Teaser

Ship's Log: ASV Aurora; 10 August 2643 AST. Captain Julia Andreys recording. After weeks of repair work, I am pleased to report that the Aurora is only a couple days away from returning to active duty. Our battle damage from the battles against Sovereign and over the Reich capital has been completely repaired. I think I speak for everyone when I say that we're all eager to get back out there.

The medbay of the Starship Aurora took up a sizable portion of Deck 12, providing the ship the medical facilities necessary to care for its own crew and assist with humanitarian efforts. Today it was quiet and mostly inactive, with much of the crew beginning to filter back aboard as the ship neared the day it returned to full service.

Ordinarily the repair work to bring her back into service would have been directed in some part by Lieutenant Thomas Barnes, the ship's Assistant Chief Engineer. Under the guidance of his mentor, the legendary engineer Montgomery Scott, Tom knew every system on the Aurora like the back of his hand.

This time, however, he would not be joining the repair work. To save the ship in orbit over Germania Tom had mutilated himself, cutting off his right arm, broken and crushed and pinned in by debris as it was. He was still having dreams about it. The debris that buried him, the pain in the arm after enduring the punishment of broken bones and a metal spike through the bicep…

...the white-hot glare of the plasma welder as it sliced through flesh and bone, removing his arm in seconds.

The mutilation had been necessary. The Aurora's cooling systems were damaged. The ship faced a meltdown without the systems back up and running.

And so he'd saved the ship, his ship, at the price of his arm.

The empty sleeve of Tom' medical gown was rolled entirely up, revealing the stub of his arm. Doctor Leonard Gillam examined the stub with a medical recorder.

"So?" asked Tom.

Leo took another minute before nodding. "The nerve regeneration treatments are working as intended. You should be ready for the next stage in a week or so. That means you have a choice to make."

"The organic or prosthetic thing?"

Leo nodded. "It doesn't take long to actually make an organic arm, and the surgery to attach it is quick. But then you'll have weeks of therapy ahead to gain full functionality in the arm."

"While a prosthetic starts working almost right away."

"Yes," Leo said.

Tom nodded. Now came the important question. "Which will let me get back to work sooner?"

"The prosthetic," Leo said. "I can't clear you for standard duty until your arm's functional enough. The prosthetic will only take a day or two."

"But I could get an arm made later, right?" asked Tom. "Like, at any time?"

"Well, yes. It means going back into surgery, of course, and you'll still have to do the therapy," Leo said. "If you ask me, if you really want your arm to be organic, you should just get that over with now."

"Even though I won't be able to get back to work for a while."

"You could do some light duty," Leo suggested.

Tom gave him a look. "To run engineering, I really need two hands. And all ten fingers. Otherwise all I can do is run around and give orders, I can't actually operate stations as well."

"Do me a favor and give it a thought," said Leo. "Maybe consult Dr. Tusana."

Tom didn't recognize the name. "Who?"

"She's our new psychiatrist," Leo said.

"What happened to Ewing?"

"He's transferred away," said Leo.

"Oh." Tom sighed. "So you think I need a shrink?"

"I think you need some therapy," Leo said. "A little mental self-care. People who've lost limbs often do. People who had to maim themselves? Definitely." Seeing Tom's skepticism Leo sighed and silently cursed the toxic mentality toward mental illness that they'd all grown up with. "If my mom asked you about your missing arm, would you talk to her?"

Tom remembered the late Dr. Coretta Gillam and nodded. "Your mom was cool. Yeah."

"Well, Doctor Tusana is no different than my Mom. So how about I schedule a session for you before the time comes for you to make your decision?"

Knowing full well Leo wasn't going to take "No" as an answer, Tom answered, "Alright, fine. I'll go see the shrink."

"Psychiatrist," Leo corrected.

"Yeah, that."

For Caterina Delgado, the excitement of the Aurora being days away from heading back out into space was undermined by the pain of loneliness she was feeling. Violeta Arterria, her girlfriend for over a year, was gone, promoted and re-assigned to the Starship Huáscar as its Navigation Officer. Now she sat alone on a couch they formerly cuddled on and thought of Vee, of those brilliant purple eyes and matching purple hair, created by the cosmetic genes that the Sirians were so known for. Cat wondered if this was how Angel always felt whenever her relationship with Robert entered its "breakup" phase.

Sniffling to herself, Cat walked into her sleeping quarters. The closet door was closed, keeping her from seeing the costume she wore for the Ultimate Worlds of Fantasy holodeck game Vee had gotten her into. Now it was just another painful reminder.

