A Place Beyond Time and Space

Posted on Thu Jan 11th, 2024 @ 9:08am by Captain Shran dh'Klar & Lieutenant Inara Senn

Mission: Hard Earned Peace
Location: A Field of Flowers, Dreamworld

Inara walked though the field and entered a pastoral meadow. In the middle there was an absolutely beautiful blonde, one she recognized. She walked up to her.

"My Arrianna." She noted.

"I don't deserve that name."

"To me... You will always be my Arrianna." She responded and walked up. They have given us a few nights, until we can be together again." Josephine noted.

"I have been so obsessed. So hateful."

"Shh, come here, lay with me." She helped her down on a patch in the field. And they began to stare at each other in a way that would make a goddess of love envious."

"Even in your dreams you are weak, broken" Hela remarked. "Yes, even here I can find you. Nowhere you can hide from me. You'll come to see things from my point of view eventually, or you will become mad as a hatter." She laughed maniacally.

"No my love, don't look at her, my eyes." Josephine held her gaze. "Let go... Let it all go, for when you are weak think of my eyes."

"I love you," Inara noted.

"I have faith in you."

"Yes, look into her eyes. She the pain, the sorrow, the grief filled in her eyes. You caused it all you know" Hela said. "She was tortured because of you, raped and beaten because of you, killed because of you. You say you love her, but how have you treated that which you loved, but with scorn and contempt. Your version of love makes Zeus look positively chaste. Rather than casting blame on others, why not place the blame on the truly guilty, on yourself. Surely you know what I say to be true. You are the real guilty party. You have caused enough pain, better to end it now than to poison the lives of so many others."

"Enough" said another voice, one familiar to both Inara and Hela. It was the same voice of the woman that had appeared in the arboretum, and for some reason, Hela appeared shaken hearing it.

"Forgive me..." Inara said, watching her Josie.

"I already have. You've carried this pain for so long, let it go." Inara reached over and gave her a light kiss.

Hela seemed hesitant. "You have carried the pain for so long. Release it. Release yourself from the burden that is life."

Inara didn't care what Hela did or said anymore, Josie was her world, not Hela, she pulled Josie into her embrace and began sleeping with her. 'I forgive you; I forgive everything. But it will take time... Time for me to forgive. Time for me to understand these... gods.'

As suddenly as the sleep seemed to have come, so it was when it suddenly ended as Inara was jerked out of bed forcefully by Lt Hillis. Ayana had her usual serious demeanor about her as she stared at Inara for a moment before announcing, "The captain has summoned you. I'm to escort you, now." It was almost menacing the way she said what she had to say, but perhaps the worst part was that she was armed and looked fully prepared to use said phaser should it be necessary.

The door to the captain's ready room opened and Ayana escorted Inara inside. The room was empty, except for Shran sitting at his desk looking pensive, and perhaps a bit perturbed. He acknowledged the women and gave a simple gesture dismissing Ayana. As the door closed, the anticipation became palpable. He stood and slowly walked around his desk, just staring at Inara. Finally, he broke his silence, "Your infantile outburst caused quite the scene lieutenant" he said in an emotionless steady tone. "I would like an explanation to it, considering not only did your words cause tremendous insult and injury to our guests, but also to Shon, who is already dealing with quite a bit I think you would agree. So, tell me lieutenant, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"Do you expect me to think better of Morrigan? She may have saved my life, once; but she stood by and let Hela take a child. Superior beings??!?" Inara exclaimed. "I have not slept for three days since Hela arrived. That is because if she tortured and tormented me while I was conscious, imagine what she could have done to me in my subconscious, and it was the only way I could fight her vile influence, captain," She noted. "Furthermore, I put Hela and Morrigan amongst the lowest most vile creatures I have ever encountered, as one of them unleashes cruelty for her own pleasure and the other witnesses this, watching and telling us we can do nothing like gladiators in the coliseum." Inara mentioned. "Why the hell was she even here? Immortal yes, superior? More evolved?? The only thing different between them and us, is they won the evolutionary jackpot and somehow became gods."

"That you have been awake that long explains why you may have done what you did, but it doesn't excuse it. You are a StarFleet officer, you have undergone the same training to handle such stressful situations. If you wish to continue to wear that uniform, you'll learn to better control your emotions" he said in rebuke. "You owe Shon and Seth both an apology, and that is something you will need to do once this current situation has resolved itself" he said in a more calm, almost fatherly voice. "I understand you have strong opinions about these beings. I may even agree with you to a point, particularly regarding Hela, but I do believe you are judging the whole too harshly for the sins, real or otherwise, of the whole. Brigid says that you have past sins that you refuse to take ownership of, that they jade you, especially in regard to our current situation. If this is true, I suggest you take a few moments to introspect and come to some sort of new and better temperament. We all have our demons, but you cannot allow them to get the better of you."

"Very well, Captain. I'll apologize to them." Inara noted. "Is there anything else?" She was becoming more isolated again. She had a different look in her eyes. A woman who was now being tormented than more than just the gods.

"Understand lieutenant, I take no pleasure in having to talk to you in this way. I understand you have dealt with great hardships, but so have many aboard this ship. You need to seek out a new way of dealing with things rather than walling yourself up. Isolating yourself won't help you, nor will alienating yourself from your colleagues."

"I cannot fight them... I cannot run from them, and you can't protect me from them." Inara noted. "They have my mate. They've tortured her. They've tortured me. Tormented me every waking moment. No doubt for fun." Inara mentioned. "And now I don't care anymore. I know they're going to be back." Her eyes shook with fear. "And I know they're going to hurt me and anyone I'm close to. I'll never be free of them, and I'll never be happy in this life!! I'm losing my mind."

