Rememberance

Posted on Fri Aug 2nd, 2019 @ 5:49am by Lieutenant Colonel Azhul Naxea

Mission: MISSION 0 - History Speaks
Location: Azhul's Quarters; USS Elysium
773 words - 1.5 OF Standard Post Measure

ON

Naxea entered slowly into her dimly-lit quarters, having just been discharged from Sickbay. Her body was sore from the abuse it had taken during the rescue mission. She wondered how much more abuse she could withstand as she unzipped and removed her uniform jacket, hanging it in a nearby closet.

She sat down heavily in a chair that was standard issue but seemed to be too comfortable as she shifted and caught her reflection in the porthole window with stars streaking by just beyond them. She recalled the first time she had seen space when she, her mother and newborn brother moved from Bajor to Deep Space Nine.

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A five year old Bajoran girl looked at her reflection in the porthole of the spartan Federation Shuttle. "Mommy," Naxea, tugged on her mother's sleeve. The Starfleet people had given them food, water, a place to shower and for the first time in months, Naxea's features was clean of dirt or grease and the blue/white dress she wore seemed fancy...as if they belonged to someone else. She had been used to wearing dirty, sometimes ragged clothing. The shuttle was filled with other Bajorans and a few Starfleet Officers.

"Yes, Naxea?" her mother replied. She wore her brown hair short, coming above her shoulders, wearing a tan/brown dress with Naxea's brother swaddled in her arms.

Casting a disgusted look down at the infant in her arms that bore Cardassian and Bajoran features, Naxea looked back up at her mother. "I'm scared, mommy. Is it safe?"

Her mother smiled and patted Naxea's hand reassuringly. "Yes, it is safe. These people are from Starfleet. They are helping us and life will be better for all of us on the station. I hear there will be a school opening up there soon and I have a job working at one of the shops on the station.

A hissing sound caught Naxea's attention as her head turned immediately to the source of the sound, catching the hatch closing and sealing shut. She swallowed as the shuttle shook. "Is that normal? What's going on?" she asked, panic beginning to creep into her voice as she looked outside the viewport and seeing one of those Starfleet people back away from the shuttle. A second later the ground began to seem to fall away as the shuttle lifted off. Naxea's eyes grew wide. "Shit."

"Naxea!" her mother scolded. "Where did you hear that word?"

"I heard one of the Starfleet people say it, mommy." It had just came to her and felt right for some reason, though she wasn't too sure why describing a poop was a bad thing. She was surely in a poopy situation, or so she believed.

"Well it's considered bad language and I don't want to hear you using that word again. Do you understand?" her mother said sternly.

"Yes mommy," she said with a shrug as she kept looking out of the window. They had passed through the clouds and she could see the curvature of Bajor now as the shuttle sped into the upper atmosphere.

"How come you're not wearing the earring I gave you?" her mother sighed, frustrated. "Don't you like it?"

Naxea turned and looked at her mother. "It's pretty but we wear it because we are supposed to worship the Prophets?"

Her mother nodded and grinned, happy that her daughter knew of why the earring was worn. "That's right."

"If they are supposed to protect us, why did they let us get hurt?" Naxea asked. "Why did they let you get hurt and why did they let daddy die?"

"Only the Prophets know, but we must have faith in them, Naxea," her mother insisted with a pained expression at hearing Naxea speak of her torment and loss of Naxea's father.

Tears now ran down Naxea's cheek. "Then I will never wear it! If I ever see these Prophets, I'm going to kick them between the legs until they die!"

"Naxea!" her mother hissed. "That is quite enough young one! The Prophets guided us to the Federation."

Naxea crossed her arms, refusing to meet her mother's gaze as she watched as the blue sky outside of the window be replaced with the blackness of space. Naxea leaned closer to the window. "Wow," she breathed as the shuttle continued it's journey to Deep Space Nine.

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Naxea blinked as she willed herself away from her memories. She stood and removed her boots and the rest of her uniform on her way to the sonic shower. That day had seemed so long ago. Now it was time to relax and recover.


OFF