The Morgos Incident

The Morgos Incident -an Elizabeth Thorne novel-

Olivia Smith

copyright 2009

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the people in my life who have supported me and believed in me. Many thanks to my husband, Jim, who has stuck by me in good times and in bad times. Without his support I wouldnt have had the guts to put my thoughts and ideas on paper, much less to let anyone else see them. To my parents, Janet and Arthur, who have always believed that I could do anything I wanted, even when I didnt know what I did want - thank you for allowing me to take my time figuring things out, and for giving me the tools with which to accomplish my goals. To my brother Harry, and my sister-in-law Natalie, who were there for me when I needed nothing more than non-judgmental comfort - thanks for being there. You have been an inspiration for much more than some of the themes in this book. I love you all. Thank you. -Olivia

introduction *****************

It was never in my plans to be living and working aboard a starship. I was not a child who aspired to be a traveler, much less a space traveler. I was born on a Colony. Unit Twelve, it was called. A huge cylinder, filled with people, in high orbit around Earth. At least that’s how it felt to those of us unlucky enough to have had to live there. My parents had been born there, and it was not easy to find a way off, either to a Colony on a planet or down to Earth. You were stuck where you were unless you could figure a way to save credits enough to buy your way off. That was also before they were allowing “regular” people to move to the Colonies on the Discovered Planets. The aliens who occupied those planets probably knew nothing of the Earth Government’s rules for emigration, but there it was. The old Units are not used anymore, except for scientific experiments run by Oldtimer researchers who can’t get grants to work in labs here on planet. They were decommissioned only a few years after we left Unit Twelve. My folks moved us down to Earth as soon as they were able to, and never looked back. It took some doing, I know, they had to work long and hard hours in the recycling plant. They had to give up any and all comforts for themselves to get enough credits for the trip down. Then they had to buy their way in to a living unit on planet. I know they did it mostly for me, their only child, so that I could have a good life, and I have never been able to express my overwhelming gratitude and love for them. Luckily for me, their names were drawn for a living unit up in Northern Province, an area which used to be called Northern California and Oregon. I grew up in and around the most beautiful hills and mountains on Earth. Clean air, friendly people, work aplenty for those who were able-bodied and willing. Probably the last such clean place left on the planet. And a good place for one such as me with my special certain abilities. Not so crowded as the Cities were in those days. Not so many people. I am what is known as an Alpha One Sympath. That means I can feel other people’s feelings. Not just in the way of the usual empath who can sense feelings and perhaps know if someone is lying or whatnot. I can literally feel what people are feeling, especially if it’s directed at me, and if I want to I can direct my feelings at them as well. This may sound like a great thing, fun, but it can be overwhelming. As a Sympath one has to learn at a young age to filter what one receives, or else it can literally drive you mad. I heard about a Sympath who went mad a while back. He blew up a Station because he couldn’t stand the pressure of all the people aboard. My folks were shocked that I turned out to be Alpha, neither of them are. But it’s in my family somewhere I guess, so here I am. I haven’t had a chance to do any research on that yet. When we moved to the Province it was such a relief for me. The sheer number of people aboard the Colony was like a pressure in my mind at all times. I had to pay attention and filter or else it would come crashing in on me. Once in the Province, I didn’t have to be on guard all the time. I could concentrate more on what I was interested in. Which turned out, to everyone’s surprise including my own, to be plants. Yes, plants. All plants. Big one, little ones, tall ones, short ones, even the bad smelling ones. I grew a food-plant garden. I grew a decorative plant garden. I planted trees. I took seminars at the Cooperative. I dragged my best friend to every seminar, and made her help me with my experiments and labwork for school. She was quite patient with me, I have to say, she never complained. I guess I was a bit forceful when it came to my interests. I graduated with honors from the local school and was given a scholarship to the University. The University is in Central Province, very near where the Headquarters of the Federation Alliance is located. They do a lot of their recruiting from there, both for the Naval Fleet Crew and Officers, and for civilian workers as well. There, with a lot of hard work, and support from my family and friends, I became Elizabeth Thorne, Doctor of Botanical Immunological and Virological Development. That’s what the Diploma on my office wall says. What it means is that I am a plant doctor. A darn good one, too, if I do say so myself. And all because my parents had the strength and will and ability to get us off that horrid Unit Twelve. Thanks, Mom and Dad. I still had absolutely no intention of going off planet. But I took a position at a lab in the Headquarters of the Federation Alliance. The Galactic Federation Alliance is the controlling organization for all the Allied Worlds, and the Earth Colonies. They are the Government, the Military, the Fleet, and the hub for the major Research and Development in mostly every field. I had no idea that anything I was doing would

ever become so important as to require my presence anywhere but in my lab. I didn’t think that way, I just wanted to do my research and work with my gardens. My team and I worked to develop antivirals and inoculations for Earth, the Colonies, and the Allies. Earth had a few Colonies still, and we were friendly with many of the member worlds of the Alliance. So I was requested to help when they ran into a blight, or an infestation, or anything that threatened their crops. Or even their flower fields. It was a fun job for me. I worked with great people, they were mostly brilliant, and fun, and I didn’t have too many run-ins with negative emotions. We developed treatments and systems for protecting the planets’ plant life, and water, and the production of Oxygen for those planets that required that as well. It was a very rewarding job. In addition, that was where and how I learned how to really control and filter my psychic receptors, so to speak. The facility was attached to the huge Headquarters building. I probably ran into or was exposed to hundreds of people every day. It was great practice. Practice for something I never expected, nor thought I ever wanted. I learned how to not only filter others’ feelings, but to direct my own. I dated a bit over the years, but it was hard to meet men, busy as I was. When I finally thought I was in love, we were married within a few months. It lasted a few years, but I was never completely satisfied. I never felt the comfort or warmth that I thought I should as a woman in love. And if I couldn’t feel my own, likewise I couldn’t feel any of that from him. So our relationship fizzled out, and we filed for a divorce. It was almost amicable, but there is still some resentment on both sides. It was a mistake that neither of us should have made, we should have known better. Love should be something that fills you up and spills out. Whether you are Sympath or not. There can be no half-measures. So I threw myself into my work more than usual, and after a few more years was given the ultimate promotion. I was made the Head of Research and Development for Botanics and Agrics. Head of the Lab. A team of researchers all working to the goal of making life better for folks on the Colonies and on a multitude of other planets. I was happy as could be for many years. Working with my team of brilliant scientists and researchers. Still dating on and off, mostly off. Nothing serious, nothing except my job. And then everything changed.

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chapter 1 *********

“What are they doing up there?” I heard as I started up the steps to the main lobby of the Federation building. “They seem to be agitated about something, better stay out of their way.” I could not see who was speaking, but I looked up to see what the comments were about. There, at the top of the stairs, I saw them. Three huge Agrints, arguing with a Human man in a Federation Uniform, who looked like a child next to them. A sigh escaped me, but I kept moving. My team and I had been working since before daylight on our current project, a treatment for a diseased water system. The water was infected with a growth of algae, and could not provide proper support for the occupants of Vinda 3. I was not sure exactly where that was, all I knew was that the inhabitants were in need of my help. My job as the Head of the Botanics Department for the Federation was to take on such projects, work out what the cause of the problem was, and solve it. This one had been easy to figure out, but the treatment had required many hours of careful research and testing. At the moment, I was on my way to meet a friend for lunch. The Federation Headquarters for Earth is located on a very large campus almost exactly in the middle of Central Province. My Lab, of course, was in the very furthest building from the main Headquarters building. There were trolleys that went between the buildings, but most of the time I enjoyed the walk. It became part of my exercise routine. I looked again toward where the argument was taking place. Agrints are big ugly aliens, sort of a cross between lizards and apes. They are almost three meters tall, on average, with greyish green scales, and sharp claws on their four-fingered hands. They have ugly mouths that remind me of Gila Monsters, and their language always sounds like they are angry. It definitely fits their appearance, and their demeanor. They can be pretty brutish, and I wouldn’t want to be on the other side of an argument with one. But they were a part of the Federation Alliance, and most of them can control their baser urges. However, if you were to see a few of them together in a bad mood, it would be a good idea to move away. I decided to stay on the opposite side of the landing, and kept on up the stairs. I had heard something in passing about a treaty that the Federation was considering with the Agrints, but I was not involved in political matters. I briefly wondered if this group had anything to do with that, and if it had anything to do with why they were arguing. My focus was on not running into that scene, I didn’t want to get in the middle of a ruckus. So much so, in fact, that I almost missed the whiff. That’s what I call it when I feel someone that I don’t know directing a feeling at me. I felt a waft of warmth, quite pleasant, and looked around to try to see where it came from. I couldn’t see much, as it was lunchtime and there were a lot of people in the plaza. I just had to shrug and keep going. I finally reached the top of the steps, and went on into the building. It was quite impressive, even to me. Even though I had worked for the Federation for so many years and had been in this building hundreds of times, I still had to stop and admire the beautiful architecture. Huge glass doors led into the spacious lobby. Heavy protective glass, embossed with the emblem of the Federation, a shield with a rather generic-looking planet surrounded with intertwined many-leaved vines. Marbled tile floors led to the grand staircase that nobody ever used, or at least I never saw anyone using it. It had been constructed mostly as decoration, and as a tribute to the former Governments of Earth. The ornate banister was carved with leaves and vines, and the beautiful but cold marble steps always gleamed as though they had been freshly polished. The stairway didn’t look like it led anywhere, but it actually ended on the second floor where the bulk of the Administration offices were located. There was a landing up there with another Reception desk, manned at all hours of the day and night as the lobby desk was, just in case someone got lost. The large and impressive main Reception desk sat in the middle of the lobby. Real wood and glass, it was proportional to the lobby and it also had ornate carvings and embossing with the symbols of the Federation. The Receptionist sat behind that huge edifice of a desk, greeting everyone coming in, and going out, and logging it all in her terminal. “Hey Liz!” “Hi Jenny,” I greeted my friend, who was the Receptionist. “Ready for lunch break?” “You bet,” Jenny said, as she waved her hand over the sensor screen and shut her terminal down. She touched a button behind the desk. “Leaving for break now, Sir.” I heard a voice over the communication channel. I recognized the voice of Admiral Wilson, the head of

this facility, of all the Federation Alliance Headquarters. “Logged, Jennifer. You may go. I am sending your relief down to the desk now.” “Thank you, Sir.” “Where are we going? I’m starved,” I said, “I’ve been working since Zero Six Hundred, and even our coffee maker is busted.” “Let’s go to that new place over by the park,” Jenny suggested, “I hear they have a great menu.” “OK.” We left the lobby and made our way over to the stairs to get back down to the street. I felt the whiff again and it was stronger this time. It felt warm, comforting. I looked around and saw a group of people standing on the middle landing. They were all in uniform, and looked familiar, as if I had seen them all somewhere before. “Hey Jenny,“ I asked, “Who are those folks in uniform down there? I feel like I’ve seen them before.” Jenny of course knew who they were, Jenny knew everything. She saw and heard all that went on in the Headquarters lobby. Everyone who had a meeting or any kind of business with the higher-ups of the Federation had to go through her. She was an endless source of the best stories, and most of them were true. “Those are the Senior Staff of the Draco. It’s here in orbit so they can refit some stuff and get some new crew on board. You’ve probably seen them on the news casts. They have been meeting with the Admiral about a new mission, or project, they have going on.” “Ah yes! We’ve been working on something for one of the Allied Planets, I wonder if their mission has to do with that. So that must be Captain Bianchi? And Lieutenant Walker? Or is it Commander Walker? Nice looking boys they are...” I was feeling that whiff again and I was pretty sure where it was coming from now. Captain Bianchi was looking as though he was trying not to look my way. A woman can tell these things. I, however, could not tear my eyes away. What a strong, handsome man. A man who of course was the Captain of the fastest, strongest starship in the Fleet. Tall, well built, slightly receding hairline, but that’ s ok. Muscular and strong. I don’t know how I knew that, but somehow I could tell. I felt a flush come over me, a tingly feeling all over my body. I said, trying to keep my voice steady, “OK, let’s go, I’m hungry.” I had to force myself to tear my gaze away. Jenny looked at me sideways for a moment, then just shrugged. “All right then, here we go.” We started down the steps. I had forgotten all about the Agrints, arguing at the top of the landing on the other side. I was trying very hard to concentrate on where I was going, trying not to get caught up in the warm feeling that I was still receiving from the Captain of the Draco. He was looking at me out of the corner of his eye, and trying unsuccessfully to hide it. He couldn’t know that I could feel what he was directing my way. But I did feel it, I felt it loud and clear. I didn’t want to let my feelings escape and flow over to him, that would have shocked him and perhaps embarrassed him. That was the last thing I wanted to do. If I was going to make a good impression on this powerful man, I surely did not want to begin by embarrassing him in front of his Crew. However, I did not have complete control of my feelings at that point, and some of them may have escaped me. The tingly feeling grew, the Captain’s warmth washing over me as I got closer to the group of Officers. Apparently the argument between the Agrints and the Human man was still on, and it was getting louder, and closer. I paid no attention to the footsteps that were coming ever nearer, and the raised voices made no impact on me. Jenny took my arm and tried to lead me over to the railing on the side of the steps, where we would be out of the way. I felt her tugging at me, but ignored her and kept going. As we passed the group of Officers, I turned to look at Captain Bianchi. I couldn’t help myself. He was so very magnetic. He had an air of Power about him, it was irresistible. He was still trying not to stare at me but I could not mistake that whiff of his warmth, the trace of desire, it was certainly directed at me. I caught my breath. I had a brief flash of throwing myself into his arms... And suddenly there I was. The darned Agrints, and the man they were arguing with, had worked their way over to the side of the plaza steps where we were. I hadn’t noticed, I was too distracted by the Captain and that waft of warmth I was feeling. Somehow one of them had bumped me, or thrown me, more likely, right into the Crew of the Draco. Right into the arms of the Captain. “It couldn’t be... it just couldn’t,” I heard myself mumbling. “It’s just a coincidence.”

“My dear lady, are you all right?” I looked up from my sprawled position on the concrete of the plaza into the most gorgeous grey eyes I had

or have ever seen. I pulled my gaze away and said, “Yes, I think so, Captain.” I couldn’t believe it. How had this happened? I had tried so hard not to let this sort of thing happen, my whole life. My Sympath abilities are alarming to most people, I have to try to hide them. I have to try to cover, to keep my feelings to myself. I can’t help the feelings I get from others, though. I thought I knew that the Agrints couldn’t have felt my emotions, that had never happened before. I only received feelings from, and could only send feelings to Humans and Human-like aliens. Never before had I caused a reaction in reptilians. I wondered if they really had felt my emotions, my feelings, my dilemma or if they were simply the big brutes that they were said to be. “Let’s try to get you on your feet then.” Captain Bianchi took my hands in his and pulled me gently upwards. I felt a sharp pain in my ankle, cried out, and sat back down. Next thing I knew, he was putting my arms around his neck, lifting me up, and moving me over to the side of the plaza where there were fewer people moving around. He put me down onto the grass near the sidewalk, under one of the shade trees that lined the walkway, then sat down beside me. He looked me over, appraisingly. My heart pounded, and not only with the residual fear and surprise of the sudden attack. My skin warmed, and the tingly feeling increased. “Captain Paolo Bianchi, at your service, Ma’am.” “Elizabeth Thorne, in your debt, kind sir.” He looked at me with a slight smile curving his lip. My heart skipped a beat. He looked up at his group of Officers. “Let’s get that ankle wrapped up. Doctor? Would you assist, please?” A woman I had not noticed before came over. Her uniform was the same as the men’s except more form fitting. She was quite beautiful. Long blond hair swept back from her heart-shaped face. Blazing blue eyes, very intelligent-looking eyes, but something else was in there as well. I couldn’t get a good reading of what she was feeling. She was cold, though, not friendly. She introduced herself to me as Doctor Amy Morris. I remembered her name as being the Chief Medical Officer of the Draco. I also thought I remembered hearing or reading something about her and the Captain having a relationship in the past. But then, the gossip broadcast is just that, and anything we hear there may or may not be true. Jenny would know. I would have to ask her later. I rolled up my pants leg and took off my workboot. The ankle was beginning to swell and throb. I took a few deep breaths and tried to disregard the pain. I tried to focus on the wafts of feeling I was still receiving from the Captain, strength, warmth, power. Now that I knew for sure that he was the one who was sending to me, I could focus on him directly. It was all I could do not to send my own feelings to him. Doctor Morris wrapped my ankle so I could stand on it, then gave me a spray of pain killer. Captain Bianchi went over by the street to speak with a police officer. “LIZ! Liz are you all right? They wouldn’t let me through...” Jenny came breathlessly though the small crowd that had gathered. “Yes, Jen, I’m going to be just fine, these fine folks have fixed me all up.” “Well, I think I will just take you home now, or at least back to the lab. You don’t look like you can walk very far...” Jenny was babbling. I knew she had been frightened, being unable to get to me, and feeling like she should have done something to prevent me being hurt. She threw herself down on the ground beside me, and hugged me tight. Jenny is amazing. She is the Receptionist for the Headquarters Tower. She is the first impression anyone gets when they report there for a meeting, Humans, Colonists, Ambassadors, and visitors alike. She is beautiful, and professional, and knows how to treat people like they are the most important thing in her life when she is speaking to them. She is my best friend, we had grown up together, and at that moment she was frightened for me, and feeling guilty as well. I put my hand on hers and said, “Jen, don’t feel bad, there was nothing you could have done.” “That is correct, young lady, those Agrints are ruthless and strong. There was nothing you could have done,” Captain Bianchi was back, and he was trying to make Jenny feel better as well. My heart skipped a couple more beats. He went on, “The police have caught up with the Agrints and they would like to know if we want to press any charges against them for assault.” I couldn’t help it. I blurted out, before I could think, “My goodness, I should go shake their hands and thank them!” I felt the initial surprise, then the amusement, coming from the Captain. Then the warmth washed over me again, that wonderful strong warmth. I felt the flush come over me as that warmth penetrated into my mind and body. My thoughts strayed. He laughed and said, “Well, we really cannot let them get away with this, they must be held accountable for hurting you,” then, he bent a little closer and added softly, “even if I agree that we should perhaps

thank them for introducing us.” I don’t remember much about the rest of that day. Jenny took me back to my lab so I could finish up my current running experiment and close up shop for the day. My mind was such a blur, and not only due to the pain killer. I knew I had to finish up the experiment and testing, and get my report on the results ready for the Admiral. I was to hand it in to him the next day. I wondered once more if that was the mission that Captain Paolo Bianchi and the Draco were heading out on. Jenny took me home and got me into my bed, and I slept until the next morning.

chapter 2 ********* When I was awakened by the alarm the next morning, I jumped out of the bed, refreshed in the shower, threw on my work clothes and flew out the door. Well, I jumped out of bed and flew out the door as well as a person could who was limping on one bad ankle. The ankle was still throbbing a bit. I unwrapped it, rewrapped it, and hoped for the best, as I didn’t want to take time to go to Medical. I also had a few bruises here and there, but nothing to stop me from going in to the lab. I was at my desk terminal working before anyone else was in the lab. This was my way of dealing with stressful situations, of any sort, good or bad. I dive into my work. I put everything else aside. I block everything else out. That morning I was still working on the final report on my team’s most recent project. I had not gotten much done after the events of the day before. I had to go back over what I had done, I was not at all certain at what point I had left off. It had to be very detailed, so it took up all of my attention for quite a while. After a couple of hours of checking and rechecking my work, I looked out the picture window at the beautiful day and said to myself, “What the heck am I doing? This is as done as it is going to be. We’ve got this problem solved,” and decided to give myself the rest of the day off. I had to think, and the park was calling my name. There’s an area where the trees are thick and the benches are always empty. I always think of it as my special thinking place. I planned to grab a bag lunch and limp on over there to try to figure out what, if anything, to do about my adventure the day before. Or maybe just to daydream. I had just met one of the most powerful, fascinating men in the Fleet, and I had felt his attention, his interest in me. What was I going to do about that? What could I do? The Draco would be gone soon, if not that very day. I couldn’t know if or when they would be back. I felt that I had to be alone with my thoughts, to try to gain some perspective, and the quiet of the benches under the trees in the park was the perfect place for me to do that. The other choice would have been to go work out, as sometimes that helps me as well, but I couldn’t exactly do that with a sprained ankle. However, first I had to attend to Official Business. I limped my slow way over to the main Headquarters to give my report to the Admiral. My team and I had worked out an effective treatment for the algae problem on Vinda 3. Those poor people, I know they are aliens but I think of them all as “people”, had been having to hand treat all of their drinking water and their irrigation water for months. Their crops were failing because they could not process the water fast enough. Nothing they had tried had worked to solve the algae problem, probably because they had no experience with the sort of sudden climate change they were faced with. Nobody did. My group had developed a non-light-sensitive chemical that would kill the algae and still be safe for the population to ingest. We were quite proud of it. It would allow the Vindans to live more comfortably while they were searching for a new planet to relocate to. The unfortunates were living in a solar system whose sun was burning out, and all of the planets in the system were being affected by the change in the light spectrum. The Federation was helping them look for somewhere to move to, a new planet, and I was going to help them live in the meantime. It was a good feeling. When I arrived at the Headquarters building, I greeted Jenny. She looked me over and saw that I was limping. “Liz, what are you doing? You shouldn’t be walking around on that bad leg. Are you all right?” “I’m fine, Jen. I just have to give this report to the Admiral, then I’m going to go home to take care of this sprain. See you in a bit.” She started to say something else, and I felt her amusement. I briefly wondered what was up, then decided I didn’t want to take the time to listen to that day’s story of who was breaking up with who, or who had gotten fired. I just wanted to give my report, answer any questions the Admiral had, and get out of there. I nodded to Jenny, and continued on to the lift. I brought my report tablet up to the Admiral’s office on the top floor of the Headquarters Tower. It was a really good thing, that day, to have the lift waiting to take me to that penthouse. My ankle was surely not feeling any better after the long walk across the campus. Of course it only then occurred to me that perhaps I could have taken a trolley... The Assistant announced me and I went over to the door. As I put my hand out to pull the handle, I felt something, a warmth. It was very familiar, that strong warmth. I took a deep breath and opened the door. And there he was, Captain Paolo Bianchi, of the Starship Draco, sitting in the Admiral’s office, looking at me as though he had been waiting for me to walk in. I took another deep breath and mentally kicked myself for not asking Jenny what was going on. I would know better in the future.

Admiral Wilson said, “Hello, Doctor Thorne. I understand you have the treatment ready for Vinda 3?” “Yes, Sir, it’s as ready as we can make it. It’s passed all of the tests and simulations we could think up.” I handed him the tablet with the report on the treatment. “That’s wonderful, Doctor. We need to get it to them now.” “Yes, Sir.” “I would like to introduce you to Captain Bianchi of the Draco. He will be traveling on to Vinda 3 to deliver the treatment. Captain Bianchi, this Doctor Elizabeth Thorne, our Head Botany Researcher.” “Yes, Sir.” I could barely keep my voice steady. I was wondering what the Admiral was building up to, and what the Captain was doing here, now, where I was, staring at me like that. I turned to the Captain. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Captain Bianchi.” Captain Bianchi said, with that slight smile that again made my heart skip, “The Doctor is being shy, Admiral. We actually met briefly yesterday in the plaza. There was a small incident with the Agrints... It ’s a pleasure to see you again, Doctor.” I was thrown a bit by his emphasis on the “Doctor” until I remembered that I hadn’t mentioned my title or what I did. It hadn’t seemed relevant at the time and I didn’t want to attract more attention than I already had. I guess you never know what’s going to come back to haunt you later. “Yes, Admiral, that’s true, the good Captain did assist me when the Agrints ran me down and I busted my ankle,” I made a brief curtsey in the Captain’s direction and continued, “Thank you ever so much for coming to my rescue, Captain.” Admiral Wilson was definitely amused by this exchange. He didn’t even try to hide it, not that he could have hidden it from me. He smiled and said, “Yes, I heard about that. Good of you not to be pressing charges so that we can just send those Agrints back home without dragging out an Advocacy. Well then, I am glad to know that you two are getting along. Doctor Liz, we are sending you on what used to be called a ‘road trip’. You will be on board the Draco when she leaves for Vinda 3.” I did not see that coming. Maybe I should have, but I didn’t. My shock would have been apparent to anyone anyway, but since I was not trying to conceal, it hit both men like a slap to the face. Both of their heads whipped around at me, first with surprise, then with what might have been a bit of pain. Captain Bianchi looked the most surprised, the Admiral was less so. I had been working for him for many years, after all. He recovered quickly and I saw the beginnings of a smile. I, however, was mortified. This was exactly the sort of thing I was always trying to avoid. “Oh my gosh I am so sorry!” I was babbling, “I didn’t mean to project like that, I was just so surprised! I would never do anything like that to you on purpose!” Captain Bianchi tilted his head at me and blinked those amazing grey eyes. He said, “You are Alpha?” Of course he would see that right away. He didn’t get to be Captain without a bit of empathy of his own. “I am, Sir. Will that be a problem?” “Not at all. But it does explain a couple of things. We will have a talk at a later time, we don’t have to take the Admiral’s time with this. I see that the Admiral was holding this back to see my reaction. You did of course know about the Doctor’s ability, Sir?” Admiral Wilson was openly smiling now. He was a good man, with a sense of humor when warranted, but a brilliant military tactician most of all. He did definitely care about all of us, we all knew it, that’s why we kept working for him, even those of us not in the Fleet. I didn’t know what to think about that smile, however. Admiral Wilson was the most powerful man in the Federation besides the President. He surely wouldn’t be trying to be a matchmaker, surely not. I could not get a reading from him, all I felt was the amusement. He said, through the smile, “Why yes, indeed, Captain. I know all about my people, don’t you?” My ankle was throbbing more than ever from standing on it after walking on it. Neither man seemed to realize that maybe they should have invited me to sit down, what with being injured and all. That seems to go with being a powerful Military Man, and not realizing that we non-military types are sometimes weaker than we even want to admit. I wanted to project my pain to them so they would understand but that would have been self indulgent. Instead I said, “I’m sorry, Sirs, but my ankle is hurting and I was getting ready to leave for the day to take care of it. May I sit please?” They both looked at each other. I smiled to myself, “they really didn’t think to realize that I might be in pain and not able to stand forever.” Admiral Wilson said,”Of course, Doctor. We do have to discuss your journey and what needs to happen when you get to Vinda 3.”

