LtJG Dakora - Nostalgia and Anachronism
Travis
((Dakora Family Home, Medara, Betazed - 2374))
Talos stood in the entryway to his childhood home with MacKenzie and Niac nearby as his mother pushed that same old heavy trunk in front of the door. He caught himself just before he instinctively moved to help her.
She seemed younger than he remembered, not much older than he was today, but with the same kind face that he'd only just begun to have a hard time picturing lately. In his memories of her she was always so strong, so certain and he could see that strength on display now, but he could also see the strain she was under; he could feel the worries roiling within her. He had to force himself to stop staring as she turned to address them.
L.Dakora: Come, come. ::She waited for her guests to enter before locking and barring the door once again.:: By the Four that was fast. I only put the offer to help out on the resistance net a few minutes ago... Who did you all say you were again?
He fired off the first made-up name that came to his mind. It wasn't very original...
T.Dakora: Uh, Lieutenant Junior-Grade Yogan Silveira, Intelligence Officer and this is...
Niac: Just call me Beardy, ma'am. Safer for you and for us. If you don't know our names, you won't have to lie about it in case anyone asks.
MacKenzie: ::waving:: I’m Addison.
Talos reddened slightly. They were right, of course. As an Intelligence Officer he should've been the first to minimize their exposure. But this wasn't some semi-hostile asset to be flipped,he was face to face with his long dead mother. The concept had a way of really frakking up the works of his mind.
She bowed her head just a little, the same gesture that Talos often adopted as a greeting and met them with a kind but strained smile.
L.Dakora: Well met, each of you. ::Beat.:: I'm Leera, and I'm afraid I don't have much to offer in the way of material support. We... we weren't expecting our defenses to fall so quickly. But I'll help you however I can.
Niac: Madam, we need to get out of sight for a while and figure out our next move. Do you have a storage cellar or something? We should really make ourselves scarce as soon as possible.
MacKenzie: We really promise to be no intrusion. And we’ll only be here long enough to figure out a plan to get back to our ship.
Talos could feel other presences nearby, just on the other side of a door down the hall. He felt his head get that same swimmy sensation again as he realized he was feeling his own telepathic presence along with his little brother Hanek. He knew there was a wine cellar. He also knew there was a secret compartment that his architect mother would go on to line with fistrium mesh that would be the key to his and Hanek's survival in just a few months.
L.Dakora: Of course. ::She motioned for them to follow.: This way.
They followed her deeper into the house, each room he passed calling up memories long forgotten and filling Talos with equal parts warmth and sadness. When they reached the door he'd known she was headed for, she held up a hand for them to wait.
L.Dakora: Give me just a moment to get my boys settled. ::Her smile went a bit sad.:: I know it won't last, but I'm trying to protect them from... ::She gestured to the general state of her world:: everything for as long as I can.
Talos felt his eyes get a bit hot and he willed himself not to well up at her words. He was pulling out all the stops to mask his emotions, but there was always the danger that something would slip through.
T.Dakora: Of course, we'll wait here.
She slipped through the door and they could hear the sounds of muffled conversation emanating from the other side. Talos tried to listen in, fairly certain that he could recall this very moment, but he wasn't entirely sure. The bearded Ops Chief stepped up beside him and whispered a pertinent question.
Niac: She's telepathic, right? What happens if she scans us?
MacKenzie coughed indiscreetly.
MacKenzie: ::through gritted teeth:: Then I suggest you keep your thoughts lie-free, Commander…
Talos smirked as he whispered his reply. Scan wasn't really the right word, but he didn't exactly have time to put on a Telepathy 101 course at the moment.
T.Dakora: She's not going to scan us if we seem like we are what we say we are. ::He touched his chest.:: And our emotions feel like stranded Starfleet Officers in need of a place to hide while we figure out what's next, because we are.
Niac: Oh well that's a great relief...::Karrod came to an abrupt halt as he caught the view out a nearby window.:: Uh. That's not...right.
L.Dakora::Muffled, from the otherside of the door.:: I'll be up to check on you soon, Little Bear. And you too Brave Wolf.
