Revelations

Posted on Mon Nov 23rd, 2015 @ 1:57am by Admiral Lucius Hawke & Captain Li Hawke & Admiral Ricky Wegener & Bajun Tora
Edited on on Tue Dec 8th, 2015 @ 4:20pm

Mission: Further Challenges
Location: Admiral Hawke's Quarters
Timeline: Current

* * * Deck 10 - Admiral Wegener’s Quarters * * *

Rick had been having a fitful night’s sleep, noticed by El’Shar. He had awakened her several times and, after the third time, at 0400 hours, she finally woke him.

“Sweetheart,” she said softly, gently shaking him. “Rick, honey, wake up.”

His eyes opened and, after a moment, he sat up. Normally he would have a dopey, lovey-dovey look on his face as El normally slept in a very sheer nightie leaving very little to the imagination. This morning, though, he had a deep look of concern.

“Something has happened,” was all he said.

“Something--what do you mean?” she asked. “Are you okay? You were tossing and turning and even talking in your sleep. Is it your backside causing you pain?”

“My backside?” he asked, then chuckled. “My ass injury, you mean? No. It’s something else.” He stood and began getting dressed. “I need to see Lucius.”

“Do you need me to come with you?”

He stopped, leaned in for a lingering kiss. “No, my love. I’m sorry to have bothered you. Go back to sleep and get some rest. I can fill you in later.”

She pulled him in for one more kiss then situated herself back into bed, spreading out in the middle giving herself more room. “Your side is always so warm.”

He smiled but continued dressing and soon was gone.

* * * Deck 10 - Admiral Hawke’s Quarters * * *

It was less than fifty yards to Lucius’ quarters and after having checked with the computer to verify he was in, Rick was at his old friend’s door.

It slid open and Lucius looked at Rick, the latter not wasting any time. “What. The fuck. Is happening.”

He walked into Lucius’ quarters and stopped. “Oh, damn. I’m sorry, Lucius. I didn’t realize someone else was here. I can come back?” He noticed some bags by the sofa and began to back out.

“No, stay. I’d have come to see you shortly anyhow. We have a lot to go over. Those bags are ….Tora’s. She was on her way here and I went out to get her.” He called out then. “Tora, come on out. It’s Rick. Can I get you something? Something strong?”

“Tora? From Bajor?” He saw her exit from the back of Lucius’ quarters. “Yeah. Whiskey, neat. Make it a triple,” he said and flopped down onto the sofa. Forgetting his manners for a moment, he stood back up. “Tora,” he said, “it is nice to see you again. It’s been a very long time.”

“Indeed, Ricky,” Tora said, greeting him with a brief hug. “I see the Prophets have smiled upon you.”

He smiled and nodded. He hated being called Ricky, something that had changed since his time on Bajor, but he wasn’t going to correct her. He just hoped no one else on the station started calling him that. “And you,” he said. “You still look just as lovely.”

“She does, doesn’t she?” Lucius returned from the bar and handed glasses to Rick and Tora as they talked. He pressed a kiss to her cheek, then drew her over to the sofa to sit. “We have a lot to discuss.”

“Our time on Bajor together is changing,” Tora commented as she sat beside Lucius. “Darhe’el took Julisa. I don’t know what he did with her, though.”

“I don’t recall yet either. Rick? Do you? It could be that they haven’t reached that point yet. I did alert Ehlana though,” Lucius informed them. “So she knows where and when they are.”

“No, I don’t know any more than you. Apparently I sensed the time distortion while sleeping, though. I’m going to have to make that up to El’Shar somehow. It seems I kept her up most of the night.” He sipped his drink. “So, it seems you’re right that we’re only getting updated on what’s happening then as it happens to them, then it’s updated in our minds. I have to say, and please pardon my French, Tora, but this is a total mindfuck and I do not like it.”

“I do not, either,” Tora agreed with the old man. “There is a call I need to make. Lucius, I’ll make it from your bedroom.” She stood, saying, “Please, excuse me.”

Lucius watched her go, his gaze lingering on the door she’d passed through. “I don’t like it either. Well none of it but Tora being back. Ehl says nothing has gone wrong yet so they aren’t ordering her to intervene.” It occurred to him that what he’d said might be a little inaccurate. “Tora is back. That might be a future problem.”

