Forget me not - Part I

Posted on Sat May 1st, 2021 @ 5:49pm by Commander Hades,MD & Lieutenant Commander Carolyn Corrigan MD
Edited on on Sat May 1st, 2021 @ 6:50pm

1,430 words; about a 7 minute read

Mission: Episode 109 - The Dust Settles
Location: Verdari Colony

Forget me not
For I am there ..

Closing her eyes, the warmth of the sunlight on her face, the words of the old Irish poem echoed in her mind. Comforting in an undefined way, as if the words themselves wrapped around you like a blanket. Soothing your soul in the darkest of days.

She had been just a child when she first heard it, recited by a family friend at a funeral. And just a few months ago she had stood in this very spot, the same exact spot where she had exchanged vows with him, and recited it word for word at the funeral of Richard Harris.

And then, earlier today, she had done the same reading again.

While they had come to the First Federation on a diplomatic mission, there had been another reason. One that in her mind outweighed all of the rest. To say goodbye to her friend, Kalani. And to be there for Hades.

They had a little time before they needed to return to the ship and head back to Federation space and so she had slipped away, heading to this spot where she could see the waterfall and the river, even the tree where Harris had carved their initials like some lovesick teenager. Yet she had not so much as looked towards the house.

She hadn't come to dwell on what had happened there that night, she had come here to feel closer to Harris. Because, just like in that poem, when she stood here she could easily imagine him beside her, holding her hand. Telling her it would be alright and to stay brave and strong until they could one day be reunited.

The sound of footsteps approaching snapped her out of her reverie and she glanced over her shoulder. Surprised to find Hades himself walking up the path, following the same path she and Ariana had walked on the day of her wedding. "Is Lord Hades allowed to go anywhere without an entourage?" she teased lightly as she turned back to admire the view. "It was beautiful. She'd have loved all the flowers you had laid out for her. All the colour... very her."

Hades smiled. "She would have." He said stepping up to her. He placed his hands on her shoulders, "How are you doing?"

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that question?” She replied. How was she doing? It seemed a loaded question. She was sad, they had lost another special soul with Kalani’s passing. And yet...

“I think this is my favourite place in the universe,” she admitted in a whisper as if to speak too loudly would destroy some sort of magic. “Every day, we would walk and always stop right here. We’d listen to the waterfall and Harris would tell the baby crazy stories... it felt right. It feels like he is here.

Or... I’m just an overtired crazy pregnant woman.”

Hades smiled, "You are not overtired or crazy. this is a magical place. Harris is a part of this world." He looked out at the waterfall. "Carolyn I have come to a decision. I'm going to stay on the colony. Michael and Isiah are too and Braxton and Rol are still deciding. I want to go back for Skye but...who knows maybe down the line. Do you want to stay here with me?"

She studied him as she turned to face him, finding nothing but a resolute determination in his eyes. “You’re serious?”

"Yes. It's high time that I stayed here, devoted myself to my people Revenge...kept me away and now that the Romulans have aided with that it's time my people heal." He smiled. "That would mean some princessing of course and...some Royal duties for you."

“You’d look good in a dress, princess,” she teased him lightly. “I however am no princess. What kind of Royal duties?”

He laughed a little. "Funny." He looked out at the waterfall. "Just keeping the moral of the people up and heading our medical division."

"Heading it?" she repeated incredulously, eyes wide. "Hades, you have technology here I've never even seen let alone used."

"You will be trained. That is not an issue but I need someone I can trust. I've also asked Skye to stay but if she says no she will have a job with Splendora if she wishes. I want at least one of my daughters with me." There was also something else but he wasn't sure he should tell her.

“So, no more pushing me away for my own good?”

Hades took her for the shoulders. "No. No more." He looked at her and then stepped away. "In that spirit there is something I should tell you... something I wouldn't for your own good but...I will tell you."

She studied him in silence for a moment, trying to decipher some clue from his expression. She failed miserably. “What is it?”

"The night that Harris died, I had my people go over the house with a fine-tooth comb. They found something."

“What?” The question escaped in a breath. Everything in the hours and then days after they lost Harris, her mind was a blur. Time and pretty much everything had gotten lost. Or at least lost any interest or relevance.

"The man who was after you was found but Harris' DNA...was not. The kind of defense he used...it leaves room for a possibility."

She couldn’t breathe. “What… what does that mean?” she managed, unable to quell that little spark of hope his words gave her.

"There is a secondary device that was activated, it works like warp bends time and space moving someone from point A to B on a dimensional level. There is a chance Harris is alive and trapped somewhere. I aim to find him, if that's the case."

“Then it’s a good thing i tendered my resignation before I left the base,” Carolyn told him with a determination which matched Hades’ own. “I couldn’t stay and I let my career take one baby, I won’t risk another. We will find him. Together.”

"Of course, we will." He said putting an arm around her.

“If we could maybe start tomorrow?” She suggested.

"We could but why the rush?" He asked.

“Because if there is any chance, even the tiniest possibility… how could I wait?” she countered. “And I’m pretty sure this baby is not going to wait around forever until she makes an appearance. At least if these Braxton Hicks contractions are any indication. Today is about Kalani. But it’s been months. I can’t leave him in some kind of limbo.”

He gave a nod. "For sure. I have people working on it so we'll both go down there to help." He looked at Carolyn. "Thank you."

“For what?” She asked curiously.

"For staying with me, I have lost so much I don't think I could loose another person in my life."

“That,” she smiled as she took hold of his arm, and leaned her head against his shoulder, “is a sign of desperation my friend. Besides, who better to babysit than you? Just keep any wild adventures to this corner of the cosmos, okay?”

He laughed. "So do you think Skye will stay with us?"

“As long as you don’t go back to wearing vests, I’m sure she would. You say you keep losing people, she already lost the only people a little girl cares about. And now she has you back. Will she stay on the colony forever? I don’t think she can be tamed that much, but give her a chance. Just remember, she’s used to her own rules and she is a teenage girl. That isn’t an easy combination for a dad. And then she’ll start dating and you’ll be all off with his or her head and it’ll be messy…”

He snorted. "Probably." He paused and then looked at her. "I promise you if Harris is out there, we'll find him."

“I’m gonna hold you to that. I guess I better find a way to get my things in storage? And you need to speak to Ariana. She is really attached to you, she is gonna take the news you are staying here pretty hard.”

He sighed. "Yes. I have to speak to her and Splendora and Skye. This will be difficult."

“Not difficult,” Carolyn corrected him gently. “Just… complicated.”

To be Continued...

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