The next morning, Shai'jhur was slumped back in her chair at the desk in her Admiral's office, idly picking through her breakfast of seedcake wafer piled with cheese, eggs and sausage. It was a guilty pleasure for a Warmaster, and hardly Jha'dur's stealing the Emperor's Chef (who ran a restaurant on Far Outer these days for the fleet's officers, the sole survivor of the Vendetta). She rubbed her eyes and drank tea.

"Warmaster." For such a large woman, Fei'nur was quiet, as she slipped into her superior's office. "Are we… forgive me, I will wait until you have finished."

"No, you're the one who just came from the front and seeing something horrible. Do you have an appetite? Do you want the rest, in fact?" Shai'jhur glanced up, nursing her mug.

"No time for rest, Warmaster, there never has been, these years. I… there were humans down there, Warmaster. The Supreme Warmaster was right." She shuddered visibly.

"Mercenaries. Hirelings. Held in contempt by the ideological founders of liberty in human ideology," she translated a few bars of a song:

"No refuge could save the hireling and slave
From the terror of flight, or the gloom of the grave:
And the star-spangled banner in triumph doth wave,
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave."

"Of course, the Alliance will hold them in contempt and crush them too. I mean, they are in a massive war with other humans as we speak, Fei'nur." Shai'jhur curled her lips to show her teeth. "You know I have spent decades preparing for this. We are few, they are many, they are the objective. It would have been the Earth Alliance, if the multiverse hadn't come. We never had an option except to charm the humans, not since Omelos."

"That … doesn't … None of that changes… this is why we fought the war, Warmaster… things just like… what happened." Fei'nur was still repressing a boiling fury and hollow coldness inside her

Shai'jhur quietly finished her food, staring ahead and occasionally taking a drink. Then she looked up again. "We fought the war to survive, Fei'nur. Humans are not animals. We did that to our enemies just like they have done to us. It is tooth and claw… unless someone chooses to be different. That's the whole point of the dharma that Kaveri taught me, that I taught our people. The explanation for why. These Nazis they fight are proof that the Alliance is sincere, even if the humans in this universe are in the main irredeemable. But both are also proof that humans can be good or ill, just like we can be. Didn't they fight at your side against the monsters who were killing children, Fei'nur?"

"Not as eagerly as I would have liked. One called them embryos, Warmaster. As if they were not helpless babies, when we are already so few... " Her hands worked, flexing into fists, as if she wanted to throttle her foes if they would be so kind as to present themselves to her.

"There are human cultures which permit the termination of the unborn, they call it abortion, which they see as permissible, to differentiate it from murder," Shai'jhur explained. "The one who spoke so… may have struggled to see the difference, to understand that even by that definition, this was still a crime against a people, as a whole. Did he obey his orders, or did the human commander punish him or not?"

"He obeyed orders, they all did. Humans tend to be a disciplined people, their militaries, or so I have seen. Or so I had before Huáscar's crew mutinied. I have trouble reconciling the image of the stoic humans who crushed us, and… this."

"Kaveri has been taking it very hard. It's a sign of the divisions of their civil war. But I… I have faith, I really do, Fei'nur. So we're going to hold the course. We are going to grow back strong again, in this Alliance-someday there will be billions of Dilgar again, I promise. Can you stay committed to it, because you know it's the only option as much as I do? Can you be polite to them, and respect their rights, even if you can never stop thinking of them as animals?"

"I know my duties to my Warmaster, I swear it. Our people come above everything. No matter what I must do."

"Including if what you must do means making friends with some of those Alliancers? The Gersallians, the Dorei, just as much as the humans? Could you call them comrades, could you battle at their side against these Nazis, against another foe?"

"If it is for the survival of our people, Warmaster, I can do anything. I proved that on Balos, didn't I?" Old pain suffused her voice when she spoke of that tunnel-riddled hell of a planet.

"I'm sorry, Fei'nur," Shai'jhur looked away and sighed. "I often think of old friends these days. They're all dead, except you. All we lost? The families, the blood, the clans, the customs and traditions, the music, the food. I understand very well Warmaster Jha'dur's fear that we would lose ourselves. Become furry humans. But I dance this dance… Trying to make them care about us enough to save our blood and species when we are too weak to save ourselves. And sometimes it does make my stomach churn."

A shrug, a wry, distant look. "Or maybe it's just the chains of leadership. I never wanted this. I wanted my ranch to be free of the spores! A place for old comrades to celebrate those incredible victories in the days when we thought we could do it all, when we did more than we even believed we could. You know, just sit back and remember the proud days when we were all what we wanted to be, as officers, as Dilgar. And instead it's just you and me, side by side, and if the spores were gone, we'd all be dead. So we cough them up and are thankful for it… Gods. Have you gotten tired, Fei'nur? Have I deceived you? Is our time passed..? Have I led us astray?"

"Warmaster, I have been tired for a very long time, and I am not the Supreme Warmaster. I… am not what she was. I don't think about such things, I'm not a strategist, or a philosopher. We'd all be dead if not for you, and that's enough for me to be willing to die for you, ma'am."

"Sometimes I want to sing the old songs and hold my head high again, Fei'nur. I'm hardly immune to the feeling of bitterness. But it's exactly for the same reason I'm pursuing this course. We're in it together-I want there to be another generation of kits. And again, and again, unto the end of the universe. And I simply don't see another way except reform-and Alliance."

"Not since Third Balos, Warmaster, not since that terrible day… I hate it sometimes, Warmaster but it's the only way. Was… that all? I need to re-take my station." Visibly uncomfortable, Fei'nur had enough of politics - and painful old memories - for the day.

"All right." She glanced at her desk. "We've mobilized everything. Everything is in readiness. Now we just have to wait, and try to find a little trust. Take your station, Battle Captain."

