The Path Not Taken: Incarceration (Part 1 of 3)

Posted on 13 Aug 2024 @ 9:23am by Lieutenant JG Montgomery Vala & Ensign S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor

2,055 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Episode 19 - Tomorrow's Galileo
Location: Ophir, Central Otago, New Zealand
Timeline: Late 2397

For those who wish to catch up on the story so far:
Transfer
A Day in Okinawa (Part 1)
A Day in Okinawa (Part 2)
A Day in Okinawa (Part 3)
Dinner with the 'Enemy' (Part 1)
Dinner with the 'Enemy' (Part 2)
Dinner with the 'Enemy' (Part 3)
Dinner with the 'Enemy' (Part 4)
Dinner with the 'Enemy' (Part 5)
Dinner with the 'Enemy' (Part 6)
The Interrogation (Part 1)
The Interrogation (Part 2)
The Interrogation (Part 3)
The Interrogation (Part 4)
An Unwelcome Guest (Part 1)
An Unwelcome Guest (Part 2)
Closing Time (Part 1)
Closing Time (Part 2)

--

Early 2396 - 4 years after the deletion of Cold Station 31 files, several weeks after the previous entry.

Previously in the alt-saga...

The sparkles always seemed to linger behind her eyes after teleportation and this instance wasn’t any different. The wind gusted and set the hem of her robes aflutter. It brought a chill that was rather alarming to the desert-born Sera. She looked around and saw they were in a rocky, hilly environment and off in the distance there appeared to be a small settlement. The buildings were blocky and industrial in their coloration.

The officer serving as guard/escort offered up an answer to their unspoken question. “It’s your new home. I think the town was called Ophir…it was an old mining town in the south island of New Zealand.”

"New Zealand?" Vala felt anger once again inflaming him, "So we are common criminals now? Sent to where the dregs of your society are brushed under the carpet."

"It is for your own safety," the guard responded, nodding their head towards the structures in the distance, "Now walk."

And Now the Continuation...


[ON]


This new stage of their lives was proving to be quite difficult. It was a life of privation. Not enough food, not enough warmth…no running water, and very little privacy in the communal setting of drafty, pre-fab housing that held little to no insulation. Inevitably a hierarchy developed within the group, and ‘old rivalries’ picked up between social classes within the Romulan cadre, and not to mention the long-standing mistrust of the Klingons. It was a constant struggle to remind everyone that unity, in spite of differences, was imperative for their continued survival.

Nonetheless, tribalism broke out within weeks, and although it was an uneasy environment - thus far no one had gotten exceptionally greedy to the point that retaliation would be required. Supplies were beamed in once-a-month and were divided up based on ‘need.’ The Klingons had interesting concepts of need…and hunger had become a far more concerning sensation than that of undesired emotion.

Sera refused to allow such an imbalance to stand, so she ‘fearlessly’ would confront the Klingon ‘leaders’ time and time again to bargain for things that were necessary for survival. It was an unending battle for ‘scraps.’ It was taxing. One would think no one in their settlement had ever followed any kind of ‘chain of command.’

–

A biting gust of wind picked up Sera’s braid and caused an involuntary shiver to course through her much leaner form. She huddled down and wrapped her robes closer around her as she waited for the water jug to fill at the river. The weather had been turning over the last week or so…it would soon become bitingly cold and windy again as the winter season returned. The thought of enduring another frozen season here?

Tamping down a growing sense of despair, she hefted the filled jug and trudged her way back up the path to their ‘home,’ which was shared with a number of others they had been randomly placed with.

Once inside, Sera brought the jug over to their corner and slid it under the shelving on the ground. Such a task once was nothing to her, but it was now exhausting. Refraining from giving into the urge to curl into a ball on their shared bedroll, she moved forward to the small fire pit that still had the smoldering remnants of the overnight fire and crouched down and attempted to gather some warmth from it.

She would bask in the warmth of the coals for just a few minutes…and then she would get up and head south today for foraging and firewood gathering.

They had all been brought here for their ‘protection.’ Protection?…it was a cruel existence. More refugees than supplies, and gnawing hunger was becoming a constant companion. Sera had more than once given up what rations she had been allotted so those who needed it more could have something. She wasn’t going to stand by and watch a child cry because there wasn’t anything to fill their bellies.

It still wasn’t enough. The aged and the sick perished first - and it was something that everyone came together upon - to mourn their dead. Medicines were in short supply, but they did pool everything that was brought, as much good as it did. No healers, no medical services, and as the days progressed the tarnish over the Federation grew.

