[2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

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[2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

June 04, 2019, 10:16:04 PM

[ Capt Erich Ducote | Tiran Residence | Houston Suburbs | Earth ] attn: @BZ

He had requisitioned a type-9 shuttlecraft for the journey from San Francisco. There were certain things for which physical travel seemed necessary - when simply teleporting onto someone's front porch might be abrupt. Intrusive. Impolite. For someone as rules-obsessed as he, it just wasn't done, and so he could not. The fact that the (albeit short) travel time gave him some moments to himself was entirely incidental. Erich estimated he had the rest of the day at least to wait before he could sit down and process the news he'd received forty hours ago. The second call he had made after reading the report had been to Ratela, on Tellar.

[Show/Hide]

The Endeavour had been destroyed. Rescue ships were dispatched, but there was a transwarp signature in the area and the flotilla had initially hung back to await heavier reinforcements from Outpost 23. Escape pod beacons were detected, and some survivors found. But so few from the crew of hundreds. And none more senior than a lieutenant. Then they'd found the hulk of the cruiser, inert, trailing atmospheric gases and propellant. More bodies aboard, confirming KIAs from the long list of missing officers.

Twenty ships with active scans made short work of the relevant volume. 24 hours into the search, and every last lifeboat with an active beacon had been found. Several whose beacons had failed, too. Small craft wreckage betrayed the fate of the Endeavour's shuttle complement. Most of the flotilla made for medical facilities nearby, with only a couple of ships remaining to perform a token search for stragglers. The group captain had decided that they had discovered all they could.

His son had not been found. Evacuated through a hull breach, perhaps. Or assimilated. For now, he was still able to (mostly) dispassionately consider those possibilities.

But there was another factor to consider. Blue Tiran.

Another one Missing, Presumed Dead.

It had taken a small amount of digging - less than Blue might have previously implied - to find her parents. They still lived in the home from which Blue had absconded on her way to Starfleet, that she'd had to give the recruiters to avoid the extra paperwork of going in 'unaccompanied'. He couldn't leave this to some Diplomatic lackey, or some stuffed jacket from the Corps of Engineers over Mars who wouldn't have the first clue who she was. He had to do it himself. It was the done thing. It had cost him a couple of favours, and he owed one or two more, but he'd swung it so that he could be the one to deliver the news.

And so the sleek form of a type-9 shuttle was landing on a wide suburban thoroughfare in the shade of a poplar tree on a late afternoon in Houston. It was a smaller shuttle, so it wouldn't block the street, but that didn't mean you could miss its arrival. That didn't stop Erich from powering it down properly and ensuring everything was neatly secured before he stood from the chair and straightened his jacket.

He'd changed into his dress whites, his gold shirt and four pips the indicators of his station and responsibility. Long-service and meritorious-conduct ribbons made a narrow, colourful strip on one breast of his ivory jacket. He took a breath, then stepped down the descending access ramp and turned towards the nearest house, walking around the engine faring that still tick-tick-ticked away as it cooled.

The heat here prickled his brow, but it was nothing compared to the humid oppression of home, or even the cooler-but-coastal air of San Fran. It was dry. And perhaps packing the white coat had done him a favour here, too. He checked a mid-size PADD in his hand as if making sure he was in the right place, despite knowing full well the coordinates had been correct and he hadn't misremembered them in the first place.

The house itself was single-storey, with a wide porch that wrapped around at least the front three walls of the building. The front garden was immaculate, with terrestrial and imported flowers waving happily in the scant breeze. Either the Tirans had recovered from their string of bereavements, or they had thrown themselves into their surroundings as a distraction. And here he was, to peel open those wounds anew.

"Stop stalling," he grumbled to himself, walking through the gate and latching it behind him.

Relatively reflective his dress jacket might be, but getting under the eaves of the house still took most of the edge off the sun beating down on him. His heels thunked into the decking as he reached towards the doorbell and pressed it.

He tucked the PADD under one arm, then tugged at a cuff to even them out a little, before standing with his hands clasped behind his back to await an answer. They were in; he'd scanned the house on the approach.

"God give me strength," he whispered almost imperceptibly to himself.

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #1 – June 05, 2019, 07:14:18 PM

[Eleanor & Richard Tiran | Houston, Texas | Earth | Nail in the Coffin]
@Top Hat

The home was a lovely sprawling ranch style home sandwiched in a very average and ordinary neighborhood. The orange-red brick and the white trim were obviously well kept to all the passers by as they came past the Tiran home. The mailbox, an archaic and never used attraction, at the end of the small sidewalk that lead towards the street, showed their last name in lovely flowing white letters. Beneath the windows and underneath the porch lovely flowers both terran and alien in nature swayed slightly to the slight reprieve of the Houston breeze that made life a bit more tolerable when it blew. When it didn't, the heat was sticky, oppressive, and just plain uncomfortable. It was a testament to this discomfort that despite being in the middle of the day there were no children outside running around playing games of Starfleet or tag. Instead, the thrum of environmental units filled the air keeping the homes at the right temperatures to avoid heat stroke and to invoke comfort.

The porch was rimmed with white pickets. Some of which had been allowed to be over run by a flowering ivy that was spewing it's petals towards the sky in an effort for as much food as possible. On the porch itself sat a few rocking chairs though no one in their right mind would be outside using them in this heat. That was best saved for after dark, and with as much anti-insect deterrent as you could stand. The mosquitoes were blood sucking vampires that left itchy welts behind. No one was kind to them.

As Erich Ducote stepped onto the porch the scent of lavender and mint assaulted his senses. In large over flowing pots on the porch these plants stood, a natural mosquito deterrent, in an effort to at least cut down on the population. As he stepped onto the porch a small chime was heard inside the home.

“Rich, someone is at the door.” called a woman's voice from the kitchen where she sat pouring her iced tea into a large tall glass already starting to bead with condensation.

“I heard the chime Elle.” he paused at the small panel in the kitchen and thumbed across it showing the video feed of the man in dress whites on the porch. A serious expression on his face as he stood there looking at the door waiting for entrance. “It's... someone from Starfleet.”

Eleanor's head popped up and swiveled over to see her husband. He was older, time had been hard on the both of them. The death of Arthur had sent them into a deep depression and it was only when Angela came home about four years ago that they she had intervened and gotten them help. Grey heathered the once dark black hair of her husband. At the temples and the sides, though had left the top mostly untouched for now. She herself had a thick black braid of curls down her own back neatly kept though thick strands of silver flowed through it like a ribbon.

