A/N: I just uploaded the first chapter of a new Pre-S1/S4 Rhade fic called 'Night of a New Dawning'. Please review this then go read it!

Replies:

prin69: thanks so much!

Vee017: well, the Dragans want the usual... a well-established Pride, hundreds of grandchildren, and all their enemies to die in horrific accidents that in no way can be traced back to them. :P Veghn's growth had begun to slow now, he's at about the size we last saw him. (looks about 5 years old) But his maturity level is much higher, and he knows more than he's telling...

Jamieson Z: aw, thanks tons! so happy you liked it!

L.C. Brotherton: thanks! I think you'll really enjoy this chapter!

Iara: wow, thanks! we'll find out if everything works out in... chap34 I believe.

A/N: I was completely SHOCKED when we actually met a Moon Avatar in episode #513 'Moonlight Becomes You'. I felt so psychic! :P

Chapter 31

All of the senior officers except Trance and Gaheris were on the Command Deck. All but one.

"Where's Beka?" Harper asked, leaning on his console.

"She won't come out of her quarters," Andromeda's hologram answered, giving Rhade a pointed look.

Telemachus avoided her glare by tapping something on his console.

Dylan caught that look and glanced over. "Anything you want to tell us, Rhade?"

Telemachus gazed evenly at Dylan. "No." He looked back down at his console.

Dylan looked at Rommie, who looked at her hologram, who looked at her viewscreen. "Private matters," the viewscreen announced, and Rhade looked at her gratefully. "None of which I'm at liberty to discuss."

"So my First Officer is AWOL, and you won't tell me why?" Dylan demanded angrily.

"That's correct," Rommie replied.

"You wouldn't be talking about me, would you?" Beka walked onto Command. Apart from looking tired, she seemed absolutely normal. She and Rhade avoided eye contact however as she bounded to the first officer's post.

"Where were you?" Dylan demanded.

"Had trouble sleeping, then Rommie didn't wake me up when she was supposed to," Beka lied.

Dylan frowned slightly, but didn't push it.

"How's the search-for-the-sister going?" Beka continued.

"Not good," Rommie replied. "I've checked and checked again- no recordable Slipstream activity. The pilots must have done some repairs on-the-fly, and whatever they did- wait." Rommie paused as new data came in.

"I'm receiving a transmission," Andromeda filled in.

"Who is it?" Telemachus asked urgently.

Rommie shrugged. "Beats me. Whoever sent it was using a coordinate scrambler, I can't trace its route of origin."

"It's pre-recorded," Andromeda added. "Not a continuous link."

"Play it," Dylan ordered.

Andromeda flickered out to be replaced by a Nietzschean woman standing in a large, empty room. "It this thing on?" she asked.

"Yes, Commodore," a voice from behind the camera replied.

"Greetings, Captain Hunt," she announced haughtily. "I am Shauna Du'lakar, out of Liona by Ulassim."

Dylan had Andromeda pause it. "Anyone we know?"

"Yes," Rommie replied unexpectedly. "She is one of the pilots whose slipfighter was destroyed in the battle with the Collectors."

Dylan continued the message.

"Dylan Hunt, I propose a trade," Shauna continued. "You and your ship, for her."

A Nietzschean male dragged another Nietzschean into the camera's view by her long hair.

"Tell us who you are, dearie," Shauna said with false cheerfulness as the female was forced to her knees.

"Go to hell," the Nietzschean replied. She looked up, revealing a pretty face covered in blood.

"Atlanta," Telemachus whispered angrily. Involuntarily his bone blades came out and he growled low in his throat.

"Jus tell us who you are," Shauna demanded. Producing a bullwhip from somewhere, she cruelly snapped it across the female's back.

"Jade Rhade," she gasped, tears welling. "Out of Majoram by Rhade." Her head lolled onto her shoulders.

"That's all I need," Shauna announced, rolling up the whip and nodding at the male.

Jade's head snapped up as she started to be dragged away. "You're recording this, aren't you, arrogant bitch!" she accused.

"Not only am I recording this, I am recording this for your dear brother, Telemachus."

"Telemachus, don't listen to her!" Jade screamed as she was dragged out of view. There was a muffled grunt and Jade's head could be seen again. "There's a whole fleet of Dragans! Don't lis-" There was a sickening thud that could be heard clearly even over the transmission, and she collapsed senseless, and was dragged out of view again.

"That's right, don't listen, Telemachus!" Shauna mocked. "Watch her die!" She offered one more parting smirk, then reached off-screen to cut the transmission. "Farewell, Captain Hunt."

All eyes on the Command Deck turned to the Nietzschean Lieutenant Commander, who was staring straight ahead at the now blank viewscreen with an expression of silent but boiling fury. Without a word, Telemachus abruptly tapped something on his console and began walking out of Command.

"Rhade, where are you going?" Dylan demanded.

The door hissed shut behind him.

-----------------

"Rhade, stop," Andromeda ordered. "Where are you going?"

"To my quarters," Telemachus replied without looking at the hologram.

"Why?" She appeared in front of him.

Telemachus walked through the hologram. "So I can save my sister."

-------------

"Captain!" Telemachus barked, striding onto Command. "Use this to trace the transmission." He tossed a small cube with one reflective purple side at Dylan. "It's a tracer. Both Atlan-Jade- and I are implanted with receivers. If either one sends a transmission, we can trace it."