Laying on her bed, Cat closed her eyes and, even as early as it was, she felt herself nod off to sleep.

That's when the dream started again.

The ship was dark, silent, dead. She made her way to the bridge and found everyone in the same state. Locarno sprawled out on the floor between the First Officer's seat and navigation, another body nearby that she didn't make out. Jarod was slumped over Operations, Angel over tactical. Julia lay back in her command chair, her skin ashen gray; she'd been dead for a long time.

And there, at Science, was Cat herself. Also dead.

Cat backed away from the sight. As always, she brushed up against someone and turned to face them. Hands grabbed her head, fingers clawing at her temples, and something started to press upon her mind. She felt like she was falling into a dark void. "Stop!" she screamed.

At that, a familiar voice replied, "I'm sorry, Cat. I'm so sorry."

Her eyes snapped open in recognition of the voice. The shadows parted from her vision enough for her to see the face of her attacker.

And then she fell into the void.

Cat awoke on her bed with a start, crying the name of her attacker in confusion.

"Doctor?!"

Undiscovered Frontier
"The Coming Storm"

After collecting her thoughts, Cat got back out of bed. The dream was getting stronger as the days and weeks passed. And now, she didn't have Vee to hold her and assure her everything was fine. She was alone and all she could think of was those images in the dream. Of her and the others dead. Just the thought of it… it seemed so crazy. The dreams felt more like visions of a sort, but she wasn't a clairvoyant.

Was she?

More than anything, Cat wanted to talk to someone about this. She had to. She felt like she was going mad. She tapped her omnitool, brought it to life, and made the call.

Angel arrived in Cat's quarters wearing a white tank top with a faded design on it and high-cut jean shorts. The two might be sisters, but aside from hazel eyes and black hair they were very dissimilar. Angel's choice in clothing showed off the thick fighting muscle of her body, a contrast to Cat's thin limbs and build. Angel was several inches taller than her younger sister and had wider shoulders, looking every inch like a star MMA fighter. Which, had life taken them down a different path, she might have turned out to be.

Cat blinked at her sister's appearance. "I thought you'd be training," she said.

Angel flashed her a small grin. "I was on a date, actually." She sat down with Cat on the couch.

"Really?" Cat's eyes widened. "That's… I'm… that's wonderful, I'm so happy for…" She stopped with a horrible realization. "Oh no. You didn't end the date over me, did you?"

Angel laughed. "It's sweet of you to worry about me, Cat, but no. We finished our meal and he went back to work. We'll meet up later, and it'll be fine." She ran her hand through Cat's hair playfully. "And even if you did… you are my crazy little sister, and I'm used to it."

Cat smiled thinly at that. "I'm sorry when I do."

"I know. Anyway, what's the matter?"

"It's these dreams," Cat confessed. "I… I dream that I'm on the ship, and there's no power, and everyone's dead, even me. And then someone puts their hands on my head and it's like I'm falling…" She sighed. "I know it sounds weird, but it doesn't feel like a normal nightmare. It keeps happening the same way each time. And now… well… now in the dream, I see and hear the person attacking me… and it's the Doctor."

Angel's brow furrowed. "Okay, so what… it's some nightmare of him turning on us?"

"No. Not that, I don't think. It doesn't feel like that. He apologizes to me. Says he's sorry. Like attacking my mind is something he has to do." Cat shook her head. "It's not just a normal nightmare, though. I'm having it more often now. And it's getting more clear each time."

Angel waited for Cat to finish her answer before putting an affectionate hand on her little sister's shoulder. "It may just be a nightmare. Whatever it is, it sounds like it's bothering you a lot."

"It is."

"Then you should probably see Doctor Tusana," said Angel.

"The new psychiatrist?"

"Yeah. Leo's been getting on us all to meet her and have a session. 'Mental self-care'. The man's as bad a mother hen as Julia, I swear to God." Angel smirked. "I told him I didn't need some shrink rummaging around in my brain."

"It's actually not a bad idea," Cat said. "I mean, mental illness is more widespread than people realize, and even people without it sometimes need to, y'know, talk about things. Secrets and stuff."

"If I need to let things out, I've got a punching bag in the gym and a new boyfriend," Angel reminded her. "I'll be fine."

Cat sighed at that. She knew there was no arguing with Angel on the matter. "Alright. I won't push. And I'll call and ask when I can see her."

