Beginning: A Star Trek Novel (New Frontier Reloaded Book 2)

by ROVER MARIE TOWLE

  Kira reached for his hand again. "How have you been handling all of this?"

  "I just...have." Odo shrugged, interlocking their fingers. "I am surprised to see him dying at such a young age for Bajorans. I think his father lived to be a hundred and fifty, and his mother a little longer. They were already getting older when he was born. As he says it, he was a happy surprise."

  "How old is he?"

  "Ninety-five."

  She shook her head. "Kejal seems so attached to him."

  "Yes," Odo answered. Disguising his annoyance took all his willpower. "He is."

  "It bothers you."

  He bit the insides of his lips to stop the sharp retort. Were his features really so easy to read now? He looked down at his leather boots. That day, he felt a little lazy and didn't bother to shape shift actual feet inside his footwear. It certainly saved him the pain after a careless person ran over his foot with a luggage cart!

  "Seeing things through the Great Link, and actually seeing them are just as different as observing a romantic relationship versus being in one. I see what could have been for me, and I know Doctor Mora will never care about m-- oh...these feelings are ridiculous. I should be past that now. It is what it is." Odo frowned and gazed out the side window.

  "Odo," Kira said, "It's okay to feel hurt."

  He looked at her. She met his eyes with such tender caring that he nearly liquefied inside. In her presence, he felt as naked and vulnerable as he used to thirty years ago.

  "You were traumatized as a baby, Odo." She squeezed his hand. "You told me yourself that Doctor Mora didn't know you were a life form at first. You said he never set out to maliciously hurt you. But you were still traumatized. That isn't something you 'get over.'"

  "It wish it didn't bother me like it does." Odo replied bitterly. "It's in the past. It should stay there. Then I see how they act together and-- hm, Nerys, let's change the subject." He lightened his tone and kissed her nose ridges. "I have you here. I should be celebrating this moment, not mourning what I can't have."

  "Odo," She gave him a serious look. "You can't run from this forever. Eventually, you have to turn around and face it."

  "I know, but I can't do it right now."

  "I understand." Kira patted his hand. "Don't wait too long, okay? You'll never forgive yourself if he dies before you talk about this."

  "I know...I-I'll talk to him soon. Once I find the right way to bring it up."

  "Okay. I'll hold you to that."

  She started to say something else after that. Then she paused and lowered her head, chuckling quietly to herself. Her cheeks turned a lovely rosy hue.

  Odo blinked. "What's so funny?"

  "I just remembered an old Earth proverb."

  "Oh?"

  Still smiling, she scooted closer and laid her head on his shoulder. "If you love someone, let them go. If they return, they were meant to be yours."

  He wrapped his arm around her as the tram pulled up to Doctor Mora's house. The softness of her form fit so well against his side. She'd put on a little weight over the years, he noticed, yet it didn't detract from the beauty of who she was to him.

  "I will always be yours, Nerys." Odo whispered in her ear. He let his brow rest against hers and dropped his voice to a low rumble. "I was yours the first time I set eyes on you."

  Kira brushed her fingertip across his bottom lip and the physical desires he used to feel for her sprang to life again.

  "I'll be yours as long as you remember me." She kissed the end of his nose and nodded towards Doctor Mora's house. "Let's head inside."

  Odo completely forgot they were still sitting in the hover tram. "Of course. I'll get your luggage."

  They reached for the bag at the same time. Their heads smacked together.

  "Oh!" Kira grabbed her eyebrow.

  "Ack!" Odo rubbed forehead. "Nerys, are you all right?"

  "I'm fine." She started to giggle. "Ooh, your head is harder than it looks."

  At that, Odo heard himself join her mirth. "Thanks...I think."

  .o

  Kejal's green clothing blended in perfectly with the leaves of his beloved deka tree. He'd scurried outside to climb it the moment he heard Mora tell Aleexa about what a nice day it was and that he felt like working outside.

  Kejal morphed into bark on a branch when Aleexa placed a folding chair under the tree. A short time later, he sensed Mora settling himself down.

  He silently regained his humanoid shape. Mora kept his head lowered, his focus intent upon the two PADDS in his lap.

  Too easy.

  Kejal pulled a nearby seed pod off its branch and let it fall.

