The Day After Forever
Outer space, stardate 79055.9
Melody sailed out of the time vortex generated by the trans-temporal warp drive, with one more occupant than she had departed with. Sitting beside Gem in the cockpit was Jeanette Duchannes, staring in awe at the room around her.
“So… all this is real,” Jeanette said in a soft Irish brogue, looking at the consoles, the forward windows, the chairs, even the carpeting on the floor. “I really thought this was a film set… I never thought it was, ya know, real.”
“You are not the first person to have made similar commentary,” Gem observed, laughing softly as she concentrated on flying the Melody back to the Endeavour. “But I assure you, everything you see here is real.”
“Is this all you do all day?” Jeanette asked curiously. “Fly around outer space in a little shuttle?”
“Oh, not at all!” Gem exclaimed, laughing a bit more. “This is just my captain’s yacht, a small craft designed for solo missions for which a larger ship would be impractical. My true home…” she paused to drop them out of regular warp, “…is right here.”
What Jeanette saw next was something she would never forget, not for as long as she lived. A truly huge starship, made of grey metal plating was just below them. Printed on the top in black letters was: U.S.S. ENDEAVOUR NCC-71805. A large saucer composed most of the ship, with a triangular fin on the back, the purpose of which she could not begin to identify.
Gem flew downward, below the edge of the saucer to reveal a smaller secondary hull, with an eye-shaped deflector dish on the front. Slung below the saucer on a pair of support pylons were the warp nacelles.
Melody flew right up to a little hatch at the bottom of the saucer, which slid open as she approached, and into a small docking bay. Gem turned off the engines and climbed out of the entry hatch, helping Jeanette out as well. A door swished open, and in they went into the ship proper, walking together toward a turbolift.
“So, uh… what year am I in?” Jeanette asked, as she looked around the corridor and the turbolift, once they reached it.”
“2402,” Gem answered at once. “Welcome to the twenty-fifth century, Ms. Duchannes.”
Jeanette fainted.
When Jeanette came to a few minutes later, she was in sickbay, being tended to by yet another unicorn. This one was light blue, and scanned her with something that made a whirring noise. “So you’re awake,” said the unicorn. “Let’s see… no sign of trauma that I can make out… then why in the world did you faint?”
“It’s been a long few days, I can tell you,” Jeanette said, sounding cross. Her Irish brogue got stronger and stronger as she got more upset. “I had to execute a couple of innocent people, watched helplessly as one person got murdered by a werewolf, break a curse that had been planted 500 years ago by my dead auntie by killing the aforementioned werewolf, and once I got through with all of that, a feckin’ goblin of all people put another curse on me! And the next thing I know I’m standing in a giant starship that shouldn’t exist talking to an alien horse! Seriously, cad é an diabhal cac seo?!”
Sickbay went quiet as everyone took in this torrent of words. Finally, Minuette broke the silence. “So… shock, then, and accumulated stress,” she said at last. “I’m sorry for…” she gestured awkwardly, “everything.”
At that exact moment, Gem’s voice came over Minuette’s combadge: “Shadow to Minuette: Is Ms. Duchannes awake yet?”
“Awake, and cranky, Captain,” Minuette replied. “Shall I send her up?”
“Please do,” replied Gem. “Shadow out.”
“And where is it that I’m going?” Jeanette demanded, sliding off the bed anyway.
“Captain’s ready room,” Minuette answered. “She wants to talk to you about something.” She gestured, and a nurse came over to escort Jeanette to the turbolift.
“Deck one!” the nurse called out, and the lift began to move.
Before long, they’d reached the top deck of the ship. The door swished open to reveal a large room, at which people of various species stood or sat at various consoles, doing… science fiction things, Jeanette supposed.
The room was circular in shape, with dark tan walls, and dark blue carpet with red accents. Three red leather chairs in the center of the room, where the captain and two other officers would sit. Behind the command area was the arch-shaped tactical station. In front of the three chairs were the helm and ops consoles.
Four additional stations were situated on the left and right sides of the room near the command chairs, accessible by ramps, with chairs in front of each console.
At the back of the room, the large red double doors on the left side led to a turbolift, while the rightmost one led to the observation lounge. Directly across from the turbolift was an alcove, which led to the captain’s ready room.