“Why would... do you think it's.. it's about Em? We had wondered.. hadn't we?” she said softly as she put the pitcher of tea down nervously. They hadn't had any word on their daughter Emelia for so very long, they hadn't even realized she had left for a long time. A ashamedly amount of time. “Wait! What if it's about Arthur!” she spun the hope budding in her eyes.

“Elle, we buried him a long time ago, and spent our lives.. Em's life.. grieving. It's can't-”

“But it could” she said swallowing with all the hope in the world. Rich sighed softly and shook his head. “I better let him in.” Rich said brushing a hand through his hair nervously as he walked to the front of the house.

“I'll pour more tea.” she said getting down two more glasses of sweet iced tea, the drink of the South, and poured them as well.

Captain Ducote was only outside for a matter of three or so minutes before the front locks disengaged and the door opened. Revealing that Blue took after her father in a great many ways. She had his sharp nose, those crystalline blue eyes, and he was fairly thin. He wore a pair of denim shorts with cargo pockets, no shoes, and a old comfortable t-shirt with the logo of his company emblazoned on the front. His eyes took in the Captain with his hat and PADD tucked to the side, and then gave a bit of a smirk to the man and held out his hand.

“Richard Tiran, pleasure to meet you, uh, Captain.” he said warmly and then once handshakes were out of the way he moved to the side allowing Erich into the comfort of environmental controls and a life without sun.

While the sun wasn't beaming down any longer, the home was filled with light. There were tons of windows letting in natural lighting. “If you'll follow me.”

The men walked down a very short hallway and into the great room. There was a sitting area around a viewing screen mounted to the wall. Two small white chairs and a large long white couch. A table in the center of all of these. Through the windows in the back of the room, Erich would be able to see a virtual Eden of flowers out in the backyard. Behind the living area was a small dining area and a doorway to the kitchen. It was there, that Blue's mother, Eleanor stepped out with a tray full of sweet iced tea, and come store bought cookies.

“Hello.” she said brightly as she motioned to the chair. “Please make yourself comfortable.” she said warmly as she dolled out the tea and then left the cookies in the center of the table so that anyone could at if they wanted to. Once everything was settled the way she liked the Tirans took their seat on the couch adjacent to the Captain's chair and looked at him. She with hope, he with curiosity.

“Is this about Arthur?” Eleanor blurted out quickly. “He .. he was found?”

“Elle! What the hell! I told you this can't be about Arthur. He's dead. Remember?”

“But they.. they never found his body maybe they found him on some planet or he was taken or.. or he was in an escape pod all these years and he's been just fine! Miracles happen, Richard!”

Richard sighed and his face aged slightly as he turned his attention back to the Captain. “I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce my wife, Eleanor. What can we do for you today, Captain?”

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #2 – June 18, 2019, 07:57:27 PM

[ Capt Erich Ducote | Tiran Residence | Houston Suburbs | Earth ] attn: @BZ

Erich reflected that he should probably set about amending the theory of relativity at some point; namely, The length of a minute depends upon which side of an air-conditioned door you stand. Even in the shade, the oppressive heat and restrictive uniform were conspiring to leave beads of sweat on the back of his neck, despite his warm homeland and tropical current home. Nevertheless, he didn't move. Eventually, he heard footsteps approaching the door.

"Richard Tiran, pleasure to meet you, uh, Captain." He had Blue's face, he realised. Not that it should be surprising, all things considered, but the resemblance was still fairly close. His hair, though, more closely resembled Erich's own, with its dark hues and grey temples.

Erich shook the proffered hand and followed him inside, suppressing the urge to sigh in relief at the cooler air. The view out of the rear windows told a tale of more flower beds and immaculately-tended gardens. Rather different from Ratela's 'cultured wilderness' style that she maintained in their little orchard terrace.

"Hello. Please make yourself comfortable." Eleanor Tiran.

Ducote smiled politely and sat in the indicated seat, though not before he pulled a slim black case out of his pocket, decorated only with a stamped UFP laurel, and set it on the table near him - perfectly, squarely aligned with the edge of the surface, next to his glass of tea.

"Is this about Arthur?" came a sudden question. He blinked and hurried to catch up as Richard engaged in a back-and-forth with her. Arthur, the dead sibling. Whom Eleanor clearly wanted to still be alive, but missing somewhere. And now he had to tell her that one of her daughters was being assumed dead, but truthfully hadn't been found either.

Finally, and far too late, he realised what an error he'd made coming here. He was neither prepared nor qualified to navigate this particular minefield. He made a rapid mental calculation without meaning to - the latest marques of diplomatic cutter could maintain warp 8 comfortably.. but he wasn't sure if Tellar had many to spare for a last-minute journey like Ratela's, even if they were a Founder World. Call it warp 7 for safety... that put her days away.

No. You're here. You're here now. You fix it.

"I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce my wife, Eleanor. What can we do for you today, Captain?"

The veteran officer cleared his throat, his face still unchanging through years of long practise. "It's a pleasure to meet you both, though I wish it were under better circumstances. My name is Captain Erich Ducote, of Starfleet Security..." he looked at Eleanor specifically for a moment, "I am afraid this isn't about Arthur, no."

He shifted in his seat, wondering how best to go about this. "Ah, tell me - what do you know of your daughter-" he hitched on the name 'Blue', "-Emelia? Was there any contact she made after she left home?"

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #3 – June 25, 2019, 09:06:13 PM

[Eleanor and Richard Tiran | Houston, Texas | Earth | Awkward Silences & Disbelief]
@Top Hat

The Tirans watched the Captain with apt curiosity. One with eyes filled with hope the kind that clung to things that made no sense. Even after all these years, even after losing all her children in one way or another, gaining one back, and not being able to find the youngest, she still held hope. But, it wasn't hope that all her children were well, it wasn't hope that Emilea was just on the porch hiding and they had somehow found her after she had left home just after high school. It wasn't any of that, it was the hope that Arthur was miraculously alive. No matter his mental and physical state, no matter the horrors that he had seen or experienced, she just knew that Starfleet wouldn't be here if it weren't for Arthur. The other, was filled with simple curiosity and a bit of trepidation of what this meeting could actually mean. He had no doubts it had nothing to do with Arthur, that had been so long ago, he hoped that it wasn't bad news but for a Starfleet Captain to be sitting across from him in his living room, it was doubtful it was good news.

Richard sat there, and watched the man as he pulled a small black case out of his pocket and lined it up carefully on the table before them. They could both see the UFP logo emblazoned on the top but there was no telling exactly what was inside. The Captain, introduced himself again and told them he was from Starfleet Security.

