Chapter 4

"Just One of Those Days"

Concordat Bridge-Day 13

"We can't talk to them directly. However, we can transmit a simple form of optical communication. For example we can flash our lights in a specific code such as the old Morse code."

"Acceptable. Federation ships have a variety of visual transmission techniques that can be applied to this situation. Those vessels may not use any of our codes but we can make the attempt. Please apply the most commonly used visual transmission and codes and attempt to communicate using our orbital lighting. And please have Mr. Khali and Senator Sheridan join us on the bridge so that they may witness this. It might provide illumination for us all."

"Yes, Ma'am." The communication's Officer smiled. Who said that Vulcans didn't have a sense of humor? "Standard hail using Federation visual code four three…they are responding."

On screen, the huge Federation vessel's lights began flashing, just as Dr. Khali and two members of Earth Forces were allowed entry onto the bridge.

"Translating. "USS Voyager-A NCC-74656, aSovereign-class Federation Starship. Admiral Kathryn Janeway onboard, Captain Chakotay commanding. They are asking, how is it that we're using this corridor.

"Transmit this message," the Captain ordered. "We discovered and have been using this passage for almost nine months. Why are they accompanied by a captured enemy warship towards Earth?"

"Response Captain. They are saying … We are at peace with the Klingon Empire for the last seven years. It is obvious that you are from a different reality and possibly temporal location. May we ask why you are traveling with Earth Alliance vessels?"

"Fascinating," the Captain of the Concordat said. "Mister Yamada, tie the translator directly to our 'visual' code so that we can achieve voice communication. And please patch our communications to the Earth Alliance ships so that our allies may be aware of our situation."

Khali and Sheridan entered the bridge and were immediately transfixed by the images on the screen of the huge warships and the unmistakable image of a Minbari Sharlin.

"Working on it now, Captain." A few moments later, Yamada nodded. The voice would be artificial however communication would be somewhat easier.

"This is Captain T'Lara of the USS Concordat, to Admiral Janeway and Captain Chakotay of the USS Voyager. Greetings."

The response came a moment later. "Greetings Captain. It is nice to see a fellow Federation vessel so far from home. I am curious though about your knowledge concerning these passage way. We've only just received knowledge of its existence."

"We have been using it to travel from the Alpha quadrant to Earth Alliance territory sixty nine thousand four hundred seventy-three point three-two light years distance from Federation territory," T'Lara answered. "I must ask you, what is your purpose in traveling with a captured Minbari warship to Earth?"

"Blood of Saints is not a captured ship. We are not at war with the Minbari," said the Admiral, an answer that came as a shock to the crew of the Federation dreadnaught and the warships of Earth Alliance. "We have had a lot of difficulty with Earth Alliance and EarthForce under the leadership of President Morgan Clark. Earth Alliance was under a dictatorship by Clark and EarthForce had standing orders to acquire our technology by any means necessary. There were several disputes between our Starfleet and EarthForce despite our entreaties."

T'lara's eyebrow raised a fraction, characteristic of a surprised Vulcan. "Why would this President Clark attack you ship?"

"He needed the technology to maintain his hold over Earth during the civil war under his regime."

"Civil war? What civil war? Please clarify."

"Captain, can you adjust your subspace transceiver to a high band frequency so that we may have visual." The next few comments contained frequency adjustments and modulation configurations.

"I apologize, Admiral," T'Lara responded. "We are unable to comply. Our transceivers are unable to achieve those frequencies without major modifications."

"Understood. We can modify our transmissions for visual."

"Agreed. However I must point out that any more aggressive forms of communications might destabilize the transit way."

"No, it won't," Janeway said. "As you are no doubt already aware, this conduit is artificial in nature, built by entities called the Preservers. Our present level of technology can't affect it in any way. By our standards, your ship is over one hundred years behind ours and we have barely scratched the surface of what these transit ways are capable of. We are being allowed to use them with the permission of the Preservers. And I am somewhat surprised that you've been allowed to use them."

"These conduits came to our attention by mistake, but it is likely that our assumptions may be in error. My Communication's Officer is configuring the laser transmission systems now. We should have visual momentarily."

"While we wait, I would like to ask you a question," the Admiral said. "You believed that the Minbari was an enemy ship? Why?"

"The Federation and Klingon Empire are at war with The Minbari Federation. The Minbari attacked and destroyed the Regulus colony, exterminating over twenty eight million sentient beings believing it to be an Earth Alliance colony that had been somehow placed in the Alpha quadrant."

There was a small gasp. "But how did the Minbari get to the Alpha quadrant?"

"They arrived via a j-space, conduit not unlike this one. Their plan was to destroy all Humans of Earth Alliance and their colonies."

