True Connections
By: Luke Skywalker

"Hunt moves toward the hoop. He has to make this shot to win. His opponent stands in the way. Hunt moves right, making a pass through the legs and..." Too late, Captain Dylan Hunt realized that he no longer had possession of the basketball. Tyr, the tall Nietzschean now had the upper hand, and with one swift flick of his wrists, won the game by three points.
Dylan smiled sarcastically. Tyr cocked his head slightly, confused by his new captain's attitude. Dylan pointed his finger at Tyr and advanced on him. Tyr's muscles tenses. "Three games in a row. You just don't give up, do you?" Dylan said. Tyr relaxed somewhat.
"Do you?" he asked. Dylan blinked. He stood with his mouth open and his hand coming closer and closer to resting at his side. Finally he let out a long held breath.
"No, Tyr. I don't." Tyr nodded and brought the ball to his chest.
"Then let's go again." He tossed Dylan the ball. Dylan nodded and moved to the top of the court.
Suddenly, a slight shock rocked the ship. Dylan swayed a little on his feet as did Tyr. The shock lasted only a second, but that was more than enough to make Dylan nervous.
"Rommie?" he called. The holographic form of the artificial intelligence of the starship Andromeda materialized in the middle of the basketball court.
"Yes, Captain," she said, her voice reverberating with a metallic vibe.
"Report," Dylan said. Before Rommie could speak, Beka Valentine's voice echoed in the room.
"Dylan!" she said. She sounded confused and a little stunned.
"What is it, Beka?" Dylan said. Tyr stood in between the hologram of Andromeda and Dylan, listening intently to the sound of Beka's voice.
"Dylan, I think you'd better get up here."
"I'm on my way," he said. Rommie dematerialized, not needed at the moment. Dylan put the basketball down on the floor and looked up at Tyr. "You owe me a rematch," he said. Tyr nodded.
"Perhaps." Dylan shook his head. He and Tyr walked towards the Command Center.
Dylan and Tyr entered the Command Center of the old Commonwealth warship Andromeda Ascendant, tension and confusion were everywhere. Beka approached Dylan.
"Report, Beka," Dylan said.
"There was a huge flash of white light and then the shock we all felt," she explained. "It was almost as if some very clumsy driver was coming out of slipstream." She eyed Trance. The young woman's eyes widened and she shrugged.
"I-I...it wasn't my fault!" she exclaimed. She then pointed at Tyr. "He made me do it!"
"That was a while ago," Dylan broke in. "It doesn't matter now." Suddenly, Rommie spoke up.
"Dylan, I'm reading a ship out there." Dylan, Beka and Tyr moved to their stations.
"What kind of a ship, Rommie?" Dylan asked. He then looked to Rev Bem. "What do you make of it, Rev?" The short, almost bat-looking Magog shook his head.
"It looks like a very old model. Titanium based, primative energy core..." he said.
"Dylan," Rommie interrupted. "It's one of ours."
Dylan Hunt cocked an eyebrow at the A.I. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"I mean, it's built just like me, only maybe more primitive. But it's still a ship of the Commonwealth."
"How is that possible?" Tyr asked, looking at Dylan. "The Commonwealth was completely destroyed, fleet and all."
"I know, I know," Dylan said. "Rommie, are you sure?"
"Would you like to see for yourself?" she said sarcastically. Dylan smiled and nodded.
"On screen," he said. The viewing screen switched on. Dylan leaned forward. Floating in space was definately a primative form of the Andromeda, but it was a Commonwealth fleet vessel alright. "Hail them," he said.
"No response," Beka said.
"Any life signs, Rommie?"
"Afermative. I'm picking up two males and one female, but their lifesigns are faint."
Dylan winced as if he was attempting to see closer. "Rommie, magnify the image." The ship got closer on the screen. Dylan's eyes widened and he caught his breath in recognition. "The Saratoga."
"Excuse me, Captain?" Beka said.
Dylan pointed his finger at the view screen. "It's the USS Saratoga." Beka looked around the Command Center, glancing from Rev to Trance to Tyr for a glimpse of recognition.
"The USS Saratoga?" she asked again. Dylan waved her off for a second.