Jeanette circled the room, taking it all in. The soft lighting, the hum of the engines, the gentle beeping of consoles… this was all so strange and different from what she was used to.
After circling the room a bit, she finally found herself at the door of the captain’s ready room. Beside it was a small touchpad. She tapped a button, and a chime went off.
“Come!” said a voice on the other side.
The door swished open and Jeanette went inside. As it swished shut behind her, she took a look around this new room. It looked fairly similar to the bridge, but with a desk, a chair, and a computer monitor, hooked up to a colorful keyboard. Decorating the room was a bookshelf filled with books, a couple paintings, a cello, not unlike the one she sometimes played.
Behind the desk was the captain herself, and as bad as Jeanette’s mood currently was, even she could tell two things: this pony belonged behind that desk… and there was a weight to the authority she carried. A weight, she realized, that was not unlike what she’d had as mayor of Crockett Hill.
Jeanette sat down in a chair across from the desk, staring at the grey unicorn. Though both their eyes were green, Jeanette’s were more of an electric green, unnaturally green… it made her look not quite human.
“Welcome, Ms. Duchannes,” Gem said, smiling.
Jeanette shot that down at once. She ground out the next few words through gritted teeth, as if trying to keep herself in check. Green sparks jumped from her fingertips. “Why. Am I here.”
“For one, to sort out the goblin’s curse,” Gem answered. “For another… well.” She took a sip from the cup of tea that rested next to her on the desk, her horn glowing blue as she used her own magic to lift it up to her mouth. She rose and went to the window, floating the cup along beside her.
“I am having something of a staffing shortage at the moment,” she said, looking back at Jeanette. “I’m sure you’re familiar with the scenario. A few months ago, my former first officer resigned, and two others transferred to other ships, citing a desire for something different. While the latter two positions have now been filled, I am struggling to find someone for the role of first officer… a recent battle meant a large of the senior officers in the fleet are dead, and there aren’t enough experienced personnel to replace them as yet.”
Jeanette groaned. “So you want me, right? Why?! We only met the one time!”
“And one time is all I needed,” Gem shot back. “I do not take personnel decisions lightly, Ms. Duchannes. Serving on a ship like this one is considered a prestigious assignment indeed, and only the finest quality of officers will do. You were a mayor - that implies a certain familiarity with managing those under your employ. And from what I observed in Crockett Hill, you have a knack for protecting the people you care about from those who would do them harm… even the spirits of murderous Dark Casters.”
“What’s in it for me?” Jeanette asked. “I know what’s in it for you, but what else is there?”
“A chance to start anew,” Gem answered, going over to sit next to Jeanette now. “You have spent your entire life guarding your town from a dark force, burdened by the name you carry. But now, that burden has been lifted. Lena is finally gone forever, and now, you have a chance to make something of yourself. To find what you want to do. To walk your own path, independent of anyone else’s expectations.”
The unicorn smiled softly. “When I took command of this ship six years ago, I said that this crew, this ship, would be a place where no one feels alone. It would be a place where, no matter our species, we can find a family, and embrace those gifts that make us unique. And we have succeeded. But the thing is… the work is never done. There are always those who feel alone, who carry unimaginably heavy weights on their shoulders. But here… they can find sanctuary.”
Gem held out her hand for Jeanette to take. “What say you, Ms. Duchannes? Does my offer interest you?”
Jeanette didn’t answer right away. She stared into the middle distance, remembering something she had said to Addie just that morning: “I'm getting pretty sick and tired of the whole mayor bit, anyway. Maybe I need a clean break.”
She hadn’t quite imagined what that would entail… but, she supposed, it could be worse. Being in a spaceship some zillion miles and several centuries from home was a lot. But maybe, just maybe… this was what she needed.
“I’ll say yes,” Jeanette said at last, “But on one condition.”
“Name it,” said Gem at once.
“Don’t call me ‘Number One,’” Jeanette said at last. “I haven’t seen a ton of that space trek show, but I know enough that people with your accent use that phrase, and I’m not gonna take that shite. It’s Jeanette, and nothin’ else. Fuair sé?”
Gem nodded. “I believe I can accept those terms, Numb…” She paused, and smiled again. “Jeanette.”
The Caster and the unicorn shook hands, and that was that.
The rest of Jeanette Duchannes’ life had begun.