The Rasputin's shuttle bay was almost empty by the time Susan and the Marines returned. The trip back had been a contemplative affair as Susan thought back to what had happened in the restaurant, trying to think of a way to avoid what had happened. Try as she might there was no way she could avoid the fact that the Major was right. The way the security men had showed up so quickly meant that they must have detected that her contact was a telepath, and no casino liked telepaths working over their games, no matter if they were part of Psi-Corp or not. Even on Babylon 5, there had been rule that no telepaths were permitted in the casino there.
She still felt a little fearful that the telepath would somehow escape, but for some reason she no longer felt even the slightest remorse for what had happened. It was not a comforting realisation, but one that she would have to live with now. There was no way the past could be changed now, although she knew that if she had to do the whole thing over she would not have left the Rasputin today. The telepath may still have been killed by Manavis and his men, but at least it would not have been on her conscience.
As soon as everyone had disembarked from the shuttle, she took the Major aside and asked her not to relay anything that had happened on the surface to anyone else. Fortunately she had agreed and promised to tell her two men to do the same so at least Susan did not have to worry about anyone linking her to the death of the telepath. She felt a little paranoid, especially with a Psi-Corp representative coming on board soon. Still she had lived on Babylon 5 with a telepath, but the station was a lot bigger than the Rasputin was and Talia Winters had been more than just another telepath.
Sighing at the hand the fates had dealt her this time Susan made her way onto the bridge, ignoring the ensign who leapt up to announce her arrival and plonked herself down in her chair, which had just been hurriedly vacated by a worried looking Commander Petrov.
"Well Captain?" he asked after waiting patiently for several minutes for her to tell him what had happened. "What happened?"
Susan looked up, her face showing the tiredness she felt. "No-one turned up Commander. Whoever he was, he must have seen the Marines."
"Sorry about that Captain, but I couldn't let you go without some sort of protection."
"That's ok Commander. I think he might not have turned up anyway. It was probably just a wild goose chase."
Petrov nodded. "Well I am sorry anyway Captain." He looked at her closely. "You look tired Captain. I can handle everything her if you would prefer to get some sleep now. I just got word from Mars High that some of the troops for the transports are delayed so they have to put back departure by at least half a day. You might as well head off to bed and you can tell me the rest of what happened tomorrow morning."
Susan smiled for the first time since she left this afternoon. "Still looking after my welfare Commander," she asked in a teasing tone.
"Always Captain," Petrov replied in a more serious voice. "It is my job after all."
"Well I think I will take you advice then, but this doesn't mean that I am going to every night. I have just had a very long afternoon."
Petrov nodded. "Good night then Captain," he said. Then as she was about to leave he said, "oh and Captain. Sweet dreams."
Susan paused for a moment at the door looking back at her executive officer. "I can only hope," she said, knowing inside that it was unlikely that she would sleep well tonight at all. After all two nights in a row would too much to hope for.
6:25, February 3, 2262, Mars.
Dawn over Mars was a beautiful thing. As the sun rose and slowly slipped across the broken landscape it lit up the red sands of the planet, giving them a glow they normally didn't possess. A soft, peaceful image calmed the mind and soul, and over the years had lured many visitors to the planet. However, in a few places the peaceful landscape was broken by the low, silvery shapes of the various domed cities and factories. They did not add to the beauty of the dawn though, instead they stood out as something unnatural and mechanical against a landscape shaped and dominated by nature. Likewise, the shuttle currently coming in to land at one of the domes also stood out starkly against the Martian landscape.
One of these domes was Xanthe Terra, home to the rich and those lucky enough to be friends of the rich. The occupants of the shuttle that had just set down on the dome's landing platform cared little for the beauty of the dawn though, or the promise of renewal and life it bought. They cared only about their own concerns, plots, and plans. In the whole scheme of things their concerns where minor, but to Darren Anderson and his female companion they were everything.
Passing the major apartment buildings, they made their way to small structure set slightly aside from the rest of the buildings. It was roughly square, built around a large open tree-filled courtyard. Anderson and his companion passed through the main doors of the apartment, right past the sleeping security officer without him even stirring and entered the courtyard.
Anderson stopped for a moment beside the central fountain and pointed to the stone bench in the shade of a large tree. He sent his thoughts into the woman who had accompanied him. 'Wait here. I must meet with someone important, but it should not take too long. As soon as I returned we will be ready to begin our journey.'
Instead of replying the woman sat on the bench, crossing her hands over her lap, and seeming to relax into meditation. Satisfied Anderson took no further notice of her as went on to the wooden door leading into on of the apartments, knocking once. The door opened immediately and he entered, leaving the woman alone with her thoughts.