The discussion went on pretty much for the rest of the day. We did take a break for lunch, and Captain Bianchi, remembering what had happened the day before, had food brought in from the restaurant that Jenny and I had planned to go to and never made it. He even let me call and ask Jenny to join us, but she was too shy and refused. She did tell me in no uncertain terms that I needed to call her when we were done with our meeting, on pain of death, or tickling, or something equally frightening. The Assistant came in, carrying a large tray, with our food and utensils. Admiral Wilson stood, and said that he had to go debrief someone about something, then excused himself. That left me alone with Captain Bianchi. My heart began to pound, and I felt my body become warm, as his warmth and power wafted over me. So strong, and sensuous, it was almost visible. The Captain set out the food when it was brought in. The Admiral’s office had a conference table, real wood of course, over by the window. That window overlooks the entire Headquarters Campus. From there you can see the courtyard, with the fountains and marble benches. There’s also a perfect view of the outer buildings, my Lab included. The plaza in front of the building isn’t visible, but the Admiral could pretty much see everywhere else. I happened to know that he had a security viewscreen behind his desk as well. I’d been in that office many times over my years at Headquarters. The Captain and I sat at the conference table to have our lunch. I don’t remember anything about the food. It could as well have been wood pulp. All I could see was those deep grey eyes, so intelligent, so probing, so very deep. He took the opportunity to ask me questions. Perhaps he felt awkward as well. After all, we had just barely met. “You are the Head of the Agrics Department, yes? You developed this cure we are to bring to Vinda 3?” “I did, Captain Bianchi, with my team, of course. It’s fairly straightforward. We needed to figure out a way to clean the Vindans’ water without harming any other part of their ecosystem. My team are all experts at that.” He tilted his head at me again. “You may think it is straightforward, however, I will have to trust you on that.” I said, “Well, Captain, I know there are going to be a few things I will have to trust you on as well.” He smiled, a big bright smile. I caught my breath. The feelings of warmth were still wafting over me. I wondered what it would feel like to have his hands roaming over my... My thoughts were straying again, my body growing warmer. I had to try to focus on what he was saying, not the wafts of desire. I didn’t want to embarrass either of us, again. When the Admiral came back, he looked carefully at each of us. He smiled and sat back down behind his desk. I felt his amusement, and something else... perhaps anticipation? We continued our discussion of the mission. It was agreed that I would go back to my Lab to oversee the packaging of the algicide and the accompanying training materials, and then go back to my place and pack. I was told that I would be away for about a month, so don’t pack light. We would be leaving the following afternoon. They told me about the Vindans, another reptilian-type race, very different from the Agrints. These are gentle, friendly aliens. They have, or did have, a productive agrarian society that had much to offer in the way of trade, of materials, and food. They have a penchant for traditions, and art, as well as music. They also loved their planet and were having a hard time coming to grips with the fact that they had to leave. Their King was apparently hard to impress. I was told to be very careful about how I acted around him in order to avoid any incidents. I wasn’t sure how to take that, until I remembered that I had never been off planet since I was a small child, had had no dealings with any aliens that I could recall, and these two extremely powerful men had no idea what to expect from me in a political or practical situation. I decided they were protecting me as much as themselves, and Earth. What a lot of responsibility for a plant doctor. It was quite intimidating. I was a plant doctor with no protocol experience, no training, nothing. Wow. “Here I go, hopefully I won’t create an intergalactic incident my first time out.” Then I realized that I had thought “first time” as though there might be a second time... enough of that, I hadn’t even left Earth yet. They were asking me to assist with one mission, nothing more. When the Admiral and the Captain had decided that they were finished filling me in on the pertinent details of the mission, I was dismissed. Admiral Wilson nodded at me, then nodded toward the door. Captain Bianchi stood as I got up to leave. He held out his hand. “I look forward to working with you, Doctor.” My heart skipped again as I took his offered hand, so warm and strong, and then I turned and limped my way out of the Admiral’s office.

Once in the lift to go back down to the lobby, I took another deep breath, then started to head over to the Lab to get the packing started... but first I had to get hold of Jenny and get her input. I stopped at the huge desk in the lobby and waited for her to finish her call, then told her about what the Admiral had asked me to do. Or rather what he had ordered me to do. And who I was going to be working with, and where. Jenny’s input was simple. “Are you nuts? Of course you’ll be great! How could you help it? You’re the premier Botanical Whosis on this planet and any other! I have complete faith in you. You’ve solved the problems for a whole world full of people, they’re counting on you. You’re the only one who can take charge of this. So get to it.” I love Jenny. She’s a fabulous supportive friend. Not informed at all, nor is she interested in knowing about my work. But she’ll stick by me and support me in any endeavor, as I would for her. I have a feeling that she also was being a bit of the matchmaker. I didn’t mind. It may have been that final item that pointed my feet firmly on the path that I am on now. My best friend who supported me, believed in me, wanted me to be successful and happy. As she was. Jenny had been my first friend in the living unit. We hung around together, played together, went to school together, all the way through school together until University. I got the scholarship and she didn’t. But Jenny wasn’t the type to hold that against me. She stayed my friend the whole time, and she applauded even louder than my parents at my graduation. I got her the job at Headquarters so that we could stay close, and so that she wouldn’t have to rely on anyone else to take care of her, she could take care of herself. I hadn’t planned it that way, but she was a very important part of the Federation Headquarters now, everyone relied on her, including the Admiral. Jenny and I are opposites in almost everything. I am dark, dark hair, dark eyes, brown skin. She is light, red hair, freckles, white skin. I am a Scientist, she is a People Person. I analyze everything, emotions to molecules. She takes things as they come, and has a knack for making people feel comfortable. But we had been friends for as long as either of us could remember, really, and that wasn’t going to change. We had always done everything together. We went to Self-Defense classes and learned yoga together. We learned how to handle firearms together. The only thing we didn’t do together had to do with men, and there we’re all on our own. We have to find our own way to be happy.

chapter 3 ********* I started to head over to my Lab to begin the packing, but instead I found myself back at my apartment. I needed to regroup, to recharge, to recover from the emotions of the day. I would go back there first thing in the morning, the Admiral would understand. I slept like a rock that night. I had been almost overloaded with the emotional ups and downs of the past couple of days. My body simply shut down. I needed to rest and build my strength for whatever lay ahead. I wasn’t able to work out with the bad ankle, so sleep was the only mechanism I had. The next morning I went back to the Lab to oversee the final packing up. It took much longer than I thought it would to get the treatment for Vinda 3 packaged and ready for transport to the Draco. Or maybe I was dithering because I suddenly realized I was leaving Earth for the first time that I could remember, all alone of my family and friends, with a huge responsibility awaiting me at the other end of the trip. Not to mention the mere fact that I was nervous about the trip itself. Starships are huge, really huge. And the Draco is the hugest of our Fleet. She has 35 levels, and holds a complement of over a thousand people. That’s a lot of feelings and emotions to filter. It was quite an intimidating thought to be in the close vicinity of so many, so many people that I didn’t know. Thank goodness for my years of yoga and martial arts training. I had learned breathing techniques to help calm, and exercises to help as well. I couldn’t wait to get back to my apartment to be alone and refocus. The treatment vials had to be handled and packed carefully. They were fragile, and we could not afford to have any breakage or leakage. We would be very far from my Lab if anything were to happen to set us back. I had no way to know what sort of facilities were awaiting me on the Draco. The Captain had said that there was a full Lab, almost an entire Level. He said they had every diagnostic and fabrication tool that I could possibly need. However, I had not, obviously, been involved in the creation of the Lab, so I did not fully trust that they would have everything I would need or want. I felt that we couldn’t be too careful. I not only wanted the mission to be a success because we needed to help the Vindans, but I couldn ’t allow myself to be in a position where I would let the Admiral down, or the Captain. When I finally decided that we were as done as could be with the packing at the lab, I looked around one last time and thanked my team. They had worked very hard on this project, and I knew they also wanted it to be a success. I said goodbye to my Lab in my head. Then I noticed a young Ensign standing by the doorway. I had learned the military insignia over my years at the Federation, I couldn’t help it. “Yes, Ensign, what can I do for you?” “Ma’am, I am here to escort you home to pack and then to take you to the Draco.” “What’s your name, Ensign?” I asked. “I am Ensign Parker, Ma’am. I work in the Agro-Lab aboard Draco. I’ll be a part of your new team.” “It’s nice to meet you, Ensign Parker. But I can get myself home and pack my stuff. Then I can meet up with you at the Spaceport.” “I can’t let you do that Ma’am, the Captain has ordered me to assist you. You are injured. I can be of help.” I sighed. This was how it was going to be. It was pretty much how it was when you worked with a military operation. Orders are orders, nothing I could do about it. I resigned myself to not having any alone time, and motioned to Ensign Parker to follow me out. “Well, come on then, let’s go. Everything’s under control here.” “Yes, Ma’am.” “Oh, and please quit calling me Ma’am. It makes me feel old. Call me Doctor Liz.” “Yes, Ma’am.” I sighed again. Here we go. It turned out to be a good thing to have the Ensign escorting me. He had a private trolley waiting to take us to my apartment unit. It made the trip much quicker than taking the public transport, and much much better for my ankle than walking. “OK, here we are.” I opened my door and went in. My apartment was nice, as apartments go. Spacious by current standards, a large bedroom, separate Refresh area, a living area, all of which were covered pretty much floor to ceiling with plant life. Either plants I had developed, or grown from seed, or nursed back to health after a neighbor or friend had mauled them. The only things I didn’t have were trees and grass, and then only

because I couldn’t figure a way to make that happen in a rented apartment. I hadn’t had time to think about what to do with all of them, and suddenly was sad that they were going to be left all alone. I turned to ask what I could do about arranging to have them cared for. Ensign Parker came to my rescue. “Ma’am, Captain Bianchi and Admiral Wilson have made arrangements for your plants to be taken to Headquarters and cared for there. Please don’t be sad.” I was surprised to feel and hear the emotional turmoil coming from Parker, he had seemed to be so businesslike and cool. If he had received my feelings, he had to be open to them. Most of the Naval Officers I had run into over the years had been closed up tight. He really seemed to care about what happened to my plants. Maybe this trip wouldn’t be so bad if I was to be working with folks like this. I answered, “Thank you, Ensign, that is a relief. Now, let’s get busy.” I went through the apartment, sorting in my mind what I wanted to bring on my adventure to the stars. Suddenly none of it mattered. The trinkets that accumulate over years didn’t matter. I was going to be starting something new, something that might well change my life forever. And if not, well then, I would only be away for a month. I gathered some clothes, and pictures of my family and friends, threw the things into a couple of boxes, and I was done. “That’s it.” Ensign Parker looked at me, surprised. “Are you sure, Ma’am? We can take as much as you want. The Crewman will be here shortly to transport everything, it’s no problem to take more.” I shrugged. “That’s all I need, Mr. Parker. I’m going to work. All of this stuff will be waiting for me when we get back.” He nodded. I said, “Please wait for me in the living area, I need to refresh a bit before we leave.” I went into my bedroom and shut the door. I took a couple of cleansing breaths and did a couple of stretches. I took off my dirty work clothes, got some clean clothes out of the dresser, and then sat on the bed to take the bandage from my ankle. The swelling had gone down but it was still sore. I put a clean bandage around it so I wouldn’t damage it again, then I went into the Refresh. I took my dirty clothes and threw them in the recycle basket. Then I splashed my face with cold water and ran my fingers through my hair. I looked at myself in the mirror and said, “Elizabeth, what in the Universe have you gotten yourself into now?” My reflection looked back at me. Medium brown hair, dark brown eyes, average facial features which look much better when I smile. I stepped back for a full view. “Not too bad for a middle-aged plant doc.” I’m a small woman, about 160 cm and 52 kilos. Most of me is muscle, I work out every day. Jenny has made sure of that. My martial arts training as well as the yoga practice have allowed me to keep a pretty nice figure, if I do say so myself. Small waist, slim legs, well shaped arms. I’m strong for my size, but I know enough to stay out of a fight if it can be helped. The Agrint had thrown me like a doll. That was humbling. There had been nothing I could do. And I’d had no warning of the attack. If they could feel anything from me, I still could not feel anything from them. Then I had a twinge. Jenny. I had to contact her. She knew that I was to be leaving on the Draco, but I couldn’t remember if I had told her that we would be leaving today, for a whole month. I couldn’t just leave without at least speaking to her first. I put on my usual uniform of khaki-colored cargo pants and tank top, and workboots, and went back into the living area. “OK Mr. Parker, ready to go, but I need to make a call first, please.” “Ma’am, we can call your friend on the way, or if you can wait, she will be meeting us at the Spaceport.” Another shock. How much did they know about me? How long had the Admiral been planning to send me on this journey? Had my path been planned for me by the Federation? I was a bit hurt that it had been sprung on me so suddenly if it had been planned all along. I decided I had to let it go, though, there was no point in having doubts or resentment up front. This was to be the adventure of my lifetime. Out loud I said, “OK then, Ensign. Off we go.” And off we went. The Spaceport is in the former desert area of Central Province. It’s only not a desert anymore because the Federation has remade it, reformed it, turned it into an oasis with a huge landing and takeoff area for the shuttles, and a larger landing pad for the occasional Starship that has to land on planet for some reason. “That must be a sight to see,” I thought. I couldn’t imagine a case where a Starship would need to actually land, or even that one could, but apparently it happened.

When we were dropped off by the trolley near the shuttle area, I had one more pang of nerves. What was I doing? Would I be able to meet the expectations of Admiral Wilson, much less the entire Federation Alliance? It was tempting to just turn and run. Then I laughed to myself. I couldn’t run even if I really wanted to. My sprained ankle. Another deep cleansing breath. “Liz?” I turned around, to see Jenny standing there with a portable terminal screen in her hands. I had been concentrating so hard on calming myself down that I hadn’t noticed that a small group of people had come up behind us. I made a mental note to work on that, I should really be more aware of my surroundings, especially if I was going to be out of my element. This time it was only Jenny, but who knew who or what it could be in the future. I was going to be out in deep space, with a Crew of people I didn’t know, traveling to an alien world. I had to learn to be more careful. I had been used to being safe and secure, on the campus of Headquarters, but now everything was going to be different. “Jenny! I’m so glad to see you. I was afraid I wouldn’t get to see you before I had to take off.” “You didn’t think I would let that happen, did you? You have to know that I know everything that happens in that building. I do pay attention to what you do and say, you know. I made sure they got me over here for your sendoff. And I have something else for you...” She opened up the terminal screen, to reveal a call message screen that showed two familiar and beloved faces. My parents. “Elizabeth, we are so proud of you! We don’t have long, we know you have to go. But we wanted to say farewell, and best of luck. We know you will be a great success. We love you. Do your best, as you always do. The Admiral was kind enough to pay for this message, but we don’t want to impose too much. Just know we are behind you all the way. Take care of yourself, we’ll see you when you get back.” I drew a shaky breath. Wow. The Admiral really wanted me to be OK with this. He was a good man. I gave Jenny a tight hug. “You take care of yourself, Jen. I’m sorry we didn’t get a chance to sit and chat about all this.” She hugged me back harder and said, “You’ll be fine. It’s all OK. Message me if you can. If not, I await your report when you get back.” I smiled. She smiled back. I knew she would be checking up on me as much as she could. She would not be out of the loop if she could help it. Then I turned to Ensign Parker, who was standing there looking a bit uncomfortable. “Let’s go, Mr. Parker. I’m ready now.” He led me across the concrete to the awaiting Shuttle Four. It looked just like any other Shuttle I’d seen from a distance, but up close it was ever so much bigger. I thought, “If this Shuttle looks so huge, what is the Draco going to be like? My goodness.” Ensign Parker smiled. He had to have felt my awe. That was OK with me, we were going to be working closely together. He needed to know about me as I needed to know about him. He helped me up the steps into the Shuttle, and directed me to a seat. It looked and felt almost like a reclining chair in a lounge. He then showed me how to work the safety harness and waited for me to get it clasped before saying to the Pilot, “Sir, we are ready when you are.” Takeoff was smooth, I didn’t feel a thing. I asked, “Lieutenant, how long is the trip up?” The Pilot, whose name was Lieutenant Quinn, I found out later, responded, “Just a few minutes, Ma’am. Don’t worry, you’ll be aboard the Draco in no time.” Ma’am again. I had to do something about that. I didn’t want everyone calling me Ma’am, it really does make me feel older than my 40-something years. I know it’s a respect thing coming from these Fleet Navy Officers, but it still bothered me. I made another mental note to speak to the Captain about this. If I could think straight when I did speak to the Captain. As it turned out, I was not able to speak to the Captain, or anyone else, really, for quite a while. I watched the viewscreen so that I would be able to see the Draco as we approached. When she became visible, I almost didn’t register what I was seeing. Beyond huge, she filled the viewscreen and then some. As we got closer I began to make out some details, then more and more. Then suddenly I saw windows, and hatches, and it started to come into perspective. The Shuttle made its way to its Bay for landing, and I had a moment of vertigo at the sheer size and bulk and overwhelming feeling of power of the Starship. Then I also realized that what I was feeling was partially due to the number of people on board. I was allowing my filters to become overloaded, I wasn’t paying enough attention to controlling the reception. I had known there would be a lot coming at me, but the actual event almost knocked me out. I forced myself to do a few deep cleansing breaths, closed my eyes and focused on my inner self. I knew I could block out the noise if I was given a chance to do so. Ensign Parker saw me, and I felt him start to react,

then he controlled himself and let me be. I am forever grateful to him for those few moments of quiet, otherwise I might not have been able to deal with the bombardment. When I felt the calmness replacing the noise, I opened my eyes and said to Parker, “Thank you. I’m all right now. I just have to remember that I need to be more careful while I’m here.”

chapter 4 ********* When we landed in the Shuttle Bay and the doors opened, I unclasped the harness and stood up. I had a brief moment of disorientation and grabbed for the chair. Then I righted myself and moved toward the door. Ensign Parker said, “Ma’am, that happens quite a bit when you first start traveling in space. It’s due to the change in pressure as well as the artificial gravity field. It will pass.” I smiled at him and replied, “Thank you, Ensign, I will try to remember that.” We moved away from the door toward the rear of the Shuttle where my equipment was being unloaded and stacked. It all looked the same as when I had prepared it. I don’t know why I thought it wouldn’t, but it was my responsibility and I had to make sure it went smoothly as possible. “Welcome aboard, Doctor Thorne. It’s a pleasure to have you with us.” I looked around the side of the Shuttle and saw Commander Walker coming toward us. He is the Second In Command of the Draco, First Officer to Captain Bianchi, his right-hand man. He is in charge of pretty much everything on the ship, from the Research Labs to Engineering, every department head reports to him first. He would be my immediate boss. I greeted him, “Hello, Commander, it’s an honor to be asked.” He turned to the Crewmen unloading the equipment and said, “Take all that down to the Agro-Lab and be careful! That is the treatment and materials for our mission to Vinda 3.” “YES, SIR!” was the response, and they moved off toward the Bay door. I waited for Commander Walker’s lead, I was not sure what came next. He turned to me. “All right, Doctor, that seems to be moving along nicely. Shall I show you to your quarters? I can give you a brief tour on the way.” “Yes, please, Commander, that would be great.” We left the Shuttle Bay and turned down the corridor. I was again beset with a wash of people, their emotions, their feelings, their being. I pushed that aside and concentrated on what I was seeing, which was indeed quite unlike anything I had ever seen before. The Draco, as I have mentioned before, is huge. She is also beautiful. The corridors are wide and brightly lit. The doors are large and move smoothly and automatically. The lifts are silent, and more importantly, take you pretty much anywhere on the ship you want to go, not merely up and down in a straight line. I don’t know how that is done and I don’t need to. I just know it comes in handy in certain situations. I saw a few doors open and the rooms beyond. The Shuttle Bay is on Level Fifteen, and most of the Level is used for cargo storage, though there are also areas used for repairs of the Shuttles when necessary. The Commander said that the Military Police maintained an office on that Level as well. We took a lift up to Level Eleven, which is where my quarters were located. About the middle of the corridor was Number 1132, my assigned quarters for the mission. When we got to the door, Commander Walker had me press my palm into the lock-pad to set my access. Then he typed his code into the pad to finalize it, and said, “There you go, Doctor, all set. Now if you would pass your hand over the access sensor screen, the door should open for you. In addition, anywhere you are authorized to enter, the sensor pad will recognize your print.” The door opened and I was looking into a much larger and more elaborate room than I expected. There was a desk and chair, with a terminal, as well as a poster bed and a large chest of drawers. The Refresh was past the bed from my view, but it looked to be proportional to the rest of the room. The Crew had apparently somehow gotten there ahead of us, as my boxes of clothes and my lab bag were sitting on the floor in the middle of the room. “This is wonderful, Commander, thank you. What now? May I see the Lab?” “Yes, of course, do you want to refresh first or shall we leave right away?” I decided to take advantage of this time, and said, “I think I will go ahead and freshen up a bit, Commander, thank you.” Heading into the Refresh, I looked over the furnishings in the room as I passed. The desk looked like real wood, the carpeting looked brand new. The bed was large, and the linens were fresh and crisp. When I got into the Refresh, I had to stop and stare. It was huge, the largest Refresh I had ever been in. Full-length mirror, plus a sink vanity with drawers, a shower big enough for at least two people. All this was for me? I looked in the mirror. Not too bad, but I splashed my face, and ran my fingers through my hair. It had grown quite a bit in the past few months, past my shoulders, the unruly waves only controllable with

elastics. There were none of those in my immediate vicinity, as my bags were still sitting on the carpet in the main room. I would just have to deal with the annoyance for a while longer. After a cursory tug at my shirt, and a quick swipe at the wrinkles in my pants, I went back out into the living area. “I’m fine for now, Commander, let’s go. I’m anxious to see where I’ll be spending most of my time.” Commander Walker backed out of the doorway and waited for me to follow. We went back to the lift and he directed it to Level Eight. I was surprised. “I thought the Agro-Lab was on Level Twelve?” “Why, yes it is, Doctor, but I think you could use a bit of food and perhaps a rest before we go to the Lab. All of this has been sprung on you suddenly and I know you haven’t had time to adjust yet. Please humor me in this.” Well, when a man like the Commander says Please, what can you do? I said, “All right Commander, I think you may be correct in that. Lead on.” We went to Level Eight, to the Observation Lounge in the foremost of the Ship. When we got almost to the door, I felt something, a current of satisfaction, contentment, pride. The Commander went ahead of me, but the door simply slid open as he approached, he did not have to use the sensor. As I entered the Lounge I looked around me. I wanted to see everything, notice everything. What I saw was a comfortable Lounge, much more so than I had been expecting. The decor was fairly straightforward, nothing fancy. However, there was one feature that did take my breath away. There were large observation windows, not just screens, you could see directly out into space. I had never seen anything like that before. The Universe spread out before me. Since we were in orbit, I could see stars, and wisps of what looked like clouds but was probably just part of the illusion of the Milky Way. It was beautiful. Then I looked “down” and saw Earth. Earth is a truly beautiful planet. The blue of the ocean, the white of the clouds, even some green on the brown of the continents. The moon was just visible over the curve of the planet. I stopped in my tracks. “Commander, will I have windows in my Lab?” “Yes, indeed you will.” “Lovely! Thank you.” There were about ten tables, with a few Crew members seated, eating, drinking, talking. The atmosphere was calm, yet anticipatory. They were waiting for the mission to start. I kept staring out of the view windows while Commander Walker got us a table and some food. The Commander brought back a nice meal of pasta and salad, and we chatted for a while about the mission to Vinda 3. It would take us about four or so days to travel to the planet, he said, and most of the trip would be through Hyperspace. Then once there, they had allowed three weeks to get the treatment started, and to train the Vindans to use the new technology. He was quite knowledgeable about the situation, and also about the Vindans. “They are really steeped in traditions. Everything has a meaning. They are a simple people, but they are strict about their laws. We have to be extra careful not to offend, and to allow the King to take the lead. They have been very helpful to Earth in the past, and will be again once this crisis has been dealt with. We need to keep on their good side.” Another warning? What did they think I was going to do? I knew I would be too nervous to do anything out of line. Follow the King’s lead, got it, will do. I reached out to the Commander, to his feelings. He was not emanating anything derogatory. He is simply and totally a Fleet Officer. He is dedicated to his Ship, his Fleet, his Captain. All I felt was his desire to have the mission go smoothly, to serve the Federation in an honorable fashion. I took a deep breath and let it out. I wanted so badly not to let him down, or anyone else. After our meal, I asked the Commander to please show me to the Lab. “I at least want to see it, Commander, even if I then go right back to my quarters and go to sleep. It is why I’m here, after all.” He agreed. The Lab was yet another pleasant surprise awaiting me, at the end of the main corridor on Level Twelve. The door slid open to my touch, revealing a large office-type room with a desk and terminal, and a lab table with microscope, analyzers, and other tools of my trade. There were large view windows, and a few chairs and a sofa over on that side of the room. Then Commander Walker went around the other side of the desk to a door I hadn’t noticed and opened that one as well. I followed. What met my eyes then was almost too much. Almost as much of a shock as when I first saw the Draco herself. I couldn’t see the opposite wall, all I could see was rows upon rows of plant life, and what looked like it may have been trees in the background. I gasped. Trees? On a Starship? Who knew? Closer to

where we were standing, against the wall, was another lab table with more microscopes, scanners, analyzers. I walked into the room, fascinated, awed. I had not ever thought that anything like this was possible. When Captain Bianchi had said they had everything, he meant it. I was speechless. “Welcome to your Lab, Doctor.” I turned, and then I saw Ensign Parker and another Ensign I hadn’t yet met, sitting at workstations on the wall adjacent to the one with the lab equipment. “Thank you Ensign Parker. And this is...?” “Ensign Miller, Ma’am, glad to meet you. Welcome.” “Thank you, Ensign Miller. What are you two working on?” Commander Walker interrupted at that moment, saying, “I think that can wait until we get under way, Doctor. Why don’t I escort you back to your quarters so that you can get organized there before we move out?” OK, I know when I’m outclassed. The Commander was not going to let me do anything at the moment, other than to go back to my quarters. His mind was made up, and he was in charge. I agreed and let him lead me away. We walked back to my quarters, where he left me, saying, “Please take the opportunity to rest, Doctor, it gets busy from here.” I didn’t argue, just nodded and went in to unpack and try to relax a bit before we left orbit. I turned on the terminal at the desk, and saw there was a message light. I pressed the pad to play the message and the screen lit. It was Jenny. “Just wanted to say goodbye one more time. You’ll be great, don’t worry about a thing. I’ll make sure your plants from home are taken care of too. Oh, and I’ve attached some research you’ll find interesting. Signing off. Happy Travels.” She’s the best. I took the clothes from the boxes and stuffed them into the drawers. Then I took the pictures of my parents, and the ones of me and Jen, and put them on top of the chest. There, homey as it was going to get. I went back to the terminal and looked at Jenny’s message again, then saw where the attachment was. These terminals were different from the ones I was used to. I sat there for a long time, reading. Then, when I could no longer keep my eyes open, I lay down on the surprisingly comfortable bed “for just a minute” and fell fast asleep. I was awakened when the Klaxon sounded to signal that we were getting ready to leave orbit. I looked at the timepiece on the wall and discovered that I had slept the “night” away. Nobody had come for me, or to tell me if I was expected to do anything. I changed into unwrinkled clothes and went out down the corridor to the lift. I wanted to be at the big view window in the Level Eight Lounge when we started moving. I couldn’t resist.