There was another moment of silence. The screen changed from the image of the vessels to the bridge of Voyager. T'Lara stared for a moment, taking in the scenery. There was a Klingon on the ship, dressed in a Federation uniform; surprising to say the least. There was also a Vulcan present, ranked Second Officer. Another officer, with golden skin was at the helm staring back at her and her crew with unusual golden eyes. His species was unfamiliar to her.

"Our arrival into Earth Alliance space occurred long after the Earth Minbari war," Captain Chakotay said. He was staring at the old Constitution styled bridge, as fully functional as the ship preserved in the Fleet Museum, which he had a chance to tour when he was young. "Earth survived the war and became one of the local powers. They developed a plan similar to Earth's UN and placed a space station called B5…"

"As in Becerra Alpha Five?" asked T'Lara.

"No. The station is called Babylon Five. The station was situated in the center of the five major powers as a place for people to come together and discuss their problems, instead of resorting to violence to settle their disputes. For the most part, it worked and is still working. However, three years ago, President Clark with the aid of beings known as the Shadows had President Santiago assassinated and usurped power. He declared martial law and that started a civil war. It split Earth Alliance apart.

Two Federation and one Klingon ship breached that universe and allied themselves with the Babylon station. Babylon Five followed several other colonies in breaking away from Earth Alliance until President Clark's illegal orders of martial law over all of Earth Alliance was rescinded. President Clark took exception to that and after having EarthForce quell the rebellions on the colony worlds, he went after Babylon Five. The station resisted and with the help of the Federation and the Minbari the station has remained free and has thrived. Long story short, Earth Alliance and several other governments are attempting to form an alliance for mutual defense and economic stability. The then Captain John Sheridan…"

-+-

Khali were reeling as he listened to the discussion. The Professor couldn't believe what he was hearing. Clark would have never, ever had instigated an assassination of President Santiago. And how did Santiago become President in the first place? He was too liberal, too lax to become the head of Earth Alliance. He wasn't strong enough. Clark yes, Santiago, no. Besides Clark was dead, at least the Clark he knew, he thought with a bit of chagrin. So, either this was an elaborate trick put on for his benefit and that of Earth Alliance's, or these people were from another reality, something that he had postulated earlier. The evidence seemed to point strongly in that direction. If it were true then he'd have another series of theories to evaluate. Many theories concerning other timelines and universes had been postulated. But here was possible proof and he would be the first to confirm or deny their existences. He didn't know whether to freeze and absorb every bit of the conversation, or start tap dancing on the bridge. He was going to be so rich!

But to those people, the Earth Minbari war was over and President Clark – good for him! – had somehow been duped into a civil war. He needed more information but evidently the Shadows, those spider things, must have set him up, poisoned his mind. Yes, he could see that. But it was the next words from the Federationist Captain that had really caught his attention.

Why would Morgan try to grab the Federation ships? Didn't he understand the power he was dealing with? Earth Alliance had no right to try something like that, which proved that Morgan had been under the influence of the Shadow aliens. He knew evil when he saw it. And it supported his theory. Alien influence was detrimental to Humanity. He had to make sure he wrote this down before he forgot some minor detail.

-+-

Ambassador Sheridan was equally shocked. Earth alliance had survived the Minbari war without the aid of the Federation? He wanted to know how, but he remained quiet as more revelations were revealed by these people. In their universe the Federation didn't exist, they came from yet a third universe. However, Clark's manipulations didn't surprise him at all. Senator Clark before his demise had strongly suggested doing the same thing in this universe. But the information of a civil war 'did' surprise him as well as the knowledge that his son, John, was up front leading the charge. The political backlash must have been horrendous. It was a universe full of changes from what he knew. He shook his head ruefully and nearly laughed out loud. A year ago if someone had told him that multiple realities and universes existed, he would have had them fitted for the traditional straightjacket. Now, he didn't even bat an eyelash.

What was also amazing to him was the reaction of the Federation crew and that served to convince him more than anything else that this wasn't some sort of elaborate setup for Earth Alliance's benefit. When he had first came onboard the USS Excelsior, the only thing he could think of was that that ship was the wave of the future. The crew of the USS Concordat was doing the exact same thing. This was 'their' wave of the future and it was just as amazing to them as the Excelsior was to Earth Alliance.

Becerra Alpha One:

"Don't play morality games with me. Make a decision."