Inside the apartment, Anderson moved through the rooms until he found his superior sitting in a chair in his office, looking forlornly at an empty fish tank sitting in front of him. Anderson remembered that tank as one that had contained a fish the last time he had visited, but it wasn't like Harvey Kiel, one of the calmest and most powerful telepaths he knew, to get upset over a simple dead fish. Quickly he entered the office, not wanting to upset his superior even further by being later than he already was.
As soon as he reached the Psi-Cop's side he was assaulted by a wave of angry thoughts, breaking through the walls he had so carefully set up with very little effort. 'You are late,' came the thoughts of the Psi-Cop, a cold anger plainly evident, but underlying that something else that worried Anderson more, the brief hint of fear. There was something that was troubling Kiel greatly indeed.
'Sorry sir,' was Anderson's reply. 'There has been a problem and I was delayed.'
Instead of replying, Kiel stood and led his assistant out into the garden, picking up his watering can as he did. Anderson knew this was a good sign, as gardening always reduced any anger Kiel might be feeling, anger that he didn't really want to be directed his way right now. He waited for several minutes before the Psi-Cop was ready to continue, standing quietly near the entrance to the garden. When Kiel's thoughts came this time, they were calm and no longer carried the anger they had before. 'What sort of problem, I hope the meeting between Ivanova and our agent went ahead as planned.'
Anderson shook his head. 'I am afraid not sir, the agent we sent has not returned and he cannot be found anywhere. The owner of the casino, a Mr Manavis, said that he remembered someone who resembled our agent entering, and his security records have confirmed that. We have done a quick search of the place, but have been unable to find any trace so far. I didn't want to authorise a full search just yet, as we may not get cooperation from the new Mars authorities for that.'
'I want that full search and do it no matter what the Mars government says. No matter if he is alive or dead I want him located, preferably alive so he can tell us what happened, but even the dead can tell some tales.' Kiel stopped, knelt down and pulled out a weed growing out of his garden. 'Was there any word on Ivanova. Did she arrive at the casino or not?'
Anderson consulted his data pad again, scanning the statement given by the casino owner. 'She did turn up sometime after our agent. She was with three others, Mr Manavis believed that they were EAS Marines, at least that is what he thought from the way they moved, always looking around for danger.'
Kiel stood up and tapped his finger against his chin. 'So she did not follow the warning in the message. That was to be expected and I think it would have been more suspicious if she had turned up alone. What happened after that, did she meet with our man or not?'
'Not according to Mr Manavis' statement,' Anderson replied, carefully checking the statement again. 'He said that she arrived, left her companions in the main bar area before taking a seat in the restaurant, just as in the plan. She waited for nearly two hours before leaving, and no one approached her in that time. Mr Manavis even provided a list of what foods she ordered in that time, although I hardly think that is important.'
Looking contemplative, Kiel wandered across his garden toward the stone seat, his assistant falling into step just behind him. 'What do we know about this Mr Manavis, is his statement trustworthy?'
Anderson consulted his data pad before responding. 'His statement was corroborated by several others in the casino, including the two doormen, a waiter, and a Centauri tourist. None of the other guests or staff members in the casino saw anything though. As I mentioned in the planning the restaurant is not widely used during the day, which made it perfect for our purposes. However something still seems to have gone wrong.'
"Hmmm," Kiel murmured aloud. 'Does Manavis have a record with us.'
'I will have to check with HQ for that,' Anderson replied as he linked his data pad to the Psi-Corp base on Mars and waited for the information to be retrieved.
Kiel nodded and moved away, continuing his work on the garden, plucking weeds and watering any plants that looked like it needed moisture while he waited. He knew it would take a while, as the vast Psi-Corp archives held information on almost every person on the planet, including reports about their loyalties, criminal activities, and anything else the Corp thought it important enough to record. No one outside Psi-Corp, and in fact very few inside, knew exactly how much data Psi-Corp had collected over the years, and many would be very alarmed to learn of the true extent of the archives.
Finally, the report came back, taking some time despite the almost instantaneous communication network available in the 23rd century. After reading it carefully, Anderson passed on the important facts to his superior, carefully to only cover anything important to what they were discussing, and leave out the rest. 'He has a large file, very large indeed. It is a little contradictory though. It reports that has no known links to any anti-telepath organizations, but possible links to the Mars Mafia as well as the Mars resistance, both of which oppose Psi-Corp. Those are the only black marks on his record though and the rest of the records show him to be an honest operator. He has also been most generous to commercial telepaths he had hired, and our records show he has hired a commercial telepath on nearly two hundred separate occasions over the past five years, which is a little higher than most casino's but not unexpected. I don't see anything in here that would indicate he would have cause to lie about in this matter.'