"Thank you, Warmaster. I am, as always, steadfast at your side."

"I know, Fei'nur, and I would never doubt it. You are the last of your breed, and the best." Despite her certainty that this was the best course, in that moment Shai'jhur did feel very tired, and very old. All that was bright and good of us is still here. If the humans don't let us down...

Ordinarily Caterina woke up alone when the time came, given Violeta's duty schedule and her own. This morning proved different when she woke to find Violeta sitting at the small table in her quarters, a prepared breakfast waiting for Cat. It wasn't just any breakfast, but a plate of breakfast taquitos and marshmallow cereal. Cat had no doubt the taquitos were egg and cheese-filled, a favorite breakfast comfort food just as the cereal was. She went to the table still in her "Geek Princess" pajamas. Violeta was wearing a black-and-purple shirt that went down to her hips, the purple lettering on the front declaring "I Beta-Tested Ultimate Fantasy: Worlds of Adventure and all I got was this stupid T-shirt!" Below the shirt her legs were bare, all the way to her feet. She watched quietly while Cat started on her breakfast. It was soon clear that the meal wasn't replicated either, but cooked by Hargert and his staff in the kitchen. "I thought you needed a comfort breakfast," Violeta said. "Given the way you were sobbing when you got back last night."

Cat swallowed a piece of taquito. "I was probably overreacting," she said. "It's just… I can't believe she said that."

"Who and what?"

"Angel. She… she's suspicious of the Dilgar. And because I'm not and I want to help them… she said I was just doing it because I was trying to act like the Doctor and it just… why would she say something like that?"

Violeta shook her head. "I think we're both adjusting to what you've been like since you traveled with the Doctor. You've… well, you've been a little different since you got back."

"I know," Cat said. "But am I really that different?"

Violeta seemed pained for a moment. "Well, I… I don't want you to take this the wrong way, Cat, okay?"

"Mmhmm," Cat answered through a mouthful of food.

"Sometimes… I wonder." Uncertainty showed in Violeta's purple eyes. "I wonder that if the Doctor came back around and offered to take you away again… if you'd say yes. If you'd leave me to go running off with him again."

Cat had to swallow. Once she did a guilty look came to her face, a look that was all the answer Violeta needed. "I… I suppose you're right to wonder," Cat admitted. "The Doctor showed me so many places, so many things I never imagined. I do wish I could see more. But I would also want you to come with me."

"But I can't," Violeta said. "This is my place, Cat."

"I know." There was worry in Cat's tone at that admission. After all, if their desires and obligations could cause them to separate like that, what could it mean for their relationship in the long-term? She'd never thought of Violeta has her soul mate for life, but if that came about Cat was more than willing to spend her life with Violeta. There was enough love there, it seemed.

That was the key word, wasn't it? Seemed.

And yet, despite those doubts, Violeta was still ready to take the extra time to get Cat a nice breakfast from Hargert, even in the morning.

"I don't think I'll be traveling with the Doctor again anyway," Cat said. "Even if we do run into him again."

"But that's because he wouldn't let you, isn't it?" asked Violeta.

Cat sighed and nodded. "Yeah. And I wish I could say I'd say no if he offered. I don't want to hurt your feelings, Vee."

The use of the pet name brought a sad little smile to Violeta's face. "I know you don't. And I know you can't help but be the enthusiastic scientist and explorer that you are, Cat. I don't want to take that away from you. I just… I don't know. I wish I could understand why it feels like something's been off since you got back."

"I'm not sure either."

"Are you going to talk to Angel?" Violeta asked. "Let her know how she hurt your feelings?"

"I think she does know. And I think she's sorry too. I just… I'll talk to her later." Cat reached forward, prompting Violeta to do the same and take her hand. "Thank you for breakfast, Vee. It's wonderful. But I'd better hurry up if I'm going to be there for the staff meeting."

"Of course," Violeta answered. "And I'll see you on the bridge later during the watch change."

Hargert's people provided breakfast pastries and coffee for Julia and her officers. It was clear from the images that his counterpart on the Shenzhou provided the same for Captain Ming-Chung and her officers, with Commander Imra from the Heerman aboard Shenzhou as well. "There's still no telling when the Drazi reinforcements will get here," Jarod said. "I've consulted intelligence sources but that's gotten me nowhere."

"Our intel assets aren't exactly paying attention to the ISA races," Julia said. "Or even the Earth Alliance, and they're the ones who've given us the most reason to be worried."

"I am just as concerned about the Huáscar," Ming-Chung said. "If they were to join the battle, we will be hard-pressed even if the other League races remain uninvolved."

"If it comes to that, we'll try to deal with them. The Magaratha also has a lot of firepower that can help us out."

"Speaking of the Dilgar, why aren't they involved in this meeting?" asked Leo.

"Too many captains to easily discuss matters," Julia said. "I told Shai'jhur I'd share the pertinent information with her afterwards, just as she'll inform me of what her captains have discussed."

"And the fact that she might have hidden genetic augmentation plans from us?"

To Angel's remark Julia shook her head. "That alone? No. I'm not convinced the Brakiri charge is accurate anyway."

"Nor am I," said Li. "These people have allowed their hate to get the better of them."

"Although we must not lose sight of the fact that their hate was earned," Imra added. Julia and the others noted that she was still wearing sunglasses, even in the artificial lighting of the Shenzhou conference lounge. "We cannot simply ignore their worries if we wish to negotiate."

"The problem is they don't want to negotiate on this," Jarod said. "They want to kill off the Dilgar and be done with it."

"Then we must assure them it is safe to leave the Dilgar alone."

