Chapter 1: The First Of Many

"I think he's waking up. Call Jim now." Ariel Hanson had said five minutes ago. She was sitting in her chair, sipping a cup of coffee. She sighed as she looked at her computer and saw a bunch of emails from the colonists on Haven. She didn't know them personally as much as they thought she did. Hanson was a scientist, a doctor by nature. It was perfectly reasonable for people like her to move on. Ever since joining Raynor's Raiders, she had become a little more compassionate. A little more understanding. Even then, her decision to help the people of Haven was based on morals, not for any other reason whatsoever. Now they treated her like a childhood friend, someone they knew for a long time. It was far from the truth.

Hanson looked at the Ihan memory shard floating on the pedestal nearby. She shuddered, not dreaming to think of what Jim saw in there. If it was to be believed, the hybrids were a serious threat. One that Hanson firmly believed was brought by man's hubris. Who could forget the time when she saw those things for the first time on the facility in Castanar. Those things had slaughtered everyone who went there. Everyone except Jim himself. Still, if the Dominion were this desperate for an edge in combat, Ariel was undoubtedly worried what the 'Dark Voice' could do with them.

Her pondering was interrupted by a beeping sound. Sitting upright, she looked over at the patient. The man they found on Char. He was an anomaly to be sure. Multiple wounds, massive blood loss. Sure signs of a Zerg attack. Yet, the wounds were not the same. They looked different, yet intentional. If it wasn't the Zerg, who or what had attacked him? And why? Again, she suppressed her urge to ask questions. Just another reason she wished she was born a normal person. She looked over his wounds once again. It had been extremely difficult to replace his blood. Only one person fit his blood type and she isn't exactly looking to create another infested terran. Still, the artificial blood they had seemed to be working brilliantly. Hanson, satisfied with her work returned to her desk. That was the first mistake. The second mistake was ignoring the vital signs on the monitor. The third was turning around and screaming. The patient wrapped an arm around her, throttling the doctor. He dragged her to the operating table and picked up his All Purpose Magnum. The patient took one glance at the cylinder. Ariel saw the look on his face. His dark blue eyes stared at her. She would have screamed again but the patient covered her mouth with his left hand. He laid down his revolver and scanned the room. Finding a nearby pistol, he picked it up and aimed it at the doctor's head. If Ariel Hanson knew fear, this was the time.

Jimmy Raynor, that's what everyone called him. Everyone, even the now dead Tychus Findlay. He regretted having to put a bullet in his friend's face. He hated having to see Kerrigan's face turn pale white and start crying. He hated the Zerg for what they had done. He hated Mengsk for what he unleashed on the sector. He hated everything that has happened so far. Jim has always said that he was no hero. Just a guy who wanted to make a difference. He hated that everyone thought of him so. There was a lot of things he hated now. As the door automatically opened, another person was added to that list.

Sarah Kerrigan sat in her room, still reeling from the events of last week. She had been trapped in her infested body, controlled by a psychopathic personality. Her hands were stained with the blood of six billion. Six billion and one if the man in the infirmary died. Sarah stared at her hands. No-one could even look at her straight. The once proud and cheerful ghost had been reduced to a guilt-ridden, broken and tormented individual. She saw Raynor's eyes. They were filled with the love they once shared. It was still there, she knew that. She also knew that feelings of hatred were at war with his passion for her. It was inescapable. Her mind at least was silent. They said that those who killed were usually haunted by their victims. In a way, Sarah was lucky that she was cleansed of the nightmare that lived inside her.

She looked outside and saw the stars and a planet whoosh past her. Just a few weeks ago, the Queen of Blades would have enacted her plans to take over the entire sector. Would have, if not for Jim's timely intervention. His escapades had drawn her attention away from the true goal to running interference against Raynor's Raiders. By the time the Dominion fleet along with the Raiders had arrived on her doorstep, the plan was scuttled in favor of gaining the power of the Xel-Naga artifact for the Swarm and defending their 'homeland'. She pushed the memories out. It was too painful to relive them. Just then, a soft scream echoed in the ship's hull. Someone was in trouble. Grabbing her environment suit and putting it on, she was surprised to see the suit take on a sickly yellowish-green hue. As if the Zerg DNA in her body wasn't enough to remind her. She scrambled and made her way to the source. If she was going to find redemption, she would have to start somewhere.