chapter 5 ********* When I stepped off the lift on Level Eight, I felt the familiar masculine warmth that meant the Captain was in the vicinity. I couldn’t think of a reason why he would be down here instead of on the Bridge during takeoff, but I didn’t know anything really about the workings of a Starship. I walked down the corridor toward the Lounge, and I felt the Captain’s presence getting closer. When I saw him coming around the corner I felt a flush come over me, and I am fairly certain he couldn’t help but notice. I wanted to project to him but I couldn’t risk embarrassing either of us. He was with Commander Walker and Lieutenant Quinn. They all nodded to me and said the usual, “Ma’am.” I nodded back and said, “Gentlemen.” Lieutenant Quinn said to me, “I hope you are on your way to the Observation Lounge, we are on our way in five minutes.” “Yes, Sir, I am looking forward to watching that, thank you.” That was it, we passed each other and kept going. I to the Lounge, and the Officers to the Bridge. I made my way to the Lounge after a couple of false starts, after all I had only been there once. Not bad for a rookie. The door slid aside as I neared, and I stepped inside. The atmosphere in the Lounge was cheerful, anticipatory, as though the entire crew were happy to be onboard and on their way to a new mission. That felt good. I felt that I might be a part of something much bigger than myself, more so than I had felt as a Researcher at the Federation offices. I basked in the good positive feelings from every direction. Every direction but one, that is. I felt a whiff of displeasure coming from a group nearer to the window. If it hadn’t been directed at me I wouldn’t have been able to find it, but it was, and I looked over to see Doctor Amy Morris looking my way. I felt a chill, the same chill I had felt that first day. I had only ever met the woman once, the same day I had met the Captain. She had helped me, I thought because that’s what she did, she was a Medical Doctor, after all. But perhaps it was only because the Captain had put her on the spot. I couldn’t think why she would have hard feelings toward me, but made a mental note to try to stay out of her way if possible. Then we started to move, and I forgot all about Doctor Amy Morris. I had never seen stars move before. In order to leave orbit, we had to turn the Ship. Then there was a burst of speed, and the stars began to move faster and faster, then they began to blur. I could feel the excitement building in the Crew around me. We were suddenly flung out into far space, where we would in a few minutes open the Hyperspace window to Faster Than Light Speed. When the Hyperspace window opened and we entered Hyperspace, everything went black for a moment. Then vision returned and I could see flashes going past, too fast to really see, it was more of a feeling of speed. A collective breath was let out, everyone began talking at once, and most of the Crew started moving toward the exits, to go to their stations. I found out later that most of the time these maneuvers are performed without much of an audience, it’s mostly only when the Ship leaves Earth that it becomes a spectator sport. I stayed where I was for a long time, just gazing out that wonderful window at the Hyperspace flow. It was so hypnotic, beautiful. “Beautiful, isn’t it?” I turned to see Lieutenant Quinn standing there next to me. “Why, yes it is. Beautiful. But I suppose I should be getting down to the Lab and start organizing the supplies and equipment.” He responded, “I can escort you down there if you like. I also have a communicator for you to wear.” He handed me what looked like a metal brooch in the shape of the Draco, and instructed me to pin it to my top, and to have it on me at all times. “It’s touch sensitive, like the door sensors. Just touch it and speak. It allows us to track you and lock onto you for Transport. We can also use it as a translator for when we meet aliens who don’t have a common language.” “I suppose it’s a good thing to have someone keep track of me, Lieutenant.” He smiled. As we walked down the corridor, I couldn’t help but reach out with my feelings. The Lieutenant was quiet, but I felt his strength, his devotion to his Ship and his Captain. I also noted that he felt protective toward me, he wanted me to be happy and safe. That made me feel very unworthy, but I promised myself I would try not to let him down, or take advantage of his attention. We arrived at the Lab, and Lieutenant Quinn opened a door that I hadn’t been through before. It led into the work area where I had seen Ensigns Parker and Miller earlier, at the workstations. Going directly in to the work area would be much more practical than having to go through my office to get to the actual Lab all the time. I said Goodbye and Thank You to the Lieutenant, and went through into the Lab. I was

looking forward to seeing all of the different areas and exploring the plantings, but first I had to set up the materials for the training on Vinda 3. There weren’t going to be much in the way of training materials, there didn’t have to be. All they really needed to know was which vials to mix in what proportions, and they were all labeled in Vindan already. I was trying to avoid anything that could conceivably get me and the Draco into trouble. My new team was knowledgeable, and efficient. They were fascinated by the treatment, as they had not been involved at all with its development. I took the time to inform them how we had identified the algae-like growths by microscopic analysis, how we had developed the treatment chemicals by checking and re-checking the sensitivity to different light spectrums. My team at Headquarters had worked for many many hours to solve the problem of how to kill this growth without killing anything else. We had finally come up with a multi-step process that involved mixing one chemical into the water supply, then waiting for a period of time before adding the other chemical. We had already taken care of most of the preparations, there were only some last-minute details to attend to. The vials needed to be put in order, and randomly tested to be sure they were all up to the same standard. There were also instructions that needed to be transferred onto the computer chips that the Vindan Council had provided. However, the testing was going to be quite time-consuming if we were to be as thorough as we needed to be. The Ensigns listened carefully to my instructions, then I let them take over the production. I checked over the first couple of batches, then let them go. I know how to delegate when it’s appropriate. Then I could finally wander the grounds, so to speak. This was what I had been waiting for. Off I went, into the greenery that went as far as my eyes could see, heading always toward the tall trees in the back of the Lab. There were batches of food plants in the hydro-pods, there were plantings in actual soil that looked like they were going to become flowers, there were large bushy plants that I didn’t recognize at all. I made a note on my tablet to ask about those. Then I finally came upon the trees. They were huge, at least 10 meters high and at least a meter in diameter. These would be the main Oxygen producers for the Ship. Every Starship had plant life to help with the production of Oxygen, the recyclers can only do so much. I didn’t expect these trees, however, they came as a very pleasant surprise. These trees had to be descendants of the ancient Pipal trees on Earth. The Pipal trees produced the most Oxygen of any plant on Earth. Day and night. They were extremely important to the climate and ecosystem, and were considered quite spiritual as well. I had read about those trees during my studies. They were rumored to be a source of physical as well as spiritual health and well-being. I touched a few of the heart-shaped leaves, and wondered if these trees would flower and fruit. I felt quite at home, and peaceful, in this grove. If this was being spiritual, it was wonderful. I had been wandering around for quite a while, and realized that my ankle was throbbing again. I sat down on the floor and leaned back against one of the trees to rest. I took off my boots and wiggled my toes. Ah, much better. A few minutes later I thought I heard someone calling me, but I didn’t see anyone around. Then it came to me that it was the communicator. I touched it and said, “Yes?” “Where are you, Doctor?” said the Captain’s voice. “I’m in the Agro-Lab, Sir. By the trees.” “Wait for me there, please.” “Yes, Sir.” I took a few deep breaths, quickly ran my fingers through my hair, briefly wondered if I had dirt on my face... then decided it didn’t matter. After a few minutes I felt and heard the Captain coming through the garden toward me. I started to get up, but he said, “Please stay there, I will join you.” He came into view then, tall and handsome in his pristine Fleet uniform, which he immediately proceeded to wrinkle and dirty by sitting on the ground next to me. I looked him over. Tall, yes, and strong. I could feel his strength, it flowed out of him in unmistakable waves. This was a man who was used to Command. He had been a Captain of the Fleet for many years. Jenny had researched him a bit on her terminal in her off time, that was what she had added to her goodbye message. He had become an Officer straight out of University, and had risen through the ranks quickly. His dedication to the Federation, the way he inspired others to be their best, his skill and decisiveness all set him on a course to become Captain in record time. I had read that he was given his own Command as the youngest Captain in Fleet history. There was no mention of his family, though, just the fact that he had been raised on a Colony. His reputation was for being authoritarian, yet fair to his Crew. They all loved him and followed him willingly. At this moment, though, all I could see was his soft black hair, that I desperately wanted to run my fingers through, and those wonderful grey eyes. I took a deep breath and let it out, slowly. He smiled and said, “This is becoming a habit, Doctor, you and I sitting together on the ground under a tree.”

“Yes, Sir, I hope so. Sir.” “So, now that we are under way and I have some time to spend, why don’t you tell me about yourself? I do like to know about the people aboard my Ship.” “What did you want to know, Captain? I’m pretty sure that you would have had me checked out before offering to take me on this mission that is so important. And of course you know all you need to know about the mission itself.” He looked at me with his head slightly tilted, and that slight smile that made my heart stop. Then I got the full burst of his smile, and his eyes twinkled. I was glad he couldn’t sense what I was feeling, the tingle all up and down my body. “Yes, indeed I did have you checked out. Especially after I learned that you are Alpha. Even though the Admiral recommended you himself. I did need to know that you were not going to go crazy on us, or take advantage of your abilities to the detriment of the mission, or more particularly to my Crew. We cannot take anyone aboard for a mission if we do not have them approved by Headquarters.” I asked, “And what did you find? I have to assume that you didn’t find anything in my record to make you hesitate to take me on... oh dear, that didn’t come out right.” I felt my face get hot. He just smiled wider and kept on looking at me. I said, a bit nervously, “I was raised on a Station in orbit. When my schoolmates complained that I knew too much about them, and was doing too well in class, perhaps influencing my instructors, I was tested. It was hard, Captain, being different. I don’t know anyone else who is a Sympath, nobody knew what to do with me. I had to do research on my own, find out about what I was, how to deal with it.” It was difficult to put that into words. I hadn’t thought about it for a long time. It had, indeed, been hard to deal with, being so young, and not being at all prepared to be told that I wasn’t like my friends, wasn’t like my family. I had been lucky to find Records describing Alpha One, and what other Alphas had done to protect themselves. I had also seen the Records that told horrific stories of the Alphas that hadn’t been able to control their abilities. It may have been that distress and hurt that led me to my career as a Botanist, a plant and water doctor. To be able to get away from Human emotions, to focus on living things that don’t have any emotions. “However, I believe my record speaks for itself. I have been the Head of my Department for quite some time, and we haven’t had any complaints so far.” Captain Bianchi was still staring at me, with those eyes. I felt his strong warmth flowing over to me. “ Captain?” He smiled. “Doctor Thorne, would you like to join me for dinner?” “Yes, Sir.” “Nineteen Hundred, then, come to my private observation lounge. It’s on Level Six.” “I’ll find it.” He stood up and held out his hands to me. I put my hands in his and he pulled me up. I almost fell against him but stopped myself in time. Then I looked up at the canopy of the trees above me, so beautiful and peaceful. A source of spiritual well-being, indeed. This grove almost reminded me of my special place in the park near Headquarters, only better. I picked up my tablet and followed him out of the grove. My Ensigns stood at attention when the Captain walked by and out the door. Then they turned to me questioningly. I looked back at them and said, with a completely straight face, “You two can go ahead and finish up what you were doing, and then close up for the day. I need to finish up my initial report for the Captain. I will see you tomorrow.” They both snapped back to attention, which I don’t think they should have, and answered, “Yes, Ma’am.” Ma’am again. Darn it. I went into my office. I went over to the desk and looked at the terminal. No messages. Then I went over and stood at the window. So beautiful out there, the Hyperspace flow was streaming by, bright colors, ribbons of light. Reds, pinks, blues, greens, every color of the rainbow. Such a feeling of speed, of destination, of anticipation. I tore my gaze away and turned to the door. I had to go to my quarters and get ready for the evening. The very thought brought back the warm tingly feeling.

chapter 6 ********* After a bit of random wandering I finally found my way to the lift and directed it to Level Eleven, where my quarters were. I slowly walked down the corridor looking for Number 1132. And wanting to kick myself. What had I done now? I had made a date with the Captain? Was it really a date? This was the Captain of the most powerful Ship in the Fleet. I knew he was attracted to me, but that didn’t mean he was going to act on it. After all, I was working for him now. I didn’t know what the rules were for that sort of thing, was it even allowed? Then, the practical side of me started worrying, what in the Universe was I going to wear? I didn’t have anything to wear on a date. All I had brought were my work clothes, mostly my usual khakis. I had nothing remotely appropriate for a date with the Captain of a Starship. As I rounded the curve of the corridor, near to where my quarters were, I heard footsteps. I turned to see Doctor Amy Morris walking toward me, and again I felt that chill. She looked through me and kept going. I watched her go, into the lift, the icy cold wafting down the corridor after her. When I reached my door, I passed my hand over the sensor and the door slid open. I had started to step inside when I heard someone coming down the corridor. All I felt was curiosity, and what I had to think of as anxiety to please. I knew it couldn’t be Doctor Amy. “Doctor Thorne? I’m Lansa, Captain Bianchi’s Assistant. I thought I could help you get organized, and show you how to work the replicating device. In case you needed anything.” I looked at her carefully. She didn’t seem to be faking her smile, her aura felt genuine. And I surely needed her help. “Yes, please! Is it possible to replicate clothing?” “Indeed it is, Doctor. Let me show you. Do you need something in particular?” We went inside, and Lansa helped me with my wardrobe for the evening. A red satin dress that I never would have thought to wear ever before. Form fitting, low-cut top with a wrap-around waist, flowing skirt about calf length. Bare arms and a low back. I did not normally put myself forward that way, but even I had to admit that I looked good. I twirled in front of the mirror, laughing at myself even as I did so. Shoes were a problem, though, as I still had a bad ankle. We agreed upon flat-heeled sandals. And I even brushed out my unruly hair and pinned it back with a clip in the shape of a flower. By this time it was almost Nineteen Hundred. I asked Lansa to show me where the Captain’s Lounge was on the display. She volunteered to escort me. I eyed her again, but she only seemed to want to help. I didn’t get any false or chilly signals from her. On our way to Level Six, I asked Lansa how long she had been on the Draco. “I have been working with Captain Bianchi for a few years now, ever since he took over Command. And before you ask, I am married, happily, and we live down on Level Eighteen. I know my place, Doctor, you don’t have to worry about me. All I want is for the Captain to be happy.” While I had only tentatively planned to ask her about her relationship with the Captain, it was nice to have her volunteer the information. It wasn’t a lie, and I didn’t think she knew that I would know if it was. We arrived at the Captain’s Observation Lounge. “Here we are, Doctor. The Captain is waiting for you. Have a pleasant evening, and feel free to let me know if you need anything else.” “Thank you, Lansa. You’ve been a great help.” She went back to the lift and disappeared into it. I went up to the door of the Lounge, and stood there for a minute, nervously smoothing my skirt with my hands, trying to pull myself together enough to push the announce button. Before I could, however, the door opened. Captain Bianchi was standing there, looking down at me with those eyes. “I felt your presence here,” he said, looking a bit awkward, and surprised at what he had said. “I’m sorry about that, Sir, sometimes my feelings get away from me, Sir.” “Well, come on in.” I entered the Lounge, and had to stop and stare. These view windows were even larger than the ones in the Level Eight Lounge. The sight of the Hyperspace flow outside was awe-inspiring. That sensation of speed, the beautiful ribbons of color. I felt my mouth drop and I had to walk up to the window. I wanted to reach out and touch those ribbons, they looked so lovely, smooth. There was a cushioned seat underneath the window. The Captain went over to it, sat down, and motioned to me to sit next to him. I felt determination in him, as though he were going to tell me something, as though he had made some sort of decision. I began to feel nervous, was he going to fire me? Send me back to Earth? I hadn’t had a chance to do anything yet!

He took a deep breath and looked into my eyes. “First things first, my dear Doctor. When we are alone, I would like you to call me Paolo. No more Sir. Please.” He took my hand. “You look like a dream I once had. And you feel like a dream as well. Is this real? Can it be that we only met a few short days ago?” I reached out with my feelings. He did feel so warm and genuine and strong. I couldn’t help but send my own warmth his way. He gasped, his eyes opened wide. “So that’s what I have been feeling? It really is you? I had heard stories but...” I said, leaning closer, “Didn’t you feel it when I first noticed you in the plaza? I felt you watching me, but you couldn’t know that I could feel your feelings. But when those Agrints were fighting so close, and I was walking past you... I had a thought, it just happened... I thought it could have been coincidence, I never feel anything from reptilians, but maybe they can feel something from me...” He did not move away. He just kept looking straight at me. He said, “That did occur to me, in the Admiral’s office. But I didn’t really think it was possible. Maybe it is. Whatever it was, it brought you to me, or me to you, or...” I couldn’t stand it any more. I put my hand out to touch his face. He put his hand over mine and with his other hand reached over and pulled my face close. That first kiss was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. Electric doesn’t even begin to describe it. His lips were hot against mine, soft and gentle. It only lasted for a moment, but in that moment I think we both knew. This was the real thing. The warmth grew in both of us, merged, and became something that neither of us would ever want to be without again. Just that one kiss, but that was all it took. I still questioned the regulations of dating a Captain, but he was unconcerned. The rules did not matter. I was not a Fleet Crewmember, the rules regarding relationships and rank could not apply to me. It also occurred to me, once again, the Admiral Wilson could well have been hoping for this all along. I had been working for him for many years, he thought of me as family, a distant relative, at least. He wanted me to be happy. I did have to wonder, though, why he would think of Captain Bianchi as the one to make me so. It didn’t matter, he was right. One day I would thank him. The Captain and I talked late into that night, about anything and everything. Families, friends, school, home. He had grown up on a Colony near the planet we were headed for. He went to the University on Earth, the same as I did only a few years earlier. He had never been married, although he seemed sad about a relationship he didn’t want to talk about. I wondered if it was Doctor Amy, but didn’t ask. He would tell me when he was ready. It was such a wonderful night. I don’t even remember if we ended up actually eating the dinner he had had brought in. Eventually, though, he said, “I do so hate to do this, but I do need to turn in. We both have a busy day tomorrow and the next day as well, and we will be at Vinda 3 the day after that.” I nodded. This was as great of a first date as any woman has ever had. We got up and he led me out and over to the lift. When we got to my door, he kissed my hand. Then he turned and went back to his quarters. The next two days flew by. We had so much preparation and testing to do to get ready for the mission on Vinda 3, I was not sure we would be ready by the time we arrived. There were just so many vials to prepare and test. I had to be absolutely certain that nothing was going to go wrong. After we trained the Vindans, we would be leaving them with the materials. We wouldn’t be back. They would need to be able to handle the treatment on their own. It had to be perfect. I began to get nervous again. Ensign Miller was a great help to me, he was so knowledgeable about the material, and really wanted to make the project work. We had dinner, all three of us together, in the Lounge on Level Eight. My two Ensigns and I were going to make a great team. I had them go back to their quarters at an early hour so they could rest up before their big day. I had been informed earlier that we all would be going down to the planet, so I needed us all to be in top form. Then came the day we had been working for. We arrived in orbit early in our day. The Captain and Commander Walker went down to the planet to meet with the King and the Council. Then it would be our turn. The Crewmen came down to the Lab to take the equipment down to the planet. I sent Ensign Miller with them to oversee. We couldn’t be too careful. I wasn’t thinking they would do anything on purpose, but you never know. They were taking a Shuttle down with the materials. The rest of us would be Transported. I wasn’t looking forward to that, but these folks did it all the time. Or so they said. The thought of having my molecules rearranged, even on a temporary basis, made me shiver. It didn’t turn out to be as bad as I was expecting. A moment of cold, then there I was, on a new planet. Vinda 3. My big test, a final exam of immense proportions. My first new planet, I had never been on any other world besides Earth. I didn’t count Unit Twelve as a world. Then I forgot all about the stress. This planet was beautiful! I decided to enjoy it while I could, I would never be back after this trip, no-one

would. The light was a strange reddish color. I looked up at the sky. The sun was huge, and it looked as though it might fall on us at any moment. Of course I knew that couldn’t happen, but I felt the weight of it. I could almost understand what the Vindans had been going through as they waited for their world to be destroyed. I had to pull my gaze away from that rather hypnotic red sun, and the way it turned the sky pink. I looked around me. There were green hills in the distance, and, even further away, what seemed to be mountains with snow on their peaks. Closer to our position, I saw the Vindan town, a mass of small, oddly shaped buildings. Multicolored, looking like dollhouses. I was surprised at that. I had always thought that reptilians were color-blind. There were a few Vindans on the green grassy area we had been Transported to, but they were going about their business, whatever it was, and ignoring us. Ensign Parker and I walked over to where there was a tent set up. It looked like a greenhouse. I felt the Captain’s presence there, and I knew he would feel my presence as well. I was right, he came to the opening of the tent and beckoned to us. “Come on over here, you two, let’s get this gear set up. The King is waiting for us, to see what we are doing, he is anxious to begin learning.” I replied, “Yes, Sir, we’re on it.” Ensign Parker snapped to attention. “Yes, Sir!” I felt, rather than saw, the slight smile that was directed at me. I couldn’t look, my face would have given me away to all in the vicinity. I motioned to Ensign Parker and we went into the tent. It was a big greenhouse, as I had thought. Rows of young plants growing in a liquid medium. There was also a pump set up on the far side from us. I assumed that was where we would demonstrate the water treatment itself. Ensign Miller was waiting for us. He motioned toward the crates that had been left stacked by the pump. We opened the crates and began removing the vials. They were coded, each part of the treatment had its own symbol. I took one complete treatment and set it together with the training materials and the Vindan computer chips. Then I began setting up our demonstration on the portable terminal, complete with diagrams of the water system, the analysis of the chemical compounds, and pictures of the symbols on the vials. Ensign Parker asked if he could finish the preparation, and I agreed. I walked along the rows of plants, touching a few of them, admiring the care and love they had been raised with. There were green leafy plants, they looked like young food plants. I also saw what could have been flowers, but they didn’t look like any flowers I knew. Also some carnivorous-looking things with spiny heads, and a sticky substance on their stems. I wandered through the greenhouse, examining everything, not paying much attention to my other surroundings. Then I saw a commotion out of the corner of my eye. I walked around to the entrance of the greenhouse to see what was happening. It was the King of Vinda and his escort. He was quite an impressive sight. He was bigger than I had been expecting. Tall, muscular, or at least the Vindan equivalent of muscular. I really didn’t know if they had muscles as we have. Greenish scaly skin, and clawed fingers. The rest of his escort looked much the same, but smaller, less impressive. They were reptilian, yes, but there was also something about them that suggested higher than reptilian intelligence and understanding. Perhaps it was in their eyes. Not the typical reptilian eyes, they were large, and dark, and I could almost, just almost, feel the depths. I got an overall feeling of intelligence and understanding from them. The King wore the impressive royal robes of his office, and he had an elaborate bracelet of golden vines around his wrist. I realized that no-one had ever told me his name, and I wondered if he even had one. Maybe he was only known as King of Vinda while he was King. He turned in my direction, as though he had sensed my attention. Again I wondered if the reptilians could sense from me even though I could not sense from them. The King said, in a deep, gravelly, regal tone, “Is this the Scientist who is to save our water?” Captain Bianchi answered, “Yes, Your Majesty, this is Doctor Thorne. She is our Chief Botanist and has developed the treatment for your water supply and your plantings.” The King looked back at me. “It is my honor to welcome you to our modest world, Doctor Thorne. We greatly appreciate your efforts on our behalf.” I answered in my most reverent tone, “It is my honor indeed, Your Majesty. I am happy to be of service to you and your people.” I made the best curtsey I could in my khakis and workboots. That seemed to amuse him greatly, he burst into what I have to assume was laughter. Though I can’t be completely sure, as his mouth didn’t make quite the same movements or sounds as ours do. I took that as an opportunity to say, “Would you like to see what we have brought, Your Majesty?” He bowed his head. “I would indeed, Madame Doctor, I would indeed. Show me.” We went over to the water pump, and I motioned to Ensign Parker to get the treatment vials that we had