Sarek's gaze was as distant and calculating as always. He had spent his life honing his composure to a perfect granite visage unreadable to counterparts during negotiations. Yet inside he was a man, not Human of course, but still flesh and bone. For a long time he had refused to confront the issue of Amanda's mortality. Now it was placed firmly in front of him by this war criminal. She had done her research, she had found the one thing that could be considered a weakness and she was exploiting it ruthlessly. Sarek knew this, he knew it the second she mentioned family. She was trying to elicit an emotional response instead of a common logical one and she was coming damn close to doing so.

Oddly, Sarek found that he wasn't as angry as he should be. He was being played by this woman but that wasn't his primary concern. He couldn't stop thinking about Amanda's death and the possibility that he could postpone or even overcome that fate altogether. He knew on some level this was exactly what Jha'dur wanted, to cloud his logic with emotion, but he simply could not let go.

"This serum," he asked. "Where is it?"

"On my ship," she replied. "Hidden from your scanners, enough for both you, and your wife. Perhaps your son, too."

Sarek stood. "Will you provide the Minbari data?"

"The Federation does not seem interested in my deal." Jha'dur also stood. "I will not, they can find out the hard way. You and I have a new deal, is it accepted?"

Sarek folded his hands before him, his dark robes swirling as he moved. "Follow me to the docking bay."

He opened the door, a triumphant Jha'dur close on his heels and dismissed the guards.

"The negotiations are concluded," he said. "I accept full responsibility for the prisoner, return to your other duties."

"Yes, Sir." The officer replied and took his two guards away back to their duty stations.

"I knew you had your priorities right," the Warmaster stated. "We should take your ship."

"A logical escape plan."

"But first we will retrieve certain items from mine." Jha'dur was walking confidently now, Sarek maintained the same constant pace and poise as always.

"Have you made contact with any other power in the quadrant?" Sarek asked.

"Not yet." She answered. "But based on information I have seen there are a few powers I can approach. They should be more practical than your narrow minded Federation. "Well, I should say, your former masters. Perhaps the Romulans," she grinned.

Sarek didn't speak as he led them down empty corridors avoiding the main transit ways and taking the long route to the docking bay. "The security systems will be aware of us. I estimate thirteen minutes before a senior officers attempts to contact me for a status report."

"We should be long gone by then," Jha'dur accepted. "How well guarded is the warp bridge?"

"My vessel will not be fired upon."

"Even better." She smiled. "Perhaps I will give you information on the Minbari, in exchange for your ship when we pass over the bridge."

"You have this information?"

"Under a secure datalock on my ship."

Sarek opened the doors to the stations primary shuttle bay, a vast hangar that could have squeezed in a Miranda class cruiser. He walked through the doors with Jha'dur in tow then came to a halt.

"I have the co-ordinates for Romulan space and…"

The Warmaster froze as she noticed a dozen armed security personnel stood in front of her flanking a grey haired senior officer. Behind her there was a scuffle of feet as more guards took position at the shuttle bay entrance.

"Ambassador Sarek." The grey haired officer stepped forward. "That was quite a risk to take."

"I believed it was worth it Admiral," the Vulcan replied. "Warmaster Jha'dur would never freely part with the information; however I have learned its approximate location."

The last Dilgar snarled viciously. "You Vulcan son of a…"

The guards raised their side arms before she could get close enough to sink her fingers into Sarek.

"Easy," the Admiral said. "Be a shame to stun you; you'd miss all the fun."

She fought hard to regain her composure. "And you are?"

"Admiral Bennett, Sector commander. I've just been talking to Starfleet Intelligence, turns out you've been sharing conversations with someone in our ranks."

She glared imperiously at Bennett. "I have no need to answer anything."

"No, but it explains how you know so much about Ambassador Sarek's family life," Bennett continued. "Oh, don't worry. We will be answering some serious questions within Starfleet to find your conspirator. Starfleet has a keen sense of justice."

"All men are created equal," Jha'dur grinned scornfully. "Such naivety."

"We are not created equal," Sarek spoke. "That is simple nature. Some are stronger, some more intelligent, some may not even appear sentient at first. But we are all equal under the eyes of the law, be you a common criminal, an Admiral of Starfleet, or a Warmaster."

"I couldn't agree more," a male voice said from the doorway. Jha'dur turned to see, of all people, a Narn squeezing past the security officers. "Well spoken Ambassador, very eloquent."

"A Narn?" Jha'dur scoffed. "The Federation in the habit of keeping pet animals now?"

"Well here is a sight," the Narn said in mild awe. "The last of the Dilgar still living. I have heard a lot about you."

Suddenly Jha'dur placed his face. "G'Tarn isn't it? Yes, I've seen a report on you many years ago. You cut a deal with Earth Alliance during our war."

"Ambassador G'Tarn." Sarek said. "Is everything ready?"

"Indeed it is, we are eager to take delivery and show our quality."