"Drop the gun. Now." Jim was a little wary of this new arrival. He was trained, this much he could tell. How much it was hard to say. His pulse rifle remained at the ready, locked and loaded. The patient barely flinched. Not a coward nor a rookie when it comes to hostage situations. The patient spoke,

"Who are you? Where am !?"

Was he joking? Did he not know where he was? Had he been living under a rock this whole time? Raynor cast that aside. If he didn't calm him down, he was bound to do something rash like shoot his hostage.

"My name is Jim Raynor. You're on the battlecruiser Hyperion. We found you on a planet called Char." That's it, he thought. Keep talking. Let him lower his guard. No such luck. The patient tightened his grip on Hanson and pointed the gun once again at her temple.

"Battlecruiser, eh?" His brain processed the thought. "On the sea?"

"What are you talking about, kid? There's been no navy since the 21st century."

The patient froze in place, his hands went numb for a fraction of a second. Where am I? What universe am I in? More and more questions filled his 'in' box in his brain. He realized at that moment, he was not of this universe. Not of their kind. Was it that artifact he destroyed? Should he tell them? Heck, he didn't know whether or not they would believe him. Right there and then, the patient decided to hatch a plan.

Step one. He let go of his hostage and let her scurry away to safety. Second step, ask again where he was and how he got here. Third, lie and say something along the lines of 'I don't remember." With luck, they'll think he has amnesia. He would have made it past the third point if not for an unforeseen factor. That girl in the white hazard suit rushed in just as he released Hanson into Jim's waiting arms. The man in the hulking suit hugged the doctor and whispered to her, no doubt asking her to get to safety. He continued with his ruse, hoping that the jig wasn't up just yet.

"What is your name?" said Jim. The man before him was whimpering, cowering in fear. It was obvious he was utterly afraid by what was transpiring around him. Was he of this world? And if not, what should he do? Sarah gave Jim a worrying look as he edged closer to the patient, who had by now released his grip on the pistol and let it clank silently on the floor. He made no effort to grab it, only sitting in a corner watching Jim slowly shamble forward. He took one glance at the man as he spoke. The man was by all means human in appearance. His short black hair. His long untidy beard. His teary red eyes. Jim paused at this feature. His irises were a deep shade of red, yet Hanson had given him a report not too long ago that the patient was not suffering any other injuries besides the physical trauma they noticed. Raynor immediately deduced that this man was someone special as those with red irises were incredibly rare. To date, only nineteen cases have been reported. Well, reported. It remained to be seen whether they were any more cases. At any rate, it wasn't like he could walk into the Dominion's capital city and make the report. Jim chuckled to himself before perking his ears to hear the man's reply.

"I think… Yes, it was Isaac. Isaac Eisenhower." The man trembled as he spoke, his words uncertain. Jim tried to calm him down but deep down, he would have done the same thing. Amnesia's a tough thing to deal with. He would know. He had been trying to forget the past four years.

Besides him stood another soul who wanted to let all the painful nightmares of the past drift away and never come back. Her memories at the moment were disjointed, scattered. Only fragments, bits and pieces remained. She looked as Jim escorted the man known as Isaac to the gurney and try to talk him down.

"I'm sorry but I must ask if you remember why you were on Char?"

"No. I don't know what you mean. Who is Char?"

"Char is a not a person. It's a planet."

"Is it my home?"

That word disgusted Sarah Kerrigan to the bone. For years, her other personality, the Queen of Blades had made the red planet her home. Her dream of a master race. In reality, most would consider it a living hell. Sarah didn't need to hear. She lived it. So angry at what had transpired, she almost missed the conversation.

"Please. I just want to go home."