  CRACK!

  "Gah!" Mora nearly leapt out of his skin.

  "Target obliterated!" Kejal shouted, laughing.

  "Kejal!" Mora chuckled, picking up the offending seed pod. "I missed having you do that."

  Kejal dangled himself upside down and crossed his arms. "All work and no play makes you grumpy anyway."

  "Old men are supposed to be cranky." Mora made a face.

  "You're only as old as you feel."

  "Mm...I used to climb trees when I was a child." He sat back, his eyes faraway. "I broke my left knee falling out of one. That is probably why it's arthritic now. I don't think it ever healed quite right." Then his eyes widened and he peered at the PADD on his left knee. "Ah...nucleotide sequencers, where did I file y-- aha!"

  Kejal liquefied and reformed after he plopped onto the ground next to Mora's chair. At that angle, he realized Mora had lost weight. Or was it an illusion caused by his baggy shirt and pants?

  Mora grew intent on his work. Kejal stood up and glanced at his hands. The bones in his wrists and knuckles were obvious under his skin. His fingernails had a slight blue tint.

  Kejal sat down hard on the swing. Pretending his father wasn't sick was easier when he couldn't see it so clearly.

  "...sub-nucleotide sequencing..." Mora muttered under his breath. "Kejal, your species is a wonder. You can choose which genetic markers you turn on and off." He glanced up, smiling. "Your genetic profile suggests you should have blue eyes like Odo."

  "I can make them blue." Kejal said. "They wouldn't match the rest of me." He scuffed his feet on the ground. "What do you think Olan would've looked like?"

  "Mm..." Mora leaned back in his chair. "I always imagined Olan having Leruu's eyes."

  "Green like this." Kejal caressed a nearby leaf. "Wouldn't the trait for blue eyes be more dominant in his genetic sequence?"

  "It might have been." Mora shrugged one shoulder. "Then again, genes love to play tricks on us. My maternal grandmother had green eyes and so did my mother, but my grandfather's eyes were blue. My father had hazel eyes. The blue skipped a generation. It's rather amusing-- except for my eye color, I look almost exactly like my grandfather did at my age."

  "I saw an image of him...you do look like twins, except he combed his hair different."

  Mora snickered. "A good forehead is a terrible thing to waste."

  Kejal pushed off with his legs, pumped once and let the swing slow naturally. All around him, the completed garden shimmered.

  "I missed this. Us, talking about silly things under this tree."

  "It wasn't the same without you here." Mora looked up and squinted.

  "Oh, that's a charming expression." Kejal pulled out a holo-imager and snapped an image.

  Mora chuckled at that. "And why are you wasting space with pictures of me making ridiculous faces?"

  "Because they're funny?"

  Mora snatched the device out of Kejal's hands. "Give me that." He turned it around.

  Kejal crossed his eyes and stuck out his tongue. He heard the imager beep.

  "Nice, Kejal. That one will please the women."

  "That's right, father. I'm irresistible! Even when I look ridiculous." Kejal looped his arms around the swing's ropes and leaned forward. "I have every intent to take one of mother kissing mom."

  "I wish you luck in that regard.
Odo doesn't normally like having his picture taken."

  "The trick is catching him before he blocks your view with his hand." Kejal started to swing again. "I don't try it very often. He gets angry."

  "You can thank me for his hatred of image capturing devices." Mora shut off his PADD and set it aside. "Where is Odo? I heard him say he was leaving, but I didn't catch the last part of it."

  "He's picking mom up from the space port." Kejal hopped off the swing and sat on the ground by Mora's feet. "They'll be back any minute."

  "Odo in love." Mora shook his head, smiling. He leaned forward and rubbed the left side of his lower back. "I never thought I'd see the day."

  "He gets all starry-eyed if somebody talks about mom. Like you do when someone mentions Leruu."

  Kejal's words were rewarded by the exact starry-eyed look he described.

  "I'll never not love her, Kejal. She was the only woman for me, and it is the reason I never remarried. I have a sneaking suspicion Kira says the same about Odo. If that isn't love, then I don't know what love is."

  Kejal leaned his head against his father's knee. "You never told me how you met her."

  At that, Mora's eyes lost focus. He touched Kejal's hair and gazed off into the distance.

