Hello, and sorry for the wait! Took me a while to write this chapter, but I hope you'll like it. And thanks for all the reviews, they made my day!
"Okay," said Destiny, once she regained the ability to talk. "What the hell is that?"
That wasn't exactly what Destiny imagined to find once she came out of hyperspace. It had been one week since the mutiny, and two since Destiny used the last piece of useful intel in her database. The military rations were almost finished, and a parasite brought on board from the Jungle planet obliged Doctor Brown to destroy all contaminated plants in the green house, thus reducing the food supply to a dangerously low level. Finding the new milestone wasn't an option; it was a necessity. Destiny never showed her crew or commander how worried she really was, so when Eli ran to her quarters and told her he had located the beacon signal, she couldn't help but feel immensely relieved. So much, actually, that she didn't stop thinking the new route she traced would take her off the designed course, in a sector of the galaxy not seeded with Stargates.
And now, she was looking with the rest of the crew at a star that shouldn't be there in the first place.
"'What the hell is that?' You know, Dee, it's not comforting hearing you say that," commented Eli.
"Especially considering that you should know more about the route than anyone on board," added Rush.
Destiny sighed and clutched the banister. "The information contained in the last milestone was more than accurate. There's no way Leda could've missed a star system."
"I think we can all beg to differ on that. Stars don't appear out of nowhere, Destiny."
"I know that much, Doctor, thank you very much. But there must be an explanation for this."
"Well, if you have one, then I'd like to hear it."
Destiny sighed at the sarcastic remark and clutched the banister even tighter, part of her wishing it was Rush's neck. Since the mutiny, the two of them started behaving coldly with one another, reducing all their interactions to a minimum. Destiny couldn't forgive his betrayal and Rush was angry and disappointed that Destiny, the only person on board he could have a decent conversation with, couldn't see things his way and actually decided to side with the military. They behaved normally with the rest of the crew, but when they were together they acted like they had never been friends.
Young noticed Destiny was doing her best to stay calm and possibly not punch Rush in the face, and he briefly squeezed her hand in sympathy before answering back to the scientist.
"It's not her job to come up with a theory, Rush, it's yours."
"In that case, do excuse me," said the scientist, and he immediately left, followed after a second by Eli and the other scientists. Young glanced at the door closing behind Brody, and resumed talking.
"It's also safe to say there's no Gate on that planet, but we can use the shuttle to explore the surface. If we're lucky we might find food and water, in addition to the beacon and new intel on this galaxy. Scott, Greer, put together a team and be ready to leave as soon as we'll be in range."
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Then we can go back to work, now," said the Colonel, but he gestured Destiny to stay. He waited silently until everyone else had left the observation deck. Once alone, Destiny sighed.
"Oh joy. What have I done now?"
"Destiny, I'm not complaining about the fact that we're spending more time together or that you also spend more time getting to know the crew better… but this situation is becoming a problem."
"I'm sorry, weren't you the one that suggested me to stop being always in Rush's company? Well, I did. And with all due respect, sir… you're in no condition for lecturing me on this particular matter. You can barely tolerate Doctor Rush, no matter what you keep telling everyone."
"You're right, I can't stand the guy. And right now, neither can you. But your falling-out with Rush is affecting the entire crew, and I can't have that."
"I know. But I can't let it go. He betrayed me. How can I work with him and pretend it never happened?"
"I'm sure you can find a way."
Destiny sighed. "If this way involves me punching him in the face, then yes, I completely agree."
Young did his best not to chuckle. "Okay," he said, in a more serious tone. "Let's change the topic, now, shall we? About this solar system… The longest countdown we had was of seventy-two hours, but you'll agree with me, we might need more time in this occasion."
"How much time?"
"Enough to let everyone on board enjoy the planet, to replenish our reserves, to find this damn milestone of yours…"
"Thirty days," proposed Destiny. "How about that?"
Young smiled approvingly. "Sounds good. How long will it take to retrieve the beacon?"
"The signal is weak, sir. It might take some time. I'll make sure to explain all the retrieval procedures to Lieutenant Scott before he leaves."
The Colonel frowned. "I'm sorry… I thought you would be the one overseeing that part of the mission."
"Me?" exclaimed Destiny, completely taken by surprise. "You want me to go down there with the team?"
"Why do you sound so shocked? I think it's time you get officially integrated into the chain of command. Right now, people are confused on your degree of authority on board, especially after the mutiny."
