Part 16

Beka opened her eyes again, and instantly recognised the Med Deck, the same Med Deck she had seen destroyed whilst watching the Andromeda break into pieces just a few days earlier. Her mind was crystal clear in that one image, and it drove her to distraction, she had seen this ship blow up and now she was waking up on it.

"Things are not always as they seem."

"Trance," Beka said calmly. "You have to be behind this, you know what I saw was real," she stated with a hint of anger.

"You said you had Harper with you," Trance responded.

"Yes," Beka answered. "I returned to the Arkology, and was able to rescue him before it exploded."

"He was supposed to remain," Trance simply said, with a touch of coldness in her voice. "You could have cost all of us our lives, and the stability of this universe."

Beka fully focused on Trance with a firm stare, having only just woken up and still feeling fogginess in her head she had to check. "Excuse me?"

Trance took a deep breath. "But as things stood, we were able to get by, only just but we managed, somehow, and I'm still not sure how," Trance relaxed into her normal composure.

"What the hell are you talking about, this ship exploded, Trance, and you with it!" Beka stormed. "I saw Dylan head into the Route of Ages, I saw the Arkology with Rhade still on it break into pieces before blowing up!"

"You should have stayed close," Trance stated. "Instead you resisted me, and I wasn't able to keep us all together."

"I saved mine, and Harper's life," Beka simply responded, and rubbed her face to try and clear the haze.

"What happened to Harper?" Trance asked.

Beka closed her eyes, and sighed. "We went to Sinti," she remembered. "A doctor was there, he said he could restore Harper's sight."

"Impossible, Harper's eyes were beyond repair," Trance objected. "I did all I could without any success."

"This doctor was good, in fact after just one session Harper was able to see something again," Beka enthused. "He treated him on the Maru."

"On the Maru?" Trance sounded doubtful. "Beka, that kind of surgery could never have been conducted on the Maru."

"Well it was!" Beka raged.

"There was absolutely no trace of anything but you on the Maru when we found her drifting in space," Trance argued.

Beka let her head drop, as she sat up on the cot. "When the Maru completely shut down, the cold of space can sometimes effect the atmosphere, cleanse it, purifying agents, I don't know," Beka suggested tiredly, trying to remain calm to Trance's tone, and it was the only explanations she could find off the top of her head.

"That is a possibility that Andromeda suggested," Trance offered.

"I'm not crazy, Trance," Beka then looked at her old friend with pleading eyes. "I know Harper was with me after the Andromeda blew up, we only had each other but I can't remember much past Sinti, I know the doc came on board, but it's all a blur after that."

"What was the doctor's name?" Trance asked. "Maybe we can contact the medical facility you found him at, they might be able to help us?"

"Ricker, Riker, Richer, something like that, damn my head hurts," Beka now complained rubbing the palm of her hand against her forehead.

"I saw two, possibly three points of impact on your skull, it's little wonder you do not recall events," Trance pointed out.

"One thing I am positive about, Trance, is Harper was on the Maru with me and then he wasn't," Beka stressed with concern. "And I know he's in trouble."

"We need proof," Rhade's voice spoke up now, as he entered the Med Deck.

"Check the Maru logs," Beka suggested.

"All wiped, or warped by the shut down in space," Rhade frowned in response.

Beka paused and then sighed heavily. "You all think I'm nuts, right?" she said with resignation.

"It's fair to say you've just had a week in hell, no one would blame or judge you," Rhade remarked.

"So, go on, tell me what happened to you guys, why are you still alive when I saw you all explode?" Beka challenged.

"Trance transported us to a place called Seefra, we all experienced at least a year in the system, we had to save it and in doing so we've found Tarn Vedra," Rhade surmised, as quickly as he could.

"You're telling me you lived a year in a week, saved a whole system I've never heard of and found Tarn Vedra, and you think I'm crazy?" Beka questioned, not amused.

"There was a lot more to it than that," Trance offered. "But Rhade summed it up enough," she added.

"If I believe your story, will you believe mine and help me find Harper?" Beka then asked, pleading in her voice.

"I will," Rhade returned.

"Rhade, your family need you, as do your people on Terazed," Trance pointed out.

"Beka needs me," Rhade stated.

"Hold up, family?" Beka caught with confusion.

"I never mentioned my wife and children before," Rhade shrugged. "And they will understand," he said returning his attention to Trance.

"Understand you leaving with two women, to find a man you're not even convinced is still alive?" Trance questioned with a brief smile.

"You're beginning to make me suspect that one of your evil sisters has swapped places again," Rhade complained.

Beka couldn't even muster the energy to ask on that one, and just stared at them both before they noticed.

"What?" Trance asked towards Beka.

"The two of you, maybe it was only a week for me but it was clearly longer for you, you were telling the truth," she realised. "You've both changed so much," Beka stated with mild shock. "Rhade, you never used to question any of us, you were too busy kissing ass and Trance, so confrontational?" Beka questioned.

"Seefra tested us all, and maybe we didn't come through completely unscathed," Trance offered sadly. "I will help you find Harper, Beka," she then smiled.

"As will I, I owe it to Harper to help him if he is still alive, and if he needs it," Rhade stated, his thoughts returning to the engineer, remembering he was blind and still feeling the guilt associated with it.

"And your wife will be ok with this?" Beka checked, still getting use to the idea.

"A Nietzschean never asks permission of his wife," Rhade stated, growing tired of their concerns for his wife. "She understands," he added when they both just stared at him.

"Very well, what about Dylan?" Beka asked. "Dylan is here, right?" she checked, remembering she hadn't seen him.

"He's planet side, I'm not sure he's up for a mission right now," Rhade stated.

"Planet side?" Beka checked.

"We're orbiting Tarn Vedra, he's home after more than three hundred years, Beka, and he needs time to adjust," Trance offered, and then she frowned. "Also, you should know that we have picked up reports that Earth has been destroyed."

"What?" Beka immediately asked.

"A culmination of volcanic eruptions and we suspect foul play, but the planet has been destroyed," Rhade supported.

"My god, Harper," Beka found the breath caught in her throat, as she steadied herself on her cot. "What if that's where he went?" she then panicked.

"I know Harper is prone to blowing things up, but I hardly think its fair to blame him for this," Rhade attempted to lighten the mood.

For a moment Rhade regretted his quip, as Beka stared daggers at him but within seconds a brief smile emerged before she hid her face with her hands, clearly trying not to react to Rhade's comment.

"We have to find him," Beka then composed herself, remembering the situation. "He'll need us more than ever if this is true," she stressed.

"We'll find him, if he's there to be found," Rhade confidently spoke, putting a hand on Beka's shoulder for comfort.

TBC