set up. We began to demonstrate the procedures. Over and over we demonstrated the proper way to introduce the first chemical into the water, wait for it to dissipate, and then add the second. After we had been doing this for a while, I felt that the Captain had left and gone back to the Ship to attend to his regular business of being the Captain. That made me feel good, being left to take care of this on my own. It meant that he was trusting me. That was a long first afternoon with the Vindans. The King lost interest in the details fairly quickly, and swept out of the greenhouse with his escort, but his people drank in the information. They asked question after question. We spent the better part of the day at that, until finally the Captain sent Commander Walker to intervene. The Commander bowed and said, “I apologize, dear Vindans, but it is time for us to return to our vessel for the evening. We will return in the morning. Good Night.” When we returned to the Ship, I was so exhausted that I could barely find my way back to my quarters. Then I fell into the bed and was asleep almost immediately. The next two weeks were more of the same. Every day we would go down to the planet. There would be a new group of Vindans from different areas of the planet who needed to be instructed in our treatment procedures. Every night I came back to my bed completely exhausted. I did not see the Captain at all during those two weeks. I was too busy, and too worn out at the end of each day. The days melted into each other. Then came the afternoon when Commander Walker said at the end of the day, “That’s the last of the sessions, Doctor, you are finished with your mission.” I stared, unbelieving, “Really?” “Yes, we have been invited to a banquet tomorrow afternoon, and then we will be leaving this system.” I sighed, and said, “I’m almost sorry to be leaving, I didn’t have much of a chance to look around at this lovely planet. But it will be good to get back to somewhat of a normal schedule.” The Commander looked down at me with a smile. “I don’t think I’m speaking out of turn when I say that you’ve done an outstanding job, Doctor. Everyone is pleased, not least the King. Most certainly the Captain is satisfied with your work.” I felt a wash of relief. “That’s wonderful, Commander. Glad to hear it. What did you say about a banquet? ”

chapter 7 ********* That banquet was a lot of fun. I had a new dress, pink this time. Very low cut, thin shoulder straps, and flowing skirt of a gauzy fabric that felt light as air. I was beginning to enjoy this dressing up thing. As the Head of the Botanics Department at the Federation Headquarters, I had not had many opportunities to get dressed up. They don’t have too many parties or banquets for us Scientists. We don’t get invited to the formal Federation affairs. There was a long wooden table set up in the banquet hall with the most extraordinary glassware I had ever seen. It looked like it had been formed naturally. Flowing lines, shot through with rainbows of color. Organic shapes. Even the place settings, the dishes and flatware were made of the same beautiful glass. I wished I had time to ask someone how it was done. I was seated toward the head of the table, next to Commander Walker. The King was at the head of the table, of course, with the Captain on one side and the Commander on the other. The Officers were wearing their dress uniforms, quite formal. Handsome long jackets with medals and epaulets, shiny insignia on their collars. They all looked so wonderful. My two Ensigns were seated at the far end of the long table, and there were a few more Crew that I didn’t recognize. I wondered where Lieutenant Quinn was, but realized that someone had to stay onboard the Ship while both the Captain and the Commander were on the planet. I would have to make an effort to speak to him later, to tell him about the party. I felt badly that he was not able to attend. We all stood as we waited for the King to arrive. When he came in with his escort, looking so very regal and proud, tears came to my eyes. I was so glad to be able to help these people with their troubles, so that they would be able to provide for their own, and then move on to their new world. The food was not bad, even though I don’t have much of a taste for unusual foods. I had been eating my meals at the greenhouse, brought by the locals, so I was used to the type of food we were given. Nothing fancy, mostly the meat of an animal I didn’t recognize, and probably some of the last greens and vegetables they had. They were certainly giving us their best. It was easy enough to make the Vindans think that it was the best thing I had ever eaten. After the meal, the music started. It was quite a pleasant surprise to hear such beautiful sounds coming from those strange-looking instruments. I wasn’t even completely sure that was what they were, until the orchestra began to play. I only saw what looked like pieces of wood, and perhaps kettle drums covered in skins, and long tubes of shiny silver metal, with too many holes. They had carved string instruments that turned out to sound remarkably like violins. There was even a crude keyboard on a stand that looked like it was made of the same glass as the tableware. The musicians were all female, and they were wearing what must have been the bare decent minimum, even for a reptilian. Their skins shone, they looked as though their scales had been polished. They were beautiful. As the musicians began to play, the King got up and tapped his claw on his glass for attention. He said, gravely, “We are here to show our appreciation to these people of Earth, to the Federation Alliance, for their assistance in our time of need.” He bowed to the Captain, and the Captain stood, and bowed to the King. The King went on, “And now I have a presentation to make. Lady Doctor, come here, please.” I started. Me? I stood and curtseyed. “Yes, Your Majesty.” The King of Vinda motioned to one of his escort, who brought over a small tray, made of the same beautiful glassware as the tableware. On it was a small, ornately carved box. The escort bowed deeply and held the tray out to the King. The King picked up the box, and opened it with a flourish. The room fell silent, then everyone gasped. On a plush cushion lay a bracelet, of the same pattern as the one that the King himself wore. He motioned to me. “Please accept this as a token of our great appreciation, Lady Doctor.” I held out a shaking hand, and the King himself clasped the bracelet around my wrist. It was indeed a work of art. Golden vines, with tiny carved leaves, and tiny flowers woven through the vines. It was quite heavy for a bracelet, beautifully crafted. I felt a flush come over me. I didn’t feel that I deserved this. I had only done my job, what I do, what I had always done. But I bowed again and said, “I am honored to accept, Your Majesty.” The King laughed, or what the Vindans do for laughter, and said to the assembly, “And now, please all of you, enjoy the music.” The Vindan attendants cleared an area of the floor and almost everyone got up and moved to the cleared area. I watched to see what would happen, then saw that the Vindans were pairing off and moving to the music. That was great. I hadn’t danced in ages. I was in a happy mood, and I wanted to take advantage

of the party atmosphere. All of the Humans in the hall were emitting positive feelings, contentment, pride. I was soaking them up like a sponge. I got up and went over to Ensign Parker and said, “Shall we?” I put out my hand. He was taken aback at first but he answered, “I would be honored, Ma’am.” I decided to overlook the “Ma’am” part and led him onto the dance floor. I got to dance with almost all of the men in the room, including the King. It was quite strange dancing with a two and a half meter tall reptile with claws that could have cut me in half, but he was actually a pretty good dancer and didn’t step on my feet at all. I did dance with the Captain as well. He was resistant at first, he didn’t want to make a spectacle. He thought that the crew didn’t know? A Starship has a gossip network that rivals anything anywhere on Earth and her Colonies. There would be no-one on the Draco who had not heard that we had had a date. But he couldn’t get out of it when the King himself put us together and pushed us out to the dance area. I couldn’t help wondering, again, what these reptilians could feel from us Humans. Captain Paolo Bianchi is a wonderful dancer, he knows how to lead without pushing, and he has a great sense of timing. It doesn’t hurt that we are so in tune with each other either. I didn’t care if anyone read anything into the fact that we danced extra close, or did a few extra dips. We danced to several tunes, my body tingling with the sensation of being in the Captain’s arms. As his warmth flowed into me, my own increased as well. The feeling of his strong hands on my body was almost overwhelming. I almost wished we could just leave, but the Captain has to set an example. The King had not yet left and we could not leave until he did. Still, it seemed that the fun was over too quickly, I do so enjoy dancing. When the King and his escort finally did leave the hall, we waited a few minutes before heading out of the banquet hall to where we were to be Transported back to the Draco. I heard the Captain say, “Ready for Transport,” and then the brief moment of cold. And then, suddenly, I was somewhere else. Not on the Draco. Somewhere dark, and hot. My head throbbed, as though I had been hit with something, though I did not remember that happening. I smelled dust, and sweat, and something else that I couldn’t identify. I heard breathing near me, and I felt a wash of hatred, mixed with some fear. Hands were on me, pushing me to the floor, wrapping my wrists with what felt like rope. My arms were lifted over my head, and then I couldn’t move them. I realized after a few minutes that the darkness was due to a blindfold over my eyes. Then abruptly it was removed and my eyes began to water from the light. I blinked to clear them, and I saw in front of me two aliens I didn’t recognize. I had never seen their like before. Tall, slim, slightly reptilian, but mostly Human looking. Muscular, strong, unpleasant-smelling. They had on a sort of armor that covered their chests and legs, it looked like shiny leather. I had never seen anything like it before. They did not have any insignia that I could recognize. The room I was tied up in was small, the walls were rock. I saw an apparatus of some sort in the corner. It may have been a communications console. There was also something that looked like a viewscreen, and a camera. What was going on? Who would want to kidnap me? I didn’t know any great secrets, I’m a plant doctor! Then it started. First one would come up to me, yell something incomprehensible at me, then hit me with something that resembled a crude cricket bat. Then the other would take a turn. My translator/communicator device either got broken in the first scramble, or these were true aliens that we didn’t have a language for. I was hoping for the former scenario, else how would I ever get out of this? How would I get rescued? In the end it didn’t matter, I couldn’t answer them, and I didn’t even know what they were after. I lost track of time after a while. I’m pretty sure my nose was broken in the first round, but then I didn’t care. Eventually I hurt everywhere equally. My eyes were bruised, I couldn’t see much. I sometimes heard their voices, yelling at each other. Once I thought I heard someone speaking American Galactic, but then I figured it was a hallucination. The aliens kept my arms tied to a metal ring set high into the wall. It didn’t matter, I didn’t have the strength to stand, much less to pull that ring out of the wall. At least they gave me water, sometimes. Dirty, stale water, but it felt good at the time. Every so often I felt something warm wrapped around me, like a nice blanket, only I knew the aliens wouldn’t have brought me a blanket. It took all I had to concentrate on that warmth, it seemed so familiar, yet I couldn’t place it, my mind was too full of pain and confusion. I just knew it was the good, and I had to keep focusing on that rather than the bad. On and on, over and over. They would take turns asking me questions that I couldn’t understand. When I didn’t answer, they were furious. They would argue with each other with snarling sounds, then come back to me. With the bat. I wanted so badly to let go, and cry, but I couldn’t, not in front of them. I felt so

weak and helpless, but I’d had no chance to defend myself, it had all happened so fast. After an eternity there finally came a time when they left me alone for what seemed like a couple of hours. It gave me a little time for some of the fog to clear. I thought I could hear voices in the background, perhaps in another room. Nothing I could understand, though. But as the fog in my brain began to lift, I finally realized what the warmth was, and I wished I could smile. What I could do, though, was to return the warmth and let my Captain know that I was alive and waiting for him. I focused as hard as I could on the feelings I was receiving and sent mine back, at least I hoped I was. I couldn’t be sure, I was still woozy. My answer came in the form of weapons fire. I still don’t know how much time had passed, but all of a sudden there was laser-fire, and shouting, and someone’s hands taking my arms down from the ties. I felt myself lifted up, and carried over to the doorway. “Ready for Transport!” Then I finally allowed myself to cry. Next thing I knew, I awoke in the Medical of the Draco. I was bandaged up almost everywhere, stiff and sore. My face hurt, my arms and legs hurt, my chest and back and belly hurt. I felt a spray on my arm and I fell asleep again. Next time I woke, I felt much better. I could move my arms and legs, and I no longer felt as though someone was sitting on my chest. I looked around and saw Lieutenant Quinn, sitting in an uncomfortable looking chair at the foot of my bed. “Hi there, Lieutenant, how are you?” He smiled. “I’m just fine, thank you, Doctor, how are you?” Lieutenant Mark Quinn is a career Naval Fleet Officer. He is big and strong, and dedicated to his Ship and his Captain. He is also a sensitive and caring Human Being. He had been supportive of me from the first time I met him, onboard the Shuttle. I could see his conflict. He wanted to let me know how worried he had been about me, how relieved he was that I had been found. Of course he couldn’t tell me all that, it wouldn’t have been very Fleet of him. I held out my hand to him. “Thank you, Lieutenant, it was you that came for me, wasn’t it?” “Yes, Doctor, it was.” Slight pause, then, “I am very glad we were able to get to you in time.” That was it. That was all he said, but it was enough. I felt his discomfort and decided to move on. I asked, “Can you tell me anything about what happened?” “I think we should wait for the Captain, Ma’am. He will debrief you.” That was the last straw. “Lieutenant Quinn, I will put up with that Ma’am nonsense from the Junior Officers, but not from you. It’s Doctor, or Doctor Liz, or just Liz if you’re feeling feisty. Not Ma’am. Please. Thank you.” He laughed. “All right then! Ma’am.” I threw my pillow at him. He ran. I must have fallen asleep again, because when next I looked around, the Captain was in the uncomfortable looking chair. Looking uncomfortable, feeling uncomfortable. I wondered why. “Captain?” “Yes, my dear?” “What’s wrong?” He got up from the chair and came over to the bedside, then sat on the edge of the bed and took my hand. “I am sorry.” “Whatever for?” He bent a little closer and looked directly into my eyes. I knew I was feeling better because my heart did that skip again. “This was my fault, I never should have exposed you to danger, especially without letting you know. You were not prepared. You could have been killed. I would not have been able to live with that.” I said, “But Captain, how could you have known? Besides, it was so quick, I couldn’t do anything, even if I had known. Who were those guys? Why would they have taken me? Please tell me.” He said, gently, “They were trying to use you against me, us, the Federation Alliance. It didn’t work, but only just barely. I will tell you the whole story, but please first you must remember to call me by my name when we are alone.” I took in a deep breath. “All right, Paolo.” He caught me off guard with that kiss, but I couldn’t have cared less. It was soft and gentle at first, then

more powerful as his emotions got the better of him. I felt the relief pouring out of him, the warmth of him wrapped around me like that blanket I had felt in the alien cavern. All the emotions that he had had to keep hidden from the crew during the ordeal were released in that moment, and it literally took my breath away. It took a moment to refocus, and catch my breath. I said, “You know I felt you reaching out to me, right? I couldn’t tell at first, but it was definitely you, holding me, protecting me, trying to find me.” Those grey eyes that I couldn’t get enough of were filling with tears. I reached out and touched his cheek. “It’s OK now, I’m all right now.” He put his hand over mine. “Yes, you are here, and this sort of thing is never going to happen again.” What had happened, the way I understand it, was fairly simple, and if I had stopped to analyze anything over the past few weeks I might have anticipated something. But of course I wasn’t thinking straight. I was too excited. Too focused on my work and my self. It was the Agrints, of course. Those darned Agrints that had been arguing at the top of the steps to the Federation building. The ones that had thrown me into the life I was living now, literally. They saw me with the Captain and Crew of the Draco, and assumed that I was part of the Crew, or something to that effect. They and the rest of their landing party had taken it into their heads to try to get their treaty signed via blackmail and kidnapping. Their treaty with the Federation Alliance. It made absolutely no sense to me. It made no sense to anyone I spoke to about it. Why would they think that endangering the Flagship of the Fleet would help their cause? Anyway, they hired some mercenary thugs to somehow hijack our Transport signal. We never found out for sure how they knew we were going to Vinda 3, but it doesn’t matter. They found out. They made their plan. They hijacked me right out from the Transport signal. I was kind of impressed by that, actually, it can’t be an easy feat to redirect a Transport signal. Then they conked me over the head with something, blindfolded me, and contacted Headquarters. They thought it would be simple, straightforward. Sign the treaty, we’ll give you your Doctor back. It was definitely not so simple. Captain Bianchi was furious. Especially furious that he had allowed something like that to happen on his watch, to someone he was close to. He also knew they had taken me for exactly that reason, they knew that the Federation, and especially the Captain, would likely do anything to get me back. Flattering as that is, it made me furious as well. So, Captain Bianchi decided to mount a rescue. They somehow, I don’t understand the details, found where the signal had been redirected to, and followed. Fortunately, the aliens were not familiar with our technology or they would have been more careful about sending video signals to the Draco. Especially video of me, looking lovely I am sure, tied up, bruised and bloody. The Captain was not pleased, to say the least. He had stood over the Engineers while they tried to figure out how to locate me. Eventually the Engineers were able to triangulate the signal, or something like that, to pinpoint my location. Unfortunately for me, it took them over a week to work out the exact location, and come down to the asteroid we were on to retrieve me. In the meantime there were back and forth arguments between Headquarters, the Draco, and the alien kidnappers. So I had indeed heard American over the speakers, even in my delirium. The end product of this adventure was that the Agrints on Earth were arrested and jailed, pending an Advocacy trial. The kidnapper aliens were killed during the rescue. I never found out who they really were, what race, where they were from. They must have been pure mercenaries. There are too many of those out there, even now. The Captain informed me that he also had our Engineers insert an implant into my arm. A locator beacon, with an alarm to let the Engineers know if someone tried to transport me, someone not from the Draco. They had been developing this technology for a while, it was still new, but what better time to try it out? I was also informed that they had tested the locator part and it at least worked within the Ship. Great. So now any Engineer or Technician that felt like it could track me wherever I was. Just great, no privacy, but if it meant not getting beaten up again, I would be OK with it. “So that’s where we are now, my dear Elizabeth. You are safe. We are on our way back to Earth, we need to testify at the Advocacy. I am sorry now that we decided against pressing those charges against them when we had a chance.” I said, “I’m not. I still thank them for throwing us together. What they did later is a different story altogether. It could have been any of them, we know they are prone to being irrational.” He looked at me with a smile, I felt the amusement, “You are something else, my dear. You don’t forgive them?” “Absolutely not, Captain... Paolo. I look forward to facing them in the Advocacy, they will pay the price for disregarding everything we stand for, and for frightening my Captain!” He pulled me to him and hugged me so tightly I thought my cracked ribs might burst. The warmth

became almost hot. If I hadn’t still been so sore... besides, we were still in Medical, and someone could walk in at any moment. And then, of course, someone did. Doctor Amy Morris. I felt her before I heard her. The heat went out of the room, it got chilled very quickly. We separated and I lay back down. She came over to the bed. “Captain, I must insist that you let my patient rest. She has been through an ordeal and needs time to rest and heal. There will be plenty of time for debriefings later.” “Yes, I understand, Doctor Morris. I will check back with you later.” He left, leaving a waft of his warmth with me. Doctor Amy looked down at me and asked, “How are you feeling, Doctor? You look as though you are feeling better than when you came in here.” I answered, “I am feeling better, thank you, Doctor Morris. Not quite so sore, and I seem to be able to move my legs and arms without too much trouble. May I sit up?” “If you want.” The chill was palpable. I slowly sat up, it was harder when I was doing it on my own. But it felt good to be moving. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and discovered that I was wearing what amounted to a short camisole and panties, and I wondered how, and who...? “Doctor? What happened to the clothes I was wearing? What happened to my bracelet?” “The clothes were destroyed, when they picked you up your clothing was in shreds, not worth saving. We put you in those just to keep you covered while we worked on you. Wouldn’t want the Crew and the interns to be distracted, you know.” She went over to the cabinet. “Here is your bracelet. I’m afraid that it was damaged but you should be able to fix it.” I sighed, even though I did realize that my dress probably couldn’t have survived. I took the bracelet from her, it wasn’t damaged as far as I could see. I wondered why she had felt it necessary to tell me that. I reached out and tried to get a reading on her, but all I felt was the chill I had always gotten. I clasped the bracelet around my wrist, feeling the weight of it, admiring the beautiful work. I looked down at myself, examining the pattern of bruises on my legs, and my arms, and my belly. Wow, I was going to be a rainbow for a while. Not too bad, though, whatever Doctor Amy had done had repaired the sprains, and cracks, and the leg fracture that I found out about much later. I slid down and put my feet on the floor, and pushed myself up to a standing position. “That feels good!” I couldn’t help saying it out loud. Doctor Amy whipped around at me. “What feels good? All the attention you are getting from the Captain and the Lieutenant? The fact that we had to go chasing all over the Galaxy to find you because you put yourself in danger? How about the fact that you were almost dead when they brought you back, and we spent days working on you? What is it that feels good, exactly?” I reeled back from the impact of that hatred being thrown at me. I almost fell over. Where did all this come from? I thought I knew, but I surely couldn’t ask, that would have opened up an opportunity for more. Instead I said, “I am glad to be able to get onto my feet, Ma’am. I have taken up too much of your time. Thank you for fixing me up. I will be going back to my quarters now, I believe we are done here?” She stared. Then she went to the cabinet, pulled a robe out of a drawer, and tossed it to me. “Make sure you cover up going down the corridor, we don’t want to cause an incident.” “Yes, Ma’am, I will.” I walked as quickly as I could out of Medical and into the corridor. That took almost all of the energy I had, so I went a short way down the corridor, then had to stop and lean against the wall. I felt myself slipping down but I couldn’t stop it. I awoke to find myself on the corridor floor, with Ensign Parker and Lieutenant Quinn kneeling next to me, both looking as frightened as two Naval Officers can. “Doctor Liz? Liz, are you all right? What happened?” I tried to pull myself up to a sitting position. “I’m not sure, but I think I passed out trying to get back to my quarters. I don’t seem to be welcome in Medical anymore.” “We’ve contacted the Captain, he’s on his way down here.” I put up my hand. “No! Please just help me up.” They helped me to stand up and I turned to go down toward the lift. I heard the lift door open and felt my

Captain reaching out for me. He came toward us. “Doctor Elizabeth, what is happening here?” He looked at me, concerned again, and lifted his brows questioningly. “Captain, could you please help me to my quarters? I think we need to have a talk.” Lieutenant Quinn and Ensign Parker abruptly turned to the other direction and walked away, doubletime. I watched them go and waited for the Captain’s answer. Finally, he said, “All right, then, I’m sure you must have a good reason for all this. I cannot wait to hear it. Let’s go.” He led me into the lift and directed it to Level Six. I didn’t even question that, I was just glad to be with him. He put his arm around me to steady me, and I leaned into the embrace. When we arrived at Level Six, he turned to the opposite direction from where I knew his Lounge to be. He looked down at me, seemed to come to some sort of decision, then picked me up and walked down the corridor to Number 601, Captain’s Quarters. He passed his hand over the sensor, I didn’t see how he did that without dropping me. Then he carried me inside and put me gently down onto a very plush sofa. I looked around at The Captain’s Quarters. Very nice, very nice indeed. Large wooden desk, of course, with a terminal, and a viewscreen on the wall above it. What looked like a fireplace, though I knew it couldn’t be a real fireplace, before a grouping of easy chairs and a small table, on a fluffy rug. I couldn’t see much around the sofa I was sitting on, but I could see the beginnings of the bedroom, a Captain-size poster bed, closet, chest, and I had to infer a Refresh unit beyond. There was a doorway next to the desk, and I wondered what it led to. Then I realized that there were no windows in this room and I figured there had to be another lounge room in there. It turned out that I was correct, but I didn’t find that out right away. The Captain sat down next to me on the sofa. “What happened? Why in the Universe were you trying to walk yourself down the corridor? Didn’t you realize you could have hurt yourself? Why would Doctor Morris have let you leave, without contacting me or Commander Walker?” I reached out for his feelings and was rewarded by only feeling the concern he was displaying outwardly. I put my hand in his and said, as gently as I could, “I think it’s time for you to tell me about your relationship with Doctor Amy.”

