The Mobius Loop - Part Twelve

Posted on Wed May 28th, 2025 @ 12:49am by Fleet Captain Torilla Yamaguchi
Edited on on Wed May 28th, 2025 @ 1:00am

Mission: Mission 121: The Mobius Loop
Location: Various Locations - USS Grey Wolf
Timeline: 1130Hrs - February 4th, 2394

Torilla was met by a man standing just a couple of meters away from him with a slight smirk on his face.

"Q!" she whispered

"Greetings Captain. You look utterly ravishing as always." he smiled warmly at her.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Torilla asked in a quiet tone of voice, she had always respected his power, if not his common sense.

Q smiled, then snapped his fingers. In a bright flash, he was dressed as Santa Clause and Torilla was back in uniform including her rank insignia, combadge, sidearm and a tricorder. The last two were from her desk drawer. "Does this help a little?" he inquired of her.

This wasn't the first time Q appeared as the jolly old elf before Torilla again. During the Dominion War around Christmas time of Twenty-Three seventy-four, the Courageous had been damaged in battle and was limping home. Q appeared on the ship as Santa Clause and passed out Christmas gifts. His final gift was repairing the ship completely. Jake had decided that since they were now a month ahead of schedule. He threw a Christmas party and gave the entire crew two days off to celebrate. Q had been the guest of honour as Jake had informed the crowd to treat Santa Claus as if he were an honoured guest. Rather than a cosmic-level nuisance.

Torilla looked over Q for a moment as he realized she has also fully clothed again, "Why are you here Q?" Torilla then answered her own question, "This whole thing, the anomaly, it's all you. It was always you, all along..." she whispered. The revelation hit her like a ton of bricks.

Q nodded. "Ho ho ho." he grinned at her.

Torilla narrowed his eyes for a moment, "Why?"

Q snapped and returned to his usual appearance with dark hair and a matching uniform to Torilla's "Does everything in the universe need to be explained.?" he asked. "Most of you always ask so many questions?" as he smiled at her. "Enjoy this one and know that not all mysteries need to be resolved with such finality," he added.

Torilla thought for a moment and realized that she'd been so preoccupied in her off-duty hours with thoughts of the past. Her concerns for her children and recent events. Now here was Q giving her exactly what she'd wanted all along.

"For mortals, you have some very bright people here. They'll figure out how to get everyone back to where they belong, and all of them will remember this event." Q added. "All will be as if a midsummer night's dream. I believe is how your Shakespeare words it," he added.

"Will we?" Torilla asked, almost like a child asking her parent a question. "Remember any of this, I mean," she added for clarification.

Q nodded once, in silence. "Someone around here should." he paused. "But mon capitane. I am not here for the people on this Starbase. I am here for you." he added. "I wanted to say, among other things... Farewell," he commented.

"Thank you, Q," Torilla said, very sincerely. She smiled warmly at him.

"This will be the last time you see me." Q admitted. "I can't promise Q2 won't pop in sometime, or Q3 for that matter, but for me, this is au revoir," Q replied. "I have other things I need to do,"

Torilla cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow. As if questioning his move and motives in silence. She had always respected Q, even feared him, but he had never dared get into his face about things. Considering he had the power to remove her from existence with a thought.

Q started to snap, then paused, "But, before I go, I have one last gift for you." Q smirked, snapped, and in a flash of light. He was gone. As if he had never existed in the first place.

Torilla took a deep breath. She'd encountered Q nearly a half a dozen times in her life. Not as many as Janeway or Picard, but in those meetings there had always been a lesson learned...and if Q was right and this was the last time she'd ever encounter him... Toriolla was a little sad about it. She knew that Q had always meant well in his own way.

That was when Torilla heard a soft growl. he felt her eyes go wide as she looked down. She felt a soft furry animal brush past her leg, while she heard a soft growling sound. "Cheris," she whispered. The Halanan Lyrax responded to her name. Torilla knew by instinct and by love that it was her. "He gave you back to me," she whispered. Torilla was glad she was sitting down. "Come here, pretty one," she whispered.

Cheris leapt into her lap before she curled into a ball on her mistress's lap. The Lyrax then promptly fell asleep. Torilla closed her eyes as she could no longer contain her emotions. She began to weep.