Cadet Valis Renas - Stories From Another Time
Tahna Meru
((Iana Station — Time Index: Present Day))
Cadet Valis Renas had not slowed down at all in the past thirty-six hours.
He was sure he must have passed out for a bit at some point, but he couldn’t quite recall when, and it didn’t really matter so long as he wasn’t on duty. But at this point, he was fairly certain he was 98% Maximum Warp Energy Drink (Full Throttle flavor, limited edition, which he’d stocked up on last time he made it to Iana Station). He’d rocketed off the shuttle and into the crowds, dexterously weaving around much slower tourists and travelers. Even the RapTram seemed slow right now, as he tapped his foot, waiting on it to stop in….
Midtown—one of the food and entertainment districts. A little strangely named, as it wasn’t the mid of anything, except maybe midsized as far as Iana Station’s diversity of districts went. Renas stepped off the tram, minding the gap and the crowd.
If only he was a little taller!
Tahna: Ren!
Eight years since he’d heard that voice in person, but he’d recognize it anywhere. Renas braced himself, just catching sight of a dark head of curls before she crashed into him, squeezing him in a hug he readily returned. They separated after a moment, both smiling. She looked a little older now, paler, like she’d been holed up on a ship rather than toiling away on a farm. But considering she’d just been missing for a year, she looked…remarkably well.
Valis: Mer. ::He grinned, and playfully corrected himself.: Er, ah, Commander.
Renas saluted, and Meru laughed.
Tahna: Shut up, Cadet.
Meru reached up to ruffle his hair—he’d just fixed that, but oh well—and he grinned.
The pair slowly started making their way to a map of the district. The plan had been to meet for lunch and to catch up…and maybe, just maybe, he could talk her into a tour of the Gorkon afterward. An ulterior motive? Maybe, perhaps, slightly. But what good was having family in the Fleet if you couldn’t use them for tours of the Admiral’s flagship?
Tahna: I can’t believe you were already out here. What’s happened? What did I miss?
Valis: Well, Frontier Day, for one.
Meru shook her head.
Tahna: I mean what did I miss with you. How’d you end up out here?
He looked at her, slowing down for the first time in days, no, in months.
Valis: I was looking for you.
((Starfleet Academy, San Francisco Campus, Earth — Time Index: 240111.28))
Abioye: There are plenty of other postings available of course, across many sectors. You have high marks, you’re driven. You could have your pick.
His advisor slid the PADD across the desk. It showed a map of space, every ship and station with an available Cadet posting marked by a small Starfleet insignia. An alphabetical list ran down the side of the page. Renas hardly glanced at it.
Valis: But only one in the Tyrellian sector.
Abioye: Yes.
The older man’s face softened slightly, coming a little too close to pity for comfort.
Abioye: This is the start of your career son, don’t forget. You want to be a captain someday, choose a ship that will set you up for that.
Don’t throw it away by starting on a tiny, century-old ship with little movement, that’s what he was really saying. Renas couldn’t say he wasn’t disappointed; he’d hoped for the Triumphant, or…literally any other ship in the task force. Instead he’d been offered a dead end, and a way out.
But the way out would take him away from the Tyrellian sector, away from the search for the Gorkon.
He pushed the PADD back across the desk.
Valis: I’ll take the Drake. Sir.
((Midcity, Iana Station — Time Index: Present Day))
Renas and Meru wandered through a street lined with shops, eating hasperat from a stall they’d passed along the way. It was surprisingly very good, much better than any he’d had on Earth, and made a good accompaniment to his story of the last twelve months. Palanon’s gift in exchange for taking in Bajoran refugees seemed to be that they were granted the best Bajoran food outside of Bajor.
Valis: Of course, the other ships got to you first. The Drake is…not fast. But I wasn’t going to sit around on Earth when I could be helping with the search.
Tahna: I’m sure you’ve dealt with some fun, unique challenges, serving on an old ship.
Renas shrugged. Sure he had, like the fact that he had to relearn a bunch of the engineering he’d learned at the Academy, because the ship was so out of date and impossible to update. Or the time he helped implement a much-needed replicator upgrade that should have worked but left the replicators producing nothing but stewed gagh for a week until they went back to the old systems. He liked to think this would be valuable experience that formed him into a versatile officer. If it didn’t get him stuck on the old ship forever instead.
Valis: Stories for another time. ::He paused and looked at his cousin.:: What have you been up to for the last year?
Meru looked away. He’d known her long enough to recognize the flash of pain in her eyes.
Tahna: Stories for another time. ::She looked back at him, a small, forced smile on her face.:: But I’m very glad to be home.