard to this particular project. It was a top secret operation, even within 31.
She interrupted his though when she set a cup of coffee before him. "Is everything okay?" She asked softly, noticing his features had taken on an element of sadness.
"If only you knew." He whispered, trying to keep control over his anger.
"If only I knew what?" She looked concerned.
He took in her gaze. Her raw beauty in the grace of morning.
"I don't believe now is the time to fill you in on the details. But soon." He guaranteed to her.
"Well, while you debate on telling me, do you want to go to the sparring ring with me today? As long, of course, as you don't kick my ass too much." She winked at him.
"I would like that, and I will only go as hard as I need to." He smirked and sipped his drink.
Safiya gave John a run for his money, but in the end, he was able to pin her down to the mat, arresting her arms and legs. "You have GOT to teach me that move." Safiya breathed heavily, impressed at his sudden quickness, tangling her up.
He tightened his hold before letting her go. "I think I can do that sometime." He rolled off of her, rubbing his chin where she managed to get in a couple of good hits on him. She would have some sore ribs tonight, after the jabs he got in, but nothing that she wouldn't be able to handle. Their sweaty bodies lay on the mat, recovering from their fight before Safiya finally rolled up.
"Alright, I say its shower, and then food." She patted her stomach, her fingerless leather gloves running over her sweaty skin.
John nodded in agreement as they dismissed to their own locker rooms.