Author's Notes: First of all, I'd like to apologize for the long delay. I haven't had as much time to write as I would have liked to have. I have no idea who rapidly or slow the rest of my posts are going to be.

Secondly, I would like to thank everyone who participated in my contest. Caitlyn Crowley is the daughter Ben and Katie gave up for adoption. Congratulations to everyone who got it right. Dusk and Bec_b were the first to get it right. As their reward, Dusk will be making a guest appearance in this section as Dusk and Bec_b will be appearing in the next section as Rebecca.

Lastly, thanks to Joxer for offering me a plot bunny way back when. It might not be exactly how you imagined it, Joxer, but it's finally coming into play.

Tim slipped into the room silently not wanting to wake Miguel who was still sprawled across the bunk. He found that as the tour went on he was going to bed later and waking earlier. He had already eaten breakfast and showered and he still had hours before he was required to be anywhere. He watched Miguel for a moment envious. Stress never got to Miguel. He was always calm. Tim, on the other hand, was a worrier. He fretted over everything and lost sleep because of it. Sighing, he decided to find other things to occupy his mind. Cutting on his computer, he opened the Internet and pulled up his e-mail. Nothing. Not expecting anyone to be on, he pulled up his buddy list for instant messenger. Immediately, a message popped up on his screen.

Dusk: Bro!! * giant hugs*

Dusk: I've missed you

Athenian_Lyceum: I missed you too, little sister. How is school going?

Dusk: boring  * wrinkles nose*

Dusk: why didn't you call us?

Athenian_Lyceum: I'm sorry. I wasn't sure you'd want to hear from me.

Dusk: Of course I would!!!  You're my brother!!!

Athenian_Lyceum: I'm a traitor to my country.

Dusk: So? Was that supposed to make me stop loving you

Athenian_Lyceum: No. Maybe. I don't know.

Dusk: I'm sure you had good reason

Athenian_Lyceum: I did. Maybe you'll get to meet him one day.

Dusk: I've already met Migs  :oP

Athenian_Lyceum: * tickles you* I didn't mean him!

Dusk: I know…they'll get over it you know…it's not like they're going to disown you

Athenian_Lyceum: That's what you think. How mad are they?

Dusk: Father's furious…you know how he feels about serving your country and family honor and all that

Athenian_Lyceum: And Momma?

Dusk: She's too worried to be mad….you better call her and let her know you're ok

Athenian_Lyceum: I will.

Dusk: You better * glares threateningly*

Dusk: Ugh…it's time for me to go to class

Athenian_Lyceum: All right. Bye. Love you.

Dusk: Love you too. * hugs*  tell Migs I said hi

Dusk has signed off

Smiling, Tim logged off. Suddenly, he felt a whole lot better about the situation.

[Scene Change]

"Hey, kid," said Ben poking his head into the suite that Lucas and Westphalen still shared. Lucas jumped and twisted around relaxing again when he saw it was only Ben. He grinned and waved Ben into the messy room. Wires, circuit boards, diagrams, and books decorated the floor in ordered chaos. "So what have we here?"

Lucas's eyes lit up and he began pointing out the individual components of his project. He showed Ben where he incorporated the mechanics of a sound wave into the process by which he would monitor the whistles dolphins make. He pointed out how it would go through the circuitry and be interpreted by his software once he finished the prototype. Ben just smiled and nodded. He could pick out the picture of a sine wave but Lucas's pointing and nodding did not help him with the rest of the mess.

"We've really got to get you talking, bud," he said reaching down to ruffle Lucas's hair. Lucas flinched slightly at the contact but relaxed before Ben noticed. "Maybe I'll ask Katie if she has any ideas how to help you. Anyways, that's not what I came here for. I came to see if you wanted to watch the game with us."

Lucas looked at him blankly.

"The party in the lounge?"

Blank.

"The World Series?"

More blankness.

"Baseball?!"

Still blank.

"Don't tell me you've never heard of baseball. He's never heard of baseball! That's it! You're coming with me." Ben dragged the somewhat confused, a little alarmed but unresisting Lucas down the corridor towards the lounge.

"Make way for the chili," said Katie smiling at the two of them as she shouldered her way into the lounge carrying a crock-pot.

"Is that?" asked Ben salivating at the delicious aroma.

"Yep. My award winning chili." Ben's stomach rumbled in anticipation.

"You haven't lived until you've tried her chili on a foot long," he told Lucas. Lucas just nodded not really understanding what was going on. His friends seemed to be in good spirits though so whatever it was it was probably a good thing. Katie carried the crock-pot over and set it down on the food table.