"Okay," Dylan said, looking heartened. He plugged the tracer purple-side-down onto his console and played the transmission again. As Jade was viewed on the screen, the tracer paused the transmission and zoomed in on her left forearm. A small purple outline of a square appeared between her second and third bone blades, and Vedran lettering scrolled next to it.

"She's on a ship called the Warrior's Fury," Rommie said. "Orbiting Beros Prime. Checking..." she paused with her eyes closed for a moment. "Warrior's Fury is owned and operated by the Drago-Katsov."

"Isn't Beros Prime Ursa Pride's homeworld?" Beka asked. "They hate the Dragans even worse than Tyr did."

"Affirmative," the viewscreen replied. "Reports are that the Dragans have blockaded Beros Prime, and nothing goes in or out without their knowledge."

"Swell," Harper said sarcastically. "And I thought Tyr had united all the Nietzscheans."

Dylan shrugged. "How are we going to get a ship into that system?"

"Terla's ship," Telemachus announced. "I'll take Terla's ship."

"The Dusky Rose," Andromeda's hologram filled in.

"I'll go alone," Telemachus added. "Being the only Nietzschean on board."

"Terla can take the form of a Nietzschean," Dylan said. "I don't want to send you alone into hostile territory."

"Sensors don't read Terla as a Nietzschean," Rommie corrected. "She had a unique life-reading no matter what form she takes."

"The Dragans would be able to detect a non-Nietzschean," Telemachus said with a tone of finality. "I will go alone, providing Terla lends us her ship." He looked at Dylan. "Sir, she's my sister. I have to go after her, even if it means going alone."

"I could order you not to go," Dylan said, realizing that he had already lost this battle.

"And I would have to resign," Telemachus countered. "She's family, Dylan. The only thing more important to a Nietzschean that personal survival is family."

Rommie's attention was focused on another part of the ship. "Terla says we can use her ship," she announced after a moment. "She's busy right now, but she'll be here in a minute."

Telemachus nodded gratefully. "Captain, I would like to request a leave of absence so I can rescue my sister."

"But I'm missing two of my senior officers already," Dylan said. "I don't want people wondering why Gaheris, and Trance, and you have disappeared."

"Captain, you're not going to win," Terla's voice came from the door.

They turned- and saw a disembodied eye floating in the doorway.

"Yah!" Harper cried. "What the hell?" He pointed his gun at the eye.

"Relax, Harper," Terla's voice came from the eye. "It's a mage spell from my own world called 'Wizard's Eye'. I can stay and keep working and yet still hear and see you."

"Weird," Harper muttered, reaching out to touch the eye.

"Don't touch it," Terla warned. "It will defend itself."

Harper took a metal tool from his belt and held it as far away from him as possible, and poked the eye.

A jet of acid squirted out, coating the metal tool. There was a loud hissing, and it disintegrated onto the deck.

"I warned you," Terla said smugly as the eye blinked at Harper. "Rhade, don't bang up my ship."

"I won't."

"Why did you and Cap'n Valentine break up?"

The Command Deck quieted, and Telemachus's face was devoid of all expression.

"Are you crazy?" Harper announced, breaking the brittle silence.

"Shut up, Harper," Telemachus said quietly.

"You've got one of the universe's most kick-ass chicks-"

"Shut up, Harper," Telemachus said warningly.

"-and you broke up with her?!?" Harper exclaimed.

"Shut up, Harper!" Telemachus said loudly, rage burning in his eyes, behind the rage a deep pain.

"Is it because she's not good enough for you?"

In a few quick strides, Rhade was at Harper's station. He lashed out and grabbed Harper by the neck, slamming him against the wall. "Don't ever say that," Telemachus growled, his face inches away from Harper's. "No one is good enough for her, not me, not anyone." Harper's feet were dangling a foot from the ground.

"Rhade, put him down," Dylan ordered sharply.

Telemachus released his grip and let Harper drop to the floor rubbing his neck. "Never, ever suggest that again," he threatened, then walked out of Command with his bone blades still extended.

"Rhade, wait," Beka called as the door hissed shut behind him.

----------

Telemachus was inside the Rose's cockpit doing his pre-flight check when he saw that floating eye again. "That's very disturbing, Terla," he said over his shoulder.

The eye blinked. "That was quite a display you put on back there," Terla said, not accusing, just stating a fact. Though the eye continued to stare at him, Rhade heard a muffled clang and a curse. "Sorry, stubbed my toe," she announced.

"I'm glad you enjoyed my performance" Telemachus said sarcastically.

"I'm not judging you!" Terla exclaimed. "But I'm going to eavesdrop on Cap'n Valentine and see what she thinks; I'll get back to you on that."

Telemachus was sorely tempted to say yes, but he didn't want to violate Beka's privacy. "No, don't, Terla," he sighed, strapping himself into the pilot's chair.

Telemachus could hear her pout. "You Nietzscheans are no fun." With a sharp POP! of displaced air the floating eye disappeared.

"Rose, you are ready for departure," Andromeda announced. "Come back soon, Rhade."

"Will do, Rommie," Telemachus replied. He hesitated, hands on the piloting controls. "Tell Beka good-bye for me." He cut the transmission and took off slowly from the hanger, getting the feel for the large cargo ship. As soon as he got the hang of it, he opened a Slip portal and jumped in. His destination: Beros Prime.

Preview: Short chapter on what Beka thinks about Rhade's outburst.