“I'm sorry... Security?” Richard stated as he leaned forward a bit before settling back again. Waiting to see what it was that was going on.

When he mentioned that this had nothing to do with Arthur Eleanor's face fell. The hope escaped her eyes for a moment and her shoulders slumped. Despite knowing that he was likely dead, and they had indeed had a funeral for him and everything, she had always held hope that he would come back. That they would be wrong and Starfleet would have come back with him yet. Saying they were wrong, they found him, and he was coming home finally. Richard squeezed her hand gently and they waited to see what else the man had to say.

When the Captain continued asking what they knew about Emilea, their bodies tensed significantly. Eleanor looked over at Richard who was staring at the Captain. She was the first one to speak though. “I knew that she would end up getting herself in trouble. Remember that we found all that stuff in her room, notes home from teachers. Disrespectful attitudes, cursing, and lack of motivation! I didn't think she would amount to much of anything.”

“Eleanor! You can't fault her for what she has or hasn't done. We …”

“No! Don't you blame me for this!” she said indignantly.

“I'm not blaming you, I'm blaming myself as much as anyone. We created what she became.”

“No! We raised her to be a good person, and she turned into some kind of mean girl.”

Richard sighed. “No, we raised her for a while, then she raised herself. You chose not to see it because it's easier for you to believe. We don't know what she has or hasn't done. I'm sorry Captain, I'll answer your question.”

“She ran away!” Eleanor jumped in. “right after high school. We don't know where she went, or what she was doing. All we know is that we haven't seen her in a very long time.”

Richard ran a hand down his face and pinched the bridge of his nose in a very Blue manner, like when she was getting ready to lose her shit on someone. Erich would have seen it a lot during her visits. He finally took a deep breath and looked at the Captain. “It's true, Em ran away from home right after high school. My wife and I were in a dark place, we .. failed in our jobs. We looked for her for a few years but we could never find anything about her. We assumed she had gone off like her sister. Angela has returned home recently, and helped us a lot. But, we still can't find Em. I assume you aren't here because you wanted to get to know my family. So, do you know what happened to our daughter? Where she is?”

“If she's caused trouble then we aren't-” Eleanor started before Rich's hand came down on her own and gave it a squeeze.

“If she's caused trouble, we will be there for her, like we weren't in the past.” he said firmly.

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #4 – June 30, 2019, 11:41:18 AM

[ Capt Erich Ducote | Tiran Residence | Houston Suburbs | Earth ] attn: @BZ

Disrespectful attitudes, cursing, and lack of motivation. He couldn't help but smile sadly for a second before his face restored its passivity. He could at least say that by the time she got to the Academy, that last accusation was false. The others, though...

He allowed the conversation to play out between the married couple. With every declaration and disagreement he was building a clearer picture of the terrain in the room, and there was no real need for him to interrupt. Eleanor was understandably clinging to the hope that her children would come home, whereas Richard had resigned himself to the probabilities. Erich wondered where on that spectrum he was; he wanted to say that his son would be coming home for R&R, as soon as he was cleared by Medical perhaps, but a dozen ships with full-spectrum scans had failed to pick up any more escape pods or shuttles, nor any other trace thereof.

But Ranaan was dead or drone, now. He would have to come to terms with that.

"If she's caused trouble, we will be there for her, like we weren't in the past."

The captain nodded. "Well, that won't be necessary, Mister Tiran. I can fill in some of the gaps for you, however. When she ran away from here, she went to the nearest Starfleet recruitment office. She started her training at the Academy that year. The reason you were never notified is that she requested you not be. Given that she was found to have the capacity and the legal status to do so, Starfleet abided by that request." He slid the PADD over the table towards them - across the top were the words Lieutenant Commander TIRAN, Emelia "Blue" Marguerite. "Her service jacket. Every aptitude score, peer evaluation, commendation... reprimand." He gave another wry smile. "She never stopped cursing, either. But despite her rough edges, no instructor nor superior officer could doubt her ability. She made Assistant Chief Engineer on her third assignment, to the Gettysburg, and Chief on her fourth. The Endeavour."

Erich opened the slim black case in front of him, then turned it around to face the Tirans and pushed that over the table towards them, too. "A Gold and a Diamond Star, for meritorious conduct and sang-froid in extremis. The exact citations are listed in her record, there."

He shifted in his seat, and took a sip of the sweet tea to wet his suddenly-parched mouth. "She also engaged, a few months ago." He hesitated; this would put together another missing piece - namely why he in particular was here. "To the First Officer of the Endeavour: Commander Ranaan Ducote."

There he did pause, partly to allow them room to ask any questions, and partly to collect himself and ensure he maintained his stoic countenance. Saying the following news aloud to someone outside his immediate family or the Fleet almost felt like making it unavoidably real. He cleared his throat before it became too hoarse, his gaze switching outwardly-calmly between Eleanor and Richard.

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #5 – July 01, 2019, 09:48:31 PM

[Eleanor & Richard Tiran | Houston | Texas | Earth | Heart Broken but Proud]
@Top Hat

As the Captain spoke, Richard's heart fell into his stomach. If they didn't need to be there for Emelia, if she didn't need back up, and yet a Captain from Starfleet was here to talk to them; it likely wasn't going to be the news they wished to hear. He shifted up right as the Captain admitted to being able to fill in the gaps. He explained that Emelia had left home, running away, and joined the Starfleet Academy. She had purposefully asked that her parents not be notified and since she was a full on adult, they couldn't stop her from doing so. Eleanor held her hand over her chest, clutching her shirt there, and hanging onto every word that came out of the Captain's mouth.

“Just like Arthur, she followed his footsteps.” she whispered softly, as tears welled into her eyes but they didn't fall yet, still she clung to hope. It was there in the eyes, in the rapt attention that the Captain Ducote was getting at this moment.

The Captain pulled out his PADD and opened it with his own thumbprint before he slid it across the table. Richard was the one that carefully picked it up, across the top was [Lieutenant Commander, TIRAN, Emelia “Blue” Marguerite]. He twisted his hand so that Eleanor could look at it and her breath hitched. There was a picture of Blue, on the left corner of it. When they clicked on it, it got larger, and there was a fairly recent picture of a woman that couldn't be bothered to take pictures. The riotous black and blue curls, the pips on her collar, the fact that she wore the colors of Engineering. Her eyes were fierce and yet, kind in a way. Richard swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat at the picture of his daughter. There was a small blue line at the bottom [previous official images]. He clicked it and there was a picture of Blue for every year she was in Starfleet as an officer. Every promotion, every time she needed a new ID because it had been another year. It was like watching her grow up a little bit, in a way.

