The Ultimate Gift - 21104.01

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By Gabriel Archer

Gabriel Archer walked into Space Station Sierra Eighteen's bar on the promenade and realized that all eyes were on him. His uniform was in such a sorry state that it paled in comparison to his dirty hands and face. As if that was not bad enough, a mix of water and dirt had combined to form a number of muddy patches on one of his sleeves giving him an even more rugged look. In other words, he looked like he had just walked out of a brutal battle field.

"Why Commander Archer, you have been enjoying that holodeck program I sold you haven't you?" The owner of the establishment, a Ferengi with an acute sense of business that his race was famous for asked cheerfully. He handed Gabriel a clean towel to help him remove the dirt from his hands and face, and invited him to sit down.

"Indeed I have." answered Gabe as he took his usual seat on the bar and made use of the towel. "The truth is, it's been a while since I’ve had some time off... and that war story this program tells, it brings back a lot of memories."

"Will it be the usual Commander?" The bartender asked casually as he placed a pint of Canadian red ale in front of the station's first officer. Archer nodded in gratitude and enjoyed the first sip of his cold drink. The creamy, bitter taste coupled with the ice cold temperature of the drink was truly refreshing. It was exactly what he needed after spending the last couple of hours in a virtual hell.

The first sip is always the best… Gabriel thought to himself.

"So, what memories did my program reignite?" The Ferengi asked Gabe.

"It’s a long story... I am not sure you’ll be interested…" Archer replied.

"I’m all ears." he said with a knowing smile, he knew very well that his costumers will appreciate a decent story, and a happy costumer was always good for business.

After a short laugh at the obvious jest, Archer took a large sip of his ale and sighed softly before he started sharing his story.

"Where to begin..." he cleared his throat as he gave himself a moment to gather his thoughts, "I was a young lad back then, maybe fourteen or fifteen years of age. Naturally, as a young student I wasn’t even sure what I wanted to do with my life yet. None the less, it was my summer vacation and I was happy to spend some time on the frigate that my mother, who is a doctor, was assigned to. That particular ship was placed under the authority of Starfleet medical thus it was largely staffed by medical personnel. However, little did we know then, that this was going to be the summer when the Borg had decided to launch an invasion into the United Federation of Planets.” Archer paused for a moment in order to let that last sentence sink in. Sure enough the bar tender’s eyes spoke of a renewed interest.

“I was fortunate enough to have already met the Captain of that valiant ship during a visit she paid to sickbay a few days earlier. I instantly felt the respect that her presence commanded of the crew and how compassionate and caring she was. I admired how she took the time to visit the patients one by one and offer her support and encouragement. Not long after that day, the news of the invasion had started to spread, and I remember the Captain saying something on the ship wide comm. about a sudden change in the current mission. She started by giving us a short update on the state of the war, and then she explained that we were sent to participate in the relief efforts during the aftermath of one of the terrible battles that took place in those early days of the war. I remember the worried look on my mother’s face and the concern over the wisdom of having me tag along on this dangerous trip. But we both knew that there was no turning back now, the ship was already on its way.”

Gabe smiled as a couple more people gathered around him now and started listening…

“Now, you should know that despite my young age then, I had some basic medical skills due to my training as a life guard at my school’s swimming pool back on Earth. I was also very eager to prove myself in those trying times, so I ignored my mother’s warning and offered my services to the chief medical officer. Having been short on personnel as it was, the department head was inclined to accept my offer, and after a heated argument I had with my mother, she finally gave in to my determination.

When we arrived on the scene, escape pods were scattered all over the place and we immediately began transporting survivals to the mess hall, which was serving as an emergency triage area at the time. The horrors that I have witnessed that day spoke volumes of the brutality of the Borg and the kind of war we were fighting. In fact, that particular day was printed in my memory forever. I remember that things were happening very fast; the CMO was deciding the priority of the cases and sending them to the proper sections to receive treatment. He had to make some tough decisions quickly based on the possibility of successful treatment and he had very little time to judge each case. Some were sent to be treated while others, the terminal cases, were sent to section C. That was the palliative care section where they would be given medicine to ease the pain and the medical staff will try to keep them as comfortable as possible in their last moments of life. One of these cases in particular left a lasting impression on me.”

Pausing again in order to collect his thoughts, Gabriel took another sip of his drink and looked around. A few more officers were now sitting at the bar and he noticed they were looking at him with evident curiosity, thirsty to hear more of what had to tell. It was clear that he had captured their total attention.

“He was a young father, who had lost his wife in that battle, and he was holding his infant daughter close to his chest. ‘Please, my baby, help her…’ he said as he approached me. I looked around for some help but I found none, so I opened the tricorder that I was given and to my disbelief I could only register one life sign, it was that of the father alone. The baby was long gone. At that point I realized that the man had gone through such a trauma that he was unable to accept the fact that he had lost his child. He had already been directed to section C by the CMO, but he had refused to go there.

