The Sky's the Limit - Marco Palmieri [139]
“Lady Ai’lara,” Picard spoke calmly, looking directly into her eyes. “It seems clear that the scars you’ve suffered have not entirely healed. Perhaps your husband knew this was the only way to bring you a sense of closure.”
Ai’lara stared back at him. She said nothing but slowly regained her composure. Her breathing steadied as she absently ran her finger along the edge of the padd’s display. Then, with a click of her tongue, she gently set down the device, seated herself, and keyed it to begin playback.
The small screen flickered to life and the image of Alidar Jarok appeared upon it. Picard leaned forward to catch a glimpse of the admiral’s face, triggering his memory—recollections of the confrontation in the Neutral Zone, of the manner in which Jarok had been deceived, and of the last phrase Picard had heard uttered from Jarok’s lips: I did it for nothing.
But surprisingly, within the solitude of his final moments in his cabin aboard the Enterprise, the admiral had apparently found cause to reconsider. On the screen was not a man in the throes of despair, bereft of any remaining purpose in life. Instead, upon Jarok’s visage was the same grim determination the man had displayed while imploring the Enterprise crew to act upon his information, seemingly unaffected by the knowledge that his efforts had been in vain.
His message began.
“To my beloved wife and daughter,
“I cannot know under what circumstances this message will reach you. If it is the result of formalized relations between our people and the Federation, then one of my many dreams will have been realized. In any event, I know that you will face a future filled with both trepidation and optimism, with new enemies and new allies. And as that future unfolds, my actions, for better or for worse, will be viewed through the lens of history either as the recklessness of a foolhardy romantic or as the genius of a progressive visionary. I regret that I will not survive to know which is my legacy.
“To my beautiful Tiaru…I still remember, like it was yesterday, holding a tiny babe in my arms, at dusk beneath the glow of Remus, and swearing to protect you from any harm. And I have kept my oath to the best of my ability. Knowing that I shall not see you again is a burden that I cannot bear. But I know that you will grow to be noble and strong. It is in your blood.
“I don’t know if you will ever understand the reasons why I had to leave you, or the motives of the men whose lies drove me to do so. But if nothing else, you and your generation must understand the awesome and dangerous power of fear.
“It is fear that sows the distrust between our worlds and those of the Federation. It was fear that culminated in the bloodshed at Cheron during our war with Earth, long before you were born. It was fear that prompted our own leaders to use deception to divide my loyalties between conscience and empire. And it is fear that will destroy our people if your generation fails to overcome it.
“As fear drives our hatred and the building of our war machine, we consume the resources that could feed and clothe our people, we misuse the wisdom of our scientists and the labors of our industries, and we extinguish the light from our dreams of the future. There is no strength in fear. Strength arises from the courage to cast off fear’s oppressive chains and gives you the power to build a safer, more secure galaxy using instruments of peace.”
Jarok paused for a moment and raised a cup of water to his lips. Picard marveled at the stoicism of the man who was basically writing his epitaph as he prepared to end his own life. The admiral’s wife and daughter sat silently staring at the screen, their faces revealing no emotion. Jarok continued.
“My dearest wife,
“You must think me a coward…at the very least, a deserter of our family; at worst, a traitor to our people. I am both, and yet I am neither. My loyalty to our house and