Chapter 6
The room was two levels high, with a narrow balcony that left a large rectangular open court in the center of the structure.
The entire edifice was constructed of finely crafter wooden beams, polished glassy smooth and a deep rich brown. The wooden floor beneath her feet was similarly smooth and worn by years of use.
Thin veils of white paper covered the gaps between the rich wooden framework, keeping the outside elements at bay, and the rich red timbers holding up the roof, angled arrow like above her head.
Hope frowned, looking about the place. On several wooden stands, weapons of various designs rested or hung patiently.
"This isn't Dagobah," she said aloud.
Looking down, she was startled to realize that her own clothing had changed as well.
She was barefoot, dressed in a simple white, two piece outfit. The pants were loose and light, and the tunic was wrapped about her shoulders and tied by a simple black belt at her waist.
"Very sharp," David answered from the opposite side of the room. He hadn't been there a second ago.
Like her, he was dressed in a simple two piece outfit, though his was black, with white trim and a white belt about his waist.
David grinned. "Here's the bottom line, kiddo. This place is just like the waking world, without the bad weather. It's where you're going to learn how to defend yourself.
He stepped forward. "Provided, of course that you're willing to trust me a bit?"
For the first time, Hope noticed the subtle tint of gray in David's hair, mostly at the temples. His face was a little less full, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes and mouth seemed slightly more defined.
David held his left hand to her. "What do you say?"
She reached up and clasped his hand.
"Good," David said, flexing his fingers. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Everything is energy, Hope." He explained. "And energy can be manipulated, molded, or changed to fit any person or place." He shrugged. "Even these places and lessons are energy. Memories and skills retained in your mind, are energy. Memories in my mind are energy, and so, can be altered to fit other people, such as yourself." He shrugged. "After that, it's only a matter of calling those memories, those instincts to the conscious mind and activating them." He tapped his temple. "What the mind perceives?"
Hope nodded, understanding. "The body believes."
David grinned. "Exactly."
"So, how do I?" Hope asked.
"When you slow down, and calm your mind, the skills will be there. And you'll be able to learn them. Meditation is the key."
"Meditation?" Hope frowned.
David nodded. "It will take meditation to bring this to the waking world. You cannot simply 'download' all this and expect your mind and body to handle it. You'll bust a blood vessel."
"I don't understand," Hope replied. "What are you talking about?"
"You'll have enough knowledge to defend yourself," David explained. "And it will take time to access it. Even with all the training we do here, there's only so much your body can handle, so we have to do it in stages."
"In the mean time," he continued. "We can try a few things out, and you should be able to retain them when you wake up."
Hope caught the weapon easily, which surprised her.
"Let's start with the basics, shall we?" David suggested as he spun the weapon easily.
Then he held his right hand up, palm toward her. "Whenever you're ready."
Hope raised her hand toward his.
"Oh, and Hope," David finished quickly. "Whatever you do, don't let go till I say so, right?"
She felt his fingers tighten around her hand slightly, holding her fast. She swallowed and nodded.
"Time for the ride," David smiled. He felt the gentle, warm contact of her palm against his and smiled. "Hold on to your ass."
The universe dissolved in a sudden collision of countless images. All flowing like a torrent between Hope and David. She felt it entering her mind, moving about like a living thing, and settling into place in her consciousness. The pain of the pseudo intrusion caused her to cry out in shock.
"Stay with it!" David ordered tightly.
She felt the flow of energy entering her body, pushing the limits of her own reservoirs of strength with painful inevitability. Her eyes squeezed shut as the fire raced through her veins. She cried out again.
"Stay with it!" David repeated. Wind encircled them, swirling about them as the energies expelled, melded and returned, conjoining before flowing back into the young girls body. She felt her muscles spasm at the touch of the power. Felt the inherent dark qualities of that energy, and understood it for what it was.
"Oh no!" She gasped, trying to pull her hands free.
"Nearly there!" David trembled as he held her fast. The fingers of his right hand interlaced around hers, holding both hands fast now.
The burning sensation increased and she felt as if her mind would soon burst into flames. She screamed in agony.
And just as suddenly, it was over. She was laying on her back, on the hard wooden floor, the torrent of images swirling in her mind as they slipped quietly into place, somewhere within her subconscious.
Her breath came in long, ragged gasps, and her body felt leaden and hot, even as a breeze blew in through the open door to cool her flesh.