I was confused and I didn’t know what to do. I called for a doctor but at the time all were busy with urgent matters and it was clear that no one else was available to deliver the bad news. I had to do it. It was the most difficult thing I ever had to do yet. But I decided to be forward with him. I spoke as softly as I could as I attempted to explain to him that his daughter had passed, and that he needed to let her go. He started shouting at me and pushed me away with teary eyes while insisting that I did not know what I was talking about. It was then that two security officers stepped in and had to hold the poor man back and take him away…

I never truly had the time to think about it though, as mere seconds after that shock, the red alert sirens started to wail, and the ship shook left and right. I could tell that we were taking fire, and then we jumped to warp. Later on, I learned that a Borg ship appeared out of nowhere and attacked us on sight. We were forced to abandon our efforts to save the rest of the survivals and flee the battle ground. As if it was not enough, a number of Borg drones had managed to transport to the ship before our shields went up and they had already took over some of the lower decks. Our small security detachment was trying to keep them contained but we soon realized that it was only a matter of time before we were overwhelmed. It was a bleak moment when my mother and I considered the likely possibility that were doomed to be assimilated…”

Archer appeared lost in thought for a moment as he recalled the events as they unfolded in front of his eyes.

“The thing about Starfleet, is that we don’t give up easy. The crew, fighting to preserve their lives and those of the ones they love, put up a brave fight. We lost many good people that day, and at one point we believed that our fate was sealed, no matter what we did, the Borg kept gaining ground one battle after the other. The Captain was making a desperate attempt to get us to the nearest Federation outpost before the Borg could take control of the ship, and we learned that there was a star ship coming our way to lend aid. But you have to understand, it was war, and resources were scarce to say the least. We were not going to make it to any outpost in time, and the rescue ship had some complications and was now running late. With no other options, the Captain dropped out of warp and gave the orders to evacuate the ship then activated the self-destruct. Knowing that the battle is over, we helped as many patients as we could to get to the escape pods, before my mother and I finally found ourselves on one. I remember seeing the silent countdown of the self-destruct sequence and all the time I kept wondering what on Earth were we doing here. How could you stand against an enemy such as this? Hope was fleeting away…”

There was a sad look on Gabe’s face as he smiled softly and continued the story.

“From the window of the escape pod that was racing away from the now abandoned frigate, I looked at the starship that I had been calling home for the last few weeks, expecting her to go up in flames at any second, but it never did. Instead, the engines came to life, and with a brilliant flash of light it jumped into warp. Everyone in the pod was utterly shocked and surprised as talk of the Borg taking over the ship and flying her away started to circulate. A few hours later, the delayed rescue ship finally arrived and began picking up the escape pods. Once aboard and the head count started, everyone noticed the absence of the ship’s Captain. Later on, the badly injured first officer explained that after the countdown to self-destruct had started, the bridge realized that the Borg had already disabled that system and the Captain was faced with an even more difficult decision to make. She remained behind as she piloted her own ship into a nearby star. Her last words to him were:

‘While one Starfleet Captain may fall today, many will rise from the ashes to make a stand and lead us to victory. We all have our parts to play, don’t you forget that Commander.’

It was at that moment that I had decided to join Starfleet. I felt that I owed that much to the noble Captain who achieved such an amazing feat. After all, if she hadn’t sacrificed herself in that magnificent manner, the Borg would have taken over the ship and used it to assimilate everyone in those pods. She did what she had to do in order to grant the rest of us a chance to live and fight another day. So we did, and in the end we won that bloody war…”

There were many smiles and a few slaps on the back from the now attentive audience, their faces full of pride in what that last sentence meant. The Ferengi, seeing the opportunity here, raised his glass and called for a toast. “To our victorious dead…” he said, “Lest we forget…”

Here here…” the gathered crowed responded as they joined in the moment.

“I believe that last round was on the house, in honor of the fallen heroes.” The look on Archer’s face was firm and unwavering.

The bar proprietor, knew that he had no choice in the matter, so he elected to reply as elegantly as he could, “Of course Commander, I would have it no other way…”

At that moment, Gabriel thought he caught a glimpse from the corner of his eye of a woman who looked so much like that Captain he once knew and she was smiling at him. When he turned to look, there was no one there but an empty seat. Archer concluded that he was just imagining things. After all, it wasn’t unheard of for certain memories to linger a little longer in a person’s mind after recalling such a tragic event. As he pondered the possibility that his mind was simply playing games on him, a young Midshipman with a face that was full of hope and determination walked into the bar and sat in that same seat. He could tell that she had just arrived at her first post after the academy.

She too may have a chance one day to be a hero, and to give the ultimate gift…

Gabriel Archer smiled at the thought and wondered what kind of a story this young officer would have to tell to her colleagues one day...