The Most Valuable Real Estate Part 1 of 2

Posted on Mon May 17th, 2021 @ 1:31am by Lieutenant JG Matthew Plumeri & Lieutenant Alekela illm Meaho'ōla
Edited on on Mon May 17th, 2021 @ 10:20am

5,292 words; about a 26 minute read

Mission: Episode 109 - The Dust Settles
Location: SB400 - PROMENADE - LEVEL 113 - LOCK & KEY RESTAURANT
Timeline: MD3 - Dinnertime

[ON: PART ONE OF TWO]

Fresh from a shower, feeling crisp and clean, dressed in comfortable raiment, Matthew walked along the Promenade people watching. Life on Starbase 400 seemed to be returning to 'normal'. Merchants were coming back, and the damage done to the station was almost forgotten. After a time, he found himself thinking about something to eat for dinner and then he wanted to search out a place on the station where he could stargaze. He walked along the shops, the kiosks selling trinkets and goofy junk. There were a few restaurants here. A Bolian soupery, a Trianni shish-ka-ma-bob place, a joint called 'The Salad Emporium', which he thought was rather doomed to close and then "The Lock & Key". A restaurant and a bar. "The best of both worlds" he said to himself and entered. He went through the checklist in his mind. 'No screaming kids, check. Properly lit, check. No funny sounding specials, check. Bar open and well stocked, check. No starfleet security milling about, check.' OK, worth a try. He went for the bar and chose a seat towards the end. A Ferengi bartender asked his drink order and Matthew asked for a 'Garibaldi'.

No patients to deal with tonight in the infirmaries, it was a day off for Alekelia. The past twenty-four hours had produced a stabbing, a case of Gule's fever, an impacted bowel, two cases of blade inflicted wounds that required repair, three deliveries and just the usual amount of general routine cases. She still felt a little sore from one out of control Naucisscan child that pulled on her wings with a parent that more of less indulged their child. The only thing that had saved that encounter was thinking of how much fun it would have been to perform a living anatomy demonstration. Even so it had been a long day and then a couple of emergencies had come in. It was three in the morning when she finally got a spell off and being a little shorthanded had just found a lounge chair to take a nap on until a nurse had called around six with the inevitable early morning and that was before the routine of the day. Tired she had caught a quick nap again only to wake hungry and had just looked at the replicator in disgust. Throwing on a light dress she had wandered looking for someplace though she had no hope of really finding anything suitable for her. Finally, she had just gotten to a directory and closed her eyes and then put her finger on whatever it landed on and would go there. Lock and Key was the choice and she wandered into the place looking at the bar. Something alcoholic and sweet, maybe the alcohol would ease the strain and something sweet for the blood sugar. "Do you have any human Port?" she inquired of the Ferengi bartender. He nodded and she stood there not paying any attention but to get a drink or two or maybe three.

"Hey there? Feel like having some company?" Matt said from a half-dozen seats away. His drink half-gone, feeling the edge and sting of work fade. Alekela's jet black hair and blue-metallic streaks were interesting to say the least. Well, that and the wings. He smiled pleasantly.

Alekelia turned her head and smiled. "Please," she said and moved to take a seat next to Matt. In a couple of moments, the bartender brought her drink and she downed it in a few large gulps and ordered another. "Wew! That burns but tastes good. Sorry been a long, too long a day in the clinic. How is science going since the crystal thing?"

"Whoa! Easy there friend, oh - I forgot. You're Akkadian. You like the sweet, strong stuff! You know that I had a friend who was Akkadian yeah? She gave me some Blood Flower juice - super good but too sweet for me. A long day in the clinic - yeah - I bet you get all the excitement down there too." Matt signaled the bartender for another port for Alekela and another Garibaldi for himself. "The crystal, the gemstone, the Librarian...the Tholians. Ensign McWire and Jonathan Coleman are working on understanding the computer glitch. If it even is a glitch. I'm so tired of thinking about it." He turned on the stool to ask her, "Join me for some dinner? I could go for some food now." He felt more relaxed and he wanted to talk about anything but work.

