Chapter 29 of the Phoenix and the Wolverine.
IKS Y'tem
Lieutenant Commander Mirta walked down the corridor. She acknowledged greetings from other crew members silently.
At the moment, they were on high alert status. Most repairs had been completed and the injured were doing well.
Since the wormhole disappeared they had been monitoring the 12 Romulan war-birds and also keeping an eye on the three Starfleet ships.
Mirta trusted the Starfleet officers she had met but she knew they would not reveal everything to the crew of the IKS Y'tem.
The female klingon officer soon reached the quarters of Captain Karath. She hesitated briefly before tapping on his door.
There was silence for a few moments before a calm male voice answered.
Mirta hid her relief before entering, the nature of his voice meant that he was finally sober.
When the Infinity shuttle had been dragged into the wormhole, Mirta had been certain the female Starfleet ensign was surely dead.
However before she left the bridge of the Dunkirk, she had heard Singh list her as MIA.
The science officer was finding it hard to believe anyone could survive such a tumultuous trip through a very unstable wormhole.
Captain Karath had taken the disappearance of the girl hard, to Mirta's surprise he had got roaring drunk once she informed him.
She had seen him rise through the ranks rapidly for acts of reckless bravery during the Dominion War, she and a few others of the current crew were the surviving members of the original crew of the IKS Y'tem.
But never had she seen him react to the death of someone like this.
Someone who had not been part of the crew; most knew of his interest in the female Starfleet officer. Very few expressed their 'uneasiness' at such an interest while the majority were of the opinion that as long as the girl had one drop of klingon blood, that made her a daughter of Kahless as the rest of them.
There was no denying that the scarred young male officer was depressed and grieving at the death of Ensign Kadretti.
Mirta who was also second in command had quietly taken over the running of the ship for a short time but she had made it seem as if she was getting orders directly from Karath.
She did not want anyone to challenge the captain especially while he was still drunk. He treated the crew well and she was in definitely not ready to break in a new captain.
Mirta took a deep breath and entered the captain's quarters.
To her surprise it was tidy; in her experience when klingons grieved a lot of things got broken; then she noticed a few things were missing.
Certain sculptures; apparently he had broken some objects but had tidied the place anyway.
"Report," said Karath gruffly. He was standing in the middle of the room in his full military uniform. His hair was a bit untidy but his eyes were clear and definitely sober.
"Captain Singh has just sent us a message...another Galaxy class Starfleet vessel will be joining them. It's known as the USS Prometheus."
Karath frowned thoughtfully. "I know that name..."
"It's the ship that assisted in the Xenadian IV rescue of 2376; it's captain is..."
"The Warrior Angel...Brenia E'kalez," said Karath in surprise.
"There's more." Karath looked at Mirta.
"Her second in command is Commander Trey Kadretti."
Karath narrowed his eyes in speculation. "A relation perhaps?" It was not exactly a question.
Mirta sighed. "Possibly; he would be the right age to be her father."
There was silence.
"Starfleet knows something...and it must involve the Romulans," he noticed a worried look on his science officer's face. "Is there something else troubling you?"
Mirta hesitated noticeably before replying.
"When Mr Klaus teleported to the bridge with the Tal Shiar; the captain spoke to the romulan. I heard a few words and I'm not entirely sure but..."
"But what?" asked Karath patiently.
"I think the Tal Shiar said Ensign Kadretti...is a mutant."
Karath stared at her in shock. "That is impossible."
Mirta held up a hand. "Not really sir, rare of course. It is known that Admiral Spock is a mutant."
"There has never been a record of a mutant human-klingon hybrid!" insisted Karath.
Mirta shrugged. "If you don't mind me saying captain; we don't know enough about the humans and their abilities. It was not that long ago that the Empire agreed to an alliance with them."
Karath compressed his lips in a thoughtful frown. "Do you know what this means ? She could still be alive."
Mirta closed her eyes briefly in a moment of despair.
"Captain," she began carefully "that anomaly almost dragged 4 starships into it and tore parts of the Dunkirk to shreds. The probability of her surviving a trip through that wormhole is very low."
Karath looked at her with a determined light in his eyes. "But not impossible.
Mirta hail the Dunkirk; I would very much like to meet Ensign Kadretti's kin when they arrive and keep an eye on the Romulans.
They did not send additional ships to the border for no reason."
Mirta felt a bit glad at his new found determination but was also quite worried at the reason for his drive.
She would hate for his hopes to be crushed when he finally realized that the Starfleet ensign was really dead.
Mirta found herself hoping for the sake of his sanity that the girl was still alive.
Romulan Warbird, Vigilance, personnel quarters...
Major Nveid Solius was reading through the reports when his desk com bleeped. He frowned as he looked at the blinking light on the com-desk.
He wondered who it could be; he really did not want to be disturbed because the last few hours had been very stressful.
Once he teleported over to the Vigilance he had sent a report to the Romulan Empire and the Tal Shiar organization.
He had received two replies almost instantly.
The Emperor instructed him to cease communications with Starfleet and to await 6 more warbirds.
Six more?
For what?!
Then the Tal Shiar complicated matters by ordering him to take S'Tokkr into custody for endangering his life.
Well that had not been necessary because as soon as the Tal Shiar Colonel realized Solius was alive, he immediately went to his quarters and committed suicide.
That had really pissed Solius off, he had so wanted to arrest the idiot but he had not been planning on killing him!
Maybe his death was a good thing, but Solius immediately reversed his thinking when S'Tokkr's replacement showed up.
Her name was Nalah T'Mas, her rank was Major and he had no idea who she was.
Absolutely perfect thought Solius acidly.
He was yet to meet her for he had ordered her to remain on the Decius until he sent for her.
Poor Captain Maelrok had been absolutely terrified when he informed her that a female Tal Shiar would be joining her crew.
Solius hoped the new Tal Shiar was not giving Maelrok more problems; if that was the case he was definitely sending her back to Romulus, his superiors be damned!
He did not agree with the command that stated they should not communicate with the Federation. It made them look guilty...of something.
But what was the reason for such a passive-aggressive approach?
Solius personal opinion was that some big-wig- idiotic-poor-excuse-for-an adviser in the Emperor's court had suggested this tactic.
And now to add to the already frantic situation another Galaxy class ship was approaching the Neutral Zone !
The Tal Shiar Major rubbed his forehead to ease the migraine that was about to start. He took a deep breath before answering the com.
"What is it?" he tried to say in a neutral voice.
"Sir, there is a vid-call from the Emperor's court," said the slightly nervous officer on the other end.
Solius closed his eyes briefly. Now what?
"Fine, patch it through."
Solius turned to vid-screen and waited to see which pompous in-experienced official had taken it upon himself to give him more 'advice'.
A familiar face appeared on the screen and Solius failed to show his surprise.
"Hello cousin, how are things on your end?"
Solius quickly composed himself as the person watching smiled broadly.
"Your majesty...I did not expect a personal call."
Emperor D'Terr Tal Aura shrugged.
"It's not often that the ruling leader of our Empire has a relative so highly placed in the Tal-Shiar. It would be careless of me not to check up on him personally."
Solius felt his face heat up. "You honour me sire."
D'Terr waved away his thanks. "Oh please; it is you who honour me with your service. Now back to business.
What is going on?"
Solius answered carefully. "There has been no re-emergence of the anomaly, surveillance has shown that repairs have been completed on the Starfleet vessels and on the IKS Y'tem.
However I got a message from the USS Dunkirk that another Galaxy class vessel will be joining them."
The Emperor of Romulus frowned. "Why are they sending another ship? There is no need."
Solius looked at him. "Maybe the presence of the additional 6 warbirds is the reason for their superiors sending this ship."
D'Terr smiled dryly. "So one federation ship is the equivalent of 6 warbirds ? Now that's a statement."
"I doubt they mean to escalate the situation sire," said Solius hastily "perhaps they are also concerned about another anomaly emerging. However our...reluctance to communicate is not improving matters."
D'Terr raised an eyebrow. "Never thought I would see the day a Tal Shiar defended the Federation but I guess wonders would never cease."
Solius wisely kept silent, any further protests would make him look guilty, no one would ever accuse the current emperor of being stupid.
"Or maybe the Tal Shiar have another agenda in place and do not wish to antagonize the Federation just yet."
Solius felt like clapping. Yes; his cousin was definitely very smart.
"There are certain aspects of the Tal Shiar that I cannot discuss sire," said Solius calmly.
D'Terr smiled easily. " I would have been worried if it had been otherwise.
Which ship is coming?"
Solius hid his relief at the change of topic.
"It's the USS Prometheus."
He saw the emperor go still, surely his royal highness did not know of the...?
"The Archangel's ship? Starfleet sent her?!"
Solius raised an eyebrow at the surprise in the Emperor's voice and the fact that his majesty knew of the captain's reputation.
Apparently it wasn't only the Tal Shiar who tried to keep dossiers on all Starfleet captains. He wondered how detailed the Emperor's personal files were.
"It appears so your majesty," he hesitated briefly before continuing "Captain E'Kalez second in command is Commander Trey Kadretti."
D'Terr frowned. "I have heard that surname before."
"Kadretti was the name of the ensign who disappeared into the anomaly before it too collapsed into itself."
D'Terr stared at him. "Is this Commander Kadretti a relative then?"
Solius shrugged. "I doubt it, though I find it hard to believe that Starfleet would assign a relative to such an investigation. A relative would not be objective or logical."
D'Terr nodded. "Never underestimate the thought patterns of humans...they tend to follow very illogical routes."
Solius nodded, humans were very unpredictable as he had seen during the war.
He had witnessed Starfleet officers sacrificing themselves just to save one life that if lost would have no impact on the universe.
It was both admirable and terrifying at what lengths they will go to protect others.
"Captain E'Kalez is human-hybrid is she not? And also a mutant ?"
Solius blinked for a few moments, he was a bit stunned at what the emperor had just asked him.
"She has been asked that directly but each time she has stated both parents are human and mutant."
D'Terr frowned thoughtfully. "Could she be lying? It is quite obvious that mutant human-hybrids are very rare.
Having one to study could be rewarding."
Solius hid the panic the emperor's words caused and answered carefully.
"She is the renowned and decorated captain of a well known ship; having a senior officer disappear this close to the border is sure to cause a lot of problems.
It is widely known that even certain senior klingon officers have proclaimed they owe her a debt of honour for her acts of bravery on Xenadian IV.
If you order us to abduct her; I suggest you get ready for the Klingons and the Federation to declare war on the Empire."
There was deadly silence as the Emperor of Romulus stared back at an obviously upset Tal Shiar.
Great; I have just committed political suicide, thought Solius with resigned acceptance.
Then D'Terr smiled broadly.
"Do you know why I watch out for you Solius?
