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Chapter 4

A Glimpse of the Past

''I don't want to sound like an asshole..." Bowski sighed when he was finally back on the surface again. „...and given the fact that without you guys I would be still stuck down there with that one!" he growled and pointed with his finger at the young woman that was climbing out of the hole in the ground.

"I heard that!" Paula muttered. "You are not a nice person, Marshal!" However, Marshal Bowski didn't pay any attention to her when he addressed the other people that had gathered around them.

"But I must point out that I gave you a direct order not to leave the base-camp." the Marshal explained and looked at the Professor, the students and the members of the research staff. When he noticed the unhappy looks on all the faces, he sighed and relented. "However, since you at least stayed all together I will not call for a shooting squad today." Unfortunately, no one really seemed to get his joke. Or worse, they believed that he was actually dead serious about that.

Well, whatever.

"Marshal, I don't want to sound rude, but entering the derelict just like that might have caused some serious damage." Professor Allagan whined. "I don't want to question your sense of professionalism..." Which he totally was by saying something like that. "...but by trespassing, you might have destroyed artifacts of the utmost importance and-"

"Don't worry." Bowski cut him short. "The only thing we saw were endless corridors. Oh, and we know now that Kerrigan has an awful sense of direction."

"Hey, it was me who found this baby in the first place!" Paula protested.

"Which I still find hard to believe." Bowski shot back. "Anyway, thanks for helping us out there. Much appreciated." The Marshal then looked over to the hole in the outer hull of the derelict and sighed. "Well, I see you didn't waste any time in my absence."

"We stayed together." Professor Allagan defended himself. "But we didn't want to waste another day. So, we decided to start with the excavation."

"Excavation, huh?" Bowski mumbled and looked over at that small crane the team had placed right next to the hole in the outer hull of the recently discovered battlecruiser. The same crane that had a rope attached to it that both Bowski and Paula had used to climb back up. Perhaps Bowski should be angry for the research-team not listening to him...again. But right now, he was just grateful that they had helped him back up again. The fresh air out here sure felt nice.

"So... what did you see down there?" the Professor asked both him and Paula.

"What I just said: Corridors." the Marshal mumbled. "We didn't get very far. Thankfully Kerrigan can't tell left from right."

"I'm standing right over here. You know that, right?" Paula protested.

"So, you want to start with exploring the derelict right away?" Bowski asked Allagan, completely ignoring the young woman next to him.

"Not right away, but soon." Allagan informed him. "First we want to bring some more equipment up here from the base-camp. If we want to do this, then we should do it right."

"Amen to that." Bowski sighed. "Well, you won't hear any arguments from me. Slow and steady sounds like the way I like it most." There was an awkward moment of silence and when Bowski looked over to Paula, he noticed how she blushed.

"What?"

"You do know that there are several ways on how to interpret that statement, right?" she asked and only then the Marshal realized what she was talking about.

"You're a bag of fun, Kerrigan. And you got a smutty mind." he scoffed her.

"Tell me about it." Paula sighed, which was probably the weirdest answer she could have given him. Bowski shook his head and turned his attention back towards Allagan.

"What about the supplies?" he asked and the Professor blinked a few times in surprise.

"Huh? Supplies? Oh! You mean the Firns and Boyle! Yes, they have arrived a few hours ago. We got all the supplies we need now." Allagan guessed correctly. At least that's what Bowski believed. He was referring to the two people they had sent back to Russou City in order to get important supplies. The Marshal had actually forgotten the names of those two roughly twenty seconds after the Professor had introduced his team to him. Fun fact: Bowski suffered under a bad memory for names. He usually could only remember a name if a certain person was either truly special...

...or truly obnoxious.

"You know what?" Kerrigan moaned right next to him. "We should have checked if there's a bathtub in that derelict. I could use a bath right now."

Meet exhibit A. Case closed.

"If you're already missing constant hot water, Kerrigan, then maybe you should have stayed home. Or you could head back to Russou City. Legend says that there is supposed to be a golden bathtub in the Magistrate's bathroom." Bowski mused.

"I'm not made out of sugar." Kerrigan declared.

"Too bad." the Marshal replied, which caused Paula to smile at him.

"Aw, that is such a sweet compliment!" she beamed.

"It isn't." Bowski informed her. "Sugar dissolves in water." And then he turned around and walked away, heading towards the base-camp. Paula opened her mouth, ready to reply something, but then she froze when she realized that he had indeed dissed her. Next to the young woman her friend Sirella appeared and seemed to be very amused by the fact that Paula was actually speechless.

