New Divide
Posted on Tue Feb 23rd, 2021 @ 7:23am by Captain Akiva ben-Avram & Lieutenant JG Jaya Maera Garlake & Warrant Officer Laena ben-Avram
1,789 words; about a 9 minute read
Mission:
S1E4: The Hills Have Eyes
Location: Overwatch Station / Starfleet Academy
Timeline: MD 4
Akiva took a deep breath. This was it -- the moment of truth. After an entire day of filing reports about the happenings on Venus, he had also prepared a most exhaustive correspondence for Laena to tell her how he felt. Some might say it was the coward's way, but he honestly did not want to fight with her. Or even look at her, really. The mere sight of her could make him lose his nerve... or his temper. This needed to be a clean break, and that's just what he had prepared.
After letting his finger hover over the Send button, he finally pressed it.
Laena sat at her vanity, pulling a brush through her long raven hair. She hummed to herself as she smiled, her reflection sweet and caring.
A chirp rang out from her terminal, indicating the receipt of a transmission.
She stopped, placing the brush down as she stood and walked to her desk. She pressed a button on the terminal to make the message play.
"Hello, Laena." It was Akiva's face. Though his eyes were centered as if looking at her, there was something vacant in their expression. "It has been a long time. My sources reveal that you are doing well at the Academy. Very well." He paused and the image glitched ever so slightly as if there were a splice in the video feed. His face resumed as before. "This transmission is to inform you that I have decided to grant you what you desire most. Freedom." Another glitch. "I formally release you from all obligation to me. Thank you for the time we had together. I will treasure it always. And..." More spliced glitching. "... forgive me... for not understanding before. I have prepared this interactive transmission to respond to limited questioning should you so desire."
Laena sat there, dumbfounded as the words floated around her head. She backed up the recording, pulling up specific pieces.
"...grant you what you desire..."
She took a deep breath.
"...release you from all obligation..."
The words hit her like a ton of bricks as she became lightheaded. Tears welled up in her eyes as she replayed the entire message again.
But she stopped the recording about halfway through as her hurt hardened into anger. She dismissed the message and immediately tried to open a channel to Memory Theta.
Denied.
Most people had no access whatsoever to Memory Theta, but Laena had left Overwatch Station with the digital access control address for Akiva's office. With it she would be able to contact him from anywhere -- a privilege and potential breach of protocol that she had not made use of until now. And now that she had used it, access was denied.
"I have prepared this interactive transmission to respond to limited questioning should you so desire," the message repeated, possibly prompted by her attempt to send a reply.
"I refuse to speak to a recording," Laena said, standing up and pacing in front of the desk. "Open a channel to Akiva ben-Avram."
"I will respond to limited questioning," the virtual image replied. "What do you want to know?"
"I don't want to know anything," Laena said in frustration. "I want an explanation. I want to know why this is happening."
The virtual image twitched as it loaded a new interactive chapter. "You've moved on, Laena. It is time I do so as well. Now that I finally understand everything you've tried to tell me, there is only one thing: if you truly love something, you set it free."
All that answer did was fuel more anger within the Orion woman. She tried again to raise Akiva's office, met again with a denial. She sat there for a moment until an idea occurred to her. Pressing in a command, she raised another Memory Theta officer.
Jaya was lounging in her quarters, enjoying the downtime after the hellish events of the past week. Her hands moved over her womb for the hundredth time as she relished in the sensation of nascent proto-consciousnesses bonding with her own in a subliminal aspect of pregnancy.
An alert sounded from the PADD at her side. Jaya was not one for deskwork, and pregnancy she suspected would only strengthen that aversion. All incoming transmissions were routed through her private PADD, properly secured for all privacy and security concerns. Her hand fell from her belly to the PADD and activated it before raising it up.
"Hello," she said without knowing to whom she was speaking. When the video appeared, her heart leapt at a familiar face. "Laena!" Jaya half-squealed. "It's so good to see you!" But the expression on the half-Orion's face did not mirror the jubilation of Jaya's outburst. Turning more solemn, Jaya said, "Tell me everything."
Laena sat there for a moment in silence before bursting out in tears. "I'm sorry Jaya, I hate to call when I'm upset but..." The Orion woman wiped the tears from her face, but they were quickly replaced with another stream. "Akiva just broke up with me and I don't know why. He's blocked my communication access to Theta and he sent a fucking recording instead."