"The place looks great, Krieg. You've outdone yourself this time," said Jonathan clasping a hand on Ben's shoulder. With all of the recent turmoil from their split from the mainland, Ben had decided that the crew needed an event to make them feel American and the World Series was the perfect occasion. The entire lounge had been decorated in red, white, and blue. Along one wall was a row of food including stadium mainstays such as foot long hot dogs, giant pretzels, boxes of fresh popcorn and even a few bags of commercially made cotton candy. The crew had been divided into three shifts so that everyone could have an opportunity to watch part of the game. Captain Bridger had been very supportive of the festivities even going so far as allowing the game to be broadcasted over the ships intercom system as long as no one complained.

"Thanks, Commander. I do my best to keep morale high."

"We certainly appreciate your efforts, Ben," said Tim, as him and Miguel joined the little group. "Not sure we let you know that enough."

"Thanks, guys," he replied with a smile. Ben glanced around the room making sure everything was going smoothly. He spotted Lucas standing uncertainly at the edge of their group. "Listen, guys, could a few of you sit with Lucas and make sure he knows what's going on? He's never seen a baseball game or any of the stuff that goes with it so I want to make sure he gets the whole experience. I'd do it myself but I'm going to be busy keeping things in order."

"You're welcome to sit with us, Lucas. Miguel knows all about baseball. What do you say?" Lucas looked up at Tim and Miguel's smiling faces and nodded uncertainly. "Great! Let's go get us some food and find us a seat."

[Scene Change]

The tiny speeder dipped and bounced as it flitted through the water. Ahead of it, the massive cruise ship lumbered along oblivious to the approaching threat. The sun was setting in the distance blinding any of the people along the deck who might have spotted the tiny boat following them. The sound of Caribbean music floated out across the sea from the decks of the ship towering over the waves.

Careful to avoid the wake, the speeder pulled up alongside the cruise ship and attached itself to the hull. Figures in black emerged from the boat and began the tedious climb up the side of the ship using suction devices. The revelry continued above. The patrons were all secure in their illusions of protection. The black figures reached the top scampering silently over the edge. They hung a ladder from the railing to assist them in their escape then crept through the ship. The ship had security but it was not enough to stop the invaders. They crept through the ship silent as mice. No one saw them. No one heard them. Thirty minutes later they were gone with no one aware that they had ever been there. The only evidence of their visit sat in the engine room at the rear of the ship. The small, red numbers of the display glowed in the darkness as they slowly counted down to detonation.

[Scene Change]

"That's a homerun," said Miguel pointing at the screen. "See how the ball went so far that no one can catch it. All the guys on the bases get to run home now." Lucas leaned forward staring at the screen intently. He licked his fingers that were sticky and blue from the cotton candy. He watched them circling the bases then sat back with a slight smile.

"Are you enjoying the game?" asked Tim from Lucas's other side. Lucas nodded eagerly.

"Baseball's the greatest game in the world."

"I wouldn't go that far," interrupted Tony from behind them. "Sure, it's all right but it has nothing on hockey. Now there's a real sport." Lucas looked at him uncertainly then to Miguel and Tim for confirmation.

"There's no right or wrong answer, Lucas. Some people prefer certain sports to others," said Tim.

"You'll have to watch a game when they start televising them again. You'll love it. Nothing like it in the world, especially during playoff time. Baseball's puny little trophy's nothing like Lord Stanley." Tony's face was practically glowing as he raved about his favorite sport. Lucas giggled at him and patted Tony's arm leaving sticky fingerprints on his sleeve. "Hey!" yelled Tony. He stood over Lucas tickling him until he was a wiggling, giggling mass of smiling boy.

"Miguel used to play baseball in college," said Tim after everyone had settled down again. "He was good enough to go professional."

"That's impressive," whistled Tony, causing Lucas to look at Miguel with awe.

"It was nothing." Miguel tried to brush them off.

"Don't be so modest." Tim leaned over and whispered to Lucas. "His mom has a room full of his trophies at home."

"Look, I just played a little ball in college. Sure, I probably could have bounced around the minors for a few years but that's no way to make a living. I'd rather be here."

"Drew Meyer is stepping up to bat. This gentleman is a proven player. He's their go-to guy," stated the announcers on the screen. The group turned their attention back to the game as the short stop stepped up to the plate. "Listen to the fans. He's definitely a crowd pleaser."