"A tall order, since that requires that they accept the right of the Dilgar to exist." Julia replied, a little frustrated that Commander Imra's facial expression was inscrutable under those sunglasses. But she'd worn them even during the stand-off with the Aururians, and Julia assumed she had some kind of medical exemption to wear them, so she wasn't going to press the point.

"Captain," Imra replied after a moment, "Perhaps we should focus on the structural mechanism. It would, if anything, be easier to convince people of the Dilgar good intentions if they really become member applicants. They'd be opening their entire territory to monitoring, their government to human rights audits. It's boring and it's not a breakthrough, but once we get real power-brokers involved in the talks, it might be enough."

"I think she's right," Li added. "Look back home to Earth and our time. The Dayton Accords were a bunch of technical minutiae but at the end of the day the verification and compliance measures worked. Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks lived in peace for longer than two decades in Bosnia the last time I checked. And we're not asking for Brakiri and Dilgar to be next-door neighbors, either. Actually, it seems the real hard nut to crack would be the Drazi, period. If there's another Drazi fleet coming in that could be the biggest threat to finding a peace."

"I've already submitted their application to the Council. Right now I'm waiting to hear if Councilman Mutombo submitted it to the Admissions Committee." Julia sipped at coffee for a moment. It helped with how tired she felt. "What about the ground teams? What's their status?"

"We have dispatched units to the locations where the Dilgar cloning tanks were still intact," Meridina replied. "Security teams and Marines from the Shenzhou and our allied ships are working with our people. All the facilities are now employing defensive shields to withstand limited bombardment."

"But they don't have the power sources available to protect against a determined orbital bombardment," Jarod said. "So we'll have to keep providing protection from up here."

"We will, for as long as we can," said Julia.

"I take it that the Dilgar are not joining those teams?" Li asked.

"Warmaster Shai'jhur agreed with me that it might not be advisable to have armed Dilgar on Tira. At least, not more than there are already," Julia noted wryly. "Whatever you want to say about her, she's proved adept at recognizing that we have to take the lead in this situation. Given the stakes for her people, that's got to be tough."

"Perhaps we should prepare a plan to evacuate the Dilgar from Rohric," Commander Otiros suggested. "That may be the best solution to ensure their survival and the easing of the other species' worries."

"While I'm sure the Dilgar there might appreciate no longer dealing with those spores, that would require finding them a suitable garden world," Jarod pointed out. "And it would take us months to evacuate twenty million people. Months that we probably don't have."

"Yes. I sadly suspect the Drazi will not give us the time to evacuate them." Meridina shook her head. "And it was made quite clear that they know about Rohric as well."

"Which is something I find damn suspicious," Julia declared. "The timing of all of this is off to me. This Dilgar ring suddenly gets exposed, and then somehow the Dilgar are completely compromised?"

"Mister Gagnor was quite careful when I encountered him with Robert on Kalnit Station," said Meridina. "It is interesting that he got caught regardless."

"Could Lyta Alexander have been involved in compromising him?" Richmond asked. "She is stated to be quite a powerful telepath."

"I am not certain. Her priorities seem to be her planned war with the Psi Corps, not this affair."

"Either way, I want everyone on their toes. There's something going on here that I don't like. Now, when it comes to our tactical dispositions…"

On the planet below the mercenaries were getting restless. It was known they had lost comrades to the Alliance teams. More than that, their Brakiri employers had backed down to the Alliance commander when pressed, and so the Alliance was getting its own toe-holds on Tira. For the mercenaries of species native to Universe E5B1, that was distressing and infuriating. The Human mercs of E5B1 seemed especially upset, which given the Clarkist viewpoints of many of them was not too surprising.

But there were mercs who were less concerned with it. These were those mercs the Brakiri hired from other universes. There weren't many, since the Brakiri knew that they wouldn't have the same hatred of the Dilgar that native mercs would possess, but given their dislike of Centauri mercs and the numbers they wanted, the Brakiri couldn't be picky. Some of their hires came from the Universe D3R1, from the Arcturan Free States. Attempts at hiring the services of Inner Sphere mercenaries had faltered on logistics issues - too costly for the mercs' supply lines - but more flexible were mercenaries from the M4P2 universe. The Brakiri force thus included squads from all of the major merc outfits of that universe. The technically-adept Salarians and Asari of Eclipse, the vicious Blood Pack and its aggressive Krogan and Vorcha, and the well-organized Human, Turian, and Batarians of the Blue Suns were all represented.

Two of the mercenaries from that galaxy were not among those three outfits, however. They were hired freelancers, here to do a job and get paid. The Brakiri reflected their view of such freelance mercs by assigning them to the edge of the jungle where Dilgar resistance had, until recently, continued. Now there was a deceptive quiet that gave the two beings time to think. Thinking was something both were prone to; it came with their ages, ages long enough that one, were he to have come from this galaxy and not his own, would have been centuries old in Valen's time.

"Still quiet," said Urdnot Wrex. The Krogan Battlemaster was in a set of red combat armor that matched the color of the carapace protecting the top of his head. The armor was not immaculate in appearance, smeared with the mud and dirt of the defensive position - what the Human mercs were calling "foxholes" - that he shared with his comrade. His shotgun was slung on the small of his back while an M-15 Vindicator assault rifle was laying nearby with his other kit. "They're definitely holding back."

"I would be too," said his compatriot, the older of the two. Nakmor Drack had a paler complexion and his carapace's green color matched some of the local flora. His eyes were a dark green in color compared to Wrex's red. His combat armor was a light beige color, with a Claymore shotgun matching Wrex's attached to his back. "They've got reinforcements in orbit. No point in hitting prepared positions when you've got that advantage."

"Right." There was a dissatisfied tone to Wrex's voice.

"What's the matter, whelp? Afraid you're going to lose your edge in this hole, get a little slower than you already are?" There was a teasing tone in Drack's voice. Both were centuries old, but Drack had centuries on Wrex.

