Chapter Twenty One
Moving On

Jean-Luc Picard carries the crystal decanter and two glasses across the night lit Ten Forward to where Leroy Jethro Gibbs sits alone at a small table on the elevated port side. The Investigator sits facing fore, lush Risa dark to the left. Nothing shines in the hemisphere where technology is hidden so far into the background. All the lights that do shine in Cintara or any other community affect the planet from space not at all. For a long time to come, Picard thinks, this will be the view of Risa he'll remember.

He seats himself to Gibbs' left, takes the man's nearly drained glass and sets it further away. It's only then that Gibbs notices him, looks up from his reverie.

"Not a night for synthehol," Picard declares. The green liquid filling the thick crystal seems brighter than the dim overhead lighting can impart and he pours two half glasses.

Gibbs takes his, smells and takes a sip, grimaces at its power. "That's not synthehol."

"Aldebaran whiskey." Gibbs takes a larger sip and he pauses to let the man endure the explosion. "Thank you doesn't do it justice."

Gibbs waves it off, looks forward to the right drifting stars before him rather than the planet and the silence lengthens.

x

"I'm a grandfather," Gibbs finally says, then turns to Picard. "Did you know that?"

"No."

"My wife Shannon; thirty seven years. Daughter Kelly." He picks up the glass of green fire. "She married an SCIS Agent, the fool." He takes a sip. There had been nothing of rancor in the loving judgment. When he can speak again, he looks to Picard. "Caitlyn will be two on October second."

He sets the glass down. "Your family?"

Picard smiles fondly. "You've worked with them for two days."

"Same," he admits with a sigh, looking again to the stars. "You heard me tell Bonaventure to bring us home. They're my adoptive family. Tony's a nephew. Ducky's an uncle..." He takes another drink. "But Shannon, Kelly, Caitlyn..."

He stares at the play of the almost shining green brew, then puts the glass down with a thump at arm's length and turns full to Picard. "He stabbed his granddaughter to death and threw his grandson to the targs for a seat on a bigger Council. For politics."

Picard wonders if there's much point in revealing it now but "Sumnar and Pragakar have accepted Kelbron's resignation, whenever he finally makes it."

"Think he will?"

Picard shakes his head. "They'll have an answer for the people; advancing age, grief over his granddaughter..."

"He walks."

Picard shares his disgust. "They don't have a law to cover murder, and it takes all three of them to make a law. They'll have to sort that out after an Election. Someday."

"I told them I don't give a damn about his plan." He retrieves the glass. "I don't. About them. I wasn't really sure until the end that the three of them hadn't been together on it." He looks to the dark planet. "Abby and Michelle are down there. Tim and Ziva too. They insisted. See Sheun and the family a last time, as if explaining why could help."

"Deanna would say it would."

"Maybe so." He samples another blast, sets the glass down. "Maybe not. I don't know. I'm retrieving them in an hour and we're moving out." He looks with no fondness to the planet. "I've had my fill of Risa."

x

Individually and in pairs, each of his people had come to him yesterday and earlier today about staying on for a few days after the case was settled. Then they hadn't left Bonaventure's transporter room before the first of them changed their minds.

Before he'd warmed his office chair the sentiments were unanimous.

Now there's only one last Agent's future to consider.

After a near minute he brings his focus back to Picard. "About Cassidy. She's been with you for three tours. Very unusual."

"So I understand."

"You know she pushed for this berth?"

"No, I didn't." He can certainly understand someone campaigning to serve aboard the Federation's Flagship, but now he understands the woman a little better.

Gibbs finishes the glass, doesn't refuse a reload. "We could take her with us, if you're tired of her."

He considers. "I think we'll keep her, if she wants to stay. I've gotten her broken in."

"Your headache," he says with a mildly facetious smile.

xxx

An hour later the Service Ship Bonaventure, dark Risa dimming its port side, aligns six hundred meters forward of Enterprise's bow, stars and running lights illuminating the smooth silver stern.

In the bridge Tim McGee and Ziva David finish reviewing the departure check-list. Ziva notes the green light on the Navicomputer and nods confirmation to the pilot. "We are ready."

McGee reaches for the Comm control.

x

On Enterprise's bridge Worf reports "Bonaventure is hailing."

"On screen." The head and upper body of the blue uniformed scientist appear on the huge monitor.

/Well, Captain, all good things and so forth./

"And so forth."

/Maybe someday we can all get together outside work./

"We shall look forward to it. All the best."

/I'll pass that along./ He looks about, a broad unnecessary gesture. /Hey, Geordi, you there?/

The Chief Engineer grins, expecting he's not as small at his station as the man would make it seem. "Right here."

/Watch this./ His image vanishes, replaced by the starscape and the mirror-like silver ship.

x

Aboard Bonaventure Ziva frowns as she watches McGee's adjustments to the controls. "You are setting the Inertial Dampeners to Maximum? What are you–?" She looks on, incredulous, as she feels the protective field take hold of her more securely in its embrace than she's used to. He makes a final adjustment. "Standing start to Warp Sixte– have you lost your mind?"

"Always wanted to try this," he grins as he reopens the audio circuit.

x

On Enterprise the amused voice jumps from the overhead speakers. /Still there, Geordi?/

"Still here."

/Bye now./

A flash where Bonaventure had hung and an instantaneous bright red line stretches into infinity and rapidly falls from red through orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet to be lost in the invisible.

xx

The ear-piercing whistle of taxed engines doesn't drown out the stentorian bellow from the office behind the bridge.

"McGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"