Sky Trek: Children of the Night

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At the largest table in Paddy’s Pub & Grill, the two sides sat opposite of one another. The tension in the room was palpable, but despite it all, Picard himself was able to keep calm as he usually was in such high-stakes situations.

“As a gesture of good faith,” Teyla said, speaking first. “Ronon and I have agreed to allow the one known as Tasha Yar to go free.”

Tasha smiled, sitting next to Picard at the table.

“Believe me, it took some convincing,” Ronon mumbled.

“We know it wasn’t easy for you,” Leia said, sitting on Picard’s left. “We sincerely appreciate it.”

“Don’t forget that we have two more of your people,” Ronon said bluntly. “And it’s going to take a hell of a lot more than--”

“What my friend here is trying to say,” Teyla interrupted in a cool tone. “Is that we are going to need something from you before we consider releasing them.”

“Indeed,” Picard said. “Well, let’s not beat around the bush, then.” He glanced at the young man sitting a ways from him. “Doctor?”

JD remained silent, looking like he was off in his own little world.

“Doctor?” Picard repeated, annoyed.

With a shake of his head, JD seemed to snap out of it, realizing where he was. Then, to the bafflement of the entire room, he announced: “We’re really going to need a lot more ice cream.”

Picard face-palmed… slowly. “What?”

“He does a lot of daydreaming,” Tasha explained.

“I see,” Picard said, narrowing his eyes.

“Sorry about that,” JD said. “Oh, and Dr. Cox, uh… is also surprisingly sorry for not being here.”

“Why is that, again?” Picard asked.

“He’s busy dealing with a patient in intensive care,” JD said. “Says I’m better with the ‘touchy-feely’ stuff, anyway.”

Tasha raised her eyebrows, smiling slightly. “So he does respect you.”

“In his own way,” JD said. “Though he also said he wouldn’t be able to see the Thestrals since he’s never killed a patient before.”

“Jerk with a heart of jerk,” Tasha sighed.

“Heart of gold,” JD corrected. “It’s just really, really deep down in there.”

“I’m… not sure if I should be offended by all of that,” Teyla blinked.

“Doctor,” Leia said impatiently.

“Sorry, sorry. Anyway, we spent half the day brainstorming, and we believe we know how the radar is harming the Thestrals so badly. Naturally, we’d need to run a few physical exams-”

“Not happening,” Ronon said.

“-to confirm, but with studies done on… related species...”

“Bats, you mean,” Commander Shepard (One P) said bluntly.

Teyla gave her a look.

“Hey, we’re all trying to be honest here,” she said.

“Enough interruptions already,” Picard growled, sharing Teyla’s look of annoyance. “Doctor, continue.”

“Er, yes,” JD coughed. “To simplify, EMF fields such as the ones produced by our radar can create a small thermal increase in the skins of various species. In certain cases, this can affect the rate of blood flow. While laboratory studies have shown the effect doesn’t seem to do much more than create mild discomfort in most animals, we think that the effect might be amplified on Thestrals for… some reason.”

“So the heat it creates is affecting blood flow,” Picard summarized. “If I recall correctly, variations in it can cause severe migraines. And I’m assuming that may not be the only ill effect it can have on the body.”

“Yes,” JD said. And with a calm and caring tone, he continued with: “Irregular blood flow can lead to all kinds of life-threatening conditions if it’s intense enough; which it could be, depending on Thestral physiology.” He then glanced towards Teyla. “Kind of a weird question, but do you know if Thestrals have… really low body temperatures?”

Teyla looked at Ronon, then back at JD. “Some say our touch is as cold as the grave.”

“That’s… an interesting way of putting it,” JD said.

Luna smiled at that. “I always thought it was pretty... What’s the slang term? Cool?”

Shepard gave her a blank look. “Was that a pun?”

Luna blinked in confusion. “Huh? No, I just like the gothic connotations of it.”

“Figures,” Leia chuckled.

“Alright, so we’re beginning to figure out why,” Teyla said. “Now the question is: do you intend to act on this information?”

“CM?” Picard said, glancing towards Leia.

“Don’t gotta tell me twice,” she smirked, pointing to a large textbook before her labelled, ‘Charter of the United Federation Species ’ She then gazed at the Thestrals pensively. “Do you know the significance of this document?”

The two Thestrals shook their heads.

“It is a set of guidelines that defines Federation policy,” she said. “Note that it is not a book of laws. It is, in fact, what guides the making of them. They represent everything that the Federation stands for. All of our ambitions revolve around it. All of our hopes and dreams.”

“Colorful speech,” Ronon said. “But it’s just a bunch of words. The speech and the book. Hell, we don’t even know if it’s for real.”