"I'm still more spry than a fossil like you, Drack," the younger Krogan retorted playfully. "You still carrying around those guns from the Rebellion?"

"Nah. Sold them off centuries ago." A bemused glint showed in the green eyes of Drack. "So when do you think we're getting relieved?"

"As soon as they realize the Dilgar aren't hitting us anymore," Wrex guessed. "Then that pissant Brakiri will put us wherever he thinks we're most likely to get killed."

"Damn Brakiri," grumbled Drack in agreement. "If the money weren't so good, I'd never give those types a minute of my time."

"The money is real good, yeah." Wrex chuckled. "Which is why they're working so hard to get us killed. Although what I want to know is why you need more money. You should have earned enough in your lifetime to retire from this crap, Drack."

"Look who's talking," Drack retorted. "You may be a whelp compared to me, but you've had centuries to get rich too. Yet here you are."

"I've got my reasons."

"As do I."

"Yeah." A dangerous look came to the red-eyed Krogan. "Maybe it'll make this job easier to stomach."

Drack picked up his main weapon. The M-8 Avenger was a common weapon in their home galaxy, with a full automatic fire mode. He checked the cooling systems on it for an idle second before saying, "Job feels like it's going sour, doesn't it? Worried you'll end up in an Alliance prison?"

"Not that." Wrex shook his head. "You've heard about what they've got the rear squads doing?"

Drack's eyes never left his weapon. "Some things, yeah."

"I don't sign up for crap like that," Wrex said.

"Probably why they don't have us doing it." Drack chuckled darkly. "And maybe that's the real reason the Brakiri are trying to get us killed. But there's no getting out of it now."

"No," Wrex muttered, his tone now as dangerous as his look. "There isn't."

After a night of tense waiting and preparing defenses, Lucy and Anders beamed up to the Aurora after an exchange of personnel. They walked out into the corridor together. "I keep my gear in my quarters," she said. "So I don't need to go to the armory."

"Right."

There was an uneasy silence. "We did the right thing," Lucy said.

"We violated orders too." Anders sighed and nodded. "But yeah. The right thing." He looked to her. "You're pretty good with that lightsaber. But can that armor deal with a grenade? Or a crew-served weapon? I imagine even you can be caught by surprise."

"Possibly." Lucy grinned slightly. "But not very likely. And the armor is tougher than you imagine. The Gersallians have a long history of needing to protect their knights."

"I noticed you've been tweaking with your suits," Lucy said.

"I'm a combat engineer, Lieutenant. Using standard kit would be a sign of laziness or no damn imagination."

To that, Lucy had to chuckle. At the same time, she knew she was ignoring the unspoken tension. "We probably made the situation worse, yeah. But it really was stopping murder."

Anders nodded quietly. "It was. It's not the first atrocity I've seen. I've been at the front against the Nazis for most of the war, I've seen my share of mass graves and bayoneted babies." A tired, haunted look crossed his face.

"God…"

"God's got nothing to do with it," Anders said. "It's the other guy helping with that."

"No argument there," Lucy said. "I just hope something good comes out of all this."

"All you can do sometimes. All you can do…"

The second day of the standoff was more tense than the first. Julia could feel it in her crew in a way that didn't require life force powers or telepathy. It wasn't that they mistrusted her choices either, that much was sure by the proud looks she received. The wounded Marine from the strike team was talking in the medbay, as were other Marines rotating back, and everyone knew what was going on down on Tira. Whatever happened, Julia could feel assured that her crew were behind her on this standoff.

At lunch Hargert had the sausage stew out in tubs. Other healthy fare were mixed liberally with popular comfort foods - hand-pressed seemai strips for the Dorei, liyume for the Gersallians, steamed tikchp for the Alakin - in a way certain to boost morale. Julia was finished with her bowl of stew and a roast beef sandwich when Hargert walked up to her. "You're treating us today, Hargert," she said.

"You and the crew deserve it, Captain," he replied. A determined look set into the old German cook's face. "Nie wieder."

Julia understood what he was getting at and nodded. "Yeah." She left the Lookout.

When she emerged from the turbolift onto the bridge, the main staff was on duty entirely. Meridina vacated the command chair for her. "I hope your lunch was enjoyable, Captain," she said.

"Hargert is pulling out all of the stops today." Julia settled into her chair.

"It was nice of you to let us all go first," Locarno said. "Although knowing Hargert, your meal was just as fresh."

"The burden of command," Julia replied with a small smile. "No status changes?"

"None," Meridina confirmed. "The Brakiri are not interfering with our ground teams as of now."

"Although they are moving their mercs to surround the buildings," Cat added.

"I expected that." Julia crossed her arms. "Now we get back to the hard part."

"Waiting until something happens, you mean?" Jarod asked drolly.

"Didn't think it had to be said, Commander," she replied.

Jarod grinned at her and nodded. As he turned his head forward again, a tone sounded from Jarod's board. "I've got a jump point opening."

Julia's posture lost all ease. "On screen."

The holo-viewscreen activated to show a blue jump point opening in nearby space. The vessels that emerged from it initially were blue and gold in coloration. The designs were long and, while not sleek, contained rounded lines that ended in sharper edges at some points. After they emerged from the jump point a much larger ship emerged. It was tall rather than wide or thin, a central body topped by a long fin with two fins of equal size and prominence flowing from beneath the central section. Julia didn't recall the other ships before, but she'd seen this one a number of times.

Cat read out what she was seeing. "Seven Abbai cruisers of the Kishara-class and a single Minbari Sharlin-class, Captain. They appear to be traveling together."

"Hail them."