Because ever since we were little, you never ceased to tell me what you really thought of my ideas.
And you do so while not disrespecting my position; it's a pity and also fortunate at the same time that you are Tal Shiar.
You would have been wasted as a court official...if someone hadn't eliminated you already."
Solius sighed with part relief and part frustration. "Sire, I'm telling you the truth. Going after E'kalez...will not be worth it."
D'Terr was silent for several moments, then he sighed. "Oh, I guess you're right...maybe you will come across another mutant human-hybrid they won't miss," then the emperor stared at him intensely "or have you already come across one?"
Solius saw Ensign Kadretti's face flash before him as he answered. "No sire, I haven't had the fortune of meeting such a person."
D'Terr frowned for a moment; then his face cleared. "Well, I guess we can't have everything," he paused "I heard of what happened to Colonel S'Tokkr, a shame we did not get to question him on some of his actions."
Solius took one look at the dark light in the Emperor's eyes and suddenly thought maybe S'Tokkr had actually been smart in taking his own life.
"What of the officer who teleported you to the USS Dunkirk? Is he well ?" continued the leader of the Romulan Empire.
Solius watched the emperor warily as he answered. "Before I left he appeared to be recovering you majesty."
D'Terr nodded. "Very useful ability he has, are we sure he will not be a threat to us?"
Solius shook his head. "The reports we have state most teleporters need to 'see' a location once before they can teleport there. He has not been on any of our warbirds."
D'Terr had an amused look on his face. "Once again, you use the facts to logically explain how safe my ships are. You could pass for a Vulcan if only you controlled your emotions."
Solius found himself smiling back at his cousin. "I take that as a compliment sire."
D'Terr's smile slipped a little, obviously he had not expected such a response.
"Anyway, this discussion was very helpful...I look forward to more updates soon," said the Emperor calmly "until then do what you feel is right."
"Does that include communicating with the Federation?"
D'Terr watched him for a while. "Why; if that is necessary I see no harm in doing that. I hope that helps." The screen then went dark.
Solius was still for a long time; before he finally released the sigh of relief; he did not know why he did not mention the fact that Ensign Kadretti was a mutant. Maybe it had to do with the fact that she was most likely dead.
Solius saw no point in talking about the dead ensign however he knew others would see differently. Some would reason that since she was a mutant human hybrid then her family would be of extreme interest.
Maybe some part of their gene pool was the trigger that ensured the active mutant gene was passed unto hybrids.
Besides he did owe her his life; saying nothing was the least he could do for her family.
Solius' mind turned to the next thing that was worrying him.
The leader of Romulus.
Emperor D'Terr Tal'Aura was a very intelligent romulan and the Tal Shiar were well aware of that fact.
Which was why most of them treated him with extreme caution; however Solius was also alert to the fact that most of the Tal Shiar extended that caution to him as well.
It should have made him feel proud but instead it made him very careful.
Emperors can have very short reigns as well as long reigns but the Tal Shiar had a long memory.
Solius forced his mind to return to the present; it was high time he spoke to Nalah T'mas.
And also it was time he answered Captain Singh's hails. He had a funny feeling that the captain was not going to be happy with him.
USS Prometheus, captain's quarters...
Brenia stretched her wings then folded them gently.
By the stars she was tired. It had been a long day.
She and her senior officers had gone over the detailed reports from the USS Dunkirk.
A wormhole on the Neutral Romulan Border ?
Part of her was glad it had collapsed in itself but the other part of her was sad because that meant Oma was lost to them forever.
Brenia wondered how her 2nd in command was taking it, he and Nadia must be going through hell.
The captain of the USS Prometheus sighed wearily and brushed her black hair slowly, then she changed into her sleeping garments and climbed into her specially modified bed.
She knew it was going to be hard to sleep but she had to have some rest or else the law of diminishing returns would catch up with her.
Brenia had barely shut her eyes when the com-badge beside her bed bleeped
She opened her eyes and stared at the device.
Trey was on the bridge; no alerts had been sounded but he would not wake her unless something was really wrong.
She picked up the combadge and tapped it once.
"Captain to Mr Kadretti, what is it?"
Trey was quick to answer. "Captain, I'm sorry to wake you but...you need to come down to the astrophysics lab now."
Something in his voice which seemed like part anxiety and...hope made Brenia sit up.
"What's going on?"
"It's Oma...she sent a message after she entered the wormhole!"
Brenia stared at the badge in shock for so long that Trey had to call her name again.
"I...I heard you. I'm on my way," replied Brenia hastily as she quickly got out of bed.
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Brenia walked briskly down the corridor and absently acknowledged the greetings from fellow crew members.
Several questions ran through her mind.
When exactly was the message sent? Where was Oma?
Could it really be from her?
And also, what was in the message that had Trey very anxious?
Brenia was no closer to the answers when she entered the lab.
She was a bit stunned to see Brian was already there with Trey.
Julian and Nadia looked up from a large monitor which was already showing Oma's face.
Nadia started speaking; her voice was slightly high pitched and her words were hurried as if she could hardly believe what she was saying.
"I...I checked the time of when the message was sent. It was yesterday...at 1939hrs ship's time," Nadia turned to Brian who quickly spoke.
"Captain, at that exact time yesterday, we were in the Mhonir regions retrieving Commander Kadretti and Dr Kadretti."
Brenia's eyes widened. "You mean, we had this message the entire time?!"
"She sent it to our personal mail," said Trey in a worried tone "why didn't she send it to the Dunkirk?"
Brenia was wondering the same thing until she recalled something important.
"Because she couldn't reach them."
Everyone stared at her in surprise.
"When I got the first message from Captain Singh, he was sending it through the USS Zeus. From the report we got later, the anomaly damaged the long distance communications array of the Dunkirk.
Oma must have only the codes for her ship and also the codes for accessing your message boxes."
Nadia sighed with relief. "Smart, girl."
"But what's in her message?" asked Brenia. Trey looked at her solemnly.
"We started it...but once we heard a little we had to wake you up captain."
Brenia was worried about the expression on their faces.
"Please, play it Mr Kadretti."
Trey nodded and pressed a symbol on the com-desk.
There was utter silence as the vid began to play.
Oma was in her smart red and black ensign Starfleet uniform, she looked well but clearly nervous.
"Mum, dad...it's me Oma. By now you must be in the Mhonir regions.
Anyway...by now you may have heard I got pulled into an anomaly...well that's true but I'm not dead.
Currently I am on board the USS...wait ...I mean the Xavier."
Brenia frowned at that name and saw the same expression on the faces of the people watching.
"It's built along the lines of a Defiant class ship and is currently at the following co-ordinates."
Everyone was silent as she rattled off a series of numbers; Brenia was hoping Brian was paying attention. She glanced at her security chief and was relieved to see he was using his epadd to take notes.
"The captain is Logan Howlett and he is also known as Wolverine...I know this is going to be very hard to believe...but he is The Wolverine of the Xmen.
The Wolverine that disappeared from the battle of Alcatrez on the 11th of October 2006; with him is also Dr Jean Grey...formerly of the Xmen.
I'm sure by now you're asking how is it possible that they are here."
Everyone was paying attention and did not miss the irritated look Oma gave to someone off screen.
"It's due to him...Ensign Q Junior...he states that he used to be a Q...but is now an Emergency Medical and Engineering Hologram...EMEH for short."
Brenia was more than a little startled when another person popped into place behind Oma. He looked like a human male teenager, possibly around 15 years of age with dark brown slightly curly hair.
The female ensign was not scared but appeared to be very angry at him.
"Em hi...I am Ensign Q Junior, the same one whose godmother is Rear Admiral Janeway..."he seemed to go red as Oma openly glared at him.
"N...not that I'm trying to use that to get any favours but just so that you tell her what's going on...because we may have a huge problem. I'll just let the captain take over from this point."
The one known as Q Junior turned the screen to face two people.
One was a slim woman in her mid twenties, dressed in slacks and a shirt with a white ward coat over it, beside was a 5feet 9 inch tall stockily built man.
Brenia concentrated on him, because he looked at the screen with a suspicious expression on his face , his dark hair was oddly shaped and something told her she should recognise him.
What she did recognise was the fact that he also seemed to stand like a fighter.
This man was not to be taken lightly.
"My name's Logan and what the kid says is true.
What I can recall is that more than 4 weeks ago I was in a battle at the Alcatrez Institute in October 2006...the next thing I knew I was more than 300 years in the future and in a spaceship millions of miles away from Earth.
With me is Dr Jean Grey."
He looked at the woman beside him who nodded solemnly at the screen.
"Also with us...is my daughter Laura Kinney. She's 13 years old."
Logan paused as if he had no idea what to say next.
"Q's right...we do have a problem.
A few days ago we ran into a human refugee fleet. They number less than 42,000 which is a huge drop from a population of more than 20 billion humans living on 12 planets known as the 12 Colonies of Kobol."
Brenia felt her lower jaw drop, what had happened to those people?
"The summary of the story is that the artificial life-form they created turned against them and nuked their 12 planets from orbit. Their AIs or cyborgs are called cylons.
This happened 2years ago and since then the refugees have been on the run.
To further complicate matters...the refugees and the cylons are searching for Earth which they believe to be the 13th Colony of Kobol."
"What?" muttered Julian in shock.
The man called Logan smiled dryly.
"I bet you're as stunned as we were; however the refugee fleet has a form of FTL which enables them to fold space and time. Q Junior will explain later when we have more time.
Their ships are powered by Tylium and their weapons are kinetic based and they have quite a number of nukes to hand."
Brenia raised an eyebrow, nuclear weapons and guns? With a form of FTL as well? She wondered how the Xavier's first contact had gone.
"However the other matter is that we suspect the cylons are looking for Earth so as to destroy it as well."
One could hear a pin drop at that announcement.
"The good news is that neither the colonials nor the cylons know where Earth is.
However we're currently working with the colonials in-order to bring them to a safe haven within Federation space.
Negotiations have not been easy due to the fact that they are very uneasy that we have an AI and that Q Junior is an obviously sentient mobile hologram.
Also they may be quite xenophobic and paranoid of all things different.
The bad news is that the cylons are somehow tracking the colonial fleet.
So at the moment we are on a recon mission to cylon occupied space to find out their defensive and offensive capabilities as well as find out how they keep finding the colonial fleet. We have 5 colonials on board who are assisting us in this...one of them is also a humanoid cylon. She switched sides for personal reasons."
The crew of the Prometheus gave each other worrying looks as Logan took a deep breath and stared at the screen.
"Currently; we are more than 4 months from Federation space.
We would appreciate it if you guys got your ships together and tried to reach us as soon as possible. These people need help," he turned to look at Q Junior and Oma.