She also sensed the energy flowing through her, like a dark subsiding tide. It was raw and powerful, like and still unlike the energy she used to possess.
She forced her body to move, and slowly struggled to her feet.
On the opposite side of the room, she saw David slowly rising to his feet, groaning from the exertion.
"What a rush," he said. He brushed his long hair back with a sweep of his hand and forced his body upright.
"How do you feel?" he asked. Even as he asked the question, she could see his vitality returning, and felt it returning to her as well.
"What was that?" she gasped.
David stepped slowly over. "I'll show you," he said with a disarming smile.
Quick as lightning, he lashed out with a vicious right.
Hope didn't think, she merely reacted, and when she looked at her hand, she found it deflecting David's punch.
She looked back at him and saw him grinning hungrily at her. "Neat, huh?" he asked. Then he struck again, and Hope watched as her left hand came up and deflected this second strike as well.
"What is all this?" Hope asked in amazement. "How did I do that?"
David's mischievous
smile reasserted itself. "You want the textbook, or the movie
version?"
"Movie?" Hope asked, not understanding the
reference.
"Movie, it is," David said agreeably. Then cupping one hand to the side of his mouth he called loudly. "Oh, Morpheus!"
"No, I mean, what?" Hope began, but a third figure appeared off to the other side, standing erect and proud. He was a large man, with dark skin and keen dark eyes. His head was shaved smooth, and he also wore a similar black and white ghee.
His hands were clasped at his waist and he stared at her, unblinking and unmoving, like a statue.
Hope frowned and then the man blinked. He gestured to their surroundings.
"This is a sparring program," he explained. "Similar to the programmed reality of the Matrix. It has the same basic rules, rules like gravity. What you must learn is that these rules are no different than the rules of a computer system. Some of them can be bent, others can be broken. Understand?"
Hope frowned at the strange concept. She had no idea what a computer was, or the Matrix, but the basic idea seemed simple enough.
She nodded.
Morpheus smiled. "Then hit me, if you can."
Hope looked over at David, her entire face a question.
He merely smiled. "Don't think," he said. "Just do."
Hope turned back to face one called Morpheus. He was easily twice her small weight and a full head and shoulders taller than she.
Morpheus moved slowly into a catlike stance, his eyes staring at her expectantly.
"What are you waiting for?" he asked.
Feeling her body tremble from a mixture of fear and adrenaline, Hope forced her nerves to quiet somewhat and let her mind clear. She felt herself move and when she opened her eyes, she was in a combat stance.
In a sudden emotional rush of fear and excitement, she hurled herself at the man, her foot lashing out in a vicious roundhouse kick which he deflected easily. At that moment, all the fear and anxiety melted away into a surreal blur of motion as the two of them exchanged blows with ever increasing speed.
Each time she struck, he dodged, and likewise her movements were equally fluid. The few blows that did strike her, did not hamper her movement, rather, they merely fueled her desire to succeed in this test.
Suddenly, her world flipped upside down and she felt herself floating through the air until the ground rushed up and blasted the wind from her lungs. She slid half way across the wooden floor of the dojo. That landing hurt.
When she looked back, the one called Morpheus was nowhere to be seen. Then a shadow passed over her. Looking up, she saw him descending from a superhuman leap, his knee poised to ram her skull through the floor. She rolled aside and watched in horror as Morpheus's knee punched through the planking.
In a scramble she was back on her feet, hands out in front of her, right side leading.
Morpheus rose and stepped over next to David, looking at her critically.
"What do you think, Mo?" David asked, his arms folded across his chest.
"Very good," Morpheus replied. "Improvisation, adaptation, her problem is not in her technique."
Hope felt a surge of rage as she heard the condescension in his tone.
She sprang to her feet, and in a rage, attacked with a scream.
David ducked to one side while Morpheus simply moved back in and re engaged the furious young woman.
The attacks came with far more fury and devastation the second time around, and yet, Morpheus seemed to know Hope's moves before she even struck.
He wrapped her arms up, pulling her face inches from his.
"What are you doing?" he asked in that calm, condescending tone. "You're faster than this."
With a shove, he increased the distance between them again.
Catching her balance, she screamed and attacked with renewed fury. She felt it boiling through her veins, so similar to the sensations before her imprisonment. It freed her mind. She felt her conscience sink into shadow as she suddenly felt no concern for the man before her.
"Come on!" Morpheus bellowed. "Quit trying to hit me, and hit me!"
