A Forgiven Man

Posted on Sat Jan 8th, 2022 @ 8:51pm by Captain Ivan Petrov & Lieutenant Commander Yana Petrova

Mission: S1 Episode 1: Caretaker, Part I
Location: Petrov Estate, Eurasian Dominion, Terra
Timeline: MD -2, 1100 Hours
1117 words - 2.2 OF Standard Post Measure

How his hands had shaken when wrapped in those of the Emperor! How he’d cried at being restored to honor again! Until that moment when the man who held the Empire in the palm of his sacred hand looked upon him and forgave all he had done and failed to do.

“Thank you, Your Grace.” he mumbled between sobs, his eyes filled with tears. But it was not dignified to cry; it was not Terran. Instead, he’d kissed the Emperor’s ring and stood, shaking but strong of face. The beard he’d grown while a fugitive from the Empire had grayed over the years. He gave the Terran solute and His Grace returned it.

That had been the day before. Since then, he had done some research into his family. Yana, his wife, had gotten little more than a brief letter from him when he’d had to abandon his post at Imperial Starfleet Headquarters and quit the Empire, seemingly for good. After so long a time, one could hardly blame her if she had moved on to a new man. She’d legally held all of his wealth and power, and with it she could have done almost anything she desired. He would have to see if there was anything left in Yana Petrova for him.

His son, Andrei, served as a Security Officer aboard the ISS Ragnarok; his daughter Mika was at the Imperial Academy studying to become a medical officer. Perhaps his children had done everything in their power to follow in the footsteps of their dear old dad in all of his victories and successes. Maybe, however, they were working hard to cover up the classified failure that got him put on a kill list. The road to glory was paved with darkened stones.

He materialized on the transporter pad within the Petrov Estate. His brief communique that he was coming over had brought a number of old retainers to the room. These people who had worked for his family for generations, particularly the Vulcan slaves, many of which had served his grandfather, blinked as they saw their old master, older and more shabby than ever, but still in good shape.

“You people look as though you’ve seen a ghost.” he said, his face stern and hard.

“My Lord…we thought you were…” came the voice of a woman in her late seventies, long a maid of the household.

“Dead. You thought I must be dead.” Ivan responded without a hint of irritation. “You were wrong. I live and breathe. You should have never doubted me.”

He stepped off the pad and waded through the crowd of attendants which parted at his approach.

“Oh, right…” he said, pausing at the exit door and turning around. “Is the Mrs home?”

After being told that a servant would be sent to fetch her, Ivan traveled at a leisurely pace through the lovely gardens of the Petrov Estate. How he had longed for these glorious buds when he was living like a slave within Alliance Teritory! He had spent any free moments he could get pondering the greenery and thinking on the faces of his children. He became so lost in thought that he didn’t notice the footfalls behind him.

“You’re back…” came the feminine and familiar voice of his wife. He turned around and, in an instant, she had wrapped her arms around him. “I thought I’d never see you again.”

Ivan squeezed her tight, the bristles of his gray beard tickling on her head.

“My love, how could you say that? Don’t you know I would have destroyed the entire Alliance if it only meant I could see your face again?”

She smiled, a victim to a charm she had missed a tremendous amount.

“You, my dear, are even more beautiful than last I saw you.” Ivan said to his wife, his eyes glistening as they flitted over her.

“And you…are furrier.” They shared a laugh together as she stood wrapped in her husband’s strong arms. “How could it be that you are here? Aren’t they still looking for you?”

“If they were, I would never have been able to step foot on Terra with my life. No, I spoke to the Emperor directly, and he pardoned me and restored my commission.” He said with unrestrained pride. Despite the fact that he was aging, he was a man of great energy and passion, loving getting everything he could from life. His exile had only stoked that fire in him. “But there is more, my dear. I must go.”

“Go? Go where?” she asked, concern marking her features. She had never been an overly sentimental woman, as was typical for their people, but the thought that he had only just returned to her after so many years only to leave right away was nagging at her emotions. She felt a bit of anger well up at it which she didn’t attempt to restrain. “How could you leave now when you’ve only just returned?”

“I’ve been offered command of a new vessel and Starfleet means to make use of some of the things I’ve learned when I was away in the war.” he explained, still smiling.

“In the war?” she asked, irritated at how stupid she sounded, “what did you learn when you were away? Where did you go?”

“All in good time, Yana, all in good time!” he reassured her, his hands on her shoulders.

“Well, how can it be all in good time if you are leaving?!” she asked, her voice raising as she struck his chest violently with the palm of her hand. It had been hard enough to hurt, but she was no physical match for him. He gave no sign of being hurt or offended.

“Yana, that’s the thing I’m trying to tell you. I want you to come with me, and the children.” he said, grabbing her shoulders again. “I’ve asked to have Andrei and Mika transferred aboard my ship. There is so much lost time to make up for.”

“But Mika is only a cadet. She isn’t qualified to serve aboard an Imperial Starship yet.” she said, looking much less angry.

“I know that, Yana, that is why I pulled some strings and arranged for her to finish her training in the field. It’s an excellent opportunity for her and her career, I can assure you.” he answered his wife, sounding calm and sure. Finally she relented and smiled.

“All of us together again?” she asked, looking for further assurances.

“That’s right, Yana. All of us together again.”