Disclaimer: This is fanfiction. Anything you recognize is not mine. All characters and events in this story are entirely fictional.
-=oOo=-
Keiko met them near the pile of cut down trees. Kara took her very impressive axe that was two thirds the size she was and started lopping off tree limbs one chop at a time.
"She is making that look ridiculously easy," said Keiko.
"Yes, she can do it easier than me. Cutting with kinetic force is not all that easy. I suppose I could use the ax with my kinetic skills but my time is probably better spent teaching," said Phoebe.
"Well the other seventeen are ready now for their first lesson," said Keiko.
"Alright, let's go." Phoebe yawned.
"Long night?" asked Keiko.
"I had to figure out how to program the cutting program for the trees. Didn't get a lot of sleep. Don't worry, I have enough to teach for an hour or so. Then I'm going to sleep."
-=oOo=-
Lacus Clyne and her young son Kira arrived a month later. She walked in at the end of one of the weekly meetings.
"Hello, my name is Lacus Clyne. I offered to help here, instead of on Earth, because I want my son to be raised somewhere safe. In time someone may replace me, but I hope you will consider welcoming me and my son as you did Phoebe."
They all clapped for her.
Phoebe flew down to her and looked at her son. "He is so cute."
"Yes, he is also so spoiled, but we all love him dearly. You don't mind going to Earth?"
"Nah. I'll miss these people, but they need the help. Hank has even got me a decent tower, and we are beginning to need it. Before I leave, I'll need you to beam up with me to turn over the command of the runabout, but other than that I can leave anytime."
"Sounds good. Now works, if you want. I came in on the Abh's first dimensional ship on their first trip, and I think Beneej wants to do more with it. Cat started to come down, but they weren't going to be here long."
"They don't have transporters or do they?" asked Phoebe.
"They aren't installed yet. That's one of the stops they need. I assume you don't need the help," joked Lacus.
"I should think not. Follow me to the runabout?" asked Phoebe.
Lacus bent down, picked up Kira and vanished an instant after Phoebe. A few minutes later they were back.
"We truly will miss her," said Keiko.
"I'm sure she will be back sometime. We all go where duty leads us. I confess I am abusing the lack of alternatives to be here rather than there, but I also know Phoebe doesn't mind. Everyone wants to be sure Kira is well."
"Why is that?" asked Keiko.
"Oh, there is a story to that, but it is not one I'll be telling anytime soon. Shall we get to work? Can you bring me up to speed or?"
"I can. Well Kara and I," said Alex.
"That works. If anyone wants to order food hot from Earth, well if we can work out the logistics, we will do that tonight as a special treat," said Lacus.
"Pizza!"
"Okonomiyaki!"
"Steak!"
"Barbecue!"
"Bagels!"
"Beer!"
"Soda!"
"Please make a list, with quantities that will eventually be consumed, and I'll pass it to Phoebe," said Lacus.
"I'll do that. Pardon, what languages do you speak?"
"I can speak English, Japanese, Abh, and Romulan without assistance."
"Oh, then I'll write the notes in Japanese."
Lacus nodded.
-=oOo=-
Hank stood next to Phoebe in the hidden tower facility they had created for her in national city. They would use monitors rather than looking out a tower, but they normally did that anyway. They had repurposed the DEO cave headquarters for this. With recent upgrades, there was more power available there than national city, even if it was optimized for kinetic use.
Phoebe smiled. She focused and tapped into the generators. A few minutes later she held out her hand. A plain spiral bound notebook appeared just above it that she caught. It contained several pages of food requests. She said, "Lacus was going to read it out to me, but the list got kind of long. Do you think you can get someone to organize that?"
"Yes. Can you send me to the main building? I need to find someone that can read Japanese, and I think I know just the agent to hand this to."
"I still have access to the gem cache if funding is an issue."
"No, anything that world needs is covered, within reason. This isn't unreasonable, probably. I can't read it."
"Don't try to get everything together before we send it. Just fill a pod with what can arrive hot. I can also port whatever it is here, but I'll need a map, and a visual.."
"We will get it, but it might be a day or so before we get it all."
"I'm sure they will understand."
"There are two dozen guards here eight of which are on duty all the time, as well as an additional two dozen that are here just to help you. I hope this all works."
"It isn't a normal tower, but I'm sure it will work. It will be awhile before things ramp up. We are used to making do."
"More want to go."
"I think we need at least a few more months before we are ready for that, and then likely only another five hundred. We have to be able to feed and care for reliably who we send. I'd rather not rely too much on this link. If it were lost, they need to be able to survive."
Hank nodded.
"Still want sent back to the main headquarters?"
Hank nodded and vanished.
-=oOo=-
Back on Altair the first pod arrived, though pod was a bit of a misnomer. It was actually a half size shipping container. It floated the last few inches down to the ground in the middle of the impromptu town square.
Lacus and her son ported out next to it. Lacus waved. The lever came up, unlocked and the doors swung open. "We have Pizza and whatever else they managed to order locally in the first delivery. Enjoy."
Lacus floated a pizza out of the middle of the pack over to her. She then carried it and her son over to the table where Kara and Alex were.
"What kind did you get?" asked Alex.
"Vegetarian, I think. Let's see." She was right. She first cut part of a piece for her son who was reaching for it, then eat the rest of the piece herself. A young man brought them sodas. He blushed as he set them down then ran off to get more for others.
"Thanks for the food," several said.
"Your welcome. Let me know when you want the container and all the rest moved."
"We will."
-=oOo=-
Phoebe's plan to wait months didn't last more than three weeks, before there was a consensus among the settlers that they were ready for more people. Fortunately, they already had selected a large number that they contacted. Most accepted the offer to move to Altair, particularly given the resources going into it to establish a presence.
She was surprised when one day after the last one hundred of this five hundred were sent that superman walked up to her in her little hidden tower in the basement.
"Can I help you?"
"I was hoping to see my cousin. I thought she would be back by now."
"I think she is enjoying life there. Shall I ask her to pop in, or would you like to go there?"
"How does that work exactly?"
"Well your more than sturdy enough in an emergency I'd risk porting you without a space suit. That being said, I have space suits."