"Good." Angel leaned over and kissed her sister on the forehead. "And you can talk to me whenever you need. You know that."

"I do."

"Then I'll see you later. I want to get some time in the gym tonight." Angel hugged Cat and left the quarters, leaving Cat to sit on the couch before working her omnitool to set up the appointment she'd agreed to take.

A universe and half a galaxy away from the Earth of Universe L2M1, the current location of the Starship Aurora, was the massive space station known as the Citadel. With great arms forty kilometers in length, the Citadel was home to millions of sapient beings and stood as the heart of organized galactic government in Universe M4P2's Milky Way galaxy.

It had, regrettably, seen better days. Barely a month before, a great battle raged in nearby space. The Geth, a machine race built by the Quarians centuries before, laid siege to the station in the name of their "deity", the ancient Reaper machine known as Sovereign, in an attempt to call the Reapers back to the galaxy to begin another cyclical purge of organic life. The subsequent Geth invasion of the Citadel, and the attacks on communications that resulted, led to widespread chaos and violence. Thousands were wounded or killed during the attack and nearby space was choked with debris from the ships lost on both sides. Even now some of that debris remained, not yet cleaned away, and the damage to the Wards was still being repaired.

And that didn't account for the sentiments of the Citadel's residents. From them one thing was clear to Robert Dale, Captain in the Alliance Stellar Navy and one of the twelve Paladin agents of the Allied Systems: nothing on the CItadel would ever be the same.

The lab space was in Aroch Ward, a vacated warehouse claimed from its owners by the Citadel government to be used for the purpose of the investigation into the debris from the attacking force. While most of it had been catalogued, some had yet to be collected and stored, and much still had to be analyzed. The Citadel, and the Alliance, were putting great emphasis on this process to ensure greater understanding of the Geth as they'd progressed in the centuries since the Morning War.

On the tables and scanner assemblies around him, Robert watched some of his friends and comrades at work. Lieutenant Commander Jarod, the Operations Officer of the Aurora, was leading the Aurora officers assigned the task. Currently he was examining the remnants of a Geth platform with the aid of one of his officers, Lieutenant Tra'dur, a Dilgar woman.

Nearby Lucy Lucero, formally a Lieutenant in the service and now a member of Robert's team as a Paladin operative, was checking a shard of blue-tinged material from the wreckage of Sovereign. An emissions field surrounded the piece as a precaution. Newly-promoted Lieutenant Talara, nominally a member of the Aurora's bridge crew and a student of Lucy in the metaphysical powers they shared (as did Robert), stood by waiting to provide another piece for Lucy to examine. She was a Falaen woman, a species of Universe A7R6, with a brown complexion and blue hair and eyes with blue half-moons between her cheeks and eyes. Her ears were elfin in shape, with pointed ends, although not as long as the ears of a Dorei.

The third table was taken up by two other experts present and newly arrived: Lieutenant Commanders Data and Geordi La Forge of the United Federation of Planets' Starfleet. The Operations Officer and Chief Engineer of the Federation Starship Enterprise, they were on loan from Starfleet to assist in the analysis efforts while the Enterprise assisted in the recovery efforts around the Citadel itself. Data, constructed decades before by Dr. Noonien Soong, looked mostly Human save for his pale gold skin and eyes. Geordi La Forge was of African ancestry, with a moderate build and height. Where he had once worn a special visor to replace the sight he was born lacking, now ocular implants provided said sight, giving the appearance of blue eyes that showed clear circuitry when viewed closely enough.

In Robert's company stood a close friend. Commander Zachary Carrey and Robert had known each other since Zack was about six years old. They'd grown up together as one another's closest male friends. As grown men, this bond hadn't wavered, although it had certainly been tested over the years, especially since Robert's discovery of the Darglan Facility that changed their lives. Robert sensed his friend's quiet boredom. Zack was not a technical expert and this was hardly something he considered a valuable use of his time. His presence was from his current position, soon to end, as liaison officer between the Alliance and C-Sec.

"Intriguing," said Data. "This debris is giving off a weak electromagnetic field."

"How is that even possible?" asked Geordi. "We don't have it connected to any power source. Does this material generate its own power?"

"The other samples I've seen do," Jarod said, looking up from the Geth debris. He prompted Tra'dur to move it. "Although I'll be damned if I know how."

"The material is a unique composite structure outside of known science," Data said. "We will need further examination to determine the source of the power for the field."

"I'm more interested in what the field does."