“You really think she just pulled a five hundred page document out of her ass in like five hours?” Commander Shepard said, chuckling. “Sorry, but nobody on the crew can type that fast.”

“Shepard…” Picard sighed.

“Sorry, captain,” she said. “I’ll behave myself better.”

“Thank you,” Picard said.

“To tell you the truth,” Ronon said, actually managing a slight smile. “It was the most real thing said so far. I liked it.”

“You would,” Teyla said in a light-hearted tone, gaining a smirk from Ronon.

To Picard’s surprise, the group actually shared a light chuckle, and thus, the tension in the room eased dramatically. He couldn’t help but nod appreciatively Shepard’s way.

‘She may have her own style of diplomacy, but at least she’s not incapable of it.’

“I only brought this because I know you don’t trust us,” Leia said. “That much is obvious. However, you do seem to know a bit about us. Therefore, I challenge you to find anything in the charter that the Federation has knowingly contradicted so far.”

Ronon glanced at her, then at the book. “Still not sure if this isn’t just a big trick.”

“If you trust me, Ronon,” Luna said softly. “Then trust me when I say that this is, indeed, the official Federation Charter.” Her voice then went deadpan. “Believe me. I had to memorize the entire thing before graduating from Skyfleet.”

Shepard smirked slightly. “You don’t like a little light reading?”

“Not unless it’s Marx Twain,” Luna said.

“The point,” Leia interrupted. “Is that this charter is quite important to us. We don’t just throw it aside when it becomes inconvenient. And in the charter...” She quickly turned a couple hundred of pages before setting her finger on a small section. “Is a section relevant to this exchange. Wise One Teyla, could you recite it for us?”

She glanced back and forth, before frowning slightly. “I’m afraid I do not know your written word.”

“I do,” Ronon said, sighing heavily. “Give it here.” Leia passed it to him, and Ronon cleared his throat. “Gonna say right here and now I hate reading long text, but here goes.” He took a deep breath. “The Federation shall, under no circumstances, make harm towards any other lifeforms, be it on an individual, cultural, or species-wide basis. Even in times of war, force shall never be excessive and never more than what is needed to restore the peace.” Ronon then raised his eyebrows. “Long-winded much?”

“It’s worded in that way so there would be no question as to its intent,” Picard said.

“Alright, but couldn’t our actions towards you be considered an act of war, though?” Teyla asked skeptically.

“No,” Leia said, shaking her head. “Though it was accidental, we were the ones who made the first strike, which means the owness is on us to restore the peace at all costs. And as Ronon just read, we also, accidently, violated its spirit in terms of harming other lifeforms. Our radar’s effect on you qualifies as that, yes?”

“Perhaps,” Teyla said. “However, from what we understand, these radar devices help you almost as much as they harm us. Without them, you would not know an attack is coming.”

“It would put us at a slight disadvantage,” Picard admitted. “However, we are at peace with the Klingons at the moment, and before radar, we had other ways of anticipating attacks.”

“So, your Commander Riker wasn’t lying, it seems,” Teyla said, almost in disbelief. “You would… you would be willing to keep them off Farpoint?”

“Until we can find a way to keep them from being so destructive,” Leia said. “Yes.” Then in a warm tone, she continued with. “The Federation isn’t perfect. We’re more pacifistic than for our own good sometimes.” She gave Picard a sideways glance at that. “However, we do stand by our words: we mean no harm to anyone.”

Ronon still held a skeptical look. “What if the Klingons have their teeth around your neck? Would you still say the same thing?”

Commander Shepard spoke up at that. “Look, to be honest, I don’t like the idea of getting rid of any at all. However, if the Klingons had us beaten down that hard, it’d be because of a lot more than us getting rid of one radar.”

“Just this one? What about radar near other Thestral colonies?” Teyla asked.

“And don’t even think about asking for us to tell you where they are,” Ronon glared.

“You won’t need to,” Picard responded. “I will recommend to the Federation Council that we remove any radar near areas where Thestrals have been sighted. And you have my absolute assurance that Farpoint’s radar will remain disabled until further notice.”

“In addition, any ships approaching the island will be ordered to disable their built-in radars until they’ve cleared the area,” Leia added.

“You’re… you’re serious about this, aren’t you?” Teyla said hopefully. “Getting rid of your security… for us?”

“To be honest,” Picard said. “I wish we had met you under better circumstances. The primary mission of Skyfleet is to seek out new life and learn from it. I’m sure there’s plenty we can learn from you .”

“Many of us would not be too enthusiastic about interacting with other peoples just yet,” Teyla said warily.