chapter 8 ********* The Captain sighed, a long deep sigh. “I have been dreading this...” They did indeed have a relationship, a long time ago, when they were both at University. He had thought he was in love with her, but she was not in love with him, and apparently led him on for a long while. They stayed together while they were in school. Then when he left for the Fleet Training Center, and she stayed on at University to become a Medical Doctor, he tried to keep up a long distance romance but it was too difficult to maintain. They drifted apart. She ended up marrying someone else, whom she met at Medical School. They both moved on and all was well until she was assigned to the Draco, shortly after he became her Captain. It was quite uncomfortable for him, having her there. He still had unresolved feelings for her, but she wasn’t interested. She had separated from her husband, then he was killed in an explosion on one of the Colonies. She became very hard and cold, and uninterested in anything but her work. But very possessive of Captain Bianchi. Anything or anyone that came near him she had to check out, or become involved, or otherwise insinuate herself into the situation. The years between University and when she had been assigned to the Draco were still a bit of a mystery. But the Federation had to have checked her out before assigning her to the Draco, and she had passed their muster. Apparently, she saw me immediately as a threat to her secure position as the Captain’s protector, as she saw it. And she wasn’t happy about the competition. She saw, even before he did, that she was no longer in his picture of the future. At all. It sounded and felt to me, as the Captain was speaking, that he was only just realizing some of this as he was verbalizing it. He seemed almost surprised by the revelations. He hadn’t realized how strongly she had reacted to my presence, nor really why she had. Now he did, and it disturbed him greatly. He said, at the end of his explanation, “I am sorry to have left you in the dark about all of this. Perhaps we might have avoided an uncomfortable situation by having you taken care of by one of the other doctors on board, one of the interns. We will remedy that in the future. For now, since you are already here, I want you to rest here. Lay down on this sofa, let me get you a blanket.” As ordered, I lay down on the sofa, He must have put the blanket over me, as it was on me when I awoke, but I was asleep before he had pulled it out of the closet. I do know I was smiling when I fell asleep. I finally knew the story, and I thought we would be able to handle it, together, now. As I drifted off I did have one more thought, “I can’t wait to get hold of Jenny and tell her all about all of this.” I awoke in a darkened room, and had a moment of panic. Where was I? Then I remembered, and huddled deeper into the blanket, the blanket that smelled like the Captain. I looked for the timepiece that was in every cabin, and located it above the desk. It was Fourteen Hundred... but what day was it? How long had I been away? How long had I been back? That was one piece of information I hadn’t gotten. Anyway, I felt hungry, and decided to get myself up and try to go down to Level Eight Lounge for some food and company. I figured the Captain was on the Bridge and I didn’t want to disturb him while he was working. Slowly, I got myself up from the sofa, and went over to the chest of drawers. I looked through a few drawers and found a tee shirt and a pair of shorts, ones without an open fly. I went into the Refresh and when I looked in the mirror I almost screamed out loud. It was my first look at myself since I had been back, and I looked horrible. Eyes blackened, bruises everywhere. My nose was an interesting shade of purple. I didn’t have much soreness anymore, it only looked like I had been beaten senseless for days upon days. I washed myself as best I could and put on the clean clothes. No shoes, but the Ship’s floors were so clean I could have eaten off them, much less walk on them in bare feet. Failing finding a hairbrush, I ran my fingers through my hair and went out into the corridor. Immediately I was hit with a blast of that familiar chill that was Doctor Amy Morris. I turned my head and saw her disappearing into the lift. I shook my head. What next? Was she following me? Why? I waited a few minutes before I went into the lift and directed it to Level Eight Lounge. When the door opened I hesitated. But I didn’t feel any chill, so I hoped that the Doctor had gone back to Medical. What I did feel was the comforting camaraderie of the Crew in the Lounge. I let it wash over me. I walked up to the door and as it opened and I stepped into the Lounge, I felt the heads turn and the curiosity of the Crew as they first stopped what they were doing, then began to come over to me. “Doctor, it’s so good to see you!” “Doctor, how are you feeling?” “Doctor Liz, can I get you anything?” “Here, Doctor, come sit with us!” I let someone lead me over to a table, and sat down. The someone put a drink in front of me and asked me if I wanted any food. I nodded. I smiled. It was so good to be a part of this lovely group of good people. I

forgot all about the chill of Doctor Amy as I began to eat, and chat, and just enjoy the good feelings all around me at that moment. Lieutenant Quinn came over to the table. I hadn’t noticed him coming in. He looked at my companions and took a deep breath. I sensed that he was trying to decide how to begin. He had to know that I had ended up in the Captain’s Quarters and didn’t want to make an issue of that in front of the Crew. “Doctor Liz, you were not where we expected you to be. I had to trace you. Here, here is your new communicator. Please be sure to keep it on at all times.” I pinned the little Draco to my shirt and said, “Thank you Mr. Quinn, I will. What can I do for you? Why were you looking for me?” “The Captain asked me to check on you, Ma’am... I mean Doctor.” He smiled broadly. “I am to take you back to your quarters when you are ready.” “I am ready now.” I turned to my companions at the table. “Thank you for the company, I will see you all later.” We went out of the Lounge and over to the lift, and down to Level Eleven. When we got to my door, Lieutenant Quinn bowed to me and waited for me to open the door. Then he turned away and began to head back down the corridor. My eyes followed him, and saw as he turned back briefly before rounding the curve of the corridor. I stepped inside, and was hit over the head with I know not what. It was probably the butt of a stun pistol. What I do know is, I hadn’t felt anything directed at me, I have no idea how she was able to shield her chill for long enough for me to be taken so completely by surprise. But with her medical knowledge, perhaps there was a potion of some sort. I didn’t care at the time, and I still do not know the answer. Since it was such a surprise, and I was still stiff from my previous wounds, I didn’t react quickly enough to stop the blows that followed. I did, however, manage to swipe at my communicator, to yell out, something, anything. The rest is another blur. I heard the door open, I heard Lieutenant Quinn’s voice calling for the Captain and Security to get down here Right Away! Then the blast of the stun pistol, and I was out again. I awoke in the Captain’s Lounge. The Captain and Commander Walker were on the other side of the room, whispering animatedly. I just lay there. Not thinking, trying not to feel anything. I just wanted to climb into a black hole. What had I done now? I had caused a major incident on The Starship. What were they going to do with me? Would I be Advocated for treason or something? Through the blur of my self-pity, I felt the Captain’s hands on mine. He gazed down at me. “What are we going to do with you, my dear?” I felt tears coming into my eyes. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to...” “No no no! I didn’t mean that! You did absolutely nothing wrong. This was my fault, once again I put you in harm’s way. I knew in my heart that she was nearing the breaking point and I didn’t do anything about it. I should have requested a transfer for her a long time ago.” I sat up. And immediately lay back down, my head spun. Those stunners really do their job. He tightened his grip on my hands. “You stay right where you are. Mr. Walker will keep you company while I contact the Admiral and arrange for Doctor Morris to be transferred to the jail when we arrive at Earth. She is in the brig now, so don’t give her another thought.” “All right. I’m not going anywhere.” Then it hit me. We were almost back at Earth! I had only been assigned to the Draco for the one mission. Then we were delayed by the kidnapping, but we were still almost back at Earth. I was going to have to leave the Ship. The tears came back, I shut my eyes and tried to blank out my thoughts. The Captain paused briefly as he left the Lounge, then the door shut behind him.

chapter 9 ********* We arrived at Earth orbit two days later. I had gone back to my quarters, they were safe now, and had been cleaned up after the attack. I spent those two days sleeping, and reading the incident reports. I wanted to contact Jenny, but I had a feeling that she would be waiting for me when we arrived at the Spaceport. She would already know about what had happened, and probably had more information than I did. The Captain, the Commander, and I went down in the Shuttle, piloted of course by Lieutenant Quinn. They only needed to leave a skeleton Crew on board. We were at Earth, and some of the Fleet mechanics and technicians would be going aboard to do their inspections. I was anxious about seeing the Admiral and making my reports. I had almost forgotten about the mission to Vinda 3, I had had to refresh my memory of the events on the planet. My brain felt scrambled. I was wondering what would happen with Doctor Amy, and how long it would take for the Advocacy. Advocacies. Then suddenly we were landing at the Spaceport. I felt something, questioning, reaching in to me from outside. Lieutenant Quinn opened the Shuttle door. “LIZ!” “Jen!” “I’ve missed you! Gosh you look horrible!” “Wow, thanks, friend. That’s a nice greeting. Nice to see you too!” She hugged me. I winced in pain but hugged her back. I knew she had been worried about me the whole time. And since she sees all and knows all in the Federation Headquarters, of course she had been even more worried than most friends would or could have been. She grabbed my hand and started to lead me away toward the waiting trolley. I looked back at the Captain and Commander Walker. Mr. Walker nodded at me. “Go on ahead, we’ll catch up.” I looked at the Captain and he nodded at me as well. “OK Jen, let’s go. We really need to do some catching up.” We got into the trolley, and took off toward the Headquarters building. She asked me how I was doing, really? Was I really OK? What the heck was I thinking getting myself into all that ruckus? “And most important, and don’t leave out any details, what’s going on with you and that handsome Captain?” I laughed and hugged her again. She really is the best friend I could have. She knows me. She likes me anyway. I told her my story. She listened without interrupting. Then, “You know you should log all this, right? You have got to keep this story to tell. I’ll help you if you want, but it’s going to be an important historical story. I can feel it. You are in the middle of something big. I always knew you would be.” I was quiet, thinking, absorbing. Perhaps she was right. Maybe someone, sometime would want or need to know my story. Who knows? I had worked, however briefly, on the Flagship of the greatest Fleet in history. I had been involved with the saving of a world’s people. I had gotten to know the greatest Captain in known times. Maybe my story could help or instruct someone, sometime. Since it didn’t enter my mind that perhaps the story was not yet ended, I said, “OK, let’s. It’ll be fun.” That’s how this journal was begun. I have kept it up over time, because it has become my outlet, and my confidante. And it makes me feel like I really am part of something larger than myself. We arrived at Headquarters. I looked up at the stairway where all this had started. Then I looked down at myself. There was no way I would be able to climb all those stairs. “Let’s take the moving stairs, please.” When we got to the top landing, the Captain and the Commander were waiting for us. I don’t know how they got there first, but it seemed that the Captain was going to be where I needed him to be. At least if he had any say in the matter. I felt the warmth emanating from him, and my heart skipped a beat. I love that feeling. But now there was serious business to attend to. We had to face the Admiral and give our reports. I began to get nervous again. The Captain took my hand and put it on his arm, and escorted me into the lobby toward the lift. Commander Walker and Jenny followed us in, both of them smiling. Jenny stopped at her desk, and waved at us as we entered the lift and started up to the Admiral’s office on the top floor. I blew her a kiss. The Admiral’s assistant greeted us, and said, “Go on in, he’s waiting for you.” My heart sank. This was it. I was going to be jailed for treason against the Federation Alliance, never to

see the light of day again. I just hoped they would let me say goodbye to Jenny before they took me away. The Admiral stood up as we entered. He came right up to me, bowed, and took my hand. “Doctor, it is so good to see you here. We were afraid we would not see you again.” I blinked. He continued, “We thought that those rebel Agrints were going to have you killed, whether or not we signed their treaty. They are quite vindictive, you know, uncontrollable, even with the Galaxy’s best diplomacy. I was ever so glad to hear of your rescue and safe return.” I felt my mouth hanging open, and closed it. “Doctor Liz, what’s wrong? Are you all right?” I said, shakily, “I am, Sir. I’m fine. I’m just surprised to hear you talking to me like this. I thought I would be in trouble.” He looked at the Captain. “What did you say to her?” “Not a thing, Sir. I was waiting for our meeting. I didn’t know she was thinking this way. There’s no reason for it.” He glared at me. I glared back. Then I shrugged and smiled. I went on, “May we sit, Sir? Once again I come to you injured, and I don’t think I can stand much longer. ” Admiral Wilson laughed. Then he pulled over a chair, and held it for me while I sat. After he was sure I was comfortable, he motioned to the Officers to have them sit. Reports were given. It took a long time. We were in there for hours. Lunch was brought in, drinks were brought in. Darkness came outside and the lights came on inside. It was mostly me giving my report, I was the only one who hadn’t been in communication with Headquarters during the ordeal. I told my story, about the kidnapper thug aliens, what they looked like, what their equipment looked like. Even though the Admiral had been informed all long the way, the reports had to be made official. When we were finished with our reports, and the Admiral was satisfied that he had all the facts, he sat back in his Admiral’s chair and put his hands behind his head. “You’ve really had a time of it, haven’t you?” Captain Bianchi answered, “Yes, Sir, but we came out on top. However, now we have to deal with the aftermath. When do you think we can get to the Advocacy? Soon, I hope.” The Admiral said, “Yes, very soon, they are rearranging their schedule in order to facilitate these two items. And now, Captain, I believe you have another item of business to attend?” “Yes, Sir, I do. Doctor Elizabeth, would you please stand up for a moment?” I had another moment of panic. What now? I didn’t think I could deal with any more surprises today in my weakened condition. “Yes, Sir.” I stood. The Captain went behind the Admiral’s desk and reached down. He brought out a package, wrapped in plain paper. He handed it to me. “Open it, it’s for you, if you are willing to accept what goes with it.” Curious, of course I took the package and tore the paper open. Inside was a Uniform jacket, just the same as all the Crew on the Draco wore. But in addition to the usual pattern of the stripe down the arms and across the back, there were tiny flowers and vines embroidered into the seams, and my name on the chest. I looked up, “For me?” “Yes, my dear Doctor, for you. We would like to offer you a permanent position on board the Draco. She needs you. We need you. We have been searching for a new Head of Research for the Agro Department for some time now, and you would fit that quite nicely.” I couldn’t help it. I gasped. “You’re kidding.” “Why would I be kidding? Do I seem to be a Captain who would kid about something like this?” I shook my head. “No, Sir, I didn’t think that you would make a joke about something this serious. I am honored to accept, Sir...Sirs. But I am not a member of the Fleet.” The Admiral said, “We have a number of civilians working on our Ships, Doctor, it is not unusual. You are already a member of the team, so far as everyone is concerned. We are simply making it official. Of course, this means you will be working shifts, and may have to follow an order or two.” He smiled. I smiled back. This was absolutely the best thing that could have happened. “Where do I sign, Sirs?”

Things moved right along after that. The Advocacy regarding the Agrint attack was scheduled for our second day on Earth. The one regarding Doctor Amy was scheduled for two days later. I went back to my apartment, which had been kept up quite nicely by the Federation housekeepers. It looked so bare when I went in, all of my plants were gone. I had forgotten to ask what had become of them. I would have to make sure they went to good homes. I assumed that I would be giving up this place when I left this time. I had no idea when we would be back, or for how long. But it felt nice to sleep in my old bed. Jenny woke me in the morning. She called on the terminal in my bedroom. “Get up! You have to be at the Advocate’s office in an hour!” “OK OK I’m up! I’ll be on time.” And I was, too. I still was an impressive sight with all my slowly fading bruises, and between my testimony and that of the Captain, and the rest of the Senior Officers, there was no question about the outcome. However, there were moments when I was not sure that the Advocate was being completely impartial. He felt to me as though he might have some doubts about my story. The jury, made up of three women and three men, sitting in a mezzanine above the main Court, listened to the testimony intently. I received and felt wafts of curiosity, and anger, and pity. The Advocate questioned me about the kidnapping. “And you had no idea that the Agrints had any reason to want to hurt you? You had not said anything, or done anything, to cause them to feel a need for revenge? You had never met any of them before?” “No, Sir, never.” “They simply and suddenly kidnaped you, blindfolded you, and injured you with a wooden implement.” “Yes, Sir.” “It was a complete surprise to you? You are not aware of the political situation between the Agrints and the Federation?” “No, Sir.” That line of questioning went on for a while, until he could think of no other ways to ask the same questions. Then, and only then, I was let go. The Captain was next. He told his part in the events. How he was informed of my abduction via a communication from the kidnapper aliens themselves. How they had told him, and the rest of the Bridge Crew on duty at the time, that they were going to hold me, and torture me, until the Agrint treaty was signed. He went on to detail how he and the Engineers had identified the signals and followed the trail of the mercenaries to the asteroid. The Advocate asked, “And you had no knowledge of the political situation either, Captain?” “I had a basic knowledge of the facts, Sir. Only that there was to have been a treaty signed between the Agrints and the Federation, no details.” “Very good, Captain, you are released.” Commander Walker, Lieutenant Quinn, and several other Bridge Officers were questioned in much the same manner. Even Admiral Wilson was called to testify. His testimony was pretty much the same as all of ours, from his point of view, being that he had been on Earth the entire time. And of course he had known the details of the treaty, he was in charge of the administrators who were finalizing it. Since the treaty had not been finalized, the details were not given, but I felt much tension coming from the Admiral. Eventually all the questions had been asked and answered, and the Advocate called the jury in to his chambers. They stayed in there for a long time, at least two hours. We all waited outside while the deliberations went on. Then the Clerk came out to get us, to hear the verdict. Apparently I had misread the Advocate’s intentions. It turned out he was merely being thorough, he had to be in such a situation, one that affected the relations between Earth and entire race of Allies. He had to be certain that he had all of the facts, and that no-one was holding anything back or worse. The Agrints were found guilty on all of the charges. Beginning with the attack on me in the plaza that first day, and ending with the kidnapping. The Agrints on Earth were banished, sent away. Their Charter was revoked, and they were instructed never to come into Federation Alliance territory other than by sheer accident. I wished more than ever that I could feel something from them, anything to let me know how they really reacted to all this, their faces told us nothing. Jenny and I took the next day and a half to get all caught up on the recent gossip in town, and she helped me begin my journal. We walked in the park, slowly as I was still healing. We finally ate together at that restaurant that we had meant to go to so long before. We sat and talked, as girlfriends do. I told her about my feelings for Captain Bianchi, and what I had felt from him. She told me about her latest boyfriend, whom she had dated for a grand total of eight days. I only felt amusement from her about that,

but I so hoped that she would find someone that she could love and be with for real. I had her stay with me the night before the second trial. I was not looking forward to that one at all, and I needed her support. We arrived at the Advocate’s early that morning, and waited outside for the Captain and the Commander to join us. We were sitting outside on a bench when Doctor Amy arrived, in restraints, with her Advocate. I thought for sure everyone in town could feel her icy blast, but Jenny assured me I was the only one. Great, lucky me. I stayed outside the entire time, I did not want to be in close proximity to Doctor Amy Morris until I had to. Her iciness was almost too much to bear. When I was called in for my testimony, I took a deep cleansing breath, dusted my hands on my trousers, and stood up. Here I go. I went in, trying to deflect, or at least filter, some of the hatred that was coming at me. While I was being questioned, Doctor Amy was staring icicles at me. I couldn’t wait to get back outside, out of that icy blast. We had a different Advocate this time, and he began by asking me a few questions about the kidnapping and subsequent torture. “You were taken against your will, and beaten by these rogue aliens?” “Yes, Sir.” “When you were found and removed from this situation, you were unconscious?” “No, Sir, just almost.” “But you were indeed injured, unable to help yourself.” “Yes, Sir.” “When you were returned to the Draco, who took care of your wounds?” “Doctor Morris, Sir.” “And were you satisfied with the care you received from Doctor Morris?”“I was, Sir.” “And when did you become dissatisfied?” I sighed. “I am still not actually dissatisfied with the care I received from Doctor Morris, Sir.” “Well, then, why did you leave Medical on your own, without notifying your Captain or anyone else?” “I was feeling better, Sir, and Doctor Morris made it clear that she no longer wanted me in her Medical.” He stared at me. Then the blast, ”And how in the world did you know that, Doctor Thorne?” There it was, what everyone was always curious about. The Advocate could get away with asking me directly, simply because he was the Advocate. I said, slowly, “I am a Sympath, Sir. I can feel what people are feeling, especially if it’s about me.” He banged his hand on the podium. “And what was it that you felt directed at you, from Doctor Morris?” The icicles were cutting into my mind, Doctor Amy was not holding anything back. I said, carefully, “I felt hatred, Sir.” He asked, “You are absolutely certain that what you felt was hatred?” I nodded. “Yes, Sir.” I wanted to yell out, “Just exactly like what I am feeling now!” but no-one else would have been able to feel it, so it didn’t matter. “And when you returned to your quarters, you did not feel this hatred? Why not?” That was the question, indeed. “I don’t know, Sir, I had been abducted and held for many days, I was still weak, perhaps I was simply not paying attention when Lieutenant Quinn dropped me off at my door. I just don’t know.” Finally, I was done, and released. I practically ran out of the room and out of the building. I had no desire to witness the rest of the questioning, and I just had to get away from those icicles. I still did not know why she had focused so hard on me as an object of her hatred, her former relationship with the Captain didn’t seem to warrant such a severe reaction. Jenny sat with me, holding my hand, as we waited for the rest to be questioned and done. They came out to wait with us when they were released. After another eternity, the Advocate’s Clerk came out to call us back in for the verdict. Doctor Amy was no longer Doctor Amy. Her Medical license was taken away. No matter the reason, there could be no allowances made for an Officer or a Doctor, or any member of a Fleet Crew, who attacked another. And it was proven beyond any doubt that she had done so without provocation. She was to be remanded to the rehabilitation facility in Eastern Province. For as long as it took for her to not be a danger to anyone. I made a promise to myself never to go to Eastern Province. The Captain promised me that he was to be informed when and if she was released, and where she ended up if that happened. So we would not be taken by surprise. What a relief. But I also felt sad for her. Sad that she had let herself get to a point where she didn’t understand right and wrong anymore, and most especially that she didn’t understand what love and

protection were supposed to be. It had gotten all twisted for her, that did make me sad. The Captain turned to me in surprise. “Sad? Why, what’s wrong? You should be relieved.” I explained what I was thinking. He put his arm around me and said. “And that is why you are so special. I would venture to bet that no-one else has thought of that, thought to be sad for her.”

chapter 10 ********** We spent one more day on Earth. Jenny and I worked some on my log journal, then we went over to the park. We sat on my special thinking bench and drank coffee and talked. She was ever curious about the Captain of course, but since he seemed to be taken, she wanted to know all about the other Officers. “And Commander Walker? What’s he like?” I laughed. “Jen, you saw him. He’s a good Officer, very straight-laced. Good-looking, but I don’t know too much about him personally. You’ll have to find out for yourself. However, if you must, you might take a look at Lieutenant Quinn. He’s a very nice guy, a good Officer. And very good-looking too.” She eyed me carefully to see if I was joking. I wasn’t. I liked Mark Quinn. He would have been good for Jenny. But it wasn’t going to happen, because there was no way she was going to leave her position at Headquarters and he was surely not going to leave the Draco. It was a nice happy thought while it lasted, though. We had a pleasant afternoon, then it was time to go. She came with me to the Spaceport to see us off. It was so hard to leave. I felt badly that I hadn’t had time to get together with my parents, but they were working up in the Northern Province and it just didn’t work out. I had sent them messages every day, and we had spoken via video a couple of times. They were fully informed about what was happening, and they were both supportive of my decision to take the position on the Draco. I would make a special effort to see them when I was on Earth next. I did finally remember to ask Jenny to make sure my plants went to good homes. She said of course she would take care of it. Of course she would, I trusted her completely. Jenny gave me one last hug and a kiss on the cheek. I told her I would message her when I was able, but I knew that she would probably know more about what was going on than I would. She does love her job. We climbed aboard the Shuttle, clasped the harnesses, and waited for Lieutenant Quinn to take us back to the Draco. It’s a quick trip from the Spaceport to the Shuttle Bay, we were there in what seemed like no time. I watched the viewscreen during the trip, I was not sure when we would be back to Earth, and Earth is my home. I would miss her. When we arrived back at the Shuttle Bay, and exited the Shuttle, I started toward the door. The Captain put his hand on my arm. I felt something from him, more than the usual warmth. “Doctor, if you please, a moment?” He waited until everyone else had left the Bay. Then he turned to me, drew me to him in a tight embrace, and kissed me hard, passionately, hungrily. It once again took my breath away. His hand stole under my jacket, caressing my back, working its way under my shirt, then to my belly. When I felt his warm hand on my skin, I melted into his arms. His fingers gently worked their way up to brush against my breast, stroking. The gentle warmth grew hot. A long time later, or a short time, I am not sure, we broke the kiss, and he put his fingers in my hair and tilted my head back a bit so that he could look into my eyes. “I am the happiest Captain in the Fleet. You, my dear, have changed everything. I cannot imagine what else in the Universe I could possibly need. Or want.” I caught my breath and said, “I agree, Sir, what else could you possibly want?” He laughed. Then he turned me around, and led me out the Bay door and into the corridor. We went up to Level Eight, and he directed me to the Lounge, which surprised me a bit, but I soon discovered why. When we entered the corridor outside the Lounge I felt a large crowd beyond the door, filled with some sort of anticipation. “Welcome, Doctor!” “So glad to have you with us, Doctor!” I turned to the Captain. “Did you arrange this?” He smiled. “Actually, I didn’t. You can thank your friend Jennifer for this.” Of course. “Oh, I will, I will!” We did enjoy the rest of that evening. Eating and drinking, and even a bit of dancing. My Ensigns were there, and I met a lot of the rest of the Crew that I had not had a chance to speak to before. And the Captain sat with me, and danced with me, with no regard for who thought what about it. That made me very happy. When the party broke up, we each went to our separate quarters. I was actually relieved to be in that particular bed, it seemed more like home than my apartment bed did. I hadn’t realized that until I was getting into it. But this was now going to be my home, and it did feel that way. I set the alarm for 0600 and went to sleep. Until I was awakened by a feeling. My heart was pounding, I wondered if I had just had a nightmare.