"And from what Junior has told me...you guys are a lot different from the military of the former USA. I sure hope you guys have your priorities right and get your behinds in gear
One more thing...now that we're getting closer to cylon controlled space; we will maintain radio silence until we achieve our objective. I cannot give you a time frame so we'll call you when we can."
He looked at Q Junior. "Anything else you would like to add junior ?"
The screen was turned back to show Q Junior standing beside Oma.
"Thank you captain...em...yeah, there is a bit more I would like to say.
First of all, the cylons are in no way similar to the Borg."
"That's a relief," muttered Julian.
"Second; I had nothing to do with the wormhole and I have no idea what caused it."
Brenia and Trey shared a surprised look; both of them were thinking he sounded a bit guilty.
"And last but certainly not least; please inform Rear Admiral Kathryn Janeway that I will definitely give her more roses than I did last time...that may convince her that you really spoke to me."
He looked a bit uncertain as if searching for more things to say.
"That's me done then...I'll turn you over to Ensign Kadretti."
Oma moved into view of the screen.
"Mum, dad...that's how things stand at the moment. I am really okay but we are pretty far from home."
She hesitated as if unsure how to end the message.
"Please tell the crew of the Dunkirk that I made it...Qapla' and Godspeed." Then the screen went dark before the insignia of the Federation appeared.
Brenia saw Trey and Nadia tense at the last few words.
There was silence for several moments as everyone tried to understand what they had just seen.
"She's alive," said Nadia finally "but she is not sure she is safe."
Brenia was concerned to see Trey nodding as well.
"Maybe," said Julian with a frown on his face "it's a shame that this was not a live feed as I could have 'felt' more from her voice but 'reading' her body language...she does not seem that scared; more like...intrigued and amazed with where she is," the betazoid shrugged " she also seems quite irritated at Ensign Q Junior."
"I didn't get those feelings from her words at all," said Nadia curtly.
Julian looked a bit hurt at Nadia's tone.
"Were her last words some type of code?" asked Brian with a look of worry on his face.
Trey sighed. "Well...sort of. Long ago we came up with a few code phrases. If she ever ended a message with the following 'safe journey' then she was definitely in trouble.
But using the words 'Godspeed' means she wants us to get there quickly."
"This changes thing..." began Nadia in earnest.
"Not really," said Brenia to everyone's surprise.
"We still have to go to the Neutral Zone..."
"But she just said she isn't there!" protested Nadia.
Brenia did not back down from the astrophysicist glare. "I know...but that is where she disappeared from and there is so much we don't know.
Besides we have to inform the Dunkirk and also Starfleet about this."
"You intend to get in touch with Admiral Janeway? That may not be easy," said Julian.
"Nadia," called Trey softly; he was watching his wife closely and could see she was about to explode "the captain is right; going to those co-ordinates is going to take months and we can't do it alone.
Also what if the wormhole re-emerges?"
The angry look on Nadia's face changed to one of hope. "You think that is a possibility?"
Trey shook his head. "Nothing is certain in this life Nadia."
"Captain and Commander," called Brian, his voice was very solemn "I just found something about the Xavier."
Brenia stared at him in shock. "It exists?"
The security chief nodded. "The Xavier is definitely a 'Defiant' class ship.
Date of completion is listed as 7 months 2weeks 3 days 4hours and 15 minutes ago.
Location of construction is deemed classified.
Crew is from one to fifty, highest warp speed is 9.64 and the ship has the full armament and defence capabilities of a 'Defiant' class ship."
Brian paused as if he could not believe what he was reading.
"It is also stated that it was built by the Q.J branch of the Q Corporation."
He looked at his seniors. "I don't know about the rest of you...but this sounds like the handiwork of a Q."
Trey held up a hand. "Wait a minute, where did you get that info?"
"From the Starfleet Ship Data base, every ship built has to be registered according to law."
"Are you saying that info was registered all this time and no one has picked up on that...oddity?" asked Brenia.
Brian nodded. "It appears so and that may be because it's listed under the Special Intelligence Research Division."
Everyone knew what he meant.
Starfleet Intelligence was both very secretive and controversial.
Hardly anyone would want to probe too deeply in what that branch of Starfleet did.
"Talk about hiding in plain sight...sort of," said Nadia with some approval in her voice.
"Also I cross referenced the names Logan Howlett aka Wolverine and Dr Jean Grey...right now I don't have enough data; I need to dig a little deeper.
There was so much history we lost due to the Eugenics and Third World Wars," continued Brian.
"I may have some old books and articles that may help," everyone looked at Trey "I searched and collected as much material as I could about the persecution of mutants in the early 21st century.
Most of the information I found was recollections and biographies of surviving students from Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. This school was located in New York of the former United States of America."
Brenia raised an eyebrow. "And the ship Oma is on is called the 'Xavier'.
There are too many coincidences," she paused for a moment, then nodded as if she had decided something "combine your knowledge, in the meantime...I will try to get in contact with Captain Singh and Rear Admiral Janeway while we continue towards the Neutral Border."
"Should we not try to contact Oma now?" asked Nadia with worry in her eyes.
Brenia looked at Brian for an answer.
"I'm afraid that will not be possible; her message did not contain a reply code.
Another factor we need to be aware of is that they may have left those co-ordinates so transmitting a message blind will not reach them."
Brian paused "then again they said they were on a recon mission into cylon controlled space.
Sending them a message during their mission may actually endanger them."
Nadia stared at the security officer for a long time then nodded.
"I understand."
Brenia hid her sigh of relief. "Fine; Julian and Nadia please study the co-ordinates Ensign Kadretti sent us. We need to know exactly where they were.
Mr Demarce , please contact Mr Kadretti or me when you get more data on the crew of the Xavier." She looked at each of them.
"We have less than 5 hours before we reach the Neutral Zone; so we need to work very fast to get the information we need," Brenia hesitated briefly before continuing "Oma's safety may depend on it."
Everyone had a determined look on their faces as they nodded at the same time.
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Captain's ready room...
Brenia hurried into the room and moved to the large viewing screen mounted on the wall. She was too on edge to sit to make this call.
She had decided on her way to the ready room that she would call the Rear Admiral first.
Because due to the lateness of the hour; it might take longer to get Rear Admiral Janeway but her instinct told her this was the right thing to do.
Brenia kept her wings tightly furled as she quickly pressed the selected symbols on the touch screen; it took several moments before she was able to reach headquarters.
Then she had to verify her identity and high level security clearance before she was given the location of a certain female Rear Admiral.
Brenia was partly impressed and annoyed by the protocol she had to go through.
While she appreciated the extra effort Starfleet was making to make their leaders safe; it also meant valuable time could be wasted while she was trying to reach just one of them.
Though she saw the reason for the heightened security she could not help but tap her right foot impatiently as she waited for the next transmission to connect.
Too Brenia's surprise, mere minutes passed before she saw the familiar yellow Starfleet security uniform of a Bajoran Starfleet Lieutenant.
"This is Captain E'Kalez of the Prometheus; I have a high priority message for Admiral Janeway."
The male bajoran looked a bit startled. "Captain E'Kalez...I am Lieutenant Winn Pazrel. I am afraid the Rear Admiral is not available at the moment..."
"Lieutenant," cut in Brenia gently but firmly "I know it's 3am local time but I would not be calling if this was not urgent.
Please inform her that I have a very urgent message from her god-son who is called Q Junior. I will take full responsibility for any trouble this call may cause."
The Lieutenant stared at her for several moments with a slight frown on his face.
"Captain...please wait a moment."
The screen changed to the Starfleet Insignia as Brenia whispered a short grateful prayer. She just hoped the Rear Admiral was in the mood to listen after being woken up at 3am.
Brenia took to pacing for the next 2 minutes then suddenly the screen cleared to show a woman with shoulder length dark auburn hair and piercing blue eyes.
She seemed to be wearing what appeared to be a silk housecoat over a nightgown and also had a frown on her face.
Oh boy; I just pissed off a Rear Admiral thought Brenia with no small level of alarm.
She had never met the woman but she had definitely heard of her.
When the USS Voyager returned in 2378 after been declared missing for seven years; it had raised a lot of questions.
How had they survived on their own in the Delta Quadrant ? How had the then Captain Janeway been able to integrate the Marquis and her own crew?
How had she kept most of her crew alive and sane during those seven years?
How had she got the Borg transwarp-corridor tech to return to the Alpha Quadrant ?
All this questions had been answered by Janeway and her crew; of course most of it would be Level 5 information but most agreed that the female commanding officer and her crew deserved every promotion and recommendation for surviving those seven years.
Brenia forced her mind to return to the matter at hand as she realized the frown on the Rear Admiral's face was deepening.
"Captain E'Kalez; I presume you had a message from someone?" her voice was calm with just the right amount of edge that automatically made Brenia assume parade rest stance.
"Rear Admiral; I apologize for waking you but I just received a message from...a person who states his name is Q Junior...also he stated I should inform you that he will give you more roses next time."
Silence passed as the stern look on Janeway's face changed to one to shock.
"I...did not include that in the report," said the Rear Admiral half to herself then she really looked at Brenia. "Is he with you now?" she sounded concerned.
The captain of the Prometheus tried to hide her relief; the admiral was actually listening to her.
"No ma'am...I need to start from the beginning. Considering your security clearance...you may already know some of what I am about to tell you."
Janeway's eyes narrowed. "Go on."
Brenia took a deep breath. "A few days ago the Romulans discovered an anomaly at the Neutral border...an evolving wormhole.
Yesterday at 1340hrs; a shuttle from the USS Dunkirk was investigating the anomaly up close when they were suddenly drawn towards it.
Most of the crew of that shuttle were evacuated except for one person..."
"Ensign Ihuoma Kadretti," completed Janeway "yes; I have read the report, she was still in the shuttle when it entered the wormhole before the anomaly collapsed."
Brenia suddenly felt encouraged. "Yes; however we received a message at 1939hrs ships time from Ensign Kadretti.
The point of transmission is more than 450 light years from our current position in an unexplored part of the Alpha Quadrant.
She survived the passage, ma'am."
Janeway's eyes widened. "That's...that's impossible. The reports stated the wormhole was very unstable and that even though she had used her 'ability' to shield the shuttle; there is no way she could have survived the transit."
Brenia hid a wince at the fact that Oma's ability now seemed to be common knowledge.
The Rear Admiral gave her an odd look. "You're worried about her ability being known...I assume you knew about her talent before she joined Starfleet."
Brenia gave the woman a resigned look. It appeared the rumours were true; Rear Admiral Janeway was an empath.
There was no rule that stated Starfleet cadets had to state if they had abilities or not. Even on the form that option was absent.
However at the end of the form; candidates were advised to state 'factors' that could either enhance or affect their training. This section was to be filled at the cadet's discretion.
One of the reasons for such a generalized form was because Starfleet training was open to all members of the Federation and also to some non-Federation worlds.
