Author's note: A friend and I spent most of today sending each other the saddest messages about Opportunity. I couldn't leave her out there, so...
The Promise (I Made)
"We wouldn't bother you if this wasn't important."
"I understand."
"Do you think you can help?"
"Yeah, I think so."
"And you know what to do? We don't want the public to know that you…"
Zhane nodded. He didn't understand why, exactly - the rules surrounding NASADA had never made much sense to him, but he followed them because it mattered to his team. "I'll make sure. Don't worry about a thing."
"Thank you. I'm very grateful."
The comms line closed. Zhane checked the readings to make sure he knew where he was going, left a note for Andros or Karone or whoever came by first, and headed out on his Galaxy Glider. The space around Earth was getting busier since they'd started building ships, and there was always a fuss when he brought the Megawinger into the system, even though they knew it well. The Galaxy Gilder could slip through without being seen, if he was careful about it.
One of the Earth ships was in orbit around Mars. He slipped past outside her sensor bubble, noting the name on the bow - Apollo. Pretty name, he thought indifferently, checking his readouts and heading down to the surface, skimming over it as he searched for his goal. He'd been told to look for a gully; when he found it he wound his way down it, looking out carefully. It shouldn't be hard to spot -
Someone else was there. Zhane pulled up the Glider behind a rock formation, frowning. A human in an Earther spacesuit, ungainly and awkward. Zhane hopped off the Glider, sending it away with a thought, and watched as the Earther figure bent over, examining something.
He strolled up behind the figure, watching as it tried to dig out the sand. "Must be hard in those gloves," he commented, knowing his comm system would have matched with the more primitive one inside the bulky helmet.
The figure jumped a little, turning awkwardly in the suit to try to look at him. Zhane stayed obligingly still, waving a little when the figure was finally face on to him. "Hello!"
"Hello." A male voice, friendly but confused. "It's - Zhane, isn't it? Of KO35?"
"That's me. And you're…" He tilted his head, watching his readouts. "Dr Daniel Jackson. Most wanted by...hmm, the Goa'uld and the Ori. That's pretty impressive."
"They're not hard to annoy. What are you doing here?"
"Same thing you are, it looks like. Want some help? I'm a bit more mobile than you are."
"Thanks. That would be great."
They worked together for a while, digging out the sand. Zhane brushed it away, blowing here and there. "Are you secret as well?" he asked curiously. "People aren't supposed to know about your ships, right?"
"They're not," Daniel agreed, digging at the base of the heap of sand. "Not yet, anyway. We will tell them eventually. And you?"
"Oh, everyone knows we exist," he said cheerfully. "I mean, there's still Rangers down there right now. I think they're Ninjas? But not many people know how to contact us."
"I know," Daniel agreed. "We tried."
"Oh, you weren't the first plan?" he asked innocently.
Daniel snorted. "I wasn't really eager to spend an hour in this thing, no." He patted at his chest.
"It does look really uncomfortable."
"It does the job, though. And I think we've done the job here."
"Are we supposed to move it?"
"No, someone might notice. Leave her there. She should be fine."
Zhane helped him stand and turn, finding his balance on the uneven ground. "Where's your ship getting you?"
"They can pick me up from anywhere, but I should be a little way away before I signal for pickup. They've probably spotted you, you know."
He shrugged easily, keeping pace as Daniel bounced along. "Maybe, maybe not. Sometimes we're blocked."
"You're not very worried."
"As long as they're getting my good side." He wasn't sure what that meant, but Ashley usually laughed when she said it.
Daniel snorted again. "It's blips on a radar screen."
"And I'm the good looking blip?"
"That's not usually how we label them."
"You should look into that. It would solve some problems."
"I'll mention it at the next staff meeting." He looked around, turning his whole body. "This should be fine. We're far enough away."
"Good." Zhane considered him for a minute. "You know anyone at NASADA?"
"A couple of them. And I know people who know more. Why?"
Zhane gave him two names. "If you need us again, they can get in touch with us. Just you, though, Daniel. Not your boss, or your friends, or anyone else. Got it?"
He nodded. "Why?"
Zhane smiled faintly. "You said her."
His Glider zipped by and he hopped on without waiting for Daniel's answer, flying away. He took care to circle Apollo a couple of times from different angles, just for the fun of it, before heading back to the Megaship.
Andros was in the workbay, putting a scanner back together. "Where'd you go?" he asked around the screwdriver in his mouth.
"Didn't you get my note?"
"Yes, but it wasn't exactly informative." He reached over to pick it up. "Gone to help Alpha's cousin."
"Mission from NASADA."
"And it went alright?"
"It went fine. Why, were you worried? Were you moping around waiting for me? Crying in the corners?"
Andros ignored him. "Pass me that."
" 'That'. I can see why you were the leader, with descriptive skills like that. Here is your 'that'."
"That's the wrong that."
On Mars, halfway down the slope of Perseverance Valley, the sun shone on a metal machine, now free of the sand that had blocked her solar panels. Her batteries were already beginning to fill again, a steady trickle. Soon her systems would come back online and her journey would begin once again, mapping Mars for the people back home who had mourned her so well.
Together we're lost in a land where we feel so alone
And the deafening cry of regret is calling me home...
And if ever the promise I made, I can finally fulfill