"Delivery of wha…" Jha'dur stopped, a knowing smile crossing her face. "You're going to feed me to the Narns, let them do your dirty work so the perfect Federation can deny killing me. What cowards!"

"You will stand trial under the Narn Regime," Admiral Bennett confirmed. "You have been promised a fair trial. The Narn were neutral in your war."

"They bought neutrality," Jha'dur remarked. "How many millions of tons of munitions did your government sell us exactly, so we could burn the League?"

"Not enough to justify what you did to our people on Hilak," G'Tarn replied coldly.

"They got in my way."

"All of which," Bennett interrupted, "Can be discussed at the trial."

"And you expect I will get a fair trial with those…creatures?" Jha'dur laughed.

"You will," Sarek said. "The Narn have promised."

EA Achilles-Day 13

Captain John Sheridan gritted his teeth at the sight of a Minbari Sharlin of unknown configuration paralleling his ship and the Guam less than a thousand meters distant. Even with the Omega's size, the Sharlin dwarfed it. The only reason why he hadn't locked on and fired was that he 'couldn't' lock on. Like the other two ship, the sensors couldn't see the vessel. Plus there was the fact that the three new ships were out of synch with the Concordat and the Hyperion. That was frustrating to say the least; however the good thing was that they were scheduled to exit the passage way in a few hours and then the Sharlin would be blown into atoms by Fed and Klingon defenses. But, as if the planet they'd seen wasn't enough, another surprise was about to slap him and his crew in the face.

"Sir," Communications said. "I'm getting a signal from the Minbari warship!"

"Confirm that," Sheridan ordered. "It's out of phase with our ships."

"I am getting a signal, Sir. It's a laser-linked tachyon transmission," Comms responded, "Shouldn't be working with us out of phase like this."

"Put it through," ordered a very hostile Sheridan.

A large, very imposing Minbari appear on the small screen. The Communications Officer stifled a curse. Others that were able to see the image looked on with distaste. Anthony Wu, Sheridan's First Officer, started cursing under his breath.

The Minbari, arrogant beyond all measure, slowly looked at Captain Sheridan. Then he spoke slowly and very eloquently-in English.

"Greetings Mister President," he said shocking John. "Or should I say, Captain Sheridan." He smiled broadly; irritating the confused the EA crew even more. "It is good to see you Captain, also known in some circles as 'Starkiller'." At the look of hostility, the Minbari smiled even more. Forgive me, I have not introduced myself. I am Shai Alyt Rannaonn, Captain of the Blood of Saints."

"The Blood of Saints was destroyed in Earth's solar system by the USS Excelsior," snapped Sheridan.

That seemed to surprise the Minbari. "The universe indeed has a sense of humor," he mused after a moment.

"What do you want?" Sheridan asked harshly.

At that, Rannaonn smiled even more broadly. "Ah, one of the eternal questions. I am so glad that we've gotten past all of that," he added cryptically. "You look so young without the beard. Captain," he continued, "I've spent many days talking to your counterpart and the Federationists, and despite my reservations, I have found you and your people to be an, if not enlighten species, at least an interesting one. And please calm down Captain. I pose no danger to you or yours. Our war is long over and I have better things to do. Now, to answer your question, 'what do I want'? I want to know how the Federation got into a full war with the Minbari. It makes little sense."

"How do you know about the war with the Federation?" At this Sheridan was highly suspicious and becoming more concerned by the moment.

"The Federation isn't the only Federation with, shall we say, interesting technology," responded the Shai Alyt. "I am traveling with Voyager and the Azetbur to their universe as explorers and ambassadors, to participate in an exchange of technologies. Our histories are apparently different. Instead of being at one another's throats, Earth Alliance, and the Minbari Federation are preparing to battle a common enemy. The Centauri have joined us." There was joy in his face as he watched Sheridan change colors with each sentence. "The Narn and other races are joining together for essentially the same purpose. Captain, the universe is darker than any of us imagined. Our petty conflicts seem insignificant compared to this new enemy threatening to consume us all."

That was a lot to digest for the Captain. Here was a Minbari, first of all speaking to Humans as if it were the most common occurrence in the world. Then he him 'Mister President', not simply Captain. The Minbari, working with Humanity? It was more than strange and a bit frightening. But this Minbari was a talkative sort and he wasn't one that would pass up the opportunity to get as much info as he could. Even if this Minbari wasn't at war with them, he still had lots of valuable information that could be useful in the current war.

"Shai Alyt Rannaonn, how is it that your ship is here? Blood of Saints was destroyed."

