ACT ONE

FADE IN:

6 EXT. DEEP SPACE NINE

The runabout heads away from the station, deeper into the Bajoran system.

7 INT. RUNABOUT - COCKPIT

Ro is piloting, Cenn beside her.

CENN
So now that we’re on our way, am I
allowed to know where we’re going?

RO
Just to Bajor. To see Kira.

CENN
And what about the station? The
one you just took command of.

VAUGHN
Bowers and Evik can handle things
for few days. And it’s not like
we’ll be a million miles away.
Ro pauses, then chuckles to herself.

CENN
What’s funny?

RO
Just that moment when you hear
your father’s voice coming out of
your own mouth.

CENN
I barely knew my father.

RO
Me either. Anyway... That brings
us nicely onto the topic I want to
address before we get to Bajor.

Ro glances over their shoulders towards the door at the back of the cockpit.

CENN
(curious, wary)
Go on.

RO
Before we start, I need you to
understand that this is highly
classified, Major. Top level.

Cenn sits back, nods to himself. Confirmation.

CENN
Ah... here it is, then. At last.

RO
Here what is?

CENN
I had a feeling Vaughn’s transfer
wasn’t the whole secret. That you
were still keeping things from me.
I figured you had your reasons.

RO
We did. But I’ve decided those
reasons are no longer enough.

CENN
Now that Vaughn’s gone?

RO
The timing is suspicious, isn’t it?
Anyway, listen. The secret we’ve
been keeping is that we still have
Axno’s ship.

CENN
That was one of the possibilities.
I didn’t care for it especially,
because it implied you lied to me
when you told me it was destroyed
when Axno killed herself.

RO
Yes. We did. Vaughn ordered us to.
It was my contention that you are
one of the team and you deserved
to know, but Vaughn overruled me.
He wanted the information kept to
Starfleet personnel only as a security
measure. Now he’s gone, and I’m
in charge. So here we are. And I
need to know, Major... are we
okay about this?

Cenn takes a moment to think. Doesn’t really answer.

CENN
Where is the ship?

RO
Originally it was on Empok Nor.
It was recently moved to Derna.

CENN
You realise that by telling me this,
I’m obligated to report it up the
chain to General Lenaris.

RO
I do. And you’re free to do that.
But I am imploring you, and I am
asking you to implore him, that
this has to be a military secret.
One that I’m sharing between
our military and yours as a
gesture of good faith. It can’t
go any further than that.

CENN
You don’t think the public deserve
to know?

RO
There’s enough civil unrest out
there already over Raiq’s mere
existence. Tell the public we have
one of their ships as well... it’d
be a disaster.

CENN
Raiq... that’s why we’re going to
Bajor. You’re going to let her in
on the secret.

RO
She deserves to know too. And more
than that, she deserves to know...
what we learned from the ship.

CENN
Why? What did you learn?

As Ro prepares to answer...

8 EXT. JANIR MONASTERY

The small monastery sits in its valley, by the winding river. Unlike Kendra, it’s still warm here.

9 EXT. BAJOR - SURFACE

The runabout has just touched down in an open wooded area. As the ship settles, the hatch opens. Ro and Cenn step out.

RO
So you’re gonna stay and contact
Lenaris?

CENN
I think I should. And it’s not like
you’ll need me for this.

RO
No... it’s gonna be tough, though.
It could be good, or it could be
the end of the world.

CENN
And that’s not just a metaphor.

Ro chuckles with gallows humour. Then she turns and calls back through the runabout’s open hatch.

RO
Well? Are you coming or not?

Then PIF trots happily out of the ship and onto the grass.

PIF
Sorry to keep you, Commander.
It’s a whole new world, and I
wanted to look my best. What
do you think?

He bares his teeth in the brightest Cheshire cat smile, his spines upright and perky.

RO
Handsome as ever. I don’t know how
Quark will manage without you.

PIF
Tiffo will keep him company. Come
on, then. Race you!

And Pif pelts off into the distance.