'It is good to know for sure though,' Kiel responded. 'Very well leave this matter for the moment until we get the report from the search team. I will have to put someone else on that case though as you will be leaving shortly.'
Anderson nodded. 'Yes sir, the Rasputin should be leaving Mars later today bound for Proxima III. The last report I had said they were still waiting on the last of the crew who should arrive this morning, assuming the shuttle from Earth is not delayed again.'
'Good they should still be in the Proxima system in time for the test then. The Rasputin is going to have some of the Earth Alliance's best pilots on board and if the software can beat some of them in one on one combat then I think it will have proven itself. Make sure you keep in touch with the pilot of the carrier so if there is any delay in the Rasputin's flight plan you can ask him to delay the test. I would like to make sure the Rasputin's pilots are there, after all if this is going to work we want to test it against the best Earthforce has to offer.'
'Yes,' Anderson agreed. 'And hopefully it may even kill a few, which would make our job a lot easier later when we return to Proxima with the weapon.'
Kiel nodded in agreement before putting down his watering can and turning back towards the door into his apartment. Anderson followed him and they both moved from the outside garden into the apartment's lounge. Taking a seat near the door, Kiel turned back to his assistant, sending his thoughts once more. 'Are you ready for your assignment?'
'Completely,' came his assistant's confident response. 'Everything is in readiness and I have a shuttle loaded with the necessary equipment standing by at the base. As soon as the Rasputin is ready to leave I will be ready to join it.'
'And your assistant?' Kiel's thoughts carried a taint of humour this time. 'Is she ready for her task.'
Anderson smiled. 'I think we can rely on her to do her job. After all she is one hundred percent loyal to Psi-Corp now, and won't betray us no matter what we tell her to do.'
'I wouldn't tell her too much about our plans though,' Kiel warned. 'She is only a P5, and that fool Bester has one of his agents snooping around trying to work out what we are up to. I don't want him scanning her and learning about the project before I am ready to move against him.'
'You do not need to worry about that sir, I won't be telling her anything more than what she needs to know. As for Bester, I don't think he would show his face on board the Rasputin. His relationship with Captain Ivanova is not good. I don't think she has ever forgiven him or Psi-Corp over the control program. I guess that what makes this plan so perfect.'
'As long as she doesn't decide to throw you into an airlock as soon as you get on board,' Kiel warned his assistant, although his mind still sent a strong sense of ironic humour with his other thoughts.
'I will be careful,' Anderson assured him. 'Anyway, I will only be on board for a little over a day. The test is set for the afternoon of the forth which is tomorrow afternoon and if the Rasputin leaves on time today then I should only be there for two nights, tonight and tomorrow night. I will watch the test and then once it is complete will say that I have an emergency back on Mars and leave with the shuttle, taking the equipment and it's readings back with me. Of course, instead of going to Mars, I will travel to A3 and pass on the results of the test to the builders. I assume I will meet you there?'
Kiel shrugged. 'That depends on what our allies decide. They may need me to remain here for a few more days, but I will be there by the time the second test is ready. I wouldn't want to miss that one.'
'Neither would I,' Anderson agreed. 'It should be quiet spectacular indeed. Has the target been picked yet?'
Kiel shook his head. 'Not yet, we are waiting on the results of the first test before deciding on the first target for the weapon. It will likely be one of the outposts, possibly the hidden listening post on the Narn border. If we take that out then Earth will probably send at least some of it's fleet to investigate fearing that Narn may be moving against them. That will allow us to move closer towards the inner worlds and hopefully bypass the main fleet.'
'That is what I was thinking as well Sir. And how about the builders, are they suppling anything for our cause?'
Kiel shrugged. 'I do not know. They have only sent troops and technicians so far. I will speak to our allies soon though, they may have more information.'
'You will let me know of any changes of course?" Anderson queried.
'Of course.'
'Then I will leave you to it,' Anderson said, standing and moving towards the door. 'I still have to brief my new assistant fully on what her role will be. Then I have to pack for my trip, although fortunately most of the equipment is already on board my shuttle.'
Kiel stood and shook hands with his assistant. 'Good luck then Darren. I will expect to see you in a few days at A3. And please try to make sure nothing else goes wrong, we have already lost two agents in the past two days and if this goes on we won't have enough personnel left to carry the plan. So try to keep yourself alive.'