"I remember, you mentioned the Mother of House Warraquim itself. Anyway, you are correct, too much alcohol on an empty stomach is going to be bad news. Dinner sounds good. Want to go find a table?"

"Nice! Yeah, how about right over there?" He indicated with his head to a corner booth that was quiet and off to the side. Letting the bartender know of their dinner plans and receiving a menu, Matt offered it to Alekela first.

Alekelia looked over and nodded and then thank Matt for the menu. She glanced briefly across it looking for what she could have and settled on the fruit platter, that would work.

When it was his turn he ordered up a healthy meal of fish and rice. They then moved to the corner table and took a seat. "So, Alekela, tell me something fun? What do you do during your off time?"

"I think that is an odd concept," she said with mock seriousness and then laughed a light musical laugh. "Sleep, and if there is a bit of time try to sing, maybe water dance but I am not very good at that unless a calm lake. And you?"

He grinned at her laugh, "Why so odd? We can't always be all work and no play. At least, that's what I learned in primary school. There's a pool here you know?" He took a long drink of his beverage. "Maybe you could water dance there?"

"If beings did not fight, overindulge, have bratty children, get sick..." she was chuckling the entire time. "As I said, the list never ends, and it seems we have a chronic shortage of hands. So yes, time off like this seems odd concept to me but oh so needed."

"Me? I like the holodeck. I've got a few programs that are pretty fun. But I've yet to explore all of what Starbase 400 has to offer." He took another sip and said, "When I was a kid, we'd go camping in the mountains above Lake Paracomocu. In the summer we'd go. High up to Severino Garden. A big, green, place with little spot to camp and fish. Hike during the days and tell stories at night." He closed his eyes as if he could transport himself there now, "I remember laying out, under the stars. Someone was singing sweetly in the distance, they were playing a guitar, a therebo....big long-ass neck and deep, wonderful plucked tones. The music lightly filled the night. And the fire we made earlier was low. And I was watching this - oh - this immense field of stars above. You could see them all. I could make out the constellations. The three sisters, the dragonhead nebula. Possiamo's crescent. And I realized that the stars were here long before me. And they would still be here way long after me." He chuckled a bit, "I guess I fell in love with the stars then. And, I suppose when I get lonely, I want to see my stars again." He sat up a bit and said, "Hey? Why not after we eat, we try and find the best place to go stargazing?" he asked her.

"Sounds perfect," Alkelea replied with a sigh. "You know back home; we do not have or use any of this technology. Things are kept deliberately simple, and I grew up in that simpler life so yes, anything of nature, even just looking at the stars sounds absolutely perfect."

Matt nodded, "I remember. You miss home don't you? When was the last time you saw a ring rise?"

"Miss? A little, but for many of us, home is still home no matter how far we roam and I have become used to being out here. While the holodeck does a great job of missing the open sky, I will take the real thing any day. As far as a Ring Rise, a real one not on holodeck....maybe five years but as I said I have gotten used to new things. And you? Do you miss your home or have you become a child of stars?"

He paused a moment before he answered. Then, as if reaching a newfound understanding himself he said, "I love it out here, don't get me wrong. Y'know. The opportunities I have had and will have I couldn't get them anywhere else. And, with all my heart, I am grateful, profoundly thankful that I am alive and here to see the adventure. A guy like me back home? No way would I get a chance to be out here. I recognize that." He set his drink down, leaned forward and steepled his hands. "But, there are times, Alekela, when I long to hear my language on my ears without the U.T. flattening everything into a translation. I want...." he hesitated a moment, searching her face to see if he could really trust her. Deciding that he could he continued, "To feel the wind off the Marriano Sea. To feel the grass under my feet. The coldness of the high mountains. The loving warmth of the beaches. The welcome embrace of the Dionato forest. It's all the little things that I never thought I'd miss. Those are the things I miss the most. The piazza outside the Templi di Possiamo. My room in my parents’ house. My old friends." He looked at her and then a warm smile brightened him up. "One day, if you want, we'll go there?"