"So you've said. In my reality, the Minbari were certainly not friends to the Federation Starfleeter, but not enemies either. There were certain jealousies," he espoused, smirking as he did so since he was one of those Minbari who had a jealous streak against the Starfleeters of his universe. "The Federation possessed technology equal to and more advanced than our own, although we at first refused to believe it. When we finally began to acknowledge that, I personally tried to take one of the Federation ships for its technology. We needed it to help fight against 'them'. And I wanted to prove to everyone that the Minbari were superior and should be recognized as such." He seemed embarrassed by that admission. "I was challenged by the Ambassador, a larger and more advanced version of the ship you're traveling with. It was an affair of honor, to be used to keep our people from going to war. If I had won then the Federation technology would have been mine for the taking." He smiled as the possibly future President shivered at the thought. "If I failed, then my ship would have been Captain Garrett's.

"I lost," he explained. "'Didn't have a chance', as she said. "She didn't want 'Blood of Saints, but instead demanded that I become her footservant." He looked at Captain Sheridan and his crew. "You Humans are some truly evil creatures," he said in all seriousness. Then he started laughing.

Sheridan stared in utter disbelief at the laughing Minbari. This entire conversation was surreal. "You're Minbari," he said. "And you allowed yourself to be a slave to a Human?"

"She's a very dynamic woman," he responded matter-of-factly. "I should have killed myself rather than lower myself to such an indignity, but then I would have learned nothing. It seems that my counterpart repeated my folly and paid for it with his ship and his life. I survived and am now an Ambassador to the Federation. As I've said, the universe is full of irony and a curious sense of humor."

Sheridan didn't know what to say, but the Shai Alyt was still very talkative.

"To tell you of your counterpart's history I believe would hurt you at this point in your life," Rannaonn said. "However I will say that your counterpart and Entil'zhaJeffery Sinclair have done great things for your people and mine. May you do the same in your universe."

Sheridan simply stared. "What?"

The Shai Alyt smile vanished and his face became grim. "Beware the Vorlons. They are not what they seem and they will destroy you all to preserve their precious circle. If their circle fails, they will destroy everything like children who have temper tantrums and smash their toys against the walls. We believed them to be our friends. We were wrong." His face had turned into a mass of fury, enough so that the crew onboard the Achilles staring back at him actually flinched. "You asked me what I wanted. I am asking that you have mercy on a people that would not be merciful to you. I am asking that the Minbari of your universe not be exterminated. If they are being advised by the Vorlons, then they will fight until there is nothing left. Sheridan, find a way to allow at least some of them to live. You will find that Delenn is worthy." He smiled a bit. "I am sending you a transmission of our knowledge of the Vorlons of my universe. May it serve you well. "And," he mused, "I believe I will send you a private transmission and one for Sinclair. Read it; destroy it, it is as you choose. May you both live in interesting times," he finished, quoting from his first true Human friend, Rachel Garrett, Captain of the USS Ambassador, who quoted that same thing to him so often.

He smiled broadly, nodded with respect and closed the visual channel.

"Did you believe any of that crap?" his First Officer asked after a few moments.

Sheridan was quiet. "I don't know," he said a heartbeat later. "Let me see information that was transmitted. He spent a few minutes reading it. Vorlon history and interaction of that universe had just been laid bare.

Peering over his shoulder Anthony Wu studied the information. "What a load of bull," he whispered. His voice carried its usual swagger, but there was an underlining of uncertainty in the way he said it. "You're President of an Interstellar alliance, less than twenty years into the future?"

The Captain merely shook his head in shock. "Keep your voice down. We need to keep this quiet."

"You realize that once this gets out, you'll be on the political 'hit list'. Every politician in Earth Alliance will be gunning for you, for something you haven't done yet. Even Psi-Corps may want a piece of you, just in case," he whispered in all seriousness. "Everyone who doesn't want to kill you will want to control you."

Without a word, Sheridan turned and sat in the Captain's chair. He'd read the private transmission later. His life had just turned supremely complicated and it was going to take some time to absorb it. But before he did so he had a duty to perform.

"Have Captain Jeffery Sinclair come to the bridge," he ordered

Becerra Alpha One:

"You will," Sarek said. "The Narn have promised."

"It will show us for who we truly are," G'Tarn added. "At heart we are a noble people, fair and contemplative. Our circumstances made us do what we can to survive, but thanks to the Federation we can return to what we were."

"The Federation?" Jha'dur was puzzled.

"The Council has offered to help restore the Narn homeworld to the agrarian planet it once was." Sarek stated.

"To repair the damage caused by the Centauri," G'Tarn beamed. "To provide us certain technologies to let us prosper and become the people G'Quan wanted us to become."

"But only if they can prove they will honour our treaty," Bennett stated. "And the test for that is going to be 'you'."