Disengaging his hand from Kiel's Anderson walked towards the apartment door. 'I think you can be sure of one thing, and that is that I will be doing by very best to ensure that nothing happens to me Sir.'
'Good luck then Darren,' Kiel thought with a slight smile. 'I will see you again at the end of the week.'
With that, he dismissed his assistant and let Anderson find his own way out of the apartment. Outside the other occupants of the apartment buildings were just waking from their slumber. Most of the other tenants were shareholders in one of the major Mars-based corporations, although Anderson couldn't remember which one exactly owned this building, and just at the moment, he wasn't concerned. Instead, he was more interested in avoiding detection.
Kiel hadn't left the apartment since he had arrived here from Earth and the sight of a uniformed member of Psi-Corp entering would be sure to arouse some suspicion. As he walked back towards the courtyard, he let the walls in his mind drop and the thoughts of those around him into his mind. Fortunately he didn't detect any thoughts about him, so knowing that he had passed unnoticed by the few tenants who were actually out of bed, he strode out into the brightly lit courtyard secure in the knowledge that Kiel's location was safe for now.
Seeing Anderson coming towards her, his new assistant stood and brushed off her green suit before standing quietly with her hands clasped behind her back awaking his arrival.
'Come,' his mental voice echoed in her head. 'I have important work for you to do.'
'Do I get to know what this work is now?'
Anderson smiled, not a pleasant smile, but one tinged with a hunger that he was having trouble hiding. 'Lets just say you will enjoy it. I want you to distract someone, so I can catch her off guard.'
'Sounds like I will enjoy this." The woman's thoughts were tinged with wry humour.
After making certain Anderson had left, Kiel crossed to a strange console mounted on the wall of his office. The device looked more organic than mechanical and it radiated a psychic energy that was unmistakably alien, although only a telepath would have sensed the device's true nature. There also seemed a hidden power to the device; a strange throbbing that was almost undetectable. Kiel kept it hidden here at the back of his office to avoid anyone else coming across it, but also so that it was close by should they call.
Running his hands across the device's surface Kiel found the tiny protrusion that looked almost like a button. Touching it raised a faint hum from the alien device as it reached out across the galaxy to connect Kiel with his alien allies. The telepath stepped back as soon as he had activated it to allow room for the holographic projector built into the device to display its image.
He did not have long to wait and soon the holographic shape of his ally stood before him, the communications device on the wall projecting his image, just as back in the alien's ship a similar device was projecting Kiel's form. It was a large creature, about Kiel's height but it appeared much wider. It was also covered in a long dark cloak, hiding almost all of its features from the telepath. All he could see were two gloved hands that seemed to shimmer through the air as they moved.
Kiel bowed low in the direction of the hologram. "All is prepared," he said, careful not to portray any emotion that would give away his thoughts. In truth, he hated working with aliens to achieve his aims and planned to dispose of them as soon as he could. For now though, they were a useful allies and without them nothing he had planned would never come to fruition.
A whisper responded, one that seemed to come from all around him at once. "Good," was all it said.
"Shall I proceed with the first test?"
The alien hesitated and turned away for a second as if consulting someone else on its ship. "There are no more problems? We have learning of the interest of Ivanova."
"She is of no concern, she knows nothing of our plans." Inwardly Kiel cursed, wondering how his allies had heard of the incident on Mars High so soon. 'They must have spies everywhere,' he though to himself, making a mental note to be more careful in the future about who he spoke to, and to warn everyone who worked for him to do the same.
The whispering voice of the alien increased in volume slightly. "We know of her. Do not underestimate her for she is dangerous. If she interferes again then you will kill her."
"Of course," Kiel responded with another bow.
The alien seemed to nod, although it was difficult to exactly determine its body movements beneath the thick robe it was wearing. Then it's head, or at least what Kiel assumed was it's head, leaned towards him and the dark whisper came again. "Proceed with the test. We will be watching, so make sure it is successful."
"Do not worry, I have sent my best operative to take care of it personally."
Again, the figure seemed to nod. "Good," it said in a soft tone. Then before Kiel could continue the conversation the light on the alien device winked out and the telepath found he was alone once more. He found himself a little annoyed at the way he had been dismissed, almost as if he did not matter to the aliens. "Well," he said aloud. 'Once I control the alliance they will have to start treating me a little more respect, and both them and the other alien races will learn to fear my name."
