A Good Lighter - Part Seven

Posted on Sun Apr 30th, 2023 @ 10:58pm by Grand General Paul "Caveman" Antilles

Mission: Mission 120: All Along the Watchtowers - Part Two
Location: Various Locations - Antilles family home - Earth, SOL
Timeline: 0650Hrs - January 4th, 2394

After taking a moment, Paul Antilles resumed his tale. "The first months went poorly for us." he then shrugged. "The battle of Tyra especally, where the battle went poorly because the Seventh Fleet was our main battle fleet. We have a hundred and twelve ships. The Dominion threw over a thousand ships at us. You can pretty much guess what happened." Paul sighed as he saw the ghosts of the past appear in his mind's eye with exploding ships. Federation starships getting into engagements with dozens of Jem'Hadar swarms.

"Wait, How does Andrea coming back from the dead factor into all of this.?" Michael asked.

"Isn't it obvious, Mike?" Patricia inquired in a soft tone of voice.

"Andrea fought hard. But she died a second time, at the hands of the Cardassian warship Grevok." Paul paused. "The USS North Star was destroyed with all hands lost." Paul paused. "I was able to escape the battle, after saving several thousand others. The Dominion lost almost their entire fleet in the process but they still had six battleships and eighteen battlecruisers. Which alone, badly outgunned what we had left. So we fled after trying to save as many as we could." he paused. "The Relentless was separated during the retreat." he paused. "We were trapped behind enemy lines for a little over a month... We made them squirm, we made them suffer... " he paused. "We were finally able to return to Federation space, after causing issues for the Dominion and their allies." he paused. "As time passed. I learned to live with my losses. Then I lost Ed's mother. Sorlora was her name... You've heard of her before. She died a year later while supporting one of General Martok's missions." he paused. "No sign of her or her vessel was ever found." he sighed softly. "I learned to live with my loss... A little after three months after I lost Sorlora. The war ended and I met someone new. Rorik. Your biological mother." He regarded Michael and Patricia as he spoke. "But things didn't end well. She left, after leaving me you two." he then shifted his attention to William and Katrina. "Then later, I met your mother. Kerrie. Which brings us to the present."

Paul knew he needed to wrap up this tale. It was a depressing and sad tale. He didn't often think about it, and he was unsure of why he was sharing this with his four youngest children. None of whom had ever known anything about Andrea Crane. As all four weren't born until years later. Paul knew that Patricia and Michael were born in 2377. But William and Katrina were born in 2384. A good ten years after Andrea's death. None of the children before him had any knowledge of her, no memories. To them, Andrea Crane was a mere name, a concept, given weight and form.

"That is so depressingly sad," Patricia commented. "After all that. you kept going..."

"I did, what choice did I have... I had fourteen children. From various women, across various stages of life, to look after." Paul then shrugged his shoulders in a manner that said he didn't care. Rather than say he was helpless on the matter at hand. "I couldn't just abandon all of them," Paul commented. "I was still able to function. So after taking a moment to process what had happened. I was able to keep moving forward. One foot in front of the other." he paused. "My family was there to help me, my issues were their issues. My grief was shared with them too." He looked at his four children who were present. "Andrea might have been my spouse. But she was their mother. None of the others took it well."

"I'll bet." Michael paused. "I'm not sure how I could get over something like that," he admitted.

"I was a little older than you two when I met my Andrea Crane. Go out guys, and meet your own Andrea Crane... Because I can promise you all that he or she is out there, waiting for you." Paul commented. "Andrea and I. We made an effective team. She looked after my issues and I handled hers. We were also able to raise children between us and have successful careers, between us. We were successful." as he sat back in his chair. "She might not be present. But she left a legacy that still endures, even to this day," he commented. "With our children and grandchildren... One of them soon will have children of their own and make me a great grandparent." he slowly smiled.

Patricia paused. "But the four of us. We're the ones who had no memory of her."

Paul nodded. "Neither did John or Julian. Marie didn't find us until she was an adult." he paused. "Then there was Madeline. Who biologically speaking is my daughter but her mother didn't wish to tell me because of mistakes that she and I made when we heard about the destruction of the North Star."

"Mistakes?" Patricia inquired.

"They had sex. Patti." Michael explained to his sibling.

Patricia paused. "Oh," she answered.

"The point is... Andrea knew what she was doing, and she knew how to do it. She taught our children what they needed to know. Because of her. I have a huge family and I can soon expect great-grandkids. Thanks to her." Paul slowly smiled.