One appeared in front of Superman. "Can you put that on? That is, if you want to go."
"Then you don't need to send entire containers?"
"We can put you in a pod if you wish. Those give us more time to save someone if something went wrong. You probably don't need the protection, but it is up to you. Efficiency wise, It's more efficient to send the larger containers, but traffic isn't that heavy. Lacus will be back online in about five minutes if you want to go then."
Superman nodded. He asked, "How much air do these have?"
"About four hours. Honestly, in the very unlikely event Lacus went offline or stopped, I could probably land you on Altair. I'd really hate to try with someone less durable, since that is a stretch, but in an emergency it is theoretically possible."
"And the pods?"
"Oh those can keep people alive for about ten days. They are still not what I'd like to have, but they are pretty good."
"You know what, I think I will take one. I'd like to see what people see. I may write a story."
"Sure thing. Just make sure when your ready to return you have Lacus send it back with you."
Superman nodded.
-=oOo=-
Superman watched as Kara in sweat pants and shirt flew one rafter after another in place on a house.
"Oh hey cousin."
"Having fun?"
"Yep. How about you help out while your here?"
"Sure."
The foreman came out and said, "There is a house down the road that could really use the help. I doubt we can keep up with two of you."
"Sure thing. I'll talk to you later alright cousin?"
"Kara. They know my name. I'm honestly wearing the suit partially because it is the sturdiest thing I have."
"Your sure that is safe?"
"Mostly. I'm safe here at least."
"Alright."
-=oOo=-
"Well, what did you think?" asked James Olson to Clark after he returned. They were in Olson's apartment.
"I think I half want to move there," said Clark.
"Kara is sending story after story. People love them, even if Snapper is making me redo some of them, then send them back to Kara for her sign off. She is still a bit too optimistic for the average reader," said James.
"It takes time," said Clark.
"That it does. I'd try to weasel my way there if I wasn't needed here to coordinate with Kara and all this. I'm just glad that email now, sort of, works," said James.
"Yes, well they are sending normally more than one outgoing and at least one small incoming with messages. I'm still not sure Kara should have told them, but so far it seems no one has blabbed," said Clark.
"True, and I agree I'm not sure, but I also think, well that world needs a protector too, you know?" asked James.
"Your probably right. I know Phoebe and the Alliance have helped the DEO a couple times recently. They aren't obvious about it, but I have seen it a few times."
"What exactly have you seen?" asked James curiously.
"Usually me arriving on the scene to fight some ultra powerful guy, and either someone beaming down and stunning him, or occasionally a powerful beam lances out of a clear sky to incinerate the threat. That is the only one I saw that was clearly killed, but that guy was a murderer before he became a cyborg."
"You don't seem to downhearted about that?"
"I know I should be. But I've captured that guy before. He has been put away for murder twice, yet he has friends and he kept getting out and committing more murders. I'm not saying I advocate killing first. I don't, but that guy already had two consecutive life sentences on the books. Why should potentially more people die to capture him again or bring him to justice?" asked Clark.
"Why indeed. Is that the only one you have seen killed?"
"So far. One that was called livewire was taken, then apparently returned as a normal human several weeks later and is now in our jail."
"That seems fair enough," said James.
"Yes. I'm honestly impressed they could do it."
"Do you think maybe part of the reasons they are helping is to keep Kara there?" asked James.
"I don't know. I do know they want the new world to succeed. They are trying to help them not make so many of the usual mistakes," said Clark thoughtfully.
"And they are good at it. They have practiced this whole thing, many times, it seems. People are doing most of the work, though Kara, Alex, and Lacus are doing more than most."
"Alex? I read some about that in Kara's emails, but it didn't go into a lot of detail."
"She is learning to have the same skills as Lacus and Phoebe. It doesn't seem that she will end quite as strong, but she may be doing the job Lacus is doing part time soon, at least if the containers aren't too heavy. Not with people, not for some time, but with things," said Clark.
"That's quick," said James thoughfully.
"Yes, and she isn't the only one. There are nineteen others. Of the twenty being taught, including Kara and Alex all have at least basic telepathy, Two are T4 and one is a T3. Eight have basic kinetic ability. There is three more T3's. The rest are minor."
"T1 is like Phoebe and Lacus?" asked James.
"Yes."
"That's pretty good for a first set."
"They apparently tried to weight the settlers with those that were likely to have potential. They admit when they have placed their thumb on the scale. They also say they still plan to leave on the two year anniversary. They think they will have replacements for Lacus and Phoebe by then, but if not, well they aren't going to leave without any way to get back and forth," said Clark.
"That seems fast."
"One group of them is starting a new town near a large lake at the top of a hill. It is a mountainous region. They pour reinforced concrete pillars and arrange the containers in different configurations to create houses. You can't even tell many of them were shipping containers. A lot of local lumber is cut up to build the insides. One of the most common things shipped is massive amounts of insulation, since they don't have a plant for that yet," said Clark.
"How are they getting around?"
"They can request transport from location to location. Apparently her ship is doing it. They do have a dirt road to the manufacturing city, and a handful of battery operated vehicles that can make the trip. They have located where they plan to quarry rock, but haven't begun that yet. The road really does need it," said Clark.
"Are you going back?" asked James.
"Probably, to help a bit more, but I'll be in Metropolis for awhile."
-=oOo=-
Alex looked up nervously from where she was occupying Lacus's comfy chair in the tower.
"You really work like this? With all these monitors and everything?"
"Yes, this is pretty typical. If we had a decent tower master they would filter for you and allow you to focus more. I had considered Keiko for this, but she has the position as leader. So far no other has stepped up to the required skill in multitasking," said Lacus.
"You mean it is not just about being strong?"
"No, a T6 could do that role. It is about your ability to multitask and filter so the Prime is not inundated with information and can focus on his or her job. In truth, we have often been skipping the role, and partially relying on technology, but this is going to be more permanent so we have requested help from the Federated Sentient Planets. They are sending Bryan Ackerman and his protege. I highly suggest that if you end up in this role that you let him filter everything, well him or his designates, so you can focus."
