Into The Fire
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters and universes that I am about to mangle around for my own amusement - sadly all Robotech and Babylon Five characters remain the property of Harmony Gold, Babylon Productions Inc and Warner Brothers respectively - I am merely borrowing them and make absolutely no profit from their use. As a result, please keep the legal attack dogs - also known as lawyers - firmly muzzled and on a leash as I have no money to give to anyone.
Epilogue
Bridge
SDF-1
One Month Later
"Sir all stations and sections report computations for hyperspace fold are complete. All sections report secure and ready to space fold."
Sitting in his command chair Captain Henry Gloval nodded in acknowledgement of the report from Lisa Hayes at the front of the bridge. The last month, ever since the end of the meeting with the Minbari, had been quite a hectic one for everyone on the SDF-1. With the war over they had been free to begin preparing for their own future, with Earth Alliance providing them with as many supplies and equipment they could out of gratitude for all their help in the war especially for the sensors that had taken out the Minbari's greatest advantage over them.
Now it was time to leave the Alliance at least for a time. He thought for a few moments where they were going, it was an uninhabited system approximately sixty light years from their current location on the other side of a nebula complex known as the Eye of Orion. The location being provided by the technomage Alwyn in exchange for some protoculture – though out of everyone on board only he and Commander Fokker knew what Alwyn had wanted it for or what a brave young man had agreed to that had gained them this knowledge – as not only did have a very hard to reach, by the FTL technology used in this reality, but Earth-like habitable planet but the system was absolutely drowning in useable resources.
In short it was the perfect place to begin building a new, robotechnology powered, civilization for themselves.
"Very good," he said, "Sammy inform General Bradshaw and the rest of the Earth Alliance observers that we are ready to leave."
"Aye sir," Sammy Porter acknowledged from her station at the back of the bridge. After a moment the response came in. "Sir General Bradshaw has acknowledged. He wishes us a safe journey and hopes that he will see us again someday."
"Oh, he will there is no doubt about that," Gloval replied with a smile. "Vanessa are all ships beyond the supply ships coming with us clear of our fold sphere?"
"Yes, sir they are."
"Very well. Claudia initiate the space fold countdown."
"Aye sir," Claudia acknowledged and gave the command. "Clock is running. Thirty seconds to hyperspace fold."
Gloval nodded and leaned back to wait as Claudia began counting down. As a by now familiar thrum of power began to build throughout the battlefortress he couldn't help but wonder what exactly the future held for them now. Would they suffer the same fate that they apparently had in another timeline? Hopefully they would not as they were both warned now – thanks to the AI – and thanks to Alwyn's information were going to a place none of the local races knew about. Hopefully that would be enough to protect them but still they would take steps to ensure that their race and culture survived in this new reality…
…survived and thrived.
EAS Minerva
Sitting in his command chair General Kyle Bradshaw watched as the fold sphere formed around the SDF-1, watched as the lines of the battlefortress turned skeletal and insubstantial before the sphere collapsed down into a ball of eldritch energy barely the size of a tennis ball taking the ship within with it. A second later it shot off into the distance, vanished into infinity with only a ripple of gravitational and tachyonic disturbance to mark where it had once been.
"Do you think we will see them again sir," Captain Harrison asked from his own station.
"I don't doubt it," Bradshaw replied, "it is better though that they leave for now and find somewhere to build their own civilization. Somewhere where the megacorps and other special interest groups in the Alliance cannot interfere with them."
"I understand sir," Harrison answered with a nod, knowing that within a day at most of the war with the Minbari ending some politicians in Earth Dome, acting on the interests of the megacorps who were extremely interested in acquiring all the technologies aboard the extra-universal warship, had started making noise about forcing the Macrossians to settle somewhere in the Earth Alliance. Somewhere they could be monitored and controlled, their knowledge and technology mined – for the benefit of all mankind of course. It was one of the reasons why EarthForce had gone out of their way to marshal up all the possible supplies they would need and given them as many supply ships crewed by volunteers and their families, as they could spare to leave Alliance space and begin again somewhere else.
After all they had done to help them, and end the war with the Minbari, the Macrossians did not deserve to be a playing for the megacorps.
"I know that you do, captain. Now please take us back to Altair Base. We have much work to do."
"Aye sir."
Authors Notes: Well, that's it for Into The Fire. I hope you have all enjoyed the story as it has been such great fun to write and share with you all. Before anyone asks, I will confirm that there will be at least one, possibly more sequel stories, set in this crossover universe. We have not seen the end of the SDF-1 and Macrossians adventures in this reality, especially as both familiar and new enemies wait out there in the darkness waiting to strike. It might be a while though before I get around to starting the first sequel as I would like to give my other works some attention not to mention it really does depend on if the muse cooperates.