"I'm always been the ship's executive officer and the captain's second-in-command… but I don't think I can claim that position now."
"Lieutenant Scott is my second-in-command, but you clearly know more about being an XO and how to keep the crew under control, something I'm afraid Scott is not yet capable of doing."
"Scott is a good soldier and a good leader," protested Destiny. "He just needs a little more time!"
"And you stopped a mutiny without firing a bullet. I'm going to talk to Scott about this too, but as far as I'm concerned I want both of you to work together as my second-in-command."
Destiny opened her mouth to protest some more, but she couldn't actually find a good reason to. Colonel Young seemed sure this could work, and the new mission would be the perfect test.
"I'll give it a try, sir, but only if Scott agrees."
"I'm sure he will. You two have become friends, right?"
Destiny reflected for a few seconds. She was friends with Eli, and Eli was friends with Scott and Chloe. Usually she preferred Eli's company, but sometimes the four of them hung out together. She didn't consider Matthew Scott a friend of hers the way Eli was, but what they had surely was a good place to start.
"Yes, Colonel, we have."
"Good. I'll inform him immediately you will join the mission."
Destiny nodded and left the room. She was officially in charge, there was a planet to explore, a beacon to retrieve and the chances of seeing Rush during that month were close to zero.
A genuine, excited smile appeared on her face for the first time in weeks.
Destiny is the only one left inside of the shuttle after the landing. Everyone was so excited to finally have found an uninhabited planet full of food and fresh water that it was almost a miracle no one got hurt when they tried to get out of there all at once, and she can't blame them. Humans aren't supposed to live in space for long periods of time and they need a change of scenery once in a while. Her original crew loved to take a break from their one-way trip into the unknown every six months or so, if the situation allowed it. Sometimes Destiny joined them, but most of the times she preferred to stay behind on the ship, carrying maintenance if needed or simply watching over them as a benevolent guardian.
When she finally decides to join the others and gets out of the shuttle, though, Destiny is not prepared to feel so violently sick all of a sudden. Greer catches her just a moment before Destiny's knees give in and he immediately calls for TJ. He helps her go back inside the small ship, but just before that another wave of nausea drowns her and she throws up the little food she had for breakfast that morning. She's aware of the many pair of eyes on her, but in that very moment, she doesn't care. She just wants that sickness to end.
When TJ arrives, Destiny is lying on her back on the grass, head padded on Greer's backpack, with one arm covering her eyes. She takes slow, deep breaths, and doesn't move a muscle. The slightest movement, she discovered, makes everything even worse. TJ takes her pulse, touches her forehead and suggests that maybe it's better for Destiny to get back on the ship. It takes a lot of concentration for Destiny to voice her protest, and she manages to convince TJ to let her stay at least for a day. TJ orders Destiny to lie down and keep hydrated; Destiny doesn't agree with her, but she doesn't have the strength to protest again.
Greer asks TJ what she thinks Destiny has, and TJ confirms Destiny's suspects by explaining the soldier that Destiny has never left the ship once in thee hundred years, and that probably her body was suffering for the abrupt change. The nanites were designed to keep her healthy from illnesses and to heal her wounds; they weren't programmed for something like that.
"How do you feel?" asks TJ. "Embarrassed," is Destiny's answer. She truly is. She was supposed to be the one caring for them, not the other way around, and laying still on her makeshift bed while everyone is busy building the camp just makes her feel worse.
Scott pays her a visit when he's sure everyone got their instructions right and his men came back from the recon tour. The planet is safe, he tells her. No people, no predators in sight. Sadly, no beacon in the surroundings, but that's not so important right now. Destiny comments on how the soldiers and the civilians worked well together to build the camp, and wishes she will be more helpful the following day.
Scott tells her to take her time, but the following day Destiny is already back on her feet, even if she doesn't feel that good, and it's not just because of her mission. The yellow kiwi and the goat-like animal Greer killed and brought back to the camp, she dismissed as a weird coincidence. But when Volker comes back a few days after and talks about a giant black obelisk covered in a weird language, Destiny knows she can't talk about coincidences anymore, especially after realizing that the signal from the missing milestone came from the obelisk itself.
Maybe Destiny can't explain how the planet was created, but she can tell without a doubt it has been terraformed by Ancients in image of Amaras, an Ancient outpost in the Milky Way. Amaras was the planet where the Ancients, the Nox, the Furlings and the Asgards met to negotiate their alliance. Only two of her sisters were chosen to represent their kind – Destiny was too busy fighting what was left of her enemies to care, and diplomacy wasn't her area of expertise anyway – and neither Karis nor Freya could've done something like that, both were long dead. Aurora maybe, but even if she was able to conceive that idea, she didn't have the resources to make it happen.