The holo-viewscreen shifted to show a Minbari-styled chamber. But the figure on the screen wasn't Minbari but Human, a woman who looked to be in her mid to upper thirties with blond hair and blue eyes. Julia recognized her immediately. "Director Holloran," she said.

Tessa Holloran, the Director of Covert Intelligence for the InterStellar Alliance and former "Number One" of the Martian Resistance, nodded. "Captain Andreys. It's been a while. I see you've gotten yourself into trouble out here."

"Some, I suppose," Julia conceded.

"President Sheridan has sent me to mediate this dispute between your Alliance and our own," Holloran continued. "I hear you caused a mutiny on an Earthforce ship too. Ordinarily I might find that amusing, but it's not going to make keeping the peace any easier."

"I suppose not." Julia clasped her hands behind her back. "We're ready to host negotiations."

"And the Minbari would prefer you do it too," said Holloran. "There's bound to be a lot of shouting and this is a Religious Caste-controlled ship, I don't think they'll appreciate it."

"Will the other races agree? Or Major Foster?"

"I imagine a man of Foster's background will take a Human-crewed ship over a Minbari one, regardless of who the Humans are. As for the other races…" Holloran grinned. "Let's just say I've come prepared to win their cooperation. And since we're on a deadline to prevent war from breaking out, I'd like to get started as quickly as possible."

"We're ready when you are, Director."

"I'll give you a final time in one hour. Expect it to be within five." Holloran reached forward and her image disappeared.

Julia let out a breath and cradled her head in her hand. She sent a forlorn glance toward the always-stoic Meridina. "Tell Leo I'm going to need aspirin," she mumbled. "A lot of aspirin."

Meridina replied with a small, understanding smile.

The footsteps in the corridor in front of Zhengli's cell fell more softly than Goodman's or her usual guards. There was still a steady military rhythm, but the boots sounded a gentler cadence. Then, they stopped before the door to her cell, and there was a light, muted knock. "Captain?" It was the voice of her ship's Military Department Telepath, Elia Saumarez.

"Miss Saumarez. Come in, if you'd like?" She gave a smile, and tried to calm her thoughts - agitation and bitterness, she thought, would be like a bitter brew for the woman before her. "My apologies for you being caught up in the middle of this."

"Thank you, Captain." She keyed the cell open, and stepped in, after setting a fifteen minute timer, flexing her gloved hands as she looked to where Zhengli sat, in her crisp Psi-corps uniform and with the appearance of a dark, lithe caucasian of Franco-Welsh heritage. "It is an uncomfortable position for a telepath, I will not deny it."

"Well, I would say being in the Military Department is probably uncomfortable before one adds any… late unpleasantness to the mixture, or so I would think, Miss Saumarez."

"To an extent. I remember visiting West Point once on an investigative detail. Seeing the buildings on their ramparts at the Hudson, the great dining hall with the mural of War, the playing fields where they raise our Earthforce officers up. Captain, I.." She laughed softly. "I always wanted to be a starship officer."

"I wish you could have gotten closer to it than this." Zhengli helplessly shrugged. "But you are talking to the, what was it Captain Ivanova called me… polezniye duraki. Or that is the plural, it has been several years, and I have never been a Russian expert."

"Hardly appropriate, regardless, Captain. You were utterly decisive in working to defend the Dilgar… Who really do look like they're staring a genocide down the face. Apparently the League has found out about their other world, too."

"Well, that was of an old argument about Psi Corps. I…" She let her face fall into her hands. "What can I do for you, Miss Saumarez?" Her voice was tired and muffled as it came through her hands, as the weight of her situation pressed on her.

"Old argument about Psi-corps?" The dusky-skinned woman looked archly at her. "Would you tell me?"

"I presume her dislike for the Corps is… at least a little legendary? We got into a shouting match - off duty, at least, thank the Almighty - when I heard that she threw someone from the Commercial Corps out a window while stationed at Io, and that then-Captain Sheridan had gotten her off of the charges."

"...Wait," the woman blinked, sincerely confused. "You got in a fight with Captain Ivanova over telepaths? On our side? I confess, Captain, I had seen as you enlightened, but that's quite the depth. Thank you."

"I prefer to think of myself to be more of a student of history. How Earthgov treats you - telepaths… it… frightens me, Miss Saumarez. It frightens me very deeply. I see parallels and unheeded lessons that chill me to the bone."

"Parallels?" She glanced around and shivered, a little, with Zhengli's tone. The door beeped with the fifteen minute unlock, but she ignored it and let it unlock, taking no action.

"Earthgov's marked you with those badges and those gloves, taken all your rights away, separated you from society and treats you more like wiretap devices than people… and when I see that little Psi badge on your coat, a horrified part of me sees a yellow Star of David, and I see the Nuremberg Laws in the Metasensory Regulation Act… and that strikes irons into my soul."

The telepath's face melted, gloved right hand balling into a fist she clapped into the wall. "I… I want to thank you for saying that, Captain. It takes great courage to admit that your people are wrong. The Corps, you know, it gives us purpose, without it we might be gone simply because how would we find the will to live without the community it offers? I feel a lot of sympathy for the Dilgar right now, I admit."

"You know what the old veterans said, when the boneheads were slaughtering us? At least the Dilgar had a good reason. Well, now they are trying to be what we wanted them to be, and I was not going to let them be murdered. Granted, look where that has gotten me..."

"...In the same place as Inmate Number 4859, Captain?" A look of composure had settled back onto her face.

"I would not call myself so worthy, Miss Saumarez. You should be going, lest they arrest you as well."

"Major Foster wants me to accompany him to the Aurora for the negotiations. Do you have a message for me to pass to the Dilgar? Your mother is, I understand, on their flagship."

"You shouldn't put yourself in that much danger, but if you want to re-assure them that I am thus far, held in good conditions, and that this action is not taken with the blessing of Earthgov… that should be enough, I hope."

