36 hours
I've just had the most wonderful shore leave of my life. It almost feels like a dream -a beautiful dream.
As soon as I rematerialized at the beam down location our eyes met. And I knew I wasn't going to spend a lot of time with my crewmates. He was part of the welcoming group that was formed by a few rangers and a delegate of the local government on Kelara IV.
After some official words of welcome on behalf of the Kelaran authorities and instruction on the rules we had to abide by during our stay at the planet, the rangers were available for further information and, if we wished, as our guides.
That was when Mallku introduced himself to me. I estimate he's a few years older than I am and he certainly has the most beautiful pair of blue eyes I have ever seen -like a night sky right after sunset. He started talking to me about his planet and the different regions it is divided in. Of course I basically knew all this from the scan I had been making for Captain kathrynjaneway, but to hear him talk about it made it sound much more special. He's so passionate about his planet and very dedicated to the task of preserving the environment and all flora and fauna indigenous to the planet.
When he suggested to accompany me in exploring, I didn't hesitate a moment to say 'yes'. Fortunately the other ensigns I had planned to join were not interested in a guided tour and gladly left the two of us alone.
Mallku asked me where I'd like to go. With you, anywhere, I thought, and I suggested: 'Why don't you take me to some places you like? As long as we're back in 36 hours...' In that case we wouldn't go too far: a mountain ridge situated in the forest region. So together we left.
The air in the forest was fresh an smelled exactly like a forest should smell: like trees and fallen leaves, moss and mushrooms. The forest was very quiet and peaceful and we walked silently side by side. Occasionally Mallku would point out a bird or a small rodent and tell me its name. It felt very good to be there together, very natural. Like we had known eachother for years.
Little by little our path began to rise and after a while it even became steep. We passed some breathtaking waterfalls, with the sunlight painting rainbows just above them.
'Tal, I'd like to take you to my favorite mountain top. We'd have to do a little climbing, but I see you're not inexperienced, so it shouldn't be too difficult. We could be there just before sunset.' 'I wouldn't want to miss it', I answered, 'but once it's dark we can't go down anymore.' 'Don't worry, there's a small cabin on the top that's used as an observation post sometimes. We could spend the night there -if that's okay with you.'
When we reached the top, the sky in front of us was getting darker already. In the distance I saw a ridge of high mountains with snow on top of them. We turned around to look at the sun. From where we stood we had a stately view of the region. The sky was very clear and in the far distance I could even see the sparkling of the sea. A very impressing sight, to all directions.
We sat down on a rock to watch the sun set, close together as it was getting colder. The sky colored orange and then purple where the sun had disappeared, until finally it was almost completely dark. Mallku had put his arm around my shoulder.
Then we kissed and it felt like time ceased to exist...
Nights are very short in this part of Kelara IV. When I woke up after only a few hours of sleep, the sun was shining on my face through one of the small windows of the cabin.
We prepared breakfast and sat outside to enjoy the warmth of the sun. We still had almost a day ahead of us and were not in a hurry. I told Mallku about my family on Bajor and how much I miss them. He also told me about his family and about life on Kelara Prime. We talked about a lot of things. Suddenly I realized how late it had become. 'We've got to go now.' We put our belongings back in our bags and started descending the same way we had come the day before.
When we almost reached the rendez-vous point, we both stopped. We held each other tight, knowing this meant farewell forever. I looked into his deep blue eyes that made me feel like drowning, 'I'll never forget you...'
And then a voice came from my combadge: 'All hands return to Voyager withing 30 minutes. Shore leave is over.'
So here I am. Back on Voyager, back to work and back on our way to the Alpha Quadrant.