The entire universe flashed red in Hope's eyes. She leapt towards him, her feet trying to punch through his defenses and collapse his skull. He merely deflected the attacks again and countered with several kicks of his own. Most were deflected, but several did strike her in the midsection. She ignored the pain and continued.
Then, with a lightning move, Morpheus spun past one of her charges. She continued her run, leaping towards one of the vertical wooden support timbers. Hope felt her fingers grasp the wood, sling shotting her body around in a superhuman kick aimed right for Morpheus's sternum.
In a move too fast for her to see, he simply shifted, his left hand grasping her ankle, his right, coming out and smashing into her gut. She was flung backwards and felt the crushing impact as she slammed through the opposite timber. It cracked and buckled with a sickening crunch.
She fell to the floor, completely spent, her breath coming in ragged gasps, her body covered in perspiration. She coughed in pain.
"How did I beat you?" Morpheus asked calmly.
She looked up and was shocked to see him standing there, relaxed and composed. He was completely unaffected by his exertions. He wasn't even breathing heavy.
She shook her head. "You're better at this than I am. You know what you're doing."
Morpheus smiled as he stepped towards her. "Do you think my being better, or stronger than you has anything to do with this place?"
Hope froze for a moment, realizing that this place was a dreamscape, it wasn't actually real.
"Do you think that's air you're breathing now?" Morpheus leaned down, looking into her eyes. He smiled and raised his eyebrows inquisitively. Then he looked at David and gave a non committal shrug.
Hope paused, considering those words as Morpheus stepped away, his back to her.
He was right, of course. This entire place was no more than a figment of David's imagination. An image. It wasn't real. Nothing of the real world applied here, and yet, she could feel the pain in her body from the beating. Looking back at the broken support behind her, she realized that an impact strong enough to do that much damage would have killed a normal person in the real world. Yet she was only hampered by a feeling of soreness and exertion from the bout.
"Again!" Morpheus said in a challenging voice.
She looked up and saw him, still with his back to her.
Glancing over at David, she was surprised to see and expression that mixed amusement with a touch of fatherly pride. The pride vanished quickly when he was aware of her look, and instead, he gestured for her to rise and resume.
"When this is over," she grunted as she got to her feet. "You and I are going to have a few things to resolve."
"We'll see," David grinned.
"Hey," Xena said loudly, bringing Hope out of her slumber. "Get up! Time to get going!"
Hope rolled over, pulling the blanket tighter around her body. She groaned loudly and opened her eyes.
Looking down towards the small fire, she could see Gabrielle kneeling over their small cooking pot.
"Come on," Gabrielle smiled. "Have something to eat."
Her entire body was throbbing from the repeated beatings she had received in the dreamscape.
She flipped the blanket of her body and pulled herself upright, trying to ignore the soreness in her limbs.
Then she saw the shocked expression on her mother's face.
"What?" She asked.
"What happened to you?" Xena asked, looking down with an equally confused expression.
Hope looked down at her arms and found them covered in a myriad of sickly blue/black and purplish bruises.
"My god," Gabrielle breathed. She rose and stepped quickly over to her.
"It's okay, Mother," Hope protested.
"No, it isn't," Gabrielle replied. "Now, let me see."
She knelt down and began looking over Hope's injuries. She followed a particularly vicious looking one up her arm and under her tunic.
She lifted the shirt from off Hope's lower back and almost cried out in astonishment.
Hope's entire body was a mass of bruises and abrasions. Beneath that she could see the older scars from a whip or thongs.
"What is this?" She asked in horror.
"Long story," Hope replied.
Gabrielle looked at Hope sternly.
"Enough of this," she insisted. "You're going to tell me exactly what's going on, young lady!"
Hope shrugged.
"First this nightmare that you were having," Gabrielle continued. "And now, every morning you wake up looking more battered than the day before. And all you can do is say nothing?"
"It's complicated," Hope said.
"Hope!"
Hope closed her eyes and took a deep, painful breath. "The scars," she said after a while. "Are from Targana Prison."
"And this other stuff?" Xena asked, looking over Gabrielle's shoulder at the nasty discolored injuries.
When Hope was slow to answer. Gabrielle stepped around to face her. With a gentle finger, she lifted Hope's eyes to meet hers and saw her reluctance to speak.
"It's okay," Gabrielle said calmly.
"It's," Hope began. "It's David."