Robert and Lucy exchanged uncomfortable looks at Geordi's remark. "It might be the method used for indoctrination," Robert answered.

Geordi looked toward him. "Indoctrination?"

"It's an effect that came from being in proximity to Sovereign," Robert explained. "Over time, those exposed to Sovereign gradually lost control of their minds. From what Saren's experiments revealed, the highest exposures frequently left beings as mindless husks or drones. Or they would go mad from imagining whispers and orders. It's how Sovereign converted followers."

Geordi winced. "Well, it's a good thing we're keeping all of these samples in containment fields."

"Even then, I'd be careful about being around them for too long," Lucy said. "There's still so much we don't know about the effect. It's possible that even the fields don't entirely contain it."

"Sensors show that the EM fields are contained, Lieutenant, I do not believe there is much need for worry," Data assured her. "Although given the scope of the problem, I do understand your caution."

Tra'dur brought another piece of Geth technology over to examine with Jarod. "There's no sign of a similar field with pieces from the Geth," she said. "And the atomic materials scans are clear on the component elements."

"That is to be expected," said Data. His gold eyes returned to the readouts for the shard of Sovereign on the table before him. "From the pieces I have already examined, it is clear that the Geth and Sovereign were not of the same technological base. There are clear, unmistakable differences."

"Make sure that goes in the report, please," said Robert. He gave Zack an uneasy look. "Sources close to the Council have already claimed otherwise on the extranet."

Jarod frowned at that. "We're not even close to done with this work. It's not possible for them to judge either way."

"It's not about scientific truth, Jarod," Zack sighed. "It's about politics. The Council's probably afraid of the results if they confirm what Sovereign was. Anderson's the only one voting for complete disclosure, from what I've heard."

Robert smiled at that. "How did Anderson get tapped for M4P2 Humanity's seat on the Council, anyway?"

"The Council asked Shepard's advice, Shepard picked Anderson," replied Zack. He grinned. "Although they probably didn't want Udina either. He's always a pain in the ass. Anderson's not a diplomat, but he gets stuff done, and he's still less annoying than Udina."

"I'm sure Ambassador Udina isn't happy," Lucy remarked.

"No he is not," said Zack. "And personally, I don't give a damn."

Robert chuckled. "I bet Shepard doesn't either."

"Have you heard from her lately?" asked Lucy. "Or the Koenig?"

"They're still out in the Attican Traverse," Robert said. "Investigating those missing ships. The Normandy and the Koenig will be back in port in a few days." He glanced toward Zack with a wide grin. "Just in time for Zack to get his ship back."

Given the twinkle in Zack's eye, it was clear he was eagerly awaiting that day.

Alone in the middle of interstellar space, the Starship Koenig moved along at superluminal velocity within the warp field her drives generated for the purpose. The ship was flying openly, cloaking device unengaged, her sensors actively scanning her environment.

Koenig was a special ship. While she shared many similarities in capability and design with the Alliance Trigger-class attack ship, she was a unique design, created by Carlton Farmer and Montgomery Scott for the use of the Universe H1E4 Facility crew in the year before the Alliance was founded. The Koenig's purpose was to supplement the Darglan-designed scouts by being a pure combat vessel, sacrificing living space and independent operation capability for combat power. This was why the ship was rarely out on her own for longer than a week, maybe two, before returning to her home base, normally the Starship Aurora. She made up for this sacrifice in independence by having the firepower to threaten ships two, even three times her mass and size.

In command of the vessel was Commander Will Atreiad, who sat in the office on the bridge deck, sipping at coffee and reading reports from the crew. They were doing their utmost to make this, his final mission on the Koenig, as smooth as possible. Once they were back he would be relinquishing command to Zachary Carrey, ending what now felt like a short caretaker command by returning the ship to one of her original officers and moving on to his new post as First Officer of the Starship Huáscar. While command of the Koenig had been intimidating to him in the beginning - the ship had a legendary status among Will's people, the survivors of the Colonies of Kobol from Universe N2S7 - the Huáscar presented its own intimidating nature. He would be responsible for a ship of two thousand ship and crew, half of them Dilgar, with all of the potential for trouble that entailed.

It will be like the early days of the Colonial Confederacy, when the Navy started integrating crews from multiple Colonies, he thought.

"Bridge to Atreiad," said Lieutenant Jean Hajar, one of the watch officers of the ship, with piloting and engineering as her specialties. Hajar was, like Atreiad, a former member of another service from the Alliance, having come over from the Federation's Starfleet. "Commander, I have Commander Shepard on subspace for you."

