@Hope for Love: Thank her? I want to throttle her: she goes missing for months on end, never phones, never writes, I'm worried sick about her, and when she finally decides to come back, she stops me sleeping!

@Gordon AI: Well, how would you react?

Echoes of future past, part 49

Dylan sat on the sofa in his quarters, trying to relax. It had been a very long day: apart from the time he'd spent sedated, he'd been awake almost 72 hours, but his mind was to active for him to sleep. The re-emergence of the Vedrans, after over 300-years, had sent shockwaves through the restored Commonwealth. No sooner had Uxulta been allowed to sign the charter, then the rest of the Tarn Vedra fleet had been sent for, and it's arrival at Mobius had drastically alter the military balance of the Known Worlds, making the New Commonwealth the most powerful force, a position previously held by the Than Hegemony.

A slip-currier had been sent to San-Ska-Re, and had returned only hours later with a formal request for Commonwealth membership from the Overdiamond herself. The council accepted the request, and the charter was sent back to the Than-Thre-Kull home world to be sighed.

The party, which had already been in full swing, redoubled, and was still going on across parts of Mobius, as well as several ship's and Drifts. Trance and Harper had despaired off together as soon as they had docked, and had not been seen or heard from since. Tyr was still walking round in a daze after being told of several hundred Kodiak Pride Nietzscheans living on Tarn Vedra. Beka was less excited by the news.

Dylan looked over to where Rommie was sat at the table, a pile of flexies in front of her, "How long have you been filling them in for now?" Rommie looked over at him, "About three hours: who knew suddenly going from synthetic to organic would result in so much paper work! I mean, look at this one, a Commonwealth citizenship application form: Please state mother's full maiden name. What the hell am I supposed to write?" Dylan chuckled, "Well at lest the doctors have finally left you alone." Rommie sighed, "Only because Rev Bem said they could run all the tests they wanted on him. I'll have to thank him for that." Dylan smiled, "I'll give him a medal, for services above and beyond the call of duty, to save a fellow officer from death by a thousand injections."

Rommie stood and walked over to Dylan, "I've had enough: let's go to bed." Dylan looked up, "I'm to hyped to sleep." Rommie grinned, "Did I say anything about sleep?" Dylan smiled as he pulled himself to his feet and followed her into the bedroom."

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Harper lay on a hotel bed somewhere on Mobius, looking up at the ceiling, his eyes un-focused, "I haven't drunk that much since Scheherazade Drift joined the Commonwealth." Trance looked at him, "I haven't drunk that much, since, well, ever!" Harper nodded, "Who new that being a crewmember of a High Guard starship would result in so many free drinks?" Trance held her head, "Not so loud: I have a hangover." Harper tilted his head to the side slightly, "You've never had a hangover before: I've seen you drink all night, get really drunk, and be fine next day!"

Trance winced, "Well I wasn't human back then: it's a completely different physiology. Why any race would willingly created and consume a substance that results in intoxication, inhibition, bad dancing and worse breath, is beyond me." Harper looked at her, "You make out like that's a bad thing? Anyway, you're the one who wanted to get away from the Andromeda for a little while. Not that I mind having you all to myself. In a five-star hotel room none the less."

Trance crawled over and kissed Harper, then winced, "Please don't take this the wrong way, but I think I'm going to be sick!" Harper nodded, "Me too; you take the bathroom, and I'll take the wastepaper basket." Trance nodded, bolting across the room as Harper rolled off the bed and onto the floor.

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Beka was in an armchair, the lights on low: she'd been in a funk ever since Tyr had been told that members of his Pride lived in the Vedran system. She wasn't angry, in fact, she was happy for him, but she couldn't help but think that maybe he'd leave her, leave their son, and go find himself a wife or two who would provide him with fully Nietzschean offspring. She didn't know if this was her regular cynicism, or whether t was brought on by the hormonal changes her pregnancy had trust upon her, but she didn't like it one little bit.

Tyr walked in, a huge grin on his face. It faded once he saw Beka, "What's wrong?" Beka looked up at him, her eyes holding a mixture of pain and anger, "So when are you going?" Tyr was confused, "Going? Going where?" Beka looked straight through him, her voice level, "Don't play games with me, I know you to well. When are you going to Tarn Vedra?" Tyr shrugged, "I don't know, that's up to Dylan. Isn't it?"

Beka slowly stood, and walked over to her husband. She stood before him for a second, and then slapped him hard across the face, "I SAID DON'T PLAY GAMES WITH ME! I know you're going to go and find yourself a Nietzschean, and have genetically superior children, just like you've always dreamed!"

Tyr rubbed the side of his face, "You really think I'd do that? Woman, you don't know me at all if you think that's how I'd act! I love you. I have loved you for a long time, but I could never admit it, either to you or to myself. Do you think I would have married you if I didn't feel the way I do? I m not leaving you: not now, not ever."

Beka collapsed into Tyr's arms, "I'm sorry. I'm just scared." Tyr held her, "It's ok. It's ok."

To Be Continued

Only one chapter left *sniff*