Return
Trance's morose reflections came to an abrupt end as blaring alarms fractured the short peace. "Kaldarens!" Beka spat, grabbing her gun as she
jumped from the pilot's seat, an armed and ready Trance just a hair's breadth behind her.
oOo
Suddenly, in the midst of battle, Trance sensed something almost unfamiliar now. Ducking for cover, she opened her soul and reached out into the
realm of the possible…there! A spark, a tiny light in the near engulfing darkness. Not pausing to question its presence, she grabbed at it fiercely, almost
savagely, clutching it to her as if it might struggle to escape her. Standing to return fire she felt the universe shift around her. She was still on the Maru,
the Kaldarens were still firing, Beka was still there to her right, swearing up the usual blue storm and suddenly Beka was there on her left as well.
.
Trance instantly comprehended the miracle she had been granted. The realization sparked glimmers of gratitude and wonder, sensations she had
become hardened to in the preceding years, but she set them firmly aside, knowing now was the moment to act, not feel, if she was to divert the chain
of catastrophe they were poised to repeat. With an intense focus, she dealt with the immediate obstacle of the Kaldarens, then paused to get the lay
of the moment.
.
And right there before her, was her friend, her only companion of the past dreadful years, looking so young, so fresh, so whole compared to the
cybernetic compilation she'd become. "Beka! I forgot how beautiful you were." And then she faced herself. She surveyed her past self dispassionately,
with no pity for the innocence that had led to death for so many. Their conversation was terse, to the point. Admirably, the younger Trance did not
hesitate to sacrifice her associations, her future or her own dreams to follow the right path. After a brief farewell to a very confused Beka, she turned
and was gone. So. It was done. But so much of importance was teetering on this thin, temporal point, and it would all fail again without her taking
control of events immediately. Her "let's go" to Beka, born of years of efficient trust between the two of them, brought only a stubborn demand for
understanding. With as much patience as she could muster, Trance gave her the bottom line, and Beka followed, racing to find Harper.
oOo
It had not been much of a shock meeting herself and Beka, albeit different versions of themselves, but Harper – that was Harper standing there!
Harper, who had been dead for so long. Who was now alive, and real and…about not to be. If there were to be any time for reunions she must get him
to that machine now! But she had been moving people around like inanimate chess pieces for so long, that his resistance surprised her. It was
irrational to be hurt that he didn't trust her, that he wasn't happy to see her as she was to see him, but also irrational to waste energy on that hurt
now, there was almost no time left! What did *anyone's* feelings matter if he just died again? She had no patience for their need to be coaxed into
cooperation with satisfactory explanations. Her order came curt and harsh, giving nothing away except the urgency of just trusting and following her.
oOo
Finally, everything was coming together. Everyone in the right place at the right moment to divert the future that should never have begun here. And all
they could do was talk! Prattle and ponder, and weigh and deliberate and that silly Perseid waving a gun around – there was no time for this, didn't
they understand that?! She had told them the truth, giving them the chance to make the right call and act but apparently, now was not the time to stop
taking the Universe into her own hands, especially since she alone understood the consequences of this moment. Silently, she moved towards Harper's
invention, her focus causing all else to become as a painted backdrop around her, their vain babble fading from her ears. Trance felt aglow with light
again as she moved in tune with the will of the Divine, turning the tide of her history. Aim. Shoot. Simple. Harper lives.
.
Her talk with Dylan had gone better than she had expected. Although she couldn't *absolutely* know that saving Harper would fix everything, it felt
right to her. She knew Dylan would let her stay. What she hadn't been prepared for was the need to make a place for herself among the crew, her own
family. Although she did not express herself so exuberantly as she had when she was younger, her heart rejoiced at being returned to them all. To
know that she wasn't really trusted by any of them was difficult. Trance wandered around Hydroponics, renewing her acquaintance with her old plant
friends the way one might look back at the toys one loved as a child. She had her quarters on Andromeda again, as well as her bunk on the Maru, but
somehow she felt more comfortable spending the night in her old haunt. After so many years of being constantly ready for hopeless battle, she didn't
quite know how to relax. But it was quiet here and the miracles this day had brought left her feeling a peace she had almost forgotten. Her plants still
recognized her touch, still trusted her care, and if her friends didn't yet, then she would do everything she could to make sure that they all lived long
enough to do so.