"You may be right. You may not be able to fight them in the traditional sense, nor can you run from them, but that doesn't mean you have to let the bastards win. From what I can tell, Hela tortures you because you make it easy for her, like a game. Stop playing the game. She goads you; you don't have to give her a response. I'll tell you something that not many know. When I was with intelligence, I was on assignment once and was captured. Those that captured me, they didn't have any reason to keep me alive except the joy they had in torturing me, and the only real thing I had to live for was getting back to my family. I spent 6 weeks with those vile people, and they tortured me mercilessly every moment until Deanna led a team to rescue me. I understand what you are going through. I understand the anger, the frustration, the feelings of futility. I know you think things will never get better, but I assure you, as bad as you may feel things are now, they will get better. Nothing, not even a so called immortal last forever."

"They may have tortured you captain, but it is far more humiliating for them to turn you into something else." Inara mentioned. "That's the shame a former slave has to live with." She sighed. "I don't know, captain. They've offered to give me back Josie... in thirty years. A fine sentence of poetic justice, and they've arranged a form of visitations for this prison, in my dreams, for that time." Inara mentioned. "They are not without mercy, my Josie told me some even admire my love for her. They've arranged this... visiting hours. But my trust for them is strained. I am done with Hela. I don't know about Morrigan. Watching evil, and doing nothing, is a far more hideous wickedness, and that's what I abhor about the Prime Directive. How many times have we witnessed the most hideous crimes imaginable and have been ordered to do nothing." Inara mentioned. "This is how a certain failed Austrian painter managed to gain power in Europe once upon a time... People did nothing. And when I saw Morrigan, how she saved my life, and yet did nothing it incensed me. " Inara mentioned. "They did nothing about Cragen too, except figure out what they had, and how Starfleet could use it in my time. After the Dominion War, we seemed to start the hideous post-war process of losing our principles for the sake of security. Round and round the widening gyre, the falcon cannot hear the falconer. Things fall apart, the center cannot hold, mere anarchy is loosed upon the world, and everywhere, there ceremony of innocence is drowned. The best lack all conviction, while the worst is filled with passionate intensity.'" Inara noted. "That's why I left, I was angered and sickened by it. Just like my time. Morrigan was doomsaying and it felt like nothing was being accomplished but Hela's victory." She noted. "And I know I'm guilty of things. I know that when I hated these decisions, and saw that my protests were being 'noted,' it made me despise being alive. How could they do such things and call themselves Starfleet officers? And how can a god justify robbing a child from her mother's womb!!!! It was the most depraved thing I've seen, and I didn't want to be a spectator to it. I was screaming inside for her to do something, but all she did was stand around and doom-say like she was some kind of arbiter of divine justice. And afterwards, it made me angry thinking that her young boy or girl would be raised by someone who would torture them, just like Hela tortured me." She shed tears. "I'm sorry for everything, I cannot abide Hela nor Morrigan. I compounded wrongs and used that to make more wrongs. I couldn't live with it, even though they ordered me to live with it, as they made deals with Cragen behind closed doors."

"I don't expect you to forgive those that harmed you and your companion Josie. The politics of any government or even individual can cause difficulties for others. You don't have to like the Prime Directive, but it exists for important reasons, reasons that at times are unclear. You don't have to like it, but it is the reality." Shran turned away from her and walked over to the terrarium he had, a small replica of Andoria. It offered him solace. "These gods, entities, whatever you wish to call them, they are neither good nor evil. They have powers, wonderful in a way, awesome to be sure, but potentially dangerous as well. Personally, I try to look at them like beings similar to the Q. They poke, prod, annoy, occasionally help, but they can't be blamed for everything. Q had an adversarial relationship with Picard, his one encounter with Sisko was combative, but when he dealt with Janeway he was far more cordial. So it will be with these entities. I suggest you attempt to make amends with Morrigan at the least."

"I don't know if I can forgive Morrigan for this. Maybe I'll try. Maybe I will, if some wounds can heal. Mine... it will take a lifetime... I'm sorry, Brigid, but Hela... I'm done with her. She will not get a response out of me, as she is not worthy of my attention."

Brigid appeared next to Inara. "Your desire to avoid Hela is understandable but unrealistic. She will continue to appear to you because you entertain her. I understand that sounds vile, but it is part of her chaotic nature. You give her something she needs, just as it is with your colleague and the child."

"I'm tired of it, Brigid. Tired of her." Inara noted. "Tired of all this. Tired of everything. I feel like I've lived five lifetimes." Inara noted. "And now all I want in the years I have to be apart from Josephine, is to disappear with her, to a place without gods, technology, politics... Walk away from everything. But I know Hela will be right there waiting when it's time for us to reunite. She will never let me have peace, Brigid." Inara mentioned. "I'll have to pay for the same crimes again and again in this life, and the only crime I am truly guilty of... Is loving someone too much."

"You know that isn't true" Brigid replied plainly. "You are guilty of far more, but of the things you are guilty of, loving someone is not of your crimes. If it were in my power, I would free you of Hela. Truly I would. Morrigan would as well, though she wouldn't admit it at this time. I know you are troubled by all that is going on, but all I can tell you is that this will soon be over, and when it is, Hela will be gone, and you will find rest once more. The outcome may not be the one you want, but it is the one that will happen. It is for the best. I will not say more than that, for your sake."

"Permission to be dismissed, Sir?" Inara noted in conclusion.

"Very well. Dismissed" Shran agreed.