Well, whoever wanted her full attention, now he got it.
It still remains to be seen if it's a friend or a foe.
"I guess you're feeling better now," Scott ironically commented, sitting next to Destiny on a fallen tree. Destiny grinned but didn't turn to look at him. She weighted the knife she had just cleaned and threw it against a tree, hitting the trunk exactly in the middle.
"Never felt better in my entire life, Lieutenant," she said, and Scott knew she meant it.
"I've never imagined you were such an outdoor enthusiast," he said, gesturing at her. Destiny smiled, looking at her tanned skin. She then took another knife in her hands and started removing the dried blood from the blade.
"I wish we weren't supposed to leave this planet so soon. The sun, the fresh air, the food…"
"Your hunting trips with Greer…"
"Never heard anyone complaining about eating meat for a change."
"It's where we're going to store all that meat that worries me."
"You know, the morgue we have aboard is basically a giant unutilized fridge," Destiny replied in a casual tone. It took Scott a few moments to realize his friend was joking, something that before that mission was usually reserved for her conversations with Eli and that now was inclined to do with pretty much everyone.
"You know, Dee, I liked you better when you didn't have a sense of humor."
"Don't tease me when I'm cleaning my knives, Matt. I'm way too proficient with a blade in my hands."
Scott eyed the knife Destiny had thrown earlier. "As that tree and the local fauna know very well."
Destiny raised briefly the eyes skywards, exasperated. "Don't you have anything else to do, Lieutenant? Ordering people around, courting Chloe…"
"I work with someone," and he pointed his finger at her, "that doesn't understand the concept of disorganization. So, no, I've actually free time on my hands."
"The Colonel is coming," Destiny reminded him. "There's no such thing as free time today. And Greer saw some of those tasty boar-like creatures yesterday, a couple hours away from here. We might even be able to offer him and the others a proper feast."
"Ok, fine. Try not to come back here like the last time."
"Find a way to kill and skin an animal without getting blood on your hands and clothes, and I sure won't."
"I mean, like someone who enjoyed it," precised Scott. "You looked scary."
Destiny smiled sweetly. "Just a reminder of why it's not wise to cross me," she said, and retrieved her knife.
"If you're done chatting, ma'am, we've some hunting to do," said Greer, joining Scott and Destiny. Destiny made a face – again, something she never did with anyone but Eli – and reminded Greer for the umpteenth time not to call her that.
"I love my name. Use it."
"The colonel decided you're his second-in-command along with Lieutenant Scott. I don't call my superiors by name."
"Well, it's an order. Don't call me like that!"
"Yes, ma'am. Will do, ma'am," replied Greer, now with the clear intent of pissing her off. Scott chuckled. Destiny let out a long-suffering sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Move, Sergeant, before I kick your ass," she said, collecting her weapons.
"Just remember, Dee. Kill the boar, not the annoying soldier," said Scott, suppressing a grin.
"How about killing the annoying Lieutenant instead?"
"Ouch. And here I was thinking we were friends…"
Destiny laughed again and disappeared in the woods along with Greer. After a few minutes, she let her mask of cheerfulness fade away and tried to concentrate on the hunt. It was difficult, though; the colonel was coming, and she had to give him a valid explanation why she hadn't retrieved the beacon yet. That planet shouldn't exist, let alone being the perfect copy of Amaras. The obelisk was the source of the signal, she knew that much, but something in her guts told her she had to stay away. Of course, she wouldn't be able to fulfill her wish now that the Colonel was headed down there.
"Ok," said Greer, interrupting her musing. "Why does this planet freak you out?"
"It doesn't," lied Destiny, suddenly more interested in the trees around her. Where was a boar when you needed one?
"Yeah, right. When Volker brought back the sketches he made of the obelisk, I thought you were going to faint from shock. Cut the crap, Dee. What's going on?"
Destiny glanced at the obelisk. "Nothing you or the others have to worry about. This place is safe, nice… enjoy it while you still can, who knows when we're going to find another planet like this."
"You knew it was safe even before we made our scouting tour."
Destiny sighed, and cursed the sergeant's spirit of observation. "Educated guess."
