The Last Time We First Met - Part Thirteen
by: Denise Underwood
c. 2001
Picard wandered around the library, reverently touching books that he had
thought would only exist in museums. But here they were; free to be touched
and read. Not locked in some case or under some energy shield.
After returning just before the sun broke into the morning sky, they'd
decided that some sleep would be in order. Triona had shown him to his
suite and wished him a 'good morning' with a huge grin. He'd slept like the
dead, feeling a sense of peace that had been missing for far too long. He
didn't know if it was this place, seemingly held in a space in time that
was both old and peaceful and new and filled with the laughter of family.
But whatever it was, he felt at home here.
On waking in the early afternoon, he'd found a lunch tray set on the table
of the sitting room of his suite. On closer inspection, he found the tray
to be heaped with all his favorites -- including a steaming pot of Imladrin
Blue tea. Finding himself famished, he'd made quick work of the mound of
food. The comm unit had beeped just as he was finishing, with a message
from Triona that she had some matters to attend to and for him to make
himself at home.
The captain had taken her at her word and had spent nearly an hour
wandering the massive home before he stumbled upon the library. It was an
imposing room, with picture windows along the long front set to catch the
sunset. The bookcases were pieces of art unto themselves: fret work and
carvings, all circles and curves with no beginning and no end. All of it
crafted with the rich patina of old dark wood. Large granite fireplaces
bracketed either end of the room, bookends to the windows that encompassed
a sweeping vista of the valley below and the distant mountains that marched
along the horizon.
He spied a glass-enclosed case next to one of the several sitting areas in
the room. He moved towards it for a closer look. Peering through the glass,
he realized that it was a complete set of the works of Tolkien. Opening the
door of the cabinet, he removed one of the volumes, gently opening the
cover. Sinking into an overstuffed chair next to the cabinet he read the
faded ink of the inscription. He realized it wasn't a first edition, or
even a rare copy -- but it was special, and very old. 'To my dearest
daughter, Triona, from your loving mother, Nora. May all your fantasies
come true.'
Picard's throat tightened with unexpected emotion. Holding the book in his
hands, he felt he had a special insight into the woman that had somehow
become so much a part of his life. "All these years," he said quietly to
himself.
"Indeed," a voice said into the stillness of the room. It was all Picard
could do not to jump out of his chair at the sudden sound.
Gathering himself, Picard stood politely. "Governor," he greeted the
unexpected presence of Lucien LaCroix, standing in front of him.
"Captain," the ancient vampire acknowledged with an almost imperceptible
tip of his head. He nodded towards the book that Picard still held in his
hands. "It's one of the few things she's kept from her life before." He
paused briefly, a small smile brushing his lips. "Other than Stephanie, of
course."
Picard was slightly nonplussed at LaCroix's demeanor. Was the stern and
foreboding Roman general actually making an attempt at humor?
Unfortunately, the governor of Imladris seemed to have the same uncanny
knack of reading minds that Triona did. "Despite what my child may have
told you, Captain, I do have some slight sense of humor." Again, there was
the almost not there smile.
"Of course, " he hastened to reply. "Please forgive me, Governor, it was a
late night and I didn't realize you were in residence." Despite himself,
Jean-Luc found himself insanely curious and not a little daunted by the
Imladrin governor. They'd only met in reality a handful of times under
various official circumstances. But Picard possessed knowledge of LaCroix
that few mortals -- or immortals for that matter -- had due to their shared
experience in the General's Roman past. Triona was right, he thought wryly
to himself, it was confusing.
"I wasn't," LaCroix commented as he sat down in the chair across from
Picard's, motioning the other man to sit. "I arrived this morning. I was
actually due next week. But, I wanted to assure I didn't miss the birth of
Lucia." Once more, LaCroix seemed to pick up on the Captain's unease.
"Indeed, it is a tangled web, Captain. But you have made Triona happy. And
for that, I am grateful. I can not pretend that I don't wish she had never
been wrenched into my past. Or that the experience hadn't caused a yearning
for something she could never have. Nevertheless, it did happen and you and
I must make the best of it." He fell silent, his face wearing a pensive
expression.
"I swore an oath to her, General," the title seemed to slip from out of
nowhere, but it seemed to fit. "Lucia is my daughter, Triona is dear to me.