Alekelia just sat leaning forward and listening with one hand holding her chin in rapt attention. She could feel the homesickness in the weight of the words, and she knew that feeling. Oh they both had become star children but one could never quite get away from tug of place. When the question came she simply smiled broadly and said, "Yes, it would be lovely. You paint a picture that I can almost visualize in my mind. As far as the U.T.," she shook her head. "I know what you mean." She suddenly said switching to her own, "Leli kaakou." She let the vowels slip with that trilling and sing song fully and then said, "It means, 'let's fly'. Let me hear it from your lips in your own so that I can marvel in it."

Playfully, he grinned, shaking his hands out, then his arms and shoulders. He rolled his head and loosened his jaw muscles. "OK. Get ready." he said, amplifying the moment up. Shaking his head, setting his hands palms down flat on the table one might have thought he would launch himself from the tabletop. A pause, a beat, then, in Fontalan, "Voliamo!" The single word conveying the essence of "Let's fly" with panache and his merry lilt.

Alekela wondered for a moment if he had forgotten his native tongue with the work he did or perhaps the Fontalan had certain physical requirements. She was not sure but with the smile perhaps he was just being dramatic. She listened closely as he said it. "Repeat it," she asked and worked her throat muscles around the word. Akkadian respiratory system and vocal was akin to Terran birds. "Let me try," she said after a moment. "Voliamo", she mimicked. "Did I get close?" she asked.

Vol-eee-ah-mo! he slowed it down a bit and corrected. Without wings, it'll be a short flight for me" Matt answered appreciative of the attempt, the good and kindly attention that she was trying and had done an admirable job of attempting his awkward tongue. "You sound perfect!"

The dinner arrived and was set before them by two wait staff. It looked delicious and smelled wonderful. Flat water was brought along and glasses were filled. "Ah! Dinnertime. I'm so hungry too!"

"As well," Alekela responded and with a fork took several bites of the fruit salad. The sweetness was perfect and the flavours delicate and mixed well. "So...," she pointed with her utensil, "How is that?"

When he ordered the fish he really hadn't thought anything about it. After all, this "fish" had never even been alive before. It was a recipe inside a replicator inside a Starbase inside a Bar. It's not as if this fishy had been caught, killed so that he could eat it. But, nevertheless, he suddenly felt self-conscious about his food choice and thanks his lucky stars he hadn't ordered a turkey dinner or a roasted chicken. "Oh, its', it's....it's...it's good. Y'know...really good." He looked at her and asked, "I'm sorry....I shouldn't have ordered the fish right? I mean...well....you being Akkadian and all. I hope the eating of flesh doesn't....offend?" he asked politely.

Alekelia just chuckled in that musical way. "Of course not! Just because I am limited in my choices, it is just physiology. Should I be offended if a Caitian or Kzinti ordered a nearly raw steak? No, it is just who they are and what they need. Probably would have raised more than a few eyebrows if I had say ordered a glass of Type O positive please or whatever you have on hand. More beings get turned off by that. Fruit and sweet drink," she pointed to her own dish with the fork she held, "is really closer to normal diet anyway. Go on enjoy."

He gave her a smile and a 'Are you sure ?' look before he was able to continue eating. But, after a few bites more and pleasant conversation he was once again himself. And when the meal was finished he asked her, "How was your meal? I know nothing of this place so it was just a shot in the dark."

"It was very nice," Alekelia replied feeling much better than she had in days. "Interesting name of the place though, Lock and Key, it is what we call the two gas giants. The lock and key. Anyway, I have something I would like if you are willing."

Matt nodded, "It's not so bad. A lucky guess - the name looked interesting to me on the map."

"Let's go to a holodeck and show me your world. It sounds wonderful and I would so like to at least get a flavour of a place I have never been."

He smiled and thought that was very kind of her to ask. He almost made an excuse to politely beg off - not really believeing that someone would want to see a holoprogram of a place they have never been. Not much different from having someone show you their vacation photos. But, after a moment, he thought, "But what to show you? Let me see...the beach at Isla Concordia is super fun. That's not on Fontalis though. That's on Navicella, in the Fontalan solar system though. I've got fireworks at temple square. There's the gray mountains. Servius Glen..." he snapped his fingers. "I know? How about the Grand Concert Hall in Serse? That's the capitol. Big, big, fancy, over the top concert hall?"