The lift drifted to a stop on deck 6, the Rasputin's main deck. As the door slid open, Susan moved to one side expecting a large number of crew to board. To her surprise, there was only one, the Rasputin's chief medical officer, Amada Taylor. The blonde doctor smiled and nodded to Susan as they waited for the lift to resume its journey.
"How are you today Captain," Dr. Taylor asked as the lift continued it's journey down towards the shuttle bay.
"Couldn't be better Doctor," Susan replied, and for once she wasn't lying. "I think this ship must agree with me, I haven't felt so good in years."
"Well I am pleased to hear that Captain," Amanda said. "From all reports you have had a busy couple of days."
"Very busy indeed Doctor," Susan said as the doors to left opened and they both walked out into the crowded shuttle bay.
Both woman left the lift at once, and as they did Susan's hand brushed against Dr. Taylor's bare arm. Susan experienced a brief flash in her mind and then a feeling of displeasure washed over her. She moved away from Amanda but not before she realised that somehow she knew that the doctor didn't like her one bit, despite all her pleasantries and concerns. Susan didn't know how she knew that, but somehow she did.
Before she could think on the matter any further, though she was snared by Commander Petrov and guided through the gathered crewmembers towards the other end of the shuttle bay. "Good afternoon Captain," the Commander said as he walked. "Admiral Bettaman's shuttle should be arriving from the station in a few minutes. I have assembled the crew as you have asked and everything is ready."
"Thank you Commander," Susan replied, quickly forgetting about the brief incident with Amanda Taylor and concentrating on the job she had to do. "Are all the crew assembled?"
"All that could be spared Captain," Petrov said. "Of course some of the bridge crew and most of the current engineering shift had to remain at their stations, but we can broadcast throughout the ship if you like."
"Yes that's a good idea. Set it up will you and meet me near shuttle four." Susan pointed in the direction of the large, bulky shape of one of the Rasputin's shuttles.
"Yes Sir," the Commander said with a sharp salute before walking off towards the shuttle bay's control section to organise everything. Susan continued toward the large shuttle, accepting the greetings of her crew as she walked. Almost the entire ship's crew had been assembled in the shuttle bay to hear what the Admiral had to say. Susan had been rather surprised when the Admiral had requested a visit early this morning, especially this close to the Rasputin's departure time. She wasn't that happy about the surprise visit, but as with most official visits she could do little to prevent it.
Around her, the Rasputin's crew appeared excited by the upcoming official visit. Susan had spent most of the morning locked in discussion with her command staff, discussing the state of the Rasputin's preparation and readiness for service, and despite some misgivings over the still unproven technology, it had been concluded that they were ready as they were ever going to be.
In fact, all they were waiting on now was the conclusion of this last minute official visit, or inspection as Susan was beginning to think of the Admiral's visit. The last of the crew had arrived early this morning and had been settled in nicely, with nearly a hundred berths still left over. The Warlock class vessels had originally been designed as a fleet command vessel and extra space was built for command staff, stewards and the like. While the Rasputin might one day take up that role, it was currently filling in to make up for the large numbers of vessels lost or badly damaged during the civil war.
Commander Petrov finally returned from his short side trip and made his way through the crowd to Susan's side. Both Susan and the rest of her command staff were outfitted in their full dress uniforms. It was not every day an admiral came to visit and in Earthforce there were few officers that ranked higher than a full admiral.
Susan, who was not very comfortable in the tight fitting uniform, was glad the Admiral's shuttle only took ten minutes to make the short trip from Mars High to the Rasputin. She hadn't really been looking forward to standing around all day in her dress uniform. Stepping forward, she was the first to greet the tall, grey-haired admiral as he walked slowly down the stairs from his shuttle.
"Captain Ivanova," Admiral Salik Bettaman said after the two had exchanged salutes. "It is good to meet you, and to see this fine vessel at last."
"Welcome aboard Admiral," Susan said. "We are likewise pleased to have you aboard, although I must admit your arrival was somewhat of a surprise."
"I apologise for that Captain, last minute changes in schedules and that sort of thing."
"I understand Admiral," Susan said with a slight smile. "I had to deal with the same thing while I was waiting for my ship to be finished."
"Yes it did take a little longer than expect," the Admiral admitted. "Now shall we get the formalities over with so I can get on with this tour? I am looking forward to having good look over a Warlock destroyer at last, especially considering how much money we have been pumping into the project over the past couple of years."
"This way Admiral," Susan said as she guided the Admiral towards the podium that had been set up next to one of the Rasputin's shuttles.
