So... Does Jean-Luc's chat help? Today we get to find out Will's idea too....
Enjoy
Lucy
Chapter 26
Will Riker smiled, Ehliena was slowly making her way to her usual place to the Captains left. The Enterprise was paying a courtesy call to Pacifica, and several days had been arranged for the crew to take shore leave. The Commander was currently in charge as the Captain and the Ambassador were meeting with the Pacifican council.
“Welcome back Ehliena.”
The use of her first name on the bridge did not go un-noticed; several officers nodded their respect as she sat down, a little self-conscious. Giving a soft smile she spoke quietly, “Maybe I should have come back sooner, but…”
“It’s ok… We understand, mind you, you chose a great day to come back.”
“Oh…?”
The Commander nodded towards the view screen smiling when he saw Ehliena’s expression, “It’s beautiful isn’t it?”
Ehliena stared, and then chuckled slightly, “It is, and you are still trying to distract me from my thoughts Will Riker. Have you been speaking to Deanna?”
Will smiled, “Of course… How else would I have been able to help you – I have been receiving strict instructions all the way… Though I have to admit, Worf’s involvement was not my idea.”
“Liar, he told me it was all your idea.” Ehliena returned the smile, reminded of the situation that had played out on the holodeck a few days earlier.
***
Ehliena had been relaxing in her quarters when once again she heard a soft voice calling her. There had been several occasions when she had sensed someone watching over her, though there was no-one around, especially when she was feeling particularly down. The voice calmed her if she began to panic, lifted her spirits and slowly she continued to heal.
For a while she thought it was her mind playing tricks – a result of the stress she had put herself under after the incident with the Romulans, but when the ‘voice’ became stronger, she put down her book and began to pay attention.
As on other occasions the voice reminded her of Horatio, but it was softer, smoother, more velvet in texture and now she just accepted that it would be there. For a moment she paused in her thoughts, she hadn’t seen the Ambassador in several days, but knew he was busy working with the medical staff on board the ship.
“Ehliena, join us?”She had been startled by the request it was so unexpected and didn’t think to ask who was communicating with her.
“Where?”“Holodeck 4.”For a moment she had been undecided, but her curiosity got the better of her and she made her way to the holodeck. When she walked in, she was stunned to see a program running, but no-one else around. Looking about carefully she recognised where she was, a church, 21st century Miami.
For a moment she became angry, when a sound caused her to glance to one side,
gunfire? Suddenly she knew what was about to happen,
Season 4 Episode 1. She looked in the opposite direction, sighing when she saw Lt Horatio Caine leaving the confessional, drawing his gun as he left through the door.
“Computer, pause programme.” At her words, all action stopped, except for a figure near the ‘altar’, walking down the aisle she pulled a face when Commander Riker pushed back the hood from his face, “Impersonating a priest now Will?”
The Commander pulled her into a hug, over the last couple of days he had been checking up on her often, keeping her company, stopping her from becoming depressed. Their close contact had confirmed what Ehliena thought – that Will loved her cousin a great deal, but was unsure if they could have a future together due to his duties as a Starfleet Officer. It was the only thing holding him back from making a firm commitment.
“No… Just making sure you responded to the call.” He grinned at the empath, she had certainly become important to him – not in the same way as Deanna, but they shared a closeness, similar to that of older brother and younger sister.
“Why here?”
“Because I know you haven’t been running your programs for a while – and I think you should… You and the Lieutenant seem to be following the same path…”
“The lonely road?”
“Mhm… Maybe it’ll help you to realise that you’re not alone.”
Ehliena sighed, “Will, I…”
She was interrupted by a voice from a dark corner, “There are many of us that would gladly walk with you Counsellor.”
As Worf left the shadows, Ehliena was confused, “I don’t understand.”
“You feel a responsibility toward the death of others Counsellor, as do I.”
“But you are from a race of warriors Worf, it is your instinct to react as you do and respect for your senior officer.”
“That does not mean they are always right.” Ehliena was stunned by Worf’s admission and stared at him; Will smiled softly and moved away a little after encouraging her to sit down. The Lieutenant continued. “I believe myself to be Klingon, try to uphold myself to our values, our way of life, yet there are times when it is at odds to what I must do here.”
“Do you know that I once resigned my commission on the Enterprise to fight for the Empire?”
Ehliena nodded but admitted she did not know the full story.
“That is not important, but while I was there, I found out a great deal about myself, about what I had learnt from others. It was not long that I realised my place was here… on the Enterprise.”
He went on to tell Ehliena about an accident he had had while helping Geordi, “Several large tanks fell from a shelf – I was severely injured, paralysed. Dr Crusher informed me that I would not be able to walk again. She suggested implants and other possibilities, but I rejected them all.”
“As a Klingon we believe that we are a burden on society if we are unable to fight as warriors, so I wanted to take my life and asked Commander Riker to assist me. He refused and reminded me that it was my son’s duty to perform the task.”
“I found myself torn, wanting to follow my cultural traditions, yet not wanting to place such a burden on my son. I chose not to be Klingon that day. Instead I took a risk, but one that could save my life. I died on the table – but came back to life – a peculiarity of the way we Klingons are made.”
Ehliena stared at Worf in awe, over the last few months she had become aware of how important his Klingon beliefs were and respected him for them – yet here he was talking about a day when he had rejected those beliefs – to be with his son.
“Counsellor, I come from a race of warriors, so fighting for us is second nature, yet I have found myself accepting and even following ideas that would be alien to my people. There are those that would ridicule me for doing such thing, but I know I am doing what is right.”
“For you to put aside your personal feelings takes great courage – the courage of a warrior. The weakness lies in not taking the decision in the first place.” The Lieutenant stood to leave, “I thank you Counsellor Troi for having the courage to take that decision, for giving me my life, and the life of my son.”
Ehliena stared at Worf’s back as he walked down the aisle of the church and disappeared through the holodeck door. He was a person of few words and she had never shared more than a few sentences with him, but in the last moment he had spoken from his heart and had spoken the truth.
Will stood and quietly walked over to her, “I’ll leave you with your thoughts… Run the programme – I know it was one of your favourites.” Giving her a soft kiss on the cheek, he followed Worf out of the door.