"Rommie, can you confirm that it is the Saratoga?" Andromeda nodded.
"Dylan, what's going on?" Beka demanded.
"The USS Saratoga was part of a huge convoy fifty years before I was caught in the black hole. She and her other ships encountered a berage of Nieztschean war ships. All but the Saratoga were destroyed. She escaped and went into slip stream." Dylan paused. "She never came out of slip stream and no one heard from her again."
A beeping sound eminated from a control station and Andromeda appeared on the A.I. view screen again. "It's confirmed, sir. That's definately the USS Saratoga."
Dylan swallowed hard. Beka stared at him. Tyr looked at the old ship from the view screen.
"But what does that mean?" Trance asked, hardly able to contain herself.
"It means, Trance," Dylan said, "That Andromeda and I aren't the only ones to survive frozen in time." He paused, considering another alternative. "And we might be able to restore the Commonwealth.
***
"Beka, get a docking lock between us and that ship and get those survivors to medical," Dylan said. Beka nodded, brought the Andromeda along-side the Saratoga and got her in the shuttle bay.
"We are docked with the Saratoga," Beka reported. Dylan nodded and turned to Trance and Rev.
"Go down to medical and tell me when the survivors can talk."
"Aye, sir!" Trance said. She soluted him and she and Rev walked out of the Command Center. Dylan smiled and turned to Andromeda.
"Rommie, can you identify the survivors?" he said.
"Yes, wait just a minute...Scanning the ship...Analyzing their DNA..." Dylan paced as he waited for the result. "I have the identifications. They are Captain Kari Sandoz, Crewman Joseph Jackson, and engineer Todd Curtis."
Dylan breathed a sign of relief. "At least Captain Sandoz is alive," he said. "She maybe able to help." Dylan leaned on one of the ramp bars. Tyr walked up to him.
"Dylan, I think you need to rest." Dylan looked at him.
"That doesn't sound like the Tyr I know. You, concerned?" Tyr nodded.
"Only for my well being. I don't think that the ship is safe in the hands of a fatigued captain." Dylan shook his head.
"Tyr, I'm fine," he said, but Beka walked up to him as well.
"Dylan, I hate to admit it, but Tyr's right. You do look very tired. I think you should rest." Dylan sighed and stood up straight. He lifted his hands in surrender.
"Okay, okay, I'll go. I can't oppose both of you." He turned and walked towards his quarters.
Hours later, Dylan was staring at the history of the Saratoga's disappearance which he had asked Andromeda to dig up for him.
He was still reading when Rommie walked into the room. "Find anything?" she asked. He looked up.
"Not much more than I already know," he said. "Thank you for getting it to me so quickly."
"Trance wants me to tell you that Captain Sandoz is almost fully healed. She wasn't hurt badly." Dylan nodded. Rommie was walking out the door when Tyr walked in. He glanced from Rommie to Dylan.
"Having a little social discussion?" he asked sarcastically. Rommie gave Tyr her best 'Yeah right' look.
"Tyr, what is it?" Dylan said.
"The captain of the Saratoga wishes to speak with you," he said. Dylan nodded and walked out the door with Tyr and Rommie following close behind.
When they walked into medical, Dylan saw Captain Sandoz walking around the room with Trance.
"Captain Sandoz," Dylan said. She turned towards him. Her ice blue eyes were flashing with confusion and she looked so tired. Her old Commonwealth uniform was dark green and her dirty blonde hair was up in a messy twist on her head.
"You are Captain Dylan Hunt?" she asked. Dylan nodded. "How do you know my name? I haven't spoken one word to you."
"Captain Sandoz, do you remember anything after your ship went into slipstream?" Sandoz thought for a second. She finally shook her head.
"No. All I remember is the ambush of Nietzschean ships who fired on my convoy. All of them were destroyed, along with my entire crew except my enineer and a crewmemeber and I. We went to slipstream and then we were here." She walked up to Dylan. "Captain Hunt, where is here?"
"You are on the warship Andromeda Ascendant. My crew abandoned ship during a battle fifty years after you went into slipstream." Her eyes widened.
"How is that possible?" she said. Then she saw Tyr. Her jaw tightened and she pursed her lips together, trying to control her anger. Tyr simply stood ridgid. "What is a Nietzschean doing on a Commonwealth warship?" she asked angrily.