Another reason was the ugly history of the 'Mutant Registration Act' which lasted from 2003 to 2022 when it was finally thrown out of the US congress.
That history was taught in its fullest in Earth and it's colonies.
And for a good reason; for those who forgot history were doomed to repeat it.
"Yes Admiral; I knew about her ability."
Brenia knew why the Admiral was curious; mutant human-hybrids were very rare and were in no way persecuted if they lived on human colonies.
Janeway stared at her for a few moments; no doubt wondering why a human-hybrid would hide such an ability.
"I see...so Ensign Kadretti is alive. Why did she send the message to you and not the Dunkirk ?
And also what does Q Junior have to do with this?"
Brenia continued, while being puzzled and grateful at the same time that the Rear Admiral did not ask her more about Oma's mutant ability.
"I believe that at the time she sent it; the long distance communication array of the Dunkirk was still being repaired so she sent it to her parents...who are currently serving on board my ship.
Her father, Commander Trey Kadretti is my second in command."
She paused when she realized the Rear Admiral was giving her a very odd look. Brenia waited for the inevitable question about how inappropriate it was to have a senior officer investigating the disappearance of his daughter.
"And what about Q Junior?" continued the Rear Admiral to the captain's surprise.
Brenia was quick to answer. "Ensign Kadretti is currently on a ship called the Xavier, the vid message also showed a young human male teenager...he said he is a Q or was a Q and has now being changed into a hologram."
Janeway's lower jaw dropped. "What?"
The captain was not yet done. "With him are three humans...who may be mutants but he claims he took them from October the 11th 2006.
Their names are Logan Howlett a.k.a Wolverine, Dr Jean Grey and Laura who is Logan's daughter," Brenia paused unsure how to deliver the rest of the news "Q Junior stated they were members of the legendary X-men."
Rear Admiral Janeway looked a bit pale. Brenia did not blame her she bet once she had a chance to absorb all that she had seen recently she might feel ill as well.
"Is there more?" asked the Rear Admiral but it sounded like she was hoping that Brenia had finished.
"Yes ma'am; there is more...a whole lot more."
Janeway stared at her for a moment then straightened her shoulders.
"Continue captain."
Brenia compiled and told the Rear Admiral about the refugee colonial fleet; the pursuing cylons and the fact that the 'Xavier' was actually in the Starfleet ship data base.
"Also one more thing; Captain Logan has informed us that he is taking the ship on a recon mission to cylon occupied space."
Janeway closed her eyes briefly. "I am really tempted to pray this is a dream of some sorts...but what you just told me is the sort of thing a Q could do."
She was quiet for a bit. "We have no way of knowing what exactly is going on until we see or speak to the crew of the Xavier.
However I must commend you on informing me of this situation...I can see why you are captain of the Prometheus."
Brenia silently bowed her head slightly acknowledging the praise from the legendary Janeway.
"But I am a bit concerned about the appropriateness of having your second in command along for this mission...he may not be as objective as he should be considering the fact that his daughter is missing."
Brenia stared steadily back at her; Hell would freeze over before she excluded Trey and Nadia from this mission.
"I can count on him to do his job ma'am."
Janeway returned the look for several moments then nodded slowly as if she could hear and understand what Brenia was thinking.
"Fine; I would like a copy of Ensign Kadretti's message and my advice to you is to continue on to the Neutral Zone; there might be answers there to certain burning questions.
I will in the meantime arrange an emergency meeting of the Joint Admirals and Senior officers of Starfleet Command," Janeway gave Brenia a solemn look "be aware of one thing...that wormhole at the border may just be the beginning of a very serious problem."
Brenia nodded solemnly. "I understand Rear Admiral."
Janeway sighed. "I will contact you once we have the meeting; until then...safe travels Captain E'Kalez."
Brenia was silent for a long time once the screen changed to the Starfleet Insignia; then she sighed deeply before sending a request to Nadia for a copy of Oma's message.
Once that was completed she began to place a long distance call to the USS Dunkirk.
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The Xavier...
Oma opened her eyes to a slightly bleeping noise and stared for several moments at the familiar looking ceiling.
Wow; that was some dream. She sat up slowly as she stretched; the noise suddenly stopped. It seemed like her alarm had gone off.
Wait till she told Cassius that she dreamt of a wormhole and...
"Ensign Kadretti."
Oma yelped in fright at the strange voice; then she looked around carefully and suddenly realized the events of the last few hours had not been a dream at all.
"Ensign Kadretti; sorry to alarm you. Is everything alright?"
Oma pressed her hand to her chest; she could feel her heart racing.
"It's okay Xavier...for one moment I thought I was back on the Dunkirk," she closed her eyes briefly "I thought I was back in my quarters." Oma was shocked and dismayed to realize she felt like crying.
"You are distressed."
Oma quickly rubbed her tears away; she wasn't sure but the AI sounded a bit concerned.
"Do you wish me to inform Dr Grey..."
"No! Don't!" said Oma in alarm "I'm really okay...just a bit overwhelmed," she forced herself to stand up "I will be ready for the mission."
Oma looked at the chronometer by her bedside. 45 more minutes before they were to assemble for the final meeting.
"I guess the others are still in their quarters."
"On the contrary; most of them are in the research lab. Dr Grey and Captain Logan are on the bridge and Laura is on her way to your quarters."
Oma was now very wide awake.
"What!? Why didn't you wake me earlier?!" she dashed to the bathroom.
But I did."
It took a moment for Oma to realize what the AI meant. "You mean that bleeping noise was you?"
"Yes and Laura will be here in approximately 14 minutes."
Oma swore in klingon and started getting ready.
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Laura walked casually; she had been up for the past 2 hours.
The reason was that she felt she had to keep an eye on the colonials and the new ensign.
Fortunately for them; they had not left their rooms.
Laura had stayed in the research lab with Q Junior as he continued working on the armour and weapons.
He had been fascinating to watch and that had actually lulled her to sleep...because she had felt so comfortable in his presence.
She had woken up after a short nap to find someone had gently wrapped a blanket around her.
When she asked Q Junior if it had been him; he had blushed and said yes.
Laura found herself smiling; Q Junior was such a kid...but he was okay in her books. And to make it even better it looked like he had forgiven her for including herself on the recon mission.
The smile however slipped from Laura's face when she got to Kadretti's quarters.
She had noticed how Ensign Kadretti had been asking Q Junior so many questions before Laura took them to see her centurion-simulation.
Laura had been sorely tempted to beat her up until she noticed the look Rogers was giving both of them.
That was went Laura realized the colonial officer was pinning for Ensign Kadretti and the annoying thing was that it looked like the newbie had no idea!
Laura stretched her neck to straighten out the metallic kink; she had made up her mind a long time ago.
Q Junior was hers; if Ensign Kadretti was smart she better realize it or Laura would make her painfully aware of it, magnetic powers or not.
Laura began to smile coldly as she lifted a hand to press on the call sign.
Then the door opened to show the female Starfleet ensign already dressed in her uniform.
"Eh hi," her face was abit flushed as if she had been rushing.
Laura's smile widened. "You're awake...oh how nice. Most of us are in the research lab and are already trying on our outfits."
Kadretti's face reddened. "I...I thought we were to assemble in about half an hour."
Laura shrugged. "What can I say? Some people are in a hurry to die."
She almost laughed at the look of horror on the girl's face.
"Shall we Ensign Kadretti?"
Laura turned away to start walking back to the lab. The female Starfleet officer fell in line.
"Em...Laura...can I call you Laura? You could call me Oma."
Laura raised an eyebrow at the girl's anxious attempt to be friendly.
"You can if that will help you work efficiently during this mission."
The girl seemed almost confused by Laura's cool attitude.
"I...I..em your centurion simulation was very helpful. How many times have you fought them in real life?"
Laura smiled thinly. "Once and it was definitely not enough. I'm sure what ever we meet on the base star will pale in comparism to what I have on the holodeck."
She raised an eyebrow when she saw Oma swallow nervously.
"How many missions have you been on...Oma?" asked Laura.
The girl looked startled. "Em...apart from the wormhole ...this would be my second."
Laura stopped in her tracks and turned to look at her. "Excuse me but how old are you?"
Oma looked at bit affronted at the question. "Hey! I...I'm 19 years old."
Laura just stared at her for a few moments then resumed walking.
"Oma if you are the praying type, I suggest that you start right now because what we're flying into will not be a cake-walk."
Oma was speechless and stood there for a few seconds before running after the younger girl.
"Look! I know that I'm not an X-man like you but I will do my best."
Laura sighed. "Oma...I was never an X-man and don't ask me what I used to be...it will give you nightmares."
Oma looked at the set look on the younger girl's face and suddenly realized she was not joking.
Both continued their walk in silence.
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The bridge...
Logan looked at the chronometer beside his chair; due to the recent increase in warp speed they had three more hours until they reached cylon controlled space.
He had gone earlier to the research lab to briefly see what Q Junior was working on and it looked like the kid had the body armour ready.
He was a bit surprised and glad to see Laura there; it showed she was taking the mission very seriously by learning what everyone was wearing or the weapons they were using.
However Logan had been reluctant to try his body armour for obvious reasons.
Looking at the modified black X-man body armour had brought back memories. It was very similar to the one he wore when he, Storm, Nightcrawler, Magneto, Mystique, Rogue, Billy and the Pyro kid had gone to Stryker's hideout to rescue the Professor, Cyclops and the missing mutant students.
Jean had been left for dead only to be found 5 months later ; literally out of her mind.
Logan was so relieved she was not coming for this mission; he would do anything to protect her from danger.
He had made a note of the weapons Q Junior had made for the colonials and could easily understand the kid's uneasiness with giving the colonials weapons.
But they did not really have a choice; the only way to improve their odds of survival was to get in and out quickly and to be properly armed.
However he was definitely not giving them any phasers !
A familiar pleasant scent interrupted his thoughts.
"You didn't wake me." Logan smiled at the soft rebuke in Jean's voice as he turned to look at her.
Jean had decided to stay with him when Logan refused to get some rest; however he had convinced her to sleep on the very comfortable couch in the captain's ready room and he had also stated he would wake her once he felt like resting.
"Seemed wrong to do that; seeing as you looked so peaceful...besides you needed the rest."
Jean raised an eyebrow. "And you don't ? You're about to embark on a dangerous mission in less than 3 hours."
Logan sighed. "Jean; I have gone days without sleep...I know that is not a good example but someone had to keep an eye on our...guests."
The doctor just looked at him for a long time. "They are all awake now and most of them are in the research lab."
Logan nodded. "Xavier warned me when they got up." He stood up.
"I need to go there and find out what else we need to do," He looked at Jean.
"Jean...I need you to please do something for me."
The doctor had a worried look on her face. "What can I do to help?"
"Please, please do not use the CMS."