"Sounds good. I do not want to call it a night just yet and walking an alien world that I have not been too even if only a bit of photonic revelation, is better than nothing. Come on, be my guide," she urged him.

“Ah, well. Then its settled. I have a program of the Music Palace. I think you will like it. My mom used to play with the Concerti. And there is a big balcony all around the top. So, we can still see the stars. Ready?” He was all smiles as they got up from the table and left.

LEVEL 811 – HOLOSUITE 22

Matthew tapped the LCARS console and asked, “Computer, can you access private holoprograms?”

”Affirmative. Please enter program.”

Matt answered, “Please load Plumeri program ‘Opening night at the Palazzo d’Armonia’.”

”Program complete. Enter when ready.”

The doors parted and together they stepped inside.

FONTALIS – THE GRAND CITY OF SERSE – THE PALACE OF HARMONY & SPLENDOR

Situated on the Parnassan peninsula, the way to get to the venue was by watercraft. There were many boats here. It was early evening, and the twin suns were low in the purple, blue sky. The water was calm, and an oh-so warm zephyr breeze blew in off the wonderful water. The smell of salt air made it seem more exciting somehow. Matt stood next to Alekela and offered her his hand, “It can get kind of crowded. This way we won’t get separated?” he smiled and took her hand.

The redwood and oak docks here were enormous. And people filled the stairs leading down to the boarding area. But, even at this distance it was breathtaking. About and eighth of a mile away were a set of ornate buildings that were monumental in their appearance. They were brightly lit and seemed somehow alive in themselves. People, these distant shadows moved about them as silhouettes.

Together, they boarded the boat. It was a large, flat bottom watercraft that sat at least one-hundred persons. People were all dressed in their finery. Women wore dresses and carried gloves and hats. Men wore crisp evening suits that were formal. But there was equally a group of younger people that wore not so fancy clothing. Children stayed close to their parents and only a few stood next to Matt and Alekela to see the journey across channel. A little girl tugged at Alekela’s tunic and asked, “Are you going to the concert too?”

Alekelia felt like her head was disconnected as she tried to take in everything. She almost said something as she caught the double suns as well reminding her of the Twins. What she was not used to was the amount of people. She was convinced that the entire population of Akkadia could have been outnumbered here. Water, there was water, a lot of it and she ached to dip her toes in it but remembered that customs here might be quite different than her home. There was a little tug and she looked to see a girl who asked if she was going to the concert. "Oh yes! I wish I had worn something better."

"Why? That is nice." the little girl said.

"Something with a bit more sparkle, everyone looks so fine!"

"Your eyes sparkle, like gemstone, and well those do as well. They catch all the light." the girl said and pointed to the long wings.

Alekelia smiled and then partially opened them. "How is that?"

The girl just smiled, "WOW!"

Everyone chatted and laughed, and Matthew made sure that Alekela could see from the front as they went across the channel. It was only a fifteen-minute boat ride to the landing dock on the peninsula. There were dozens of boats crossing. Upon landing, they got off the craft and stepped on to the white marble steps. Attendants dressed in older style clothing with knee britches and white wigs met them and assisted them out of the boats. From there they ascended the steps to the Piazza.

At the top, the steps the view was magnificent! The Piazza was wide and broad and had a big fountain in the center that gave off a delightful spray. The paved bricks and the white marble of the Piazza was broken only by the artistically patterned green spots where the grass grew underneath. Lined with eucalyptus like trees and big green sculpted bushes the walking avenues were crowded. The Piazza was ringed by tall, ornately styled black gas lamps with large glass lanterns. The light was warm and danced and made everything seem more alive. There were places to eat here, coffee carts, boozeries and merchants selling just about everything that the musical concert goer could want. More modern lighting illuminated the sides of the Arcade. Filled with benches and at least a dozen statues of the famous composers of Music and Theatre were kept here. Rock gardens alternated with flower gardens and other plants and flora. Matt pointed out a few of his favorites. He told her about the few smaller buildings that supported the large structure now before them.

