Transferring from the Givens to the Callisto seemed like a good idea when Captain Ceix offered. I wonder if he knew that it meant eventually ending up at Deep Space Four, and if I would have made the same choice would I have known.

Can’t even say I miss the people – because honestly, of those, we have more than enough.
Weird how that doesn’t mean you can’t feel lonely. 

— from Jason Marsh’s personal log

If Marsh squinted his eyes, he could almost imagine little Risa being at the center of some sort of festival.
Children ran barefoot over the grass that snaked between the tents, watched by their older siblings, parents or grandparents. Stalls with merchants advertising their wares to the crowds that stood in front, and large tables filled with exotic foods and beverages. Only the music was missing.

Yes, if he squinted his eyes, he could pretend, and ignore the fact that the children were watched by whoever felt the obligation to do so while the whereabouts of their families remained unknown. That the merchant stalls were supply crates that handed out essentials that barely covered the most basic of needs. That there was nothing exotic about ration packs and water.

Marsh sighed and shook his head. Better to get on with it.

“Follow me.”, he said as he turned to the new arrivals, a group of male Surnek accompanied by several children. They had evacuated from Dover Prime once the Vaadwuar headed their way, and while their female counterparts had remained to fight the invading force.

Neither of them moved, or even acknowledged him.
“Excuse me.”, Marsh tried again, this time a little louder. “You have to follow me now.”

He was met with quizzical looks, and unveiled apprehension. Marsh took a deep breath – the universal translator hadn’t quite managed to catch up to the new languages and accents just yet, which made communication with the different species that had sought refuge on Caireann station harder than it already was.

One of the Surnek, a gaunt individual with thick, obsidian-like skin, spoke up. Marsh couldn’t make out the entirety of what he was saying, but had learned to decipher the most commonly used words in their language. Children. Safety. Hunger. Others.

The latter wasn’t a request or a demand, it was a question. And one Marsh didn’t have an answer to. Perhaps the ‘others’ had been brought to a different part of the station. Perhaps they had never made it here.

“Just… Come along, please. I will find you a place, I promise.” he almost begged.

The Surnek simply stared at him, taking two of the children by the hand while carrying a third on his shoulders. The young man next to him had refused to let medical staff treat his broken arm and held it in front of him, the blood-soaked cloth still around it.

“If they do not come, we can come.”, said an almost human looking woman, whose white hair and vitiligo however clearly distinguished her as Atriari. Her partner, who had been sitting next to her, quickly rose to his feet and offered a nod.  “We come.”

“No, I’m sorry…”, Marsh tried to explain. “We reserve quarters for families with small children. You will have to stay here – but only for now, I promise.”

“Why? They don’t come. They stay. We come.”, the woman tried again, tilting her head to the side. Either she didn’t understand, or she didn’t agree.

It didn’t matter much, and it stopped mattering entirely when others, attracted by the ongoing discussion, approached and chimed in.

“Take us!”

“We have children!”

“Do you know anything about-…”

“I don’t.” Marsh insisted, louder than he had anticipated. “We don’t know, okay? We are trying, and I know it’s not ideal. But we are.” he turned to the Surnek. “So please, come with me. I can’t wait any longer.”

For a moment, everyone around him stayed silent. Then, the questions, the begging, the demands rose again and the crowd around him started closing in.

“You treat us like criminals.”

“We came because you promised protection. You are Starfleet.”

Marsh didn’t know how to respond to that. None of his training had prepared him for a situation like this. The ringing in his ears grew louder, and he could feel his heart racing, struggling to pump enough oxygen into his brain for him to come up with a solution.

“What’s going on?”, the harsh voice of Lieutenant Sh’shiqil broke through the shouting, and at once, people fell silent. The Andorian was flanked by four security officers, and if the refugees knew one thing, it was that the stations Chief Security Officer wasn’t someone they wanted to anger.

Marsh had heard the crew refer to her as unempathetic, and the refugees as heartless. He himself found himself agreeing with both those statements, but knew that it wasn’t his place to say anything. Sh’shiqil wasn’t popular, but she efficiently maintained order. When she threatened to have someone removed from the station, no one second guessed how valid her threat was.

“That’s what I thought.” Sh’shiqil said neutrally. Then she looked at Marsh. “What were you trying to do?”

Marsh lowered his gaze. “I was trying to bring the family to one of the quarters we set up for them. But they… they are… I don’t know.”

Sh’shiquil dipped her antennae, and looked at the Surnek. The man, the same who had spoken up before, opened his mouth. “Where… others?”

“We don’t know. No other ship arrived. I’m sorry. They might have changed course. Or they were caught.”, Sh’shiquil said calmly. She was stating the truth, but not what people wanted to hear. The crowd’s murmurs rose again.

“Was that wise to tell them?”, Marsh asked quietly, and froze when Sh’shiquil offered a cold glance in return. “Perhaps. Perhaps not. But we also can’t lie to them”

“Right…” Marsh nodded. That he understood, didn’t mean he agreed.

But the Surnek were moving towards him now while the others made no attempt to follow, which had been precisely what he had tried to accomplish. From the corner of his eyes, he could see Sh’shiqil’s antennae twitch with impatience, and scurried away.

And while he was torn between wanting to avoid further association with Sh’shiqil and leaning on her confidence, he barely registered her badge chirping, and Ceix’ voice urging her to ops.