Jean opened her mouth to argue.
"Wait; hear me out. We will be leaving you with two colonials who though seem nice...I don't really trust.
I would be more worried if you used the CMS and were weak afterwards thus giving them a chance to incapacitate you.
Besides we may need you to extract us and having you exhausted after using the CMS would not improve our chances in the slightest."
The doctor stared at him with a blank expression for a long time.
"Fine...I will not use it until you get back."
Logan had a relieved smile on his face. "Thanks Jean.
Now let's meet the rest of the gang."
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Research lab...
Helo was nervous and trying not to show it.
So much had occurred in so short a time.
After seeing the armour and weapons for the first time; Laura had taken them for a tour of her simulation.
It was not what they had expected.
Laura had explained what a holodeck was on the way to the simulation and Sharon had almost stopped in her tracks.
Later when he and Starbuck spoke to her she said. "Their holo-technology is unlike anything I have ever seen! This is in no way remotely similar to cylon tech!"
That explanation had been assuring because when Laura put on her 'centurion simulation' he had almost panicked.
The simulation was more 'real' then Q Junior's holographic projections.
The centurions had felt hard and cold like metal and they moved.
Laura had surprised them again when she showed Sharon how to make a holo-program; then she asked the cylon pilot to do one showing the inside of a basestar.
It had taken Sharon 10 minutes to 'construct' one of the many corridors in the basestar.
Helo had taken one look at Starbuck's thoughtful expression and knew the colonial pilot was already considering the military training implications of such technology.
A pity that Starfleet would not let them have it.
After that; the captain had reminded them via an announcement that they needed to turn in for a rest.
Q Junior had turned up to show them to their respective quarters; Rogers got a place to himself , Anders and Kara got a large room and Helo and Athena were shown theirs as well.
The 'quarters' had literally taken Helo's breathe away; if this was what was offered to passengers of normal crew; he wondered what the quarters of the captain must be like.
There were four rooms in the quarters; a self contained master bedroom, a possible guest room, what had to be a kitchen with a replicator and a parlour with comfortable looking sofas and honest-to-Gods books on a bookshelf!
It was simply luxurious.
Q Junior noticed his stunned expression and told him that this was quarters for a family.
The hologram left them and that was when Helo should have told Sharon about the genetic results but he had kept silent as Sharon explored their 'spacious' quarters.
Helo had answered appropriately while his wife exclaimed cheerfully about how different Starfleet must be and how astonishing their tech was.
He just listened; as he watched her face brighten up for the first time in months.
Sharon had taken the supposed 'death' of their daughter hard; and now that they were on a mission to retrieve her; he hoped everything would turn out well.
But he had a sinking feeling that things would most likely go horribly wrong.
Helo forced himself to return to the present; he and the other colonials were currently in the research lab with Q Junior.
Laura and Ensign Kadretti were yet to make their appearance.
The low hiss of the automatic doors made him turn to watch the two young girls walking in. From the corner of his eye he saw Rogers stop tapping his foot nervously and straighten up from where he had been leaning against the holo-projection table.
Helo idly wondered when the female Starfleet ensign would finally notice; he sure hoped he was there to see what happened.
"Great; you're here," said Q Junior "the captain and Dr Grey will be arriving soon," the words were barely out of his mouth when the doors opened again to reveal Captain Logan and the female doctor.
The captain looked round once to make sure everyone was present before he got straight to the point.
"I hope you're all well rested because the next couple of hours are going to be busy. By now you must have seen your uniforms and I'm sure you're eager to try out the weapons."
Helo saw Kara and Anders give each other a wry smile.
"Q; how's the holographic camouflage coming along?"
The hologram nodded. "Pretty good; however I ran a couple of simulations and we have a problem."
"Such as?" asked Jean with a worried expression on her face.
"The projection on the shuttle works fine but I can't use the shields at the same time. Shields cancel out the image of a cylon raider."
Jean and Logan shared a worried look.
"We can't go in without shields," said Ensign Kadretti with a concerned tone.
"We have to if we want to see this through," countered Laura with cool indifference; she didn't seem bothered by the shocked look the female Starfleet Ensign gave her.
"If we do this properly; we may not need the shields until we're escaping," said Q Junior hurryingly "however something has been bothering me."
He turned to Sharon. " The raiders; do each of them have to be designated to a particular basestar? Does a raider from...let's say basestar A have to dock only in basestar A?"
The room grew still as they waited for the cylon's answer.
"No; usually each raider can land on any basestar; the cylons decided that this would improve the fluidity of battle and recon missions into colonial occupied territories," there was a collective sigh of relief at her words but she was not done with her explanation.
"But bear in mind that I have not been with the cylons for more than a year...there is a slim possibility that things have changed."
Logan shared an exasperated look with Q Junior.
"We just have to go ahead with the plan and prepare for the worst."
Oma looked dumbfounded at the captain's approach; she had been taught that in such circumstances one was to take a few steps back and reassess the situation in order to come up with a plan which minimised conflict and casualties.
She was beginning to see that Logan followed a completely different pattern, more like charge on and make-up-the plan-on-the-go.
In fact it was similar to the tactics of the missing legendary Admiral James Tiberius Kirk; it had been said that he did not have a mutant ability but several had argued that his extremely phenomenal luck had to be a manifestation of a rare mutant ability.
There was no one else in the history of Starfleet who had been in so many adventures and managed to come through them relatively unscathed.
That is until his disappearance several years ago.
Oma turned her attention to the captain; he was outlining the plan.
"Once Q Junior outfits the shuttle with the holo-projectors; we will speed up and exit from warp just outside the point of origin of the transmission.
Then we will 'grab a raider' get it's codes and endeavour to enter the basestar with the child and also hack their computers for how they are tracking the fleet. Captain Helo is going to be back up in case things go really south.
Dr Grey will be in charge while we're gone and Ensign Rogers will be assisting her."
Oma saw Sharon nod slowly; her expression strangely fragile and strong at the same time.
Logan continued. "You have your armour and weapons. Any questions?"
Helo raised a hand. "Once you do the recon on the basestar; will you share all information you retrieve from their data banks?"
Everyone looked at Logan; he in turned stared at Helo for a long time.
"Since this is a joint venture...yes; all information acquired will be shared."
Helo stared back at him, a silent message seemed to pass between them and then he finally nodded.
"However I have a question to ask...since all of us are risking a lot going into this basestar; some more info may be needed," add Logan.
Helo looked at him warily. "Like what captain?"
Logan chose his words with care. "Can you tell us what happened to your daughter?"
Sharon turned very pale while Kara stared at him in shock.
Oma so wanted to know but she was wondering why he was asking that question now.
Helo said nothing for several moments; then he sighed and closed his eyes briefly as if making a very hard decision.
"Hera; our daughter was born 5 months ago," he looked at the distressed expression on his wife's face "it was a difficult birth...at first we were told she was well. Then...Dr Cottle informed us she didn't make it.
My wife and I found out later that under the order of our president Laura Roslin; the doctor faked her death and Hera was adopted by another member of the fleet."
The colonial pilot paused as he tried to control his emotions. No one made a sound.
"We moved on...then the cylons occupied New Caprica and we eventually got our people to escape...but something happened during the escape," he looked at his wife.
Sharon had a bleak look on her face. "I met D'Anna, the Number Three leader. She told me my daughter was alive and being cared for by a human...I didn't believe her. I thought it was a trick.
Hera was dead...Helo and I released her ashes in space."
Oma unconsciously hugged herself at the barely controlled distress in the female cylon's voice.
"So I shot D'anna in the knee caps and completed my mission."
Laura raised an appreciative eyebrow; clearly approving of Sharon's determination. Ensign Kadretti looked a bit shocked.
"But since then I wondered and dreamed about what D'anna said...then I ran into the cylons on Hera's planet and also I met you.
And you told us about the half cylon-half human child on board a basestar.
A child who is the exact age and gender as ours; it cannot be a coincidence."
Logan stared at the couple for several moments.
"Admiral Adama...had no knowledge of this?"
Helo and Sharon shared a look.
"We don't think so captain," said Sharon.
Logan looked sceptical but nodded. "Didn't think he was the type.
Well...we will check when we get on board; however I hope it is not too much to ask that you keep your emotions in check Lieutenant Agathon."
Sharon released a sigh of relief. "I won't fail you captain."
Logan looked very uncomfortable at her words.
"Well...since that is settled can we all check out the gear ?" added Laura impatiently "only the girls and I have actually put them on; the guys are yet to even properly look at the uniforms!"
Rogers and the other colonials looked surprised at Laura's attitude while Oma gasped softly at her rudeness; could she not sympathize with what the Agathons had gone through.
What was wrong with her?!
Jean gave the still obviously uncomfortable Logan a puzzled look; took in the uneasy expressions on Anders and Helo's faces and the slightly irritated one on Roger's face then turned to Q Junior.
"Can I see the body armour?"
The hologram nodded eagerly as he walked up to an innocent looking blank grey wall. "Sure; this is the captain's," he tapped on the wall once and it became transparent revealing a uniform that Jean immediately recognized.
Everyone saw her face go a bit pale; she stared at the uniform for a long moment; taking in the familiar sleek black lines and the 'X' sign over the right upper side of the chest.
"Do I have one?"
Q Junior hesitated and looked at the solemn expression on her face. "Not yet Dr Grey." He ignored the sharp look the captain gave him.
Jean took a deep breath and nodded slowly. "I'm glad you have me in mind...I'm probably going to need it soon," she turned to a silent watching Logan.
"You boys really need to try your suits; some adjustments may be in order,"Logan looked stunned at the wry smile on her face.
He nodded somewhat reluctantly and walked up to claim his uniform; he also glanced at Helo and Anders who quickly moved to claim theirs.
Meanwhile Jean was speaking to Rogers. "You will eventually get a suit...once your shields are better," the last sentence was said quite firmly and by the end of it Rogers was looking quite red in the face.
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Kara tried not to smile when Jean calmly and indirectly ordered the men to try their suits at once.
The woman must have been a teacher or a military leader in a former life; the way she got people to do what needed to be done without raising her voice was outstanding.
Kara hung back with Sharon and waited as the 'boys' tried out the suits.
Once the men emerged from the changing rooms; she had to admit that the captain of the Xavier looked quite fit in his gear.
If Kara wasn't married she would have kept staring for a long time. She even caught the female doctor grinning behind her hand.
It was official; there was definitely something going on between those two.
Anders and Helo in comparism looked uncomfortable; and Kara doubted it was due to it being tight; it's just that the men did not think close fitting body armour was a 'man' thing.
But Logan looked as if he was born to wear it; Kara wondered about Dr Grey's question about an outfit for her.
Had the doctor been a member of the X-men? What had been her role? Had she been their medic?
