CH4
Talking to each other as they go, Kate expands the grocery list and Rick approves or shoots down clothing choices for the boys.
Rick is home first and with Levi's help has everything up and in the kitchen and has him helping to put the dry goods in the pantry while Rick fills the large refrigerator/freezer.
"We are done!" Rick high fives with his son. "How about we got break the dogs out of jail?" Rick finishes.
Getting an enthusiastic nod of Levi's head. "Please?"
"I'll meet you at the car while I tell your mom." Rick offers. And Levi is off and down the stairs in a flash.
"Kate how are you doing?" Rick calls out.
"I've got one more outfit to pick out then pay for it all, then we Will head home." Kate informs him.
"How's James doing?" Rick asks hoping for the best.
Laughing a little. "About par for the course. How about you two?"
"We are home and have everything put away. We are headed to the kennel to break the dogs out of jail." Rick informs her.
With a very happy voice. "Oh yes please. I miss Guiness and Maggie." Kate would really like to have them home. "James seems to agree." Kate adds.
Laughing. "We'll be back home with the dogs in about an hour." Rick tells her and heads for the garage.
Kate got home before Rick and Levi and was up in the kitchen making lunch, when she could hear dog nails on the stairs. "Guiness, Maggie." Kate called out. And the two came charging up the stairs and headed for Kate. Finally reaching her they went nuts, whining and whimpering while trying their best to get in close. All the time Kate is doing her best to pet and hug both at the same time.
Rick finally reaches the top of the stairs. "I see you are getting the treatment too." Rick is laughing.
"It is so good to see these two." Kate tells him with tears starting. They have been such a big help when the boys were younger. Maggie was six while Guiness (Rick's idea) was also six. They got them from a breeder and from the same litter. So they were really brother and sister. This seemed to make the breeder happy. Even more happy when she found out just how many Collies they had had before.
"Richard, Kate?" Lucile makes her presence known with her 3D projected image.
Kate and Rick are happy. "Tom and Don Douglas are in their ships out near the asteroid belt." Lucile informs them.
"They mentioned they had a test flight today earlier." Rick confirms.
"I'm monitoring communication between them and Everett. They are both presently in combat." Lucile looks sad.
"Combat? With who?" Kate is scared now and has stopped petting the dogs and is slowly standing.
"Scanning, …. They are in combat with six fighters of the, … Honji Sinhindrea!" As the look on Lucile's face is one of shock.
"That's ,... not, …. possible." Kate is shocked. How could they be here so soon?
"It is now four on two. Tom and Don have each eliminated one target each." Lucile informs them.
Neither Kate or Rick are talking however the look on Kate's face after learning they had each got one, was 'Go guys, go."
"One of the flight wings of the earlier A models have been launched. However it will be several minutes before they can reach them to help." Lucile provides.
"It is now three against two. Tom has managed to eliminate one more target." Lucile adds.
Suddenly the look on Lucile's face changes and tears are starting to form and her lower lip is trembling. "Tom's ship has been destroyed." Lucile whispers out. "It is now three against one." Lucile finishes.
And a now crying Kate. 'NO, …. No, ….. No?" With her hands over her mouth.
Rick moves over and wraps his arms around his wife. Tears are in his eyes too.
"The flight wing has arrived and it is now seven against one." Lucile provides. However Kate is not listening. All she can hear is the sound of her pregnant daughter crying.
"The flight wing has eliminated the final target." Lucile provides.
"Kate you need to go." Rick tells her. Getting a nod from Kate but she is not moving.
"OH KNOW." Lucile sounds concerned. "I'm scanning the arrival of a Honji Sinhindrea carrier ship."
Kate is still crying and now Rick has stopped breathing. "The Evergreen?" Rick questions.
"They are on alert now. All power cores are now on-line." Lucile informs him. Rick knows if they plan on leaving a recall of everyone will go out soon.
"The flight wing has detected the carrier and is attacking." Lucile informs them. "Don is directing the attack correctly."
"The Honji Sinhindrea carrier has been destroyed." Lucile tells them. "No enemy long range communications detected. No other enemy targets detected." Lucile finishes.
"You need to go to L Kate. She is going to need you." Rick tells her while kissing her cheek. And walks her over toward the staircase down to the front door. "They boys and I will be right over after we pick up Jenn."
Kate just stares with an empty face into Rick's eyes. "L is going to need you. She is going to need all of us. Go Kate, go be mom. I'll be right behind you." Rick tells her.
Kate turns to her husband. "Please hurry." And Kate kisses him quickly and opens a Transmat wall to L's house.
Rick screams out. "Boys get up here, we have to go. NOW!"
The boys come running up the stairs. Their dad doesn't usually yell. "What's up dad?"
"We have to go see your sisters. Lucile, hold down the fort and watch over the dogs." Rick calls out.
Lucile appears next to him. "I'll be here if you need me Richard." Lucile assures him, still with tears in her eyes.
Rick opens a Transmat wall for his daughter Jenn's house and pushes the boys thru and follows close behind.
Rick steps thru and wastes no time. "Jennifer." He yells out. Watching his daughter step out from the kitchen with a sandwich in hand. "Hi dad. James, Levi. What are you guys doing here?"
"We have to get to your sister's house. Go get the baby and your baby bag, I'll make sure the kitchen is off." As Rick heads for the kitchen.
"What's going on dad?" Rick has never been this serious before unless it was serious.
"Just get the baby and bag Jenn. We don't have time. Please Jenn." As Rick cries out thru his tears the last part.