[Scene Change]

John Decker stretched at his seat stifling a yawn. He glanced at the clock again for the fourth time in five minutes. He could not wait to get out of here so he could watch the game. He began to fiddle with the sensors just to give him something to do. All of a sudden, static burst across the speakers.

"Mayday! Mayday!" came a panic stricken voice through the static.

"Sir! I have something here!" said John, excited.

"Get a fix on that location," ordered Ford who had just started his shift on the bridge. "See if you can get the transmission any clearer."

" Mayday! This is cruise liner, Summer's Dream.  There was an explosion. We're going down. I repeat, we're going down!"

"Summer's Dream, this is SeaQuest. What is your location?"  Empty static was the only answer. "We've lost them, sir."

"Did you get a location?"

"I was unable to pinpoint exactly. They are somewhere to the Northeast of us. We should be able to pick them up on our sensors within half an hour."

"Chief Harlot, adjust out heading in that direction. Decker, call the Captain to the bridge then send out an alert."

"Yes, sir." John turned around calling Captain Bridger's PAL. He spoke to him a minute then turned back to face Ford. "He's on his way, Commander. What alert would you like me to call?"

"General Alert. All personnel report to section supervisors."

"Commander, what's the situation?" asked Bridger striding onto the bridge.

"A cruise liner is going down. We were just barely within her radio range. We might be the only people close enough to attempt a rescue."

"Get all of the officers up here immediately. We need to start breaking down into rescue teams." He paced for a second. "Have them bring Lucas." He turned around surveying the bridge. "Decker, continue trying to hail the cruise liner. You, start trying to contact anyone else in the area to let them know what's happening."

[Scene Change]

"This is our group. Look at each other's faces. Memorize them. We're going to act as a chain. Hand the person on down to the next person on the chain. You three will be retrieving people from the ship. You two help them onto the shuttle. You two help them off of the shuttle. The rest of you are to direct them here on SeaQuest. We have to do this quickly and efficiently. These people may not have a lot of time. All right people! Let's do it!"

Jonathan jogged ahead of his group as they headed for their launch. Half of his men split of stationing themselves so they could lead the injured to medbay and the others to quarters being hastily organized. SeaQuest did not have enough room to house the population of a cruise liner but hopefully with a little crowding she would be able to hold them long enough for other ships to arrive. The last of his group filed into the launch. He tapped the pilot on the shoulder signaling him to go once a path cleared. The kid was one of Katie's pupils. This was probably his first real flight.

"You'll do all right, Tony," he reassured the pilot. Tony nodded at him, swallowing hard, trying not to be terrified.

Their first view of the ship as they bobbed to the surface was like a scene out of one of the many Titanic movies.  Half the ship sat low in the water with the other end slightly elevated. Even as they watched they could tell that more water was flooding the ship. Twenty or so lifeboats floated around the ship while more people aboard fought for the few remaining boats. Either they were not being filled to capacity or the ship was not carrying enough boats but it was obvious that there was no way they would hold everyone. Jonathan just prayed that they would have enough time to get to everyone. As fast as she appeared to be taking on water, they might not have very long to work.

[Scene Change]

"I'm singing in the rain," sang Miguel at the top of his lungs as he waded through water that was up to his thighs. He was deep within the ship leading a team of ten men after any people who might be trapped down here. The levels below were all submerged. Anyone left down there was beyond their help.

"Would you stop that?" shouted Banks from behind him.

"Stop what?"

"That infernal singing! It's driving me insane! This is not the time nor the place for such frivolousness."

"Wrong. It's the perfect time. Besides," said Miguel, grinning back at the disgruntled man. "I've always wanted to go to Niagara Falls."

"You're a sick, sick man, Ortiz," said Daniels shaking his head. They continued to plow onward while water dripped down on them. The 'Falls' as Ortiz had referred to it was the roaring of the water flooding into the ship. The water was coming in at a terrifying rate. They'd already been forced up one deck and the water was up to their hips now on this one. Mostly these corridors were empty. The doors stood open. The rooms flooded. Occasionally, they had found an individual whose door opened outward. They simply removed the door from its hinges and sent the trapped individual out the nearest escape route.

"Listen." Miguel stopped tilting his head.

"What?"

"The water. It's not as loud. Someone must have found a way to seal off part of the ship."

"So? It's still flooding."

"Not as fast. That means these people still have a chance." Miguel turned the group around heading for the stairs to the next floor. They had already started the climb when he paused. He turned back around heading for a closed door he noticed just before the stairs.