Then I stopped and listened to my feelings, and I realized it was the Captain. My Captain. Coming down my corridor? He felt very close. Then came the chime of the door. “Elizabeth, may I come in?” “Of course, Captain, is everything all right?” As he entered the room, he said, “It is now.” I looked at him and we both smiled. He was a bit tousled from sleep, and he had apparently simply thrown on a Uniform jacket over his pajamas. I was amazed that he had gone through the corridors dressed that way. But then, it was the middle of the night. There would be no-one wandering the corridors at that hour. As he came in, he took off the jacket and tossed it over the back of a chair. He came over to the bed. My heart started pounding again, and I felt the warmth of him washing over me. I had to let some of my own flow out to him as well. I sat up, lifted the blanket and threw it to the side. I beckoned to him, allowing the lace strap of my gown to slip down over my shoulder. “What are you waiting for... Paolo?” He gathered me into his arms, his wonderful strong hands roaming over my body. My breath came faster. I could feel his heart beating as I ran my hands over his perfect, muscular chest, his taut belly. Then suddenly my gown was on the floor, as were his pajamas, and the warmth between us grew and grew as we explored each other. His fingers searching, caressing my back, my breasts, gently separating my thighs. My lips against his hot skin, tasting his sweet saltiness. The warmth of his passionate emotions washing over me, through me, matching my own as I let go and allowed my feelings to flow over him as well. The warmth became heat as we moved together, perfectly. When the alarm chimed in the morning, I reached out to shut it off, and accidentally knocked the unit onto the floor. I had to get out of the bed to retrieve it and shut it off. I looked at the bed, and saw my Captain there, looking so peaceful and strong and happy. Looking back at me with those gorgeous grey eyes that had drawn me in from the beginning. He reached out his hand. I pulled back, laughing. “Why Captain, you don’t want me to be late for my first day of work, do you?” “Why Doctor, yes, yes, as a matter of fact I do.” “Well, you are the Captain...” I felt the warmth growing in both of us as I climbed back into the bed and entwined my body with my Captain’s. As it turned out, I wasn’t all that late for my shift, and the Captain wasn’t all that late for his. And if we were a little out of breath when we reached our respective offices, nobody commented. At least not to us. I fell into a routine. I had my shift every day from 0800 through 1700 or whenever I felt I was done for the day. My job involved overseeing the experiments, and coming up with new ones to meet the requirements of the latest data sent to us by Headquarters. There were always going to be people and worlds and Colonies that needed our help. They asked for solutions to various problems, problems such as the Vindans had, with their water systems. They asked for solutions to their issues with infestations of tiny leaf-eaters, as on Artemis 5 and on Celestus. I even had to work out a cure for a disease that was affecting the crops on Rigna, and turning the leaves of their plants pink, and thus unable to perform photosynthesis. Each day I checked for new orders, ever curious to see what our next project would be. Almost the same as I had been doing back on Earth. The difference was the scale. Everything on the Draco is extra big. The plantings, the testing facility, the requirements for Oxygen. The responsibility that had become mine alone. I was in charge of the Department, and really had no backup, only my team of the two Ensigns. I had my work cut out for me, there was very little down time, something different every day. I did make sure to find a little time each day to go around the plantings and check everything, for alone time as much as to make sure everything was OK. Most days I managed to steal a few extra minutes to sit under the Oxygen-producing trees and just relax and breathe in the fresh air. I began to think of them as my respite, my friends, my source of tranquility. I didn’t see the Captain for days at a time. He is the Captain of the Flagship of the Fleet, after all. We did try to see each other a couple of times per week, for dinner, at least.

chapter 11 ********** A few weeks had passed, and I had not seen my Captain for a few days. I was in the grove, enjoying the air, and attempting some yoga. I was sadly out of shape. It had been too many weeks since I was healthy enough, and unbruised enough, to do any workouts at all besides walking. But I had to get back into it, so there I was, trying. Suddenly the Klaxon sounded. The Red Alert. I knew that my Ensigns would have to run to their Alert Stations. I didn’t have anything to do during an Alert, so I went back through the plantings to my office, to wait. As I went through the door from the Lab area into my office, the Ship shook. Then she shook again. I went over to the window to see if there was anything to see out there. I wasn’t even sure where we were, I wasn’t involved in the current mission. I looked out the window and gasped. I saw a tendril. A long tendril of something waving outside the window. I shook my head, closed my eyes, took a deep breath and looked again. It was still there. I touched my communicator. “Commander Walker? This is Doctor Thorne. I seem to have something outside my window down here.” He answered immediately, “Doctor, please come up to the Bridge, I think we could use your expertise up here.” “On my way, Sir.” Heart pounding, I went out to the lift and directed it to the Bridge. It’s a good thing the lift knew where that was, because I didn’t. I knew it was on Level One, I believed it was the entirety of Level One, but I hadn’t ever been up there before. It’s not for us civilians. When I stepped out of the lift onto Level One, near the door that led to the Bridge, I could feel an almost palpable excitement, anxiety, fear. I passed my hand over the sensor and the door opened. My eyes were drawn to the viewscreen. It showed something I had not expected to ever see in person. A space-living plant. Yes, a plant, right in front of us, blocking us. Surrounding the Draco, and reaching around her with its tendrils. I forced my gaze away from the screen and looked around for the Commander, or the Captain. I didn’t feel the Captain, though. He must have been in his office, or his ready-room. I still should have been able to feel him, but I was distracted, and didn’t stop to analyze that. Commander Walker came over to me. He directed me to a station at the back wall. “What do you know about space-living plants, Doctor?” I thought for a moment. “Not much, Sir, I’ve only read about them, I’ve not seen one in person. What is happening? Why is it attacking us? It should have just absorbed some of our emanations, and passed us by.” “Unfortunately, Doctor, we are fairly sure that it was directed at us, and pushed in our direction by an outside force. It is now attracted to our fuel, and we cannot figure out how to get it to let us go.” “What? Who would do such a thing? This could kill both of us! I mean the plant, as well as the Ship.” Commander Walker looked at me thoughtfully and carefully. He said, quietly, “Please sit down, Doctor.” “Yes, Sir.” I sat, and waited for him to continue. He hesitated, then, “Our Captain is not aboard, can you not feel that?” I went cold. I finally realized that I had not felt the Captain’s presence for some time, ever since the Ship shook. “What has happened, Commander?” “We have been attacked, Doctor. The Agrints have decided that they want our attention. They have it. It was not enough for them to shoot at us, they somehow got to our shield and broke though it. The Captain has been taken aboard their ship. They know we won’t fire on them if he is aboard.” I felt dizzy. This couldn’t be happening. How could I not have felt this? What was my Sympath ability good for if it abandoned me when I needed it? Then I remembered that when the Captain was taken was the same time the Alert sounded, and a few minutes after that I saw the tendril outside my office. If the Captain hadn’t reached out to me I wouldn’t have had time... wait. He hadn’t reached out to me. I got another chill. I took a deep breath and let it out. “Have you heard from the Agrints, Commander? Have you seen the Captain? Is he all right?” “Yes, briefly. He is fine, for now. In the meantime, they have pushed this plant into our direct path and it doesn’t seem to want to let us go. It also seems to be changing color. Why would it do that, Doctor?”

Shaking my head in confusion, I said, “I am not certain, Commander, have you been able to get any readings on it?” “We have sent a probe into the nexus of the plant. Let me show you.” I looked at the screen at the science station, scrolling data past my unbelieving eyes. I alternated reading the data with looking at the viewscreen. The plant was indeed changing color, and it looked like it was pulsating, vibrating, the color shifts were flowing in waves across the surface. “Commander.” “Yes, Doctor?” I said, slowly, “I think I know what is happening, what I don’t know is how to fix it, at least not yet. It seems that our friends the Agrints have gotten a bit of technology of their own. This plant has been seeded with a virus.” “A virus?” “Yes, it’s sick with a virus. And it thinks we have the medicine it needs. Our fuel must contain at least some of the nutrients it needs. Commander, I’ll need my team in the Lab to work out an antiviral. I think that if we can treat it, make it healthy again, it will let us go.” “Doctor?” I said, firmly, “It’s what we do, Commander. You please do what you do and get my... the Captain back.” “Yes, Ma’am!” He touched his communicator. “Ensign Parker and Ensign Miller report to the Agro-Lab immediately.” Over the Bridge Communications I heard, “Yes, Sir!” I got up. “Am I dismissed, Commander?” “Yes, Doctor, keep me apprised, please.” “Will do, Sir. Please do the same for me?” He looked at me with concern. “Yes, I will.” When I got back to the Lab my Ensigns were waiting for me. I showed them the data from the science station probe, and we got to work. I kept my mental receptors wide open for any whiff from the Captain on the Agrint ship. I sent my warmth out into the void toward that ship, hoping he would feel it and be comforted, and know that we were working on a solution to both problems. We worked in the Lab nonstop for hours. I knew we could come up with an antiviral for this plant, this virus, we had to. Otherwise the plant would eventually work its way inside and destroy the Ship. Then I finally felt it, the familiar warmth. I almost fainted with relief. He was alive. And OK enough to respond and reach out to me. I went back to work with renewed energy. Plants that live in space are rare. There have been very few that have come into close enough proximity of occupied worlds to be studied in detail. I set Ensign Miller to finding reports of any tendrilled space-living plants in the Records. Normally, on a planet, a tendril is intended to attach the plant to a support. In this case, it seemed that the tendrils were intended more for the acquisition of nutrients, the way that roots do on a planet. They were reaching around the Draco, attempting to get through the shield to get to our fuel supply. The terminal display showed me that the central nexus of the plant was not solid, but was made up of several layers. The layers were equivalent to leaves on a terrestrial plant. They should have been the way the plant acquired nutrients on a regular basis. They would have absorbed light and heat from the stars they passed, and wisps of Hydrogen from the Space around them. This plant was very different from any that I had studied. I called Ensign Alben and asked him to please get us a sample of the plant material to test. He said he could send another probe into the nexus. I had to see whether what the virus was attacking was actually the nexus or the nutrient receptors themselves. It may have been stopping the plant from absorbing nutrients at all, in which case it would have to keep attacking us until one of us was destroyed. When the samples arrived, Ensign Parker and I took slides of the material and put them, one at a time, into the analyzer. I also took some of them and examined them myself under a microscope. It was a couple of hours and many samples later that I found what I was looking for. It was not actually a virus, it was a toxin. A synthesized toxin, it was not organic at all. I had never seen anything like it. It had an unusual, crystalline structure, and a regular, ovoid shape. Nothing like that existed in nature, I had never heard of such a thing in all my schooling. I called over to Ensign Miller, “Ensign, please review the Records for anything resembling this toxin, I am sending the details to your station.” He answered immediately, “Yes, Doctor.” It took only a few minutes for us to realize that there were no Records of anything like this toxin. We

were on our own. I pushed my hair back from my face and sighed. OK, we can do this, I know we can, we just have to do it faster than ever before. We set to work, starting with known antidotes to known toxins. I prepared more samples for testing, and we all put on masks and gloves.

“Commander Walker, we did it!” “Did what, Doctor Thorne?” “We can kill the toxin! Without killing the plant!” He hesitated. “Toxin? What’s this about a toxin? Are you sure?” “Yes, Sir. Ensign Alben in Engineering helped us get a sample of plant material. It turns out that what I initially thought was a disease was actually poison. I don’t know where it came from. I didn’t think the Agrints had such technology. But we found a cure, we tested it, and it works!” “OK. We will debrief on that subject later. Ensign Alben, head down to the Agro-Lab with another probe. Put the medicine in there, and we can transport it into the plant.” “Great idea Commander! We’ll be waiting.” I hesitated a moment. “Commander? Anything new on the Captain’s situation?” He responded slowly, “Not yet, Doctor, we are working on it. We don’t want to provoke them too much. We cannot afford for them to start firing at us again while we are in the grip of that plant.” “Understood, Sir. Thank you, Sir.” It seemed to me that the Commander was holding something back, keeping something from me. But I did not have time to stop and analyze that at the moment. The plan worked perfectly. The antidote worked perfectly. The probe was transported into the central nexus of the plant, and it didn’t take long for it to start working. I could see the color change almost immediately. When I had first viewed it, the nexus had been changing from bright greens and blues to a dreary brownish green. Throughout the day, as we had worked, it had become almost completely brown. Now, as the antidote began its work, the beautiful blues and greens were coming back. I could almost feel how much better it must have felt. I don’t get feelings from plants, but just looking at it, I knew it was getting healthy. It was regenerating. The Commander had routed the Bridge viewscreen to my office terminal so we could watch. The lovely color change spread quickly over the nexus, and into the tendrils. It was beautiful. If it hadn’t just almost killed all of us, it would have been even more beautiful. I was so relieved, and proud of my team. The tendrils pulled back, the nexus shrank and stopped its sickening pulsations. We were all going to be all right. Then I got another chill, as I thought about my Captain, still captive aboard the Agrint ship. I felt as much as saw the Ship turn, and we saw the Agrint ship through the window in my office. I sent as much warmth as I could toward that ship. I closed my eyes and concentrated on reaching out to my Captain. I would just wait here until the Commander called to tell me that the Captain was safely back aboard the Draco. There was nothing I could do except wait. There came a stronger whiff of that familiar strong warmth. I opened my eyes and looked out the window again. Then I saw a speck. At least it looked like a speck to me, coming toward the Draco from the Agrint ship. “Commander? It looks like something is coming toward us from the Agrint ship.” “We have it, Doctor, thank you, it’s being watched.” Yes it was. By all of us. I had a feeling that was growing stronger by the moment. A warm comforting feeling, growing stronger as the speck grew closer. Then the speck became a dot, then it became a small ship, perhaps a shuttle or some sort of pod. I was sure then, I knew what I was feeling. My Captain. He had escaped. There was a sudden flash of bright light. The Agrint ship was gone. The small ship was very near. I ran out of my office and into the lift. “Shuttle Bay!” I was hopping up and down in the lift, willing it to move faster. It didn’t care. It moved as it always did, slowly and steadily toward its destination. Finally it reached Level Fifteen, where the Shuttle Bay is. I pulled at the door as it opened, pushed my way out and raced down the corridor to the Bay. I had to wait for the shuttle, or pod, or whatever it was, to clear the Bay Doors and the forcefield to close before the corridor door would open. As soon as it was unlatched, I rushed into the Bay and over to the pod that had just landed. The feeling of the Captain’s warmth was inescapable now, I could feel it as though it were a solid object. The pod airlock door opened and there he was. He came out of the pod, slowly and weakly, but he looked over at me and reached out his arms. I took his hands and helped him sit on the steps, then knelt down

on the bottom step and threw my arms around him. I felt that I couldn’t hold him close enough. I felt his weakness, but also his strength. I allowed all of my warmth and relief to flow to him, sharing my strength as best I could. Gradually his arms were holding me more strongly. We stayed like that for a minute or so, until the door opened and Commander Walker came in with Lieutenant Quinn. “Captain, welcome back, Sir. Glad you are all right, Sir.” The Captain turned to his Officers and said, “Your plan was a good one, it got me out of there in one piece. And the Agrint ship is taken care of as well. Good. Now I would like to go to my quarters and clean up and rest.” Commander Walker answered, “Yes, Sir. May we help you to your quarters, Sir? Do you need to go to Medical? Are you hurt?” The Captain looked at him, then back at me, and said, “No, I am not hurt, Commander. I think we can handle this, but thank you.” Commander Walker blushed and was silent. Lieutenant Quinn merely smiled. Then they turned and walked out of the Bay. The Captain and I made our slow way up to his quarters. I helped him out of his grimy, torn uniform and into some clean pajamas. I took some for myself as well. Then I made him get into the bed, alone. I promised him that I would stay, but I went over to the sofa, and sat down to collect my thoughts. It had been a very stressful day. I looked over at the wall behind me, at the door that I thought led into another Lounge. I figured I would give it a try, so I went over and passed my hand over the sensor. The door opened onto what in a house on Earth would have been called a porch. It was all window. At least that’s how it seemed to me. The windows went from floor to ceiling across the entire wall. There were a couple of comfortable sofas on the near wall, and a couple of tables on the lovely woven rug in the middle. It was outstanding, breathtaking. I had to go in. I plucked the blanket off the sofa in the main room, and went over to one of the the cushy sofas in the Lounge. I sat down and wrapped myself up in the blanket, and stared at the stars as they slowly passed by. We weren’t traveling in Hyperspace at the moment, we weren’t on our way to a mission. It was beautiful. But eventually I fell asleep anyway. I knew that I would feel it when my Captain woke, or if he was in pain.

chapter 12 *********** Sometime later, but not long enough later, the door chime sounded. I got up sleepily and walked toward the door. “Yes? Who’s there?” “Doctor? It’s Lansa. Is there anything I can do for you? I have some breakfast here for you.” I pulled the curtain between the living area and the bedroom area. Then I went over and passed my hand over the sensor to open the door. “Good morning, Lansa, thank you for coming. That smells wonderful.” “I wasn’t sure you would be in here, Ma’am, but there’s plenty here for both of you. How is the Captain? I did not want to interfere yesterday when everyone was so busy.” I had forgotten all about Lansa yesterday in the frenzy. That would have to change, I couldn’t let her be left out, she had been caring for the Captain a lot longer than I had. And she did it well. I knew she would have kept informed on what was happening, but I should have contacted her myself. “He’s still asleep. He did come out of his ordeal much better than I did. I will make sure he contacts you when he wakes.” “Thank you, Ma’am. The Admiral is also expecting a call when the Captain is able to report.” I held up my hand. “Lansa, please call me Liz. Or Doctor. We will be seeing a lot of each other and I want you to feel comfortable with me. Please.” She smiled and said, “All right, I think I can do that. Doctor.” Good. Very good. After I let Lansa out, I put the tray down on the table by the fireplace. Then I went over to the bed. The Captain was just turning over, waking, and looked up at me. He gave me that bright smile, and reached out a hand. I sat next to him on the bed, and put my hand in his, pulled his hand to my face, and kissed his palm. “OK, so now we’re even, right? No more of this kidnapping nonsense for either of us?” He pulled our hands back to his own face, and kissed my palm. “That is my intention. Now will you please come here and keep me warm?” He reached out and cupped my breast in his hand, stroking the nipple and grinning as it hardened. I flushed, and took a deep breath, then gently and regretfully pushed his hand away. “No, Sir, we have a lovely breakfast that Lansa brought for us, and it’s getting cold. Let’s get you up and have some food.” He frowned, or tried to, but he couldn’t help smiling. He pushed me off the bed, threw off the covers, and rolled over to stand up. I caught my breath as I looked at him, so powerful, so enticing. I almost yielded to the temptation, but this was not the time. I helped him up, and we went into the other part of the room to the table. He went over to the wall by the door and touched a control that I hadn’t noticed before. The fireplace that wasn’t a real fireplace lit up with a fire that seemed real. My mouth dropped open, and I turned to him for an explanation. He smiled again. “It’s as real as we could make it. It’s even got some heat, do you feel it? It’s only an image, really, but I wanted something that made these quarters feel more homey. Do you like it?” “Yes, Sir!” Then he did frown at me. I opened the cover on the tray of food, and we shared our breakfast in front of the fire. What could be better? We didn’t speak of the events of the day before, I didn’t push, he didn’t seem ready. I knew he didn’t like the fact that we had had to destroy the Agrint ship. He is not a bloodthirsty man, he didn’t like that we had killed probably a hundred living beings. And it could have been avoided if they had backed off. It wasn’t his fault, it wasn’t any of our fault, but he still was feeling guilty. I could feel that. I had to respect his feelings, and he would talk to me about it when he was ready. I did watch him carefully, though. He had been on that ship for many hours, and I didn’t know what they had done to him, if anything. His wrists looked a little irritated, as though there had been restraints. But he didn’t look hurt in any other way, at least visually. And I didn’t really sense anything other than the weariness and some residual guilt. And there something else that I had difficulty identifying at first. It was pride. Pride in me! He was proud of me. I don’t know how he knew what I and my team had done, but he seemed to be aware that we had been responsible for helping us to get away.

“Captain? Commander Walker here.” The Captain touched his communicator and responded, “Yes, Commander, what is it?” “Sir, Admiral Wilson is holding for you. Are you able to take the call?” “Send it to my quarters, please, Mr. Walker.” “Yes, Sir.” He went over to the terminal on the desk and turned it on. The viewscreen lit, and we waited for the Admiral to come into view. He looked down at himself, then over at me, and said, “Perhaps we should have gotten dressed before speaking to the Admiral?” I said, smiling, “I don’t think he cares, Captain. But you can be sure he will notice our matching pajamas.” The view on the screen changed to a view of Admiral Wilson’s office. The Admiral came into the office and sat down in his big Admiral’s chair. He steepled his fingers and looked at us. “You two look like you’ve been though it. Are you all right? I’ve so far only heard the most basic version of events from Commander Walker. Are you up to giving me the full story?” The Admiral is a great man. He knows when to be Military, he also knows when to be Human and Caring. Now he was being both. The Captain answered, “Yes, Sir, let’s get to it.” Between both of us, we filled the Admiral in on the events of the day before. I found out what had happened to the Captain when he had been taken aboard the Agrint ship. Basically the same thing I had been through, minus the beating. They wouldn’t have dared to damage him in any permanent way, they had to know that would instantly start a war. But they did blindfold him, and tied him by his wrists to a bulkhead. He had escaped due to a rather daring plan initiated by Commander Walker. The Commander had had the Engineers working furiously to find out the frequency of the shields on the Agrint ship. They managed to get through for long enough to Transport in a communicator, and a stun pistol. I don’t know how they did that without the Agrints knowing, or seeing, but they got the items close enough to the Captain that he was able to push them under himself with his foot. Then, he was able to work the restraints off of the bulkhead where they were attached, so that his hands were useable. After that it was a matter of waiting for an opportunity to stun his guards, and the Engineers were able to direct him to their Shuttle Bay or whatever they called it. I was astounded. The sheer bravery, and the teamwork, and the timing, and just being able to react as soon as the opportunity arose. I was overcome with a feeling of awe, and pride, and felt so honored to be able to be associated with such brilliant and brave individuals. I only hoped that I would be able to do my part and not let them down. Again. I gave my report, told my part in the adventure. As I spoke I felt the pride and that lovely warmth from my Captain beside me. After we were finished, the Admiral gazed at us for a moment. Then he said, “Thank you both. I will expect to see all of this as an official report soon. However, for right now, you are off duty. I am sending the Draco to Hegrioa 4. You and all the Crew are on leave for ten days. That’s an order. I hear the Hegrioans are very welcoming and that the beaches there are beautiful. Rest. Relax. That is all. End call.” The Captain and I looked at each other in shock. OK, then. R & R here we come. Orders are orders, after all. I went to the terminal and began to look up information on Hegrioa 4. The Captain contacted the Bridge and gave the order to head for the Hegrioa system. Then he contacted Lansa and asked her to join us so that we could make arrangements for our time on planet. He planned to use her expertise as his longtime Assistant, to help research the planet Hegrioa 4, and to make some plans, and then release her from duty for the duration of R & R. After a few minutes, I was hit with a wave of glee from all over the Ship. Word indeed spreads fast on a Starship. It took us two days to travel through Hyperspace to the Hegrioa system. None of us had been there before, we didn’t know what to expect, except that the Admiral wouldn’t have sent us somewhere that wasn’t at least as safe as Earth. I had gone back to my own quarters, by silent agreement with the Captain. I think we both felt a bit awkward at how quickly things between us were moving. At least I was sure that I did. I didn’t want to take anything for granted, or jeopardize anything when we were doing so well. He had told me not to worry about the travel arrangements, so I didn’t. I went back to work, to make the time go faster until we arrived at the Hegrioa system. There was always something that could be addressed in the Agro-Lab, always something. I did have to make sure that shifts were made up so that someone was keeping an eye on the Lab even while we were on R & R.

