(BackSIMM) JP: Lt.JG Tonya Lang & Ens. Jocelyn Marshall - Survivor's Fortune

[Jo Marshall]

((Sto’Vo’Kor Lounge, Deck 9, U.S.S. Gorkon))

Lang: What about our springball match?

:: Jo had almost forgot about the match Tonya had promised her when they had met on Helease. The Bajoran national sport and, for all intents and purposes, a great way of getting the measure of someone quickly, even while they slammed you into a wall.::

Marshall: Holosuites are on lockdown while we’re on brownout rollout.

Lang: Then we’ll have to wait for that. But I’m sure one day we’ll be able to do it - maybe back in our universe.

Marshall: I hope so. ::she sat back in her chair:: We could get a league going, or a tournament, have regular matches.

:: That was the premise that hung over every conversastion had on the vessel. What if they were never going home? Was this the same feeling that the crew of Voyager had felt, so far away from home?::

Lang: It’s weird...we really are in another reality. I would’ve never imagined experiencing this. ::She paused:: Where do you think alternate Jo Marshall is now?

:: Jo hadn’t thought about it until asked, and even then she couldn’t picture an alternate version of herself in any capacity. She chewed on the inside of her cheek before replying.::

Marshall: Probably not alive. If I’ve got the habit of running into threatening situations, I’m sure she’s done so somewhere and come out worse off for it. ::she smiled from the corner of her mouth:: Still, it’d be interesting to see what she accomplished in this environment.

Lang: I know what you mean. And alternate Jo surely is an interesting person. ::She paused, then added:: ...if she’s alive.

Marshall: Finding someone to put up with my antics in my universe is hard enough, thank you. I can’t imagine she’s done much better.

Lang: ::Laughing:: It’s not impossible as you see.

Marshall: What about your doppleganger?

Lang: I’m not quite sure, but maybe… ::She sighed:: …maybe I don’t even want to know it. I’d see a side of me that I might not like - just because that’s what this universe has made out of her…me.

Marshall: Do you not find it mildly terrfying that there’s another you, in possibly millions of universes, making different decisions?

Lang: ::Shaking her head:: I can’t imagine it. Doing something another way than I already did, I mean. There are so many possibilities then. So many versions of me. I can’t even imagine what *this* Tonya is all about!

Marshall: Maybe she’s married, with kids, hates her partner, and has a pet tribble called Fluffy.

::Tonya chuckled, even though the thought slightly scared her.::

Lang: Maybe. But, well, I’m quite sure she’s still in the Delta Quadrant. Are there any tribbles in the DQ?

Marshall: You know, I’m not entirely sure on that. I’d check the computer, but she’s napping. ::her grin was cheeky:: So, if you’ve never been in the same place for more than a few years, where did you start life?

Lang: Born aboard the oh so legendary Voyager. ::She turned to Jo:: But I wasn’t even six when we returned home. I don’t remember much of this time generally.

:: Jo nodded, a little bit taken aback by that. She had heard ofthe Voyager, of course she had, which intrepid soul alive in the Federation hadn’t? What struck Jo the most was she was talking to the offspring of two crew members who had made it back with the ship, after an epic voyage that was no easy feat.::

Marshall: Were your parents together before they boarded?

Lang: My parents met aboard. - And had a baby right away. They married when I was two.

Marshall: Oh wow… dare I ask if they’re still together? Still married?

Lang: Yes, they are. Happily, i’d say, even if they don’t see each other too often. Yours?

Marshall: Definitely. Joined at the hip. Wherever mother went, father followed. ::she looked over to Tonya:: I would imagine that they would have followed one another to the Delta Quadrant as well, knowingly or not.

:: To have that kind of love was, above all else, envious. Jo hadn’t experienced that; for one, she counted herself far too young, and she was all together too cynical. That kind of love existed, sure, but for her it would be different. Perhaps not the kind of love that shook stars. More the kind that left holes in the heart.::

:: Tonya smiled. She secretly wished for a relationship like theirs or her own parents’. She couldn’t imagine loving a person as much as they did - even after all those years. It was inspiring, but also unbelievable.::

Marshall: How was it afterward? Being part of this huge adventure that you can’t really remember?

Lang: A lot of people couldn’t get that I had been too young to understand everything that had happened. I didn’t know what it was like to live on a planet and have many friends my age. I really had to learn these things when we returned to Earth. It was all very...confusing to me.

:: Tonya looked out of the window and remembered how scared she had been on her first day of school. Not scared like other children - different to Tonya, they had already known what it was like with many fellow children. She shook her head and turned back to Jo.::

Lang: But in the end, it must’ve been worse for all those who had to leave behind their old lives in the Alpha Quadrant. So far away from home...

Marshall: What if it happened to us now?

Lang: Probably similar to what we are all experiencing now. The chances are maybe even lower to return home from another universe than from the DQ.

Marshall: There’s no saying that we will get home, or we won’t. ::she reached out her hand and touched the wooden coffee table:: Touch wood we will, but there’s a strong possibility we won’t.

Lang: What if we really won’t? What else is going to happen - I mean, between all crew members?

Marshall: I don’t know. I think about the PO in Engineering and… ::she looked down at her hands:: I feel like I should have done something, like I could have done something for her. If we stay here, in this universe, her parents never have to know she died.

Lang: But isn’t that even worse? Knowing that your child is gone, but you have no idea whether he or she is dead or alive? Isn’t it some kind of…relief when you can finally be sure?