"Solid burn, Paula." the Protoss teased her. "He got you good!"

As the day went on, Bowski was mostly busy watching the small research-team doing whatever research-teams were supposed to do. He didn't claim that he understood everything they were doing, but most of the stuff looked pretty underwhelming to be perfectly honest. Roughly half of the team were simply busy cleaning up rubble and dirt around the hole in the hull. They were searching every square inch of the derelict for clues. It was somewhat amusing to watch. Most of the battlecruiser was buried beneath dirt and dust. Not even one percent of its surface was accessible. Bowski and Kerrigan had searched the area for days, hoping to find a hatch or some other sort of access point. But after a few days they had realized that those were all buried beneath the surface. And so, they had searched for another way to get inside. Not an easy task considering that this was still a battlecruiser. The blowtorch Bowski had used to cut through the hull had only worked because they had found a place on the hull that wasn't covered with heavy armor-plates. And even then, it had taken quite some time to find the exact location where to cut the hull open.

Needlessly to say that it had taken them a lot of time to find this place. That was the reason why they had almost run out of supplies and why Fitz and Blakblak, or whatever their names were, had returned to Russou City in order to get food and other stuff.

Honestly?

Bowski had hoped that by now they would have given up on finding the long-lost battlecruiser. The fact that they had actually found the thing had somewhat ruined his plans. He still hadn't come fully to terms with the fact that he had to babysit these people for God knows how long. So, without anything else to do, Bowski did what he was best at: He made sure that nothing would go wrong. Walking the perimeter, checking on the researchers both in the base-camp and the excavation site, making sure that no one would do anything stupid. That doesn't sound very heroic, sure. But it was an important task nonetheless. And a very tedious one.

As already mentioned, one of Bowski's greatest strengths was his discipline. And it came quite in handy considering how tedious this whole task was. Walking from A to B, only to check on the people, then walk back from B to A, only to tell the people what the others from point A want them to do, only to walk back to A again and tell them that B needs equipment XYZ which the folks of A had already carried there and the guys at B just had to look harder.

Yeah, sounds like fun.

It was a boring task, one that involved not much skill. But it suited Bowski just fine. At least that way he had something to do and could keep an eye on the team at the same time.

As he was walking towards the base-camp, he encountered Sirella again who was busy carrying those pieces of equipment that were too heavy for one human to shoulder. And while the Marshal had no idea what was going on inside that alien head of hers, he could swear that she seemed...happy.

"Sorry, Marshal! Could you step aside? This thing is pretty bulky and I can't really see what's right in front of me." the huge Protoss explained and Bowski made way for her.

"You seem to be in high spirits." the Marshal mused. "Have you found a new way to occupy your mind?"

"Something like that I suppose." Sirella replied. "At least now I have something useful to do."

"Sure seems that way. Anything I can help you with?"

"I doubt it. This thing is heavy, even for me. But you could make sure that no one blocks my path or walks up right in front of me. I almost bumped into two people already, and if this thing falls on someone then-"

"I get the picture." Bowski sighed. "Yeah, come on. Let's get this...whatever this is...to the excavation site." A nice side-effect of this situation was that the Marshal finally had the time to talk with Sirella without Kerrigan being around. And that was an opportunity he couldn't allow to just pass by. Not if he had to assume that he would be out here with these people for quite some time.

"I don't want to sound intrusive or anything..." the Marshal started. "...but can I ask you a few questions?"

"If it's about Protoss mating-habits, then no. I don't want to talk about that." Sirella muttered.

"That was actually the last thing on my mind."

"Oh...good. It's just really weird since most humans approach us and ask "how do you make babies. You don't even have any orifices!" It gets annoying after some time." the young Protoss mumbled.

"Don't worry, I don't want to know anything about how Protoss reproduce. I'm more interested in you...and your companion."

"Ah, yes." Sirella moaned. "She does have that effect on people, right?" And then the young Protoss sighed. "What do you want to know."

"Where did you meet? Don't get me wrong, I don't have any right to question your choice of friends. You two just seem to be a, well, how shall I put it? Very odd couple."

"Yes, we get that a lot." Sirella mumbled.

"Is she really your friend?" Bowski asked.

"I guess so...wait, that came out wrong. Yes. Yes! Paula is my friend. But she's also a handful."

"So I noticed." was the Marshal's dry reply to that. "Forgive me if I'm so blunt, but your friendship seems a bit, well..."