chapter 13 *********** When we arrived at the Hegrioa system and neared the fourth planet, I was at the view window in the Lounge on Level Eight. There were quite a few others with me, we were anxious to see the planet. When we got near enough to see, the planet Hegrioa 4 looked a lot like Earth. A big blue marble, painted with white, and some green as well. We began to see the continents as we approached orbit. I could feel the excitement of the others in the Lounge, and the undercurrent of the same throughout the Ship. When we established orbit and the announcement chime sounded, I turned to go out and down to my quarters to gather my bags for my vacation. I had been instructed to meet the Senior Staff in the Shuttle Bay when we arrived at orbit. As I exited into the corridor I ran right into Lieutenant Quinn. He looked quite casual in his trousers and tee shirt. Mark Quinn is what some would call “tall, dark and handsome.” He is a bit exotic, and I wondered, not for the first time, what his ancestry was. He has dark skin, strong jawline, and an almost feline stance, calm and composed but always poised for action. I thought again what a good-looking man he was, as well as being a good friend to have at your back if you needed help. I nodded my approval. He nodded back and smiled. “Excuse me, Doctor, are you ready to Shuttle down to the planet? Pilot Quinn at your service. I am to escort you to the Shuttle Bay to meet the Captain and the Commander and head on down.” “I have to get my things, Lieutenant.” “I beg to differ, Ma’am,” he held his hand up, “sorry, Doctor, but your bags are already on board the Shuttle. Lansa has made sure you will have everything you need.” I closed my mouth. “All right then, Mr. Quinn. Let’s go. I wouldn’t want to hold up the Captain’s R & R.” His mouth twitched, but he said nothing. I looked at him carefully, but all I received from him was calmness, and a bit of amusement. We left the Lounge, and went down to the Shuttle Bay on Level Fifteen. Commander Walker was waiting there with the Captain. I had never seen him in anything other than his uniform before. He is quite a handsome man. Medium tall, well built, he wore denim trousers and a brightly printed shirt, and sandals. When these Officers go on R & R they don’t go halfway. The Captain was wearing an equivalent outfit, except that he had boots on his feet. I had to smile, just looking at him, he was just so handsome and sexy. I thought I knew why he was wearing the boots, but decided to wait and see. I myself had dressed for the occasion as well. Knee length pants, tank top, sandals, hair tied up in a ponytail. I had boots of my own, in my bag, just in case. I felt like we were on vacation already. “OK I’m here, are we all ready? Is Lansa coming with us?” Commander Walker answered, “No, Lansa will be going down to the planet with her family in one of the other Shuttles. We will probably see her later.” The Captain took my arm and escorted me onto the Shuttle. He waited for me to sit and adjust my harness, then he sat next to me and clasped his own. Lieutenant Quinn looked around at us and nodded. “All right, Sirs, and Ma’am. Sit back and enjoy the ride, all of you, here we go.” I watched at the viewscreen as we went down through the atmosphere to the planet below. It was indeed beautiful. We passed over mountainous regions, green fields, what looked like a small city, and then were over the coastal area where we were to be staying. I had heard Lansa say that our hotel was right on a beach, and I couldn’t wait to see it. Before very long, just a few minutes, it seemed, we were landing. When the Shuttle door opened we were greeted by a party of Hegrioans. They took our hands and led us over to waiting vehicles. Open air vehicles, they were not attractive, but sturdy. They seemed to be floating a few centimeters above the ground. Our baggage was put carefully into one vehicle, and we were seated in another. The drivers sat at the controls and we were off. It wasn’t a long journey to the hotel, but every bit of it held my attention. The view of the greenery, the tempting glimpses of the beach and the ocean, the smells of the flowers and other foliage. Then we came upon the hotel. To say it was grand is an understatement. Multiple levels, courtyards, balconies and terraces. It looked like it was made of sugar, it shone and sparkled in the sun. I gaped. We didn’t have anything like this on Earth. I couldn’t wait to see the inside. We piled out of the vehicles and were shooed into the lobby. The Hegrioans started taking the baggage out of the other vehicle and bringing it in. We were met at the huge glass and metal reception desk by a smiling female Hegrioan. The Hegrioans are not Human, but they look Human. Except for the fact that their skin is lavender, and they average two and a half meters in height. The female who welcomed us

into the hotel was definitely above average height, she towered over me even as she sat at the desk. The desk that befit such an imposing personage as she was. Fully three meters long, that desk was, and seemingly as tall as I am. She reached over and handed each of us a numbered passcard, without asking who we each were. Then she pointed toward the glass-fronted lift in the far corner of the lobby and said, “ The lift will take you to your floor. We are honored to have such distinguished visitors staying with us at our humble hotel. Please let me know if you need anything, anything at all.” We thanked her and turned to go over to the lift. As we walked through the lobby, I looked around me at the beautiful surroundings. Marbled tiled floors that looked hand cut. Hanging chandeliers of some bright silver metal. Artwork and tapestries that I didn’t understand hanging on the walls, and sculptures resembling something from ancient Europe on Earth. This was the fanciest, most elaborate place I had ever been in, and I felt very small. The Captain took my hand. I squeezed his hand in return. We entered the lift and Commander Walker pressed the pad. The lift asked for his passcard and he swiped it across the sensor. The lift started up. As we rose through the lobby and then up to the higher floors, we were able to get a view of the ocean beyond the hotel grounds. Again, I gaped. I hadn’t seen an ocean this close since before I went to work at the Federation Headquarters. It was beautiful. Pure white sand, deep blue water, and I could see a glimpse of what looked like an island out further in the ocean. The lift kept going until it reached the top floor. When the door opened, we got out, and each of us looked at our passcard. We looked up at each other, smiled, and headed toward our respective rooms. It was only as I walked down the hallway looking for room numbers that I realized that the Captain was keeping up with me. I looked a question at him and he laughed. “Did you really think I would have you staying anywhere but with me, my dear? Don’t be ridiculous.” I flushed, and turned toward the next room, which happened to match the number on my passcard. I swiped the card over the sensor, nothing happened. I looked over at the Captain and he shrugged. I tried putting my palm on the sensor, and the door slid open. “How did they do that?” The door opened onto a room that looked to be larger than my whole apartment back on Earth. I stopped in the doorway and turned back to the Captain. “Are you sure about this?” The Captain answered by swinging my arm over his shoulder and picking me up. He carried me into the room and the door slid shut. I looked around at the plush surroundings. More marbled floors, fluffy rugs in the living area, low tables. Full length sliding glass door leading out to a large terrace. A video screen. A small desk with a terminal. The bedroom area was separated by a low wall and a curtain. I saw another door beyond that I assumed led to a Refresh of some sort. “Wow.” “That’s all you have to say?” “Yes, Sir. Wow.” He stopped short, and put me down. He pulled me closer to him, and wrapped one arm around my waist. With the other hand, he turned my face so that I was looking directly into those deep grey eyes. “Elizabeth. I will not have you calling me Sir. Or Captain. Not while we are on vacation. We are in a lovely hotel on a beautiful beach. Together. Just us. What do I have to do to get you to call me by my name?” “I have a few ideas. Sir.” His hands slipped under my shirt, and his fingers softly moved upward, lifting the fabric as they went. As he was slipping the shirt upward, his fingertips gently brushed my nipples, hesitated for just a moment, then continued on, lifting the shirt off over my head. I moved closer, turning my face up to kiss him. He laughed, then picked me up again and carried me into the bedroom. As he laid me gently on the bed, I grabbed him and pulled him in, then flipped him over so that I was straddling him. He smiled as he looked up at me, his fingers still caressing. I began to run my hands over his strong chest, down to his solid, muscular legs. I kissed his warm mouth, deeply, passionately as his warmth flowed over me, into me, wrapped around me. Then I sat back for a moment and looked down at him. “Now that’s more like it. Sir.” And continued my exploration of his body, every muscle, every centimeter, with my hands, my tongue, my body. Sometime later, I said, “I’m hungry. ” “You are a woman of few words today.” “Yes.” “I am hungry as well. Let us see if we can’t find something to eat.”

I looked over at him. “Can we see if they can bring something up here? I did notice a terrace out there, it’ d be nice to sit out there for a while.” “Your wish is my command, my lady.” All we had to do was pick up the communicator on the desk by the terminal. The front desk lady answered right away and said, “What can I do for you? You would like some food, perhaps?” My Captain ordered lunch for us, and some of the local specialty, I think it was supposed to be wine. I didn’t care. I pulled on a sundress, and went out onto the terrace. He was pulling on his robe so that he would be able to answer the door. “Captain! Paolo! Come here!” He came running out, “What’s wrong?” “Look at this! We have our own lift down to the beach! Let’s go down there to eat, we’ll have a picnic.” “Do not do that to me, please, I thought something had happened. All right, when the food arrives, we will bring it down there. Then after lunch I have a surprise for you.” “Another surprise? My poor heart cannot take many more surprises, my Captain.” I fanned myself and grinned. He attempted to glare at me, then bent down and kissed my forehead. “OK, you win. As long as you say it just like that, you may call me whatever you want.” “Is that food here yet?” The steward arrived just then with our lunch. I took the opportunity to refresh a bit, and put on a swimsuit under my shorts and tank. I put my boots in my beach bag, because I had a feeling I knew what the Captain’s surprise was. Then he came in and changed his clothes as well. I saw him put a pair of boots in his bag. We took one of the extra blankets from the cabinet in the Refresh, and brought the picnic down to the beach. As we exited our private lift, the aroma of the beach and the water hit my nose. Sand, salt, sun, it was simply wonderful. Then I began to feel the whiffs of feelings from the beachgoers and hotel guests walking around the beach walkway. Comfort, happiness, satisfaction, and absolutely no displeasure or chill anywhere. Wonderful. We spread our blanket on the sand near to the water, but far enough away not to be splashed by the waves. The Captain opened the basket with the food and I started taking everything out. Quite an impressive meal. Vegetables, steamed meat, some little cake-like things, and the local beverage, which did not turn out to be alcoholic after all. Or the Hegrioan equivalent. We enjoyed our meal, then lay back to soak up the view and the atmosphere. A steward came by and took away the picnic basket with the remains of our lunch. We thanked him, and I looked over at the Captain. “Well? Where’s my surprise?” He laughed again. He got up and held his hand out to me to help me up. I folded the blanket and put it in my bag. He steered me back toward the hotel, but not to our lift. We went through a short tunnel and came out into a courtyard, where there were horses, Earth horses. Beautiful, calm, happy horses waiting for us. I smiled. This was what I had been hoping for. I love horses. I had ridden often as a child, and as a young adult. It was one of the few luxuries our living unit was allowed. We had a stable close by that would let us ride the horses as long as we cleaned them down afterwards. I was not able to ride so much after I went to the Federation, but I had kept it up somewhat. I had not had much time, though. I was really happy. I grinned at my Captain, and took my boots out of my bag. He grinned back, and took his boots out of his bag. There was yet another steward there to help us get saddled up, and to help me mount my horse. I let him. He picked up our bags and told us he would have them brought back to our room. The steward led us out of the courtyard to the other side of the hotel grounds and said to the Captain, “ Just please try not to overwork them, Sir. There is a fresh water stream over at the base of that hill for them to drink from.” He pointed. The Captain nodded agreement and headed his ride out into the grounds. I followed. We rode slowly and calmly through the far hotel grounds. The grounds were huge, they apparently included several hills and trails, as well as the beach area. The edge of the property was well marked and we were careful to stay away from the boundary. We stopped after about an hour to rest the horses, and dismounted, to walk a bit through the grass at the edge of the stream. I took off my boots, sat down on the grass, and put my feet in the cold water. So nice. I looked up at the trees. “These trees look a lot like my trees. They may be in the same family. The trunks, the leaves, the scent are very similar. It may be one reason everyone is so happy here. Lots of clean Oxygenated air. I’ll have to look into that.” “Ever the Scientist, my dear.” “I can’t help being fascinated by all this, Paolo. It’s really my first time on another planet besides Earth.

Other than when we were working so hard on Vinda 3. The asteroid doesn’t count.” He sat down by me and held me close. “No, it certainly does not count. I want you to forget about that, as much as possible. Let’s keep moving, and see what else we can find.” “Let’s.” We went back to our horses, and he offered me a hand to help me mount. I looked at him with my head tilted slightly, then swung myself up into the saddle, quite smoothly, actually. Nice, after so long away. He stared. “Oh ho! so that’s how it is. Let’s see what you’ve got. Ma’am.” That was all I needed. I spurred my horse to a gallop, though I still had bare feet, and the race was on. We raced all over the hotel grounds, up and down the hills, over the trails, along the stream. We did stop briefly once more to let the horses rest for a few minutes. I led him on a chase that took us over to the beach, and then back to the courtyard through the tunnel. We reined in at pretty much the same moment, and he hopped down and came over to me. “My dear, where did that talent come from? I never suspected.” “We have a lot to learn about each other, my Captain.” He held out his arms, and this time I accepted, and he lifted me down. I put my hands behind his neck and pulled him closer. “We have the rest of our lives to learn about each other, My Captain, my Paolo. We don’t have to know everything all at once. We know the most important things. And we cannot hide our feelings from each other.” He kissed me then, and after a moment we heard the steward doing the Hegrioan version of clearing his throat to get our attention, so that he could take the horses away. By then it was getting on toward dusk. We walked back toward the beach. I wanted to wade in the water to cool my feet. The water felt great. My Captain beside me, holding my hand, calmer than I had seen or felt him be. He seemed to be content. Wonderful. We walked down the water’s edge, and headed back toward where our lift was. We came across some folks playing a game of catch with what on Earth would probably have been called a frisbee. A throw came toward me and I reached out and caught it. I looked to see who it had been meant for, and tossed it on to them. They waved and motioned to us to join them. I looked over at the Captain. He shrugged. I nodded to the player, and he sent another throw my way. We played on for a while, until it really began to get dark. Then I threw one last throw to our new friends, and turned to the Captain and took his hand. We continued up the beach to our lift. When we got back to our room, it was completely dark outside, but the lighting automatically came on as we entered. The Captain picked up the communicator and asked the current front desk person to please send us up some dinner. Please, yes he actually said please. He was really relaxing. Good. We were both pleasantly sleepy from our long day of rest and relaxation, so after we ate a quick meal that I don’t remember, we went to the bedroom and went to sleep. And slept through the whole night, comfortable and secure. When I woke it was daylight. The Captain had gotten up and ordered us some breakfast, including a coffee-like beverage, and eggs of some sort. When that day’s steward arrived with our food, he came in and laid it out on the table by the window in the bedroom area. “Is there anything else I can do for you this beautiful morning?” I said, “This will be fine. Thank you.” He let himself out. I was getting used to the sight of those lavender giants. They were actually quite attractive once one got used to them. We had another quite pleasant morning on the beach, then went back to our room to change for lunch. There came a knock at the door. “Captain? Doctor?” “Yes, Commander, just a moment.” I went over and let him in. Commander Walker said he was going to go out exploring into the town, and wanted to know if we would like to accompany him and Lieutenant Quinn. I waited for the Captain’s answer. He said, “You go on ahead without us, Commander, but thank you for the offer. We will see you later.” Commander Walker nodded and replied, “Very good, Sir.” The Captain turned to me after Mr. Walker had left. “I think we can do our own exploring, can we not?”

I agreed.

chapter 14 *********** The next few days were pretty much the same as the first. We spent a lot of time walking and lazing on the beach, eating good food, riding the horses. I got to explore the hillsides, and discovered a whole catalog ’s worth of plant life I had never seen before. I thought my tablet was going to overheat, I was typing so furiously. Amazing. By the second day I was finally able to get back into my yoga practice and my martial arts. I felt that I was finally strong enough to go all out. After that first morning, I woke before my Captain, and worked out in the living area where I wouldn’t disturb him. On the fourth day, though, when I finished my workout, I stood up, stretched, and saw him sitting on the low wall that separated the bedroom from the living area. “How long have you been there?” He grinned, “How long have you been working out?” “Really? I was trying not to disturb you. I’m sorry.” “Don’t be, I enjoy watching you. You are beautiful. I love how you move.” He smiled at me with that slight smile that had stopped my heart that first day we met. I felt a flush come over me as not only my own emotions, but his, came flooding in. While I am working out, I can keep my emotions separate and not let myself feel anything from others. A Sympath needs to have some time to be alone with her own feelings, otherwise she can become easily overwhelmed and lost. I had missed the feeling of freedom that the yoga and Tai Chi gave me. But I did love the feelings that I was receiving at that moment. After I caught my breath I began to remove my workout shorts and top, smiling at him, watching him as he was watching me. “All right, then, my Captain, now that you have discovered another of my deep dark secrets, what would you like to do today?” “You mean besides this...?” He came over and put his arms around me. He kissed me, softly and yet powerfully, his tongue exploring my mouth, then moving gently down my neck. I melted into his arms as he lowered me gently to the floor... I reached up and caressed his face, his chest, his back. Our heat merged, surrounding us, flowing through both of us as we moved together. We went back down to the beach that evening. I had heard that there was to be a gathering at the water’ s edge. There was going to be a bonfire, and music, and singing. I was curious to see this local custom, it was bound to be fascinating. We both changed into clothing that we had purchased from a vendor in the lobby of the hotel. It was one of very few places that we were told was safe to purchase from. There were a lot of tourists that came to Hegrioa and there would always be those who would take advantage of others. Even on this secure world, there seemed to be a criminal element. I had a dress, made of flowing sheer fabric, sleeveless, and low cut front. My golden bracelet was my only jewelry. My Captain had trousers and shirt made of similar material but not sheer, and a vest made of extremely soft leather. He looked so handsome, and carefree. We went down in our lift to the beachfront, and walked down to the water where the human tourists and others were gathering, and a few Hegrioans were putting the firewood together to light the bonfire. When they threw the brand into the pile of wood, it whooshed to life, and then started to crackle happily. I could feel the warmth of it on my face. We watched as they set up the instruments, mostly drums, and some woodwinds that looked as though they were made from driftwood. The music started. It was very tribal, sensuous. It made me want to dance immediately. I took my Captain over closer to the musicians, where there was a cleared area perfect for dancing. We danced. Slow dances, fast dances. I blocked out the thoughts of the first time we had danced at an alien party, and the aftermath of that. We were swaying together to a lovely slow melody, when a large Hegrioan came over and tapped the Captain on the shoulder. “Excuse me, Sir? You are in love, are you not?” “I’m sorry?” “You two humans are in love, I can see. Yes?” “Who are you?” “I am the leader of these good people, Sir, and Madame. I have something for you, come with me.” The Captain and I looked at each other, in shock, not knowing what to think, but we followed. The Hegrioan we were following was the tallest I had seen, and his skin looked a deep purple in the firelight. He was wearing an elaborate headdress made of what looked to be feathers and leather, and a

necklace made of wooden medallions. His trousers and vest were almost the same as what the Captain was wearing. He also had bracelets of intricately woven vines, one on each wrist. We went over by the fire, and the revelers began to gather round us. We were handed gourds, filled with a clear liquid. I shrugged and figured we would go along with this and see where it lead. The leader drank. I drank. The Captain drank. Everyone cheered. The leader, I never found out his name, held up his arms asking for quiet. The crowd quieted. He beckoned us over, closer. “You, Sir, and you, Madame, you are together, yes? You wish to be Together?” We nodded, still unsure where this was going. He held up a small pouch I had not noticed before. He opened it and shook something out into his palm. We came closer at his motion. He took our hands, held them together, then another Hegrioan came up and loosely tied our wrists together with a piece of vine. I started. I thought I knew what this was, and I wasn’t sure if the Captain was aware, or what he would do when he figured it out. The leader held his arms up again. He said, loudly, “All present, you see this two Humans. They are in love, and wish to be Together, yes, Together always.” The crowd cheered again. He went on, “We can make it so.” My Captain’s hand clasped mine. He knew, and he wasn’t going to stop this. I took a deep breath. “You will be together always? Always to be as one?” We said at the same time, firmly, “Yes.” “Let it be so.” What he had in his palm turned out to be two rings. They looked to be made of some sort of matte metal, and yet also looked almost organic, alive. He took my left hand, and put a ring over my ring finger. It was too big. Then suddenly it wasn’t. Then I felt a sharp crunching pain in my finger. I yelped. Covering my mouth with my hand, I motioned him to continue. He did the same with the Captain’s left hand. The Captain’s eyes opened in surprise when the stab of pain hit. Then it was done. We were married. On an alien world. By and with a group of aliens we had never met before. I wasn’t sure it was legal in the Federation Alliance, but it was real. We could check out the legalities later. The leader turned us toward each other and said, “These are now Together! Let the festivities begin! Let us dance and be happy!” My Captain put his arms around me and kissed me. Like he never had before, like I didn’t even think was possible. It truly felt as though we were one. Our emotions and the feelings of warmth blended together. I felt a slight tingling in my left hand, but disregarded it as part of my excitement. The crowd cheered again, and again. And then the music started up again, and everyone began to dance. We danced together for a long while, then others began to cut in. I danced with the leader, I danced with strangers. Then my hand was taken by someone who felt familiar. I looked up and it was Lieutenant Quinn. He smiled at me, a big happy smile. “We crashed your wedding, Doctor. The Commander is here somewhere, he will probably be over here to dance with you soon. Any reason we weren’t invited?” “My dear Mr. Quinn, we had no idea we were getting married this evening. It was as much of a surprise to us as to you. Now, dance with me, and let’s enjoy the rest of the party.” I danced with the Lieutenant, and when the Commander came over, I had pretty much the same conversation with him, then we danced as well. He was quite uncomfortable dancing with me, though. Commander Walker is a very good dancer, but I was now the wife of his Captain. He is so much the Officer, the consummate career Officer. I felt his discomfort, but I decided not to make an issue of it, as that would have made him feel even more awkward. Eventually, My Husband the Captain found me, and we had one more dance together. Then we snuck away, and headed back to our room. As we walked up the beach toward the lift, I touched the ring on my finger and it wouldn’t move. I tried to spin it and it still wouldn’t move. I tried to get my fingernail underneath. I couldn’t. I asked my Captain if he could move his ring, he tried but said no he couldn’t. I knew what that stab of pain had been. And I knew these rings were not going to come off, not as along as my Captain and I were truly together. When we made love that night, it was like nothing we had experienced before. We were Together, as the Hegrioan leader had said. We could feel each other, inside and out, our emotions building as our heat grew. Our bodies and our minds, melding perfectly together, our legs intertwined, lips and hands searching, exploring, tasting. Slow and gentle, passionate and frenzied, loving and tender as we let our love, our warmth flow into each other all through the night.

The rest of our R & R on Hegrioa 4 went all too quickly. We spent most of our time in our room or on the beach, just enjoying each other’s company. And planning how to tell the Admiral, and Jenny, and my parents. All too soon we were packing up our bags to go back to the Draco. It had been a whirlwind, an oasis in time that we would never forget. Someday, perhaps, we would be able to come back.

chapter 15 *********** We waited for the stewards to come and take our bags down to the lobby. Then we followed them down, and Commander Walker and Lieutenant Quinn were waiting for us by the vehicles. Commander Walker said, “Good morning, Sir, and Doctor, all set to go?” I said, “Not really, Commander, but it’s time.” We loaded into the vehicles and started back to the Hegrioan Spaceport. The Shuttle was waiting there. Lieutenant Quinn had been there the day before checking her out and making sure all was in order. He got aboard and began his preflight. We waited on the concrete until he came to the doorway and beckoned us in. “Ready when you are, Captain Bianchi.” We waved goodbye and said thank you to our hosts. Then we all climbed aboard and harnessed in. When we arrived back at the Shuttle Bay and the forcefield had closed, the Lieutenant opened the Shuttle door, and we stepped out. Then all of a sudden we were surrounded by a crowd. “Congratulations, Doctor!” “Congratulations, Captain!” I hadn’t realized that so many people could fit in the Shuttle Bay. The Captain held up his hand. There was sudden silence in the Shuttle Bay, it was almost as deafening as the noise had been. The Captain said, “Thank you all for this lovely greeting. But we need to get the Shuttle unloaded, and you all need to get back to your stations now. We will address this later. Thank you.” The Captain was back aboard his Ship, in Command. R & R was over. We went to the lift and directed it to Level Six. I wondered what would happen to my things in my quarters on Level Eleven. I didn’t have to worry. When we got to Number 601, Captain’s Quarters, I found that all of my belongings had already been moved in. My clothes were in the closet, my pictures were on the dresser. Fleet efficiency at its finest. I turned to my husband and he smiled. He said, with a smile, “They are the best in the Fleet, don’t you think?” I answered, “Yes, as a matter of fact, I do.” The Captain gave me a quick kiss, and headed up to the Bridge. He was anxious to get back to his Command. A moment after the door slid shut behind him, the chime sounded on the terminal. I pressed the answer pad. “Yes?” “Doctor, there is a message here for you and Captain Bianchi.” “Send it over, please, Ensign, thank you.” When the message arrived and I read it, I smiled. It was the Official Memorandum of Together from the Council on Hegrioa. Our marriage certificate. I saved it, and tagged it with an Urgent so that the Captain would see it on the terminal in his ready-room. It had been forwarded to the Federation Alliance on Earth as well. They might have been a relaxed and casual people so far as guests were concerned, but apparently they took official business seriously. Well, at least we didn’t have to worry about how to tell the folks back on Earth. They would find out in a couple of days. I changed into my usual khaki cargo pants and tank top, and my uniform jacket with the embroidered flowers, then headed out to go down to my Lab. When I entered my office, there were freshly cut flowers in a vase on my desk. With a card, signed by my staff. How lovely. I went on into the work area to thank them. The aroma of the gardens and plantings was a bit overpowering at first, I would have to take time to get used to it again. I went over to the workstations and put a hand on each Ensign’s shoulder. “And how did you two enjoy your time off?” They both started, and stood. “Ma’am!” I said, in my most official tone, trying not to laugh, “All right, you two, enough of that already. Doctor Liz, please! Not Ma’am! And another item, I am not an Officer, you do not have to stand at attention for me. The fact that I am the wife of the Captain does not give me rank.” I thought about that for a second. “ I think.” They both stood straighter and responded together, “Yes, Doctor.” “That’s better. Now show me what you are up to. Have we received new instructions from Headquarters while we’ve been resting and relaxing?” They showed me the newest data from Earth. We were going to be on a new mission in short order. A planet I hadn’t ever heard of was experiencing a drought on the continent where most of the population lived. They were hopeful that we could come up with some drought-resistant plants, ones that did not