I will never betray either of them, or by extension, any that she loves."
LaCroix nodded, but remained silent. "Didn't you ever wonder why our entire
system had names from those books?" he asked, suddenly changing the subject.
Picard accepted the change, knowing that LaCroix has accepted him and his
oath. "The question had crossed my mind," he admitted, his long fingers
gently sweeping the worn cover.
"After Cochrane and his warp drive, Triona became even more obsessed with
leaving Earth -- of creating a sanctuary for our people. Once she had a
ship, she was single minded about finding a planet," the vampire explained,
his voice sounding long suffering -- but tinged with fondness.
"And she found one."
"Ah, yes. She did indeed."
"I did, and I was right," a female voice interjected from the door. Triona
moved farther into the room, standing behind LaCroix's chair, waving
Jean-Luc back into his seat as he began to rise at her entrance. She shot
Picard a warm smile as she leaned over LaCroix's shoulder. "And you know
it," she said smugly, kissing the vampire on the cheek as he turned to her.
"I believe I was telling this story," he reminded her pointedly.
Triona, grinning unrepentantly, ran a finger across her lips. "My lips are
sealed."
"That will be the day," her Master replied, arching one expressive brow.
Before Triona could interrupt again, he began his tale once more; not at
all convinced that Triona would let him have the last word.....
***************************************
"I told you it was beautiful, didn't I?"
LaCroix watched his child spin excitedly around under the light of the red
giant sun above, her gold hair glinting with the ruddy fire of its
reflected light. Even though he knew they were perfectly safe under the
full power of this sun, so unlike their own G2 type star, he was still
finding that the reactions of over two thousand years were hard to overcome.
"It does have a," LaCroix paused, searching for the right word, "unique
beauty." He knew his grudging praise and less than enthusiastic tone was
not what she wanted.
Exasperated, Triona placed her hands on her hips and glared at her Master.
"Why do you have to be like this? Can't you even allow me the satisfaction
that I made the right decision in choosing this place -- our new home?"
It had been a long month's trip, the two of them alone in the newest and
fastest prototype that the Mars Planetia shipyards had been able to
develop. By the time they returned, the tests on a new, larger, ship should
be complete. That would be the ship that took them from Earth to this new
place, a planet she had named Imladris. In that month, she had been unable
to wear down LaCroix's continued resistance to the idea of leaving Earth,
even though he knew that there was really no other choice.
"I am not denying you that! I allowed myself to be dragged here against my
better judgment, did I not?" LaCroix glowered, not wanting to go over the
ground of this old argument yet again. "You, however, continue to deny that
there is no urgency in leaving Earth because this is what *you* want."
"That isn't true and you know it!" she practically shouted, not caring that
he was becoming visibly angry. "What is the point of delaying the
inevitable? Yes, we could probably be quite safe on Earth for another fifty
years, or maybe a hundred, but the day is coming when our people will need
a place, a haven, to go to when our home world is no longer safe for our
kind!"
She turned away from LaCroix, falling silent as she looked out over the
deep river valley that sliced through the massive mountain range on either
side of them. Even though it was summer, so tall were the highest peaks
that snow was still abundant, snow that was like blood in the odd light.
This was the spot she had chosen for their new home. Secure and safe, deep
in the mountain fastness, the river below, a vast meadow behind dotted with
streams and small lakes. And past that, a forest of huge trees of a type
that bore no comparison to anything on Earth. She could see it all so
clearly in her mind's eye, but it wouldn't be at all if LaCroix would not
agree.
"It was becoming dangerous before, then the world went to hell and we were
safe for a few more decades," she finally continued quietly. "We won't have
another chance like that one, and if we wait too long, this planet will be
gone; claimed by the new Federation. The only reason they haven't yet is
that they haven't found it. But they will soon." She turned back to face
him. "I will of course obey your wishes in this matter, as I have always
done," she informed him with calm dignity. "I only ask that you give me the
courtesy of honestly accessing our position on Earth before making your
final decision." Triona dipped her head slightly, before walking past him,
back to the ship, leaving LaCroix alone under the blood red sun.
*************
Denise * ithildin@ondragonswing.com* Ith
http://www.ondragonswing.com
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