CENN
Why did we bring him, again?

RO
We’re going to need him. I hope.

With a nod of goodbye, Ro heads off after Pif. Cenn turns and heads back into the runabout.

10 EXT. JANIR MONASTERY - ARBORETUM

A beautiful, tranquil rock garden area with pools, plants, paths and twittering birds.

KIRA crouches among the plants, working with them by hand. She’s wearing simple novice’s robes, dirty from the earth.

After a while, we see Ro stroll up.

RO
Well, that’s a sight I never expected
to see.

Kira looks up, beams with delight at Ro’s arrival. She gets up, wipes her hands down, and they hug in greeting.

KIRA
Ro! What are you doing here?

RO
I needed to talk to you about
something. Didn’t realise I was
interrupting gardening time.

KIRA
You know, Vedek Bareil tried to
get me to do some gardening once.
I couldn’t see the sense in it. But...
it’s weird how it really does help
to relax you.
(pause)
So what’s on your mind?

RO
Vaughn left this morning. I am now
officially in command of DS-Nine.

KIRA
You don’t seem too happy about it.

RO
I’m not unhappy about it. But I’m
also not... sure, I guess. If this is
where I should be. It’s only a few
years since I was hiding in caves
and running for my life.

KIRA
That’s the story of pretty much any
Bajoran I could name. But I thought
Elias was mentoring you?

RO
He was. Turns out he and I have
some very different ideas about
how to do things.

KIRA
(chuckle)
Oh, you should have seen some
of the fights Sisko and I had.

RO
But you ended up being perfect
for command.

KIRA
Perfect?! Prophets, I was anything
but. Starfleet was never the right
fit for me. But it is for you.

RO
Hi, my name’s Laren. Have we met?

KIRA
(laughing)
I mean it! For me, my Starfleet
life was always in conflict with
my spiritual life. You don’t have
that problem. You’re the perfect
Bajoran to work with Starfleet.

Ro is surprised into a smile. She never thought of that.

RO
You do seem comfortable here.

KIRA
I didn’t expect to be. My whole
life has been one fight after
another. Against the Cardassians,
then Starfleet, Klingons, Maquis,
Dominion, Ascendants.... I never
stopped fighting till I came here.
(sigh)
It’s amazing the tranquillity that
comes, when you finally find the
place where you’re supposed to be.

She looks sideways to Ro, sees she’s not so sure.

KIRA
Don’t worry. It’ll come to you too.
In time.

SPLASH. Ro and Kira turn in surprise, and see Pif ankle-deep in one of the small rock pools, and shaking himself dry in the usual dog way. He sees them watching, and grins.

PIF
Water! Actual real, fresh water.
You have no idea!

They all chuckle together. Then Ro gets to business.

RO
Where’s Raiq? I think it’s time
we told her the truth.

On Kira’s reaction to that...

11 INT. JANIR MONASTERY

By the archway, where RAIQ and Kira watched the sunrise together. Now the silver-skinned Ascendant woman stands framed by it, talking to Kira and Ro. Pif is elsewhere.

RAIQ
Axno’s vessel.

Ro nods. Raiq is wary, slowly realises...

RAIQ (cont)
That is how you healed me. You
placed me into the vessel...
and it took away my pain.

KIRA
Yes.

RAIQ
You knew?

RO
Don’t be angry with her, Raiq. We
kept it from her too... until your life
was in danger and we had no other
choice. If you’re angry... be angry
with me.

RAIQ
I will go to the vessel now.

RO
That won’t be possible.

RAIQ
And who are you to deny me?

RO
I’m the one who knows where it is
and how to find it. But I’ve come
to offer you something else, that
I hope you’ll accept instead. Some
information that the ship gave us.

RAIQ
(sneer)
What is this... information?

RO
When we investigated the ship, the
communications system was still
working. We found a message...
from another Ascendant.
(beat)
You’re not the only one, Raiq.

On both Raiq and Kira’s reactions to that...

FADE OUT:

END OF ACT ONE