Whatever Jaya expected to hear, that was not it. She carefully processed Laena's words, setting aside the surprise and engaged her counselor's skill set.
"I'm so sorry, Laena. That's... that's just terrible. Did he give any explanation for his actions?"
"He-" Laena wiped a few tears, "He said I moved on and that he wanted to do the same," she said.
That did not seem like Akiva. As she listened, Jaya made a note of finding a reason to pay Akiva a visit in the immediate future. "Oh, my..." Jaya paused for a moment, then asked, "Did he say what led him to that conclusion?"
Laena just shook her head. "I haven't spoken to him since I arrived. I wanted to give us both a bit of space. But I didn't expect him to come to this conclusion."
That was a significant length of time for space, but still not a rational explanation for Akiva's change of heart. "Something must have happened," Jaya permitted herself to say aloud. "This not like him. Would you be comfortable forwarding me the message, if you still have it?"
With a nod, Laena pressed a few commands into the panel and sent the entire recording, along with the interactive matrix, to Jaya's terminal. "I need to talk to him, Jaya. I'm unwilling to accept this as the end of our relationship. Not after everything we've gone through."
"I understand," Jaya said diplomatically, "but how are you going to do that? You're enrolled at the Academy while Akiva is practically on lockdown here. From what Storr says, Admiral Tau is furious with everybody, and not least of all Akiva for leaving the station on the last mission. We... had problems during his absence."
Laena nodded, "I need to see him, Jaya," she said. She surprised herself with that statement, though it wasn't far fetched. "I've been so confused and afraid for so long about him. But if anything, this just confirmed something for me. I love him, Jaya. I love him so much and the idea of not being with him is ripping me open. If I have to drop out of the Academy and stow away on every transport I could to get there, I would. But I need your help."
There was not much that Jaya could do herself. But maybe she could pull strings, call in favors... "What do you need me to do?"
"I need to see him," Laena said, again. "Is there a way I can get back to Theta and talk to him? I imagine he's blocked my transport credentials."
Jaya shook her head in apology. "If there is, then I don't know it. Storr could requisition more Marines. So far as I know, Mrazak and Akiva are the only ones who can request new personnel. Give me some time and I will look into it though." There was the chance Ari could help, but Jaya knew that would take some finesse. As such, she wouldn't make any promises. "There might be someone else I can ask."
"I appreciate it, Jaya," Laena said. She wiped the tears from her face, trying to regain her composure. "I'm sorry, I didn't even ask. How're you feeling?"
"It's all right," Jaya said gently. "We were talking about you." Her face smiled, but her eyes beamed. "No crisis on my end. We just... found out that... I'm pregnant." There was no easy way to say it, not without possibly trampling on the tragic miscarriage that Laena had suffered earlier in the year. But despite her sensitivity to her friend, Jaya would make no apology for her own joy. "Triplets, or at least that's what Dr. Wilson said before..." She let out a sigh. Did death have to lurk around every damned corner of this damned station? "... he passed away."
"Oh my!" Laena explained, her hands covering her face as she beamed a wide smile. Her heart pounded in her chest as old memories flooded back, but she tried her best to push them away. "Congratulations, Jaya. I'm so happy for you! How long have you known?"
"Just a few days," Jaya said. "It still doesn't seem real, but... I can already feel them." She absently ran a hand over her womb. "Our people never needed pregnancy tests. We've just... always known." Although Laena joined her in celebrating, Jaya could see the pain hidden behind her friend's dark eyes. "If you promise not to be a stranger, I'll promise to give you regular updates."
It was then that Laena realized she hadn't been as good a friend to Jaya as she'd been to her. She resolved within herself to do better. "I'd love nothing more," she said, after a few moments.
"Are you safe? Did they have to evacuate the Academy?" Jaya asked.
Laena shook her head. "We were brought to a safe location within the Academy," she responded, "but no, we never left campus." The Orion woman sat there for a moment, looking at her friend. "Did Theta have something to do with that?"
"I don't know," Jaya said honestly, "but even if I did, I couldn't say one way or another. If you need anything," she added reassuringly, "I'm here for you."
"Me too."
Jaya gave Laena a knowing smile. "I know. Thank you. And I'll reach out just as soon as I find a way to get you back here."
Laena nodded, "Thank you Jaya. I'll talk to you soon."
"Bye now." Jaya kissed her palm and waved at Laena before letting the transmission close out.
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