"Are you sure you'll be okay here alone with Tiyanna?" Kassia asked. Tarik sat at an armchair reading a story to Tiyanna from a PADD. Tiyanna sat in Tarik's lap, snuggled firmly against him.
"Oh, no problem! You and Troy haven't had any time together since he got married. Get out and do something--everything's all secured here!"
"Bye bye, Mom!" Tiyanna said. "Have fun with Uncle Troy!"
"Just try and stay out of trouble, you two! No taking her to the firing range or anything!"
"Oh, I wouldn't think of that!" Tarik said. "That's next week's trip!" he grinned.
Kassia smacked him over the head with a throw pillow from the sofa. "I won't be too late, I promise."
"Hey--don't worry about it!" Tarik said. "Beanie-weenie for dinner?" he asked Tiyanna. Tiyanna eagerly nodded her head. "It's all under control!"
With a final glance at Tarik and their daughter, she left their quarters and headed to the Promenade deck. She met Troy in front of Atheno's Greek Restaurant. It was one of the newer establishments. He immediately enveloped her in a warm embraced.
"Hi, Troy," she said as she drew comfort from his presence.
"Kass! How are you doing?" Troy asked as they hugged. "We never get to talk anymore!"
"I know!!" she replied, her green eyes sparkling as they pulled apart. "How's married life treating you?"
"Can't complain. It hasn't been that big an adjustment for me, though. I guess it's because I never went through the bachelor-on-his-own phase--not entirely, anyway," Troy said with a wink as the maitre d', Mykos Atriedes, escorted them to a table by the window.
Kassia held his hand as they sat down. "You were always the responsible type, Troy. You always took care of me... " She sighed as she looked at him. "I've been missing you lately... a lot," she said with a tender smile.
"I miss you too, Kass. We should get together much more often than we do. How's life with Tarik?"
"It's wonderful," she replied. "I couldn't have dreamed of a better partner for my life. We both compliment each other very well, I think."
A waiter came up and brought water and menus. He quickly rattled off the specials of the day and waited for them to make their decisions.
"What sounds good to you?" she asked.
"I'll have the dolmades, with the feta side," Troy said. "Bring a jar of wine as well, please. You?"
"I'd Like the greek-style chicken, with a side of feta as well," she said, "And some lemon chicken soup."
"I'm glad to see you happy. You really don't know just how glad I am to see you happy at last," Troy said. "So what's new?"
"Well, why don't we enjoy dinner and we can talk about it at HoloPursuits," she smiled. "But I can say Tiyanna is doing very well. All her grades are coming along nicely. You know, I was scared to be a parent at first, though I wanted to be and yet, I can't imagine my life without Tiyanna now."
"I know what you mean," Troy said. "You've only got the one to deal with--I've suddenly got two, and another on the way! But Arianna and Zac are good kids. They definitely favor their mother!" he laughed.
"Well, their mother has always been their protector," she smiled gently. "It'll take time, but I see that they're starting to look to you. And lets face it, you're a definite improvement over their biological father!"
"There are three Nausicaan pirates and one Mulluran officer in the brig right now," Troy said. "Any one of them would be an improvement over that jerk!"
"I'd have to agree with you," Kassia replied. It was sickening how right they both could be about someone who was suppose to be a parent. "But at least Zachary and Arianna have you," Kassia said as her eyes looked into his brown eyes. "And that's going to count for a lot as they grow up. It certainly did with me."
The waiter returned with the wine and two glasses.
"Will there be anything else at the moment?"
"If you could bring the feta as well, that would be great," Troy said. The waiter nodded and walked back to the kitchen. "I'm glad you think that," Troy said to Kassia. "At times I felt like I was being too hard on you, and there were a lot of times you just didn't want to listen to me."
"As with all children," she smiled. "There have been times even recently on this station I haven't wanted to listen to you. Grant you, I was right!" she laughed as it had been about Tarik that she referred. "But these things are bound to happen. They're sure to happen to Tiyanna and I eventually as well also. I think its just in the nature of the parent-child relationship."
"You're probably right," Troy agreed. "After all, how else do we grow up? If we did exactly what our parents wanted all the time, we'd never become free of them."
"True," she smiled. "Sooner or later the child has to branch out on their own... But," she smiled, "Comes back again knowing where there will always be a safe haven for their spirit... If all things work correctly."
"Amen to that," Troy said as the feta plates arrived. "I love this stuff!" he said as he picked up an olive and began gnawing off the flesh.