"The Nietzscheans and the Commonwealth are no longer at war." Dylan said quickly. She eyed Dylan suspiciously, keeping Tyr in her perefrial sight. "My crew abandoned ship 300 years ago. I was caught in the event horizon of a black hole for 300 years. Captain Valentine's crew rescued me. They were trying to take over my ship, but they soon realized that their employer didn't care about their well being and he treid to send us back into the black hole. So they joined me, along with the Nietzschean. He's now a respected member of my crew. The Commonwealth no longer exists, and so the Nietzscheans are no longer at war."
Sandoz nodded uneasily. "His people destroyed my convoy, killed my crew. You'll forgive me if I'm a little...well, you know." Her full attention was on Dylan now.
"Edgy?" Tyr put in. She stared at him. She said nothing for a while.
"Yes," she said finally. Tyr gave her a slight nod. Dylan, then realizing that he had forgotten something, cleared his throat and stepped to Captain Sandoz's side.
"Captain Kari Sandoz, this is Tyr, my tactical officer." Sandoz allowed a slight, quick smile to escape her lips and Tyr nodded in acknowledgment. At that moment, Beka walked into medical. Dylan motioned towards her. "This is my first officer, Beka Valentine. Beka, this is Captain Sandoz of the Saratoga." Beka walked up to Sandoz and they shook hands.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Beka said and Sandoz nodded in acknowledgment. She then turned to her other crew mates. Dylan saw worry on Sandoz's features.
"How are they...uh...what's your name again?" she asked.
"I'm Trance," she said, "And they should be find in the next couple hours."
"In the meantime, Captain, I've had quarters prepared for you so you can stay and rest and perhaps even help us with something."
Sandoz nodded. "I would be glad to do anything to help, Captain Hunt." He nodded.
"Rommie," he said and Rommie put down her work that she was doing in front of crewman Jackson and walked to Dylan's side.
"Yes," she asked.
"Would you please show Captain Sandoz to her quarters?"
"Of course," Rommie said. She motioned to Sandoz. "Right this way." Sandoz followed the android down the corridors of the ship.
***
"Captain Sandoz is sleeping in her quarters," Rommie reported to Dylan. He was back in his own quarters, looking at his picture of Sarah and him. "She seems better."
"Well, lets just hope we can convince her to help us." Dylan looked up. "We need her." Dylan looked at Rommie. "You maybe a machine, Rommie, but I know you understand the importance of the Commonwealth to the galaxy." Rommie allowed a shy smile.
"How could I denounce the organization that built me?" she said. Dylan smiled.
"And how are her two other crewmates?" he asked.
"Trance says they're getting better. They're recovering slowly." Rommie got an uneasy look on her face as she suddenly remembered something. Dylan eyed her curiously. "Sandoz has expressed interest in talking to them about leaving."
Dylan swallowed. This could change everything. How could they restore the Commonwealth if Sandoz didn't stay. She could have helped them, made their mission easier. Another thought occured to him. "But how would she, with only two other crewmembers survive three hundered and fifty years after they disappeared?" he asked.
Rommie swallowed and her eyes wandered around the room. Dylan kept his eye on her. "Rommie..." he asked.
"Well, uh...um..." Why won't she answer Dylan asked himself.
"Rommie," he said. "What aren't you telling me?"
Rommie swallowed again. "Captain Sandoz doesn't simply want to leave orbit, sir." She met his gaze again. "She wants to go back to her own time." Dylan stood up.
"We don't know how to do that, Rommie," he said. "With Harper's device we can only send one person at a time to a ship ready to receive them in the past."
"I know," Rommie said.
"We don't know how to send an entire ship like the Saratoga or the Andromeda into the past." Then he looked at Rommie again. "You didn't mention anything to her, did you?"
"No, Dylan. I didn't. I didn't say anything."
"Good. I still want to try to convince her to help us."
***
In the Andromeda briefing room, Dylan was sitting at the head of the long, opal shaped table. Rommie was standing next to him. Captain Sandoz sat next to Beka along with her engineer and crewmember who had recovered fully.
