Tempest

Chapter 1

"Bringing this woman on board is a bad idea. She is the one who gave Mike drugs." Tom Chandler remarked. Greene was keeping the woman from Sardinia alive from a very deep cut to her throat. Azima and Sasha were working on Mike.

"Sir, she also kept him alive. And her safety on that island couldn't be guaranteed. She was very nearly killed for helping him." Wolf said.

"What are we going to do with her?" Tom asked.

"Same as you, I suppose." Sasha remarked.

"Marco…" The woman murmured.

"Ssh…ssh. You should rest your voice." Greene said. Azima leaned over and interpreted what Greene had said and Sasha showed her the photos she had taken from the small cottage. Azima told her that they had gotten the photos from the cottage. That seemed to appease the woman and she fell asleep soon after.

"Wanna go back." Mike said, swiping his arms around wildly. Tom gently folded his arms so he didn't flip himself out of the helicopter.

"Approaching the James." The pilot said.

"Good." Sasha said.

"You should radio for medical…" Tom started.

"Already have them at the ready." Kat said. None of them were terribly thrilled to see Tom and they all wondered what he was doing in Sardinia, but there hadn't been time for interviews. They were too concerned about their seriously injured captain and a local woman who protected him.

Rios had his hands full with two badly injured people and Danny and Wolf stayed in the medical bay to help him and Azima stayed in case the woman—who they didn't have a name for, woke up. Mike was blissfully asleep after having a transfusion and a bag of fluids. Rios stitched up his side but couldn't give him a painkiller, not knowing what he had ingested. Same went for the woman. Her injuries were a bit trickier.

Had she not been so relaxed from whatever she had ingested, she might not have lived. Mike had actually fared worse because he probably had only taken the drug once. She had been taking it for a while and given her emaciated figure, she had been using it in place of food. Once they both woke, Bacon was going to send a nice beef broth up.

Azima stayed until she woke up and they learned her name was Antonia. She understood some English but spoke very little. She was concerned about Mike and once assured he was going to be okay, that her photos were safe and Azima helped her put clean clothes on, she fell asleep again. She had happily sipped on the broth that she was given and some hot tea that Wolfe had delivered.

Mike had been in and out of consciousness. Rios had told Danny that he would need to stay awake longer the next day but as long as he slept, his body was healing. Tom had also checked on him but even Rios didn't have much use for him.

The next morning, both Mike and Antonia woke about the same time. Mike seemed out of sorts but Antonia seemed to be able to cheer him up despite not having a common language. As she recovered, she had also told Azima she wanted to earn her keep and Bacon was perfectly fine with her being in the galley.

They ended up picking up the refugees, which stretched their food even further and caused some unrest among the crew. Mike went back to his quarters and Antonia ended up bunking with Azima since she was willing to work. In their off time, Azima began teaching Antonia English and she was a quick study. One evening; Tom found Mike and Antonia talking in the wardroom. Antonia left as soon as Tom arrived, apparently feeling the vibe Tom was giving off.

"What are you doing with her?" Tom asked sourly.

"Nothing. She's a nice lady and is easy to talk to. Nothing more than that." Mike answered.

"You're a married man…" Tom started.

"Tom, Christine is dead. I just haven't had the heart to accept it up until now. One of the things that I made Christine promise me was that if I died, especially while we were still young; she would find someone and be happy again. We thought it would be her having to carry on. But…I think, I know Christine would want the same for me. Is Antonia the person? I don't know, but she does understand grief and moving on. She understands human kindness too, something we could all learn some about." Mike answered.

"She just doesn't understand English." Tom joked. It fell flat.

"Not well, but she's learning. She takes care of this crew…as much as Russ does. Did you notice her with Miller earlier? He was…upset about his mom not having food. She made him a cup of tea and was patting his shoulder. Now, Miller could care less about tea but she was doing exactly what he needed at that moment." Mike said.

"Did the tea have Nostos in it?" Tom asked, again trying to crack a joke.

"No. It was some mint tea. Its actually really good. My point is; maybe you need to sit back and watch her interact with this crew before you judge her. Tom, you have to accept that you aren't right in everything. Bad shit happened to all of us. Its our reaction to it that mattered. We all lost. We're all in pain. Some of us more than others. But, we can't stay in that moment forever." Mike said before getting up and leaving.

Mike wasn't sure what he felt about Antonia but he felt something. Christine was gone and their marriage had not been great before. The memories he had remembered were of a time when their marriage was happy and strong, but he knew for a fact, Christine would have wanted him to be happy. Andrea was working on getting Antonia some sort of temporary Visa. He was attracted to how Antonia made people feel better. She gave them something to laugh at and her kindness was contagious. e h

She talked about her son and didn't seem to mind him talking about Katie, Hannah and Lucas. It made other people uncomfortable. While there was a language barrier, a parent's grief was universal. He wanted to apologize for Tom's behavior but Antonia had already gone back to her quarters and he had been alerted there was bad weather moving in. He had a job to do.