Jenn is now scared but goes and gets the baby who was for once sleeping. Puts Alex in the car carrier and grabs the bag and finds her dad and the boys at the front door. "Dad?" Worry in her voice.
Rick ignores her questions for the moment and opens a Transmat wall and pushes the boys thru, then invites his daughter to go next and follows behind her.
Jenn steps into a nightmare. Her sister is sobbing uncontrollably in her mother's arms who is crying with her. Turning on her dad who she figures is right behind her. "Dad?"
"Lucile was monitoring Don and Tom's flight today." Rick pauses. "They were both attacked." Rick pauses again. Not really wanting to finish. "Lucile noted that Tom's ship was destroyed in the fight."
The tears are now coming a lot faster in Jenn's eyes now and she steps up to her dad. "And Don?" pleading with a please tell he he is alright look.
"Him and the others are still out there." Rick tells her.
"Richard?" Lucile talks to him.
"Yes Lucile?" Rick responds as everyone but L is looking his way.
"Don and the flight wing are doing a search for Tom." Lucile tells him.
"You said his ship was destroyed." Rick comments.
"It was. However his and Don's ship come equipped with a self contained pod that can be ejected from the ship. The other ships do not have this capability.?" Lucile explains.
"So it is possible that Tom ejected and is floating around out there somewhere?" Rick states and sees all eyes, even L's suddenly on him.
"Technically he would not be floating. His ejection would send him a certain direction based on the angle he ejected in." Lucile corrects. "He will continue in that direction until something stops his progress." Lucile concludes her explanation.
"So he could be going straight out into space or get trapped in a planetary gravity. Provided he did eject?" Rick asks.
"Correct." Lucile does not expand her response.
Emily is up and has Rick's shirt in her fists. "Daddy?" L pleads.
Kate also comes up. "Rick if you know someone?" Kate however does not finish her sentence.
"I don't even know if I have any strings to pull, and if I do it might cost me everyone I have. …. I'll let you know what I find out. I'll do what I can sweetie." As Rick kisses L on her forehead and opens a Transmat wall on the front door and is gone.
Emily turns. "Mom?"
Kate pulls her into her arms and kisses her head. "I don't know sweetie. I don't know." Kate remembers all those years ago where Rick tried to get their friends added to the testing and/or nanites and end up rejected. Would they reject him again?
"Mom did something happen to Uncle Tom?" James asks.
"He's missing and your dad is trying to find him." Kate tells him. To young to really understand it all.
James steps up to L. "He'll find him sis. Dad can do it." He states as if dad could ever fail.
Emily kneels down and puts her arms around James and kisses him and smiles at him.
Not sure what's wrong but everyone is crying so it must be bad and it has them crying now.
"Lucile, anything?" Kate asks.
"The flight has been forced to return due to fuel shortages. Don is still out there searching. I'm unable to locate his ejection pod. My scan of the design parameters indicates that there should be an automatic distress beacon at ejection." Lucile informs her.
"MOM?" L asks since Lucile is only talking to Kate.
"Lucile says they haven't found him yet." Kate tells a white lie.
"Kate?" Lucile calls.
"Yes Lucile." Kate responds hopeful.
"Don will need to end his search soon if he plans on having a safe landing." Lucile informs her sadly.
"Mom?" L asks knowing Lucile is only talking to Kate.
"Nothing yet sweetie." Kate chooses not to tell her.
"Kate?" Lucile calls again.
Kate however is not sure she can take much more. "Yes Lucile."
"I have a scan of a ship matching Don and Tom's leaving the Evergreen and is moving a full burn." Lucile tells her.
Kate doesn't wait to be asked. "I think your dad just pulled a few strings. It sounds like one the the shuttles from Evergreen has been launched."
"Kate?" Rick calls out.
"Rick?" Kate calls out hopeful. Seeing hope in everyone's eyes around her.
"I'm with Meg and Jenn on one of the shuttles. We are out looking for Tom. We are probably all in big trouble when we return and I may have just used up every favor I have or ever will have, but we're out here looking." Rick informs his wife what this may be costing him/them.
"Your father is on the shuttle that just launched." Kate relays what they need to know. The rest is between her and her husband.
Whispering more to herself than anyone. "Please daddy. Please!" L begs.
"Don?" Rick calls out.
"I'm a little busy Uncle Rick." Don responds a little tersely.
"Yes I know. I'm out here with you and you are looking in the wrong place. I need you to change course to the one I'm about to give you." Rick tells him.
"I need to find Tom." Don explains.
"Yes I know and you are looking in the wrong direction. You need to come to us. And you need to do it now or you will not have fuel to get home." Rick tries to sound serious.
"Changing course. You better be right Uncle Rick." Don is praying.
"We should be on your scanner now." Rick tells him.
"I've got you. Coming up on your six now." Don tells him. "WOW! That chameleon circuitry really does work." As the shuttle comes into visual range looking like an exact copy of the ship he is in.
"Just stay on our tail and try not to use up too much fuel. Jenn and Lucile are telling me you don't have much left." Rick tells him.
"My wife is out here?" Don is now shocked.
Laughing. "Not that Jenn. I have Meg and Jenn with me." Rick explains.
"Oh, that Jenn. For a moment I was afraid my wife knew what was happening out here." Don states.
"Well, …. about that." Rick whispers out, please don't shoot the messenger.
"Oh god! Please tell me that my wife and L don't know." Don is scared.
"You want the truth or would you like me to lie?" Rick asks.
"Oh I'm soooo going to get killed." Don knows what his wife or even L is going to do to him even if he finds Tom and figures out how he's going to get him back.
"Yea, tell me something I don't know." Rick agrees.