Dexter Gray and Alexandra Dalton sat side by side on their favorite park bench and watched the people go by. It was another glorious day here on the jewel of the Serenity Sector, one tailor-made for playing hooky. Not that the two of them had to resort to such unbecoming tactics. No, they, along with the rest of Banshee Squadron, were still on their extended leave -- the consequence of their misadventure with the Black Gate.
At first, the extra time off had been exactly what the young lovers wanted most -- time to be together. They'd spent endless hours gazing into each other's eyes over shared banana splits down at the malt shop, gone for long walks on the beach, sat through countless holoshows at the Cineplex munching popcorn, and paid regular visits to Makeout Point atop the hills overlooking Serenity City. But as the weeks wore on and Starfleet Command seemed no closer to reaching a decision regarding the fate of their team, their free time turned inexorably from rapturous bliss to unremitting boredom.
Alex sighed heavily. "Do you think Starfleet will reactivate the squad?" she asked idly.
"Of course!" replied Dex as positively as he could. Inwardly though he had his doubts, and he found himself agreeing with Starfleet's reluctance in sending out a squadron of 1-man ships to do the job of a starship, even if it was the famous Banshee Squadron! It had been an interesting experiment in juggling precious resources way out here on the frontier, but it clearly hadn't worked out quite as planned. Their last scouting mission and subsequent side-adventure through the Black Gate had been a disaster in Starfleet's eyes, despite the significant scientific discoveries they had made.
"Really? You think?" asked Alex.
That caught Dexter a little by surprise. Normally, Alex was a bubbly optimist. For her to express doubts about the future was unheard of and tantamount to a fundamental shift in the very balance of the universe. "Don't you?" he asked.
She shrugged, but it was a gesture of frustration and not of indifference. "I'm not sure anymore. I'm not even sure I want them to," she replied. "I mean, I love flying and all. It's just... Well, things have changed since we began. There was a war on then. Starfleet needed warriors. The Mullurans had to be stopped. But now..."
"We're not needed as warriors anymore," said Dexter, finishing her thought.
"Yeah. Starfleet doesn't know quite what to do with us now that peace has finally broken out. They tried sending us out as an exploration unit, but that sure didn't work out." She shuddered at the memory of events on the other side of the Black Gate, only a few weeks behind them. "Things are shifting back to a peacetime mentality."
Dex thought in silence for a minute. "So what are you going to do?" he asked finally.
"I'm not sure," replied Alex. She turned her head and looked at Dexter. "Maybe we could request an assignment on an explorer ship," she suggested cautiously, trying to gauge his reaction.
"Uh, well... That would be a pretty big change, Alex. You sure that's what you want to do? It would mean no more starfighters."
"No, I'm not sure," she admitted uneasily. "But it's something to think about. Starfleet isn't going to keep us on extended leave forever. We're going to have to do something soon. And since the focus in this sector is returning to exploration, we're probably going to have to change too. Besides, I'm bored!" She sighed heavily again. She longed to return to the action -- any kind of action. Even sitting in the park with her boyfriend people-watching, which used to be one of their favorite pastimes here in Serenity Park, had become tedious.
Dexter pondered his girlfriend's words. He wasn't a starfighter pilot, so a switch to starship duty wouldn't be as big a deal for him. But right now he had a much more immediate concern. He had to figure out some way to relieve his sweetheart's ennui. It was his solemn duty as a man. "How about we go shopping?" he suggested hopefully. Shopping always picked up Alex's spirits, though he would never understand in a million years why a woman needed forty-seven pairs of shoes. And matching handbags.
To his relief, Alex shrugged indifferently, which was better than he had hoped for.
"Great!" he said, still trying to stay positive. He jumped up off the park bench and held out his hand. "Let's go!"
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