Re-living the Past

Posted on Sunday 22 July 2018 @ 22:39 by Lieutenant JG Saren Barel

Mission: Shoreleave
Location: Starbase 306, Saren's assigned quarters
Timeline: 0100 Hours
452 words - 0.9 OF Standard Post Measure

Saren could feel the small transport move along the road to wherever the Tal’Shiar was taking him. He could not see as his head was covered and the lights were out in the transport’s hold. Sensory deprivation was a common tactic of the unit. Suddenly Saren could feel the transport start to shake and shudder. It kept moving as it didn’t to be damaged.

Suddenly it jerked to a stop. He heard the crew start to swear and say several prayers to the elements. At that moment, even though he wore a helmet that would block out the brightness of the sun at hundred thousand kilometers, Saren could see clearly. And what he saw frightened him to the core.

The planet was being ripped apart, almost in slow motion. He could see trees burning away, buildings crumbling, and people being disintegrated. Knowing his death was near and unable to bear seeing the destruction, Saren closed his eyes.

“Elements preserve us”, was the last thing he said and then suddenly, he felt himself land on something hard.

His memories and his current knowledge started to conflict and confuse him. Was this the deck of the Galloway? Was he dead? Was he on the Merlin?

“Computer, where am I?” he called out.

“You are on Starbase 306, deck 22, section 3, room 58”, the computer replied.

“Lights” he said as he sat up and looked around.

The water glass that he had put on the table beside his bed was on the floor broken, probably from thrashing about during his dream. Was it a dream? He hadn’t had this dream in five years.

Across the room there was a generic picture that often decorate guest rooms in Starfleet hanging on the wall. The protective glass on it was shattered. Had his elemental nature manifested again. He breathed in and breathed out a few times.

Ignoring the broken glass and painting, he went to his closet and got one of the few things he had with him, a picture canvas. Getting a set of paints from a small container, he started to paint. He hadn’t painted in nearly five years as well.

The painting was that of his dream. Or was it a vision? He wasn’t sure. After he was done, he picked up the pieces of the broken glass. He would fix the broken painting in the morning. He then went to the bed and sat down.

He sat there for a half-hour doing breathing exercises. After they didn’t help him, he decided to head to the gym, maybe exhausting himself would help him get to the point where he could sleep again.


LTJG Saren Barel
Chief Science Officer
USS Merlin