How many X-men had they been? What kind of missions had they gone on ?
What had happened to the X-men ?
Why had Captain Logan, Dr Grey and Laura been put into stasis and hidden on a planet millions of miles from Earth ?
These were questions she was dying to know.
Kara reminded herself to congratulate Helo later on his quick thinking.
The colonial captain had got Captain Logan to agree to share information acquired from the base star; somehow Kara did not think the captain of the Xavier would frak them over.
From what she had seen so far; he kept his word even when he didn't want to. That was enough reassurance for her.
Kara found her attention moving to the female ensign; the girl was watching the proceedings silently and there was a look of worry on her face.
Kara was suddenly anxious that this girl was their designated pilot; something told her the girl had not been on many missions.
Rogers was fuming silently because Q Junior had gleefully told him he did not have a uniform yet. The poor ensign did not want to be left out.
As for Laura; that one was a mystery; she did not seem worried about the recon when she should be.
Q Junior on the other hand was so caught up on how to infiltrate the base that several times Kara found herself thinking of him as a 'person'.
But he was a hologram; and another thing she was trying not to think about was the very high possibility of him falling into the hands of the cylons.
That simply did not bear thinking about; then she realized Q Junior was asking her a question.
"Lieutenant Thrace; the sensors of your vipers and that of the cylons are similar; yes?"
"Eh yeah...why do you ask?" said Kara.
"The holo-projectors are ready and I need to test it on the shuttle ; I will need Captain Helo to use his ship's sensors to see it if can detect a raider on board the Xavier."
Helo nodded. "I'm ready when you are."
Q Junior grinned broadly. "I was hoping you would say that because I attached the holo-projectors to the Delta Flyer Alpha hours ago."
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Minutes later; Kara was trying to pick her jaw off the floor.
When Q Junior had stated what he was going to do; she had her doubts.
However she had just seen one of the Xavier's shuttles transform into a big cylon raider. It was simply nerve racking.
She could not stop herself from going forward and touching it; her hand had gone straight through to touch the real skin of the shuttle beneath it.
"This is unbelievable," exclaimed Rogers as he too came closer to feel the surface of what was before him.
"What we're aiming for is the believable," said Q Junior absentmindedly as he pressed several symbols on his tricorder "Captain Helo; what reading are you getting?"
The colonial captain was currently in his open cockpit and staring at the DRADIS screen in his viper. The flier was on 'flight-check mode' which every colonial pilot worth his salt was first taught in the academy.
Without it a pilot should not lift off; for any failed checks could spell disaster on a space flight.
"Hmmm...the reading is not clear; it kinda looks fuzzy..."
"So I take that as a no then," interrupted Q Junior impatiently as he tweaked the readings on his tricorder once more "how about now?"
"It's not...wait; it's working! I have a cylon raider registered right next to my viper!"
Kara, Anders and Sharon shared an amazed look; the hologram had been able to carry that out with just the 'calculator-like thing' in his hands.
"One more test," said Q Junior as he taped a sequence on his holoemitter; within seconds a centurion hologram stood in his place.
"Can you detect a centurion on board the Xavier."
Helo tore his eyes away from where Q Junior had been standing.
"Eh...yeah; my sensors identify your projection as a centurion!"
The centurion nodded before one of it's arms tapped the holo-emitter again and Q Junior was himself again.
"Now we're set to infiltrate a basestar," said the hologram cheerfully.
"How did you do that?" asked Kara with a surprised look on her face.
"Xavier's sensors picked up the signature of cylons and centurions on the basestar and on the raiders that have attacked this ship. I copied the 'signature' and incorporated it into each of the holo-emitters you will be wearing."
Kara stared in wonder at the small circular disc on the hologram's shoulder. She had a funny feeling that even if she had a decade to learn all of Starfleet's tech; she would barely scratch the surface.
"So what now?" asked a concerned looking Ensign Kadretti; she had been startled when the ship's form changed, which was to be expected.
She had never encountered a cylon raider or a colonial viper before. She wanted to take a closer look at the second ship but this was hardly the time to do so.
Logan took some time in answering; he looked at the assembled people.
They were as ready as they could ever be and his gut was telling him they were wasting valuable time.
"Now; we speed up and infiltrate a basestar."
Jean sighed. "May God help us."
Sharon who was standing close to her gave her a solemn look. "So say we all."
Kara compressed her lips but wisely kept silent.
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The Galactica; Admiral Adama's office...
William Adama rubbed his eyes wearily as he paused in reading the files on his desk.
The last cylon sighting had been 45 minutes ago and the crew were still on edge.
It had been 8 hours since the Xavier left and they had two visits from the cylons; the first one had been two hours after Captain Logan left and the 2nd one had been 6 hours after the first visit.
Adama was very worried but he could not afford to show such to his crew; morale was getting lower and there was hardly anything he could do about it.
Even the Quorum had stopped demanding for a meeting; it seemed like sense had finally prevailed and they realized something was seriously wrong.
Still he got questions from each member of the Quorum on the where-abouts of the Xavier and the two vipers that had jumped with it.
Even the press had finally gotten involved; they wanted to speak to the Captain of the Xavier and it's crew.
Admiral Adama had told them nothing; he was beginning to wonder if there was indeed a traitor among the fleet. His men had searched the Galactica from top to bottom and had not found anything.
Apart from the normal reports that dealt with running the basestar and the fleet; he also was yet to read his entire copy of notes about the Federation and Starfleet.
Yet Adama had forced himself to find the time; at the moment he was reading about the military structure of Starfleet; how they recruited officers and where they got their training.
Earth seemed to be the capital of the Federation and also where the main Starfleet Academy was based.
The summarised notes before him were daunting; exhilarating and also very interesting to read.
The thought of aliens commanding members of the Thirteenth Tribe was not going to sit well with many members of the Quorum once the notes became public knowledge.
He already knew how they would react when they found out that humans actually married aliens and had children with them!
Their reaction when Roslin told them about Sharon and Helo had been enough.
Adama took his glasses off and rubbed his eyes briefly. He could not recall the last time he slept.
More than a day ago? Possibly.
He opened his eyes when he heard a knock on the door.
"Come in."
A few moments passed before his daughter-in-law Junior Lieutenant Anastasia Dualla walked into the room.
Bill's heart sank when he saw the files she was carrying in her right hand.
"More reports sir," said Dee with an apologetic look on her face.
The Admiral nodded as she dropped the files on the table.
"Thanks Dee," she smiled sadly at him and moved to leave.
"Wait," called the senior officer "stay a moment, please take a seat."
Dee looked puzzled and a bit concerned as she sat down.
"It's alright Dee; I just wanted to ask...how you are doing?"
The female junior officer appeared stunned. "Em Admiral I...I'm okay."
Bill cursed inwardly. The girl before him was his daughter-in-law for Gods' sake; he should be able to have a normal conversation with her.
"Dee; please forget for one moment I'm an Admiral and see me as your father-in-law. How are you really?"
Dee seemed to struggle within herself; then her shoulders slumped a bit. "I...I'm...not too good, Bill.
I haven't...had a chance to talk with Lee since we found the Xavier. I barely know what's going on...all I hear are whispers and disturbing rumours."
Adama leaned forward in his chair. "What kind of rumours?"
"That the Thirteenth Tribe has abandoned us...as punishment for trying to kill their children."
Adama closed his eyes briefly; he knew the airlock incident was sure to haunt him for the rest of his life.
"The sad thing is that a lot of people believe it," she paused "I spoke to one of the flight deck crew...she was there when the Xavier shuttle left with the two vipers. She noticed the expression on their captain's face.
He looked like someone who was very upset about something."
Adama rubbed the lower half of his face. For Dee to tell him this; it had to be a lot worse.
He had to be very careful what he told anyone; already the secret co-ordinates he was still carrying in his breast pocket felt like they were burning a hole through his jacket.
Since his conversation with Captain Logan; Adama had been thinking of the possibility of a spy within the fleet.
But how did you comb a haystalk this huge for a needle so small?
If there was a spy out there Adama could not risk telling anyone else about the Xavier's mission.
"Dee; the crew of the Xavier did not abandon us...they will be back."
She looked at him for a long time; then smiled a little. "Just hearing that sir, makes me feel a lot better." She stood up.
"I'll get back to work...and I'll spread the word...if that's okay sir."
Adama was silent for a moment before answering. "Anything you can do to boost morale would be appreciated...and Dee, get some rest you look tired."
His daughter-in-law smiled a little. "With all due respect sir; I'll rest when I'm on Earth...or when I'm dead."
Then she left.
For some inexplicable reason her parting words left Admiral Adama with a chilling feeling in his heart.
If Dee's attitude was a reflection of the fleet's general mood; then matters were a lot worse than he realized.
Adama's eyes drifted to the notes before him; one of them was on a brief history of Starfleet but what caught his gaze was the official motto of it's Academy.
"Ex astris scientia."
It was written in ancient Kobolian which the people of Earth called ancient latin; the translation was 'from the stars, knowledge.'
If what was before him was true and by the Gods he prayed it was so; then The Thirteenth Tribe and its allies had overcome the prejudice and paranoia that had in the end led to the destruction of the 12 colonies of Kobol.
Adama found himself once more praying to the Lords that the Xavier made it back intact.
He patted his breast pocket; maybe it was high time he started moving the fleet towards Starbase 21.
With that thought on his mind; Adama picked up one of the files that Dee brought and began to read.
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A planet had existed in this region of space millions of years ago but due to some unrecorded cataclysm it was now an asteroid belt.
12 cylon raiders flew two by two through the belt and within 17 minutes they were through and heading back to a certain area of space.
However if they had decided to turn back they would have seen a very strange ship emerge from warp in the middle of the asteroid belt.
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The Xavier, the bridge...
"We're here," said Q Junior calmly.
Captain Logan was already standing and watching the view-screen.
Everyone was on the bridge; including Dr Grey.
All of them were in their modified body armour except the female medic and Ensign Rogers. As for Ensign Q Junior; he had changed his uniform image to that of the modified black x-man uniform.
"How far away are the cylons?" asked Logan.
"Their basestars are exactly 1.2742 million kilometres from our current destination; but I count 12 raiders currently 230,000 kilometres away.
However due to all the lovely metal and tylium deposits that are within the asteroid bits around us, it's going to be very hard for their sensors to detect us."
"That's a relief," said Ensign Kadretti a bit anxiously.
"Alright, those actually going on this mission need to be in shuttle bay two which is on deck three. Once Q Junior gets the codes from a captured raider we may need to go immediately," he turned to Dr Grey.
"Jean; you're in charge. Captain Helo and Ensign Rogers will be assisting you."
The doctor nodded solemnly, Helo and Rogers looked more anxious then the assembled team.