"But your going to do it for me, for today?"
"Actually Bryan will be here in about ten minutes. They told me when they emerged into this universe a little while ago," said Lacus.
"That still seems wild hearing thoughts from so far away."
"You get used to it, and you need to know the person, usually."
About ten minutes later a middle aged man and a young woman beamed down.
"Greetings Bryan, Sheila. Were there any problems?" asked Lacus.
"Nope, other than how much we envy your tech," said Bryan.
"I wish the trip could have taken longer," added Sheila.
"We can get you other trips later if you want," offered Lacus.
"Yes please."
Alex kinetically helped herself out of the far too comfortable chair and stood to greet them. "Alex Danvers. I hear one of you will be helping me, though probably on Earth. They kind of want me back there."
"That would probably be me. As the least experienced kinetic, and particularly as a T2, you would warrant the greater experienced person," said Bryan.
"Is that a problem for your um?"
The woman beside him said, "Girlfriend and no, it isn't a problem. It might be if no one capable of living ports was around. I'm Sheila, it is good to meet you."
"Phoebe is going to stand by for all the living ports, or bigger ones, or just in general for awhile longer," said Lacus.
"Shall we get started?" asked Bryan.
"Sure, I can port you and Alex to your pod when you are ready," said Lacus.
Bryan and Alex nodded and vanished. Lacus then took the chair and told Shiela, "You are in command."
"Alright. Let's see what we have here for a few minutes. Would you mind giving me status?" asked Shiela.
"Of course."
Shiela stared blankly at the screen for several minutes as she absorbed the current situation from Lacus.
"Good, no extra information. Having to do your own filtering might have improved your skill at that."
"It probably did, but it was growing annoying, as it got hectic."
"I have no doubt it was. The generator is running at peak. I read Earth cave. Really cave? Online. I assume you are or will be in mental contact with Phoebe. We have one outbound living in cradle number one. If all is well on this end you are authorized to lift and shift now."
"I have them. Hand off will be in a couple minutes." "Hand off. I'll follow them to Earth. They are now resting in their cradle. All is well."
"Good bringing generators down to idle."
"You don't actually have to that with these, but it does no harm," said Lacus.
"Really? Normally one would get a talking to by the maintenance crew for shortening the life of the generators."
"Yes, though the one on Earth is not built as well, so they need to follow the protocol. It is still more than sufficient. Q is still giving out energy reserves to those of us we train with enough potential. Perhaps we can get you and Bryan one."
"We aren't that strong."
There was a small flash around her neck before it faded.
"I think you just got one. You can feel it can't you? It is there when you need it, and not when you don't. Try, well try lifting me gently from the chair. You have surely tapped a tower gen before right?"
"Many times." Sheila's veil glowed as Lacus lifted out of the chair and stood.
"How do you recharge them? I recall reading you had to."
"From this generator, probably. I'll walk you through it. Most likely you will not run out easily given your not quite a strong."
Sheila laughed. "I'm a T4. I won't be offended by you pointing it out."
"Hmm, with power available at all times you could be operating at the potential of an un-powered T1."
"That is probably a stretch, but yes, it can help, particularly when I can pull from here and not interfere with the prime's thrust."
"In an emergency, if you were in a suit, you could probably, eventually port to Earth by yourself, if you had someone to catch you. Of course, then you have to spend probably an hour filling the reserve which would be irritating."
"I'll take the option, but only if absolutely necessary."
"I'm pretty sure I could get you to Earth with only this generator. That's fairly dangerous, without anyone catching, but with your own reserve you could likely guide your landing. Again, emergency only, but another possibility," said Phoebe.
"We have done similar, though only for extraordinary reasons," said Sheila.
"Do you require anything else from me? Phoebe has indicated that they plan to be offline till three pm our time."
"Actually, some of us were hoping to maybe get more jobs in your Alliance, particularly those of us that are not primes. There is always a lot to do for primes."
"I can give you limited access to my ship. You won't be able to fly it anywhere, or use most functions unless you declare an emergency, and we do take any such declaration seriously. That will alert the Alliance automatically. You will, however, be able to use our dimensional com send messages directly to Alliance leadership. I suspect they will be very favorable to your offer, and if they aren't, which I doubt, I know people that will," said Lacus.
"And what would it take to be able to fly your ship without it being an emergency?" asked Sheila.
"I'll give you access to the rules and regulations of the Alliance on the runabout, as well as our telepath rules, which really were mostly copied from yours so I doubt there are any big surprises. I don't know you enough to sponsor your application, and please don't act differently to impress me. There is no need. In truth, we accept most with the qualifications and useful skills, provided we believe they will obey our rules."
"How would that work, if you did?"
"Your skills may not be where they want them at, so you may end up at Starfleet Academy and possibly some years on a Starfleet vessel, but none of that is bad. To be honest, they may need your help more."
Shiela nodded thoughtfully. "I believe I will be making the application, at least once my tour here is complete, and assuming you approve."
Lacus nodded. "Can you follow my port to the runabout?"
"I believe so, at least with this thing." Shiela briefly touched the white loop around her neck that briefly became visible and tangible to do so.
Lacus nodded and vanished. Sheila vanished afterward.
"Whoa. You have more power available on this craft than we had in the entire tower," said Shiela after she arrived.
'Yes, we have tuned the runabouts quite a bit. The tower tech is good, but is something we don't mind leaving behind. Also, the warp engines in this use antimatter. We aren't casually going to bring that onto a planet," said Lacus.
"Can I recharge this thing up here?"
"If you have a reason. It doesn't have to be an emergency, but antimatter has to be created. The reactor on the planet is more economical, particularly given we have no way to create antimatter in this universe," said Lacus.
"Oh. That's a pity. Is there any chance we can take it out for a spin?" asked Sheila hopefully.
"In system yes. Out of system no. We have to be near the planet to defend it, if necessary," said Lacus.
"Really?"
"Yes, let me see if perhaps Kara and Keiko want to come. Kara is also watching my son."
-=oOo=-
Everyone agreed to come aboard, though Kara had to finish up some construction work she was helping with first. An hour and a half later they were all on the runabout.