--

There was nothing less useful than a theoretical physicist in this environment. Vala quickly found himself falling back on skills he had been taught on Dhaelthra IV as a youth. Silently moving through the woods and fells, observing prey, keenly watching their trajectory, how they shifted around the landscape, and finally the approach. Step after step. Silence. Then a quick movement with a sharp blade. A cadaver.

Another deer. He had thankfully gotten a taste for venison since their arrival in this desolate corner of nowhere. He felt for his mate though - meat was not her favourite, and the gamey red flesh of a deer could not be prepared in a way that was particularly refined in this wilderness.

He slid his knife slightly clumsily through the corpse, inexpertly removing the best cuts of meat. Butchery was never a talent and this was hardly his opus. It would do. Carrying the whole beast back would be impossible - those in charge would bother him for it, and he didn't have the energy to defend another kill.

They watched him. Well, they watched the general area he was in - his traditional garb made him hard to track in the dull light of perpetually overcast skies. He'd been singled out as a reasonable hunter by someone and some lackey had been told to keep an eye on him. They wouldn't be able to see him right now, but they'd spot the corpse soon. They were welcome to it. He bundled the meat together and wiped his knife, gave blessings to the Earth and quietly picked his way back to the settlement.

--

S’Ers-a was here. Vala could sense her before he slid the door open and quickly shifted himself inside to save the room from filling with a chill. “E’lev?” He said without looking, unwinding the pack from his shoulder, “I had a little fortune out there.”

Sera regretfully pushed herself away from the remnants of the fire and walked over to him. The smell of animal was strong on him, but that meant he most likely had been able to obtain animal flesh to eat.

Swallowing against the increased production of saliva at the thought of filling her stomach with something substantial, regardless of its provenance, Sera chided, “You should allow me to accompany you. I have hunted before.” She sighed, realizing that she was being less than gracious.

“My apologies, adun. I am most appreciative of your industry.”

"No need," he said as he met her in the middle of the room, gazing into her eyes, "I do not doubt your skill, it is just easier alone. Easier to stay hidden." He raised a hand and stroked her cheek, "I will store the meat and we can cook it later."

“I shall head south today along the river boundary. There appears to be a variety of fungi and roots that are edible and could be used to supplement our meager supplies…However, I would not be adverse to…company.” Stepping closer into his personal space, Sera ran roughened fingertips along the pointed shell of his ear and down his cheek.

Vala shivered a little at her touch, allowing their feelings to mingle for a moment. It was a tense, conflicting time, but through it all they had been steady for one another.

"Of course," he reluctantly stepped back, pulling the meat from its bag, storing it in a small container on the side. "I am dressed for the wilds after all," he gave her a small smile.

Sera’s eyes softened as she thought back to the holodeck program of his homeworld he took her to years ago. “Yes, you are.” She agreed readily as she looked down on the rather worn robes she used as a top layer since coming to this miserable–for a desert-dwelling creature anyway–environment.

“It is gratifying to have you accompany me…there is something I’d like to show you if we make good time.”

Vala took a moment to wash his hands, then warmed them by the fire before rejoining his mate, "Let us proceed, then," he said, gesturing to the door.

They set out on the small, worn trail heading south along the river. The chill from the wind coming off the water ruffled her hair, and she pulled the outer robe tighter about her in response. They passed a cadre of Klingon youth as they attempted to herd fish into a makeshift net. Sera raised a brow at their tactics, but applauded their industry.

"Truly a cadre of enemy spies," Vala said sardonically as they wandered by, "Truly a sensible precaution to confine them here. The Federation is truly safer." He rolled his eyes.

Sera opened her mouth to speak, but given her activities prior to their internment felt it was safer to not comment. “Hmm…” She offered instead.

Vala glanced at her, then cast his eyes around looking for forage. It was still difficult to tell how much S'Ers-a appreciated sarcasm. It was certainly for the best that she didn't indulge his moments of self pity.

They walked for a while along the river bank until they reached the treeline of the forest. She would occasionally crouch down and cut something for her basket.

There was a reason why Sera asked him to go. She had found something earlier in the week and wanted nothing more than to share it with Montgomery. They left the banks of the river and moved inland, and it was as if a hush washed over the two of them. Sera had never seen such variations of greens, but the world under the canopy of the tree tops was filled with mosses, ferns, and all sorts of miscellaneous plantlife. It had similarities to Montgomery’s holodeck program, and she hoped that it would improve his mood…perhaps only for a while.

To Be Continued...

[OFF]

--

S'Ers-a M'Lyr'Zor
Untrustworthy Citizen of the Federation

&

Montgomery Vala
Barely Remaining a Citizen of the Federation

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