Chapter 3

Rhode

One year later ...

All Athena Kerman could do was sit and wait. After six months at Verna, Athena spent another month warping to Rhode. In those seven months, the government of Rhode had their space center build a special space station for her. Like the special living arrangements set up at Verna, this station was designed to place her into quarantine for a length of time. The station even had a docking port for her ship, built to her specifications.

Looking out the windows at the planet, Athena could remember her brief time on it. The reddish soil, which gave the world its name, was a fond memory, and she longed to step on its surface again.

But that was yet to be determined.

They kept her here, long after the quarantine period was over. 'For her safety', they said. Though she suspected that something was up.

When she arrived at Rhode and docked with the station, she sat for over a week for several hours each day, recounting everything they needed to know about the situation back on Talia. But her contacts with the defense people bothered her.

She couldn't see her ship directly from where she was quartered, but what she didn't see would have bothered her for sure. Engineers in space suits were pouring over her ship, trying to glean all of its secrets from the design of the Alcubierre drive. Though, actual operation would tell them more, some of those engineers were directly involved in the military itself, and they had orders from the Defense Secretary to get as much information as possible. This way, they could try to build their own drives.

The monitor started to flicker; that way, it would tell her when it was being activated remotely. As the image stabilized, she recognized the face of the Rhodian Space Agency Director, James Kerman.

"Hello, Athena," he said, "How are you today?"

"Tell me, Jim," she replied, "Just when can I come down to Rhode?"

"As a matter of fact," said Jim, "You're coming down on the next flight. After you've been checked out at the Rhodian Space Agency's medical center, which I'm pleased to say, it won't take more than an hour or two, you'll stay overnight to adjust to Rhode's gravity, then the next day you'll fly to Riftwalker to meet with the Prime Minister. He's been wanting to meet you as well."

"Well, that's good news." said Athena. "What about meeting with my parents?"

"I'm sorry to tell you that your father passed away while you were in transit from Verna. We don't think it's a good idea to tell your mother about you coming back."

"Why?"

"It's been a long time, Athena. They've moved on, and in a way, so have you. They've missed you, just as you've missed them, but we must all move on."

Thinking, Athena responded, "I think it's wrong, but maybe you're right. I'll leave her be."

"I, and others, agree that it's for the best. You'll be coming down in four days, and I'll be there to greet you. I'm to be your chaperone through the entire visit."

"Are you going to release data to the media on me and my flight?"

"We haven't worked that out yet. We want to be very clear on this that it's not an invasion, but a reunion of two branches of the kerbal tree. We're still working out the details for the final release, then we'll release a statement."

"I just wish I could go back into my ship and check it out. I have a feeling that something is happening there."

"I don't know how to tell you this, but your ship is off-limits for now. Our military is studying the Alcubierre drive to try and reverse engineer it. I told them they might not get anywhere, but they decided to try anyhow."

"Are you telling me that your people are spying on me?"

"Not spying, Athena, it's just that the military believes that they can reverse engineer the Alcubierre drive so they can get it early. Understand, I have my doubts that without the technical data your people have, we don't have a chance of duplicating the drive, but the military wants to try, so the PM gave them the go-ahead. For now, let them spin their wheels; that way, if they come up dry, it's their fault for wasting the effort. Though they might come up with something."

"Well, if they wish to try, they can go ahead. But, I'm supposed to be back in the Suthe system in less than fifteen years, Talia time. Five have already been used. What does that convert to in Rhodian time, and how much time does that leave you? Take that in account."

"I see what you mean; that leaves us with roughly three years, Rhodian time. But, that's for later. Let's get you meeting face-to-face with the Prime Minister, and then we can work out the long-term schedule, okay?"

"Alright then. If there's nothing else, I should see you in a few days."

"No, there's nothing else. I'll see you then, Athena."

They both waved, and the screen went dark.

Athena Kerman got a feeing that something was really brewing on Rhode. Sonething she might not like.

Maybe I would've been safer if I had stayed in the sanitarium, she thought.

KSPTT

Four days later, the shuttle carrying Athena made a smooth morning landing at the Rhodian Space Center. Immediately, several medical crews boarded the shuttle and began post-landing checkups on Athena.

After ten minutes, they were satisfied, and Athena was escorted to the side hatch, where she climbed out into the vertical lift cruiser. After everyone was aboard, the cruiser detached from the side of the shuttle and made its way to the Mission Control building, where the medical facilities were located.

Reaching the Mission Control building, Athena was escorted out and met for the first time face-to-face, James Kerman of the Rhodian Space Agency. Embracing, they talked pleasantries for a few minutes, then walked into the medical wing of the Mission Control building.

Almost two hours later, Athena Kerman was cleared for immediate travel to the Rhodian capital city. She stayed the night, though, to "acclimatize" her to the relatively new environment. Though she had lived on Rhode earlier, she still was a Talian, and had to adjust to the new surroundings.

The next morning, Athena boarded a Rhodian Space Agency transport with James Kerman and several other support personnel and flew the several-hundred kilometer distance to Riftwalker. Arriving, they exited the transport and took a special staff car to travel to the government offices.