"Where are you going, man?" asked Daniels hurrying to catch up with him.

"We didn't check this one."

"You came all the way back because of a closed door!" Banks stared at him in disbelief. "First the singing. Now this. You've got to be nuts!" Miguel ignored him pushing open the door. A woman bobbed gently in the water. He waded over to her and flipped her over knowing that she was dead. There was a small cut on her head. She'd probably been knocked out during the explosion then drowned.

"Mommy?"

"My God, we almost missed them," gasped Daniels sagging against the wall. A little girl about seven years old sat up from her bed on the top bunk. She clutched her baby doll to her chest and stared at them. Her older brother, on the bunk across the room, was still asleep.

"Hey, darling, my name's Miguel. We're going to take you and your brother upstairs." She nodded softly, clinging to him as he picked her up. Daniels gathered her brother who had woken up but was staring at his mother silently. Banks did not say a word. He picked up the body and followed the other two up the stairs. He watched Miguel with a mixture of respect and adoration. He would never question him again.

[Scene Change]

"O'Neill, how are the crews going?" asked Bridger though his PAL. Lucas and Tim were the only people left on the bridge. Everyone else was elsewhere helping with the rescue.

"So far so good, sir. The people are panicked up they're not fighting our help. None of our men have been injured during the rescue so far. Estimates are that at least two hundred people have been transported aboard so far."

"Do we have any idea out of how many?"

"I had Lucas get us a copy of the passenger and crew listings. There are nine hundred and forty-seven people on the ship."

"How long before more help arrives?"

We're really isolated out here, sir. The nearest ship is still over an hour away."

"There may not be a ship left to save by then."

"Can we get the people off by then?"

"We have to." There was noise in the background and Tim could hear Bridger speaking to someone else. "We've got people in the water. Can you locate Seaman Piccolo and see if he can help get to them?"

"I'll try. It may take a few minutes." Darwin began to chatter then Tim laughed.

"I think Lucas is going to free Darwin so he can help."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because Lucas was staring at Darwin then ran out of the room humming the theme song to Flipper."

[Scene Change]

"Give me your hand!" shouted Ben as he tried to lead the frightened man into his launch. The man shook his head refusing to release his death grip on the ladder.

"I don't have time for this," griped the next man in line. He twisted around to the other side of the ladder and pried the man's fingers off of the rope. The man screamed as he fell into the water. He flailed around going under the water. Ben cursed and prepared to jump in when Darwin surfaced beside the man. He nudged him gently then pulled him over to the launch where Ben was able to pull him inside. The second man was already within the launch watching the whole scene contemptuously. Ben wished he had time to give the man a piece of his mind but at the moment he was too busy trying to save the rest of the people on the ladder. People screamed as the ship shifted with an ominous groan.

[Scene Change]

"Jonathan! Get on the launch!"

"I can't! There're still people aboard!" The last of Jonathan's group boarded the shuttle but he turned around to search for more people.

"She's going down! Bridger's recalled all the shuttles. It's too dangerous."

"Then get out of here, Katie," he yelled. She shook her head.

"Not without you."

"I've got to help these people!"

"You can't save them all. We'll collect the ones who make it. That's all we can do."

"Get out of here! Get to safety!"

"Jonathan Ford! I love you and I'm not leaving you!" She prepared to get off of the shuttle.

"You can't! You're the only one who can pilot it!"

"Then stay." Bowing his head, he gave in and let her pull him into the shuttle. She had barely pulled away from the ship when the groans and shrieks of twisting metal amplified. The final stages of its death were rapid. Katie found herself fighting against the void left by the sinking ship. She barely managed to keep control of the shuttle. She hoped everyone else had gotten out in time. Then she was docking and the Summer's Dream was gone.

[Scene Change]

"What are the final estimations, Mr. O'Neill?"

"Four of our men were injured. One was still on the boat when she went down."

"And the others?"

"Thirty-seven required medical treatment. The number of minor scrapes or sprains is unknown."

"Fifty-three people are dead. Another one hundred and fifteen are unaccounted for."

"Thank you, Lieutenant." Nathan sighed resting his head against the wall. "We should have been faster," he whispered softly but not soft enough for it to escape Tim's notice.

"Captain, sir, if I may, there are a whole lot of people who are alive today because of you and your crew. Without SeaQuest, the number of dead could easily have been the number of survivors. We did a good job today."

"Thanks, Tim," said Nathan smiling tiredly. "It's hard to remember that sometimes."