"So, how does this all work?" asked Keiko.
Lacus explained the basics. Afterwards Kara asked, "So, we have what ten planets in this system? Do any of them have anything useful?"
"I don't think anyone has surveyed this system beyond Altair IV. I have surveys of parallel versions of these systems. Let's see. 'Computer based on the likely raw materials needed by the citizens of Altair IV, either directly, or to trade with Earth, rank the other planets in the system based on easiest to recover value assuming their technology base and available talents to move machinery and people as required. Display the top ten materials for each when complete.'"
"Working. Query complete. Results are based on alternate survey data and the list of assumptions listed."
"The top one listed has huge palladium deposits!" exclaimed Keiko.
"Is that particularly valuable?" asked Kara.
"It trades for over three hundred thousand yen per ounce. It is very rare."
"Hmm you could work down there in a space suit, but without a containment dome it would be fairly dangerous. I could possibly replicate shield generator nodes to establish an area with air, but it requires skilled people to maintain them, and the tech cannot be given to you. It is too far in advance of where you are. How can we solve this to make it feasible?" asked Lacus.
"Can't you use your transporters to hollow out underground, then we port in with suits and start installing structure and air?" asked Kara.
"Possibly. They don't like doing that. There is a lot of safeties to prevent separating connected things. Still, it can be done, though your going beyond what I feel comfortable doing, at least without an emergency. We would have to ask for help."
"We have very good technicians as well, if that helps," offered Shiela.
"It may, particularly if they are willing to join up as you are. This task is clearly beyond what I can authorize, since I don't fully understand all the risks. Let's see if we can get someone on to discuss it," said Lacus.
She spent a few minutes working with her console before she heard. "This is Commander Data. I am responding to your general query for assistance. How may I help you?"
"You are familiar with the circumstances of my mission?"
"I am."
"I had a possible request to consider mining nearby worlds for valuable minerals. While I can port a capsule there, and might be able to excavate a sealed area underground to work with the transporters, this is far enough outside of my experience as to require advice."
"I understand. What is the timeline for this endeavor?"
"It is theoretical. I gather some of these minerals could be quite valuable back on Earth, but this is certainly not a high priority mission, though I think it would help us to perhaps help that version of Earth more than we have."
"Would you object to me delaying answering till I can discuss it with the Captain and our engineering staff?"
"No, as I said, since this is not an emergency. I will take no action until I hear back, and even then we would have to coordinate with the people of Altair IV and Earth."
"Agreed. I will contact you once I have more information. It is an intriguing possibility, since your talents allow potential mineral exploitation of neighboring planets fairly easily, particularly with automated systems."
"Thanks Data. How are things there?" asked Lacus.
"We just finished a rescue mission to deliver a vaccine to a far colony in TSAB controlled space. We were able to produce the quantities needed in time."
"And all is well now?"
"Two point four percent of the population died, but two point three percent was before we could arrive."
"I'm sorry to hear that, but it sounds like you did an excellent job."
"Thank you. I will let you know of what the decision is. Enterprise out."
"That sounded promising, sort of," said Keiko.
"Data would not promise such a substantial amount of help without approval, unless it was necessary to save lives or something. It isn't, at least not directly, so he would have to review it with the chain of command," said Lacus.
"So are we going to do our own surveys?" asked Shiela.
"Yes, at least of the one that bubbled to the top." She configured the destination coordinates and enabled the warp engines for the very short programmed course.
"Was that really necessary?" asked Kara.
"Impulse would have taken hours. It is not that close," said Lacus absently.
"You are spoiled. I can't imagine how long this would take with our ships if we couldn't be ported," said Shiela.
"Probably. Computer begin detailed survey of planet. Upload results to the Alliance per standard protocol when possible."
"Confirmed."
"What does that mean?" asked Keiko.
"It means that the shear amount of information is far too much to send through a dimensional com. The next time a ship comes in this system it will automatically get the update. The information will propagate from there."
"Can we see the information as it is gathered?" asked Keiko.
"Sure, let me help you. It's too much to follow but you can look through it as we go."
-=oOo=-
The Japanese Prime minister read Keiko's latest update. The mineral wealth they had verified on Altair VIII was very impressive, particularly when they had exact locations for most of it. The Alliance had decided not to take a leading effort in this, but would provide reasonable help upon request. The conditions for Altair IV remained. It would need to be a cooperative effort. He called a meeting with his own experts to discuss this.
-=oOo=-
"Why not just core drill down, and drop explosives in? There are no environmental concerns are there? We could send in massive earth movers. The problem is finding those that will run on batteries or we have to also provide oxygen for them to work. Either way, load them into a container and hopefully they can port them back to Earth, via Altair or not."
"Would the Alliance disapprove of that?" he asked.
"No idea. I can't see anyone ever living there. That planet is never going to be habitable."
"Could we automate any of this? Having people there would make it a lot more dangerous."
"The problem is the speed of light is a limiting factor in how well we can control. Your looking at up to an hour of delay between Altair IV and VIII just with light speed. The people that direct the work, really need to be there, or we need some magical com gear that removes the limitation."
"What about the plan to excavate an area underground that would allow a base of operations, and possibly more mining?"
"We may need that anyway. The problem is air. One of their suggestions was to build a dome, rather than go underground immediately."
"Can we do that?"
"Our industry could certainly make the preformed arches, or whatever is required. Gravity there is two thirds Earth, so that helps. The problem is assembling it all there in that environment."
"Could we assemble it all here with solar panels or what not and the Alliance move it to the other planet?"
"I don't know. Can you come up with a rough design? We are going to need power to operate there. We also need plants or electronics to make oxygen and all the rest. Get some realistic estimates. If we can build a dome assembly to have a staging ground there with air, then everything else becomes feasible."
"So you want to ask them, based on say a few days of planning to see if the basic idea is feasible, and if so, present it to the rest of the world?"
"Yes. You can also ask them for feedback or ideas. They said we were leading, not that we couldn't ask questions. Also, ask about coms. If they can give us a magic box that removes the limitation of radio waves, so that we could control things without delay, it would be a lot easier."
"We can certainly ask."