"Put her through." Will sat up in his chair and looked to the flatscreen monitor panel on his desk. The image shifted to show Commander Jen Shepard of the Systems Alliance, commander of the SSV Normandy and the first (and only) Human Spectre of the Citadel Council. She was a bright, passionate woman with a brown complexion. Her red hair was cut short on her head. There was an almost bored look in her green eyes. "Commander, anything on your side of the cluster?"

"That's a negative," she replied. "There's no sign of these ships or their attacker. Or attackers. What about you?"

"Nothing here either," he said. "Definitely nothing confirming Geth involvement."

"I suspected as much. I suppose we can't be too surprised. The Batarians have already gotten their hands on some extraversal technology, and there's no telling what the groups in the Terminus Systems have access to by now. They could have a couple dozen warships cloaked nearby and we'd never see them until they attacked."

"Right."

"Any further news?" Shepard asked.

Certain as to what she was asking about, he replied, "The latest dispatches from S4W8 are that the Turians and Slavic Union are still disputing Drachenfeldt. Defense Command's assigned a brigade of British Stellar Union troops to garrison the planet until the situation can be negotiated. The Capellans and the Star Adder Clan nearly started shooting on New Lotharingia over the Hassenfeld Valley, but they've accepted Minbari arbitration in lieu of a Clan Trial of Possession. The Minbari are also arbitrating the Turian and Federated Commonwealth dispute over the Delta Serpentis System…"

Shepard's expression betrayed displeasure. "Damn. Udina was right. I hate it when that smug bastard is right."

"If it makes you feel better, Captain Dale made the same prediction."

"He doesn't count. He's got that life force clairvoyance thing," she replied.

Will laughed at that. "The priests are still trying to figure out how to explain that stuff," he chuckled.

Shepard grinned, but the grin turned brittle. "And the Cardassian situation?"

"Nothing new as of late. The Dominion sent another convoy through the wormhole two days ago. But ever since they kicked the Klingons out of Cardassian territory, the only thing they've been doing is clearing the Maquis out of Cardassian-claimed worlds in what used to be the De-Militarized Zone. Or 'Re-Militarized Zone' as Apley put it in our last status briefing."

"We finish one war and another one is already brewing." Shepard looked away for a moment. "Well, I've got a watch coming up. Keep me informed."

"The same to you, Commander. Koenig out."

Shepard nodded once before her image was replaced by the stylized symbol of the Systems Alliance.

Will slid back in his chair and sighed deeply. Lords, I know the reward for hard work is more work, but couldn't we get something of a break? he thought ruefully, after which he resumed his work for the day.

Cat stepped into Dr. Tusana's office on Deck 12 wearing off-duty clothing, specifically a knee-length purple skirt and a pastel pink T-shirt with a stylized rearing unicorn carrying a lab coat-clad figure on its back with a Greek-style laurel on the figure's head. The text below read "Princess of the Geeks" in purple lettering.

Dr. Tusana was a Gersallian woman of dark skin tone, wearing a loose fitting robe of brilliant green color over a cream white tunic. Amber-toned eyes looked over Caterina with great patience, and her chestnut-colored hair was pulled back into a looped braid, a hairstyle Cat hadn't seen before. She sat comfortably in her chair in the middle of the office.

The office was remarkably well-organized for a newly-arrived occupant, with mementos already placed and displays and items that, one suspected, were to help people relax. There was an earthy, sweet smell to the room, and Cat realized it was from the burning incense on Tusana's table.

Tusana noticed her interest and smiled gently. "It is hrata," she explained. "An incense that quiets the mind and helps focus thoughts."

''It does smell good," Cat said. She took the offered seat on the chaise lounge. "You're civilian?"

"I am, yes," she replied. Her accent had the same melodic lilt that Meridina's had, although the tone was slightly different, in the manner that Cat's Midwestern accent was different from Angel's, which sounded more Spanish than Cat's. "Does this trouble you?"

"Oh, no. I was just wondering. Doctor Ewing was commissioned, I was wondering if they did the same thing."

"They did not," replied Tusana. "I am pleased you came to see me. Doctor Gillam informs me that your culture has a negative view of mental therapy?"

"Well… I'm not sure it's all negative. It's…" Cat shrugged. "People from our area of Earth associate psychiatrists with mental illness, and being mentally ill… it's a shame thing, really. Everyone assumes being mentally ill means you're insane or a psychopath or something."