“No judgment from me, pal,” Rick replied, then stopped. “Huh. It seems I’ve told you that once before,” he said. “But we’ll deal with that future problem as it comes. It’s the past I’m concerned about. For all we know, anything they do could erase this conversation from even taking place. Hell, 900 may not be here, we may be dead or assigned elsewhere--although, being back on the Oppie would be nice.” He grinned and raised his glass before taking another drink.

“You did tell me that very thing...about Tora. The day I finally admitted my situation to Marianna. You know, in that call, she blamed you in part for my being so far away that I’d resort to...you know.” Lucius shrugged. “Good times, huh?” He sipped his own drink. “If it is any consolation, Ehlana said that so far, there is no real damage to the present. However, I suspect that Julisa may figure out her situation while she is there. We never told her. We thought it was for the best.”

“Hmm. Yes, that might be problematic, but I’m sure you’ll handle it well. You always do. Uh, with exception of your ex, that is,” Rick said with a wink. “But even that seems to have been shored up.”

“I recall telling her at the time that the adult Julisa was there and was in the hands of Darhe’el. She was horrified and offered any help she could...and she was sincere. Marianna always has been such a whirlwind of emotions. Yelling at me one moment, sympathising with the same situation in the next breath.” He laughed and shook his head.
“She’s definitely...unique, I think, is the word I would use.” Rick laughed as well. “You sure can pick ‘em, Lucius.”

“I was caught by tradition the first time and too stupid to chase Tora down later. This time? I”ve already informed her I am not letting her leave.” He drained his glass. “So we know that they are still alright which is something of a relief.” Lucius’ forehead wrinkled as one more piece fell into place. “The Borg. She’s on 900 now isn’t she? Recently moved to Intel?”

“Yes. Undercover assignment, I believe,” Rick replied, trying to relax, but something about the situation kept nagging at him and he couldn’t. His leg bobbed up and down and he was fidgety all of a sudden. “By the way, I wouldn’t be doing my job as your friend if I didn’t mention the elephant in the room. That being Aia and how I don’t really see her as the ménage à trois type.”

“No, she isn’t. Nor am I.” Lucius rose and taking his and Rick’s glass, crossed to the bar to refill them. “That I don’t have an answer for, other than to tell you that if you call Aia an elephant to her face she’ll kick your ass.” He laughed briefly as he returned and gave Rick his glass. Lucius, however, remained on his feet and began to pace. “I am not sure, to be honest. She is on her way to Betazed, so she will be gone almost a month.”

“Unfortunately this is one issue I can’t help you with, but as I said, no judgment. You’ll always be my friend and you can talk it out if you need to. Later, though. We have more pressing issues.” Rick started to drink then added, “Amazingly beautiful swan in the room?” He shook his head. “Nah. Doesn’t have the same ring.”

“Enraged Romulan? Not much better is it? But perhaps more accurate. Marianna, strangely enough, saw this coming. When we finally split, she informed me that she was certain I would never be happy until I stopped running around and went after Tora.”

Rick shrugged. “She may have been right. Everyone knew how much you loved her then. Without sounding a bit sappy, it was one of those never-ending types. Hell, man,” he said, lowering his voice so Tora wouldn’t hear, “when I heard you were with someone else I was truly shocked. I thought you’d have found a way out of your arranged marriage.” He gestured toward his room. “But look at how things come full circle. Barring Aia’s involvement, she’s here, now, with you. That could be a good thing.”

Lucius nodded. “There’s still one big hurdle though, and that’s breaking the news to Julisa. Even more than that, it’s getting them back before the timeline takes a dive. There was something else that’s been bugging me. That civilian with them. What do we know of him now?”

“I don’t know him personally, other than he’s Nico’s brother. And, apparently, I do not like him at all,” he added. “So something’s happened back then for that to happen since I’ve had no direct dealings with him.”

Lucius opened a drawer in his corner desk and pulled out a padd, which he handed to Rick. “That should enlighten you. He was in the brig here, and was being escorted to JAG when he transported them all off. That’s a list of charges and suspected crimes, including the poisoning of Cadet Ziyad.”

As Rick read through the list of crimes he grunted. “Looks like old me, er, younger me, was right not to like him. And it looks like we’ll have enough to put him away for a long time when he returns. If he returns, that is.”

