Sheridan watched the news. He knew declaring independence was a bold yet dangerous move. Clark could ill afford to lose another colony or outpost. Sheridan listened as the reporters spoke of rogue military units aligning with alien forces intent on subverting Earth. How much of that information could he trust? There was no way to know with certainty if the named units truly went rogue or if they were part of a propaganda machine involving misinformation.
As Sheridan continued watching the news, he considered his options if one of the so-called rogue units showed up at Babylon 5. What would he do? He could ill afford to greet them with welcome arms in case they were an elaborate hoax intent on destroying the cause. Yet he could not risk alienating a potential ally.
What damage could such a unit pose? However, Sheridan needed as many allies as possible if he had any chance of success. If he were too trusting, his movement would die. If he was too suspicious, his movement would suffer the potential benefits new allies brought to aid the campaign.
To date, Sheridan had recruited several fleet personnel. He knew of several ground commanders that he desperately wanted to contact. Too narrow, he thought. He had to broaden his campaign. Yet he had a responsibility. Potential infiltrators were a problem. Time would prove any treachery.
#B5#
Summons in the middle of the night always meant covert operations. Fiona often joked that was origination of the term black ops. The fact was such maneuvers historically operated under the cloak of darkness. Sometimes they operated under the cloak of political rationalizations. It was still exciting even after being in the military for twenty years. She had met all of the presidents during her years of service. Sometimes it was a normal environment and other times under duress, but this was the first president she was going to meet for the first time at a black ops briefing.
Fiona Mathers was thirty-eight years old and a full colonel in the Earth Force. She was part of an overt/covert project called the Wolf Pack, specifically the Alpha Team leader. She was short and petite but her men respected her authority. She kept her long brunette hair meticulously tied in a bun. Her bright green eyes could indicate gentleness or ferocity at a mere blink. She was a ground pounder, more commonly referred to as gropo, the infantry.
There was more to her, though. Fiona was a P15 telepath. She had a variety of special abilities including long-range telepathy, pyrokinesis, remote viewing, telekinesis, and an interesting gift called mind shredding. Given the rules concerning telepaths, her options were limited: sign up with Psi Corps, take anti-telepath drugs, life imprisonment, or participate in a clandestine military project.
Fiona's father had kept her hidden from the Psi Corps. Her mother descended from a long line of multi-talented telepaths – all women. It was always mother to daughter, and no woman ever bore more than one daughter. Family mythology claimed it was that way for over twenty five hundred years. However, over the last couple of centuries began serious problems. Shortly after giving birth, the mothers would inevitably go insane. Wielding such terrifying powers would invite public attack. Fiona's mother had to be 'put down' by the military.
Fiona's father was a lieutenant at the time and managed to keep her existence a secret from the Psi Corps. He had quickly remarried and her stepmother never indicated that Fiona was not her biological daughter. Her father knew that Fiona was extremely powerful when the girl accidentally burned down the house at the age of five.
Still, he knew he could not protect her forever. At least, not until he was a colonel and he learned about Project Wolf Pack. The president had just agreed to implement the project and by fortuitous coincidence, the then Colonel Mathers assigned as the first project director. What an opportunity! He immediately recruited his own daughter. He had expected a reprimand when he revealed the truth about his daughter but surprisingly his ordinates approved of his decision not to allow Psi Corps to obtain such a powerful telepath. Many officers did not trust the Psi Corps.
Frank Brody accepted assignment as the original team leader. At the time, he was just a captain. He eventually ascended the ranks and became the project director. Once you were with the Wolf Pack, you belonged to it the remainder of your military career. While he was not a telepath, he maintained tight control of the project. He stood six foot six inches and weighed almost two hundred pounds. He was a muscular man and despite his age could hold his own against the young recruits. Brody sported as much hair as regulations allowed.
An aide instructed Fiona and Brody to enter the president's office. Clark had been installed as the new Earth President as a direct result of Santiago's assassination on Earth Force One, despite rumors abounding he orchestrated the assassination. Another man stood silently, introduced only as Mister Morden. While there appeared to be no one else present, Fiona sensed at least two other presences but she dared not scan the room. She had certain liberties with unauthorized scans but not in the president's office.