“The Federation will interact as much or as little with you as you want,” Leia said. “Hell, you could even become citizens if you wanted.”

“No,” Ronon said bluntly.

“Ahem,” Teyla said. “What is that human saying? ‘Baby steps’? I think that applies here. That being said, though many among us may not wish to get to know you...” She then paused, standing up. “I am not one of them.”

Surprising Picard, she held a hand out. And for the first time since taking command of the Enterprise, he couldn’t help but feel elated. With a firm grasp, he shook. It was, indeed, cold as the bone, but the warmth of the moment easily melted through it.

“Teyla,” Ronon said, concerned. “You sure about this? It’s all happening kind of quickly.”

“Yes,” Teyla said. “Yes, I am. If you could, go ahead and release our two… guests.”

“Blindfolded?” Ronon asked.

“Mmm, indeed,” Teyla said, looking at Picard apologetically. “It is nothing personal, but as I said--”

“I fully understand, Wise One Teyla,” Picard interrupted, still smiling widely. “Believe me, ‘baby steps’ is better than no steps at all.”

“Damn, captain,” Shepard said. “Don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy.”

“Same,” Leia said, raising her eyebrows.

“I cannot blame him. This… this is amazing!” Luna said, joy filling her tone for the first time since Picard had met her. “We’re making more progress than even I did so long ago!”

“Yeah, yeah, we’re all best friends now,” Ronon groaned, turning to leave.

“Ronon?” Teyla said.

“No point in me sticking around,” he said. “Plus, I gotta clear your cave of the other humans.”

“Be nice.”

“To them? Sure.” He was now at the door. However, before he exited, he turned one more time to Picard, looking him over. “Keep in mind, though, captain, that my tribe doesn’t take broken promises laying down. We’re everywhere, and we’ll be watching. If you break your word, make no mistake, there won’t be anywhere on Hyporia you can hide. I’ll find you and I will kill you.”

Tasha quickly stood up from the table, looking like she was about to pounce on the Thestral.

“Tasha?” Picard said, flabbergasted by what was going on.

“Sorry sir, as Chief of Security, I can’t take threats like that lightly.”

“I am in agreement,” Teyla said. “Ronon, that was out of line.”

“I vowed to protect your people, Teyla,” Ronon said simply. “And I’m gonna do it whether you like it or not.” He then turned towards Tasha, smirking slightly. “You wanna protect your captain? Make sure he keeps his word. Cus I’ll keep mine. ”

Tasha merely responded with a glare.

Ignoring it, he then turned towards Luna, his tone softening slightly. “But I gotta say: despite it all, it was worth it to see a legend in the flesh.”

“Did I live up to it, child of the night?” Luna asked, a slight bit of tears in her eyes.

Ronon opened his mouth as if he were about to say something, but instead only smirked once more. “We’ll see.”

And without another word, he left the pub.

“Captain Picard,” Teyla said almost immediately afterwards. “Allow me to apologize for his behavior. He means well, he’s just…”

“Temperamental?” Shepard said.

“That would be an understatement,” Teyla laughed.

“It is not the first time I’ve been threatened nor will it be the last,” Picard said diplomatically. “However, at least in this case, the threat was meant for a good cause.”

Teyla blinked, gazing at him with a mix of confusion and respect. “You have a very… philosophical view of the world, captain.”

“Comes with the job,” Picard said.

She chuckled. “Well, if all captains take their jobs so seriously, then the Federation might not be so bad after all.“

Picard merely smiled in return.

Teyla then faced Luna. “As for you, my princess, though Ronon didn’t want to admit it, I’ll say it for him: you did live up to the legend. It was an honor to meet you.”

“The honor is mine,” Luna said softly.

Teyla lifted a finger. “There is something you brought up I’m worried about, however.”

“Oh?” Picard said, a hint of apprehension in his voice.

“The Klingons,” she said. “I’m concerned about what would happen if they took the island. And without your radar device…”

“As said, we can make due without it,” Picard said. “We will simply need to devote more naval vessels to the area for patrols.”

“I trust you will do what you can to protect the island,” Teyla said. “However…”

Shepard raised her eyebrows. “You want a stake in it.”

Teyla merely nodded.

Shepard grinned in return. “I think we can work something out.”

--

Captain’s Log, SFD 53.1932

It is with great joy that I may report that all hostages taken by our new Thestral friends have been released. This includes a grateful Major Sheppard, the flight officer previously kidnapped by them. Noting an absence of a pilot’s position aboard the Enterprise, he has opted to join the crew. Normally, I wouldn’t be open to a last minute transfer, but Commander Riker speaks quite highly of him. I only hope that CommanderShepard will excuse the confusion this may create in communications, but such is the life in Skyfleet.