"Danger? Danger? What Witold Pilecki did…" She stamped her foot and bit her lip and brown eyes stared sharply at Zhengli. "I'm with you, Captain. I'll pass any message you want me to and I'll tell Goodman I'm helping him get you the ship back. You just better have a plan to find me a place to live, because when the Corps finds out they will make an example of me. Ma'am."

"Well, the UAS might be such a place, Miss Saumarez. I am given to understand the feeling of alien minds can be… difficult, else the Dilgar might see you as a heroine."

"Well, either way, good enough for me. I wanted to be a starship officer, here's my chance." She smiled grimly, looking about as pale as she could. "Morally, if not in point of law. All right. I've got to go, Captain."

"Be careful. I do not want dead heroines. We will get only a single attempt at this."

"Understood, Captain. One attempt. We'll make it stick."

Shai'jhur carefully had the broadcast room put together to look like it was a conference room in a nondescript, drab human building. It was linked into the transmitters of the Magaratha, and from there it would go through the Aurora, and then through the Allied System interuniversal network and rebroadcast throughout E5B1. Pretty much any civilian source with a retransmitter and many military ones for crew off-duty use would pick it up.

There were some touches like a glass of water on the lectern, which was simple and unadorned to avoid creating explicit affiliation identifiers beyond a hastily prepared version of the old UN roundel for human rights which had long been deprecated here, but was useful enough as a symbol.

Shai'jhur walked with Kaveri to the room as the Dilgar comms techs confirmed the linkage, and paused at the entrance. "All right, Kaveri. I thank you for reaching out to do this, more than words can express. The fact that you have chosen of your own volition to share our fate is not something that we will forget." She glanced around the air, as if the words were meant for more than one, but there was still a confident smile on her lips.

"I accepted that fate a very long time ago, my friend." Moving to sit, she took an audible deep breath, folding her hands before her, and gave a nod, waiting for the ready light to blink on.

"Sentinents of the galaxy; my name is Kaveri Varma, A Captain of Earthforce, now retired, and I come to you with a plea, and a call for action. Thirty-one years ago, the Dilgar War was brought to an end, when the Liberation Navy destroyed the last forces of the Dilgar Imperium capable of effective resistance. The Earth Alliance restrained our allies, then, and refused to let them give in to their darker natures and destroy the Dilgar as a species. When the sun of Omelos killed all the Dilgar we had herded there, to allow them to reform, away from the temptation of war, some of the victims of the Dilgar cheered. This, I do not hold against them. The old Imperium was a creature of blood and death, and it carved a swathe across the galaxy." She took a sip of water, before going on.

"Not all the Dilgar died on Omelos. On two worlds, small groups survived, and on their own, they began the process of reform I, and others in the Earth Alliance, dreamed they would. Indeed, they have petitioned for membership in the United Alliance of Systems, knowing this will involve audit and oversight of the truthfulness and depth of their reforms. At this very moment, a force of Hyach, Brakiri, Hurr and Drazi ships hold a blockade over one of these two worlds, restrained only by a rag-tag squadron of ships who stand valiantly against them. In the name of shared sentience, I call upon the races of this galaxy to stand against this crime, against this murder of helpless children. I call upon humanity to do what it did once, and stand against the death of the Dilgar - to honour the ties of shared blood and sacrifice!"

"Yes, shared blood and sacrifice! At our darkest hour! There is a world in human space where tens of thousands of Dilgar live still, rescued by elements of Earthgov who foresaw that the reforms of Omelos might not find fertile ground, of those who wished to live free! When my daughter bid farewell to all she knew, to stand and die on the Line, there were Dilgar who stood with her - the last six pilots of the Imperium, who wished to repay the debt they owed to humanity, to leave our hidden refuge and die along with the blood which had saved them. Five of them perished with our tens of thousands, but today, there is a Dilgar man who breathes and holds a Line Medal, the same of my daughter; who came through that terrible hell and who fought with us in our darkest hour. My daughter's crew has not only mutinied against their captain, they state any attempt to stop this holocaust will be cause for them to open fire! This is not Earthforce, this is not what humanity should be! In the name of the Almighty, stop, set down your work, look around you! We should be the promise of what humans can be, what this new alliance should be! Do not stand by and let a slaughter ensue! Do not let the helpless burn for old scars, old wounds! Stop the killings, or we shall be what Deathwalker wished us to be, a mirror of what the Imperium was! Do not let Earthgov stand by and disavow what is coming to pass here! Let every good soul cry out and stop this from coming to pass! I have always stood for Dharma, and if my government will not stand, if it will let the colony it saved be an aberration in its' course, I shall stand, and shed my blood in defence of righteousness and the innocent. Thank you all for listening. Please… do not let this evil deed come to pass, I beg of you all."

The recording stopped. Shai'jhur quietly walked into the room. She smiled to Kaveri, and stepped around, her feet trodding lightly, before she paused behind the woman. "Thank you. It was a very long time ago that you taught me that there were orders that should not be obeyed, half by your example and half by what came after. And I was slow, and, to some extent shirked the responsibility by hiding from it, volunteering for dangerous duty instead. But, you know, today you have reiterated that. Stood against your own people for the sake of it. It's that flaming spirit to which I owe so much."

"To thine own self be true, I believe, is the quote; and you have certainly come around, Shai'jhur." The aging woman smiled back. "I could come up with a large list, but I rather intend not to leave… if you will have me. You seem as if you could use my help, and there will be nothing left for me after that."

"I wasn't joking when I spoke with Julia yesterday. As far as I'm concerned you're a Citizen of the Union now, Kaveri."