"Ah, thank you for coming," said Clark. "We have a major problem on Proxima 3."
Brody asked, "Is it another colonial insurrection sir?"
Clark said, "Yes. There is a rebel faction attempting to seize control of Proxima 3. We've located several of their bases." He pressed a button to reveal several holographic images. He continued, "As you can see, they're located underneath several elementary and secondary schools. I don't trust the local authorities to handle this situation."
Fiona said, "We'll have to go in when school is not in session sir."
Clark said, "The rebels don't use the facilities after school hours. That's the problem. I suspect some of the school personnel are involved. I want you to eliminate those targets when the rebels are assembled."
Fiona said, "Sir that would be a violation of the Geneva Conference."
Clark said, "Hear me out, Colonel. There are rebel groupings popping up all around us. Many people are livid about Santiago's death. Some people are bandying about false accusations that I was involved. We need to maintain control. We'll just say that the rebels were responsible for the destruction of those schools and that's the truth – they shouldn't have set up operations there in the first place. That ought to discourage any positive public sentiment for the rebels. I'll be able to maintain control of Proxima 3. No more rebels."
Fiona said, "Sir, there are innocents involved. I cannot take my team in knowing that hundreds of children could die. Even if we were to stage a fire fight from within the bases it is still too great a risk."
Clark stood angrily and said, "How dare you refuse my orders! I ought to throw you in the brig! On the other hand, maybe you would prefer it if I were to have Psi Corps pick you up as a blip. I want you to go in there and eliminate those bases. I don't care about civilian casualties. The rebels will get the blame."
Fiona started, "But sir."
Brody said, "Colonel! You have your orders. You will comply or else."
Fiona knew it was a bad situation. How reliable was the intelligence? How accurate was it? Brody threatened her with disciplinary action if she disobeyed, yet if she carried out those orders, she would be a war criminal.
"I have my orders," Fiona finally said.
Brody said, "I'll personally see to this, sir."
Fiona kept quiet as she and Brody returned to the barracks. In the privacy of Brody's room, she said not a word until he finished scanning the room for transmitters. Brody said, "We're implementing Operation Sunset. I want you and all your telepaths off Earth. Load up all three raiders for the mission assignment. Don't forget the emergency funds."
Operation Sunset – that was the emergency plan in the event the project was in danger of illegal corruption. The emergency fund was comprised of money contributed by project members over the course of the last twenty years. It made things simpler than trying to withdraw massive amounts of credits from a bank.
Brody and Fiona began rousing the soldiers from their beds. Everyone was participating in the load up process. It had to look real. She telepathically alerted all of the telepaths as to the situation. They were professionals and said not a word openly. This was one of several feared scenarios. They received an illegal order and now they had to run.
Fiona was confident that Alpha Team would manage. Bravo Team and Charlie Team would have to travel their separate ways and eventually reconnect with Alpha Team once a secured place was established. Still, it was a tenuous situation.
Collins asked, "Is everything all right?"
Lieutenant Colonel John Collins was the Alpha Team Executive Officer. He was not a telepath but he had worked with the team for ten years. He had known Fiona long enough to sense certain things. He was fairly certain that she was telepathically communicating with the others and that meant trouble. As a career officer, he intended to climb the ranks. He maintained his physical conditioning and continually sharpened his command skills.
Fiona quietly thought, "Operation Sunset."
Collins concentrated, "I understand. I'm going." He felt he had to go but realized he had to concentrate in order for the telepathic conversation to work. He did not put up any barriers.
Fiona thought, "No. You'll be safe from retribution."
Collins said, "Show me." That was his way of asking her to communicate telepathically with him. He scratched his dark hair and realized he needed a trim. He made a mental note to pack his clippers.
Collins watched in horror what happened at the briefing. He kept insisting in his mind that he was going to join the team. Even with the fleet pursuing the renegade teams, the president could still always order the normal members to carry out the mission. Fiona had to admit she never considered that point.
Fiona continued packing resources. She hid her worry for the men and women under her command. Everything had to look legitimate. If she inadvertently hinted that something was amiss, anyone watching might suspect Operation Sunset. Night Watch proved a nuisance. None of her men joined, but several with neighboring units did. She suspected her unit was subject to their scrutiny.