"Bullshit! You want to hear a real educated guess? I think you know exactly where that damn milestone is. I think it has something to do with the obelisk, since you kept your distance from that place in every possible way. And I think all of this has something to do with a place called Amaras. James told me… apparently, you talk in your sleep every now and then."
Destiny froze. Appearances could be deceiving, sometimes, and she was starting to realize how true that statement was in Ronald Greer's case. Everyone saw the tough soldier, but there was a keen, bright mind behind it. He wasn't a big talker, he preferred to listen and observe the people he had to live with. That was not a guess, Greer had kept a eye on her since she recovered from her illness. He knew there was something wrong, exactly like Destiny knew she wouldn't be able of talking her way out of that conversation.
"What's Amaras?"
"A planet in the Milky Way. This planet is its perfect copy, and I mean perfect… from the yellow kiwis to the black obelisk."
"What?"
"Someone created the system, but someone else terraformed it. Someone who knew about the planet… but just two of my sisters knew about Amaras, Karis and Freya, and they've both been dead for quite a while now."
"You do."
"Because Karis told me before dying. Amaras is where the Four Races met to finalize their alliance and its location was a secret. I don't even know where it's located, just what it looks like."
"Maybe Freya survived."
"Freya died in battle. Maybe she told Leda… but even if she did, she couldn't have been able to do this on her own!"
"You're scared of what you might find."
"Or who."
"I thought we already knew everything about you… but I guess no one can oblige someone to share everything."
"Like I already said, Ron, there are things about me that I prefer to be left unsaid. Things I'm not proud of. And things I'd rather forget."
Greer was going to ask her more about the obelisk when his radio came to life. It was Lieutenant Scott, who alerted them that the Colonel was there and wanted to see Destiny immediately. Destiny closed her eyes and sighed and once Greer handed her the radio, she told Scott she would be there in half an hour. But there was one thing Scott 'forgot' to mention, and for a split second Destiny desired to kill him with her own hands. Eli, Destiny was told, suffered an injury while exploring with Rush and the others a sector of the ship Destiny hadn't finished to fix yet.
"He's in the infirmary right now. His condition's not serious, but he can't walk… so the Colonel decided to bring him instead," and he motioned for Rush with his head.
Destiny watched Rush and her look immediately hardened. To Matt, it felt almost like those days spent on the planet away from the scientist never happened.
"Easy, Dee," said Scott, placing one hand on her shoulder. "I know you don't want him here, but play nice, ok?"
"I'll try."
"That's all I ask. Come on, we have to report to the Colonel."
"You go ahead. I'll keep an eye on the civilians. We have a feast to prepare, after all."
Matt furrowed his eyebrows, not entirely buying Destiny's newfound good mood, but did as he was told. He glanced again at Rush, mouthed 'be nice' to his friend, and then joined the Colonel inside the shuttle. Destiny observed the shuttle for a couple of seconds, and then she looked at Rush, standing near the shelters and looking completely unimpressed by the change of scenery.
"If I discover Eli got hurt because of you, I'll toss you out of an airlock," said Destiny, moving closer to the scientist.
"Good afternoon to you as well, Destiny," replied Rush, unfazed by Destiny's not so veiled hostility. "Eli sends his regards and wants you to tell him everything once you're back on board."
"I have some Kino footage for him to watch while he recovers."
"How thoughtful of you."
"I wasn't exactly thinking of that when I took the Kino with me, Doctor," hissed Destiny. "Ok. Let's get this over with," she then added, turning her back on Rush and marching straight to the shuttle. She was going to interrupt Scott's report and once again she would probably see the look Young usually reserved for the moments in which she reverted to a petulant child, but as she explained to her commander and her friend, it was preferable to hit Rush in front of everyone.
"I'm truly sorry, Matt, for bursting in here like this," she apologized to the Lieutenant. "I thought I was over this. Sir, apologies to you as well."
Young nodded and rose from one of the shuttle seats. "I will accept your apologies, but this is the last time I'll do it. This has to end. You and Rush have to find a way to coexist peacefully, to work together again. Don't oblige me to make that an order," Young added when Destiny tried to protest. The woman lowered her eyes and told her commander that yes, she would try to act in a civil way with Rush once she would go back to the ship.
"We still have two weeks before resuming our journey, and I intend to spend that time as far away from him as humanly possible. I'll use that time to try my best to forget what he did, so to come back on the ship with a better attitude in his regards. Is that acceptable?"