"Then it seems I am, and here I shall stay, Shai'jhur. Who would have thought, all those years ago…"

"Something of a marvel." Shai'jhur extended her hand. "Come on. I've got to get ready for the conference. And, with any luck, I'll soon get to meet Zheng-li…"

Kaveri took the hand, and nodded in agreement. "With luck."

The summit meeting was being held in Conference Room 1. Julia brought a sizable Alliance contingent; Meridina, Jarod, Lucy, Captain Ming-Chung, and Commanders Imra and Shaham. Holloran attended with an Abbai matriarch and a Minbari religious caste member. Shai'jhur brought some of her officers, including Tra'dur and her sister Nah'dur, and Kaveri Varma attended as well. A scowling Major Foster had a black-clad woman with a Psi Corps in on her breast as her only marking. He shot daggers at Kaveri when she sat beside Shai'jhur. The fact his entourage wasn't larger made Julia wonder if he had to leave his other loyalists behind to keep control of the Huáscar. Tabir attended with a few Brakiri and a pale-green scaled Drazi in an ostentatious uniform had been introduced as Captain Tarinak. A pair of Hyach represented that species and its small contribution to the situation.

Each side took a table. The Abbai and Minbari sat with Holloran at the lead table. Julia and her people attended the one to Holloran's right, and to their right the Dilgar sat. Opposite them, to Holloran's left, was the Brakiri and the Drazi tables, with the Hyach sitting on their own. Tellingly, so did Foster, who was still silent. The tension in the room was unmistakable. Kaveri's announcement about the Dilgar colony in the Earth Alliance now placed a clear rift between the Drazi and Brakiri and their erstwhile ally in Major Foster. Julia hoped, perhaps in vain, that his own government's role in saving the Dilgar from extinction might persuade him to at least remain neutral in the coming argument.

"Alright." Holloran looked over everyone. "A week ago we were all friends. Now you want to kill each other. Why?"

"The Dilgar are a threat to our very existence!" Tarinak shouted. "We all remember the crimes they committed against our people! We will not tolerate their continued existence, we cannot. We will not be their victims again!"

The heat of the Drazi outburst was then cooled by Tabir's quiet tone. "I share my Drazi colleague's concern," he cooed. "When we arrived, we found the Dilgar performing a large-scale program of breeding genetically-augmented clones. What else could they be planning but an eventual war against the InterStellar Alliance?" Tabir leveled a look at Julia and her people. "Some people have misinterpreted our deactivation of this dangerous program, unfortunately."

"You were killing children!" Lucy shouted, furious. "You're out to commit genocide!"

"Even your own people hold that the embryos and fetuses that have not fully developed are not considered fully alive," Tabir noted. "You cannot claim we are conducting a campaign of genocide. We have not harmed the civilian population of Tira. Although I will add that the Brakiri Syndicracy is asserting a claim on this system."

"Oh?" That was from Holloran.

"Yes. Our space is not far from here, and we are the first to take possession."

"There are several League species closer than you," Julia pointed out. "The Gaim, the Llort, the Yolu… and the Hyach, Ipsha and Abbai all have outposts closer to this space than the Brakiri. Don't they get a say?"

"We will negotiate with them through the auspices of the Alliance," Tabir answered.

"And you ignore the fact that Tira is already settled."

Tabir smirked at that. "Not legally. Our treaty with the Dilgar specifically forbade them from settling worlds outside of their solar system. The colony on Tira is illegal."

"You have signed no treaty with the Dilgar!" Shai'jhur's declaration was flat and emphatic, a rising point on the end. "I was lawfully appointed by Supreme Warmaster Gar'shan the day before the Battle of Omelos, as all our records broadly confirm. Not like that would even matter, for the Surgeon General could hardly overrule Supreme Warmaster Jha'dur. Those treaties were signed by an illegal government. The end of the Dilgar War is here. With me."

Tabir didn't miss a beat. "If that is all true, then the war continues. And we are under no obligation to sign a peace treaty with the successor of butchers."

"And it means that the Allied Systems have joined the war on the Dilgar side," Major Foster said, now suddenly involved in the conversation. "The InterStellar Alliance will have to act against them as well, and their illegal occupation of territory on Earth's frontiers."

"We'll be the judge of that," Holloran said.

"Of course you will." There was a dangerous edge to Foster's voice. "But everyone knows Sheridan is an ally and supporter of all of these aliens. Do you think he'll oppose their wishes?" He glanced toward the Drazi. "I can say, with near-certainty, that Earth will stand with our old allies against the Dilgar and whomever protects them."

"You're assuming a lot of authority for a Major in acting command," Julia noted.

"Little more than you assumed, Captain, when you committed your Alliance to war alongside the Dilgar," Foster retorted.

"Why should we trust you?" Tarinak grumbled. "Your people preserved the Dilgar as well!"

"It is precisely for that reason that I would not care to speculate on the real intentions of the Earth Alliance government," Shai'jhur said, consciously ignoring Foster and his proclaimed authority. "Of course, if you want to resume hostilities, I recall the human diplomats of the time explicitly warned the League that genocide against the Dilgar was forbidden, immoral, unconscionable to human interests and beliefs. I have spent three decades teaching that to my people. We retreated to our borders, abandoned all systems we conquered. Do any of you want Rohric? Tira is linked naturally to our space and its discovery was pure fortune. It's also a swamp, ninety-five percent water. We are asking only for what we hold, within the auspices of Allied System membership. Nothing more."

Tarinak jumped from his chair. "The Drazi Freehold will not stand for the Dilgar to become part of the Allied Systems, we will see your worlds burn first!" That last line was directed to Julia.