"If they can act fairly with such a hateful and reviled criminal as you, then it will show a level of integrity that will assure the Federation council," Sarek said. "You will be the instrument through which Narn is restored."

"I always thought the universe had a sense of irony," the Ambassador remarked.

"And when I am inevitably found guilty, then what?" Jha'dur stared daggers at Sarek.

"You will be imprisoned," he pronounced. "The Narn have agreed to honour Federation law as we were the ones who apprehended and extradited you."

"Imprisoned?" she snapped. "A caged animal in a Narn jail!"

"Until you die of natural causes," Sarek announced, "That, because of your health, could be a very, very long time."

"You lied to me!"

"Vulcans do not lie."

"We had a deal!"

"I accepted no such deal. You merely fooled yourself into believing I had."

"What about Amanda?" Jha'dur spat. "I am the only one who can save her!"

Sarek shook his head. "Your drug would damn her and me for accepting it. To live at the cost of others is too high a price. It may save her life, but it would kill her soul."

Jha'dur bared her teeth in a cold smile. "Remember that when she dies in your powerless arms."

"I will be thinking of nothing else," he answered honestly. "The needs of the many…"

"Mean nothing to me," Jha'dur said coldly. "I'll be seeing you in hell."

"Alright, Chief," Bennett waved a security part forward. "Take her away."

Jha'dur did not try to resist. "This is not over."

"It's just beginning," Admiral Bennett agreed. "Hope you enjoy your stay in prison-wherever it may be."

"You should kill me now and save yourself trouble in the future!"

"That would be too easy. You're going to make amends for what you have done."

"You're confusing me with someone who cares."

"Well we'll just have to wait and see if you still have that attitude after years in a Narn jail cell."

The guards began cuffing her.

"You could have given so much to the galaxy," Sarek lamented. "Such a waste of talent."

"Call me a monster if it makes you feel better. Pretend you could never do what we did, but we both know you have that capacity. Vulcans, Humans, Andorians, all of you. Faced with my situation, you would do the same thing. You would become us."

Bennett turned to G'Tarn. "Get her off my station."

The Narn smiled and the guards began to lead her away.

"Play your games!" she called. "Pretend you are civilised, one big happy Fleet! But we all know it's just a veneer! Beneath all that you are no better than the Minbari or my people! You play each other! A battle for dominance between Humans and Vulcans! Puppets and puppeteers!"

"I hope she's not like this on the journey home," G'Tarn huffed. "My senses can only endure so much ranting."

"I look forward to seeing the trial." Admiral Bennett shook hands. "And an open and honest relation between the Federation and the Narn."

"As do I, farewell Admiral." G'Tarn seemed preoccupied as he turned to follow the prisoner.

Ambassador G'Tarn, is there something wrong?"

The Narn turned. "Oh, no," he said. "There is nothing wrong." He stared at the Admiral for a moment who waited and invited him to continue. "Several of my superiors, although grateful for this opportunity to prove ourselves are somewhat concerned by the presence of that monster on our planet. There are many people that would be most happy to dispense justice as quickly as possible and it is feared that Narn might become a target in the dispensing of that judgement." He turned and walked away, following the prisoner.

So silent was Sarek, Admiral Bennett barely heard him sidle up beside him as Jha'dur was escorted away. "Do you believe they will hold her fairly?" he asked simply.

"I think the Narn know a good thing when they see it." Bennett nodded. "They aren't going to want to blow this, which is why I am thinking about keeping her here, in our care, as opposed to sending her to Narn. Ambassador G'Tarn is correct. Governments from all over the sector would love to kill her, and the Minbari will most certainly want to keep her from talking. They may well attack Narn to do so."

"I will arrange an appropriate judging body and location." Sarek continued. "This provides ample opportunity for us to show another side of the Federation to the worlds of this sector."

"And see justice done." Bennett added.

"Indeed." The Vulcan nodded slowly. "The data she took is in a hidden compartment shielded from scanners in her ship."

"Should provide some useful pointers for Starfleet Intelligence."

"It should. If you don't mind Admiral I will retire, this has been a draining exchange."

"Of course Ambassador. Can I get you an escort?"

"No Admiral, I can find my way."

Yes, Ambassador. I will inform G'Tarn of a change in plans. They can prosecute, and even supply their own security for political sake, but for all concerned, I will have Jha'dur remain on the station. I don't want her here but we may not have any choice. I don't think G'Tarn will complain too much because we're both looking out for his world's interest. And he did hint as such."

Sarek clasped his fingers and bowed formally, a sentiment Bennett acknowledged with a long bow of the head, then the black robed figure turned and began his walk back to his quarters.