Richard looked up from the pictures as Captain Ducote continued to speak about Emelia. About how she never quit cursing but outside of that her instructors and Captain's never found any true fault with her. Not really, anyway. On the main page she had a fair amount of reprimands. But, he wasn't paying attention to those at the moment, he was listening about how smart she was. How she was Assistant Chief, then Chief of Engineering of a whole Starfleet ship! He was amazed that she had turned out so well, all on her own. He knew that despite Eleanor's hope, they had little to nothing to do with how Emelia had grown up.

“Chief Engineer and Lieutenant Commander.” Richard rubbed a hand across the back of his head in disbelief. He swallowed heavily, listening to the accolades of the daughter they had forgotten. Who had kept her shit together somehow and become amazing in her own right. He looked over at his wife, who was looking at the pictures of Emelia and sniffling softly.

“She's all grown up.” she whimpered softly.

“She did good for herself, Elle.” he said in a gentle tone.

Another something slid across the table and Richard looked down to find two shining medals there on black velvet and in a black case. A Gold star and a Diamond Star. He looked up at the Captain as he explained what they were for and let out a long breath. “She.. she turned into a good person then. I always wondered, my wife and I .. went through a really dark time and .. when we finally got around it she was gone. We tried at first to find her, but there was nothing out there. She just, disappeared. I had hoped one day she would come home and see us, but... I think she went off to find her own life and make her own family it seems.”

He flipped back to the Jacket and looked through it. “It says she published sixteen studies on AI and Engineering. She also has some highly acclaimed papers on some sort of PADD Interface system. She worked on several ships.”

“She was always good at making things out of nothing.” Eleanor whispered softly leaning close to look at the PADD with her husband.

The Captain spoke again, and both of the Tiran's looked at him as he did so. Stating that she had recently been engaged. Eleanor smiled at that one, and Richard followed suit a moment later. “You see that, we didn't break her! We didn't. I .. I feared we had. She must have been very lonely.” Eleanor said softly as she smiled. Though they were both extremely surprised when he mentioned the man by name. Not only was he a First Officer, but he was a Ducote, and this man's son.

“So then, you're not just from Starfleet, you're family.” she smiled brightly and gave Richard a squeeze on his arm.

Richard had thumbed through Blue's service record.

“Why.. did she go by Blue? I've never heard this name before?” Richard asked.

“What about the Commander?! How did she meet him? What were they like together? Do you have any pictures of them? I want to know all about what happened!”

Richard tilted his head to the side, as he studied the Captain's face, and the fact that he was here. After all he made it clear that Emelia had asked them not to be notified. He was here with her service jacket, her medals, and it wasn't because Emelia had wanted them to reunite. She wasn't here, just he was. So it wasn't with good news and good fortune. He would only be here if... if it was the end.

“She... she's gone isn't she?” Richard asked, his voice dropping in and out as the sorrow of never getting to see his daughter hit him right in the gut.

“What?” Eleanor stopped thinking of other questions as that came about.

Richard didn't answer, he just looked at Erich and waited.

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #6 – July 14, 2019, 12:25:37 PM

[ Capt Erich Ducote | Tiran Residence | Houston Suburbs | Earth ] attn: @BZ

Richard's talk seemed mostly for his own benefit, and so Erich declined to put in - instead, he sat quietly, wondering how best to navigate the minefield he had idiotically crashed right into. It was something, though, to see the two damaged people across from him enjoy the window into Blue's life... something they had managed to deny themselves when she was just a child. For all of Ranaan's faults - the irascible stubbornness, the absolute refusal to talk to him about anything meaning he had to monitor his son's progress through mutual acquaintances instead - he couldn't imagine a life where he might have had all that ahead of him and somehow cut himself out of it.

Once upon a time, he might have offered a silent There but for the grace of God go I, but now his son was dead. He would get to experience their grief for himself anyway.

"So then, you're not just from Starfleet; you're family."

A muscle ticked in Erich's jaw involuntarily, before he gave a pained smile at another loss. "Ah, yes, I suppose I am."

"Why... did she go by Blue?"

"A nickname she picked up at school or the Academy, I think. Eyes, hair... demeanour. Rather than be branded by it, she made it her own. I made the mistake of calling her Emelia to her face precisely once - she very much preferred to be known as Blue."

"What about the Commander?! How did she meet him? What were they like together? Do you have any pictures of them? I want to know all about what happened!"

"I... don't, actually, have any pictures of them," he realised, looking off to one side. All the times he'd sworn that Blue wasn't 'suitable' or was some sort of miscreant who had lucked her way up the ladder, because he didn't like that Ranaan had fallen in with someone who wasn't a careerist or from a line of public servants like he was... despite how obviously they worked well together, and propped each other up in little invisible ways... Erich swallowed. A bitter pill of self-recrimination. "There, ah, will likely be several in my son's effects. I will send copies along when I get home. As for how they met-"

"She... she's gone, isn't she?"

Erich's gaze flicked to Richard's face, and stayed there. Eleanor sputtered, "What?"

"The Endeavour was destroyed five days ago on the fringes of the Azure Nebula. The primary phase of the search-and-rescue effort has concluded; several dozen officers and crew were found..." The veteran captain's face tightened, and he blinked into space a couple of times before resuming eye contact.

"Our children were not among them."

Ducote had to clear his throat. He wanted to tell them the truth, but after the initial reports and sensor returns, the information had been sequestered completely by order of Admiral Sankolov under the rationale of avoiding panic. A reasonable goal, but the alternative explanation offered couldn't be anything but a lie. Examination of the Endeavour hulk would reveal Borg weapon signatures, there were a couple of thousand personnel who knew of the transwarp traces...

"The SAR flotilla has changed focus to materiel recovery; the ship was not destroyed utterly and will therefore be salvaged and scrapped. The... the bodies left aboard will be recovered for funeral. If your daughter's remains are found, you will be notified.

"The USS Theurgy was detected in that volume after fleeing the attack on Starbase 84. According to the admiral in charge of the pursuit-" he chose his words carefully, "-it is likely that the Endeavour got in their way on the way into the nebula to hide, or perhaps threatened to detect them later; she was a science ship, with a sophisticated sensor array."