The teams loaded up into their perspective raider ships. Brody saw to it that the normal personnel discreetly returned to the barracks area. He tried to get Collins away when his mind was flooded with images. Collins was determined to go. Well, that was not exactly how he planned Operation Sunset, but Collins acted as an extra conscience to Fiona. Collins was a good voice of reason. He could do nothing about it. He could not afford to make a scene.
Brody finally breathed a sigh of relief when the three raider ships made the jump into hyperspace. The raider ships were small but fast. Fiona was very clever. After all, he was the one that had trained her. He poured himself a victory brandy when the door burst open – Night Watch!
"General Brody," one man said. "Where are your telepaths? And why have they left without the other team members?"
Brody toyed, "What telepaths? This isn't the damned Psi Corps, you dumb shits."
"Do not assume we are ignorant nor stupid," said another man.
Brody just laughed before heartily drinking his brandy. He was a general. How dare the Night Watch presume they had authority over him! He did not care about some young butter bar fresh out of the academy trying to brown nose his way up the ranks by wearing a special piece of cloth around his arm. Maybe the snot nosed brat could make a referral but Brody could bust him down to buck private.
#B5#
Collins asked, "Now what?"
Fiona said, "We'll have to split up. Once they find out we're not going to Proxima 3 they'll hunt us down."
The air was thick with apprehension. The telepaths knew punishment meant imprisonment or remand to the Psi Corps. In either case, they would no longer enjoy their status as military telepaths. Their contracts guaranteed that after their military service they would be free telepaths not subject to taking the anti-telepath drugs or remand to the Psi Corps. However, the guarantee was invalid if they were subject to disciplinary action such as refusing orders.
In her entire career, Fiona never faced a situation of receiving an illegal order. She viewed her military history as one of honorable service, doing the right thing, fulfilling her mission objectives. She remained proud of the team's accomplishments, starting as a small project that became one of Earth Force's most decorated Special Forces units. Her father laid a solid foundation. Now, she looked around at her team and worried for them.
Doctor (Captain) Elizabeth Browning was a P5 empathic healer. She used to belong to Psi Corps in her youth but fled over ten years ago. Psi Corps tried forcing her to bear a child with a man they thought would be a good match for her. She refused and one night had a very strange dream of someone being all over her. A few weeks later, she discovered she was pregnant. After giving birth, the Psi Corps took away her child. It did not matter to her that the child eventually showed no signs of being a telepath. Psi Corps had no right to do that.
Browning remembered meeting Fiona in a hospital where she worked. Fiona had seen her empathically heal a patient. Fiona offered her a position with the Wolf Pack and decided to join. It was better than running from the Psi Corps. She brushed her fingers through her short, curly, hair that was more hoar than blonde.
First Lieutenant Tom Anderson was another matter. He was a P12 mind shredder and a former Psi Cop. He had grown tired of the various games he had to play, such as reactivating sleeper agents. He ran away from Psi Corps and tried hiding out on the Narn home world. A very helpful Narn named G'Kar assured him he could help. Anderson was surprised when Alpha Team arrived and knew G'Kar. At first, Fiona thought it was a Psi Corps trap until Anderson agreed to a scan as a joke. He was amazed at her strength. Afterwards, he signed up with Wolf Pack and conducted a series of tests to evaluate Fiona's rating. He was the one that classified her as a P15 telepath, using Kevin Vacit's Psi Scale to the best of his ability.
The highest conventional telepath on the Psi Scale was P12 and typically assigned to Meta Pol for Psi Cop training. Anderson trusted the Corps, became a right-hand man, and learned Vacit's secret. It may have been against the law for a telepath to lead the Psi Corps but in his mind, it was semantics. An ambitious enough telepath could easily influence a mundane. Vacit was so powerful that even the most highly trained Psi Cop could not detect his scans. No one understood why the mitochondrial testing failed to reveal his telepathy.
Anderson first suggested a P13 rating. An estimated one in ten billion Humans may have merited the rating, particularly if the person lacked the mitochondrial markers such as Vacit and Fiona. He understood the speculation that an old line of telepaths existed a long time ago but essentially died out while a new line emerged. Vacit believed he was part of that ancient line preserved through the Zuni. Once Anderson learned Fiona's heritage, he believed she was another rare surviving descendant preserved throughout the ages as a rogue wanderer.