-=oOo=-
"What do you think Mr. Data?" asked Picard.
"Their proposed dome is comparable to the size of the Enterprise. Towing it with a tractor beam may be feasible, if it was strong enough, but not recommended. I would instead recommend it is made in eight lower and eight upper sections with suitable fasteners. Each could then be ported to its final destination
"So how much time would be needed from us?"
"Approximately two weeks, between ground prep, towing, and assembly, assuming a small team of telepaths can help. The biggest delay would be the shear number of bolts that have to be fastened. I believe we can beam the bolts in place, but the nuts would have to be spun on and torqued to seal the system, and then the resulting effort fusion welded, but that has to wait till the entire dome is complete. Most of the work could be done from likely a pair of runabouts with a mix of federation personnel and kinetic talents. If the kinetic talents are unavailable some additional time may be required, but it is still very feasible with minimal resources."
"And that is closest to what they could do themselves, though with greater risk. Please make the appropriate recommendations. Ask them to send us detailed plans so we can verify them and have them assemble everything to verify it all before we attempt to move it."
Data nodded.
"Dismissed."
-=oOo=-
"This is very good. They are basically offering to assemble the entire thing from parts. Well they want us to put it together first as a test fit, but that is mostly just to make sure we don't build something that doesn't go together. Let's finalize an initial design and we will bring it to the whole group."
-=oOo=-
Falcon flew in four months later. The population of Altair IV was now at two thousand. Lafiel and Jinto beamed down and was soon met by Lacus, Shiela, and Kara, with Keiko coming up a short time later.
"Is it that time already?" asked Keiko.
"We are ready to do the work to assemble your dome yes," said Lafiel.
"I have fifty people ready to come in space suits," said Keiko.
"The risk is too high, until the dome is secured. We will do the initial work, at least till the dome is self supporting," said Lafiel.
"Both Rowan and Deanna are up there to help as well," said Jinto.
"This is going to be fun. Shall I take my runabout?" asked Lacus.
"There is no need. We have several, if we need them."
"I can go right?" asked Keiko.
"All of the people you mentioned can go. They just can't go down to the planet until it is safe," said Lafiel.
"Really?" asked Keiko hopefully.
"Yes."
"I'll be right back." She ran off.
-=oOo=-
Lafiel led them through the halls of the Falcon to their holodeck. "We don't use this as often as some, but we thought you would like this. Jinto."
Jinto touched the computer pad. "Computer setup holodeck simulation of the assembly area on the planet using real time telemetry."
"It is not possible to simulate the temperature and atmosphere on the planet. That would violate safety protocols and is not currently within the design specifications of this unit."
"Temperature and atmosphere are to be ship standard as are light levels. Adjust as necessary."
"Confirmed. Simulation is ready. Simulation will be updated with data from sensors as gathered. You may enter when ready."
"Is this really an alien world?" asked the one worker.
"It is a clever recreation of it, but this is not what you would really feel down there. It is all holography, force fields, and tricks," said Jinto.
Suddenly a runabout appeared in the sky and then a segment of the assembly appeared in place before settling gently down. A big vertical brace appeared to the side of it, then maneuvered in place.
"Can we get closer?"
"Computer change our Z level when I point up or down at a rate of one half meter per second," said Jinto.
Jinto pointed up even as they moved closer. Bolts where materializing in place and then nuts materializing near them before screwing in place kinetically.
"They probably can't tighten them to specification kinetically. You may have to go in and do that," said Lafiel.
"We are ready to go when you need us."
It took a good twenty minutes to finish bolting the initial brace and then another section appeared. That took nearly an hour to get all the bolts, and not just the smaller set used for the brace. Over the next ten hours all the bottom sections were put in place. They finished the basic dome the next day.
"So what is next?" asked Keiko.
"I believe the plan is to install vacuum pumps and power them from the solar panels. The plans included valves that can be connected to outside. We may have to seal around the base more, but once we can drop the pressure on the inside below the outside the dome should be fully pulled together, and then we should be able to get your crew and equipment inside to tighten all the bolts," said Jinto.
"Are you bringing it to a vacuum?" asked one of the workers.
"No, a very minor pressure reduction is enough to do what is necessary. You will still need suits until the air seal is stable, and we can replace the atmosphere," said Lafiel.
"Oh that makes sense. I was trying to figure out how much weight would be on the dome if you completely zeroed the inside atmosphere. I wasn't sure we designed for that."
-=oOo=-
It was two weeks later when every bolt was checked and verified torqued to spec. Three days after that a federation repair drone finished fusion welding all the seems. Individual glass sections could still be replaced from the inside, though it would require lowering the atmospheric pressure to match outside, or simply beaming a new one in place.
Two weeks later the atmosphere was replaced. The same workers that did the work took their helmets off and walked around on the rocky ground. Lafiel beamed down with Jinto at her side.
She said, "We are going to provide a copy of the tower facility here, or something close to it. Other than that, do you think you can take it from here?"
"Yes. Thank you so much," said Keiko.
"Two of our crew. Piper and Pyrrha have agreed to replace Lacus for a time. She wants to go home to Aldea and visit family," said Jinto.
"Thanks again. That will be a great help."
"Remember outside this dome it is very dangerous. You should wear at least a thin suit with at least thirty minutes of reserve air at all times. That should be more than enough time for, in an absolute emergency someone to port here and get you off the planet. Piper or Pyrrha should be here at all times, but we want to plan for the worst, not the best. You also have to watch for other things that may hurt you or rip your suit," said Lafiel.
"We agree. We plan on having multiple spotters to make sure none of our equipment damages the dome," said the lead worker.
Lafiel held out her hands to him. He shook it and she moved to the next. Jinto followed along, also shaking hands. After they were done they transported up and then Pyrrha transported down.
"Hello. I 'm Pyrrha. Piper is going to Altair IV."
"It is good to meet you Pyrrha. I am Keiko. I'm kind of the leader of Altair IV. They keep renominating me and I keep wining."
"That probably means your doing a good job."
"Is there a reason your here and Piper is there or was it random or?" asked Keiko.