"One-sided?" Sirella suggested.

"Not the word I would have used, but yeah."

"Is there any particular reason why you want to know more about her?"

"Not really. But I like to know who am I working with. The Professor and the other members of the research team? I think I have figured them out. And even you seem to be relatively easy to read." There was an awkward moment of silence. "Not that you are a simple person." Bowski then added hastily when he realized that his comment could be interpreted in different ways.

"Ha...don't worry. You didn't wound my pride or anything like that." Sirella told him. "As for Paula...well...she has her moments. It's not easy for her either."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Bowski wanted to know.

"It means...eh, I don't think I can tell you what that means." Sirella sighed. "Let's just say that I don't want to switch places with her. And considering from where she is, I would say that Paula turned out pretty normal."

"No offense, but I think I would like to hear more details."

"I'm sorry, but that is something I can't and won't do." Sirella explained. "It's nothing personal. But if you want to hear Paula's story, then you should ask her yourself."

"I doubt that she will give me a straight answer." Bowski mused.

"Yes, she does that." the Protoss mumbled. "Want a tip from me? Don't let it get to you. Paula has a way of driving people insane, but only if you take her seriously."

"That's a rather weird way to talk about a friend." the Marshal replied.

"Paula can handle it. Here's another tip: She's a lot tougher than you might think. Also, don't tell her that I told you that. Or I wouldn't hear the end of it." Sirella explained.

"I shall keep it in mind."

"Tsk...now you sound like my grandfather." the young Protoss snickered.

"Honestly, I didn't even know that Protoss had grandfathers. Or grandmothers." That's when a frown appeared on Bowski's face. "Wait, you do have grandmothers, right? It's just...you know, come to think of it, this might be a weird question but-"

"Yes..." Sirella sighed. "...Protoss have two genders, just like humans. And yes, I am actually a woman. And yes, I had a grandmother. Two, actually. But don't ask me about any details on Protoss mating-habits. That is one awkward conversation I don't want to have again."

"That bad?" Bowski asked and Sirella shook her head.

"Sooner or later everyone asks those questions. "But how does it work? You don't have any orifices! I don't understand! Can you tell me?" And when I tell them, they are usually, well..."

"Underwhelmed?"

"Grossed out." the young Protoss replied. "Also, cut me some slack! I'm just 147 years old! In human years that would be...I don't know...sixteen?" When Bowski heard that, he couldn't help but snicker.

"Just 147 years old? Man, must be weird to be so old."

"I'm not old." Sirella declared. "Trust me, for a Protoss I'm barely out of childhood. Time is relative. For a human, 100 years might be a very long time. You grow up and mature so fast. For a Protoss, one hundred years are, well...they feel shorter. Let's leave it at that."

"In dog years I would be dead by now." Bowski joked and looked at the heavy crate in Sirella's arms. "Feels wrong to let you do all the heavy lifting. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No, it's fine. At least I got something to do. And I can be of help. That's better than last time."

"Last time?" the Marshal asked.

"Eh...it's a long story. Let's just say that I've been getting used to being dragged all over the galaxy by Paula." Little did the Marshal know that Sirella was quite literal with that statement. When they finally reached the excavation-site, the research team had already managed to get a makeshift-elevator up and running. Bowski had to admit that this thing would come really in handy. Now people didn't have to fall to their potential death anymore in order to enter the derelict.

Quite the improvement.

The Marshal's spine was already grateful for this thing.

"Marshal! Good timing!" Professor Allagan beamed when Bowski and Sirella reached them. "We just sent the first team down in order to start the excavation. And since you were already down there-"

"Ohohoho no." Bowski growled. "Nope, I don't want to head back down there. I wasn't keen on entering this thing in the first place and I'm not keen on getting back down there either. This is your gig. I'm just here to make sure that everyone comes back home alive and-" That's when suddenly a voice came out of the hole in the hull of the derelict.

"Professor!" a student yelled. "Miss Kerrigan just walked away and now we can't see her anymore!" There was an awkward moment of silence and everyone above the surface looked over to Bowski, who could feel how his eyelid started to twitch.

"KERRIGAN!"

The heavy, reinforced door hadn't been opened in hundreds of years. As Paula stood in front of it, she hesitated. Yes, it was true, she hadn't found her way here right away. But hey, nobody was perfect. Even if that statement was somewhat ironic considering who we are talking about here. As Paula stared at the door, she had to think about the journey she had done a couple of years ago. She had told everyone that she was fine but in truth she still had a hard time coming to terms with that she had witnessed.

