Message From Beyond
Posted on Thu Oct 2nd, 2025 @ 5:20pm by Sergeant Audie Fitch & Lieutenant Jayak Zek
Edited on on Fri Oct 3rd, 2025 @ 10:06am
1,197 words; about a 6 minute read
Mission:
Episode 16 - Silent Cries
Location: Recovery Room - Sick Bay - Deck 5 - USS Pioneer
Timeline: MD0010 2000 Hrs
Scrambled Computer Message
[i]Guess by now you know the truth.
Did what we had to did.
I'm down for the count,
But it's just time.
Oh, and I made this one up![/i]
Zek had been trying to groom Buster when the message came in. While the cat apparently had a fondness for him, Buster did not have a fondness for a brush. Maybe when Audie returned, he would question her about the cat's finickiness.
His reaction to the message was mixed. At first, he was excited to hear her voice and know that she was still alive. However, her message indicated that she got hurt. If he interpreted things correctly, she was going to be fine, which was encouraging.
He responded in verse,
"Three days gone, my world was gray,
Worried you’d been swept away.
But you’re still here, you stubborn star,
Healing’s slow, but you’ve come far.
I’ve seen you fight with fire and steel,
But hearing you laugh’s the better deal."
[i]Bah! Such a sad life, to pine for me!
You got the cat, what more do you need!
I'll be home one way or another,
At least the dreams stopped...[/i]
"A pine is a tree.
I am not.
And it is good to hear that the dreams have stopped.
Perhaps you will get some rest other than on my lap?"
[i]But what better place to repose?
Solid as an oak...
Soon, I hope, I'll have the freedom for that,
And we can laugh about indiscretions!
Have whisky, the good stuff.[/i]
"We’ve danced with rules, we’ve bent a few,
We can share whiskey 'til the night is through.
Indiscretions we won’t confess,
But those nights can be the best."
[i]I'd rather dance with you and leave the rules behind,
Ignore the indiscretions, ignore day and night,
And heal, thrive,
Dance. I miss you guys.[/i]
"You cannot miss what you have.
We are here, ready and waiting
For your pending arrival for time
Will give plenty of moments spending."
[i]Promise me one thing...make it chocolate
When you bake the cake with the file inside,
And bring Buster to the calaboose
When you come to visit![/i]
With that, Zek audibly laughed. File inside, indeed. He wrote back:
"I'm afraid that I cannot supply a file.
I have taken an oath to do no harm.
Biting into a file would be a problem.
I really hate completing paperwork."
[i]Well, shucks, I guess a file won't work
On a force-field anyway!
I'll still take the cake, though,
It beats prison food![/i]
"I do not recommend confinement.
Too many years, I experienced it.
Better to fly like a bird
Than to be cooped up in a cage."
[i]Confinement is the penalty for insubordination,
If not the firing squad! Or maybe hanging!
No blindfold, though, not for this rebel,
So I can see you and Buster![/i]
This was an area that touched too close to his heart. She probably did not intend offense, but it was something that could not be left untouched. Did she really think that the Bajorans were somehow insubordinate to the Cardassians? And should they not have been? He tried to shake it off before responding.
"Rebels are always necessary
For the status quo leads to death.
And I prefer to see things alive
Because in life can we experience pleasure."
[i]I'll do my best to stay alive, but that all depends.
Court-marshal, success, going rogue...
That's out of my control for now,
So there can only be hopes and dreams, right?[/i]
Zek had to wonder what in the world she did to warrant such things. There might be the fact that the Pioneer itself went rogue. Well, life would certainly be interesting.
"There are always hopes and dreams.
Without those, we may as well be dead.
Rest, relaxation, and fun are what the doctor orders.
And since I am a doctor, you had better listen."
[i]Maybe I can claim insanity?
Maybe we all can, the Silence that wasn't so silent
Drove us, but maybe if we help
All will be forgiven.[/i]
"Pure silence is equal to pure insanity.
The absence of sound is disconcerting.
With noise, you know so much more
It is telling, honest, and comforting.
Whatever sins you believe that you
Have caused are out of pure motives.
When one acts from such purity,
Then forgiveness is the correct course."
[i]Ha! Tell that to Command!
And noise can be just as bad as silence...
Overwhelming, confusing, chaotic...
Taking over your thoughts, not that I have many![/i]
"Command can be reasoned with.
If you wish, we can practice that.
Tell me all of your thoughts for I will
listen to them all and assist with new ones."
[i]If it was just me, but we all went together
And I suspect we'll all hang together.
No one forced us, no one ordered us,
They even offered an out. I didn't take it.[/i]
"The circumstances must have been compelling.
An entire starship does not just disobey orders
Without a very good reason and a lot of faith.
I believe in you and your cause, so I see a future."
[i]So optimistic! Dreams drove us!
Now, there is blessed silence.
So sing me a lullaby -- Golden slumbers,
And when I wake up, it will all be better.[/i]
"When you were raised in the Occupation,
You had two choices: to have hope or not.
Without it, you died. With it you lived.
Life was hard but in the end, hope prevailed.
"So, yes, I dream. I dream of the stars
And all that is out there to be explored.
Of things that I have never seen and
Things that I have yet to experience.
"A lullaby you requested....
A lullaby you shall receive....
"Hush now, soldier, close your eyes,
The battle’s done, the starlight lies.
Golden dreams will guard you near,
No Silence now, no night to fear.
Lay your weary heart to rest,
You’ve fought so long, you’ve done your best.
Let the moonlight weave its song,
You are safe, where you belong.
Soft winds whisper through the skies,
Guiding you where peace resides.
Golden slumber, drift away—
Tomorrow brings another day.
So rest, Audie, brave and true,
The night keeps watch, and so do I for you."
[i]Wish I could actually hear you,
These messages aren't the same,
But it's time to rest now,
Take good care of Buster...[/i]
"Soon enough you will hear my dulcet tones.
They seem to have worked on Buster.
It appears that I will be sleeping sitting up.
When you are back, perhaps that will change."
[i]Goodnight stars
Goodnight dreams
Goodnight life, come what may...
Goodnight Zek so far away...[/i]
A Joint Post By
Lieutenant Jayak Zek
Chief Counselor, Empok Nor
Sergeant Audie Fitch
Corpsman Team 2, The Cure
USS Pioneer
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