Anderson reconsidered with a P14 rating when he realized that Fiona exhibited signs of telekinesis, an extremely rare gift found in approximately one out of every ten million Humans and unheard of in other species. There was no separate telekinetic scale due to the rarity of the condition, with half of the persons additionally diagnosed with some type of mental disorder including psychosis. The P14 rating description was vague and merely addressed P12 or P13 with strong telekinetic ability.
After continued observation, Anderson revised the rating to P15. Psi Corps had no measurable way to evaluate anything higher than P12 even though the Psi Scale went up to P30. P15 had the final and vaguest description suggested by Vacit, who merely stated the person had combined telepathic and telekinetic abilities as well as additional theoretical psychokinetic abilities not previously established.
Anderson was the only man available to make such an evaluation, even if he was not qualified. The Psi Corps would love to get their hands on Fiona. The first time he witnessed her pyrokinesis, Anderson realized the military did well to hide such a powerful telepath from the Psi Corps. Vacit hid his abilities and perhaps Earth Government suspected; in turn, they had a countermeasure if they wanted to interfere or directly take over Psi Corps.
Second Lieutenant Jerry Dell was a rogue telepath. He had worked for Psi Corps as a P12 remote viewer working with the bloodhounds tracking down blips and rogue telepaths. He saw too many people willing to die rather than join the Psi Corps. He eventually became a runner himself. Dell worked on a cargo ship for a while. When the ship had a load of military supplies for the Wolf Pack, he panicked as he saw Anderson sign for the materials. He had known Anderson but wondered why the Psi Cop was working with a military unit. Dell tried to run but Anderson captured him. When he learned of the true nature of the Wolf Pack, he decided to join.
Sergeant First Class Tim Resultan was a P10 rogue telepath. He used to work with the Psi Corps as an instructor. He did not mind the prearranged marriage with his wife, but after he found out he was sterile, Psi Corps made him divorce her. He did not like that kind of control so he fled. He had taken to criminal activities including smuggling and made a mistake when he tried to steal materials from the home base of Wolf Pack. He figured with his abilities he had an excellent chance to succeed, but he was surprised to discover the presence of telepaths within the military. He immediately enlisted.
Corporal Roger Carpenter had never known the Psi Corps. He was a P5 blip and had run all of his life it seemed, with his mother. He was still in his early teens when she killed herself rather than allowing the Corps to take her alive. He was an apprentice in the Thieves Guild when he made the mistake of picking Brody's pocket. Brody was a powerful man and Carpenter had been impressed with his abilities to keep telepaths out of his mind. He liked the idea of joining an elite unit.
Private Pamela Lee was the newest and youngest member of the team. She was a P5 blip. Her father was the Bravo Team First Sergeant. She was reluctant to join at first, not feeling especially suited to be a soldier. She accidentally scanned a woman at a store and a member of Psi Corps noticed it. The mind burst was too powerful. She felt pressured to join the military or run.
Fiona looked at the luminescent ribbons that comprised hyperspace. She always marveled at their beauty. She saw the other raider ships and knew it was time to establish contact. She did not enjoy the idea of separation. While the normal Bravo and Charlie team leaders were not part of the escape, the senior telepaths took the lead. They understood how to run.
"We'll still go to Proxima 3," Fiona said. "We just won't do what Clark wants us to do. I'm worried he might get another unit to commit such an atrocity. I'll bear this burden. You need to get the hell to safety."
"Very good," a reply came from the communication panel. "We're going to make a run for the Narn home world."
Another voice said, "That's too obvious. I'm taking Charlie Team to the Outer Rim."
Fiona said, "God speed to all of you."
Fiona did not like the separation, but she could always reestablish communications with her long-range telepathy. All of the team members had special telepathic homing beacons she had set up to make such communications easier. As long as she knew the destination, she would be able to track down the team members. She had even successfully communicated between Narn and Earth in that manner.
Fiona was in the process of such communication with Bravo Team when it neared the Narn home world. The team was in trouble. She related the events to her team. A Centauri warship was pursuing the raider ship. The Centauri ordered the team to leave their space. Do not engage them in a firefight, she thought. Then she shed a few tears when she knew that Bravo Team was gone.