Now she was back.

Paula placed her hand on the cold metal of the door and brushed with her fingers over the oxidated surface. The metal had turned brown and there was nothing left of the ornaments that once had adorned the door. Too bad.

"Dad always says that you were a beauty. Too bad that the others can't see you like you used to be." she whispered. Then again, even if they could see her in her prime, would the others see the same thing Paula did? Probably not. Because they lacked context. They didn't know what this vessel stood for. How could they? They probably had never heard that name before. Sirella was an exception. She knew about the true value of this relic. But even then, she only understood it with her mind. Paula knew that her friend didn't feel anything when she walked through the endless corridors of this ship, not as she did.

Paula looked for the button to open the door. It was exactly where it was supposed to be. She knew that there was no energy running through the circuits. It was just like before, when the Marshal had tried to open the door. Paula had used a tiny spark of her energies in order to open the door. To everyone who didn't know who she really was or what she could do, it had truly looked like a freak coincidence.

This time she didn't have to hide who was responsible for it. The moment she touched the button, a tiny spark sprung over from her body and a sudden surge brought the door to life, even if it was only for the fraction of a second. However, it was more than enough in order for the old mechanism to do its job. The door sprung open, if only a bit. But that was more than enough for Paula to gain access. Right in front of her was nothing but darkness yet she knew that there was no threat lurking in front of her. She took a deep breath, braced herself, squeezed herself through the door and then...

The moment the door opened and she stepped inside, she was greeted by an all-too-familiar sight. They were all present, each and every single one. And they were all busy licking the big man's boots.

Pathetic, really.

She didn't even have to read their thoughts to know what they were thinking.

The group of men was all standing around a huge holographic table that was currently showing an image of a starsystem unknown to even her. And that said a lot, considering that she had visited dozens of systems and hundreds of worlds so far. And those she hadn't visited yet or heard of were simply too unimportant to care.

"...it's just a wild goose chase." someone muttered. "With all due respect, Sir, I don't think that we should waste any resources on this thing. Our forces are stretched out thin. If we commit any more forces to this operation, we might end up open to an attack of the Confederacy."

"I agree." someone else said. "This operation seems to be a waste of resources. We don't have any intel on that location anyway. Sir, I am sorry, but I cannot see how this will help us with our agenda." Of course, they couldn't see it. They were so blind to everything going on around them that she wouldn't be surprised if they couldn't even find their own butts in broad daylight. As the young woman walked towards the group of officers, she noticed how the rest of the bridge's staff noticed her and how they started to exchange annoyed and worried looks.

What's she doing here? she could hear the thoughts of a man nearby.

God, why does the boss allow this freak to run around freely? someone else thought.

One thing the Confederacy did right; turning these freaks into mindless drones. You need to be human if you want to enjoy human rights.

Their thoughts didn't hurt her. She had learned to ignore them a long time ago and...

No. That was a lie. It did bother her. But the bitterness that filled her heart had helped her to focus her anger on other things. They were pathetic, each and every single one of them. Not because they feared her. But because they believed that they were actually superior to her. When the officers noticed that she was approaching, they tried to act as if they hadn't noticed her. Fun-fact: If you deal with someone who can read minds, then "acting as if nothing happened" serves no purpose at all. Except for lying to yourself maybe.

The young woman stopped and straightened herself. Since she was no longer part of any real military anymore, she didn't bother saluting. However, she showed her respect by acting like a true professional. The voices of the officers died down and she could feel their burning gazes on her. It didn't take a psionic to know what they were thinking right now. Pathetic, really. All of them. All of them except for one person...

"Ah!" the man in command sighed when he finally noticed her. He looked up from the hologram and when their eyes met, the young woman noticed the soft, almost fatherly expression on the older man's face. "Look who's back. What do you have for us, Lieutenant?" he asked, skipping all the pleasantries. She was thankful for that since he knew that she hated useless chit-chat.

"Sir, I have reviewed the incoming information from Antiga Prime. It would seem that your plan was a complete success. The official news is not mentioning what's going on on the planet right now, but we made sure that footage of the riots would leak to other worlds. Right now, the Confederacy is facing an open revolt of unprecedented size and force. So far, they haven't been able to contain it. We also intercepted secret transmissions from the local magistrate. It would seem that he's in panic and asking for help. So far Tarsonis hasn't sent him a proper reply." When she noticed the faint smile on the man's face, she couldn't help but shiver. This had been his plan. He had told her that the whole world of Antiga Prime was one big powder-keg, ready to explode. She hadn't really believed him but it had hardly mattered. His orders had been clear; to go down there and make a messy situation even messier. And that's exactly what she had done.