After he was firmly ensconced on the podium, Admiral Bettaman looked out over the sea of faces before clearing his throat and beginning what he claimed would only be a short speech. Susan stood behind him and tried to look interested as the Admiral's short speech spread over nearly an hour and covered everything from how he remembered what it was like in Earthforce during his youth to how he wanted everyone to put the past behind them and work together for a new future.
Fortunately, he eventually finished and the crew filed out of the shuttle bay, filling the lifts on their way back to their stations, quarters and recreation rooms. The bay now nearly empty, the Admiral guided Susan and Petrov away from the crowd so he could pass on the orders that were the real reason for his visit.
"Captain," he said, once they were out of earshot of the rest of the crew. "As you know you were to take command of this vessel for a test period so the technicians can complete final modifications for the new production models. However, your orders have now changed. Because of recent raids against some of the outer Earth colonies, we have decided to step up the schedule a little. Earth central has decided to put the Rasputin on full active duty, meaning that you are expected to maintain combat readiness at all times, just like the rest of the fleet."
"But Admiral," Susan objected. "This vessel isn't ready. I mean just a few days ago, the artificial gravity system failed and personally, I still think there are some problems with it. There could be a thousand bugs in the other systems and if something goes wrong during a battle we could be left sitting ducks."
The Admiral held up his hand to stop any further arguments. "I understand your concerns Captain, but your vessel should be safe enough around Proxima III for now. I understand General McCarron told you your orders were to escort the troops transports to the Proxima system and then continue the testing there in the company of three other destroyers."
When Susan and Petrov nodded, he continued. "Your new orders are almost identical, except for one small change. The three other destroyers, lead by Captain James on the Apollo, will only be at Proxima for a week. Raiders have hit a couple of the undefended outer worlds so we are sending those destroyers on patrol along the border colonies which should help quieten things down there a while."
"Which means the Rasputin will be left to guard the Proxima system on it's own," Susan interrupted.
"Not entirely on it's own," Bettaman disagreed. "You will have the twelve Starfuries currently on the planet, as well as your own fighters and we will be sending another twenty fighters to boost Proxima's defence. They should arrive in a couple of weeks. Also one of the Interstellar Alliance's patrols has been given our permission to pass through the Proxima system on a regular basis, which should help discourage any raiders."
Susan nodded, still unhappy about the whole situation, but realising that it was unlikely that Earthforce was going to change it's mind. "I shall endeavour to do the best I can with what I have then Admiral," Susan said.
The Admiral smiled pleasantly. "Good Captain, I knew we could count on you. Now that is taken care of how about a tour of this fine vessel."
Susan turned to Petrov, "Commander Petrov here will be happy to assist you with that Admiral, I have a lot to do before this vessel is ready to ship out this afternoon."
"Of course Captain," the Admiral said, nodding sagely.
"What would you like to see first Admiral," Petrov asked, while at the same time shooting a glare off in Susan direction to show her he wasn't happy with being left to play tour guide. She smiled sweetly back, the picture of innocence and waved as the Admiral and her executive officer headed off towards the aft shuttle bay.
'It is good to be the Captain,' Susan thought as she walked toward the lift back to the upper decks. She was a little concerned at the Rasputin being drafted in to protecting an entire system. Four ships would not have worried her, as most raiders would not care to take on four EAS destroyers, but a single experimental ship may not be enough to stop the more ambitious raiders from looking towards the large, and rich Proxima colony. Still what ever happened it was bound to be an interesting, even if it was for all the wrong reasons. She just wasn't entirely certain that interesting was what she was looking for right now.
A tired looking Petrov finally made it onto the bridge late that afternoon. Admiral Bettaman had insisted on seeing every part of the ship. Finally he had been forced to rope in Dr. Kozlowski to explain the more experimental parts of the ship and that had just led to everyone being confused, well except for the good Doctor who seemed to know exactly what he was talking about, despite the fact that no-one else did. Anyway, it had encouraged the Admiral to shorten his trip and after seeing him and his shuttle on their way, he had trudged back up to the command deck, Kozlowski still in tow.
"I trust you enjoyed yourself Commander," Susan asked as soon as she noticed Petrov's arrival. "Did the Admiral see everything he wanted to?"
"I think he saw every single part of the whole ship Captain," Petrov replied, leaning back against the railing near her seat with a sigh. "Fortunately I managed to get rid of him with my secret weapon."
When Susan looked quizzically at him, Petrov pointed in the direction of Dr. Kozlowski who was now busy chatting with the Chief Engineer Phillip Moore, who was also on the bridge, having arrived just a few moments before Petrov. Smiling in understand Susan say, "Ah I see. Well as long as he enjoyed himself."