"They're really after us," Lee cried.
Collins said, "Just stay calm. When did the Narn home world become Centauri territory?"
Fiona said, "Everything is going crazy. John, stay alert. I'm going to try and locate Charlie team."
Fiona knew it would be harder to establish contact with Charlie Team because she only had a general direction that they were traveling. If forces pursued them, they would have to alter their course. She felt like she was floating in hyperspace whenever she used her long-range abilities. There were many communications. While she did not witness the events, she intercepted reports of the Athena destroying Charlie Team.
Collins said, "We would have been better off if we had stayed together."
Anderson said, "Maybe you're right. It beats hanging out in hyperspace."
Fiona said, "We made our decisions."
Carpenter said, "Yeah but you're the only one that can guide us back to the beacon."
Fiona said, "We all knew the risks. It's harder to hide three ships. Obviously Clark has discreetly alerted authorities about us."
Collins said, "Then there's no point in trying to get to Proxima 3."
Fiona said, "Keep boosting that ISN signal."
Fiona knew they could not hide in hyperspace indefinitely. Eventually they would have to get supplies. While listening to the Inter Stellar News (ISN) reports, they were all relieved that Project Wolf Pack has not yet gone public. They also learned that Proxima 3 declared independence. Fiona tried to get as close as she dared to the jump gate.
Collins asked, "Well?"
Fiona said, "There are too many ships. There's no way we can get through. It's going to be a brutal assault force."
Collins suggested, "Maybe we can give a projection that we're part of the assault."
Fiona said, "The loco is too hot. The assault force probably is alerted to our status; Proxima 3 won't trust us."
Browning said, "There's got to be a place we can go. We've been in hyperspace for two weeks now."
"Pull us back into hyperspace before we're detected," Fiona told Collins. "Okay, wait a minute. What's this now?"
ISN was releasing a new report. Babylon 5 declared independence. Through adept monitoring of military channels, Fiona learned that another assault force was in route to seize control of the station. Clark did not want to lose control of such a vital station, nor the leading seat of the ambassadorial congress in residence.
Collins said, "There's no point in going there."
Fiona said, "There's every point in going there. Listen to me John. Babylon 5 has heavy defenses and the support of other worlds. If Sheridan wins, we can go there and request asylum."
Collins sarcastically said, "Oh sure. Hello, Captain Sheridan. We are a team of highly trained military telepaths. We want to join your insurrection."
Fiona said, "I want to know what he knows. Military governors just do not up and decide to declare independence. We'll go as close as we can and observe the assault force. If he loses, we'll run before we're spotted."
Lee said, "I vote against it."
Fiona sternly said, "This is not a democracy."
Collins said, "We are professional soldiers. Colonel, I trust you."
The small raider vessel carefully made its way to Babylon 5. The team carefully monitored the events of the assault. They backed away slightly when the Black Star fleet arrived. Fiona had never seen so many Minbari vessels in such a long time. She casually scanned and sent out a false projection: there is nothing here.
The raider ship backed away when the badly defeated Earth ships reentered hyperspace. Fiona continued sending out false projections. Anderson watched as beads of sweat began to drip from her face. He knew sending out such a projection to so many ships was exhausting. He felt the fears of the assorted crews, the shame, and the utter defeat in the face of a mighty enemy.
"It's time to go," Fiona calmly said.
One fan chose to PM instead of leave negative reviews to point out various errors. The Earth Force rank system, for example. I utilized major as a rank consistent with current military schemes (after captain but before lieutenant colonel). However, in the Babylon 5 reality, a major is between lieutenant and lieutenant commander. I thought about making Collins a captain, but considering his military history I felt that was too much of a reduction (unless he had been some kind of a screw up officer, which would invalidate his participation in Special Forces).
Another error was use of the Psi scale as originally written versus how it currently stands on fan sites based on the novels. Some fans feel that the novels are canon while others disagree. I decided to update and reference the Vacit scale as currently represented on such sites. A handful including Jason Ironheart was presumed P13 without further clarification. I applied descriptions for P13, P14, and P15 as understood in theory by a former Psi Cop (Anderson).