"I'm afraid I can't do that. Besides we don't know where your home is." Jim was getting tired. He could see that this talk was reaching nowhere fast.

"Perhaps I can be of assistance." Sarah replied. Here was a shot at redemption. Take it, she said to herself. Jim stared at her with a blank expression.

"Sarah, are you sure?"

"Yes. I need this. Need to start somewhere right?"

Jim remembered the last few days. He had been going all around the ship, convincing its crew that Sarah had changed. That she wasn't the monster anymore. Many simply did not accept such a request. Not without proof at least. On the other hand, others were more accepting of her. They even began trying to connect with her when she spent her days in the bar, staring at the trophy wall as if it would bring her memories back. The men and women tried to make small talk, invite her for a round of cards. She begrudgingly obliged. She had nothing better to do. What really pained Sarah was the talks they had when downing as many shots as they could to ease the pain of the memories.

"How did you do it?" asked Kerrigan, looking up from her glass.

"How did I do what?" Jim was surprised by this. For the last few days, she seemed unwilling to chat, preferring the motto 'Silence is golden."

"Forget all this?"

"I didn't, Sarah. I kept it bottled up, regretting not saving you. Regretting letting Mengsk get away with it. Regretting that I never told you how much I loved you."

Sarah should have cocked an eyebrow at Jim for his last sentence. She didn't. She knew they possessed a bond that neither could truly explained. In the past few days, they had reconciled with one another. Over drinks. Once in bed even. Jim was eager to continue where they left off. Sarah on the other hand was afraid she'd fall into darkness once more.

"I know. I love you too. More than you could imagine." This was supposed to be the part where the girl kisses the guy. It never happened. She turned away, gulping down the last of her whiskey.

"Bartender, another round." She called, waving her arm. The balding elder shook his head at the two and disappeared behind the counter. He emerged a moment later, a bottle of Scottish whiskey in his hand. Sarah did not wait for him, yanking the bottle out of his hand. She poured the brown liquid into her glass and handed the bottle to Raynor. For a few moments, he contemplated taking the bottle. The addiction was too great for him to resist and the memories were startring to surface. With a grin, he too poured liquid courage into his own glass. The empty bottle was given to the bartender, who shook his head and went in the back. Jim could hear him curse in whispers as he left their sight.

"I know you do. I know you feel guilty for what you've done. I want to help you." Sarah looked at him with a shocked expression. Help her? Why?

"Why would you do that? After Fenix? After the Brood War? Why?"

"Because I realize that the person I hated wasn't you. It was that Zerg infestation. Look at you. You look beautiful. How could anyone believe that a beauty like you could do such things. Darling, I just want to help you put this chapter behind us."

Sarah scoffed at his words, turning her head to face a broken mirror in front of her resting on the shelf. Her braided alien-like hair had shed itself, dropping to her feet as she clutched her body in that place on Char. It was replaced by her own autumn hair, which grew to shoulder-length. Her eyes were no longer the shade of yellow it used to be, now replaced with emerald green eyes. Her body was left intact, still in shape fitting form. If the whistles and whispers behind her back was any indication, most of the male populace on the ship had a hard time looking past her.

Yet, the mirror did nothing to disguise what she truly felt like inside. A monster. An ugly duckling who doesn't deserve what the transformation bestowed upon her. Even now, she questioned the reason she was still alive. In the few days since she's been here, it's all she heard. The prophet, the savior of an entire galaxy. Zeratul, the Dark Templar himself came to her in a dream and reminded her of this. Why? Did Zeratul not hold a grudge against her for her actions during the Brood War? Why was she being given a second chance at life when six billion others did not? Her face contorted into anger, her hand gripping the glass tightly. At last she came to her senses. She would pay back all the lives she took. Anything to relieve the guilt she felt. Anything to repay all the misery she reaped upon countless souls.

"Promise me."

"Promise you what, darling?"

"Promise me that if I start to turn back or if I so much as resemble a threat to any of you, you take me out."

"Darling… I.."