As Bennett observed him the years seemed to have piled up on the Vulcan. He did look old and even frail if not in body then in his soul if such a thing were tangible. He knew Sarek had been tempted, and whatever this Dilgar had offered must have been powerful. From Kirk's report she had an unerring ability to seek out weaknesses in even the strongest hearts. Sarek looked like he had attended a funeral. Perhaps in a way he had. He could guess at what she had said to Sarek, and what he had given up to fulfil the plan. He also was uncertain if in the same place he would have been so unwavering.

"Alright Lieutenant, break out the hand scanners." Bennett waved over a nearby officer. "We'll go over this ship an inch at a time until we find something."

He moved out of the way to allow his people to do their jobs. As for him, he had a spy to catch.

-+-

Sarek disappeared out of the bay leaving the Starfleet personnel to their work, he had considered the possibility that Jha'dur had lied but ultimately reasoned she would not have taken the risk without some insurance. The data was there somewhere.

He noted with some surprise a small droplet of water on his cheek, a tear. He wiped away the droplet with a frown, then continued to his quarters.

Far too Human.

'The needs of the one must not outweigh the needs of the many', he thought as the door closed behind him.

Concordat Bridge-Day 13

Dr. Khali somewhat relaxed now, sat in the starship's lounge staring out of the port windows, (huge by his standards anyway) sipping one of the more exotic drinks that everyone else seemed to be drinking at the time. It had a very mild stimulant and it made his head buzz a bit, but its taste wasn't unpleasant by any means. Not that he needed a buzz after what he'd seen today. The talks with the others had lasted for at least two hours and afterwards, he had ran to his room, ignoring Ambassador Sheridan completely in his need to get everything down before he lost a part of it. Photographic memory notwithstanding, he had to record his impressions of what he overheard.

Interstellar Alliance.

Friends with the Minbari after a war similar to what his people were now experiencing. And surviving without the help of the Federation and their cohorts, amazing.

An Earth Alliance civil war with those spider creatures being behind it all. There was so much!

But it was what he didn't hear that intrigued him almost to the point of madness. The Federation Admiral has specifically said that she could not give them any information on advanced technology-as if they needed it! - But then, she changed her mind! And she proceeded to try to overload the ship's data banks with information!

Why? It really was strange as to why the other ship didn't want to share their technology at first. But these people were strange in the first place.

Were they that afraid of Earth Alliance of their universe? That thought made him smile a bit. But as he thought more about it, it made him frown. If he followed that train of thought, the EA wherever they came from had to be more advanced his Earth Alliance, but apparently those Starfleeters had superior tech sufficient to stop that EA in its tracks. It would be nice to try to contact them one day, do comparisons. If this passageway had the capability of multidimensional travel, the possibilities would be infinite. But were any of them, the Federation or Earth Alliance mature enough to begin that type of exploration?

He didn't believe so.

"A penny for your thoughts, Doctor."

He didn't bother looking away from the window. "Hello Mr. Bester. Nice joke by the way."

The young Psi-Cop smiled, but it didn't seem to reach his eyes. "It seemed appropriate. Is 'our friend' still out there?"

Khali nodded. "It's keeping pace with us. It should be interesting to see what happens when we enter normal space."

"Yes it will." Alfred Bester, a Psi-cop took a chair next to the doctor and sat as well as did his partner Roberta Yang. "Did they try to communicate?"

"I don't think so," he answered. "The Captain kicked me off the bridge as soon as the Klingon ship asked that she carry a message to the Klingon Empire. I do know that they were not at war with the Minbari, but somebody else. I wish I could have found out more information. We needed to know what they had to say." He took a sip. "You don't look well, Mister Bester."

"It's nothing," the telepath dismissed. "A little bit of space sickness, I think. I'm used to no gravity, or centrifugal nausea, bouncing around in hyperspace, lousy food. This ship is too comfortable. I feel like throwing up."

Khali laughed. "Seriously, I understand your pain. This ship is so, so alien yet familiar. It keeps me off balance."

Bester merely looked out the window. The problem wasn't space sickness; it was the transit way itself. His telepathy was almost completely dulled. Unlike hyperspace which enhanced his telepathy, this place did just the opposite. He and the other telepaths felt as if they had been crippled. The sense was still there but it was almost impossible to access it. It was like trying to see during a partial eclipse; the light just wasn't there no matter hard the eyes tried adjust.

The transition into normal space came as a sudden surprise. All three of them saw the tearing from one existence into another. The three other ships disappeared with a small flash.

Khali and Roberta jumped out of their seats, staring out the window trying to see where the other ships had gone. But there was nothing, only the presence of dozens of Federation and Klingon vessels as far as their eyes could see.