"You're being unreasonable," Julia replied. "We…"

"Enough!" All eyes turned toward Holloran after that shout. "Let me remind you all that I'm not a diplomat, and I don't give a damn about putting up with your petty bickering. We're here to stop a war, and if any of you really wanted a war we wouldn't be talking!" After a moment the Mars-born woman took a breath and continued. "We're recessing for an hour. I'm told the ship's lounge is providing refreshments. Help yourselves."

The ship's security staff were in place to keep everyone moving forward to the Lookout. By the time they arrived Hargert was already bringing out the first trays of food on anti-grav serving tables. In his own stab at diplomacy, they were filled with Drazi and Brakiri finger foods.

Some were getting bites to eat. Others were speaking quietly in corners. Julia found herself approaching Holloran. "If you're not a diplomat, why did Sheridan send you?" Julia asked.

"Because he needs Delenn to help him hold the Council in check," Holloran replied. "Otherwise she'd be out here."

"It's that bad?"

"It's going haywire. ISN's been reporting the Dilgar colony non-stop. When they're not talking about that, they're talking about the Dilgar petitioning your Alliance for membership. You're not making a lot of friends on Earth, Captain," Holloran said darkly. Then she smiled a little. "Which means that Mars is falling in love with you, by the way."

Julia gave a short, bemused laugh at that. "I'm glad someone loves me. I'm going to have Senator Pensley demanding my head on a platter. Quite possibly literally."

"Right." Holloran's look turned pensive. "This entire thing is suspicious as hell."

"Which part?"

"All of it. The sudden discovery of the Dilgar network. Gagnor is compromised when he's been operating quietly for years without a single problem. Then suddenly the Brakiri and Drazi know about Rohric, even though Gagnor wouldn't have known." Holloran's voice had an edge to it. "Call me paranoid, but I think we're being played."

"You think someone gave Gagnor up to the Drazi and Brakiri? And then found Rohric on their own?" Julia frowned. "Who?"

"I'd like to know. So would Sheridan and Delenn. There are a number of powers that might want to set our Alliances at odds. Like the Centauri, if they want revenge for the bombing of Centauri Prime. Durla's been amassing a lot of power lately. And there's the Drakh as well."

"I heard about them. The Shadows' old servants?"

"Yes. They still cause trouble at the edges of Alliance territory. They might be pushing their masters' old 'progress through conflict' idea." Holloran shrugged. "Hell, for I know it could even be a faction on Earth who were hoping you'd get dragged in. A lot of the power players on Earth would love to see your people driven from our galaxy, or at least compelled by the InterStellar Alliance to withdraw from Darglan space."

"And that's just the powers in your home universe." Julia shook her head. "It could be someone on our end. A Dominion infiltrator who's evaded detection. Or maybe one of the Gersallian Dissenter factions that went radical." Her mind also went to the report about the Cylons getting their hands on a Nazi shield-disruptor torpedo. Could the Cylons be causing this?

"I'd keep my eyes open, if I were you," Holloran warned.

Julia nodded. "Thanks. We'd better split up, though, or the others will think you're playing favorites."

To that Holloran grinned. "Maybe I am. Martians have our own worries about genocide." At that point she walked away.

Julia considered what Holloran had just told her. Her own suspicions were confirmed. Someone was fueling this situation, and with an agenda she knew nothing about. She had a bad feeling things were going to get even worse.

And then they did.

Suddenly, in a single blur, a green disruptor beam exploded out of nothingness against the wall. People spun out of the way, diving for the floor as a few screamed in shock. The target was Shai'jhur, standing by the bar and trying to engage the Abbai representative, and Julia gaped in horror, for the searing flash suggested a disintegrate setting.

The Warmaster flung her arms up, and the beam caught on the jacket of her uniform, which glowed green as it did. Below the green glow, the blue of the uniform and the medals that she wore vanished in a cloud of neutrinos, but instead of the Dilgar woman following her uniform into oblivion, a black mesh interweave was revealed instead.

Julia recognized it immediately. Anti-disruptor absorption mesh! They must have gotten it from the Ferengi, too.

A moment later, the weapon appeared-flying through the air. There was a cough of pain and a shout from nowhere, and Lucy started, as if only she were following an invisible fight as her lightsaber glowed hot and ready.

Shai'jhur, her fur singed, collapsed to the deck, drawing only ragged breaths. And then from nowhere, a gun fired, but this time Lucy leapt into action, charging the invisible figure. Her sapphire blade intercepted the spark of blue energy and batted it to the ceiling. A second shot met the same fate. Lucy felt a tingle of recognition that she pushed away, not needing to deal with it at this critical moment, while seeking out her invisible opponent through the Flow of Life. With immense focus she reached forward without a sympathetic grasp from one of her occupied hands. Another weapon, a familiar one, flew in the air beside her and hit the ground. "I can see you!" she shouted. "Surrender!"

The invisible foe did not. She sensed her foe shifting, trying to get distance, but she was moving too quickly. She slashed through the air and knew her lightsaber brushed against someone. She sensed instinctive pain at the burning of flesh. It wasn't a critical wound, but it was bad.

Nearby a table was knocked over. There was more than one cloaked attacker here. Indeed, more than one cloaked figure.

It was Meridina who acted next. After a moment's concentration she reached her hands up. An object, a sleek gray device that a number of those present also recognized, came out of the air in front of Lucy.

Lucy found herself facing a black clad foe. Her lightsaber had burned a wound on her opponent's shoulder, charred flesh visible through the gap. She brought her lightsaber to attack again.

Her opponent raised his arms. As he did, silver material suddenly surged from the back of his wrists. The material glistened in the air and a slight metallic sound came as it hardened… and sharpened. The figure now had two long blades of silver material attached to his wrists.

"You," Lucy said. "What are you doing here?"

The brown-haired man smiled in reply. "What do you think?" asked James Hawk, in a rhetorical way. "I'm here to kill bad guys."

To Be Continued...