:: She shook her head, feeling a tear slip at the corner of her eye, looking up at the lights, or lack there of, blinking away the outward display of emotion before it splilled over.::

Marshall: I know it’s stupid. Contemplating the other universe imprisonment of an entire crew because I really don’t want to have to tell someone’s parents their child isn’t coming home.

:: Tonya looked at her empty cup, thinking of an answer. She didn’t like to admit it, but there was something true about it.::

Lang: I...I think I know what you mean. But...we somehow don’t have the right to say that though. I mean, I would like my parents to know that I’m dead, even if they would be devastated.

Marshall: Do you think your parents will be out there looking for you? For us?

Lang: I would really like to know that. When did they give up on us or when will they? I don’t even know what I would do. Do you think Starfleet has already declared us missing or even presumed dead?

Marshall: I don’t know; how long have we been missing to them? Three months to us might be days in their universe.

Lang: I can’t imagine there isn’t some kind of operation to find us. But on the other hand - what should they do inside another universe?

Marshall: They can hardly tow us back to drydock. ::she exhaled with a wry smile:: Leave a breadcrumb trail for us to follow, maybe put signposts up. ::the thought was ridiculous:: Frick, my brothers are going to be crawling the walls.

Lang: I try not to think about how worried my parents probably are. Or my siblings… No, I really don’t want to think about that. ::She paused:: Is there anyone else waiting for you apart from friends and family? I mean...a partner?

:: The mention of partner elicited a mental image of Andra, or Andie, the complete wrecking ball of a girl she’d fallen hopelessly in love with throughout the Academy. She imagined her somewhere in deep space, hearing about her missing and she wondered how she felt about it. They had long since broken up, better as friends than lovers, but she had been the only one to mean anything more, so far anyway.::

Marshall: Thankfully, no. ::then clarified:: I wouldn’t wish this kind of worry on anyone.

Lang: ::Smiling:: Me neither. My last relationship was in my second year of the Academy. ::She made an indefinable gesture with her arm:: Only lasted about a year.

:: Jo smiled, not quite sure who she picture Tonya with. A fleeting image of someone with a beard ran through her mind.::

Marshall: Oh, really? Tell me about them. Second year academy romances are usually the worst, but have the best stories afterward.

Lang: Actually, there isn’t much of a story. He was studying science, I was studying science, so...we met. ::She sighed:: But I really liked him, probably more than he liked me… But in the end, the breakup was...alright. I could cope with it.

Marshall: Didn’t drown in springwine and ice-cream, then? I found about five new flavours after a breakup.

Lang: No springwine at that time. I didn’t start drinking it until my last Academy year. ::She grinned:: I loved it, but all of my Human friends didn’t want to try it. Just because of a dumb guy who was nearly kicked out from the Academy because of a long night with a lot of springwine...

Marshall: Then they obviously don’t know what they’re missing out on.

Lang: Oh, definitely! ::She paused:: Paul -the Academy ex - he didn’t try it as well.

Marshall: You said “last” - any significant others before them?

Lang: No, not really. I had a boyfriend when I was eleven, but...that doesn’t count. Paul was my first “real” boyfriend.

::Tonya smiled at Jo. It was nice talking about something banal with someone who really listened. If they wouldn’t have been colleagues, she would’ve called it “girly talk”.::

Lang: So, what about you? Any Academy love? ::She grinned:: You thought of someone before, didn’t you?

Marshall: Good grief, no. ::she shook her head:: Andie was capable of tearing your life apart, usually before breakfast. ::she grinned:: But, she’s a really good friend.

Lang: Andie then. ::She paused, smiling:: Let’s hope there will be somebody someday… The right one, I mean.

:: The dark blonde smiled, finishing the dregs in her mug and reaching over to place it on the table.::

Marshall: Well, I hope you find someone who will either sweep you of your feet, or someone you'll quietly fall in love with over years adrift in an alternate universe.

Lang: Sounds like a tragic end to me - the alternate universe version. Because when we’ll return… And we *will* return… ::She paused, smiling and shaking her head:: Maybe someone on the ship then? We’ll see.

Marshall: You never know. Prince Charming could be two decks down and you'll trip over one another in the corridor.

:: She couldn't stifle the yawn, accompanied with a stretch. The evening spent tucked up on one of those lounge chairs hadn't done her posture any favours.::

Lang: You know what’s the time?

::She looked around for the shift clock and blinked.::

Marshall: Late enough to be considered tomorrow.

Lang: Prophets, time flies when you’ve got a nice person to talk to. ::She smiled:: I’m sorry, but I’ve got Beta shift tomorrow...or rather today.

::Tonya stood up, looking at the blonde woman.::

Lang: ::Smiling:: It was a real pleasure, Jo.

:: Jo nodded and stood up. She scratched the back of her neck, blonde hair in the braid starting to want to be lose. And in bed.::

Marshall: You too, Tonya. We should make this a regular thing.

Lang: We definitely have to. And one day we’ll also be able to do the springball match. I’m really looking forward to it!

:: Jo laughed lightly and kinked her eyebrow.::
Marshall: I just hope you can lose gracefully.

:: Tonya hesitated, then leaned over for a hug, which Jo didn’t seem to refuse. She then gave her a last nod, before she turned to leave the lounge. Throughout happy and knowing to have found someone close to a friend, she walked through the door onto the corridor. Actually, she decided, she could call Jo a friend - and it made her smile innerly.::

---

End

Ensign Jocelyn Marshall
Operations Officer
U.S.S. Gorkon
G239304JM0

&

Lieutenant JG Tonya Lang
Science Officer
U.S.S. Gorkon
G239211TL0