In the meantime, Commander Riker will be joining me in my ready room for an informal debriefing. Despite the tense situation it created, I do believe he and his team handled themselves quite well, though whether he believes that himself is still a mystery.

“I refuse to believe you had no hand in smoothing the tension with the Thestrals,” Picard said, shaking his head as he sat at his desk, Riker across from him. “This is no time to be modest, Number One.”

“Whatever credit we can take isn’t much compared to what you, CN Luna and CM Leia did,” Riker said. “We owe our freedom to you.”

“I just want you to understand that what happened does not reflect poorly on you,” Picard said. “Mr. Worf seemed to blame himself, and I don’t know why. From all available reports, everyone involved handled things appropriately.”

“Worf’s a fine officer,” Riker said. “Though he can be a bit too hard on himself sometimes. Not sure if it’s a Klingon thing or just his own.”

“Regardless, all I can say is that I’m happy things worked out so smoothly,” Picard said, before smirking slightly. “And… interestingly.”

“Sir?”

“Let’s just say I didn’t expect the trip to Farpoint to be so… eventful,” Picard continued. “Forgive me, but it was actually a nice surprise.”

Riker chuckled. “Glad to be of service, captain. I’ll have to get captured more often.”

Picard chuckled at that. “In all seriousness, we did come out of the situation better than where we started.”

“I suppose,” Riker admitted. “I think losing a few radars is worth making contact with a new species.” He gazed at Picard pensively. "And satisfying that Q character you mentioned. Should we… should we be more concerned about him?"

"I do believe he was powerful," Picard states. "However, if we had failed his trial, we'd have known by now. Really, I don't want to give that matter much more thought - we can't afford to be second guessing ourselves all day."

"True," Riker nodded. "Oh, and I've heard Wise One Teyla has offered to lead patrols around Farpoint. Is that correct?"

"Indeed," Picard said. "It certainly made the admiralty happy knowing they wouldn't need to divert too many ships."

“After how much we hurt the Thestrals,” Riker said, shaking his head in bafflement. “It’s certainly generous of them.”

“Mhm,” Picard said. “I can only hope it’s the beginning of a more large-scale relationship with them.”

“Just a shame we couldn’t make friends with all of them,” Riker said. “I’m almost certain Ronon’s tribe know how to use those warpgates.”

“So, you believe they can be used for travel as well?”

Riker hesitated. “I didn’t at first, but now? I’m pretty sure the legends are true.”

“I share that belief. It’s a shame we can’t determine it at the moment, but perhaps Teyla’s people know its secrets, too,” Picard suggested. “However, we won’t push them into anything - if they wish to teach us, they should be the ones to make the first move.”

“‘The road of trust takes time to pave,’” Riker said.

“Sounds like a quote of T’Pol’s,” Picard said.

“Yes, sir,” Riker smiled. “Wrote a paper on her at Skyfleet Academy.”

“I’ll have to read it one of these days,” Picard offered, before leaning back in his chair slightly. “However, for now …”

“A little R&R?”

“Take the chance while you still can,” Picard said. “Remember, we’re heading into the unknown. Who knows what might happen?”

“That sounds like a plan if I’ve ever heard it,” Riker said. “I think I’ll go check out the cafeteria. But Captain …”

“Yes?”

“It was a pleasure to finally meet you,” he said formally.

“You as well, Number One.”

Without any more fanfare, Riker exited the room, leaving the captain’s only companion a stack of paperwork. However, before he began moving through it, there was a knock on his door.

“Come!” he called.

The door opened, and to his slight surprise, in peaked Princess Luna.

“CN Luna?” Picard said. “Please, come in. I actually wanted to speak with you.”

With that, she seemed to summon her courage, walking up to his desk. She was clearly out of her element. “I just thought… erm… well…”

Picard raised an eyebrow. Why was she acting so awkwardly all of a sudden… and why was she holding two teacups in her hands?

She coughed slightly. “Sorry. This… this isn’t easy for me, you know.”

“What isn’t easy?” Picard asked.

“Apologizing,” she said, offering a smile. “I’m not good at apologizing.”

Picard’s eyes widened ever so slightly, though he tried to hide his surprise the best he could. “Princess, you have nothing to apologize for. In fact, I’ve been wanting to thank you for how well you handled things on Farpoint. Without you I don’t think things would have turned out so ideally.”

At that, Luna’s posture performed a 180, going from tense to a state of relief. However, she still looked as if she had something to get off her mind. “I thank you very much for that, captain, but I still think I owe you an apology. Well, to be more accurate, I owe humanity an apology.”