"Promise me, Jim." Her eyes watered with sadness. She sat there, her eyes begging, pleading for Jim to agree. James was never one for promises nor was he good at keeping them. He had failed Kerrigan once. Not again, he told himself.

"I promise."

"Thank you."

And with that, the two downed their drinks, made their toast before retiring to their room. Matt knew what would happen in there. He smiled weakly and switched off the camera in the hallway outside the captain's room as the bridge crew was abuzz with activity. Matt silently nodded to the pilot, who threw the switch and warped them away. Away from Char. Away from the end to a new beginning.

Here he was again, dealing with another prisoner who had forgotten who he was. James looked once again into the man's eyes. They were humble, yet piercing. A sign of a man who didn't exactly engender trust. Still, he wasn't going to flush him out the airlock just for that. Sarah took a seat next to Raynor, examining the patient with her own eyes.

"Is he going to be alright?"

"It looks like. His wounds have healed but I'm more worried about his mental state. I don't want to force you to do this nor was it my first choice but we're out of options. Could you read his mind?"

"If you think that is best, then I will. I trust you, Jim." Sarah nodded. She turned her gaze to Isaac and peered at his crimson irises. Her psychic powers sprung into action, attempting to probe every part of his mind. Instead, all she saw was an empty room, illuminated only by a single bulb in the center. The walls, the floor, the ceiling. The whole room was nothing but pitch black darkness. Her gaze went to a young man sitting in the bulb's shining rays, staring down at the floor.

Cautiously, Sarah approached the lone figure. She extended her hand and placed it on his shoulder. The figure turned and Sarah recoiled in horror. The figure before her was not Isaac. It was the face of someone unknown. What was more horrifying was the bullet hole in the middle of his forehead. Sarah nearly vomited as she saw through the hole herself and saw the bullet had entered and left the stage quickly. At last the voice spoke in a deep tone.

'You're not welcome here." It hands reached out and grabbed Kerrigan and shoved her down to the ground. Yet she fell as if the ground underneath her had disappeared. She fell into the abyss, screaming in terror. Her eyes opened and she took a step back from Isaac. Who was he? Better yet, what was he? Jim looked at Sarah and then to Isaac. His tone became more pronounced and a hint of anger had made its way in. He was certainly thinking of the myriad of ways he could be thrown off the ship.

"What have you done to her?" He grabbed Isaac by the scruffs of his medical gown and pinned him against the metal wall.

"I don't… I didn't…." Isaac simply mumbled.

"Don't lie to me. Tell me what you did or I'll throw you out there to rot."

"Jim…"

Her voice brought him back. He relaxed for a moment, taking a deep, long breath. Finally he released Isaac, who fell to the floor and whimpered like a school kid on his first day in school. The bully stood tall over him. All he heard was,

"You harm her, you lay a finger on her and you'll wish she was dealing with you. With that, he stormed off and motioned for Sarah to follow him. Sarah watched Isaac curl into the fetal position and hug the wall like he and it were best friends already. Her heart grew heavy and she stepped out, leaving Isaac alone in the infirmary. Little did they know that Isaac let a grin show itself on his lips, pondering his next move.

A day later, Isaac sat on the edge of his bed as Ariel Hanson examined every square-inch of him. He winced as she stitched up another wound. Her eyes were averted from him, only focusing on the problem at hand. Isaac groaned in pain.

"Ow. That hurts." He said while staring at the floor.

"Don't be a baby. You'll be fine."

"If this is about yesterday, I'm sorry. I panicked."

Hanson nodded in agreement. It's true she could not hold him responsible for his actions. Were she to wake to a room full of complete strangers, she'd be bashing their skulls in with anything in the room. Her attention wavered for a moment but it returned, her hands already moving onto another wound. She heard Isaac howl in pain as she poked the wound with a needle.

"It's alright. I forgive you. Not sure my neck does, though." She said.

"I guess I've got a lot to forgiving to get to." He replied with a wry smile.

"I'm sure you will. Speaking of which, I'm done. Try moving your limbs." She pulled off her gloves and watched as Isaac rose from the bed. Isaac made several movements with his arms and then his legs. Next was his back and he arched it backwards, letting a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, doc. I don't know how to thank you." He spoke softly.