Reaching the government offices, they entered the building via a special access door and took the vertical lift to the office level of the Prime Minister. Walking the distance to his office, the doors were opened. Walking through the secretary's entryway, the doors to the Prime Minister's office were opened and Athena walked in.

Standing in front of the great bobwood tree desk, the Prime Minister, Alton Kerman, stepped forward and said, "On behalf of the people of Rhode, we welcome our sister from the stars who has come to meet with us." After all formal introductions were made, everyone assembled sat in comfortable seats and listened as Athena spoke about her world. Many present had questions, and Athena answered them all.

After an hour of talks, they went and had midday meal. After, they returned for another two hours of talks, which went well.

"I'm curious, sir." said Athena. "I had to go through a multi-layered method to meet with you. Wouldn't have been easier if you came to the Rhodian Space Center to meet with me right away?"

The Prime Minister thought about that for a few moments, then replied, "Mostly, as you've implied, we're a multi-tiered society. Plus, my arrival at the Rhodian Space Center would have been a public event. You must remember that we're still in the process of finalizing our public relations statement. I'm sure that the Rhodian Space Agency director has mentioned that we must be careful how it is worded, to avoid any implications of an invasion. Thus, it was decided that I should remain here and wait for you to arrive. This wouldn't tip off any kerbal who currently doesn't need to know. Even my secretary doesn't really know who or what you are. It would be awkward if information were to be leaked prematurely; it might be misinterpreted as something completely other than what it is."

"I can see what you mean." replied Athena. "We have mostly the same back on Talia. The religious orthodoxy often puts an iron-clad clamp on some information. Even the truth of the 'rift' in space-time connecting Talia via Suthe to Rhode has been put on the secrecy listings. My boss back on Talia, Gadwin Kerman, had to be very careful not to let them know about this flight. Secrets kept from both sides can be dangerous, though."

"Indeed." replied the Prime Minister. "Politics is quite dirty in that regard."

Athena nodded in agreement.

KSPTT

The next few weeks went by fairly well for Athena. She got to see many of the sights she remembered from her earlier life on Rhode. She didn't get to the district where her mother lived, but that was just fine. She had other things to do in the meantime. As usual, the meetings with the defense people bothered her.

One evening, she had a private dinner with James Kerman. Not a date-date, mind you, more of a meet-and-greet-and-eat. She mentioned her conversations with the defense people.

"The military is still studying your ship, so it's still off limits." he said. "Nevertheless, I agree that they are taking more time than should be allotted for simple study. The Prime Minister thinks the defense people may be planning a hostile maneuver on you."

Athena blinked her eyes. "You mean, they might kidnap me?" she asked.

"More likely, they would ask you to come to the defense headquarters, then make you an offer you'd most likely not be able to refuse. Understand, the Prime Minister has some machinations in the works in an attempt to derail their efforts in that regard, though I have not been made privy to them."

"It sounds to me like the entire defense department has gone psychotic."

James laughed. "I'm not sure how they got so powerful. We handle several of their payloads on our launch vehicles, but they leave most space exploration to us."

"Are you at war with anyone?"

"No, not at war per se. The defense department was originally set up to handle the coordination of local law enforcement as well as local militias used for emergencies. Somehow, they got their grubby mitts into space launches. It's been said that there is no kerbal on Rhode who is not monitored by the military."

"This is worse than Talia!"

"You're probably right in that regard. We get by, for the most part, by being careful. Most kerbals who understand know the military is the real threat, but there might be some kerbals who see the entire governmental system as the enemy. I agree that those are the people we have to watch out for, since they can undo everything we have worked for for so long. It's the rotted military that makes the government look like the bad guys."

"I hope I can go back to Talia soon; we need the help you offer."

"The only place we could offer you is a home on Lua."

"How far along is the kerbiforming project on Lua?"

"We are at roughly 45 percent of the way through. Progress has halted due to funding restructuring efforts in the government. It should restart within 10 years."

"That's good to hear." replied Athena. "I remember Lua in the skies of Rhode from my childhood time."

"We have one other thing. We've been looking into the interstellar exploration archives from old Kerbin, and later the Duna/Solitude colony. There may be a colony ship destination nearer to Talia than Rhode. The Prime Minister is asking that you go there right after you leave here. Assuming, we can get you out of here."

"What's the name of the system?" asked Athena.

"Currently unknown, though the spaceship sent there was named the U.S.C. Manifest Destiny. The star is an F7 main sequence, somewhat hotter than Kerbol was in its prime, and much hotter than Suthe. We'll try and get you the positional data before you can launch. The data is still being collated from the main archives. It looks like a good alternative destination, if you can't find any sign of the ship or its personnel."

"You're right; an alternative to Rhode's military-based system is looking better all the time. Though, now that our two trees have met, the future won't let us stay apart for long. Within a hundred years, we should be making regular two-way trips not just between Talia and Rhode, but also the F7 system, if we find anything of use there."

"I agree." replied James. "Two-way contact is probably the best prediction for the entire kerbal family, no matter which way it leads from here."

"The future starts here, Athena. How we lay the foundations will determine the end result for our entire race."