"Hmm...it would seem that we have hit the Confederacy right where it hurts the most." the older man mused and then a proud smile appeared on his face. "Good job, Lieutenant Kerrigan. I knew that you would pull it off." When Kerrigan heard that, she felt a surge of pride in her chest. But at the same time, she couldn't ignore the frustration.

"I am not the only one who deserves praise." she explained with a cold tone in her voice. "The officer you sent proved to be-"

"Whoa! Now that's one fancy bridge! Is this a battlecruiser or a luxury liner?" a new male voice suddenly appeared right behind her. Kerrigan gritted her teeth when she realized that he had finally caught up with her. Too bad, she had hoped that she had lost him. When the man approached the group of officers, the young woman could sense the disapproval of the other officers.

From what gutter did they pull this guy out? someone thought, which put a smile on Kerrigan's face. There was some irony to it. A useless cockroach was complaining that there was an unwashed monkey present. However, the only man whose opinion actually mattered seemed to have made up his mind a while ago.

"Captain Raynor." the older man declared. "Good to see you in one piece, son. It would seem that I made the right decision to put you on point for this mission."

"Yeah, well..." James Raynor replied and put his hands into his pockets. "...things went sideways twelve different ways down there, but we managed. Somehow. Don't ask me how, though, I have no effin' clue."

"Hahahaha..." the older man laughed when he heard that. It was a warm laugh, one that inspired trust. "...I can hardly wait to read your report. I am certain that it will be less dry and more amusing to read than most other reports I get these days."

"Wait, I have to write reports?" Raynor whined. "No one said anything about writing reports! I thought we wanted to get rid of the Confederacy so no one would ever have to write reports again! Mengsk, that wasn't part of the deal!" When Arcturus Mengsk heard that, he threw his head back and burst out in laughter. This time it was loud and came straight from the heart.

"Bwahahahaha! Oh, I guess the jig is up. You have uncovered my deepest and darkest secret. My plan is to make everyone write reports until their hands fall off. I am a wanted terrorist after all."

"It's a devilish plan, I give you that much." Raynor mused while smiling. "Also, I'm all game for beating the Confeds with their own weapons." While Kerrigan listened to these two men bickering like old friends, she could barely contain her frustration. The mission on Antiga Prime had been a success...barely. It had been a sloppy job, and they had to thank said Captain Raynor for that. He and the former Magistrate of Mar Sara had joined the Sons of Korhal only recently, and while the Magistrate had proven to be a capable man. And, more importantly, someone who knew when to shut up.

The same could be not said about James Raynor, however.

She had met this caveman just a day ago but she already knew that she would die as a happy woman if she would never ever have to work with him again. What was there to say about James Raynor? Well, for starters he acted like he was a true badass, the kind of rouge charmer women are supposed to adore. What a load of bullshit. The next thing was the fact that he was utterly reckless and ignored every advice and/or order she had given him. How was she supposed to respect a fellow officer if that idiot couldn't even follow the simplest orders?

And she wasn't even talking about the fact that his mind, in true caveman-fashion, was only interested in how he could use her body for his own fun.

Lieutenant Kerrigan stood by her word when she had called him a pig. The image she had seen in his mind when he had lay gaze upon her for the first time had been...

...well, let's just say that she would never ever do what he was thinking. And certainly not with him. The day Sarah Kerrigan would ever think about having sex with James Raynor was the day when hell would freeze over.

"Sir, I do not wish to sound impertinent, but while the mission was a success..." Kerrigan explained. "...our forces took many unnecessary risks and-"

"I am aware of the situation." Arcturus Mengsk cut her short and raised his hand in a gesture to show her that he wasn't angry. "Do not worry, Lieutenant. The Magistrate already debriefed me. Yes, the mission didn't exactly go as planned and involved a lot more explosions that I would have expected, thanks to Captain Raynor's leadership-"

"If it's stupid and works, it ain't stupid." Raynor defended himself.

"...what matters is that we achieved our goal. The Magistrate, Captain Raynor and yourself, you did a splendid job." Mengsk continued. "Thanks to you and your achievements on Antiga Prime, we can move on to the next step of our operation." The leader of the Sons of Korhal straightened himself and looked at the other officers standing around the holographic table.