"Try not to get killed. I don't need to turn this place into a morgue."

"Are you kidding? You have that thing in there. It's a corpse room already." He jabbed a finger at the dead Zerg floating in its containment chamber. Hanson doubled back in laughter and soon Isaac joined in. The two of them continued laughing for a few seconds before Isaac held his stomach with his arm. He grunted, waving his hand at Ariel who had started to close the distance between them.

"I'm fine. Got to stop laughing though. It'll be the death of me." Hanson sniggered and escorted Isaac out of the infirmary. He nodded and gave a big smile before walking away. Ariel was accustomed to most people and they were rough and rowdy. Yet, she could see in their eyes that their hearts were in the right place. Raynor had been one of them. Tough on the outside, soft on the inside. As the figure vanished from sight, she shook a little. Not because of the cold. Because of something else….

This man was the opposite of what she'd seen.

Sarah sat in their room, looking at the mirror in the bathroom. She could hear Jim outside pulling off his power suit and tucking it into the metal cabinet just across their bed. Theirs. The word had taken a whole new meaning since she returned. She smiled at the memories. Jim was doing his best to remain normal, to treat like a human being when no-one else would. Even when the crew members gave the death stare, he had been there to stand up to them and ask them to give her a chance to find her way into the light.

This caused her to frown, her face wrinkling under the matter. She had no reason to trust any new people. Not one bit. Isaac on the other hand was a different can of worms. She had peered into his mind, only for her to forcibly tossed out. Only people with psionic potential could possibly to do that. Even then, she was by far the strongest psionic individual in the sector, bar none. Maybe that blonde Ghost who had been pecking away at their heels. What disturbed her even more was the brief glance she had. That face. Those pale eyes. That bullet. She shuddered and gripped the edges of the sink. That could be me, she thought. And she wept, her tears a river down her mountain. The man could hear and he rose to climb her mountain. And the rest is as they say history.

James Raynor curled up in the bed, looking at the ceiling. He hadn't felt like this since Lidya. Sarah was quietly sleeping like a baby next to him, her body wrapped under the blanket. His eyes tried to close only for it shudder wide open. Sarah had her ups and downs. The scene in the bathroom was just another pothole in their already suspicious relationship. He should hate her, enough to tear out her guts and send it as a warning to Mengsk. Here he was though, next to a woman he both loved and feared at the same time. His thoughts turned to Isaac, the new arrival. His actions thus far had proven to Raynor that he was no ordinary citizen. He remembered little and judging by the way he avoided him earlier in the infirmary, he wasn't going to open up anytime soon.

Isaac scared him. Maybe it was just nerves but something was off with him. It made his bones vibrate and his nerves to twitch just a little. The man was nothing but smiles and nods. He has been very understanding about his predicament. Why then did Jim feel like a sucker?

Far away, a purplish smoke began to form around the atmosphere of Char. The smoke continued to build in intensity before it collapsed into a crumbling mess. A huge hole appeared and out of it crackled a sound that made it sound like fire and lightning had a baby together. Out of the black wormhole emerged a battle cruiser in the same make and design as any seen in the sector. For everyone, it was a just an ordinary ship.

Yet, the golden phoenix and its distinguishable white paint were the first warning signs. The second was the advanced hardware the ship was packing. Massive laser cannons matching the intensity of those found on Protoss Motherships. Armor like the Zerg's leviathan, only more metallic and less organic. Even the engine was improved. It was a silent core made from a crystalline white, imbedded with golden shards. The last warning was what came after it.

They swarmed through the wormhole. Ships of all shapes and sizes. Fighters. Support ships. Destroyers. Even a science vessel in the form of a dome. The man on the helm was on a mission. Anyone who got in the way was not leaving alive. The fleet emerged through the wormhole and the last few got through before it disappeared as quick as it arrived. The armada moved out, only one thing left on its mind….

Find him and bring him in…..