USS Champlain Post of the Month

This page is for the Champlain's Post of the Month, as nominated and voted for by the Champlain crew

September 2007

Mission: Crossroads

Day: 6

Stardate: 2407.04.07

(Starbase Geneva, Deck 14, Holodeck 1 - Champlain's Third Officer/Sec Chief, Lieutenant Jono Janeway - 0901)

After Jono had walked into the holodeck, the shock and the grief suddenly seemed to catch up with him. Finally after two - three weeks of keeping himself busy, not thinking about it, not talking about it... It was finally here, it finally needed to be confronted. His friend was dead. One of only people (he believed) that ever truly believed in him, and he had failed to even protect him when the time had come. Some officer he had become in the last couple of months.

It was only when people started trying to knock past him to get to their seats that he realised that he was stood still, looking at the ground... In the middle of the doorway. He felt detached in some way, he was here but his body wasn't, It was like he was watching himself from a great height as his body... his template moved slowly through the crowd of people - most of them he couldn't put names to, he supposed they were either part of the crew or someone who new Edward before his posting on the Nimitz... It didn't matter, as long as they were here to pay their respects to Edward.

He watched himself continue to dawdle forward, no real meaning on where he was heading. To the front he supposed, or near by, he didn't want to be far away from the main ceremony, it was his duty... his last duty he would ever perform for Captain Wolfe, to make sure his life was remembered by everyone there.

He felt physically sick, as he approached the front, he looked up to see a picture of Edward at the front, accompanied by his sword and the medal Bree had received in the name of him. He turned away violently from the picture, his soul seemed to reconnect with his body for a brief moment when he decided on where he was to sit. But as he began moving again, the world slipped away from him and his soul flew from his body and began thinking of the time when Edward died, The explosion... Smithwick... Mor'rel... What would he do?

His memory quickly jumped to the small service he and Bree had held on the Champlain before they set back for Geneva, how he had managed to say a few words before Edward's body had been released into the atmospheric pull of the sun. The lonley tear that he had shed on that singular day as the capsule left the ship, the feelings of emptyness and sorrow... He didn't want to have to feel that again, yet he found himself being pulled to the ceremony, ~One last goodbye~ He had told himself, he had no speach prepared... though he knew he wanted to say something.

As his body sat down on the front row, far to the right he could see through his eyes the picture of Edward Wolfe, smiling... that smile Jono knew so well, but hadnt seen in the mans last couple of days alive... Something had been wrong with Edward and apart from the fact that Jono felt guilty about not being able to protect his friend.. his captain, he felt guilty as a friend... He should have been able to be there for the Wolfe, maybe he could have done something to help... But it was all 'maybe's' or 'could have been's' he didn't realise one person could have this many regrets over a singular event.

His head nodded down to look at his feet, he shuffled about in his chair and pushed the sickness away, he had to be strong ~But why?~ he asked himself, ~Where has being 'strong' got me so far?~ he sighed the aching feeling in the pit of his stomach slowly rising again ~Why did he have to die?~ His mouth half hung open and his eyes not quite focusing on anything he couldn't answer that one question.

"Why?" He whispered to himself and brought his head to an upright position, and then turned it slightly so his eyes met those eyes of Edward's picture. He blinked. A split second later a pearly coloured essence appeared from the picture, it was Edward smiling that smile, he nodded to Jono and mock saluted him and then as quickly as it appeared the essence quickly transformed into a great wolf and then disappeared walking through the crowd.

"Edward?" Jono whispered to himself. His eyes fixated on the spot the wolf disappeared, his whole body was on edge, his hairs were sitting proudly up on his arm and goose pimples had appeared, suddenly he was very cold and very aware of his loneliness. He shook violently and then he reconnected. Back in the land of the living everything went quiet as the ceremony begun.

(Reply whoever is starting the ceremony)

(Posted by Jono Bradley)