"Piper is the stronger telepath, but I have a natural affinity for things that are magnetic, and much of what we are moving is iron containing. I can move people in pods back and forth from here to Altair IV, and I can shift the ore carriers to Earth where Phoebe can receive them. It's a bit much for Alex, unfortunately, though we can send some of the smaller carriers for her to fetch. Also Phoebe is still handling everything living, partially because a prime has more capacity to handle things going wrong."
"But you can get us back to Altair IV right?"
"Yes, I can easily do that. They would prefer I not be porting you all the way to Earth. I can do it in an emergency. Altair is much easier."
"But you yourself can't go?"
"Well, there is a runabout in orbit that I can use, and there is one above Altair IV that Piper can use to come get me, so I'm hardly stranded. In an emergency I can port myself there and have Piper catch. Back is possible too, but again, we would just use the ships."
"Can you remove material to outside this dome?"
"Easily."
-=oOo=-
The prime minister of Japan looked on the train car that was filled with ore that had a high percentage of palladium. Phoebe or Alex would spend a week in the tower of each of the nations contributing to this endeavor before moving to the next. They really needed to train more people to do this work, and they were. None had the top potential yet. It wasn't really surprising. Those with that potential were rare everywhere, not just here.
The train car coupled to an engine, a car with security, and a caboose. It was far too valuable to leave unsecured, even as it moved to where it would get processed. It wasn't just the palladium. There were other valuables in the mix like platinum and even some different rare earths. He would order additional security to follow the train on conventional roads, just to be safe. It would be a big effort, but this was very valuable material. Or was it? Would the price drop now that it was more plentiful? Surely it would, but he would send the police anyway.
-=oOo=-
Hank walked into her tower about a month after deliveries. He held out a letter to Phoebe.
"I don't understand. I thought you had a group summarizing all my mail."
"This one seemed important enough to bring it directly, and yes, we have verified it is legitimate."
Alex was there as well. Phoebe read it.
"Can I?" asked Alex.
Phoebe handed it o her and then asked Hank, "How long ago did the boy nearly drown?"
"Ten months."
"That's not good. I'll ask for a favor. I'll try to get Tirla, Mary, or Donna. Maybe they can stay and help for a time. I'll be back. I need to send a message." Phoebe vanished.
"Can they really heal such a thing?" wondered Alex.
"I would tend to bet they can help. How much, I do not know," said Hank.
-=oOo=-
Alex bent down to the little girl who was waiting outside the sick bay on Falcon. "Mary right?"
"Will Alex be alright?" she asked dubiously.
"That's my name, but I guess he is a boy. Isn't Alex a funny name for a boy?" joked Alex.
"Alex is a good name," she protested loudly.
"Sorry, bad joke, and I agree and I have little doubt that Doctor Bashir, Tirla, and Celeste will help Alex. I just don't know enough if they will be able to fix everything," said Alex.
"That's what mommy said."
"Well, we will be here when they are done. We just need to be patient."
"I know. Being patient is awful," said the small girl.
"I know," said Alex softly.
They waited close to three hours before the door opened. Celeste came out first. "You two can go in if you want. He is going to be fine."
"Thank you," said Alex.
"Thanks to you and Phoebe contacting us. We like to do these things when we can. I'm going to beam down to a hospital that can use some help. Tirla is pretty exhausted. She did most of the work. I tried to follow her and only barely did." She bent down to Mary. "You should give Tirla a hug."
"I will."
Tirla walked in and gave a surprised Mary a hug from where she was resting in a chair.
"Hey kiddo," said Tirla.
"Did you fix my brother?"
"We believe so," she said tiredly before yawning. "He needs to rest a bit more then he can wake. He won't recover probably half what he lost, but he can relearn it. Phoebe or another may be able to help, or he can simply learn it again."
"But he will get better now?" asked Mary.
"We believe so." Tirla turned to their parents. "There is something else you should know, that Celeste should have probably told you. It honestly isn't that important."
"What?" asked their father.
"Celeste actually has a bit of a talent for what is known as magic by many. She did part of the healing. She, unfortunately doesn't yet have the precision needed to fix something that delicate so I ended up doing all the fine work. She did, however, wake the magical potential in Alex."
"What does that mean?" asked her mother.
"Honestly, if he gets no more training it means he will be a little more resistant to disease or injury, and that is it. If he does, well it is a useful skill. Unfortunately, I doubt we have anyone that can spare to train anyone here, particularly in magic. We could take your family to a place that does if you want."
"But it isn't needed for Alex to get better?"
"No, but they also have far better medical than your world has. It wouldn't hurt if he was monitored a bit. We would have someone stop by and check in a few months, but it wouldn't be regular."
"I wanna go," said Mary.
"Would Mary also?" asked her father.
"I don't know. I have no magic. I can't really detect it. I am only certain since I was linked to Celeste during the work. It's certainly possible."
"And this kind of thing has earning potential?" asked their mother.
"Sure, if they want. For that matter we are liable to have a job offer if they graduate there, though they may ask you to do a certain amount of work there to pay back the training. They are not unreasonable and no one is going to force you to do anything."
On the bed through the open door, Alex slowly opened his eyes. "Mom?" he asked.
"Oh son. How do you feel?"
"Head feels funny."
"That is perfectly normal, given everything. If it doesn't pass in a few hours, let us know," said Tirla.
"All the scans are fine," said Julian.
"Why am I here?" asked Alex.
"You had an accident. You have been healing," said his father.
"Oh. I don't remember."
"That's pretty much normal, given what you were through. Don't worry about it. You will be fine," said Julian.
"Um, can I go?"
"Your on a space ship dummy, and you wanna go," complained Mary.
"Really?"
"Yes, we can go to a room with a window if you want," offered Julian.
"Yes, let's go," enthused the little boy.
-=oOo=-
Lindy Harlaown read the report on her desk. A new family with a very promising child, no two children, had enrolled in their academy. The parents also had useful skills. The mother in the family was a computer programmer, while the father was an architect. It looked like they were going to be able to place them in positions in short order, though there would be a fair amount of training required. The people involved had proposed fifteen percent of their combined salaries to pay for the children's training. She toggled approval on the contract. It was perhaps a bit low considering the actual costs of training, but not much, and they would, of course, attempt to recruit the children.