Bester almost laughed. His telepathy had come back as if it had never left and once more he felt his connection with Yang, something that Khali had noticed.

"Feeling better?"

"Absolutely."

"I am so glad for you, Mister Bester." From that moment on, he forgot about the telepath. He didn't want to miss anything. He wanted to see the solar system that claimed to resemble Earth's, his Earth's system.

Bester didn't care. He wanted to see the same thing.

Throughout the ship, Earth Alliance and their alien counterparts gathered near the windows to see. The Captain, aware of this, ordered a slow entry into the system. The ship flew past Neptune and Saturn as it headed towards Jupiter.

The Concordat edged past Jupiter at a speed slow enough for everyone to see.

"My god," Bester whispered. The planet 'looked' like Jupiter. The giant red spot was there; even the signs of the comet impacts that happened in the late 1900's. What was it called, Shoemaker-Levite, Levy? The name was something like that. He couldn't remember off-hand.

Dr. Khali stared at the asteroid belt and soon saw what he knew was Mars. But it wasn't his Mars, not by the wildest stretch of his imagination. The planet had all of the characteristics of his Mars but it was far more colonized and it was green over huge portions of its surface! He half-listened as one of the Starfleet crewmen mentioned to the Narn G'Kar, that there were artificial satellites providing sunlight and heat for the planet's biosphere. The planet had been terraformed, complete with full atmosphere and water. Evidently there were huge fresh water lakes and small inland seas with fish and other life forms slowly being introduced.The ice caps were notably smaller because of the terraforming efforts which generated a green-house-effect for warmth and supplying water to the planet. Even more impressive for the observers were the lights of cities on Mars' night side. Incredibly large cities e cities not protected by domes were seen as was a small but impressive storm. On EA Mar, a few small cities were protected by domes or hidden underground.

The Narn was smiling almost hysterically and it didn't take much imagination to see what he was thinking about. The Centauri ambassador, Londo was busy trying to drink himself to death as he alternately stared through the window and at the Narn who studiously avoided his gaze.

Earth's moon-their moon, looking like the real Earth's moon no less! - swept by. It was covered by cities all over the dark side. The same thing could be seen across the sun side of the lunar surface. It was packed with life!

Alfred Bester and his companion were suitably impressed as they watched the scores of ships passing by within the system. They, like Khali knew what was in store but it didn't really connect with them until they saw it with their own eyes. It wasn't an illusion. It was completely real. A world, identical to their own, but so different slowly came into view. Billions of mundanes lived their lives down there, without a clue as to what life was really like. It was reported that this world had only a few telepathic Humans around; therefore contacting them should be relatively easy. If they could be convinced to join the Corps, so much the better. But convincing the teeps wasn't Besters or Yang's job. They were merely there to handle security.

First contact with the teeps here fell to the responsibility of Arati Mehta, PsiCorps representative for this mission, although they would most certainly help. They needed to see how these people thought of their positions in society first hand. If this place was anything like their planet, then the persecution had to be tremendous. They very likely needed support by others of their kind. But that remained nothing but abstract speculation until they landed on this Earth and determined the conditions. Then, the other human-like telepaths might well be receptive in establishing rights as telepaths as well. Being feared and hated was something they could all relate to.

-+-

The passengers got a first hand view of Earth as the Concordat orbited the planet once before heading towards one of three stations that looked eerily similar to Becerra Alpha One, only smaller in size. Any lingering doubts by Earth Alliance members and aliens concerning whether these Federation Humans were indeed colonists evaporated by the time the starship entered the star base. Slowly, the ship eased into its berth as if parking was the most natural thing in the world.

The passengers exited the ship brimming with excitement and in some cases trepidation. Khali was busy talking to Ambassador Sheridan who seemed polite but relatively disinterested in anything the doctor had to say at the time. He was far more interested watching the Achilles and Guam being through the station doors with such precision. He almost forgot about Khali until he said…

"…I still find it hard to believe that this world, this system, looks so much like the original. It's no wonder that these people believe this planet isn't a copy. I see it's going to take some time to persuade them of this error."

As for Sheridan, he wasn't sure of anything at this point. His entire thought process had been turned upside down. It was then that the Federation reporters gathered outside asked him the question shocked him.

"How do you feel about the Earth Alliance telepaths asking for political asylum? And why is it they fled from Earth Alliance to make the dangerous journey here?"

The Ambassador was at a loss of words.

Arati wasn't. "What did you say," she asked, stunned by this development. She wasn't happy about that revelation at all and it showed.

Next to her, Bester's and Yang's anger and concern began to grow.