"It is," replied Young. "Now, unless you want to stay for Lieutenant Scott's report…"
"I know where the milestone is," said Destiny, earning two surprised looks from both Young and Scott.
"I thought you haven't found it yet," commented Scott, confused. Destiny gave him an apologetic look and confessed to the two men she had known his exact position since their arrival, but that there was more to that story. Destiny then proceeded to give then a quick explanation about Amaras, its importance for the earlier Ancients, and why she didn't say a word about the planet and the milestone before.
"I just don't know what to expect. Someone clearly wanted me to find this place and to start asking myself questions… but who?"
Young gave her a curious look. "I don't recall seeing you scared before."
"If I were alone, I would investigate. But almost the entire crew is here, I can't put them in danger. The planet is safe, but I have a weird feeling about the obelisk and the milestone."
"But like you said," Young reminded her, "we need the new information, otherwise we'll be flying blind. It's a risk we can't take."
"It's not dark yet," suggested Scott. "We could go there and be back before someone might notice our absence. I'll tell James and TJ."
"You do that. Tell Rush to come, too, we might need him," he added, ignoring the unhappy look on Destiny's face. He pointed a finger at her.
"I want to see a little of that spirit of cooperation. I know it's somewhere inside of you. Are we clear?"
"Yes, sir. Crystal clear."
"Good," said Young, clapping his hands. "Let's move then, I've heard something about a feast in my honor and a roasted boar. Can't wait to finally enjoy a proper meal after all this time."
Destiny gave her commander a little smile, and followed him outside. Scott had already proceeded to alert TJ and James, and Rush was already waiting for them near the shuttle. They silently reached the other end of the camp and started walking in the woods, headed towards the obelisk's valley.
"Scott told me you found the milestone but you didn't retrieve the information. Why?"
Destiny sighed and choked back the poisonous remark she was going to make. "I preferred to wait for my commander, in this case. It's called protocol."
Rush slightly furrowed his eyebrows and gave her a curious look. "Then why are you so nervous?"
"Because I'd rather be hunting with Greer. We had a challenge, and by being here, I clearly lost it."
"A challenge. And what was the prize?"
"Destiny will teach him how to use an old traditional Ancient weapon," answered Scott. "The one hanging on your quarters' wall, right?"
"Yes," nodded Destiny, grateful for the young soldier's intervention. "Back in the day we called it Nassa, but I've heard you call it also a Sodan stick."
"After one of the many civilization in the Milky Way," explained Rush. "They worshipped the Ancients and wanted to achieve ascension, but…"
"…but the Ori prior came and converted them to Origin. He failed his mission in the end, though, thanks to Doctor Jackson and an Ascended Ancient named Orlin," said Destiny ending Rush's sentence. "Yes, I know a thing or two about what happened in the Milky Way after I left," Destiny then explained to a slightly surprised Young. "Your people are chatty, and Doctor Jackson's orientation tapes are fun to watch."
"Then I guess you don't need an explanation about the Ori either."
"Religious fanatics that banned the Alterans from their home. I heard they've been destroyed. Good riddance."
"I take you're not spiritual then," commented Scott.
Destiny laughed. "I'm sorry, Lieutenant, have you ever met my people? Science was our religion. Without it, I wouldn't be here… and neither would you."
"But they decided to take a spiritual turn in the end. Ascension."
"The only thing they weren't able to vanquish was death," said Destiny. "But that didn't mean they didn't try. Ascension was… a legend, at the beginning. People dissolving into light? Life on another plan of existence? Impossible to accept. Impossible to explain. And there was also an unfortunate implication…"
"Sorry, Destiny, I don't follow you," said Young.
"What Destiny means, I think, is that the Ancients couldn't accept the possibility that the Ori could be right. That there was more to life than just… life."
Destiny couldn't help but look at Rush for a second. After all that time spent hating each other, she'd almost forgotten how insightful a conversation with him could be. Destiny immediately lowered her eyes and hurriedly replied that yes, it was certainly something like that.
"In addition, the human population could mistake the Ancients for their gods. They didn't want that kind of attention. They didn't want to become like the Ori. I haven't seen many people ascend in my time, just my commander and some of my crewmembers. My first commander ascended too, or so I was told."
"The question is why they did it, if they thought it could eventually corrupt them."
"They must've changed their minds. I don't know, I wasn't there. What I know is that my crew, presented with their options, decided to try the path to ascension and see what would happen."
"Options? What other options there could be?"