"I see. An unfortunate perception certainly. Another cultural difference between us, it seems. Now…" Tusana sat up in her chair. "What is it you wish to see me about, Commander Delgado?"

"You can call me 'Cat', Doctor," Caterina insisted.

"Very well, Cat." Tusana said nothing more, letting Caterina reply on her own time.

Cat took in a breath. "Well, it's these dreams I've been having. They… they don't feel like dreams, and they're getting worse, and there's more details as I have them…"

Tusana nodded. She leaned forward in her chair. "Would you object to allowing me to see your dreams?"

At first Caterina was taken aback, but then she remembered a fact she'd briefly forgotten. "Oh, right, you're a telepath. Okay, sure. How does this work?"

Tusana gave her an intrigued look. "You are the first patient I've had to react so openly to the idea. Aside from my people and Dorei, most have initial discomfort until reassurances are given, and a few have refused consent even afterward."

"Well, I guess it's scary having someone in your head. They might find out your deepest, darkest secret or something. But I told everyone my deepest darkest secret over a year ago, and they hugged me for it," Cat replied. Tusana easily picked up her warm thoughts for the day eighteen months before when she, still recovering from Morinth's attack on her, revealed to the others she was a lesbian, to clapping and hugs and a big Hargert-made cake. (Although this being Hargert, he'd have made a cake anyway.) "Anyway, yeah, it can be scary I guess to have someone who can mess with your mind. But I think it's pretty cool. And I've always wondered about the limitations of telepathy. Like, how many minds can be accessed at once, or how far apart minds can touch. Anyway, I'm just rambling, so let's start?"

Tusana's patient smile didn't waver. "Of course. When you feel me enter your mind, allow the memories of the dream to come up."

"Okay…" Cat closed her eyes and relaxed. Moments passed and she felt it. A little pinprick at the edge of her mind, like a small needle pressing against her skin. She fought off the instinct to push back and let the needle enter. Someone's in my mind! This is so cool! was her sentiment, and she felt amusement that wasn't her own. Knowing that the psychiatrist was in her mind now, Cat allowed the dream imagery to come up. It was a horrible sight and she couldn't keep herself from feeling that way about it, even if she knew it wasn't real.

She let the images continue, until the Doctor grabbed her head, and the pain started and darkness came.

Something shifted in the alien thoughts in her mind. The needle was gone, replaced by a series of what she could only think of as probes that moved through her mind. What is it? she thought.

I am using your dream to search your memories, to see if there are matching memories. I believe I…

What came next was not so much pain as a sense of pressure. The probes began to coalesce, becoming a solid sense in Caterina's mind again. The pressure increased as the solid needle pushed on. Again and again it seemed to move and press, and every time the pressure held it, becoming uncomfortable as it did.

And then, like that, the alien thoughts in her mind were gone. Cat opened her eyes and was stunned to see that Tusana seemed worn down. As if she'd just had to sprint across the ship. Sweat glistened on Tusana's forehead. Her expression was full of bewilderment. "I have never felt a mental block that powerful," Tusana confessed.

"A block?" asked Cat.

"Yes. I felt an echo in your memory from the imagery of the dream. But when I reached for it, I was blocked."

"It felt like… a kind of pressure."

"Yes. Which means the block was not meant to harm," she said. "A cruel telepath would make blocks that could harm both the target of the block and any other telepath that tried to access it. But this was made to be gentle in its refusal to break." Tusana ran a hand over her forehead. "And it is powerful beyond imagining. I have trained extensively to deal with mental blocks and repressed memories, and I have felt nothing so strong in my life."

Cat frowned. "So you can't remove the block?"

"No."

"Well, maybe if Meridina…"

"No, not even with her. It would take many of us to even hope to, and the process of that many minds exerting themselves inside your mind would inflict incalculable harm upon you, Cat." Tusana shook her head. "I am at a loss to figure out how to fix this. The telepath who placed the block has power beyond anything I have heard of."

Caterina's brow furrowed. Hearing that, it was becoming clear to her what she had to do, if she was to learn what was going on in her mind.

Tusana sensed that thought from Cat. "Which doctor are you referring to?" she asked. "It's not one of the ship's doctors, is it?"

"No," said Cat. "The Doctor isn't a member of the crew." She stood up. "I need to go see Captain Andreys, Doctor. Thank you for your help."

"I wish I could have done more," Tusana said. "Please, do come back. I wish to have a normal session with you."

"I promise, I will," Cat pledged, after which she left the room.