  "We were children...I was twelve, and she just reached her thirteenth year. I had a scuffle with a much larger and stronger boy named Kartal Lem. I was scrawny compared to him. He beat me bloody, let me tell you!" Mora chuckled and wiped his nose. "So there I was with my nose bleeding and a black eye, and Leruu just appeared there. I'm sure she saw the whole thing. She wiped the blood off my nose with her sleeve, chased down the bigger boy and beat him to a crying pulp!

  "She came back afterward and told me, word for word, 'I know you didn't start that fight, and I hate idiots who don't fight fair.' Then she introduced herself as Shalla Leruu. I was shocked that such a delicate looking girl had the ability to knock down someone so much bigger than herself. We became friends on the spot, and my life changed forever.

  "That was the thing with Leruu. She had the sweetest personality, but--heh, heh! --she had quite a temper, too!"

  Kejal's face lit up when he watched Mora reminisce. "Did you ever fight?"

  "Oh, yes!" He winked one eye shut. "And we made up every single time."

  "How?"

  "Er...we...well..."

  "Ohhh, you had sex!" Kejal laughed. "I know how these things work."

  "Argh! Kejal, that's personal." Mora cleared his throat.

  Kejal snickered and breathed in the cool almost-spring air. "I still wish I could have met her."

  "Me, too." Mora sighed. "I have no doubt in my mind that she will be the one to take me into the Celestial Temple when the time comes. I'm looking forward to it."

  The subject dulled Kejal's lively mood. He almost resented it. The response leapt off his lips before he could stop it.

  "Don't forget about me."

  "Never." Mora leaned forward until they were almost face to face. "I'll tell her all about you and Odo. I promise."

  "And will you visit? Even if I can't see you?"

  "If such becomes possible, yes. Most definitely." Mora pushed himself up out of the chair. His frown betrayed his pain. "Here, help me get everything inside. Brrr...I'm getting chilly."

  "Sure." Kejal scooped up the PADDS and folding chair. He handed Mora his cane. "Good thing it's going to be a long time before you have to go anywhere."

  Chapter 9: The Perfect Dress

  Kejal was getting clingy again. He always did that when thoughts about the future scared him-- a trait he had long before they separated twenty years ago. Mora kept his mouth shut because he knew commenting on the issue would only upset the young Changeling.

  Still, Mora worried about Kejal's emotional well-being. What if Kejal couldn't deal with his declining health? What if he couldn't handle seeing another sentient being transition from life to death?

  Kejal's talent for walking out and disappearing rivaled Odo's. Mora knew he'd never survive another abandonment like that.

  No, stop it! Kejal cares too much to run off. I didn't make the mistakes I made with Odo. Mora shook the negative thought side. He'll be ready. He is a quick learner.

  The warm interior of the house chased the cold off his bones, but it did nothing for his pain. He eased himself into his favorite chair by the window and propped his feet up on the footrest. Moving anything below the waist sent fresh, hot aching through the left side of his lower back.

  "Oof! Kejal, could you bring me my metorapan?"

  "Of course." Kejal hurried to retrieve it. He skittered right back into the bedroom to watch for Odo and Kira.

  The medicine came with a freshly mixed fruit smoothie.

  "I won't let you forget those herbs." Aleexa said with a wink. "I'm due to check on another patient. Will you be all right?"

  Mora hesitated long enough to sip the fruity concoction. He figured the pain in his back was nothing compared to the suffering of Aleexa's other patients. Besides, the metorapan had already taken the edge off.

  "Oh, sure. People need you, you should attend them." He raised his glass. "Thank you, Aleexa."

  She smiled, patted his hand and took up her knapsack. "Kejal, I'm leaving for today. I'll be back tomorrow!"

  Kejal called from the bedroom, "See you tomorrow, Aleexa!"

  The door whirred.

  Mora spent the next hour working on his treatise. He saw Kejal perk up through the corner of his eye, chuckled and set his PADD aside.

  "They're here!" Kejal ran for the front door like a large, hoofed beast. "Mother! Mom! Hello, good to see you again. I'll get your bag. Father is in the living room."

  "Well, hello to you, too!" Kira's familiar voice wafted into the living room. "Thanks. Put my bag wherever it's out of the way. Oh. This is a beautiful house."