It was a giant rotunda, rounder than it was tall. Very ornate and gleaming in Fontalan brick and coffee colored capstones with red and white marble. It was such a beautiful structure. Elegant lines drew the eye up towards the curved vaults that supported the massive domes. As they walked towards the main entrance and the grand staircase, musicians started playing up ahead a few selections from that arias and choruses of tonight’s program. Matthew said, “Tonight, is the opening night of Sedaria. A love story, like most Fontalan works. It’s quite popular. These songs you are hearing are from the opera. This one is one of my favorite choruses.” Matt hummed along and sang along with the crowd. They passed the portico where the musicians were playing in costume. He smiled, laughed merrily as he helped Alekela with the words.

The crowd was thicker now as people made their way up the outside stairs to the front of the concert house. It’s large columned supports were as big as a house and as tall as the cedars of Lebanon. Made from Fontalan red marble, it was most difficult to mine and carve, but this was amazing. Standing here, in the crowd, feeling the energy in the air made him calmer and excited at the same time. People were speaking in his native tongue which he longed to hear again. As big as a sports stadium, they could see the building arc away from them on both sides. The arches formed passageways at least two widths deep before the grand staircase and lobby were visible. Above their heads, carved in words as big as a standing person was the name of the place,

Il Palazzo dell'Armonia e dello Splendore dedicatio a S'Accendo e S'Cecilia di Fontalis.

Matthew translated for her, “’The Palace of Harmony and Splendor dedicated to Saint S’Accendo and Saint Cecilia of Fontalis’. S’Accendo is depicted on the left there in that statue, and Saint Cecilia is here, on the right.”

Inside it really was a palace. Redwood paneling, Oak, Walnut and Birch along with the familiar marbles and golden laid picture frames lovingly adorned the people beloved composers, musicians, artists, and poets. Large, more modern looking chandeliers hung from vaulted ceilings. Thick, rich, clean carpets beneath their feet. Plants and indoor trees along with rows and rows of flowers and roses. They climbed the Grand Staircase to get to the lobby and the ticket booths. There in alcoves off to each side were musicians and historians talking about the performance of tonight’s work. A peek in each room was like looking at an art gallery. And from there, they made it just in time to see the inside of the auditorium.

Matt led her up and up and up three flights of stairs until they reached the outdoor balcony. Stepping outside, with the Overture to the music just starting was magical as was the view. The whole of the night sky at twilight was above them. The gas lamps, the smell of the ocean and the safety. The serenity of being surrounded by old and beautiful things. He offered to “buy” her something to drink as they stepped closer to the wide stone railing that afforded them the view of the sea. On the right, was the Port of Serse, busy as it ever was. And on the left, the coastline extended south with twinkling lights as far as the eye could see. The sky was clear except for the occasional spacecraft and it would be darker soon and the stars would come out.

Alekelia felt a little overwhelmed but in a good way. There was just so much to take in and she loved every bit. She hummed with the tune as she did not know the words, she touched the wood and stone. When they reached the top and the railing looking out over the ocean, she could not help it any longer. She took a little jump onto the wide railing and then with another jump opened those wings. She dipped slightly as she got used to the gravity and density of the air. The ocean was far below but this was good enough. She hovered on her wings and turned and smiled looking at the faces as the people seemed to be stunned a bit. "It is lovely!" She said. "Oh, how I wish you could dance on wings!"

The holographic characters didn't react negatively to the suddenness of seeing an Akkadian fly. However, they were curious too and so a small crowd came over to the railing concerned for her well-bring. "Do be careful!" and "She's flying!" were the replies. Matt was surprised too and thoroughly delighted, "Well, well...look at you. So those wings aren't just decorative after all ay?" he said with a cheeky grin. Smiling at her as she hovered there, effortlessly in the air.