“CN…” Picard said reassuringly. “Though I didn’t want to say it earlier, all that we are is a summation of our actions in the end. And until recently, that would cast a bad light on us.”

Luna smiled, before chuckling slightly. “‘What we were yesterday is not who we are today.’”

Picard gazed at her whimsically. “That quote was not my own, you know.”

Luna nodded. “My sister often said it.” She glanced away from Picard. “That was before…”

Picard looked at her sympathetically. “If it means anything, I do not believe a woman of her caliber is gone for good. She’s out there somewhere - along with the other missing VIPs. Who knows? We might be the ones to find them. And whoever abducted them will be brought to justice.”

“It is… part of the reason I’m here,” Luna admitted. She then gazed at the cups she was holding. “Anyway, I thought maybe you’d like to share a cup of tea with me? To, erm, seal the apology. You’re fine with two sugarcubes, yes?”

“Perfectly,” Picard said, giving another rare smile. “And I’d be delighted.”

He gestured towards a large, comfortable couch with a tea table in front, and the two took a seat, Luna handing him his tea. He took a quick whiff of the aroma and raised his eyebrows in surprise. The scent was deliciously familiar.

“Is this… Earl Grey Tea?” he asked, a hint of wonder in his voice.

Princess Luna nodded, taking a sip of her own. “Indeed, one of my favorites. Why? Is it not to your liking?”

With that, Picard found himself laughing for the first time in a while. “No, it’s quite fine.”

“And quite rare,” Princess Luna noted. “The leaves only grow in a very specific spot on the Terran Continent, from what I recall.”

“Indeed, near Ys, Gallia,” Picard said.

“You know of it?” Luna said in surprise.

“Of course, I was raised there,” Picard chuckled. “I must say, I’m surprised you have any. Logistics reported the capital city was completely devoid of it.”

She simpered slightly. “I might have had a hand in that, actually…”

“Oh?” Picard said.

“It’s possible that I… bought the last of it in the city,” she coughed.

She seemed to expect Picard to be angry with her, but instead he merely laughed. “Well, I suppose I can’t blame you: it’s quite the strong stuff.”

“Yet without the bitterness of that… coffee substance,” Luna noted. “If you enjoy it, you’re welcome to share in my stash. There’s more than enough for two people.”

Picard shook his head in bewilderment. His opinion on Princess Luna was already high, but now it was soaring.

“Princess Luna--”

“Please, just Luna,” she offered.

“Very well,” he said. “Luna, I believe you and I will get along just fine.”

Her smile widened at that. “R-Really?”

“I cannot deny the friendship of a fellow tea aficionado,” he stated bluntly. “And of a skilled officer.”

“Likewise, captain.”

And with a gaze of mutual respect, the two of them began to sip away.

--

Far away and where time stood still, three figures appeared in a flash of light. A supernaturally thick fog rolled around them, and ancient, near primordial trees loomed overhead. However, it didn’t seem to bother them. Their attention was focused only on each other. While it wouldn’t be easy to determine their moods, at the very least, their eyes still showed a hint of mutual respect.

Well, what could be called eyes in the case of one.

“Well, it would seem that your… pet? Shall we say? Has met your test, Q,” one of the figures spoke: a tall, pale-faced man in a sharp business suit.

“A ‘pet’ would imply a certain degree of affection,” Q stated. “I can’t say we’re there yet.” He then raised a finger. “However, though it took a little… prodding, he did perform above my expectations, along with the rest of their crew. I really need to stop underestimating dearest Luna.”

“Does this mean my… services, mmm, are no longer required?” the pale-faced man asked.

The third figure shifted at that, a ghastly skeletal menace cloaked in black. Though his eyes were nothing but black holes carved into his pale-white, cracked skull, they still bore into the other two in earnest. With a flick of his hands, the fog surrounding them began to coalesce into letters before him. Their message was simple: “ NO. BUT FOR NOW, THE EXPERIMENT MUST CONTINUE.”

The pale-faced man grinned wickedly. “Mr… Gaster. Let me just say how pleased… I am to hear this. If you believe… they will need extra help, I have someone, ahem, special in mind.”

“What you’re asking for in payment is too high,” Q said sternly. “I am not willing to go there until I’m sure the Enterprise can’t do this on its own. Don’t forget, she hasn’t consolidated her power yet, not completely.”

The pale-faced man merely chuckled darkly.

Gaster maneuvered his hands once more, and again, the fog formed into words before him. “TIME WILL SHRED ALL UNCERTAINTY.”

“Indeed it will,” Q said, narrowing his eyes. “Indeed it will.”