"I think he did Captain," Petrov replied. "At least he said that we had a fine ship and if he was a few years younger he would snatch it for himself."
Susan smiled, "well I m glad he isn't a few years younger then. I have been looking forward to this command, which reminds me. We just got word from General McCarron on Mars High. He says that we are cleared to depart as soon as we are ready."
"At last," Petrov said under his breath. "Good Captain, shall I inform the crew to prepare for departure?"
"Already done, Commander, we are just waiting for word from Captain James on the Apollo and we can be on our way."
"Captain," the communication's officer called out. "I have Captain James on the link. He is asking to speak with you."
"Speak of the devil," Susan said softly. "Alright Lieutenant put him through to the main viewscreen."
"Yes Captain."
Above the holographic view of the space around the Rasputin shimmered in one place and was replaced by the view of the Apollo's Captain. "Captain Ivanova," he said as soon as the link was established. "All the other vessels are now ready to depart. Can you open a jump point for the two transports?"
"I think we can just about manage that Captain," Susan replied with a glance towards Kozlowski and Moore, who seemed oblivious to her scrutiny.
"Good," James said. "Whenever you are ready then Captain. We will form up in Hyperspace, so the transports have good protection. I don't expect any trouble, but you never know."
"No you don't, Captain," Susan agreed. "Ivanova out."
The older captain's image faded and the computer controlling the viewscreen replaced it with the image of space outside the Rasputin once more. Looking around Susan could see the two huge troop transports that the Apollo's captain had mentioned. Unlike the graceful Condor assault transports that were the mainstay of Earthforce's ground assault forces these vessels were large and ungainly, really nothing more than huge liners, designed to quickly transport thousands of soldiers between worlds with ease, if not much in the way of comfort.
When she had first joined Earthforce, there had been nothing like these transports in the fleet and all her trips between worlds had been made in either shuttles or warships, both of which did not have artificial gravity of any kind to begin with. These transports at least had their huge, cylindrical, rotating section, but the thought of being crammed into that vessel with five thousand other solders was not one Susan would ever look forward to.
Susan glanced at the Rasputin's current helmsman who was also looking at the view, distracted as he watch the large shape of an Omega destroyer peel off from its orbit above Mars and begin to accelerate as it prepared to enter Hyperspace. "Ensign Marino," she said, just loud enough to catch the young crewman's attention.
"Yes Captain," he said, quickly snapping back to readiness, not wanting to let his captain think he was not on the job.
"Take us away from Mars and prepare to open a jump point."
"Aye Captain," Marino replied, his hands flying across his keyboard as he prepared to get the huge warship under way. It had been sitting idle for over two days, drifting in a high orbit above the red planet, but that did not stop its engines leaping into life as soon as they were called on.
A faint vibration ran through the railing around the raised command section where Susan and Petrov watched as the engines powered up. Ever so slowly, the surface of Mars began to retreat away below then as the warship turned toward the distant shape of the Apollo, which was already powering away from the planet. The two huge troops transports fell into formation alongside the Rasputin as they waited to make the jump into Hyperspace.
"Opening a jump point now Captain," came the call from the helmsman as his finger stabbed the controls for the Rasputin's jump engines. In the distance, there was flare of light and then a spiralling tunnel of light as a jump point formed directly in front of them.
"Hold our position here Ensign," Susan ordered. "Wait until the two transports have entered and then follow them through."
"Yes Captain," he replied and they both watched as the cylindrical shapes of the troops transports flew past and through the jump point into hyperspace.
"Oh good it works," came a voice from somewhere nearby.
Susan turned and looked incredulously at Dr. Kozlowski. "What do you mean it works? Didn't you test the jump engines before we left." As she spoke, the Rasputin leapt through the jump point after the transports and entered the chaos of Hyperspace.
"Err no Captain," was Kozlowski sheepish reply. "I mean we did, but only on the prototype Warlock. We never had time to test it on the Rasputin. "
"And they want us to be ready for combat by the time we reach Proxima," Susan said to Petrov, her executive officer shaking his head in sympathy.
"There really isn't anything to worry about Captain," Kozlowski continued. "I mean jump point technology has been around forever so there is isn't really much we can go wrong with. It is just a matter of getting the right sized engines for the right sized ship."
"Well it seems to work fine Doctor," Susan said. "So I can not fault your work."
She turned toward the navigation station. "Ensign, as soon as the fleet has formed up link us to the Proxima III beacon."
"Yes Captain," the navigation officer said. "I have already received our course from the Apollo."
"Good," Susan replied. She turned back to Petrov who was waiting patiently behind her. "Well Commander I might let you take over for a while."