"My staff and I are currently debating the benefits of another mission deep inside enemy territory. You just joined us when things were about to become interesting." Mengsk explained and a faint smile appeared on his face when he looked at the other officers. "My staff is urging me to just forget about this mission and move on to a more promising one. Yet I am certain that it is just the right task for someone like you." That statement actually sparked Kerrigan's interest, yet she kept her cool and didn't show that she was intrigued.

"Sir." was everything she said with a toneless voice and the smile on Mengsk's face became a bit wider. He looked down and pressed a few buttons in front of him and the hologram they were all looking at changed. It suddenly showed a world Lieutenant Kerrigan had never seen before.

"This is Ramelow." Mengsk explained.

"Never heard of that world." Captain Raynor muttered.

"I'm not surprised. It's at the ass-end of this sector, even when compared to such backwater worlds like Mar Sara. No offense." Mengsk said to Raynor.

"None taken. Mar Sara is a backwater planet after all. Or was, anyway." the former Marshal of said world mumbled. Mengsk offered him a warm smile.

"Do not give up, Captain Raynor." he told the younger man with a fatherly tone in his voice. "One day you will return to the world, and so will all the others who came with you. I'm sure about that."

"Hear hear." Raynor sighed. "Hopefully there won't be any critters left once we-" he started, but then he was cut short by Kerrigan who had no love for this chit-chat.

"Sir!" she interrupted Raynor and looked Mengsk straight into the eyes. "I take it that this world is of strategic importance to our campaign?" When the leader of the Sons of Korhal heard that, he chuckled.

"Not really." That comment caused Kerrigan to frown. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't have hesitated to probe his mind in order to get to the truth. However, Arcturus Mengsk was one of the few, maybe the only person in this galaxy that she trusted and respected. He was the only one who had ever treated her like a fellow human being and not like a living weapon.

Or a mere sex-object, like that caveman captain right next to her...

"Then you...wish us to use it as a staging point for a push deeper into Confederate territory." Kerrigan mused.

"No. It's so far away from the core worlds that it wouldn't make any sense to go there." Mengsk replied, which only caused the Lieutenant to frown even harder.

"I don't think I understand, Sir." she muttered and for the fraction of a second a sad look appeared on Mengsk's face. However, it vanished as fast as it had appeared and probably no one except for her had noticed it at all.

"Ramelow is absolutely unimportant. It has no strategic value whatsoever. And it is pretty much on the other side of the Koprulu Sector. Which makes it the perfect target for what I have in mind." the older man explained and pressed another button on the holographic table. The image of the planet changed and now showed a location on the northern hemisphere. "There is a Confederate garrison on this world. Nothing big, nothing special. A garrison like so many others on so many remote worlds. And that makes it so perfect."

"Uh...I'm sorry, but I think I would like to have more context to my context." Raynor muttered, who seemed to be just as confused as Kerrigan.

"As I said, this garrison is nothing special." Mengsk then explained. "It's generic. Our strike at Antiga Prime was a big one and it shook the Confederacy to the core. Now they are nervous that this will happen again. And mark my words; it shall do so. But not anytime soon. We dealt them a hard blow. I'm certain that these corrupt fascists on Tarsonis are now waiting for us to make our next move, and they are waiting for a big one. But instead of using a hammer, we will use a needle." When Kerrigan heard that, she squinted her eyes and stared at the hologram. There had to be something special about that place.

"Is it a secret installation?" she asked and Mengsk laughed once more when he heard that.

"No, my dear. It's what I told you what it is; a generic garrison. I want you to go there and make sure that it won't be of any use to the Confederates anymore." the leader of the Sons of Korhal declared. That's when suddenly Raynor hummed as if he had just had a revelation.

"Huh...you want to make them even more nervous!" he guessed and just when Kerrigan wanted to tell him to shut up since no one cared for his opinion, Mengsk rained in on her parade.

"Exactly." the older man explained with a smile on his face.

"Exactly?" Kerrigan asked with a hint of disbelief in her voice. Had that hillbilly just figured out Mengsk's plan just like that?

"The Captain is right." Mengsk continued. "The attack on the garrison on Ramelow will serve no real purpose, no strategic goal. It is a random attack. If anything, then the people on Tarsonis will wonder why we decided to attack Ramelow. Maybe they will send troops there, which would weaken their forces out here. But even if not, I have agents on other worlds who stand by to spread even more dissent. The Confederates should get the expression that their grip on the worlds on the fringe is a lot weaker than they think."