After the day's work, Zack returned to his office at C-Sec headquarters to finish his day's paperwork… and the last day's paperwork as well. With his departure just a few days away he wanted to ensure his successor had nothing to complain about.

On the screen now was paperwork for a disputed invoice between C-Sec and a company from the Colonial Confederation that won the bid for installing updated software defenses for C-Sec's internal communications, a response to the way Saren sabotaged the same during his attack on the Citadel. C-Sec was disputing some of the charges and Zack was stuck firmly in the middle, the company expecting his office to threaten C-Sec into a settlement and C-Sec expecting him to report their negative findings to his government. I think I'd rather be shot at by Nazis again, he muttered to himself.

He was drawn from this scintillating subject by a call over his comm unit. It took ten seconds or so for the call to finish finalizing through the linked networks of the M4P2 galaxy and the Alliance interuniversal communications system. When it was done, his screen blipped to show the face of Tom Barnes. "Hey Tom," he said. "How's it going? Feeling better?"

"Starting to," he replied. "So… it's decision time, man."

"Oh?" Zack considered what he was saying before figuring it out. "Your arm?"

"Yeah. Leo says he needs to know in a couple of days. So now I've gotta figure out how I'm gonna do this Goddamned thing. The prosthetic is quicker and will get me back into service faster, but… I dunno, I don't know if I want a fake arm."

"Is it reversible?" Zack asked. "I mean, if you get the prosthetic, are you stuck with it?"

"Apparently the answer is no, but it means having to go through this again next time. And I'm tired of living with one Goddamned arm, man."

"I'd be too," Zack admitted. "Well, I guess you could go with the prosthetic then? I mean, it's not permanent, if you don't like it…"

A weary sigh came from the other end. "Yeah, it makes sense. I just want to get this over with."

"Well, if that's the case, I'd say go for organic. I mean, it's all up to you, man. What's more important, coming back early? Having an organic arm and not a metal one? Getting it over with?" As he laid out his questions, Zack could see Tom was not entirely happy to have these reactions. Finally he asked, "This isn't what you want to hear, is it?"

"I guess I was hoping you'd just advise me to do one thing."

"Well, you were talking about cool tools in your prosthetic arm."

Tom chuckled. "Yeah, but apparently those kinds of custom jobs aren't covered by the Stellar Navy's treatment. I'd have to spend a fortune to get a specialized arm attached."

"I suppose you could always go to Solaris," Zack pointed out.

To that Tom laughed. "Yeah, no. Those people are nuts, man. I'm not going into surgery and waking up with a fraking tail or some other weird crap."

"Fair enough. Still, I don't know what else to say, man. It's your call."

"Yeah, and I'll make it. I'm probably overthinking it. I just… I've had nightmares, man. Waking up with my arm pinned again, the ship blowing apart around me…"

Zack nodded. He'd had his own nightmares, of fifteen year old Dilgar kids blowing up around him. Of all of those wounded and dead from his provisional naval infantry unit. "The battle left its mark on us," he said quietly.

"Yeah, and now I've got Leo busting my balls to visit that new Gersallian chick shrink we've got. Because what I need is someone to hold my hand and ask me what I Goddamned feel. A waste of time."

"Not really, Tom," Zack answered quietly. "I might still be drinking if not for Jarod's mentor." Not that he hadn't been tempted, especially after the fighting in the Nazi capital. "It's not just touchy, feely-hand stuff."

Tom clearly wasn't sold, but he stopped groaning about it. "Well, maybe I'll consider it, then. Anyway, I'd better go. Leo let me volunteer to do some of the Engineering paperwork so Scotty and the others can focus on the actual work. I've got a frakload of Goddamned requisition reports and repair orders to read through."

"Take care, Tom, I look forward to seeing you when I get back."

"About damn time, man. I'll see you then." His image disappeared.

Zack leaned back in his chair for a moment. He couldn't help but turn to look out his window. Below and outside, one of the Presidium's open-air establishments had a visible, very nice-looking bar. It looked classy and they were said to serve great drinks there. And he'd heard so many good things about Serrice Ice Brandy, that it was like drinking pure, soothing cool…

No Zack. Bad Zack. One would be too many! With that thought he returned his attention to his paperwork.

Again his comms went off. Since he was in his office, the call was relayed to his computer unit in his desk instead of his omnitool. He tapped a key to accept the call. "Commander Carrey here."