Kassia began eating hers as well and relished each bite. Talking stopped for a bit as they each enjoyed the food. But after a few bites they again began talking of things around the station and how Kassia's business was doing. The conversation stayed light. They finished dinner with a piece of baklava each. Once the bill was settled they headed toward HoloPursuits.
"So, what program did you have in mind?" Troy asked.
"Well, I thought if you didn't mind, maybe my beach program? The one I designed?" she offered.
"Certainly! Be my guest!"
"Okay, great!" she smiled brightly.
Immediately she had the program running. It was early evening in the program. Stars were just peaking out of the darkening sky. There were two moons hanging in the sky. The sand was so light it glowed silver. The fronds of a type of palm tree blew in a warm, gentle breeze, and they could see and hear the ocean lapping at the shore. Kassia took Troy's hand and guided him inside. This is where she wanted to tell him her news. Though as she began walking onto the beach she felt a little unsettled as the nightmare came back to her. She remember wanting him there that night. Not that she hadn't wanted Tarik, but for some reason, as she awoke, it was almost like being a child again... She had wanted her big brother to hold her and protect her.
Troy sensed Kassia's need as he placed his arm around her. Over the years, he, too, had become attuned to her moods and the thoughts she projected.
"Something happened the other day that I wanted to share with you," Kassia began, as she guided him to a place on the sand to sit. "Tiyanna finally told me who I am... She felt I was ready to know," Kassia said as she looked to him and then out across the water.
"Really?" Troy asked. He'd not quite understood all of the circumstances under which Kassia had joined his family--after all, he hadn't been an adult himself when she'd been adopted. "What have you learned?" he asked as they sat down across on a patch of sand near a jetty. The waves broke over the jetty as they looked out to sea.
"Well, you know that I didn't have any memories of myself or my life before I came to Trayva when I was found wandering near some wreckage... I was around six years old and all I knew was that my name was Kassia. I couldn't remember anything else. That's when my life began as far as I knew... That was until Tiyanna... My real name is Kassia Arielle Atterra. I had parents... They loved me..." she said. But as she began to speak, her eyes began to mist with tears. "They died in that crash on Trayva... and I... I had this horrible nightmare about it the other night. When I woke up, it was like being a child again. " She wiped at tears that began to fall from her eyes. "And all I could think of was that I wanted you there to hold and protect me..." She sniffed and laughed a little. "I know it must sound silly considering I'm with Tarik now, but at that moment..." she shrugged.
"I can understand," Troy said. "I've been there with you almost since that point. It's only natural you'd look for me," he said as he dried her tears. "But at least the picture is more complete."
She nodded. "I know that nightmare I had was my memory resurfacing... I saw my parents die..." she said, "And that's probably what I was blocking all these years... I relived the crash..."
Troy was silent for a moment. How does someone respond to that? "Listen, if you ever need to talk, just let me know. I'll always be there for you, no matter what!"
"What I need right now, is just what you've always been best at..." she smiled softly. "Holding me and tell me everything's going to be okay... and since you're already holding me," she laughed softly.
"It is going to be okay," Troy said. "Whoever did this to you will have all of Starfleet to go through to get to you now. Not to mention me!" he replied firmly as he drew Kassia in closer.
She allowed herself to get lost in the comfort her offered her. She needed him to be strong for her. If everything else faded in the Galaxy, she was sure of one thing, her and Troy would always remain brother and sister. "You know how we always wondered where I came up with the image for this beach?" she asked. "Tiyanna told me it's a beach from our world. It was one of my favorites..."
Troy looked out at the beach. A large ringed moon was beginning to rise over the horizon. "It is a pretty place. Maybe one of these days we'll find it."
"I think we will," Kassia replied, for the first time ever feeling certain of it.
After Tiyanna had gone to bed, Tarik settled down to finish some work. He was quite certain that the equipment the MEF had aboard the station was not up to its assigned tasks. The Hawke transports, while they had done wonders for his ability to deploy troops without assistance from Starfleet vessels, were hopelessly behind the times. They were undergunned and not nearly as well armored as the newer models. Likewise, the lack of effective ground transport reduced his mobility far more than Tarik would have preferred. The Mullurans were placing their state-of-the-art against the Federation. The Federation responded with equipment that was at least ten (and probably closer to twenty) years out of date.