Before She could vacate her seat though another voice, this time the Rasputin communications officer, cut in. "Captain I have a message from a shuttle that is dead astern. They are asking permission to come aboard."
"Are they now," Susan said as she turned around to look in the direction the lieutenant had indicated. Sure enough there it was, a small black atmospheric shuttle closing quickly on the warship. Even from this distance, she could see the silver Psi-Corp emblem emblazoned across the top of the shuttle.
"That must be Mr Anderson and his assistant," Petrov informed her. "I was wondering what had happened to him."
"I was hoping that he had forgotten all about his assignment," Susan replied calmly, although inside she felt a feeling of dread. When the Psi-Corp representative had not shown up either yesterday or today she had hoped that he wasn't coming and after what happened at the Casino on Mars she wasn't really looking forward to serving with a telepath.
"Shall I order the shuttle bay to get ready to accept him Captain?" Petrov asked. Then when she didn't reply he asked again, "Captain?"
"Very well Commander. Then as soon as he is on board show him to the bridge. There are a few ground rules I would like to explain to him before he becomes part of this crew."
Petrov nodded and after a quick saluted headed out the bridge doors towards the shuttle bay once more. Susan sat and watched until the small shuttle slid below the warship's vast bulk and out of her view. For a moment, she thought about switching the viewscreen's cameras so she could watch the shuttle landing, but decided against it at the last moment.
She had a strange feeling about Anderson shuttle, something that she had felt ever since the shuttle's presence had first been pointed out to her. It was nothing more than a slight tingle in her spine, but she knew something was up, although if good or bad she could not tell.
"Captain," a voice asked from next to her.
"What is it Mr. Moore?" Susan replied, not even looking up.
"Dr. Kozlowski and I would like to run some tests on the engines while we are in Hyperspace. We had trouble with the reactors last time and I don't want anything to happen this trip."
Susan nodded, "very well, but try not to cause too much of a disruption, and whatever you do, don't deactivate anything vital."
"It shouldn't be noticeable Captain," Phillip assured her.
"Good," Susan said, as the two men headed for the exit. As they left, she could just hear them arguing in harsh whispers.
"But Phillip," Kozlowski was saying. "I was planning to work on my other project, I am sure I am near a breakthrough this time."
"Will you shut up about that," Phillip snapped. "You are supposed to be helping me, not wasting time in your quarters all day long."
"But this is important," Kozlowski protested. "I know I am…"
The rest of their conversation was lost as the bridge doors closed behind them. Susan stared at the doors for a moment, wondering if she should try and discover what it was Kozlowski was up to, but decided that maybe she had better trust her chief engineer on this, she didn't really want to deal with Kozlowski right now, she had bigger problems. Minutes later, those problems got a lot bigger as the two telepaths joined her on the bridge.
"Good Afternoon Captain Ivanova," Anderson began as Susan turned around to face them.
Her eyes brushed across the telepath and fell onto his assistant. She froze as she recognised the familiar features, the blonde hair and the beautiful face. "Talia," she whispered.
"I see you know my assistant Talia Winters already Captain, "Anderson said, the faintest twinges of a smile beginning to show on his face. 'I think she still likes you,' he sent telepathically to his assistant, his thoughts laced heavily with humour.
Susan looked at Talia, and despite her hopes saw nothing of the woman she had loved back on Babylon 5. The woman who stood before her was still that same monster that had killed her Talia, the same monster who had betrayed her and everyone else on the station. "I did" Susan replied, her voice hard, although she could not disguise the pain she was feeling inside.
"Hello again Captain," Talia said, and for a moment, Susan felt warmth flood into her heart at the sound of her former lover's voice. Then she realised that there was no answering warmth. Everything about the woman was cold, from her sharp, green suit to her cold eyes that seemed to laugh at her from behind the mask of her face.
Not answering Talia's greeting Susan turned to Petrov, who had accompanied the two telepaths up from the shuttle bay. "Commander can you show Mr Anderson and his assistant to their quarters."
Petrov looked a little confused for a moment, wondering why she would ask him to bring the two telepaths here, only to send them away again. "Um yes of course Captain," he finally managed. "Would you please follow me, we have set aside two spare rooms on the officer's deck for you."
"Good," Anderson replied. "I am sure they will be most suitable." Then he turned and looked back at Susan. "Captain," he said inclining his head in her direction, before turning and following Petrov off the bridge. Without another word to Susan, just a short dismissive glance, Talia turned and left as well. Susan watched her leave, a cold feeling rising up inside her.