"One thing at the time, Colonel. Right now I think we should concentrate on that," and she indicated the obelisk, now in front of them. The team moved closer and they began studying the inscriptions on the base.
"This is not Ancient," commented Scott, touching one of the engraved words. "Dee, can you read it?"
"No one ever translated it. It possibly belonged to a civilization that got destroyed before the Ancient's arrival in the Milky way."
"But there must be something here of some meaning to you," retorted Rush. "Whoever wanted you to come here, must've left you a sign. Something you would recognize."
Destiny was going to reply that there was nothing familiar about those inscriptions, when she saw the old Earth glyph right in front of her, like she had seen it in Volker's drawings. It was slightly different from the one on the Stargate – one dot and two lines instead of three, and their positions were inverted – and was more than enough to drain again all the color from Destiny's face. She glanced at the others; no one seemed to have noticed her sudden discomfort, and Destiny felt immensely relieved. She slowly touched the back of her neck, almost absent-mindedly, and did her best to regain control.
"Here," she said, and pointed at the glyph. "This wasn't on the Amaras obelisk."
Rush came closer and touched the stone. "It looks like one of the symbols on our Stargate. Do you know its meaning, Destiny?"
"No," said Destiny. "It's of Ancient origin, but I can't tell you more. I'm sorry."
It was incredible how that lie came to her so easily. Effortless, like breathing. She touched the symbol on the stone, but this time, the glyph started to glow.
"What the…?" said Destiny, still touching the stone.
"Genetic key," murmured Rush, fascinated. "What's happening now, Destiny?"
Destiny frowned. She wasn't sure of what to tell Rush or the others. When she placed her hand on the obelisk, she clearly felt stone, hard and cold, under her fingers. But once the glyph started to glow, the feeling changed. She could still feel something against her hand, but it felt more like the surface of a force field than rock. Destiny pressed her palm against the smooth surface; the force field pushed it back. Destiny pushed harder, and after the initial resistance her hand disappeared inside the obelisk.
"It's just a force field, nothing danger…" she began to say, but before she could end her sentence, the force field sucked her inside. With her free hand she tried frantically to grasp something to hold on to, but the only thing she came in contact with, as she sadly realized once they were both inside, was Rush's brown shirt. Destiny sighed and moved a hand through her hair.
"Great. So incredibly great," she said, unable to see a thing in the dark. Rush was behind her, she could hear his breathing. He was still within her hand's reach, something she wasn't used anymore. If they were on the ship she would immediately try to put some distance between her and the scientist, but in that situation, the closer they were, the better.
"What the hell is this place?"
"I'm as blind as you are in here," Destiny answered. She stiffened a little when she felt Rush's hand touching her arm and then reaching for her hand.
"There must be a light source somewhere," he said, and then Destiny felt him gently dragging her to the wall, trying to find a way to light the chamber. Again, though, the moment Destiny touched the wall all the inscriptions inside – the place was covered by them – began to glow. Unlike the exterior writings on the obelisk, the walls of the chamber were written in Ancient. Rush immediately let Destiny go and began reading the writings on the wall, while Destiny, using the little light present in the room, reached what looked like a rectangular crystal encased in the floor. That was awfully familiar to Destiny as well: in her time, all the tombs looked like that. She slowly knelt by the crystal surface, and with an hand she cleaned it a little. She couldn't help but gasp in surprise when she finally saw the face of the one buried there.
"Great ancestors," she whispered, unable to believe her eyes. A moment later, Rush was next to her, bending to look at the woman under the glass.
"Who is she, Destiny?"
"The last person I thought I would find here," answered Destiny, getting back on her feet. She moved to the front of what she now knew to be a very advanced stasis pod, and looked for something resembling a release mechanism. A voice, though, stopped her.
"I would be immensely grateful if you didn't do that, little sister."
Destiny grinned, and turned in the direction of the voice. Freya's hologram was smiling back at her like the last time she had seen her, so long ago she didn't quite remember. The last great war was still raging through the galaxy when her sister and her crew were believed to be dead, after a pulsar damaged the shields and left the ship at the mercy of the enemy fire during a battle. It was incredible to be able to see her again.
"I think you should make some introductions, Destiny," said Rush, now at Destiny's side. He didn't seem able to detach his eyes from Freya's face.
"Sister, this is Doctor Rush. Doctor Rush… this is Freya. And judging by that stasis pod, I believe she has quite a story to tell us."
Freya grinned. "Oh, sister… you have no idea."