Chapter 33: Afterword, by Adele (Janeway)

Hello there.

It's good to finally make your acquaintance. I'm Adele, Adele Janeway, but I'm guessing you already know that.

Since you're here, I assume you're aware of my story. The story of how I came be. You've probably followed since the beginning and I thank you for that. It's not terribly exciting, at least I don't think it is, but if you enjoyed it, I'm happy for you. I really am.

I bet my Mom never thought I'd go down in the history books in the way I have. I'm actually an entire lesson's worth of material at Starfleet Academy: Case Study 4 of the Q. (1 being Q – my original biological father, 2 being Quinn – the Q that committed suicide on Voyager, and 3 being Amanda – the Q raised as a human who discovered her true identity upon the Enterprise-D). Actually, this story makes up the lesson plan – you've technically passed an entire module just be reading. Well done. However, I'm guessing you'll need a refresh. I personally went through it with the staff to update it. It took over three weeks. Can you imagine? Three weeks where I had to sit down with Academy professors and fix every mistake made by every historian who tried to piece together my timeline. It was scary how much they got wrong.

Well, let me explain why I'm writing to you today, why I'm taking a few moments to sit at a computer terminal in the mid 25th Century and write this afterword. I want you to know the part they don't teach at the Academy, the part after Voyager, the part after when Mom got the ship home. You've been loyal followers; you deserve to know the rest.

Not long after Mom and Dad got married, they ended up finding out they were going to become parents again. Again, it wasn't planned. Actually, it was quite an awkward conception but that's a story for another time. The year of Mom's second pregnancy was nothing if not full of surprises.

Shannon was born two months before I turned one and unlike me, she grew at the typical rate of any other human. I didn't. When Mom got Voyager home, I was three yet I looked nine. It was no wonder Shannon struggled to understand why she couldn't do the things I could at the same age.

I was eight years old when I stopped growing, physically the same age of a twenty-four year old human. I look the same today as I did then – it's been almost five hundred human years.

Mom and Dad lived good lives. Mom decided to pack up space travel. After having spent so many years venturing to get to Earth, she had no desire to leave it ever again. She took up a job at Starfleet Command for several years before resigning. Officially, she left to pursue a career in her beloved sciences, away from the limelight Starfleet held her in, however, the truth was because she was diagnosed with Shinglton-Backsman Syndrome. She lived with the condition for over 40 years before she started feeling the effects, long enough to witness Shannon's marriage to a Mr Tate McMulkinson and the births of her three grandchildren: Freddie, Erin and Katie. She was 91 when she died, three years before Dad.

He too packed up space travel after returning home. He turned to his greatest love, palaeontology. He did spend time away from Mom, Shannon and I during the first few years. He seemed to be away every other month at digs but he was happy. It was more than enough to make Mom happy.

After her diagnosis, he did try to pack it in. She almost killed him. She was adamant he wasn't giving up his work for simply because of a condition which would take years before the effects were felt, so he didn't. He didn't go on as many digs though.

After Mom's death, Shannon and I struggled to keep him going. After over 50 years of marriage, he struggled living without her and although he did seem to move on, he was never the same. It took three years before he died of a broken heart. He was 97.

They lived good lives though, and their legacies lived on. The Museum of the USS Voyager (the actual ship) put up a memorial for them both after news of their deaths broke. The curators modified Holodeck 2 to display a hall of fame for each crew member on the voyage who had passed away. Mom and Dad were put on centre stage the morning their deaths were announced, their holograms standing proudly side by side among the other fallen voyagers, Tuvok, Seven of Nine, Tom Paris.

Shannon, Tate and I took the kids there not long after Dad's death. They were all teenagers at the time but had never actually been to see Voyager in its glory.

Mom and Dad had only ever gone to the Museum three times, on its official opening back in 2379, on the ten-year anniversary of Voyager's return (2387) and on the twenty-five-year anniversary (2402). They both agreed that night that they'd never return. Being aboard had brought back too many memories. While they remembered the good times, they were haunted by all the bad memories too. The Borg, the attacks, the deaths of friends and colleagues. After twenty-five years, it was time to move on.

The trip to the museum after Dad's death inspired the girls. They both took the entrance exam to Starfleet Academy and got in. Shannon and Tate were so proud.

Erin became the Captain of a Valliant-Class vessel, the USS Andromeda, after fifteen years as working as a helms officer. She met her husband on-board, a civilian by the name of Mateo Wellsburg. It broke her heart when they learnt she couldn't have children but they later adopted a Bajoran girl they named Bonnie. Meanwhile, Katie became a doctor. She worked for years on different starships across the fleet before settling as Head of Starfleet Medical, a post she held for three years before dropping to become a Research Coordinator. It gave her the chance to focus on her marriage and eventually have a family. If my memory serves me right, she had twin boys, Oliver and Arthur, and a little girl named Taya.

Freddie's life took a different turn. While he always loved the idea of travelling through space, it never really agreed with him. Space travel made him violently sick. However, he did inherit the love of science from his grandmother. He eventually ended up teaching it at an International Secondary Education Institute. He also chose to wear his grandfather's tattoo to honour him. I know Dad would have appreciated it.

I left Earth and my human life behind after Shannon's death. She was 112 years old.

Now I travel though space, exploring all the things impossible for human comprehension. It's incredible. I occasionally do return to Earth but never to the late 24th or early 25th Century. That's a bit too close to home. There were only ever a few exceptions and that's something I have no intention of discussing now. It's not the right time.

My favourite period of Earth's vast history seems to be the 29th Century – I'm quite a frequent visitor to the fleet of Federation Timeships. Although, it was quite awkward when I visited the Timeship Relativity. Of all the places to run into my mother, I didn't expect there.

I occasionally run into Q Junior. For a while, I did travel with him and Q. It was not long after I left Earth for the first time. They showed me the ropes of exploration through the universe, showed me how to view the universe without the limitations of human eyes. It was a hard skill to learn. I haven't seen Q since then. I think he still feels guilty for what he put Mom through. I'm just a reminder of that.

Life's good. Mom and Dad lived good lives. Shannon and her children lived good lives. That's what matters.

This is where I say goodbye to you. I want to thank-you for your time. You've been here since the beginning but now we're reaching the end.

This was my story. The story of Mom and Dad and my beginning.

And this is where it ends.

Or this chapter at least.