He took a deep breath, using the opportunity to correct his posture and manner. "I am sorry, to reintroduce Blue to your lives only to take her away again. Because- because your bereavement was a Fleet member, Starfleet counselling services are available to you should you request them. The contact details may be found in the public directory; just tell them your names and why you're calling, and they'll do the rest."

He had defaulted again to 'prosaic information dispenser' while he diverted his attention to controlling his own reactions. "Is... there anything I can do for you?"

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #7 – July 20, 2019, 04:42:20 PM

[Richard and Eleanor Tiran | Tiran Residence | Houston, Texas | Their Worst Fears]
@Top Hat

The Tirans were apt to eat up any little tidbit about their daughter that they could. You could tell, that in different ways, the loss of Blue's childhood wore on them both. Richard was the one that seemed to feel the loss more greatly, or at least, he seemed to show it more fully. He was the one that as he read about Blue the emotions across his face changed from elation of seeing how well she had turned out all on her own and the horror of not having been there for his daughter. Eleanor seemed to be in some kind of constant state of denial and disbelief. As Erich explained where the name Blue came from, Richard's face paled significantly as he looked down at his daughter. In her initial pictures for the Fleet she didn't smile right, it didn't reach her eyes. But, as the years went on and she became confident in herself, found Ranaan, and found a life for herself, the light in her eyes began to grow. No where in all the reports where she was a bad person, or had done something unbecoming of being a stand up person. They hadn't ruined her in their abandonment, he had regretted losing her deeply. When he and his wife realized she was gone they thought she would come back eventually, but years rolled on and no word. Every knock on the door they feared it would be someone to tell them she was gone. Then they got complacent. She was either living, or hadn't been found and so they blissfully just assumed she was living and happy for their own mental health. Eleanor didn't speak much of Emelia.

Richard looked back at the picture of his daughter on the PADD. Her eyes were sparkling in the latest one, she still had that attitude and those sharp eyes. She looked a lot like him, he could see it in her features, and though she would probably not remember, she resembled Arthur as well. Those two had always been so close. He had envied their relationship and the death of Arthur which tore apart the whole family. He realized then, how hard it would have been on Emelia too. They were best friends, he was the one that understood Emelia. He was the one that encouraged her to keep with her talents and her desires of mechanics and engineering. That she had come this far, Arthur would have been so proud of her, just as he was. But, to have lost her brother, and then... when he and her mother had fallen into despair and had not sought any help for it... she had lost her whole family. And then.... Angela had run away.

She had been abandoned by.. us all.

Tears welled in his eyes, and though he might have been embarrassed by them in any other instance but here he could not stop them from silently streaming down his cheeks as he looked at the beautiful woman that she had turned out to be. He wished he had time to know her, to talk to her, to pick her brain. He wanted to hug her and tell her how sorry he was even though he doubted she would forgive him. Emelia had always been emotional. But, he was her father and he loved her anyway, he had loved her when he had forgotten that she needed him. When he let the grief consume him he lost his last child.

Erich mentioned that he had called her Emelia precisely once to her face and never forgot after that she didn't go by that name. He gave a bit of a smirk though the tears detracted from it slightly. “She was always a firecracker.” he said softly staring at the picture.

Eleanor asked if there were any pictures and how the two met. Richard watched as he listened to Erich telling them he didn't have any but there would probably be some with his son's things and once he had them he would send them on so that they could have copies. “Thank you, we would appreciate that, anything.. actually that you can send us.”

Eleanor glared at Richard when he interrupted Erich's story about how the two of them met. Instead, saying that they lost them, and .. apparently it was true. Eleanor went deathly quiet, for a long moment and looked at Erich. He explained that their ship was destroyed five days ago, on the fringes of something they had never heard of before. Some crew and officers were found, but not Emelia and not their son either. Richard stared at the man for a long time, and brushed angrily at the tears on his cheeks to dry them. They listened as Erich explained what they thought happened, but now, their daughter was gone. He mentioned that counseling services would be available for them if they needed it and they would be allowed to use it because of Emelia.

“I think that's a good idea, El.”

Eleanor scowled, but gave a regretful nod.

Erich asked if they needed anything else, and Richard looked down at his daughter's picture one more time. He didn't have any other than school standard ones sent home once a year to remark Blue's growing up, she had turned into a beautiful woman and now.. he would never get a chance to reconcile. Eleanor was the first one to speak.

“Can you tell us about her? About E-Blue and uh, about .. her and your son, just.. just a little. Please? I know it probably isn't easy for you either, but, I would assume you have met her so.. so anything... please.”

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #8 – August 07, 2019, 08:30:08 PM

[ Capt Erich Ducote | Tiran Residence | Houston Suburbs | Earth ] attn: @BZ

"Can you tell us about her? About E-Blue and uh, about .. her and your son, just.. just a little. Please? I know it probably isn't easy for you either, but, I would assume you have met her so.. so anything... please."

This was it. This was the worst-case scenario. He prayed to God to bend the laws of subspace physics to bring Ratela home quicker than feasibly possible. But no divine intervention (beyond the absolute sort) would prove enough, no matter how much he wanted it to.

Describe Blue Tiran.

Heavens above. How?

It was hardly a secret that he had mostly disapproved of the woman, at least on paper. So many infractions, reprimands, brig sentences for crying out loud... She was foul-mouthed, uncouth, entirely disrespectful. She had miraculously avoided suspension and expulsion from the Fleet through means completely unknown to him. If she had been one of his officers, she wouldn't have lasted longer than a month into her first assignment. He and Ranaan had clashed more than once over the subject of her conduct.

He had of course warmed to her as their meetings accumulated. Her honesty could always be relied upon, for one.

After several seconds, Erich spoke. "She was-" he faltered. She was what? A good engineer? They had a PADD to tell them that. Rough around the edges? A litany of censures. A genius? Every parent thought that of their children.

The captain stood, smoothing the front of his tunic, and paced a little away from the table. He found himself looking at a wall of flowers through a net curtain overlooking one of the wings of their garden. A green thumb to rival Ratela's, no doubt.

"My son was aboard a starbase that suffered a terrorist attack at the hands of some separatist Romulan faction. Doesn't matter which one. He was off-duty, but on-call as a first responder in case of emergency. And he's an empath. He leaned on that quite heavily in the course of his duties at the time-" the details of which were certainly not for polite company, "-and so his... mental defences were not what they could have been.

"The collective pain and fear and misery and trauma around him almost entirely broke him." Erich's hands had closed to fists at his sides, as he watched a bumble bee amble between blooms outside. "He left Starfleet, he closed himself away. He sought help, thank God, because I don't know if he'd still be here otherwise... Ah, if he would have still been there..." He cleared his throat.