"So, we make them think that we can strike everywhere we want..." Raynor concluded "...both close to home and far away."

"I see making you Captain paid off." Mengsk replied. "The Confederacy's forces are currently unable to be everywhere at the same time. It's not just our rebellion. These aliens are giving them a hard time as well. By attacking Ramelow we can make us look bigger than we actually are. And it will help us to cloud our real target."

"And that would be?" Raynor asked.

"Hahahaha...all in due time, Captain." the leader of the Sons of Korhal chuckled. "Don't worry, you will be there. So will the Magistrate. And Lieutenant Kerrigan."

"Sir." Kerrigan said when he mentioned her. Mengsk looked her into the eyes and smiled.

"You are up for that task?" he wanted to know. "I need someone down there who can give the Confederates a wonderful show, one that they will remember. I need a soldier that can make it appear as if there are one hundred out there."

"Sir, being...flashy isn't exactly my style." Kerrigan admitted.

"No, it isn't. Bringing results is your style." Mengsk agreed and looked over at Raynor. "Being flashy is your style it seems. Especially when explosions are involved."

"I want to point out that the explosions tend to find me, not the other way round." Raynor mumbled.

"Well, I think that you two are the perfect choice for that mission." Mengsk explained. When Kerrigan heard that, she actually had a hard time to believe it.

"Sir?" she asked.

"You two did a good job down there." the older man declared. "That's why I will send both of you to do this mission. And before you ask, Captain Raynor, the Magistrate will not join you on this one. I need his skills for another task."

"When will we leave?" Raynor sighed.

"As soon as possible. There's a dropship waiting for you." Mengsk informed them.

"Ugh, great. Here goes the hot shower and a stiff drink." the Captain groaned and looked over at Kerrigan. "Seems like it's overtime for the two of us, Lieutenant." he mused. "Ready for another dance?" When Kerrigan looked him into the eyes, she didn't even try to hide her frustration.

"I would rather swim through a sewer filled with bodies than to work with you again."

That's what she wanted to say. Instead...

"Sir, with your permission we will depart immediately." Kerrigan said with a toneless voice. Mengsk straightened himself and placed his hands behind his back.

"Agreed. I expect the best from both of you. Do not let us down. The Sons of Korhal need officers like you. Bon voyage." he declared and Kerrigan saluted before turning around and storming off the bridge.

"Hey, Lieutenant! Kerrigan! Wait!" Raynor shouted and hurried after the angry redhead. Well, maybe he would have an unfortunate accident on the way to Ramelow. Accidents happen, right? Accidents that involve broken necks...

There was no doubt about it. Sarah Kerrigan would never ever enjoy working with this man!

"Heh..." Paula sighed when she looked at the old holographic table. "...amazing. Even after all this time I can still feel her presence..." It was faint, almost non-existent. But only just almost. The young woman brushed with her fingers over the corroded metal of the table and frowned. This place had seen better days, that much was certain. She wondered if this thing was still working.

Even though she knew that there was no way in hell that the holographic table was still operational, she still pushed the on-button. Nothing happened, just as thought.

"Too bad. This would make a fine table for Dad. Could have used it for his art." Paula whispered and walked around the table in order to find out if she could actually salvage this thing and-

"WHOA!" the young woman screamed when she stepped on something hard and round and lost her balance. In an almost comical display, she slipped and her head and feet changed places. Paula landed flat on her back and groaned. "Ehhh...now I know how the Marshal felt." she sighed and grabbed the small thing that had caused her to fall. When she looked at it, she realized that it was...

...an empty booze-bottle.

"Dammit, Dad. Could have kept them in your quarters!" she groaned and sighed. She got back on her feet and groaned again. Yes, now she definitely knew how the Marshal had felt. Paula looked around and sighed. "Guess that's what I get for running around in the darkness." And indeed, the whole bridge was shrouded in it. She hadn't brought a flashlight along, simply because she didn't need one. To her, darkness was nothing to be afraid of because she knew that there was nothing lurking in the darkness.

Or, to be more precise, there was nothing lurking in the darkness that she had to be afraid of.

Still, walking around while there were deadly booze-bottles lying around wasn't the smartest idea, and so Paula put her hand into one of her pockets and pulled a small, spherical object out. It was a crystal and when she squeezed it with her hand, it suddenly started to glow and emit a bright light. She then simply threw it up in the air. The small crystal almost reached the ceiling and then...

...it just stayed there, floating in mid-air as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

As Paula looked at the bright light above her, a warm smile appeared on her face.