"Captain Hunt, my crew and I would like to return to our time," Sandoz said. Rommie stepped forward as Dylan sat back in his chair. "But we don't know how," she continued. "We were hoping that you could help us."
"Actually, Captain, we were hoping that you would stay with the Andromeda, help us with our mission," Dylan said.
"And what is your mission?" her crewmember, Joseph Jackson asked.
"We are attempting to restore the Commonwealth here, three hundred years after it fell," Rommie said. Jackson sat back, interested. Dylan leaned forward.
"We have already had some people sign our charter to join, but we could use some help," Dylan continued. There was a short pause while Sandox thought. Finally she shook her head.
"I'm sorry, Captain Hunt," she said. She met his steady gaze. "This isn't our time anymore. You may do what you wish here, but we need to go home."
Her engineer, Todd Curtis spoke up. "I have to agree with my captain. We don't belong here. We could never survive in this time with a battle-worn ship and a skeleton crew of three."
"But the Andromeda would be able to help you with repairs to your ship," Dylan countered. He looked at Beka for help.
"Our engineer could work with you, Mr. Curtis, to help get your ship underway," she said. Suddenly, everyone except Rommie and Captain Sandoz were talking at once, Dylan and Beka on one side, Curtis and Jackson on the other.
Finally, Sandoz summoned for quiet, but nobody listened. "Excuse me..." she began. Suddenly, an alarm went off. Everyone stopped talking as Dylan got to his feet. As soon as everyone was quiet, the alarm stopped. Dylan looked around the room, then all eyes rested on Rommie.
"Sorry, I thought it would help," she said. Sandoz nodded in her direction acknowledgingly.
"Thank you, Andromeda." She turned back towards Dylan and Beka. "I think I can see the advantage of staying here. Back in our time, we would only be doomed to repeat the same sequence of events that led us into this situation." She turned towards Jackson and Curtis. "If we stay here, we have a chance to reshape history and help bring the known worlds back from chaos." Curtis and Jackson stared at their captain in disbelief. "I say we stay here."
Dylan smiled as did Rommie, but Beka looked at Sandoz curiously. Why had she suddenly had this change of heart? Why did she suddenly want to stay?
"Thank you, Captain Sandoz," Dylan said. "We're grateful that you want to stay and help." Sandoz nodded. "We'll have Harper help your engineer with the repairs to your ship."
"Thank you, Captain," Sandoz answered. She stood up as did Curtis and Jackson. "If there is nothing more to discuss, my crew and I need to catch up on our history." Dylan nodded and the three left. Dylan and Beka stood and Rommie left. Dylan was almost out of the room when Beka stopped him.
"Dylan." He turned to look at her. "Didn't her turn around seem odd to you?" Dylan kept staring at her, confused. "It seems odd to me that she would be so intent on traveling back to her own time, then she would just change her mind."
"Look, Beka, she's willing to change her entire life to help us," Dylan objected.
"But Dylan-"
"What, Beka?" he interrupted her. "Tell me that I'm wrong in accepting her help when I went through all this troubel to get her to agree."
"Dylan, I didn't say that," Beka said forcefully. "I just said that it seems as though not everything is the way you want it."
"Ah, so I get it. Now you're making decisions about what I think and and how I feel, is that it, Beka?"
Beka stood still and stared at her captain. "Dylan, why are you acting like this?" she asked. Dylan just turned to walk out of the room. The door swished open. "Dylan, I didn't mean it," she continued, but Dylan was already out the door.
Meanwhile, Sandoz and her crew were walking down the hall towards her quarters. Curtis quickly walked up to her side.
"How could we possibly survive in this time?" he asked.
"I don't intend to help them," Sandoz said. Jackson walked up to Curtis' side.
"What do you mean?" he asked. Sandoz stopped walking. She turned to Jackson.
"You didn't see him, did you?" Her crewmembers shook their heads. "They have a Nietzschean as a crewmember."
"A Nietzschean!" Curtis exclaimed.
"Yes, and we don't have to help them to gain what we want," Sandoz said.
"What do you have in mind?" Curtis asked.
"Come with me and we'll start planning." Sandoz walked down the hall and Curits follwed right on her heals. Jackson stook in the middle of the hall for a few seconds, then followed.