"He went back to the Academy, changed career track entirely, took a safe assignment with a charitable captain who had a reputation for taking any applicant in any situation. But however much he spoke with his therapist, however much he threw himself into work... I don't think he ever left that starbase. Ratela, his mother, my wife - she could tell easiest. He never stopped withdrawing, really. It just slowed a little. I didn't know what I could do to help him. Neither of us did. Betazoids in general don't deal well with that sort of isolation, whether it's self-imposed or not. He was staring psychosis in the face, I think."

There was another pause while Erich Ducote sighed heavily, his hands loosening again.

"But then a certain engineer got her marching orders from the Gettysburg, and arrived on his ship. I don't know how their relationship started, but even the tone of his letters to us changed. He started talking about a future again." Erich looked down, and gave a single dry sniff.

"They came to visit a few months ago on shore leave. My relationship with him has always been - had always been - tense. We've never really been able to connect. And I got the most out of him then that I had in years, let alone since the attack. 'She always there when I need her. She's one of the first people I've been able to open my empathy to again. She keeps me sane'."

The rest of that particular conversation didn't seem worth repeating, angry as it had been, and now seemingly so trivial in the grand scheme. I wish I could go back and do it differently. He turned back to Richard and Eleanor. "I didn't see them as often as I would have liked. But I would have gladly welcomed her into our family.

"I don't think it's an exaggeration to say that Blue saved Ranaan's life. I couldn't possibly repay that."

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #9 – September 06, 2019, 03:39:29 AM

[Richard and Eleanor Tiran | Houston | Texas | Heart Breaks All Over Again | What We Lost Can Never Be Found | Can the Heart Survive Another?]
@Top Hat

Richard was a patient man. He was eager to hear anything about his estranged, and now departed daughter. So he waited as Erich seemed to struggle to find the words. He had known Blue, but maybe not as well as Richard would have thought. But, still, Erich knew more than he did and anything was something to hold dear when he could never make amends with his daughter. He had figured she would come home, eventually. He figured that she would beat on the door, they hadn't moved just incase, and demand to know if they had missed her. He missed her laughter, the way that she smiled at him like he was her world when she was little. Back, before everything changed. He missed the secretive little giggles coming from her room when Arthur stopped by with a new trinket, tool, or scrap of something that was exactly what little Emelia needed for the project she was working on. He missed all the new Engineering fair ribbons, her walls were decorated in so many ribbons and trophies, he hadn't been there to see her receive. He hadn't been there to take her picture, to shake the hands of the men that judged, and the principal to tell him how bright his daughter was. He hadn't been there for all the conduct reports they had found crammed underneath the bed when she finally left. Proof that he had broken his daughter, that they had failed her in a monumental way, and then she was gone.

His chest hitched.

Finally, Erich began to speak, and Richard's blue eyes shifted to the man as he studied the garden. Speaking of his son and how he, too, had been broken during an event on a Starbase. That his empathy had been stifled and he had not been the same afterwards. That he had nearly broken to the point of being unable to continue his career. Eleanor furrowed her brow and opened her mouth about to speak the question on both their minds – how did this pertain to Blue – But Richard put his hand on hers and shook his head. There was a point, the man didn't seem the type to tell stories for no reason.

He continued to explain how his son had been mentally unable to go on, he was withdrawing from the world around him, shutting himself down. And for him, as for most, it was something that would have truly handicapped him towards the future. Then entered Blue, a 'certain Engineer' who got kicked off a ship for an incident that Richard hadn't read about yet, and arrived on his son's ship. He didn't know the exact origin of the way that their relationship started, but he knew that she changed Ranaan. Pulling him out of whatever self imposed darkness and bringing him back to the world. His tone changed, he began to plan ahead again, and Richard found himself smiling. Blue had always been stubborn, but the one thing he did know about his daughter was that loyalty ran deep. As long as you were straight with her, you had a life time friend, and someone that would beat the living shit out of someone that did you wrong. But, if you did her wrong, you were burned and scorned.

He was grieved to be in that latter group.

He paused, and Rich could tell he was trying very hard to keep himself together. They were not the only ones to lose their child, this man had lost his son. He continued a moment later, and mentioned that they had come to visit. Eleanor straightened her back in response, they had, to the knowledge of the Tiran's never come to Texas. But then, he doubted that Blue had anything to come back for. They had done her wrong, heavily so, and there was no reason for her to come crawling back. She had raised herself, worked her ass off, ended up as a Commander of a starship and a Chief Engineer. She hadn't needed them for a long time, and the thought of that.. killed him.

Erich told them that he and his son had never had a great relationship, calling it tense. In all the years since the attack on the starbase, he finally admitted that he needed Blue, and that she was always there. She kept him sane. Richard felt a couple fears slide down his cheeks. To know that they hadn't fully broken her, that she had mended herself, likely with the help of Ranaan was a good thing to hear. That she hadn't lived in pain all her life and that she had known happiness, hope, future, and safety.

It was all he could hope for.

Richard stood up as Erich finished speaking and crossed to the Captain reaching his hand out for a good shake. When their hands met, he pulled the man in slightly for a quick man-hug a bit of a pat on the back and then stepping back again.

“Thank you, Captain, for coming yourself. It could not have been easy. I am sure that you know we have not been close with Emelia for a very long time. So hearing about her, like this, is a double edged sword but thank you for your time, and for .. answering all our questions. For coming here. Our children may no longer be among the living, but, you have a place to come if you ever need it.”

He knew the man probably wouldn't, but he felt a sort of kinship to the Captain. He gave a sigh and looked at Eleanor who was staring off into space. Everything was likely still settling in with her, she was the sort that would break down later when no one was watching. She would internalize a lot of it for the current moment and let it out later. Probably on the garden, though he couldn't figure out where she had left that didn't have flowers and plants already. She would find it.

“I truly appreciate your time.. I'd appreciate if I could keep the PADD you gave us, so that we could read more about Emelia after you've gone..”

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #10 – September 29, 2019, 12:51:06 PM

[ Capt Erich Ducote | Tiran Residence | Houston Suburbs | Earth ] attn: @BZ

Erich looked over as he heard Richard rise and move towards him. The man was extending a hand to shake. The captain's own face was a mask, though his eyes might betray him in the end. He was still struggling to decide how to come to terms with the news, still trying not to impose himself on the reports and investigations, still trying not to wonder why exactly the official story had been changed.