She paged back when she reviewed the report from medical. She couldn't see the medical reports beyond that all were in good shape now, but there was a note. It seemed Tirla's skill impressed them. Fixing that mess after the drowning was will within their healers ability. It wouldn't be easy, but they could do it. Fixing that mess ten months later was probably not. It added a recommendation to recruit her, if they could. She snorted. All of the healing adepts had recommendation to recruit. They had signed one up from the FSP so far and were still working on recruiting more. Their magical healers were very good, and likely could heal some injuries that Tirla and those like couldn't, but their shortage was with those like Tirla. Still, perhaps something could be worked out. She sent a note back to the doctor who made the recommendation. If they could prove magical healing was better for some injuries, it would make it easier to justify pairing teams of magical and psi based healers, and everyone would benefit.
-=oOo=-
Alex, Kara, Clark, Piper, Pyrrha, about a hundred people from Altair IV, and the crew of Falcon were down at a lake on Altair. It was a lake surrounded by houses made out of half sized shipping containers. Deanna and Rowan were also there.
Rowan walked up to Deanna and asked, "Will you do me the honor of this dance?"
"Your planning something," said a suddenly suspicious Deanna.
"Just a dance and one more small thing, promise."
"Alright."
Rowan focused and suddenly Deanna was dressed within an inch of her life in the most magnificent peach Japanese kimono with pink carnations sewed delicately in it, while she was in a black and silver kimono of her own.
"Hmm, I think I like yours better."
"SIzes aren't quite right, though I could replicate one," said Rowan.
"This is handmade isn't it?"
"Yes."
"Not on your life. Let's dance," said a smiling Deanna. The two flew into the sky and landed on the middle of the water. Their shoes remained where they started.
Lacus was playing a keyboard on the shore. Rowan sang clearly to Deanna.
I thought that dreams belonged to other women
'Cause each time I got close
They'd fall apart again
I feared my heart would beat in secrecy
I faced the nights alone
Oh, how could I have known
That all my life I only needed you?
Oh almost paradise
We're knockin' on heaven's door
Almost paradise
How could we ask for more?
I swear that I can see forever in your eyes
Paradise
Deanna took her turn to sing the familiar song from Footlose.
It seems like perfect love's so hard to find
I'd almost given up
You must have read my mind
And all these dreams I saved for a rainy day
They're finally coming true
I'll share them all with you
'Cause now we hold the future in our hand
Oh Almost paradise
We're knockin' on heaven's door
Almost paradise
How could we ask for more?
I swear that I can see forever in your eyes
Paradise
After they finished their dance Jinto and Lafiel stepped out onto the water, both were wearing their black and silver alliance uniforms. Jinto sang softly to her.
Hold on to that dream
To the future with no end
It's true, what you believe
Don't let go, the road will never end!
The music picked up. Jinto continued to sing, even as Lafiel blushed and they danced.
The sunset melts into the deep blue sea
It turns a crimson shade
A wonderful free fall
I just want to have the wind
Take me far away
They flew well into the sky.
I've cleared impossible hurdles before,
But I know that there's more,
And I know I can make it
Who's to blame when it's not the best
That I can achieve?
They continued to dance in the sky, until they grew tired. Kara, in the original outfit from when she saved the plane flew and quickly caught them.
"Flying is hard," said Lafiel annoyed.,
"You'll get it," said Kara softly.
"Yes, we will," agreed Jinto before resuming singing, with Lacus resuming playing.
Hold onto that dream!
Tomorrow knows where and when
It's true, what you believe
Don't let go, the road will never end!
"You could have waited till we reached the shore," complained Lafiel awkwardly even as Kara sat them down. She leaned in when Jinto did. They kissed.
A few minutes later on the shore, Keiko sighed loudly, even as Alex moved to sit by her.
"Wistful?"
"Just a bit. Have you ever been in love?"
"Once. It didn't work out."
"Yea, but sometimes it does. That is important to remember."
"Well, I am not promising eternal love or anything like that, but I wouldn't mind a dance," said Alex.
"Sure, why not? Can we walk on water too?" asked Keiko hopefully.
"As long as you don't mind me listening to your thoughts so I can coordinate it, and we might still fall in."
"Sure. It seems good practice."
"Agreed."
Lacus began her own song after they were done.
Beneath a veil so cold,
You deeply sleep, all alone
The melody of prayer; on the lonely fields,
A little light shined
I watched as you dreamed
You laughed like a child
So dear, and yet so far
That is the promise of our future
"She is a very good singer," said Keiko.
"She should be. That is her actual profession," said Alex.
"Really?"
"Yep. She only does this job when there is need. She would rather be singing."
The singing continued.
That one day, on a green morning,
One day, we will make it there
Because in this wintered sky
We still believe
Fields of Hope
On the day we were born, we were embraced
And now we search for those gentle hands again
The melody of prayer; one vanishes,
And all begins again; a powerless, painful continuation
One day, to that green morning,
We'll cross through all these nights
Because that is the place each one of us searches for
Now, within my own heart,
I want to keep you warm
So dear, and yet so far -
In the name of peace
Fields of Hope
So dear, and yet so far -
The fields of promise
Fields of Hope
Fields of Hope
Celeste took a turn, though Lacus accompanied her on piano. Her now long blond hair flowed in the breeze.
Can't you see that I'm a pioneer?
Unlocking the greatest mysteries.
My key is a fearless heart so pure and strong.
You can't be a hero hiding underneath your bed.
Got to live the life you create inside inside your head.
So I opened the opened the window caught the wind one night.
Now I sail with the birds in flight.
Celeste and all those who could fly took to the skies. Celeste continued to sing. Piper, black hair streaming beside her dove towards the water then pulled up, holding her hand out. Floating out of the water was a large rainbow trout.
"Fresh fish anyone? Assuming this is big enough to eat?"
One of the locals that worked on Altair VIII to mine the planet called out. "Yes it is. Bring that here, and I'll work on making us dinner."