Anders and Kara patted the colonial captain on the back and said a few words to Rogers while Laura, Q Junior and Ihuoma Kadretti were already moving towards the turbolift.
Logan turned to go.
"Logan," called Jean. He looked back at her.
"All of you be safe," her eyes took in the small team of 6 people "and please come back."
The captain stared at her for moments and nodded slightly before leaving with the rest of his team.
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The ride to the deck was silent and fast.
Once into the shuttle bay; Starbuck and Anders made a beeline for their weapons which they began to strap on.
Once Kara and Anders did a weapons check she looked around to see how the others were gearing up.
She saw Ensign Kadretti attach a tricorder and a small odd looking device at her waist; she hoped to Gods the latter was a Starfleet weapons. Captain Logan and his daughter carried no visible weapons so she guessed their 'attached' blades were all they were equipped for this mission.
She wondered if it would be enough.
As for Ensign Q Junior ; he was now carrying a small case in one hand and in the other hand what had to be the most sophisticated and deadly looking weapon she had ever seen. It looked like some sort of rifle.
"Q...that's a...Type 3D phaser rifle,"said Kadretti with a bit of worry in her voice.
The hologram nodded solemnly. "Think of it as an insurance policy."
"What the fr...I mean what is that thing?" asked Anders as he just remembered not to swear. Apparently he had also realized that Dr Grey did not like anyone swearing around the 'children'.
Q Junior hesitated briefly before answering. "It's a rifle with a tricorder built in; this one is modified to punch through body armour. The centurions seem quite sturdy and headshots seem to work best.
But situations could arise where one would have to shoot through objects to hit the target."
Kara stared at the weapon in Q Junior's hands. Gods she wanted one of those.
"You're bringing only one to this mission?"
"Yes," answered Captain Logan "we're chatted enough. Q, it's time."
The hologram nodded and turned to a silent Laura.
"Please hold these for me until I get back."
The girl took the case and the rifle with a serious expression on her face. "Be careful Q."
He smiled a bit nervously then looked upwards.
"Xavier, please send out the bait."
"Yes Q."
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Xavier's sensors were still able to detect the 12 raiders which were flying away from it's current location.
The ship was able to pick at least one raider which was fortunately empty.
It was being piloted by the raiders AI; Xavier targeted this one with a very brief transmission.
If a humanoid had been piloting the ship; the pilot may have thought it was a glitch and pulled back.
But this raider was a machine and the transmission had been very short but odd.
It sent a message to the other raiders that it would investigate and turned back; the others kept moving forward as they too had certain areas to patrol before returning to base.
Cylon Raider Gre-129 flew casually back to the asteroid belt; the signal had come from here.
It may have been nothing; after-all the nearby star was giving off a lot of electromagnetic signals which were a perfect camouflage for the cylons fleet.
But the raider was under orders to investigate anything; no matter how minor.
The raider got inside the asteroid belt as it kept searching.
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"Q, target is within range."
The hologram nodded. "Energize now."
Ensign Q Junior disappeared in a shower of lights.
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The first moment the raider knew something was wrong was when a strange human male appeared inside the ship in the pilot's seat.
And the next moment was the last the raider knew anything else.
For the strange human rapidly phased into the section of the ship which housed the communication array; the engine and weapons and before a warning could be sent, the individual known as Q Junior 'shut down' the brain of the cylon raider.
Q Junior quickly stabilized the flight pattern of the dead ship before it crashed and within moments it was simply floating in space.
That was when he took stock of where he was.
"Ewww," said Q Junior with an expression of disgust on his face. He was surrounded by what looked like wet red organic circuitry. It was like taking a trip inside some big animal's entrails.
He definitely was not going to stay here for long.
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Jean tried not to gnaw on her knuckle as Xavier calmly informed her that Q Junior was inside the raider.
The mission had barely started and she was this anxious?
Even the Phoenix was keeping silent as if it was worried as well.
That was not reassuring in the slightest.
She tried not to look at the seated Helo and Rogers who were watching her closely. Seconds that seemed like hours passed.
Then they all heard Q Junior's voice.
"I'm back and I got the codes. Geez I never want to do that again!"
Jean was both relieved and worried at the same time
"Are you okay Q? What happened?"
"I'm fine Dr Grey, can't talk for long because we have got to move now.
Apparently the raider we just hijacked is supposed to be back with the fleet in the next 15 minutes!"
Jean and the two male colonials looked at each other in horror.
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"Well; that's our cue to leave; on board now!" ordered Logan as he and the others hurried into the shuttle.
Seconds after the door was shut; the outside of the small ship flickered then steadied to form the image of a cylon heavy raider.
The bay doors slid open as the 'shuttle' backed out of the launch bay.
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Jean and the two male colonial officers watched anxiously as the small camouflaged shuttle assumed a position in-front of the Xavier.
"How we looking guys?" asked Logan
Helo nodded then remembered to answer. "Just like a heavy raider captain."
"You definitely look the part," said Jean dryly.
"Great; stay hidden within the belt. We'll try to be back as soon as possible."
"Gods' speed Captain" said Rogers.
"Stay frosty," was Logan's parting words before the 'raider' moved out and quickly left the asteroid belt.
Jean sighed and continued looking at the viewscreen. Now all they had to do was wait.
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Q Junior left Ensign Kadretti at the helm and approached Logan and the others. He adjusted the 3D phaser rifle he carried bandolier style with the handle located at the back of his neck which would enable a quick draw if needed.
The small bag containing medical equipment and meds was attached to his left thigh.
He had watched the female ensign discreetly as she reversed the shuttle out of the bay; it had been smooth and efficient.
The girl definitely knew how to fly Starfleet vessels. He just hoped she did not crack under the pressure.
"Captain we need to activate out centurion holo-emitters now. From the brief examination I made of the raider's systems, they have scanning equipment which can identify if humanoids or centurions are inside the raiders.
Our holograms will hide our body heat and weapons so we will not be detected."
Logan looked at the others who nodded.
"Okay; let's all get into our costumes and everyone please keep silent. I doubt centurions talk much."
Sharon sighed. "No, they hardly do."
Q Junior had shown each person how to turn on their centurion holograms but he watched each of them in case anyone got it wrong.
Once that was completed he went to Ensign Kadretti and helped her turn her's on since she was piloting the shuttle.
He sat down beside the pilot.
"You okay?" he whispered.
The centurion like image beside him glanced at him.
"I thought we were not to speak."
Q Junior nodded. "I will stop soon but you look a bit...anxious."
The female ensign rubbed her forehead briefly. "I'm that obvious?"
Q Junior nodded.
Kadretti sighed. "I...I practically destroyed the last shuttle I was in less than a day ago...and now I'm piloting another one on a ...mission."
Q Junior was sure she had been about to say 'suicide mission' but decided not to press the issue.
"Just keep your head, remember your training and you will be fine."
Kadretti looked at him and nodded once.
"Psst!" they both turned to see a centurion like image standing right behind them.
"We're not supposed to be talking!" the feminine angry whisper that came from the metal humanoid belonged to Laura.
"Sorry," said Q Junior with a cheeky smile before tapping a sequence of his holoemitter, this caused a centurion to appear where he was seated.
Laura's centurion glanced at Ensign Kadretti briefly before she assumed a seat close to Q Junior.
Now all they had to do was get to the cylon basestars.
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13 minutes passed before they saw the first star-shaped ships.
Logan walked over to the helm and silently looked at the sensor readings.
At least 17 cylon basestars with two cylindrical looking ships and scores of raiders patrolling the area.
Q Junior's centurion looked at him and pointed at one particular ship which just happened to be in the midst of the basestars.
Just typical; apparently the basestar that had the child was right in the middle of enemy territory; but the sensors also revealed two other 'human' signatures. The captain of the Xavier wondered who they were.
Logan heard soft steps behind him and by the feminine scent he knew it was Sharon's.
He did not turn around as he nodded at Q Junior.
The young male ensign turned to Kadretti and made a few simple hand signals which Logan recognised as some form of morse code.
Ensign Kadretti took her hands off the helm and Ensign Q Junior assumed control. He began to tap in series of symbols.
Logan could only assume they were identification codes of some sort.
Nevertheless he was a bit startled when a bored calm male voice filled the shuttle.
"Identification and verification codes."
Q Junior pressed a single symbol on the helm control console.
"Raider Gre-129 reporting as ordered sir. One-Niner-Three-Zero-Alcentia" Q Junior's voice was bland and almost sounded metallic.
There was a tense silent as everyone waited for a reply from the basestar that they were approaching.
"Acknowledged and on time as always," came the calm bored reply.
Oma closed her eyes briefly in relief as almost everyone showed signs of relaxing.
Only Q Junior and Captain Logan still had tensed shoulder as if expecting disaster at any moment.
"Anything to report?" asked the same voice.
"Negative," responded Q Junior in the same lifeless voice.
"Not surprised," responded male voice idly. "Dock and refuel; next patrol will be in 45 minutes. However be ready to disembark earlier in case you are needed for other duties."
"By your command," finished off Q Junior calmly as the people behind him exchanged worried looks.
They had not thought of someone else trying to 'borrow' the fake raider while they infiltrated the base.
Logan tried not to grit his teeth; it looked like the plan may need to be modified very soon.
"Preliminary scanning commenced," announced Q Junior. Actually it was a warning to prevent them from talking.
Logan looked at the sensors and true to Q's warning; they were being scanned by the basestar.
Everyone held their breath for this second 'test'.
"Scan complete," said Q Junior in the same metallic voice.
Sharon gave him an anxious look; he was beginning to sound like a real centurion.
No alarms were raised as the fake raider glided into the basestar landing bay.
Still no one relaxed because now they had to make the landing look natural.
Earlier on when Laura had taught Sharon how to construct a hologram of a basestar; the cylon had shown them the inside of a basestar flight deck.
Each raider on deck was usually attached to a device from which reports were downloaded or uploaded as needed.
The crew of this particular 'raider' were not going to allow that to occur so the next part of the plan was Sharon's.
Logan looked at her centurion form and motioned her forward.
The captain moved out of the way and she took place behind Q Junior ; already he had a diagram of the flight deck on one of his monitors. She quickly indicated where he should land.
Q Junior nodded once and smoothly manoeuvred the craft land in the designated spot. The reason for picking that area was rather obvious.
It had the least amount of personnel and also it was very close to an exit.
Logan leaned in close to Kadretti.
"Stay here with weapons ready; code word is...magneto."
Her centurion watched him for a while and he could even feel her surprise at his choice of code; but she eventually nodded anyway.
Logan looked around. Q Junior was already up and waiting at the shuttle doors; once he the captain nodded; the hologram and Sharon were the first out of the space craft.
The two immediately went to the huge link terminal which was for each docked raider.
Anyone casually looked would have seen two centurions attaching cables to the large raider they had just exited from.