Both Xena and Gabrielle felt their jaws drop in astonishment.
"David?" Gabrielle asked. "My David?"
Hope nodded.
"My dad is doing that?" Xena asked. A smile began to pull at her features. "That's amusing."
"Xena!" Gabrielle scolded.
She looked back down at Hope.
"Why is he doing this to you?" she asked. "How is he doing this?"
"It's hard to explain," Hope replied.
"Try," Gabrielle said evenly.
A short while later, the entire tale had been related. Xena crouched near the fire, mixing a poultice to use when she wrapped Hope's injuries. Despite Gabrielle's admonishments, she had a hard time keeping a satisfied smirk off her face.
"So," Gabrielle said, trying to wrap her mind around the whole thing. "Every night you go to sleep. David brings you into these dreamscapes to teach you these lessons. And you spend all those hours, doing what? Absorbing his knowledge and experiences, and then using them so you can better realize them when you're awake."
Hope nodded.
"And all these," Gabrielle continued, gesturing at Hope's battered form. "Are the result of – "
"Getting her ass kicked," Xena couldn't resist getting a jab in.
Two sets of green eyes turned and glared at her.
After a few moments, Hope excused herself and headed down to a nearby stream to bathe.
Once she was out of earshot, Gabrielle wheeled and faced Xena.
"What is your problem?" She demanded.
Xena froze and looked up. "My problem?" she asked. "What is my problem?" She let the mixture she was preparing fall to the ground with a thump and stood up. "What's your problem? Have you forgotten what that thing is?"
"That thing," Gabrielle said with an edge in her voice. "Is your sister, whether you like it or not!"
"And she was also my son's killer," Xena shot back. "My father's killer, the creature responsible for the destruction of our home, all our friends! And you're sitting her on this little trip, treating her like your little lost lamb!"
"Now just a minute!" Gabrielle shot back, her own voice rising.
"And just because she has you wrapped around her little finger, doesn't mean I have to follow suit!"
"Eve!" Gabrielle said angrily.
"What?"
"Remember Eve, Xena?" Gabrielle said angrily. "Remember all the things she did?"
"Hold on a minute!" Xena started.
"Didn't she wipe out a bunch of lives during her run?" Gabrielle continued relentlessly. "She sold people into slavery, beat whole regions into submission with merciless, bloody campaigns!"
"That's not fair!" Xena protested.
"She killed Joxer, Xena!" Gabrielle continued. "Do you remember Joxer?"
"Of course I remember Joxer!" Xena spat.
"Should I have let Virgil kill her?" Gabrielle asked. "I wanted to kill her myself! Never mind what the Fates did to me!"
"That's not fair!" Xena blurted.
"You convinced me to give her a chance!" Gabrielle finished, staring Xena in the eye. "And in the end, she turned out to be one of my closest friends!"
Xena opened her mouth to respond, but no words came out.
"How is this any different than what happened to Eve, Xena?" Gabrielle crossed her arms over her chest.
Xena looked up and froze.
Hope stood at the unfolding confrontation, her eyes moving back and forth between the two of them. She quickly stooped and grabbed a towel. "Sorry to interrupt," she apologized. She turned and walked back down towards the stream.
"I," Xena started.
"It's alright, Hope," Gabrielle said, holding Xena in her icy gaze. "I think I'll join you."
Xena stood there, her mouth agape for a moment, embarrassment and outrage wrestling for control. Outrage finally won.
"I'll just wait here," she muttered. Then she faced the direction her mother and Hope had departed. "At least one of us is keeping things in perspective here!" She finished with a yell.
It was long into the night when Xena's eyes opened and her senses screamed to full wakefulness.
She stiffened, but otherwise did not move, listening with her entire being, to her surroundings.
She heard the quiet rustle of careful steps moving away from the camp and back down towards the small pond.
Slowly, Xena turned over and saw Hope vanish into the thicker foliage.
"Gotcha," She thought, and a cold smile spread across her face.
She waited until the sound of Hopes steps had faded completely, and then silently rose to follow.
"Now we'll see who's being closed minded," she thought with certainty. "Going off to check in with your little friends, I'd wager."
Xena moved with absolute silence as she followed Hope's trail back down by the water.
As she neared, she could hear the young woman speaking quietly, but she couldn't make out the words. There was the soft sound of water and then a quiet groan, as if Hope were trying to hold in something uncomfortable.