“This will be the icing on the cake,” Lucius agreed. “Assuming he lives long enough to make it to trial. You know how life on the frontier out here is. Certain people may not take too kindly to his running off with their wives.”

“You know me,” Rick said. “I’d prefer he come back with a toe tag. Less paperwork to deal with than having him tried and imprisoned.”

“In this case I agree. we have no idea what’s happening there now, though. Aside from your distrust of him, and mine. He...there was something….” Lucius stopped moving and leaned on the bar. “When they first arrived and I scanned them all. He seemed a little obsessed with the Borg...with Six, that’s her name. There were some irregularities in her when I read her later that day.”

“In the tent,” Rick added, remembering it clearly now. “What sorts of irregularities?”

“Memories on top of other memories, some blocked off that I couldn’t get to, so I assume she couldn’t access them either. She said at the time that her energy reserves were depleted and knowing nothing about the Borg back then, I figured it made sense. Now? I don’t know. That’s inconsistent with what we know of them. I think he was ,messing with her memories for some reason, but I have nothing to base it on.”

“I remember her mentioning something about a memory issue. When she and I went to their ship,” Rick added. “She was interfacing with the energy from the ship to power up, or whatever, and said that she’d had a ‘slight memory issue’, but she couldn’t diagnose the problem there. Now I realize that she probably needed an alcove.”

“That or some space from Niro.” Lucius sighed and returned to the sofa. “I suspect we will be sorting out this mess for some time to come. A lot of people will be affected, even if its indirectly.” He looked back at Rick.”Assuming they get home in one piece.”

Rick was listening but happened to see the name on the PADD Lucius had given him. “OH! It’s Niro, not Nero! I’m such an idiot.” He saw Lucius looking at him strangely. “When we met back then he introduced himself. I assumed he spelled it N-E-R-O and mentioned something about a fiddle, like Nero fiddling as Rome burned? Duh.”

Lucius began to laugh once again. “I’m sure that made no sense to them.” He shook his head. “It almost feels like a dream. And as much as I hate to deprive you of El, I think you should hang here for now. New memories need to be shared.”

“She’s probably not in the mood for me to be all grope-y and hands-on right now anyway,” Rick said with a chuckle. “But she’ll be okay. She just needs to get some sleep.”

Lucius reached for his glass and as he did, a thought came that got such a violent reaction he knocked the empty glass over. “Shit!” He ran a hand over his face and leaned back into the sofa. “There’s another elephant in the room, Rick.”

“Now she’s going to kick your ass, buddy,” Rick said, not picking up that Lucius was obviously talking about something different.

"No, not another woman...well it is a woman but not that sort of woman. It’s Li. She doesn’t know about Julisa either. Nor does Seren. Granted, Seren’s not here but Li very well is and is monitoring this situation. What happens if she drops by and Tora answers the door?”

“Oh, shit.” Rick hadn’t even thought about Li. “Okay, well, she can’t be mad at me. I just found out about it an hour or so ago, at least in this time. I feel bad for you, my man. She is not someone I’d ever want angry at me. She is her mother in that regard.”

Despite the circumstances, Rick’s statement got another laugh from Lucius. “She is but we rarely see it...thank goodness. So, advice time. Do I tell her now or later?”

“I think the sooner she knows the less likely she will be angered, at least for not being told until now.” Rick huffed. “I don’t want to be there for that conversation. That’s all you.”

Tora reentered the room, frowning slightly. "Apparently my daughter's beau is not a morning person," she griped and took a seat by Lucius again.

Lucius smiled at her and slipped his hand into hers. “No, that is one thing you can definitely say about Solis. What did he have to say? Is he doing alright?”

"She hadn't told him I was coming!" Tora shook her head. "Sometimes, Lucius, I think she was born without the part of the brain that considers others around her. He complained about the hour...," she checked a clock and winced, "Perhaps he has a point there. Anyway, we're meeting for lunch."

“Good. At least he’s getting a little sleep.” Lucius looked at Rick a moment, then back to Tora. “We need to tell Li,” he said quietly.

"Li? Your daughter with Mariana. What about your son with her?"

