An Anniversary For Two
by Seven
Disclaimer: Earth: Final Conflict and its characters are copyrighted
by Tribune Entertainment Company.
All rights reserved.
Authur's Note: Since in the show, it's been about a year since
Beckett's death... this is nothing original,
though, sadly.
**********
Starlight fell on the tiny Irish graveyard, illuminating it from the
shadow of the nearby buildings. The
streets, lit only by the streetlamps, were empty and slick with recent
rains.
The starlight was tainted by a sudden burst of purple, as a shuttle
zoomed down from the sky, and
settled down in the white-lit street. The shuttle's purple glow faded
as a tall, lanky figure slipped down,
with a lumpy package underneath his long arm.
Liam stood on the threshold of the graveyard, biting his lips as he
looked at the white marble marker in
the midst of the smaller gray stones. He had to admit it, the Taelons
did bury their implants with
respect. She didn't deserve to die. Never her, never.
As Liam slipped into the graveyard, into near-darkness, another figure
rose from the shadows, a
featureless blot that took a single step toward him. Liam's hand went
to his belt...
"Major Kincaid."
Sandoval. Liam relaxed at the familiar voice, even though he couldn't see Sandoval's face.
"What are you doing out here in the middle of the night?" Liam asked,
keeping his voice deliberately
casual.
Sandoval shrugged. "The same thing you are, I suspect."
Liam wilted a little, and drew the package from under his arm, and unwrapped
it. A cascade of pure
white roses fell onto the dark soil, little dots of white against the
dark. Sandoval sighed softly, and one
hand went out to drop a darker rose amidst the white. "Roses?" the
implant asked softly.
Liam nodded, resting a hand on the marker. "I loved her," he said quietly.
Sandoval nodded, put a hand on Liam's shoulder. That startled Liam—his
unknowing father had never
shown emotion quite like that before. Sandoval's dark eyes glimmered
briefly, as if he were holding
back tears. "I loved her too," he said quietly.
There was a long pause, and Liam rose and brushed the dirt from his
pants. The two wordlessly walked
back to the street, to the parked shuttle.
There was a faint glimmer in one of the stars above. A pair of slim
hands reached down to the grave,
and plucked both the red rose, and one of the white ones. Siobhan pressed
the flowers to her heart
as the shuttle took off, shooting into the sky like a comet.