Too Loud: Part 6C: Family Matters

Posted on Tue Nov 9th, 2021 @ 9:01am by Captain Taliserra Tigran & Lieutenant Anthony Edwards Ph. D
Edited on on Wed Nov 10th, 2021 @ 11:41am

1,562 words; about a 8 minute read

Mission: The Silent Scream
Location: Deck 3 Captain's Quarters
Timeline: Directly following Too loud part B

OLD:

“Stay for a little while if you want Anthony, I could use the company…. And a second pair of eyes.” Taliserra replied as Lashell scurried off out of sight.

“Certainly Taliserra I remember that mum often needed extra eyes on my younger brother whenever I wasn’t studying so I would love to help you watch her for a while.” Anthony said.


New:


“My mother does a good job keeping an eye on her when I’m on duty but I can’t rely on her forever.” Taliserra slowly got up off the floor to get Lashell back.

“I expect that is what my junior doctor and Intelligence parents used to cover most of their duties and for that matter periods of sleep to after I was born. You are however as your mother gets older she will start to slow down and find it harder to keep up with looking after her. Your mother will hate not being able to do it as much as needing to slow down. That said, at least you have a family member to help you with her.” Anthony said with a smile.

“It’s not just that, she has her own life and a business to run back home, she has already been here for over a year.” Taliserra chased a quickly crawling Lashell for a moment before grabbing her and picking her up.

“That is true, and our lot in life, we travel the stars to bring our brand of peace and prosperity to all, the unfortunate negatives of Naval conquest has always been separating sons and daughters from their parents and loved ones. At least nowadays they don’t make your children stay at home.” Anthony said, “William Shakespeare used the line parting is such sweet sorrow, in Romeo and Juliette, when Juliette was saying goodnight to her what was essentially her blood enemy, and navies the world and now the universe over still have exactly the same sweet parting sorrows every time the ship leaves port.” Anthony happily watched as Taliserra picked up the gently struggling Lashell.

“Quite the line, it will be hard when she has to finally head back home.” Taliserra remarked as she carried Lashell back over to the centre of the room. “So used to seeing her around again.”

“Well, Taliserra at least you and Lashell have her. Even if it is only occasionally I would give anything to be able to talk to my mother except in the Holodeck. It really isn’t the same. Yeah, you can touch them but where is the emotion? I love watching mothers reacting in the family way and I think the main reason I find it so enjoyable is it reminds me of how mum and I were.” Anthony said.

Taliserra nodded slightly, she knew both of Anthony’s parents were dead though she’d never asked the circumstances.

Anthony wondered to himself if the Captain was the right person to discuss it with. She probably wasn’t but if not her who. He had been through appointments with a psychiatrist and a few with a psychologist to steady himself after his mother died of a broken heart. She had loved his father so much that she felt that she couldn’t live without him. “My youngest brother Michael’s cadet cruise, he was flying a shuttlecraft and was hit by a rogue chunk of asteroid, similar to how all those exploding asteroids on the last mission Captain. No one has ever been found to be at fault but the shuttle was pulverised in the collision and both my father and brother. Thankfully at least for Starfleet, they were the only two on the shuttlecraft. As Dad was a black ops operative much of what actually happens has been classified. Mum, unfortunately, died of a broken heart a year later.”

“How long ago did that happen?” Taliserra asked, hearing that she understood why he’d never really mentioned his family in their chats.

“About four years ago when he and Flea were twenty-one. Seeing as my father was also killed in the accident I guess there isn’t much that isn’t classified about the accident but that doesn’t change our memory of it. Making it three years since mum died of her broken heart.” Anthony said.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Taliserra said after a few moments, "at least you still have Flea, do you have any other family?" She slung Lashell over her shoulder and headed back to the sofa.

"Yes Mathew is a counselor in London, I believe his offices are on or near the Isle of dogs, and Master chief petty, sorry that is just the spiel I am used to when introducing my sister to officers, Sherilee who is an Academy unarmed combat instructor. Sandy is now once again the youngest she is a dance instructor and as a really good dancer she could be anywhere but I think she has settled to helping Flea get over Michaels death. We all get together whenever I am close to earth which unfortunately isn't all that often for me, but they're still close, it helps that they're both on earth full time." Anthony said with a smile happy to be on a more pleasant topic of conversation.

Taliserra smiled slightly. "That is good, you still have some family. There's just me and Selene left on my side, you could say that I still have other family but they're all previous me."

Proving the fact that you could take the boy from the bush but you couldn’t seperate him from it was also true of scientists Anthony decided now was the best time to ask about reassociation. “Are those families as protected as the symbionts under reassociation?”

"I have to follow the usual rules." Taliserra replied. "I met the wife and children of my last host Vian, gave them some closure about how he died and told them how he'd carry on through me but of course I can't continue his relationship with them. If they tried to continue it I'm supposed to refuse them but there would be no consequences for them."

Nodding as she said it and the Anthony responded with, "Not that different from our eulogies at a funeral then when you think about it. Though there is nothing to actually stop us from continuing to associate with the people that we tell those stories to because we have always grown up with them nearby. They are part of our lives fully rather than just by association. I know the Trill see it very different to just an association, but it is the closest thing the human brain can comprehend."

"It can be complicated, emotions are a hard thing at times, even harder when they're not your own but feel like your own because of the symbiont, especially when you're only recently joined. When I met Karenna; Vians wife, I felt so much grief and was so close to crying my eyes out in front of her. All I wanted to do was hug her and the kids, kiss them and comfort them, but I knew it was a flood of memories and emotions from Tigran that was causing it and that I shouldn't."

"Yeah, when you put it that way I expect that is why reassociation is forbidden. It makes sense and seeing as the main reason for each host is to protect the symbionts continued life so it can continue to learn, so reassociation is very bad, and also very easy when you meet the loved ones." Anthony said with a smile. "I dread the job of the next Tigran facing your daughter and crew not that I am wishing it to be soon Lashell isn't ready for command yet!" He was only half joking.

Taliserra laughed slightly "There are a lot of responsibilities when you're a host, not all of them are easy." She looked at her daughter still slung over her shoulder gently snoring. "Speaking of Lashell I'd better put her to bed."

"I'm sure that can also be said of being a Captain to Taliserra. This has been a nice conversation, but before I go shall we be seeing you at the concert?" Anthony asked quietly now that Lashell had obviously fallen asleep.

"I will be there don't worry." Taliserra smiled, she carefully stood up to head to the bedroom.

"That's great Though I might let Cameron work it out for herself considering how we ended up choosing who would do which organisational job, letting her know might just give her one of the biggest explosion of stage fright know to man if she knew you were coming before time." Anthony smiled, he Cameron wasn't the only one that was going to get nervous. He would likely spend the night before biting the tips of his fingers off in his nervous state. "Sleep well Captain, because it seems Lashell is already." He added as he prepared to leave.

"Can't guarantee I will but I'll do my best. Goodnight Anthony." Taliserra remarked as she passed through the doorway into the bedroom

Smiling to himself Anthony said over his shoulder as he headed to Taliserra's front door, "Have a good night, either way, Captain."

OFF:

Captain Taliserra Tigran
Commanding Officer

Lt Dr Anthony Edwards Ph.D
Chief Sicence officer

 

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