Xena stepped out of the concealing underbrush and found Hope kneeling next to the water.
"What are you doing?" Xena asked menacingly.
Hope practically jumped out of her skin. She turned and saw Xena poised as if to strike and then quickly averted her face.
It was too late, the light of the moon had betrayed Hope's secret. And Xena felt her mouth fall open in shock.
"What is that?" she asked, moving closer.
"Nothing," Hope said quickly, wringing out the small cloth she had brought and putting it to her face.
Xena knelt down beside Hope and leaned forward to see.
"Let me see," she demanded.
"It's nothing," Hope protested.
Xena caught the young woman's wrist, stopping the cloth from its return to her face and slowly turned Hope to face her.
The bottom of Hope's face was a mask of blood that still leaked from her nostrils. Around her nose, Xena could already see the tell tail signs of bruising on either side, moving up to her eyes.
"What is all this?" Xena asked in wonder.
"Nothing," Hope extricated her hand and wiped the blood from her mouth and chin. Her upper lip was slit as well. "It's nothing."
The chill in Xena's heart melted away as the compassion that her father had taught her suddenly rose to the fore and took over.
"Let me see,' she said gently.
Hope slowly turned to look at Xena, her eyes watering and full of pain.
Xena took the cloth and dipped it in the lake again, gently cleaning Hope's injuries.
"How did this happen?" she asked, feeling a surprising twinge of outrage at the brutality of the supposed attack. "Who did this?"
Hope shrugged. "I think his name was Goro. All I know for sure was that he was big, heavy, mean, and had four arms."
"Goro?" Xena shook her head. "I don't know that one. Is this the nightmare that you were telling mom about?"
Hope shook her head. "This is something different."
Xena held Hope's face between her palms and looked at her nose critically. It was definitely broken.
"I need to fix this," she explained. "Otherwise it won't heal right."
Hope nodded.
"This is going to sting a bit," Xena warned her. Then she placed her thumbs on either side of Hope's nose and gave a sharp, gentle tweak. The bones snapped audibly back into place, and the blood ran afresh. Hope stifled a cry.
"Didn't feel a thing," she said meekly as she reclaimed the cloth and held it against her nostrils to stem the blood.
Xena sat back and studied Hope for a moment.
"This is more of my Dad's work, isn't it?" she asked knowingly.
Hope nodded.
"How is this happening?" Xena continued. "I mean, you're only asleep. You're only dreaming."
"What the mind perceives," Hope shrugged. "The body believes."
"But this?" Xena pointed at Hopes nose. "Someone would have to crack you square in the face for that kind of damage."
Hope nodded. "He had four arms. I only managed to block two."
"I thought the nightmare was bad," Xena confessed, remembering Hope's tossing and turning in their old house.
"It is,' Hope shrugged. "David told me he'd teach me what I needed. I guess this is part of it."
"Or, he's getting some twisted sense of satisfaction seeing you beat up every night," Xena finished.
Hope shrugged.
Xena's next words surprised her. "Hey. No one should deal with this." She stopped suddenly when she realized who she was speaking to, and what this other person had done. Still, her opinion didn't change. "No matter what you did." She finished.
Hope looked at her in surprise.
Xena stared at this doppelganger, this image of her mother, once best friend a lifetime ago with the words of their earlier argument ringing between her ears.
Slowly, she began to smile and shook her head. "I hate it when she does that."
"What?"
"Makes sense," Xena finished. "My mother is impossible to deal with when she knows she's made a point."
Hope actually smiled slightly at the quip, which surprised her as much as it seemed to surprise Xena.
"Alright," Xena continued. "Tell me everything that's been going on when you go to sleep at night. Don't leave anything out. Maybe we can find a way to keep you from getting battered to a pulp when you wake up in the mornings?"
From her place of concealment a little ways off in the foliage, Gabriele watched her daughters, talking under the rising moon. She smiled and nodded before turning and carefully sneaking back to the camp.
She lay back down on the blanket and pulled it around her body, staring up at the stars with a contented expression on her face. Then she closed her eyes and breathed deep. "Finally."
The next day, the trio continued towards Amphipolis at a casual pace that allowed time for discussion. This time, however, Xena was as much a part of the conversation as Gabrielle.
The three of them considered Hope's situation and formulated a plan that seemed to fit the circumstances. Unfortunately for Hope, the bulk of it was once again on her shoulders.