  Odo and Kira walked into the living room holding hands. The look in Odo's eyes was a sight to behold. Mora forced himself up to greet the couple with a smile.

  "Welcome to my home, General Kira."

  "Thank you, Doctor Mora...and please, I'm off duty. Call me Nerys."

  "Only if you agree to call me Pol," Mora replied playfully.

  Kira nodded once. "Deal."

  "I'll get you a mug of tea." Odo kissed her on the shoulder.

  She smiled at him. "I'd like that." Then she faced Mora and shook his hand. "This is a gorgeous house. Ooh, I saw that. Let's both sit."

  "My wife did the decorating." Mora replied. "Mmh, let's sit on the couch, thank you. This chair won't fit us both, and Odo might get jealous."

  Odo scoffed in the kitchen. "Hmph!"

  Kira helped Mora seat himself. He remembered the last time she came to his aid. Decades ago, she assisted him to his quarters when he drank too much on Deep Space Nine. It did his heart good to see a woman not hardened by the horrors of the Occupation. Many weren't as fortunate as her.

  "I hope your trip here wasn't troublesome," said Mora.

  "Not at all. I slept through most of it." Kira covered a yawn with her hand. "The time differences really get to me."

  "Me, too."

  "Here you are." Odo reappeared holding an orange mug of deka tea.

  She took it, smiling, and the soft expression Odo offered back reminded Mora of how he used to look at Leruu.

  Kejal bounded back into the living room. He almost plowed into Odo in his excited haste to jump on the couch next to Kira.

  Oh, Kejal, sometimes you're still such a child, Mora mused.

  Kira pinched Kejal's cheek. "Someone has a wild streak."

  "You don't know the half of it." Kejal said back. He wiggled his nose at her. "I'm glad you're here."

  "It's nice to get away. It's hectic on the station! A bunch of Klingons almost took over Quark's, and Malath spent all afternoon shuttling the drunk ones to their guest quarters. That was enough paperwork to make anyone throw themselves out the nearest airlock. Now-- ah..." Kira's attention was drawn to the holograms under the oval window. Sh
e smiled tenderly at the images of Kejal's birth. Then her eyes went to a picture of Leruu. "She was beautiful."

  Mora flinched at a pang in his lower back. He covered it with a fake cough. "She was, and she would have aged beautifully." The nagging pain refused to back off. He forced himself upright. "Would you excuse me? I need to lie down for awhile."

  "Oh, I'm sorry, was I keeping you up?"

  "No, no! Not at all. I'm just a tired old man." Mora waved a hand. "Please, stay out and visit, and help yourself to anything you want to eat or drink."

  Kejal's smile slipped. He slid off the couch and draped his arm around Mora's shoulders. "Come on, I'll help you."

  Grrr, damn this disease.

  Mora wasn't sure how Kejal got him into the bedroom. The last thing he remembered was stretching out on his side. He woke up to darkness outside and a puddle of Kejal regenerating on the foot of his bed.

  Grunting, Mora dosed himself with metorapan, got out of bed and replicated himself a glass of water. As he drank it, he heard a noise. It happened again, louder this time.

  Mora limped closer to his bedroom door. It sounded like Kira gasping in pain. He almost ventured out to check on her-- and then he heard Odo. Their vocalizations accelerated and suddenly muffled themselves.

  Suddenly, Mora decided he needed to wash his face. Anything to get away from hearing such a private moment.

  "Father?" Kejal's voice gurgled as he took shape. He froze, wide-eyed, and turned towards the door. "Are they having-- "

  "Shhh!" Mora nabbed Kejal's arm and hauled him into the bathroom. "It's none of your business, Kejal."

  Kejal pointed to the toilet. "Urinating is private, too, isn't it?"

  "I'm not in here to do that." Mora turned on the sink and ran his hands under the cool water. He splashed it on his face, but the embarrassment wouldn't stop burning.

  "Father?"

  "Whatever you do, Kejal, do not discuss what you heard with them."

  "Why?"

  Mora rubbed the corners of his eyes with his fingertips. "Because it's personal between them. I thought we went over this."

  "We did. You said people do it because it feels good to procreate." Kejal gestured over his shoulder. "And they can't reproduce together, so why? I thought love was holding hands and getting married."