The upper level of the Promenade was relatively quiet, a stark contrast to the turmoil that churned within N'iv as she watched the runabout detach from the station. Its departure was both a relief and a torment, a physical manifestation of the distance that had grown between her and her people.

The soft tap of shoes against the metal floor was the only indication that she was no longer alone. She didn't need to turn around to know that Garak had come to find her.

"A somber sight, isn't it?" he remarked.

N'iv didn't turn, her posture rigid, her eyes fixed on the shrinking silhouette of the vessel. "Yes," she responded simply. "I can't help feeling like I'm watching a part of myself leave."

Garak nodded, looking to the stars beyond. "Deep-rooted connections can feel like that. Severing them or even just placing them at a distance is...unsettling." He let the sentence hang for a moment before turning slightly to face her. "Though, from what I've gathered, your connection to the Alar is...complicated."

A bitter chuckle escaped N'iv's lips.

Silence descended for a few heartbeats, the vastness of space seemingly consuming all other sounds. Garak, ever the patient listener, waited.

"I betrayed them," N'iv murmured, more to herself than to Garak.

Garak tilted his head, a thoughtful expression painted on his face. "Or perhaps you've been true to a higher purpose, a higher understanding of what's right."

She turned to him, her expression a storm of emotions–anger, pain, loss, and a hint of hope. "Can one person's truth really make a difference, Garak? Even against an entire culture?"

Garak smiled softly, the wisdom of his many years alive in his eyes. "History has shown us that sometimes, it only takes a single voice, a single act of defiance, to set the stage for profound change."

"I just hope it's enough."

Garak placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Hope, N'iv, is a powerful weapon. And from what I've seen, you wield it well."

As the runabout faded into the distance, swallowed by the vast expanse of space, the two figures on the Promenade stood together in quiet solidarity. The future was uncertain, but for now, they found solace in the infinite possibilities lying within the stars.