He was not a fan of how Tom kept trying to take the bridge over. He was just as capable of a Captain as Tom and could handle his bridge and ship just fine; even in a storm. One of the things Mike had done was take the photo of Christine and the kids that he had taped to his station on the bridge off. For the moment; it was in the pocket over his heart. It would remain there for a bit.

It was late by the time he got back to his quarters and he'd have to start early the next day. After a hot shower, he tried to fall asleep. Just as he did; he wished there was a warm body next to him. At one point, he wished it had been Christine but more recently; he wished it was Antonia. It was crazy because he didn't even know how she felt about him…and there was no way he could make an advance while on the James. He just had to figure out how to make that advance. It had been years since he had dated anyone.

The days were long and since he had to turn his investigator mind on, he saw Antonia very rarely; but he knew his crew loved her; especially when she made them minestrone soup and crusty bread. Bacon brought Mike a tray of the soup and bread and Mike looked at it in surprise.

"From what I hear, I'm shocked there's any left." Mike remarked.

"Antonia put some back for you. It is the best I've ever had." Bacon said.

"How did she come up with the ingredients to make enough soup for a hundred plus people?" Mike asked as he smelled the broth.

"I honestly don't know, Sir. She just told me that she was making dinner tonight. I helped her with the bread and that was it. And that was only to help her with the heavy pans. She did everything." Bacon said as he poured Mike another cup of coffee.

"I know I normally drink coffee but do we have any more of that tea she is drinking?" Mike asked.

"Yes, sir. Would you like a cup of it?" Bacon asked.

"Yes. It settles my stomach." Mike said, knowing he was nursing an ulcer, probably because of all the coffee he drank.

"Be right back, Sir." Bacon said as just as Azima came in. Mike hadn't talked to her much other than when she interpreted for Antonia.

"Ah, I see you are enjoying Antonia's soup. It is good." Azima said.

"Its amazing." Mike answered as he dipped some of the bread in it.

"Sir…permission to speak freely?" Azima asked.

"Of course." Mike answered.

"What is going to happen to Antonia once we get back to the States?" Azima asked.

"I'm not sure. Commander Garnett is working on a temporary visa. But, I honestly don't know from there." Mike replied.

"You know…in my country; it is not unusual for women to marry men from other countries to gain citizenship and get out of Kenya. It…is a business matter." Azima said.

"What are you suggesting?" Mike asked, knowing what she was saying.

"Sir, I think you know. Its…probably improper due to the fact that you're grieving but…maybe it would help Antonia long enough to get her on her feet and for her to learn English." Azima said.

"I probably have been grieving for the past two years. I've just now accepted that my wife is gone." Mike retorted.

"In my country, when a person's spouse dies, it is not unusual for them to remarry within a year. Financial reasons and taking care of children factors in. Rarely, does love but love can grow, right?" Azima asked.

"Or it can fester and grow sour." Mike replied.

"Sir, what would your wife want? I think I remember you saying Christine when you were semi-conscious." Azima asked.

"Yes, Christine was my wife. We honestly never discussed what I would do if she died before me. We discussed me dying. Funeral plans, finances, children, all that. But, never her dying first. One of the things I had made her promise me was that if I died, and she was still young, to find someone, fall in love and remarry. She agreed, and I think she would want the same for me." Mike admitted.

"I think you have your answer, Sir." Azima said.

"I understand what you're saying, but Antonia is a smart woman. Resourceful. She doesn't need a husband to secure citizenship or a livelihood." Mike answered.

"She is very smart and resourceful but she is also concerned about her fate. She also seems to really care about your well-being." Azima said.

"I would not want her to think I expected…you know." Mike remarked. It was almost embarrassing.

"I can talk to her about that but sir, it could just develop naturally. She really cares about you and I think you feel the same. Its odd how you and she have connected." Azima said.

"Grief is universal and goes across all cultures and languages." Mike explained.

"So is love, Sir. You and she are both in basically the same stage. Without the Nostos, she has to grieve for her son. He is not in a dream always. You are the same. Your loved ones stay with you but only in your heart." Azima answered.

"Its hard knowing I won't ever see them again." Mike admitted.

"I imagine that it is. Of all of us; Antonia understands that. Probably even more so then Master Chief." Azima commented.

"I'll think about it. I do not want Antonia to feel pressured in anyway though. Can you relay that to her?" Mike asked.

"Yes, I can. Sir; I think you would find she recipro…what's the word?" Azima asked, struggling with her own English.

"Reciprocate. It means basically that the person returns the emotion." Mike explained.

"I think she would do that." Azima said before standing up. "Am I dismissed?" Azima asked.

"Of course. Thank you for your candor." Mike said.

"Candor?" Azima retorted.

"Honesty." Mike answered.

"I do not understand Americans. Instead of saying 'returning emotions' and 'honesty,' you said things like reciprocate and candor." Azima remarked as she left the wardroom. All Mike could do was smile because she was right. He would just have to find more words to confuse her with as time went on.