"Thanks, Uncle Karax. Your gifts are always the best." she mumbled. Paula sighed and turned around in order to-

"Who's Uncle Kara-"

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHMMARSHAL!" Paula screamed in terror when suddenly none other than Dan Bowski appeared right behind her. "To hell! You scared the living crap out of me!"

"Good." Bowski replied. "That's for running off without telling anyone to go." Paula needed a moment to calm down. She placed her hands on her chest and could feel how her heart beat like crazy. Phew, good thing that her family couldn't see her right now, they would laugh their butts off if they did!

"I swear..." Paula mumbled after a while. "...you are just as bad as my aunt when it comes to sneaking up on people!"

"Maybe you just suck at noticing people, ever thought about that?" Bowski shot back and then he pointed with his finger at the glowing crystal hovering right above them. "What in tarnation is that thing? Did you touch anything that you weren't supposed to touch, Kerrigan?" Only then Paula noticed that Bowski didn't seem to be angry. Just annoyed. Very annoyed.

"Nooooo." she shot back. "That's actually my little toy. It's a gift. From my uncle."

"Uncle Karax?"

"Yep."

"He gave you some radioactive isotope? Must really like you." Bowski mumbled and made a step backward when he realized that this thing could actually be highly radioactive.

"That's not a radioactive isotope." Paula replied. "It's a crystal. A Protoss crystal that does only one thing: Emit light. Think of it as the Protoss-equivalent of a flashlight."

"How did your uncle get hold of something like that?" Bowski asked.

"He made it."

"Made it?!"

"Duh! He's a Protoss phase-smith, he does stuff like that!" Paula said as if it was the most normal thing in the universe.

"Wait...your uncle is a Protoss?" Bowski asked in disbelief.

"My best friend is a Protoss. I like Protoss. Everyone should have a Protoss friend!"

"You don't look very Protoss to me..." Bowski mumbled, which caused Paula to groan.

"We are not related by blood, if that's what you're thinking." she sighed.

"Right now, I don't even know what I'm supposed to think anymore..." the Marshal admitted. "Anyway, don't think that the fact that I'm not yelling at you means that you're in the green. The Professor is close to a nervous breakdown because you wandered off, and your "best friend" suggested to seal the hole in the hull and just pretend we never found it. With you still inside." There was an awkward moment of silence and then...

"Her words?" Paula whined.

"Her words." Bowski confirmed. When the young woman heard that, she dropped her shoulder and sighed once more.

"Guess I should say sorry to her." she mumbled and looked around. "Perhaps we should-"

"We should get back to the others as soon as possible. And with "should" I mean "will without any more delay". Understood?" Bowski growled. Paula looked at him and for a second it seemed as if she was about to do something crazy again. But then she just pulled her shoulders up and raised her hands in defeat.

"Fine, I will go. There's nothing interesting here anyway. I guess it's time to call it a day anyway." she mumbled and walked over to the door. Bowski looked up at the crystal and frowned.

"What about that thing?" he asked. "Don't you want to, I don't know, turn it off?"

"It can stay here." Paula said as she looked over her shoulder. "That thing won't run out of juice anytime soon, trust me."

"If you say so..." Bowski mumbled and decided to follow Paula. On his way out here actually scanned the room for anything interesting. It was the first time for him to actually be on the bridge of a goddamn battlecruiser. But aside from antique equipment and a lot of empty bottles lying on the ground, there was nothing that seemed to be of any interest and-

"Wait a second..." Bowski suddenly muttered and stopped. Paula had already reached the door and looked over her shoulder once more.

"You comin'?" she asked.

"Yeah, hold on a second." the Marshal then replied and walked over to the wall on the other side of the bridge. When Paula noticed what he was looking at, a cocky grin appeared on her face.

"Guess the secret is out." she whispered to herself. The Marshal didn't hear her, however. When he reached the wall, he looked at a metal plate with something engraved on it. There was a name on that plate. It was the name of the vessel. Bowski placed his hand on the cold metal and brushed some of the rust away. And when he read the name, the confusion on his face was clearly visible.

"Yo, Kerrigan!" he asked.

"My name isn't Joe Kerrigan. It's Paula Kerrigan. I'm no damn trucker!" she snickered.

"Whatever...say, wasn't this supposed to be the Rebel Heart?" Bowski wanted to know and turned around.

"Uh huh. The one and only."

"Then..." Bowski mused and pointed with his thumb on the nameplate. "...why does this thing say that the name of the ship is Hyperion?"