However a closer look would have revealed a semi-tranparent seal between the uplink slot and the end of the cables. This seal contained a little chip which already contained the real patrol data from the original Gre-129.
Any downloaded info would go into this chip as well; thus fooling the Hybrid for a short while.
Logan motioned to the other two centurions to move out; as he left he looked back briefly and was pleased to see Kadretti was already standing with her phaser out.
He just prayed they got back before she had to use her weapon.
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The five centurions waited until the 'raider's' door was shut; then one took point and the rest followed.
Sharon tried to walk calmly as the others followed her.
It was only logical that she should lead in this instance; afterall she was a cylon and this place should be familiar to her.
Oh it was; but it was also scared the living daylights out of her.
When Captain Logan had outlined his plan for infiltrating the basestar; she thought she was going in as herself; a Number Eight.
So she had been astonished when Q Junior and the captain had informed her that she was going in as a 'centurion'.
At first she thought that was a bad mad idea; now she saw the brilliance in the plan.
Centurions were usually ignored by the cylon models; they were only noticed when they were needed for something.
Several cylon models passed them but none looked in their direction.
As she thought; a certain brilliance to a crazy plan.
A few minutes passed before the small group of centurions reached the medical bay.
Sharon felt her heartbeat quicken with each step; she reached out towards the automatic doors only to see another centurion arm baring her way.
"I'll go first," whispered Logan's centurion.
She stared at him for a few moments; then nodded slightly.
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Logan turned and moved towards the metal doors; they slid open as he got nearer. He could hear female voices and thought there were at least three people in the room.
He walked in and the first person he saw was a blonde woman in her twenties; she was dressed in a form fitting white trouser suit ensemble. She was also carrying a sleeping baby in one arm but what concerned Logan the most was what she suddenly had in her right hand.
Logan raised his hand to say something but before he could blink she exhibited an un-human speed as she swung the gun up and rapidly shot him three times in the chest.
Each shot was like a hammer blow to his chest; through the haze of pain and the cries of alarm around him, he heard a distinct 'snikt' sound.
And it had from behind him.
"STOP!" roared Logan.
Everyone froze; including the two women behind the blonde with the gun and the baby who was now awake and wailing like a banshee.
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Caprica had just gotten Hera to sleep; that had been worrying because to her the child's cries were getting weaker and the child was getting more sleepy.
And still Boomer was no closer to knowing what was wrong with the cylon-human hybrid. The Number Six was very concerned; she sent up another prayer to the One God to please save the child.
Then the doors to the medical bay opened and she heard a familiar sound that could only be centurions.
Cavil must have grown impatient and was now keen to have them all dead; including Hera.
Her right hand picked up cylon modified S39 hand gun with hollow point armour piercing bullets; it could easily kill a centurion as long as she shot it rapidly in the same place on a vulnerable area.
Such as the chest or the head.
And that was exactly what she did when the first of five grey centurions entered the medical bay.
Her aim was spot on but the result was far from what she expected.
The centurion seemed to shimmer like the surface of a pool and the four centurions behind it suddenly assumed a defensive position with odd weapons in their hands. One of them had two long sharp blades protruding from the back of each hand. Another one seemed to scream in a familiar feminine voice.
The one she shot had moved two steps back but did not go down as it should.
She was about to fire again when it raised it's right hand and roared a single word.
"STOP!"
That voice; she had heard it before, for some reason she did not fire when one of the centurions came forward as it started tapping frantically on it's left shoulder.
"Who sent you?" demanded D'Anna as Boomer came up and took the wailing Hera from Caprica.
As soon as she did that; the centurion standing closet to them suddenly changed to a very familiar person.
Sharon Agathon; a Number Eight, defector slash traitor and the mother of the Hera, the only cylon-human hybrid ever born.
Caprica's jaw dropped as she and her fellow female cylons stared at her in shock.
"Sharon; how did you...?" D'anna never got to finish her question as the remaining 'centurions' changed their appearance to show the last people she ever expected to see in a basestar.
Samuel Anders; Starbuck and what had to be three members of the Thirteenth Tribe. The man she recognized; the teenagers who were little more than children she did not.
But the young girl still had blades protruding from the back of her hands and she looked like she knew just what to do with them.
Anders and Starbuck had their shiny black semi-automatic weapons up and trained on the three female cylons.
"Boomer; I have come for my daughter," Sharon moved towards Boomer her hands stretched out , with an odd light in her eyes "give her to me."
Hera seemed to quiet down a bit but was still in distress while Boomer clutched her tighter and moved backwards.
"You...you shouldn't be here!"
"Everyone calm down," said the man who Caprica had shot. D'anna looked for signs of blood or injury but he seemed untouched.
"My name is Logan and we just want the child, no one needs to get hurt."
The young girl with the claws gave him an odd look; while the young boy was keeping an eye on the medical bay doors. At the moment he had not drawn the huge sci-fi looking weapon strapped bandolier style to his back.
D'anna stared at the man who seemed to be in charge; her gaze also took in the two colonials who had remained silent but had the cold light of anger burning in their eyes. The Number Three knew she could not let them escape from the cylons.
"You know you will never leave this basestar; you might as well..."
"Surrender to you D'anna?" added Starbuck sarcastically "oh no; not this time bitch. We are taking Hera and leaving; please feel free and try to stop us." The coldness and the dark promise in her voice could have frozen hell twice over.
Boomer looked frightened and before anyone could say anything else her right hand moved to Hera's small neck.
"I will see this child dead by my hand before you take one more step closer."
Sharon froze; her eyes wide with fright. "Please, please no."
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Caprica was finding it very hard to think.
The crew of the Xavier were here and trying to get Sharon's child back?!
Why? How had they come this far without being detected ?
Then Caprica heard what Boomer was saying and turned to face her sister in shock.
She saw the odd look in the Number Eight's eyes and knew that the female cylon would carry out the threat; she had no idea why but clearly Boomer was losing it.
And she did not have time to find out why.
Without another thought; Caprica rapidly raised her gun and shot the Number Eight in the head.
The hollow point bullet passed through the left temporal region and the exit hole was so large that half of her head was blown off.
Sharon cried in alarm and rushed forward to catch the snatch the child as the dead woman holding her fell to the ground.
She dimly heard Caprica saying certain words.
"I give up; but we must move quickly."
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Once Boomer stated she would kill the child; Logan started looking for a way to take down the woman without harming Hera.
He hoped Laura would stay calm and let him handle this; then to everyone's surprise the blonde had turned to look at Boomer before quickly shooting her in the head.
Logan had tensed and almost released his claws when Sharon rushed forward to catch the child. He turned to the blonde who had gone on her knees and dropped her hand piece.
"I give up; but we must work quickly."
D'anna stared at her fellow sister in shock. "What have you done..."
Caprica ignored her. "Boomer is not dead; we have at least 6 to 7 minutes...if we're lucky with depending on the manner of her death maybe 8 minutes."
"Why?" asked the young boy who had also rushed forward when the shot was made. He was now beside a sobbing Sharon who was clutching a crying Hera.
The male teenager seemed to be using some sort of scanning device on the child.
"It will take at least 60 seconds for the download to occur; 90 seconds for the brain patterns to be realigned and adjusted, another 90 seconds for her entire neuro-system to come online and at least 2 to 3 minutes before she can awake properly and tell the others what happened here.
Extensive brain damage can prolong the resurrection by at most one minute."
Logan stared at her; she wanted something and he had an idea what it was.
"What do we give you in return?"
Anders and Starbuck stared at him in surprise.
"Hades no captain! She is a murderer responsible for the deaths of thousands...maybe billions! We cannot make a deal with her..." started Anders vehemently.
Logan raised a hand and he shut up. D'Anna noticed this and raised an eyebrow.
Caprica was breathing a bit fast but did not fail to notice what just happened. She thought quickly as she answered.
"You take me and two others off this basestar..."
"No frakking way!" interrupted Kara with a look of fury on her face "I will see you dead first!"
"Lieutenant!" barked Logan; the woman looked at him with a defiant expression "we have less than 6 minutes before the rest of the 17 basestars know we are here so shut the hell up and let me handle this."
He turned back to Caprica without waiting for her answer.
"What two others are we talking about?"
Caprica hesitated before answering. "Two other colonial prisoners."
"Where are they?" asked the girl with the claws in her hands.
Caprica hesitated again. "I'm not sure."
Logan blinked and looked at her in shock. "What?"
"But I know how to get the location!" she explained hurridly.
Logan gave her an odd look. "The Hybrid?"
"Yes," answered Caprica hesitantly as D'anna stared at him in shock.
The boy who had been checking Hera chose that moment to speak. "Captain; her gene structure is a match for Sharon and Helo. She's their child."
Sharon gave him a triumphant smile through her tears but the boy was not done speaking.
"But there's more; she has the mutant gene just like Captain Helo."
The smile slipped from Sharon's face. "Q Junior, What mutant gene?"
The male teenager known as Q gave her a stunned look. "Oh shucks...he hasn't told you?"
Logan tried not to sigh. "This isn't the time; anything else to report Q ?"
Q looked at his captain with a worried expression as well. "Yes Captain; this little girl has got acute appendicitis; she needs surgery...like yesterday. We need to get her back to the Xavier now."
Sharon looked like her world was about to shatter as she stared at the crying child in her arms.
D'anna was shocked at how fast the child had been diagnosed with an 'odd looking device' in the boy's hands.
"Time is ticking captain," said Caprica with an anxious look on her face.
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Logan thought quickly.
He did not trust the woman before him but one thing was certain; when she had shot him the first time it was because she had really thought he was a centurion coming to attack her.
Even the one called D'anna had asked 'who sent you?'
There was something going on in this basestar which made it's own crew carry weapons against each other or order centurions to attack cylons.
Also Caprica had not hesitated to shoot the asian woman dead when she threatened to kill Hera.
"Why did you kill your fellow cylon?"
Caprica stared at him. "Hera is precious and the first to be born; I will kill anyone who would dare harm her."
"And how did she end up with you?" asked the girl with the blades.
"When the colonials fled from New Caprica we found a dead woman who was lying over a basket. I think she had tried to protect it; inside the basket was Hera, alive and crying. We have taken care of her ever since.
But this place is no longer safe for her."
That made Logan's mind up for him.
"Fine; you're coming with us."
Starbuck opened her mouth to protest.
"She can give us intel and get us to the Hybrid faster."
"What about her?" demanded Anders; he still had his weapon trained on a silent observing Number Three.
Logan glanced at her for several moments. "She comes with us as well."
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Hi Everyone; hope you had a great Easter Holiday.
Sorry about the long wait; I was really aiming for a long chapter.
I will get started on the next one as soon as possible.
I can't wait for the next Star Trek movie! It's going to be EPIC!
Please read and enjoy !
Have a great week everyone.