As they set up camp that evening, Xena noted Hope's growing trepidation at the prospect of sleep.
"Hey," Xena said as she laid her bed roll out. "Just like we talked about. You can control it as much as he can, and if you can't, you can just wake up."
"He can't keep you there, Hope," Gabrielle added. "But just in case, Xena and I will take turns watching you tonight."
Hope looked over at Xena, who merely nodded in agreement.
"Okay," Hope said nervously, as she lay down. She stared up at the heavens, watching the stars twinkling beyond the soft layer of wispy gray clouds and took a deep breath.
"Don't worry," Xena said suddenly. She actually smiled at her. "We'll be right here."
Gabrielle smiled and placed a comforting hand on Hope's shoulder.
Her eyes moved from one to the other, and for the first time in her life, she felt a sensation of total security. She let her eyes drift closed and felt the comfortable warmth of sleep pass over her.
When she opened her eyes again, she was lying on a soft bed of moss, deep in the swamps of Dagobah. She was dressed in a simple pair of brown boots, breeches, and a pale cream colored tunic of thick woven cloth. A sturdy leather belt wrapped about her waist.
"Well," A familiar voice greeted her. "Ready for the next little adventure?"
Rolling over, she saw David standing nearby, wearing a long pale traveling robe. In his hand was a simple wooden walking staff.
She was shocked at the difference in his appearance. His hair was almost completely gray now, and his features, while still rugged, were ore weathered and careworn. The lines around his eyes and mouth seemed more deeply etched.
He held a second bundle of pale white cloth draped over his left arm.
Hope got to her feet, bracing herself for the next chapter in her trial.
"So," she asked grimly. "Who are you going to have beat on me next?"
"Beat on?" David asked. Then he smiled. "Well, okay, maybe I have been putting you up against some pretty tough hombres. I admit it. But you've won every time." He chuckled. "I think Goro's nuts still haven't dropped back into place after that low blow last night."
He stepped forward and extended the bundle of cloth to her.
"Still," he continued. "I think a change of venue is in order. Put this on and follow me."
She donned the robe, which was identical to the one that David wore, and followed him through the foliage to a small, dry clearing. In the center of the open area sat a large, boxy, gray vessel, the like of which Hope had never conceived of before. It was angular and squat, with slashes of green and white emblazoned on the nose and upper surfaces.
David stepped up to a small panel and hit a switch. A small stair dropped beside him and the inner hatch hissed open with the release of compressed gasses.
"All aboard," David offered, gesturing for her to enter. "Step in and have a seat in the right side chair, please."
Swallowing a sudden sense of anxiety, Hope ascended the steps and entered the main cabin of the craft. All was awash in deep red light. Moving forward, she sat down in front of a series of control panels and levers, her eyes trying to make sense of all that she was seeing.
David seated himself beside her and began expertly adjusting controls. The hatch behind them hissed closed and a muffled whine began somewhere behind them.
David was humming to himself as he set his controls, then he grasped two levers and began moving them.
The ship lifted gracefully off the earth and moved slowly towards the open sky.
Once they were clear of the trees, David put the vessel in a steeper climb, rocketing towards the heavens.
Hope grasped the armrests with white knuckled fear as she watched the world fall away beneath them. The ship vibrated gently until it leveled out and smoothed after one final series of jolts.
Only then did Hope slowly release he death grip on the chair and lean forward to see that she was high above the world, so high that it was nothing more than a rapidly diminishing sphere of pale white, green, and blue sparkling in the heavens.
"What is this?" she asked in wonder.
"This?' David asked as he adjusted some more controls. He shrugged. "Think of it as an interstellar taxi cab."
Hope frowned. "And what is a taxi cab?"
David opened his mouth to reply, and then sighed. "Never mind."
He turned the ship away from the planet and pointed towards a series of three long protuberances hanging in mid air.
"Computer," he said in calm, commanding tone. "Initialize jump gate sequence. Set course for Babylon 5"
A soft, melodic mechanical voice replied. "Confirmed."
As the ship neared the three long objects, they suddenly flared to life with stored energy, flashing in sequence until a huge, yellow orange vortex of energy opened wide to receive them.
"We're not going into that, are we?" Hope asked as panic rose in her belly.
"Better hold on," David replied, grinning.
The ship edged forward until it reached the threshold of the vortex, and suddenly, they were pinned in their seats as the ship was hurled forward, vanishing into the vastness of hyperspace.