“Seren is out on assignment and can’t be reached right now,” Lucius answered. It was vague and meant he couldn’t say where Seren was. “Li is here, however. She is the station’s XO.”

"Shall we summon her here now?" Tora didn't see why not. The three of them were awake; may as well get the Station XO off to an early start on her day, by Tora's reckoning.

Lucius nodded and reached for his comm badge, stopping just short of pressing it. “You staying Rick?”

“Um, fuck no? Maybe that’s too strong of a reply?” He was serious but added, “Unless you feel like you need me to be here. If you need me, I’ll be here.”

“No, no need for you to suffer. I will call you once that’s done. Besides, if this doesn’t go well, she may come looking for your shoulder.” Lucius tapped his comm badge. “Lucius to Li. Sorry to wake you so early honey, but I need you to come to my quarters immediately.”

There was a pause, then Li answered, sounding completely awake. =^= Of course. Let me get dressed and I’ll be right down. =^= The channel beeped as she closed it.

“If you want to escape, now’s the time, Rick. You only have a few minutes.”

Rick downed his drink and stood. “Are you sure you don’t want me to stay? I will if you want me to. I did say that I’d be here for you if you needed me.”

Lucius started to answer but the chime of the door interrupted them. Moments later, it opened and Li stepped in, dressed in sweatpants and a tank top, her feet bare. She stopped just inside the door as she saw the three people in the living room. The first thing she noticed was the serious expressions on all three faces. The second was the emotional atmosphere in the room. She could have cut the tension with a knife. Finally, she noticed her father holding hands with the woman she didn’t know. True to form, she was calm as she spoke.

“Hi everyone. I got here as quick as I could. What’s wrong?” She forced herself not to stare at their joined hands.

Tora barked a laugh and said, "Quick? Oh, my dear, I would still be trying to figure out which leg to lift first to put on pants." She laughed again then added, "I am Vedek Bajun Tora, Li. It is good to meet you after all these years."

“Li,” Rick said, scooting down to the far end of the sofa. “You may want to take a seat. Uh, down there,” he said, pointing to the now open area on the sofa.

“My pleasure, Vedek Bajun.” Li smiled briefly but something in Rick’s tone caught her attention. She took a seat and once more looked from one to the other, finally settling on Lucius.

What is it?

Lucius licked his lips and shook his head. “This needs to be done aloud, sweetheart. It sort of involves all of us. Well, Rick is involved only tangentially. You know, of course, of the disappearance of the Korenna?”

Li nodded. “It’s why I was already awake and dressed. There’s nothing new yet but everyone’s been working nonstop on it.” Only then did the woman’s name sink into her tired brain. “Oh. Oh my...Vedek Bajun. You are Julisa’s mother. I’m so sorry you arrived here to find...this.”

"Well, your father called me, actually. Then came to get me in his little ship," Tora said, squeezing Lucius' hand in hers. "Please call me Tora."

Rick turned to Tora. “Little?”

The gesture didn’t go unnoticed by Li and her brows drew down for an instant. “Tora then. He came to get you?” Li was trying to keep up but for the moment it wasn’t making sense.

“I called to inform her of the situation, only to find she was on a very slow transport and so I took the yacht out to get her here sooner. That’s just sort of the beginning of all this.” Lucius rubbed his eyes. “It actually begins in 2356 when I finished the Academy and was sent to Bajor. I was there for five years with the Resistance, but you know that.” Li nodded and he continued. “The group that Niro took? The rift they went through took them back to 2360 to that same camp.”

Frowning, Tora admonished Luc, "You're beating around the bush, dear. He was contacting me because Julisa is our daughter."

Li opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. She closed it again and blinked as she faced Lucius and Tora. Finally two words formed.

“She’s what?”

Lucius nodded. “It’s the truth. Julisa was born on Bajor a year before you and Nahi were born.” He held up his hand to stop her, sensing she was about to speak again. “Yes, your mother knew. She was told the year that Julisa turned three, which is the year our people were pulled back to via that rift. I…” Lucius stopped and swallowed. “That is we...Tora and I...she’s the one I always loved. Your mother knew that too. We made our peace with it and it was okay. Things just didn’t work out so that Tora and I could be together once Marianna and I parted ways, for a lot of reasons, none of them good ones, really. But now she’s here and ...that’s a story for later I suppose and Li please say something.”