She smiled at the man and did so, but kept the fish between her hands in the grip of her kinesis. She landed and the man grabbed it. "Didn't want to get dirty?" he asked.
"Not if not required. Thanks. I just want a taste."
"I'll get you more than that."
Three more fish were caught, but that was the limit for now. The lake was well stocked, but they were still careful about how many they removed from it.
Kara pulled the now frayed old gray sweater from the plane rescue down a bit as Alex looked at her speculatively.
"Something isn't right," said Alex.
"What?" asked Kara.
Alex flared her power. Her well became visible. Kara was picked up in the air and tossed into the middle of the lake. She came up looking like a wet cat.
"Now does everyone remember that scene? I know I do," said Alex.
Kara flew back to the shore. "I could do without being all wet."
"You mean there is something I can do that you can't? Let me see," said Alex. Alex took hold of Kara's hand and the water seemed to sluice off her.
"I'm still damp."
"Sorry, that's the limit of my skill," said Alex.
"I should toss you in," threatened Kara.
"You won't, I hope," said Alex.
"Don't tempt me," said Kara.
Clark walked up. "Is your sister being mean to you?"
"Just a little," said Kara.
"Come on, I want some of the barbecue they are making," said Alex.
"She does have a point," noted Kara.
"That she does."
-=oOo=-
A video of that night was recorded and released to Earth. Cat brought it and published it herself. It showed the true identity of Kara and told how she had decided to stay on Altair and help that planet grow, that even though she was weaker there, she was still strong enough to help. Cat gave the postscript to the video herself.
"The Alliance began this wonderful experiment, but it has taken on a life of its own. In a little over a year they will, for the most part, leave us, but they have shown us I think a better way. Those are your fathers, your mothers, your sons, and your daughters. Life on Altair is not easy. There is only half a million people there. There is so much to do, and resources will be scarce for some time, which limits the rate they can grow. Some resources must still come from Earth and the amount is limited, even if more than we could have dreamed possible. Yes, Altair has a bright future, but then so does Earth, if we but grasp it. This is likely my last duty as head of Catco Enterprises. I have been working with the Alliance this entire time to help, well to help Lafiel's people. It is the hardest job I have ever done in my life, and I love it dearly. I wish you well. I further appoint James Olson as the formal head of Catco Enterprises. He was standing in for me before and doing a remarkable job. I see no reason to change that. I wish you well."
-=oOo=-
Hank took the large pod to Altair. It was two years since they started. One potential T1 telepath was found and another T2. Both were trained enough for them to keep the system going on their own. Station masters had also been trained as well as support personnel. The telepaths were asked to transport no more than fifty people at once, until they had more training, but it was all working without any member of the Alliance helping. The pod he had arrived on was brought without their help.
The crew of Falcon beamed down to shake the hands of all of them and wish them well. They left a radio that would reach them should they need it.
Hank walked up to Captain Riker just before they were to leave. "You know, on Earth they kept saying you were doing this for some reason that benefited you in some convoluted way."
"It does benefit us. We put in the work, make good friends, a few choose to join our path, and the work continues. It's all part of our evil scheme," joked Riker.
"I just wanted to thank you. So many times countries on Earth are like, "We can't fix any of these problems, even when other countries have fixed those problems, or at least made them better. They just pretend those solutions wouldn' t work, or that they never worked. What is next though? You have been hand picking people."
"Yes, we did some fairly careful work to select the first million, and were somewhat less picky at the second million. We left the leaders here with our list of the suggested next two million. They can choose to use it or not," said Riker.
"It will fall apart a little after you leave," Hank said.
"I hope not. We think their desire to maybe ask us for favors might keep that list going for another couple years. The telepaths involved can't do large groups, not for awhile yet."
"A plan?"
"No, though it works out well. It just takes a long time before you can safely move a large mass of people." Riker shrugged.
"I just wanted to let you know that I'll continue to do what I can, most likely on Earth. It seems to need more help than here."
"We appreciate it. Contact us if you need us, particularly if people start dying."
"We will."
Riker turned and looked around the still going party. He held up his hand for silence and got it shortly after.
"It is time for us to go, but before we go, I wanted to share with you some wine originally procured from my friend Captain Jean-Luc Picard's family vineyard, along with some others created by the Spoor family of the Abh Empire. The reason for the difference is Abh can't drink regular alcohol and we shouldn't drink the Abh variety either, but I assure you, they are both very good vintages."
A table complete with the on chilled wine and glasses materialized.
"And now, it is time for the parting class. Lacus, would you mind leading us after we serve the drinks?"
"I would be glad to, once I get my own glass."
Riker smiled and poured one for her himself. She drank a good drink of it and began to sing.
Of all the money e'er I had
I spent it in good company
And all the harm I have ever done
Alas, it was to none but me
And all I've done for want of wit
To memory now I can't recall
So fill to me the parting glass
Good night and joy be to you all
So fill to me the parting glass
And drink a health whatever befalls
Then gently rise and softly call
Good night and joy be to you all.
-=oOo=-
"They are really gone," said Winn.
"Yes, and now we need to keep doing our jobs with a bit less help. They will come if needed, but we have work to do," said Hank.
"That we do. I half wish Kara had come back," said Winn.
"You could join her you know."
"I've no idea who will win her heart one day. I'm pretty sure it won't be me."
"There are plenty of amazing women out there you know," said Hank.
"Not that amazing. I still can't believe she did it. Most seem annoyed she didn't do it while she lived here, completely ignoring the nut cases that would come for those she cared for."
"Which is why she is there. I've got it on good authority that the world council in charge of settlement is going to stick to the list they provided for the next two million. It is carefully selected not to favor any one group. They are going to stick with what works."
"And after?"
"And after we hope that the culture they worked hard to develop sticks," said Hank simply.
"It seems such a fragile hope. I can see any number of billionaires trying to create their own personal kingdoms."
"So can I, but Kara is there and more than a few people with the abilities of the others are now there, even if they aren't as strong," said Hank.
"I think when Kara had to catch two of them, who hadn't quite mastered flying, but were still trying it helped, people see them as more human."
Hank nodded.
Author's Note: Review, Comment, Favorite, or Kudos.