He clasped the offered hand, and was surprised to find himself drawn into a hug. Ducote swallowed, blinking, and nodded once as they separated.

"... you have a place to come if you ever need it."

"The same to you," he said, his voice hoarse. "I... haven't spoken to my wife yet, but I expect there will be a service in a few weeks. Whatever that will mean, without anything to bury... I will make sure you have the details."

He smoothed down his jacket subconsciously, lost in his thoughts for a moment.

"I truly appreciate your time... I'd appreciate if I could keep the PADD you gave us, so that we could read more about Emelia after you've gone..."

Erich cleared his throat. "Yes, of course. I don't need it back. Dozens of them back at the office," he tried to quip, the hint of a smile on his face. It didn't last long, and he sobered again. "Just... that record won't give you the full picture. My son tried to tell me that she was more than the sum of her reprimands. I would be remiss without passing that on."

A bird's shadow passed over the curves of the shuttle outside, the movement reminding him that the thing existed. There were arrangements to make, lines of enquiry to follow... he should go.

"I won't take up any more of your time... as I said, all the contact details you might need - including mine - are on the PADD. Farewell; I am sorry we couldn't have met under better circumstances."

He clicked his heels together as he came to what passed for attention, nodded, and turned on his heel for the door before he dragged this out any longer. The heat outside nearly crushed him again, but it was a short walk to the environmentally-controlled shuttle cabin. A walk that still felt about five kilometres long.

Inside, in the blessed cool and dry once more, he collapsed into the pilot's seat. "Computer," he said. "Engage autopilot. Destination, Rio de Janeiro. Take me home."

[Acknowledged. Engines engaged.]

Erich slumped forward, the heels of his palms in his eye sockets. As the shuttle cleared the trees and turned south, his shoulders began to heave as he allowed himself to fall apart. He had thirty minutes or so.

Plenty of time.

Re: [2381/Earth] Meet The Tirans

Reply #11 – October 07, 2019, 03:49:49 AM

[LCdr Blue Tiran | Memoirs | Leaving a Legacy | What You Missed | #Blucoteforever]
@Top Hat

The PADD had been connected to the large screen in the living room. The lights were low in the home, just a small lamp offering some light in the darkened room. Captain Ducote had left hours previous, and it took some time for the Tiran's to process all the information they had been given. Eleanor went to work in the garden for a while. Richard had found himself staring at her pictures for a long time. Wondering who she was in each, how she was, how she had changed because of a singular man that had found her and realized she was worth the time. He was grateful that she had someone in her corner in the end, someone that had done for her what he had been unable. Now, as the darkness of the Texan night descended fully, Richard and Eleanor sat still on their plush couch, sweet tea sat on a tray in the center of the coffee table. Untouched, condensation running down the glass and adding to the growing puddle centered around the pair of glasses. Eleanor had changed into her sleeping dress, hair plaited over her shoulder and tied with a small tie. Richard sat in his leisure pants with a strong black and white plaid pattern and a simple black tshirt.

“Ready?” he asked of his wife. His voice hoarse from crying, from emotions, from the mourning he was doing for his daughter that he had never truly gotten to know.

“No.” Eleanor said honestly.

Richard rose his hand, remote held in the shaking appendage as he pressed the 'Select' button to begin the first of several logs. They had been released to them, once the Captain had left, and had been sitting unwatched until the pair was ready. Emelia, Blue, in live action. In all her glory. It was something that Richard very much wanted to see, and some of these dated back to her Starfleet Academy days, and so he hoped to get a better picture of who she was. Who she had been.

Quote

Sitting in front of the camera was a young Blue, in her Cadet's uniform as she sat at a desk of a shared Quarters. No one else was currently in the room, and Blue sat there with all her dark curls and her blue streaks. Pale skin was even paler underneath the overhead light. Her blue eyes were turned down to something that she was holding in her hand while she worked.

“So this shit is homework, or I wouldn't be mother fucking doing it. But those fuckers in Fleet are all about making sure you know how to do a mother fucking log, because you know pressing record is hard for some. Probably Scientists.” she smirked slightly underneath her curls as she sighed. “So they said I was supposed to send this shit to my parents, to which I said, I don't fucking have any. But they were all fucking like.. hey you have to have someone you want to fucking tell about your day. Little do they know, that he died a while back and I don't. So here we go, this is pretending I care what my mother fucking parents want to know about and pretending that they actually give a shit.”

Blue reached forward and picked up another piece of metal and began to attach it to whatever was in her hand that she was working with. “So hey mother fuckers, thanks so much for giving two shits about me my entire life. I'm all the way the fuck in San Francisco doing the Starfleet thing, not that you fucking know about that, but that's okay, you don't fucking need to I gave up on you fuckers a long fucking time ago. School is easy as shit except the social shit. Engineering is ridiculously easy, and they're all like.. hey fuckers this is a challenge, and I fucking laugh and get it done. Because you know.. well actually you don't know that I'm a fucking genius. But hey now you do if you get to watch this shit yeah? Congrats on bringing this kind of beauty into the fucking world. I'm sure the fleet really appreciates the fact that while I'm a righteous bitch I'm also insanely smart. I'm sure it'll all even out somehow, yeah?”

“Well anyway, thanks mom and dad for the great gene pool at least you did something right. Blue out.”

The screen went dark, and Richard dared a glance at Eleanor who looked as pale as her daughter. Her eyes wide with the sheer hostility and the sheer quantity of curse words that were launched in the short video. Richard didn't pause the screen, best to just rip off all the bandaids at once.

Quote

Blue leans against a wall, with a sack of her belongings over her shoulder. It's clear she is holding her PADD in one hand. Her hair is pulled back, the mass of curls has been pulled into a pony tail that hangs behind her though a few stubborn tendrils escape despite it all. Her blue eyes are on the screen, much like her father's. It's bright, the sun is in front of Blue lighting her up in an odd way, probably starting to fall towards the horizon.

“Graduation day. Finally fucking made it, don't know why I had to go through all this fucking trouble to go through school or some shit. There was no fucking reason to do all this shit, but whatever, I got my fancy pip here. Younger than most, and that doesn't really come as a surprise. I'm only doing this shit because I've been waiting for the USS Intrepid to fucking get ready to load up for three fucking hours and they're still not fucking ready. Is this how the fleet runs? I have shit to do? Like don't they fucking realize that they fucking need me on their ship because I'm sure there is already a shit ton of stuff that needs to be mother fucking fixed for real. By a real fucking Engineer. I keep getting told that my attitude will hold me back but you know.. so far that isn't the fucking case and I really don't give a shit. I'm not doing this for the pips on my fucking collar. But to get the fuck away from the people that decided to birth me and to get the fuck off this planet before they remember I exist and want to fucking fix what they fucking ruined.”