"Then hush, and let her get a word in!" Tora told him.

Li felt as if she’d been flash-frozen. It was a lot to take in in a very short amount of time. Julisa was her sister...Lucius had loved this woman since the beginning it seemed and now, as they sat holding hands, she could read the deep, consuming passion for each other - something she’d never felt between her parents growing up. She wondered what this meant for Aia, but put that aside for the moment. One big question rose and she had to ask.

“Julisa doesn’t know does she?”

"No, for various reasons," Tora shook her head. "Obviously, she knows she's part Betazoid, but.... We just didn't tell her which Betazoid."

“Why?” It came out sharper than she had intended. “You may want to try those reasons on me because you can bet she will demand to know what they are.”

Lucius closed his eyes for a moment to focus. “Your mother for one, Li. We were in a marriage that couldn’t just be tossed aside for so many family and political reasons and we all agreed to that, including Tora. When you all were older, it didn’t matter so much and Marianna and I parted ways. By then, Julisa was in her teens. Circumstances prevented Tora and I from a reunion and we didn’t feel it was fair to Julisa to bring it up when we were so far apart.” He fell silent and looked over to Tora to continue.

Meanwhile, Rick just sat there feeling more and more uncomfortable. The word ‘awkward’ was flashing through his head like a bright neon light as he prayed that Li didn’t turn on him, even though he was innocent in all of this.

"All of this happened just about the time Julisa, as an adult, showed up. Ricky was there and helped us with this decision. Lucius needed to honor his vows to Mariana; I was busy rebuilding Daltek, and Julisa... she had the community acting as her father." Tora shrugged; her earlier comment about Julisa missing the part of her brain that considered others rang true for her as well, though she didn't realize that.

Rick decided to chime in. “Ah, for the record, Eyas, this is a new thing. I wasn’t part of it before. I guess the timeline has changed again, which means something else has happened in the past to bring this to light.”

Li’s gaze locked on Rick now. “You knew though?”

“I had no clue who she was before now. Things have been altered drastically since that group went back to 2360,” he said. “I had visited your father several times in his camp, before, but we were running different ops on Bajor then and I only really talked to him. That’s where we first met. But, with the new memories,” he turned to Lucius, “which is a bit strange that we can remember both sets,” he said, then turned back to Li, “I now remember being summoned to help retrieve Julisa who had been captured. And only now do I remember Tora or even knowing about Julisa when she was young, or seeing Julisa the Elder. That’s what I was calling her back then, it seems.”

“I see.” She looked to Lucius and Tora. There was too much in her head, too many things she wanted to say and didn’t know where to start, or how.

“I think….” Li had no clue what she thought, actually. She needed some space and time to sort through it all. “I think….I need to go.” She stood and ran her hand through her hair, a gesture so very much like Lucius. “I need to check on the searchers. I’ll be in C&C.” She backed towards the doors.

“Li wait…” Lucius started to stand, intending to stop her but a slight pressure on his hand from Tora kept him in his seat. “I’ll come see you later.”

Li nodded, then smiled to Tora. “We’ll find her.” She turned and dashed out.

Rick stood as well. “I should probably go as well,” he said. “I need to...check on...things.” He returned the glass to Lucius’ bar and turned to his old friend. “You know where to find me if you need me,” he said as he followed Li out.

The doors closed behind Rick and Lucius finally let out the breath he’d been holding. “What now, my love?” he asked.

"We could sit still and worry ourselves crazy. I prefer the other option: we keep ourselves busy. Normally, for me, that would mean prayer and meditation. But since you're here, I'd rather worship in the bed."

“I have no idea what Li will do,” he admitted. “She’s right though, Julisa will want to know why. Right now there is nothing I can do about either one.” He nodded. “We could use some sleep too. It’s going to be a very long day.”

"Juli will want to know, and she might get angry with me, but she'll understand," Tora's view was pragmatic. "We may as well not worry right now. Come," she rose and pulled him along to the bedroom.

*******************
Admiral Lucius Hawke
The Past Is Now The Present

Vedek Bajun Tora
Pragmatic

Admiral Ricky Wegener
Uncomfortable Time in an Awkward Place

Captain Li Hawke
At A Loss