He heard the thumping footsteps of the younger version of himself and his brother pitter-pattering up the stairs to his room as his mother stepped back in the room. As he turned to see what Niac was talking about, his mouth fell open slightly.
Niac: Ta...err, Yogan...is that...a normal part of the landscape around here?
MacKenzie: It doesn’t look native…
From their slightly elevated position, they could see out over the back-garden to what should've been a beautiful bayfront. Instead the landscape seemed to be bisected along some great unnatural earthen seam and a tall angular building jutted up high on the horizon. The architecture was odd, certainly not Betazoid. It was oddly reminiscent of a restaurant he'd been fond of in the Chinatown area of San Francisco while he was in the Academy.
T.Dakora: No. No it is not.
MacKenzie's eyes narrowed and his mother leaned towards the window, angling for a better view of what they saw.
MacKenzie: Mrs. Dakora, forgive me for asking, but what is that building and how long has it been there?
Talos winced imperceptibly as MacKenzie used the last name she hadn't yet provided, but if it bothered her she didn't let it show. She seemed preoccupied with trying to get a better view out the window and after a moment, she turned to the red-haired XO.
L. Dakora: I'm afraid I don't know what you mean. ::She pointed to the window.:: That's our back garden and beyond that is the bay and some of the harbor buildings.
The anomalous terrain was not something anyone could miss. Whatever the Q had done, it seemed the people from this time couldn't see it. Talos exchanged worried glances with the other officers before MacKenzie spoke again.
MacKenzie: Let’s go. It’s not safe to be staring out the window like this.
Niac: Response?
Talos took a half step towards the door, caught himself and looked to his mother to lead the way. He was surprised to see that she was already staring at him, studying him like an acquaintance whose face you couldn't quite put a name to. He donned a friendly smile as he spoke.
T.Dakora: After you, Leera.
She led them down into the safety of the wine cellar and had left them with the promise of returning with something to eat. Talos wasn't sure if he'd be able to eat anything, the way his stomach kept executing nostalgic somersaults in response to each item he bumped into in the dim cellar. Over the next few months, he and Hanek would go on to spend a lot of time down here.
Once they'd all found a place to sit, they didn't waste much time getting down to business.
MacKenzie: That structure doesn’t belong here any more than we do… What do you make of this nonsense?
T.Dakora: It looked like a scene ripped from somewhere else. ::He shook his head.:: Whatever it was, M'adi... ::Beat.:: Leera couldn't see it.
Niac/MacKenzie: Response
He frowned and rubbed his right temple as he tried to process it all. Clearly it was something that Q, CloQ had done. But what it was and what it meant were still wide open ended questions.
T.Dakora: I'm not an expert on architecture, but it kind of looked like the storefront of this Asian-Fusion place I used to hit up in the Academy. ::He shrugged.:: Something Terran maybe?
Niac/MacKenzie: Response
The sun would be setting soon and they'd have to choose whether they would bed down here for the night or try and slip away under the cover of darkness. Talos wasn't in a hurry to leave the comforting presence of his mother and his home, but they really needed to figure out what was going on and where the rest of the crew was.
T.Dakora: We could try and commandeer a shuttle or small craft and fly over there and see for ourselves? ::He scrunched up his face.:: It'd be a short flight. We might be able to make it before they can shoot us down.
Niac/MacKenzie: Response
They heard the cellar door open and his mother walked in with a tray full of grilled shrimp-like oscoid, a selection of the Betazoid analog of crab cakes and a pitcher of jestral tea.
L.Dakora: I hope this is alright. ::She set the tray down on the crate they were using as a makeshift table.:: It's just what I had in the cold-unit.
He eyed the oscoid greedily; quickly grabbing one, removing the tail and popping the piece into his mouth. It was delicious. In all of the many years since, he'd never been able to replicate the unique mix of seasonings his mother had used.
T.Dakora: ::Swallowing.:: Holy strokes these are good. Thank you.
Niac/MacKenzie: Response
Tag, and TBC!
LtJG Talos Dakora
Acting Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Excalibur-A
O238811CD0