“You Ensign Tiran?” a male voice came, a shadow fell over her image for a moment.

“What gave you the first clue?”

“I got told you had a mouth on you, I'm your Chief Engineer, lets go.”

“'Bout fucking time.” Blue said as she moved and the screen went dark.

“Do you think... she ever forgave us?” Eleanor whispered.

Richard had no answer to give, only Blue could tell them, and she was gone. He hoped that there would be something soon to give them some hope but, he was starting to doubt it. At least, now, she was telling her story in a way that was very honest.

Quote

It had been a while, since she had done one because when Blue came back on the screen it was obvious she was older. Dark circles underneath her eyes, she was exhausted, and sitting at a desk still working. There was a ton of things around her. Little bits of this and that. She was working on, what would later become, an Albert prototype. She sat there with her tools, her metal pieces, and her grease stained fingers. Her hair was a mess, it probably could stand to be washed and she had grease stains on her face where you could tell she had touched herself without meaning to.

“I'm on the Gettysburg now. Cool Captain, asshole Chief Engineer. Ranked up. All of that. I guess if I croak at some point during all the fun yet totally not dangerous shit missions that I go on, I might as well leave a fucking legacy. So I've decided to finish the chassis to the AI that I want to create. The programming is going to be a mother fucking bitch. But, I'm going to merge him with my PADD interface for the time being while I work on the shit that I want him to be able to do.”

For a moment, her eyes looked at the screen, they were hollowed, though they would later be much worse.

“I haven't been sleeping worth a shit. Guess that's what happens when shit goes bad. Anyway, I'm working on this robotic owl. I went through several different designs, and I have decided the owl fits my needs the best. I've decided to name him Albert. Advanced Liaison Bionic Engineered Robotic Tool. At least it'll keep my shit straight for me, right?”

Quote

Blue Tiran sat on what was obviously some kind of bed in her Quarters, covered with fluffy blankets, pillows, and what not. She lay back, her dark hair splayed over the white fluff that giving it a stark contrast. But, oddly, this time there was a smile on her face. There was a bit of light in her eyes. She propped herself up on her pillows and gave a smirk to the camera.

“Best. Night. Ever. I was forced to go to this mother fucking holiday party, and we all know how shit I am at people. But then, I fucking tripped over this guy's cane right? And he caught me. Super hot, by the way, and I was like there's no fucking way. Then of course he turns out to be a Commander, and I'm just a fucking Lieutenant, but anyway, one thing leads to another. And we fucking hung out all fucking night. We talked, like really talked, like I haven't before with anyone else. We came here, watched a movie, and ate Thai. His accent .. oh fuck I can't even go down that road. He's not even in my quadrant of space, he's not even close. I have no fucking idea how I'm going to see him again but... I'm going to fucking make it happen.”

Richard smiled, wondering if that was when she met the man that later became her fiance. He watched many more of the various logs that were available, none of them had to do with any of her mission parameters or anything like that. They were all completely personal things, and he enjoyed watching her fall in love. Transfer around, get in trouble, and the creation of Albert. He loved watching her get more and more confident, and the elation when she got Chief Engineer, rightly so, of course. They reached the end and there were two left. One slated to be released when and if she was killed in action. He selected the oldest, and first.

Quote

“So. I guess I should leave a fucking legacy.” Young Blue again, back just after she had gotten assigned to the Intrepid. “So here we go. Dear mom and dad. Or sperm and egg donor? Or mother fucking bitch and complete and total asshole. Whatever endearment you want to jump on. Thanks for giving me life and then ditching the shit out of me when things turned to shit. Thanks for always making sure that I had to take care of my mother fucking self because I wouldn't be the same person if I had actually known your love and care all those fucking years. I guess you spent it all taking care of Angela and Arthur and when they fucking bounced on you, you had nothing left for your littlest one.”

“But let me fucking assure you that I did just fucking fine for myself. I got great grades, I graduated before my time, I got into the Fleet and I'm making a fucking name for myself. All because of me. All because of my own motivation and drive to get the fuck out of your house, your state, and your fucking planet. Maybe you'll see this one day and think, oh I should have been an actual fucking parent to my youngest kid, what the fuck did she do to deserve this? Well let me answer oh biological matter donors. Nothing. I did nothing to fucking deserve this and you did nothing to deserve having my name be associated with your own. My name is Blue Tiran and it's my fucking life that I fucking made, and you weren't a part of it.”

Then, the last.

Quote

Blue sits in the center of a bed in a Quarters. There is a picture of her and Ducote on the bedside table just in view. She's wearing her casual clothes. Tank top showing off her muscular torso, and her ripped jeans. Her hair is somewhat tame, for it's normalcy anyway, and she brushes it back with one hand. Blue looked at the camera with soft eyes.

“Hey Ranaan.” she starts with a soft smile. “I figured that, since things have happened recently I might need to make one of these, just for you. Because, we're always jumping into all kinds of crazy shit, and who the fuck knows if we will fucking survive or not. So I just, figured, I should fucking tell you this in case something happens to me.”

“You mean, everything to me. You have no fucking idea how much it means to wake up with you every fucking morning. I know I'm a totally shit girlfriend or well...” Blue holds up her left hand. “Fiance, now. I know I don't replicate dinner, or clean up my shit, or anything. But, you're such a good guy you don't give me too much shit for it. Even though if you had latinum for every time you've sat on one of my tools...” she gave that knowing grin.

“I guess I just wanted to say thank you, for seeing the person I was all those years ago. When I fucking ran right into you, fucking nearly took you out. But, you didn't brush me off even when I was myself. You stayed around and got to know me, and you fucking, made me feel seen for the first fucking time in my life. I know I have a fuck-ton of issues, and I know it's probably really annoying how many times you get the call that I've been brig'd again, but... you don't hold them against me. I love you, Ranaan Ducote, and I know that I don't say that as much as I fucking should but, I also know you can feel it. Thank you for coming into my life, you made it so much better just by breathing. You make me laugh, you make me mad, you make my happy, and you helped make me whole. I love you. Always.”

“Wow.” Eleanor said as she looked over at Richard, tears streaming down her cheeks. He only nodded and reached over to hold her hand.

“I have no words.” Richard whispered softly and held onto his wife as they mourned together.

-Fin-