Combined with the Mullurans' shorter supply lines and much larger effective forces in the sector, every simulation Tarik ran involving a determined Mulluran thrust led by a competent commander led to a complete rout of the sector within eight weeks before Starfleet could respond with any significant show of force. The increased size of the MEF, combined with G'kar and Ferengi assistance, had increased that timeframe from the one week it stood at when Tarik had arrived at SB901 last year. But the G'kar and Ferengi had their own interests and own matters of policy to pursue. Allies remain allies as long as one doesn't become dependent upon them.
New equipment would help extend the Federation's ability to defend the sector, at least long enough for Starfleet to reinforce the area. Tarik drafted a memo, with a silent prayer to the unknown gods of Budget and Supply (as routed through his immediate command authority) that it be received favorably.
FROM: Col. TARIK, CO, 28th MEF, SB901
THROUGH: Brig. Gen. Lothar SCHNEIDER, CO, 75th
MARDIV
TO: Col. Andrew MATHESON, BUSUPPLY
Lt. Col. VALTAR, BUFISCAL
DATE: XX/XX/2385
SUBJECT: Equipment Requisition
This memo is to request new heavy equipment for the 28th Marine Expeditionary Force. The equipment currently in our inventory is nearing the end of its expected service life and recent campaigns have shown its marked vulnerability to weapons utilized by the Mulluran forces and other aggressors. The Hawke personnel transport in particular, while it has increased the MEF's ability to respond to a highly mobile battlefield, lacks the firepower and armor needed to stand up to weapons currently being deployed by the Mullurans.
Maneuver warfare and combined arms have formed the basis of Marine Corps tactical doctrine since our founding. The Mullurans have a similar tactical doctrine, much refined during the course of their campaigns of conquest and colonial suppression. Currently our equipment inventory in the Briar Patch Sector is inferior to that which is being deployed by the Mullurans. Given the calculus of available personnel and supply lines, this technological edge renders the Federation's ability to hold this sector tenuous at best.
Based upon current personnel levels and foreseeable tactical demands, the MEF's equipment needs are as follows:
My calculations place the cost of the above equipment, including appropriate support equipment, retraining of personnel, and transport to the sector, at 60 million credits. While this may seem excessive, keep in mind that we are spending in excess of 120,000 credits/month on maintenance for obsolete equipment. This does not include the cost of downtime concomitant with such maintenance. The vast bulk of the cost quoted above for new equipment is tied up in the vehicle requisition; each of these vehicles has a service life of 50 years. Monthly maintenance costs excluding combat losses would be reduced to 20,000 credits. Thus, the amortized cost of the new equipment over its expected service life would be exactly equal to what we are expending now to maintain obsolete and inadequate equipment!
The cost in lives saved cannot be measured by any mortal means, but we owe it to our Marines and their families to ensure that they have the best protection possible. Moreover, we owe it to the civilians whose lives and property we are sworn to protect.
/s/
Col. TARIK
CO, 28th MEF
Tiyanna woke up, not really wanting to go to bed. She wandered into the living room where Tarik had just finished transmitting his memo. "Whatcha doin'?" she asked.
Tarik picked her up and set her on his lap. "Just making sure that what happened to your mom doesn't happen to you," he said. Or at least doing my best to make sure of that, he thought.
Tiyanna stopped for a moment, then nodded vigorously.
"Listen, honey, I know you can read my thoughts, and my ability to stop that isn't all that good. But you must promise me that you must never, ever, ever tell anyone else about it! Sometimes grownups have to keep secrets," Tarik said.
"Teacher says that secrets are bad things," Tiyanna replied.
"Not all secrets, and not all the time," Tarik answered. "If someone does something bad to you, that's definitely not a secret and you need to tell someone. But if you pick up something from me related to my work, that's something you need to keep secret too."
Tarik got up suddenly, and, Tiyanna in hand, went to his wardrobe. He searched around for a minute and found an old field cap which he probably hadn't worn in at least five years. Then, he went to the replicator and replicated a small yellow button which he promptly affixed to the front of the cap. The button was a yellow smiley face.
"I'm appointing you my aide-de-camp," Tarik said. "That means that you're assigned to keep all of my secrets for me!"
Tiyanna smiled and delivered Tarik a very sloppy salute. Tarik returned with his neatest parade-ground salute. "Now, off to bed with you! It's very late!" he said as he led Tiyanna to bed.
Tiyanna smiled as she snuggled into the covers. Everything was going to be all right here!