"Commander." The voice was familiar. Armando-Owen Bailey, now a Captain in the C-Sec service, had fought at Zack's side during Saren's attack on the Citadel. They'd nearly died fighting the Geth. "We've got a problem."

"Yeah?" he asked.

"Something tripped an alarm at the debris repository," Bailey explained. "We just responded and, well… we've had a break-in."

That was not a good thing to hear. Zack frowned. "What did they steal?"

"A big damn pile of our uncatalogued Sovereign debris, Commander."

Zack let out a groan. "Of course," he signed, thinking again how nice just a single drink would be. One would be too much. One would be too much...

With the ship's departure from drydock approaching, Julia found she was yet again dealing with something close to a proper paperwork load. There were systems reports to read, requisitions, promotions and personnel transfers to approve, everything necessary to get the Aurora ready to return to active service after the beating she took in the victory over Welthauptstadt Germania.

After taking the time to visit the restroom attached to her ready office, Julia returned to her desk. She was picked her digital pad up to resume reading when the door chimed. "Come in," she said.

Caterina entered. She was in the "Princess of the Geeks" shirt that Tom had given her for her birthday earlier in the year and a matching skirt. Since the ship was still in drydock Julia decided to let the lack of a uniform while on the bridge slide. "What can I do for you?" she asked Cat.

"I need… I need to go do something," Cat said, her voice restrained.

Julia folded her hands on the table. "Alright. What is it?"

"I need to go to Earth, Universe W8R4," Cat said. "And I need to find the Doctor."

For a moment Julia said nothing. She let the request work its way through her mind. The obvious complications related to it. "Earth W8R4 is under a special contact limitation," she reminded Cat. "No contact is permitted with local population, only a few specially designated officers of the UNIT organization."

"I know," Cat said. "I studied the order first, just to make sure. But Sarah Jane has a link to UNIT. And since she already knows about us, the limitation doesn't really apply."

"I'm not sure the Admiralty will agree with that reading of the regulation," Julia remarked. "Why do you need to see Miss Smith?"

"Because she can help me find the Doctor, and I need to speak to him. He… I think…" Cat swallowed. She could tell she wasn't winning Julia over to the request. "Julia, I know it's bad timing and I know it could cause trouble…"

"Yeah, it is and it could," Julia said, although she immediately regretted it. She hadn't meant to sound that hostile.

She was impressed with Cat, however. While Cat might have once let the firm opposition cause her to yield, just to avoid the confrontation, now she held firm. She wasn't looking for a fight, but she had a good reason for something and she was going to push for it. "Doctor Tusana found a block in my mind, Julia," she said.

Julia frowned at that. "A block? As in…"

"As in my memories have been blocked," Cat said. "She says it's the strongest block she's ever seen. And she's sure it's beyond anything a normal telepath could make. But I know one that can."

"The Doctor," Julia realized.

"Yeah. He… I don't know what's behind the block, but it's related to my nightmares over the last few months, and I need to find out. The nightmares, they won't stop, and I don't know how much more of it I can take," Cat insisted. "If the Doctor put it there, he can lift it, or at least tell me why. If he didn't, maybe he can remove it. Either way, I really need to see him!"

There was clear heat in Cat's voice by the time she finished laying out her reasoning. Julia found it a sound argument. And she didn't want Cat suffering. If this was some leaking memory blocked away from Cat's conscious mind, Julia had no idea how much it would damage Cat mentally over time.

And yet, the regulations were clear.

Julia tapped away at the hard-light keyboard projected on her desk until she brought up the relevant contact orders. She was surprised to see that she, Cat, and Angel were all listed as authorized contact points for relations with UNIT, presumably due to their experiences in that universe. She gave the rules a quick read and finally nodded. "I'll sign off for you to use a shuttle craft, and I'll see about getting you a jump to W8R4."

Cat smiled at her and nodded. "I could hug you for this one."

"Ah, your thanks are fine," Julia said. She allowed herself a warm grin for Cat's benefit. "Go find out what's wrong, Cat. And then get your butt home, we'll have things to scan."

"Aye Captain!" Cat declared enthusiastically, giving a well-meaning, playful, and entirely unnecessary salute. "Uh, I'm doing it right, right?" she added with uncertainty.

Julia now allowed herself a small giggle. "I'm not sure, but since salutes aren't in the regs yet, don't worry about it."

"Okay. Let me go pack then. And I'll be back before you know it!" With that Cat rushed from the room. Julia watched the door slide close behind her before returning to the paperwork that still demanded Julia's attention.