Alekelia laughed lightly and then made a pirouette and then a bit of curtsy. She then slowly came back to touch on the wide railing and then put out her hand for him to take before hopping down and letting them fold again against the back. "No they do seem to work quite well. I am sorry just taken by the moment. I hope I have not done anything offensive. Just lovely, lovely. A hulaihulai ma nā ʻeheu lahilahi loa , ʻoiai e hīmeni ana ka poʻe a puni ka honua!" She said the later in the full sing song trill of her native language, as everyone else seemed to take the mood as well and she translated for both him and the crowd. "Oh to dance on gossamer wings, while all around the world sings." She paused and then made a curtsy, a deep one, "Thank you, I shall not forget this night."

He smiled, "Don't apologize for anything. You're a beautiful person and you only add to the beauty of this place. Come on? I want to see the stars before we leave, OK? My stars. And I know the place to see them too." He took her hand as the music of Sedaria played on. On the northern end of the building, there was a cupola, big enough for two dozen people. He led her up there and then from the highest point they looked out over the water and up towards the sky. There was a band of stars, looking like a cloud of light. He said, That's the Milky Way, where Sol is, where Vulcan and Andoria are. The Federation. That blue star there? That's Navicella, sixth planet in the sky. That red area, looks like a fire in the sky doesn't it? I love being out among the stars Alekela. But, I love my home too. Not because I miss the familiar things. But because.....it is there. Just like the dedication plaque on the starship Voyager, 'We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.'" He looked out and then back at her. "It wasn't until I left Fontalis that I understood what that meant. I mean really. Understood. Out of all the worlds that I should come from such....a marvelous place as this....I cannot find the words. il silenzio è la lingua di Possiamo (silence is the language of God)."

Alekelia followed along and maybe not quite as fast as he would like, she was going to be neck sore from it swiveling to take in everyone and everything. After a point he took to a place and the night had fallen and up above was a myriad of stars and what she guessed where planets. He pointed them out and talked and she could feel the soul tug in his words. This was his tug of place. The place that would always call you no matter how far away you went, and if there was another place that she could gladly call home other that her own ringed world this just might be it. She listened and nodded as he said in his beautiful language the bit of philosophy and she held quite for a bit and just hung onto his arm enjoying the sight. After a bit she said quietly, "I have no such profound words but just a bit of blessing if I may. Ka mahine a puni oe, Anuenue a luna oe, Alihi a hope 'oe." She looked up into his eyes and said, "May the wind be behind you, May the rainbow be over you, May love always surround you. Thank you, thank you for showing me this, for the lovely dinner companion and for just being a friend."

"It is your light that lights the worlds. Friendship is like, feeling the firmness of the sand on the beach under your feet. Or, when walking through the snow and trodding in the footprint of the one who goes before you." He reached for her hand, "Or this, the simplicity of enjoying the pleasure of your company. I should be thanking you. I am glad that you shared the moment with me. And I hope one day to see your home for real." he said.

Alekelia smiled. "And I yours, I think you would be bored to death. We have nothing like all of this," she waved her hand. "We keep things very simple but maybe a cruise on one of the skyships. Think a bit of old Earth sailing vessels but instead of on the sea, they ride the currents of the air above the sea and they do use sails for their power. I know it sounds archaic but we take only what the world can easily spare, we say we live in balance with the world."

He answered, "There is beauty in simplicity too. I don't think my people have found that foothold yet though. To be complicated, over the top, with lots of flourishes and flummery - that's Fontalan. I would very much like to see your home too. Is it far?"

"A bit beyond Deep Space 14. We are located just at the juncture of the Sagittarius arm to the Orion arm. I doubt we could leave here for the amount of time to get there and back and even have a day. Still, while we are here....close your eyes." She waited a moment and then quietly called the arch and reprogrammed the simulation. The scene disappeared, and different suns and sky took its spot. As the scene shifted to one on the deck of a skyship, gently skimming a thousand feet about the ocean. Islands could be seen in the distance as spots of green. The air was much warmer more humid and the ship gently rocked. "Best hang onto something unless you want to see if you can fly!" Alekelia called out.

END PART ONE

[OFF: Continued in Part Two]

Lt. Alekela illm Meaho'ola
Doctor
SB 400

&

LTJG Matthew Plumeri
ACSO – Historian
SB400

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