require more water than they had. OK, we could handle that. “All right, Mr. Miller, pull up the data on the climate and topology of Morgos, and let’s get to it.” It was good to be back at the Lab. I did so love my work. That evening, when I arrived back at my...our quarters, I found that the Captain had been there and gone already. He had left me a hand-written note: “Dearest Elizabeth, I am sorry to have missed you. However, we are instructed to move on to another mission immediately. I cannot give you any details at this time, but we will be heading toward the system where the Agrints have been massing their fleet. Do not worry, we will only be doing reconnaissance for now. Yours, Paolo.” “Good grief, what now? Massing their fleet? What does that mean?” I realized I was talking to myself, shook my head to clear it a bit, then went out and to the lift for Level Eight. I wanted company. It was just what I needed to take my mind off the fact that we were heading into what could become a major incident. Agrints again. Why could they not simply give up and disappear? The atmosphere in the Level Eight Lounge was cheerful, relaxed. I sat down at a table by the window and ordered a drink from the auto-menu. When it arrived, served by a Crewman I didn’t recognize, I thanked him and took a sip. It didn’t take long for me to be joined by several Crew-members who wanted to congratulate me, and ask if there was any news from Earth. I told them I hadn’t heard anything, that they would probably hear news before I would. I sat there and stared out the window at the Hyperspace flow, wondering where we were really headed, and what would be waiting for us when we got there. I couldn’t believe that the Agrints were ready to start a war with the Federation. That didn’t make sense, but not much about them did. I didn’t have experience with the warlike minds of a race that simply wanted to fight because they could. Why? What was the purpose? What were they going to get out of it? They had to know that the Federation had much bigger resources, and many more Allies than they did. I decided to research the history of the Agrints when I got back to my terminal. I realized I didn’t even know the name of their planet, or what system they were from. Maybe something in the Records would help me sort this out in my mind. Then suddenly I got up and went back to my quarters. What I found did not help to quiet my mind. These Agrints were an extremely warlike species, more so than I had thought. Their society was based on conquest, and battles, and they earned respect for how many they kidnaped, or killed, or conquered in battle. They no longer had a planet of their own, it had been rendered uninhabitable in one of their last great planet-wide wars. They then required other worlds to occupy, more so than before. Their goal was apparently to take over worlds of the Federation Alliance, since all of those worlds were already habitable and did not require any further development on their part. Wonderful. I turned off the terminal. They wanted to conquer us. I knew they couldn’t do that, not really, but they were going to be difficult to deal with while they tried. I still couldn’t see what engaging our Fleet in a battle was going to do for them, but I would soon find out what they had in mind. In the meantime, there was one thing I could take care of. I called down to Medical, and asked if the doctor might have a few minutes to see me. “Yes, of course, come right down.” I took the lift down to Level Ten. I had a slight feeling of trepidation, the last time I had been in Medical had not been a pleasant experience. But things were different now. I went in. A doctor I had not met yet greeted me. “Good evening, Doctor Thorne. I am Doctor Palmer, it is a pleasure to meet you. What can I do for you?” I explained about the wedding rings, how they had become form fitting and would now not move. “I would like for you to scan my hand and see if you can see what is going on in there?” She said, “Why, of course! How fascinating!” She brought out a hand-held scanning device and passed it over my hand. Then she looked at me strangely, and pointed to the larger, non-mobile scanning unit. I followed her and put my hand on the scanning bed. We looked over at the monitor screen. My mouth dropped open as what I was seeing filtered through my brain. The ring was not only attached to me through the bone of my ring finger. It had spread tendrils throughout my entire hand. They looked like tiny vines, just like the vine that they had put around our hands at the ceremony. It didn’t look as though they had spread any further than the wrist, and there they intertwined to make an endpoint of sorts. So at least it looked as though I wasn’t going to be taken over by alien vines inside my body. I had no sensation of anything being in there, my hand felt completely normal. I said, quietly, “Wow. I had no idea all that was in there. I will send the Captain down here as well the

next time I see him.” I turned to the door. Doctor Palmer held up her hand and said, “Wait, I need to do some tests. You can’t leave yet!” I replied, “Oh, yes I can. There is nothing wrong. I merely wished to see the scan. Thank you for your time. If you have a problem with me leaving, please feel free to contact the Captain.” I was not about to let this Doctor push me around. I felt her begin to get angry. I simply stared at her for a moment. Then I left and went back up to Level Six. Captain Paolo was in our quarters, at the terminal, when I arrived. “Welcome back.” I went over to the desk and sat down in his lap. “How was your day?” “Quite interesting, my dear. We’ll speak of that. What were you doing down in Medical? Are you all right?” I should have known. “Yes, I am all right, nothing’s wrong. I just wanted the doctor to scan my hand.” I held it up. “These rings are permanent, that’s for sure. You should go get scanned yourself and see.” He said, “Perhaps when I have some time. Meanwhile, we need to speak about what is happening out there in the Galaxy since we’ve been on our vacation. The Agrints have wasted no time in gathering their forces, it seems they now have absolutely no restraint about trying to get their point across to us. Though what that point is has yet to become clear.” I got up and began pacing the room. Captain Paolo went over to the fireplace and turned it on. He beckoned to me to come sit in the chair by the fire. I went over and sat on the floor instead. I liked that fluffy rug. He joined me. What had happened, apparently, was that the Agrints had, after we destroyed their ship, become even more angry with us. Even though they had begun the conflict, they now badly wanted to finish it. I asked, “Paolo, what was the treaty they were trying so hard to blackmail the Federation Alliance into ratifying? Neither you nor the Admiral ever said.” He answered, “That’s the craziest part of all this. It was never about anything that we wouldn’t have agreed to. They wanted us to give them a continent on one of the lesser populated planets out in the far arm of the Galaxy. They would have gotten all they asked for, and more, if they had been willing to wait for the proper channels. They were not, and here we are.” “You’re not serious. That’s why they attacked me? And you? And almost killed that poor plant that had nothing whatever to do with anything? You’re right, that’s crazy. I know the Federation and the Admiral would have made the treaty work. But not now! My goodness.” He sighed and moved closer to me on the floor. “I don’t know where all of this is going to lead. We may well end up in a fight. I will be directing the Engineers, preparing our weapons systems as well as our defenses. They somehow got through our shield once, and we need to make sure that does not happen again. I also want you to go see Head Engineer Dalton and make sure your implant is functioning. You are in more danger now than ever before. They will find out about our marriage as soon as the Federation does, which will be tomorrow. We will be able to contact the Admiral as soon as we exit Hyperspace.” I leaned against him. He felt warm, inside and out, I felt the wash of warmth over me as he allowed himself to relax a bit and feel. We both fell asleep on the floor in front of the fire, and slept the rest of the night away. First thing the following morning I reported to Engineer Dalton. She scanned me and ran a few tests with her equipment to verify that my tracking implant was functioning. It was. It wasn’t that it would keep me from being taken away again, but at least they might be able to find me more quickly. They would at least have warning when and if someone tried to Transport me. A small comfort in uncertain times, but really it was all I could ask for. I made a mental note to ask Captain Paolo if he had one of these as well. He hadn’t said.

chapter 16 *********** The Admiral called and spoke to the Captain while I was in Engineering. They had a rather animated discussion, as I heard later. Apparently the Admiral had gotten the notice from Hegrioa a few hours earlier. He wanted to know why we hadn’t contacted him right away, why he had had to wait for an official communique from Hegrioa. I wondered what Jenny’s reaction had been when she heard my news. I wondered if she would try to contact me. Then, the business at hand. The Draco was indeed to go out to the system where the Agrint fleet was gathering. We were to do reconnaissance, and report back every piece of intelligence we were able to gather. The Federation Alliance Council was awaiting the first report, as soon as the Captain had any information at all. The investigators were poised for action as soon as they were given the go-ahead. We were on the fastest Ship in our Fleet, and would be able to get out to the system before any of our other ships would be able to. Admiral Wilson told the Captain, “I don’t have to tell you how urgent this is, Captain Bianchi. We are counting on you. I will await your report. End call.” When the Captain contacted me from his ready-room to tell me the news, I could feel his anxiety. He was not looking forward to the confrontation that was bound to happen. But for now, he was resigned to simply getting the intelligence information. He would follow whatever orders came in after that. We traveled all that day and the next, below light-speed so that we would be able to detect any ships in our path. It was too difficult to track ships while the Ship was in Hyperspace, everything was distorted. The Engineers had the sensors stretched to the maximum and beyond, so that we would not be taken unawares. I continued to work with my team on the problem of the drought on Morgos. It was turning out to be more difficult than we had anticipated. The soil was lacking in certain minerals that needed to be watered in, and that was stumping us all at the moment. I was in the garden, collecting comparison samples of soil, when I heard the Klaxon, the Red Alert. They had detected something. I went to the terminal in my office and contacted the science station. “Ensign Alben? Is there anything you can tell me?” “I’m sorry, Ma’am, not yet. I will transfer data to your screen when I get something that I am allowed to show you.” I heard the Captain’s voice in the background. “It’s all right, Ensign, you may transmit any data we get. Elizabeth, please stay where you are.” “Yes, Captain, I will. Thank you. And thank you too, Ensign.” I clicked off and turned my terminal to the science station screen. I was not happy with what I saw. There were about 15 ships, just far enough away that I hoped they were unable to detect us. I hoped their technology hadn’t advanced that far. The ships, most of them, were Agrint Destroyers. The rest were as yet unidentified. Had they found allies in their vendetta against the Federation? I didn’t think we had been told of any. Sitting at my desk, watching that screen, for what felt like days, but was only a couple of hours, I began to drift off into my own thoughts. Thinking about my Captain, and about the water problem on Morgos, what were we going to do about that? I felt the tension coming from the Officers on the Bridge, especially the Captain and First Officer. Then I was startled out of my chair by another Red Alert Klaxon. There was surprise and anger coming from the Officers on the Bridge. The terminal display showed the Draco, in the middle of the screen, and to her starboard side was another smaller ship. The description said it was unidentified. There were blips on the screen that I didn’t understand. And then the Ship shook. And again. I felt more anger and fear coming from the Bridge. Then, all of a sudden the other ship wasn’t on the screen anymore. I let out my breath that I had been holding without realizing it. My terminal chimed. “Captain? Is that you? Are you all right?” “Yes, Elizabeth, I am all right. I will speak with you later in our quarters.” “Yes, Sir.” I continued watching the screen for a while longer, then went on up to our quarters to wait. I had fallen asleep on the comfy sofa in the Lounge area by the time my Captain returned. I woke to find him sitting on the floor next to the sofa, staring out into Space. I put out my hand, and laid it gently on his shoulder. He reached up and put his hand on mine. He didn’t say anything. I sat up and began massaging his shoulders. He still didn’t move or say anything. Then, “It was a Federation ship, Elizabeth.”

“What was?” “The ship that attacked us today. It was an old model that is not in service anymore, but it was a Federation ship. We cannot be sure who was on it, but the Agrint fleet did not get it by accident. Or by theft on their part. It had to have been made to disappear by someone in the service of the Fleet.” He sighed. “How many more of those unidentified ships are these old Federation models? How many of our people are betraying us?” I wanted to say I didn’t believe, it had to be a mistake. But I knew he was probably right. Unimaginable as it was, there were traitors in the Federation Alliance Fleet. It certainly would explain some things, like how they had known our destination, where they got our shield frequency, how they were able to hijack the Transport signal... “Have you spoken to Admiral Wilson?” He replied, “Not yet, I am going to contact him from here, if you don’t mind. We have sent him the data to analyze, to see if he comes to the same conclusion. But I wanted to see you first.” “I’m glad you did. Now go speak to the Admiral and get his take on this.” He ruffled my hair as he got up to go into the other room to the terminal. I stayed in the Lounge and curled back up on the sofa while he made the call. He didn’t need me watching him. And I could hear what they said from where I was. “Admiral. Thank you for taking my call at this hour.” “Captain Bianchi. What is happening out there? What’s this about Federation ships in the hands of these Agrints?” “So you agree that’s what they are, then. I wanted not to believe that. But the data...” “Yes, Captain, I see this as you do. Now, what are we going to do about it? My investigators are already working, trying to identify the traitor, or traitors. Do you have any ideas? Any starting point or anything odd that you’ve noticed?” I sat up. “Captain!” He put his head around into the doorway. “What is it?” “May I come in there? I just thought of something.” “Of course.” I went in and greeted the Admiral. “Hello, Admiral. I just had a thought about something that we had forgotten about.” I turned to the Captain and pulled him closer to me. “Do you remember the day we met? ” He grinned, “Yes, Ma’am, I certainly do.” “Well, do you also remember that the Agrints that ran me down, and were subsequently involved in my kidnapping, were arguing with a man? A Human man? He was wearing a Federation uniform.” Both men just stared at me. I waved my hand in front of the Captain’s face. “Gentlemen? Hello?” Admiral Wilson cleared his throat, looking abashed, and said, “I will request the security video of the plaza from that day. He has to be on there somewhere. You didn’t recognize him? Captain Bianchi?” We both said, at the same time, “No, Sir.” I asked, “Admiral? They keep the video for that long?” The Admiral answered, “Yes, it is kept for at least a year. For exactly this reason.” Then he continued, “I will get back to you on this. Good work, Doctor Liz. Captain Bianchi, you need to keep this one around for a while.” “Yes, Sir!” “That’s it for now. End call.” My Captain gave me a big squeezy hug. “You are an amazing woman, Doctor Elizabeth Thorne.” “Let’s go look at the stars, Captain Paolo Bianchi, while we wait for the Admiral to call back. We should have a little bit of time to ourselves.” I reached up and gently touched his face, ran my fingers down his neck, then began to unbutton his shirt. “Indeed.” My hands moved down his chest, I could feel his heart, beating more quickly. I kissed his warm skin as his arms went around me and began to caress my back, my arms. I took his hands in mine and led him into the Lounge, where I gently pulled him down onto the floor so that I could continue to explore his body, moving from his warm lips, to his powerful chest, to his muscular thighs. I felt his warmth flowing

over me, into my heart and mind, as I brushed my hands over his body. I was sending him my love, my warmth, my comfort, my passion. The warmth blazed into exquisite heat, as we moved together under the light of the stars outside the window. The tension released, the overwhelming emotions of the day melted away. We stayed there, on the soft rug, holding each other, comforting each other, through the night.

chapter 17 ************ While we waited for Admiral Wilson and the investigators to do their part on Earth, the Draco stayed hidden, or as hidden as she could be. We never forgot that someone had found us, and attacked us. The Engineers were working overtime trying to figure out how that had happened. The Captain went back to the Bridge so that he could keep his eye on what was happening. He had to divide his time between the Bridge, and Engineering as well. I knew he was quite concerned that the Agrints had technology that we couldn’t compete with, he had to make sure that his Crew and his Ship were as prepared as they could be. I stayed in our quarters for a while, then went back down to the Lab. I couldn’t just sit and wait with nothing to do. But I kept my mental eyes and ears open for any whiff of that anger and fear that had signaled the Agrint attack. Ensign Parker was at his workstation when I arrived. “Good afternoon, Doctor. I hope you don’t mind that I have been working here by myself. I am not qualified to help the Engineers or anyone else in this situation. When we are ordered to continue on, I will need to get back to Navigation.” “Of course I don’t mind, Ensign. Let’s see what we can do for the Morgosians.” I went back into the garden and continued collecting the samples I had been after, before the attack. I wanted to compare our various soils with the samples we had been sent from Morgos. While we had been down on Hegrioa, there had been a delivery from the Federation, a courier ship, bringing the samples, as well as supplies and mail from Earth. The Federation has a network of waystations that make up a kind of relay system throughout the Galaxy. Small ships travel from station to station, and around to various occupied worlds and Fleet ships on missions, trading and making deliveries. They are flown by various traders who make a pretty good living that way. Without these traders, much of the communication between the Federation worlds would fall apart. There had to be something there, in those samples, that would give us a clue as to what exactly was missing, what minerals they needed, and how we could deliver them without requiring too much water. I didn’t know yet how long the drought was expected to last, or why their climate and ecosystem had changed so dramatically. I did know that they needed to be able to grow their food crops, they were probably experiencing food shortages by now. I only hoped we would be able to get a solution to them in time. I brought my samples back to the Lab work area and began to examine and compare them under the scopes. Our samples were teeming with microscopic life. The Morgosian samples were not. Our samples, when I ran them through the analyzer, showed large percentages of the various minerals and nutrients needed for the nutrition of plant life. The Morgosian samples did not. That soil was almost sterile. And it was so very dry. I wondered how old it was, why it had been allowed to dry out. That shouldn’t have been allowed to happen. What could possibly have removed all life and nutrients and moisture from an entire continent’s soil? Without anyone noticing, and without hurting any of the population? “Mr. Parker, what do we know about Morgos? Where is it, and do we have a Colony there? Do you know any of our Crew who has been there?” Ensign Parker said, “I don’t know, Doctor, but I can try to find out. I will check in the Records.” He set to work on his terminal. A short time later, he looked over at me. “Doctor? We did at one time have a Colony on Morgos. It was abandoned a few years ago. The Records do not show the reason. But one of our crew had family on that Colony, Lieutenant Junior Grade Morris, in Engineering. Would you like me to contact him?” A chill came over me. “Morris? Any relation to Doctor Amy Morris?” He looked back at the screen, then touched a few more buttons. “Why, yes, Doctor. Lieutenant JG Morris is Amy Morris’ nephew. What do you think that means?” “I don’t think anything at this time, Ensign. Please don’t say anything to anyone about this.” “All right, Doctor.” Chilled as I was, I went back to my samples. We worked until dinnertime, then I instructed Ensign Parker to get out of the Lab and have a nice quiet evening. I had heard through the Ship’s grapevine, which was very efficient, that he had begun dating a young Ensign from the Astro-Lab. “And please remember, not a word about what we discovered.” “Not a problem, Doctor. Good night.”

I went into my office and sat down at the terminal. But what was I going to look for? I didn’t know much about the workings of the Federation, not really. I had only been involved with my small part. I only knew the basics of the history, what I had studied in school. I had never needed to know more, until now. The Federation had been in existence for hundreds of years, ever since the Uprising. Earth had established Colonies on several planets, but the governments at that time were severely limiting the numbers of people allowed to emigrate there. It was thought, now, that this was due to some agreement made with the natives of the planets where the Colonies were established. Earth had not been able to found any Colonies on their own planets, at that time it was too difficult and time-consuming to find a habitable planet that was not already occupied. There was a Revolution, an Uprising, that had overthrown those governments, all over Earth, at practically the same time. The Federation was created to fill the gap left by the removal of those separate, corrupt governing bodies. Then, over time, the Earth Federation had merged with the various Governments of other friendly alien worlds, to become the Galactic Federation Alliance. It was a complex entity, controlling almost every aspect of life on hundreds of worlds. Earth had, and still has, numerous Colonies on alien worlds. They are each controlled by the Federation, but also must have their own governing bodies on planet. There was really no way to ensure that they reported any and all activities on each Colony. We could not be assured of finding the pertinent information we needed. But I had to try, so I had to begin somewhere. But where? I started randomly searching: Morris, Morgos, Morgos Colony... I found an entry that made me sit up straight and peer closer at the screen. A log entry from a few years ago, when the Colony had still been operational on Morgos. “We have discovered who they are. Action will be taken.” The author of that entry was the Colony Leader. There was nothing further, it seemed that that particular log had been deleted, except for that one cryptic sentence. I sat back in my chair. What was I doing? I am not an investigator. I tagged the entry and sent it to the terminal in our quarters. Then I erased my trail through the Records as best I could, got up and went back into the Lab. At least I could continue to try to figure a way to help the Morgosians now. Sample after sample went through the analyzers. I wished I knew what I was looking for, wished I had a starting point, at least. I was starting from scratch, without a clue what the actual issue was going to turn out to be. My hands began to get sore from holding the slides and the pincers. I kept on. A few hours later, the Captain’s voice came over my communicator. “Elizabeth? Why are you still in the Lab? Please stop working and come up here. I need to speak to you in private.” “On my way, Sir.” When I arrived at our quarters, the Captain was sitting at the terminal. He turned to me. “What is this? What have you found? Is there something I should know?” “I don’t know, Paolo. Ensign Parker and I did a bit of research and discovered a connection between the former Morgos Colony and a member of your crew. I don’t know if it has to do with anything, but I thought I might look into it.” “Elizabeth, you need to tell me everything. I cannot protect you if you don’t.” I took a deep breath. “Captain. It seems that there is a Lieutenant Junior Grade Morris in the Engineering Department. He had family living on the Morgos Colony when it was dismantled. I do not know if they were involved with why it was abandoned. Or why the climate has changed over the past few years. What I do know is... he is the nephew of your former girlfriend, Amy Morris. It seemed too coincidental to be coincidence. I took it upon myself to do a bit of research. That’s when I found that log entry.” I took another deep breath and looked at him. “So, what do you know about this?” He looked back at me. I felt his sadness. He said, slowly, “I may know something. I did not ever want to think that someone I had cared for so deeply, or thought I did, could ever turn out to be part of something that could hurt all of us.” I took his hands and led him into the Lounge area. We sat on the comfy sofa and looked out at the stars moving slowly past the huge windows. He started to speak, then we heard the chime of the terminal. We both sighed, and went back to answer the call. It was Admiral Wilson. I looked at the screen, and noticed that he had a different insignia on his collar. Fleet Admiral. That meant we were at war. He looked more serious and concerned, and older, than I had ever seen him look. “Hello, Captain, Doctor. I will be brief. There are indeed traitors within the Fleet. We are closing in on them, however we have also discovered that there may be a traitor aboard the Draco as well. Watch your

backs. You will be contacted as soon as we have further information. In the meantime, your orders are to proceed to the planet Morgos. There you will find agents of ours waiting for you, they will meet you at the Spaceport. Any questions?” “No, Sir!” “Very good. End call.” We looked at each other. The Captain touched his communicator. “Commander Walker. Prepare to proceed to Planet Morgos. I will join you shortly.” He bent down to kiss me, briefly. “We will continue this conversation later, my dear. Please be sure to keep your communicator on you at all times.” “Yes,Captain.” Then he left for the Bridge. I went back into the Lounge and lay down on the comfy sofa, and wrapped the blanket around me. I watched the stars flow past, faster and faster, until the Hyperspace window opened and everything went black. And stayed black. What now? Had the lights gone out? I didn’t think that was possible. Then I realized I wasn’t laying on the comfy sofa anymore, I was on the ground, rocky ground. “Oh no, not again!” “Oh yes, again. So nice to see you again, Doctor.” A light came on, a lantern. I was in a cave, not unlike the cave on the asteroid. I sat up and looked around. There were three people in the cave with me. One of them was familiar. “Hello, Doctor Amy. What can I do for you? How did you escape Earth?” “Now, now, my dear Doctor Thorne, don’t you worry yourself about those petty details. Just make yourself comfortable, you are going to be with us for a while.” I saw that the other two occupants of the cave were rather large men, both directing their rather large guns at me. I didn’t move. I doubted they would kill me, that would defeat the purpose of holding me hostage, but I didn’t want to take any chances. And they could make my stay quite unpleasant, even if they didn’t actually kill me. “What do you want from me? I don’t have anything you need.” “My dear, you are our insurance that we will get what we need. Don’t you worry about anything.” Then she hit me with her stun pistol. I fell back, hit my head on the ground, and lost consciousness. I am not sure how long I was out. But when I woke I could hear the three of them talking on the other side of the cave. “We need to contact him now! The mission cannot proceed until we know their status!” I guessed who they were talking about. Lieutenant JG Morris, the Engineer nephew who was aboard the Draco. Who had access to the Ship’s status and everything else, including my tracking implant. I didn’t know how many of the Engineers actually knew about that, though, and I hoped he wasn’t one of those who did. I kept pretending that I was unconscious, or sleeping, in the hope that I would hear something helpful. My hand was beginning to tingle, and I assumed it was because I had been laying on my arm. Or because my golden bracelet was cutting into my wrist. I dismissed the thought, as I couldn’t move if I wanted them to think I was still out. They were speaking in low voices, but I could hear the words “ Morgos” and “Draco” and “Federation Destroyers,” and once, “Bianchi” and “nephew.” I thought I was beginning to put the picture together, but some of the pieces were missing. It seemed that our former Doctor Amy Morris had not been idle since her time in Medical School. She had apparently become involved with some sort of underground, one that involved the Agrints, and somehow, the Colony on Morgos. I was not clear on what the Colony had to do with anything, yet, but it certainly seemed to have been important to them. I had a feeling that some of this also had to do with the planet they were asking for in the treaty that had gotten me involved in this. The man that Doctor Amy had married had to have been a member of this underground organization as well. I wondered if he had been killed not on a Colony in orbit, but the one on Morgos. If... no, when, I got back to the Draco, I would have to see what I could learn about him. I began to feel warm. I tried not to smile. I knew this was my Captain, reaching out for me, trying to comfort me. My tingling hand became very hot, suddenly, and I was startled enough to make a sound. My captors were immediately by my side, one of them rolled me over with his heavy booted foot. “Ouch.” He said, “Quiet, you. We don’t have time to babysit you. Be quiet and stay still. We don’t want to have to restrain you, but we will.”

“Yes, Sir, will do, Sir.” I impressed myself with how brave I sounded. He kicked me again and they walked back over to the communications console on the far side of the cave. I heard Doctor Amy, “Donald will be contacting us any moment. He should have the frequencies we need to access the Draco’s shields and break through. We were lucky to have caught them as they entered Hyperspace to catch this one,” I assumed she meant me, “It won’t happen again so easily. We need our people to be able to get aboard, get what we need, and get out, quickly.” I thought, “Donald must be the nephew. And I wonder how much they know about what I know? And what is it they need so badly?” I said out loud, “Hey, Doctor? What do you need? Perhaps I can help you get it.” She sneered in my direction. That cold blast of her chill hit me. “I will let you know when you can assist us, my dear Doctor Thorne. We have plans. You will be helping us soon enough. We can use your particular skills in our mission, yes, indeed we can.” My hand was really burning now. I sat up and touched the hand to my face, then with the other hand. It didn’t feel hot at all, from the outside. I clenched the fist and held it to my heart. I thought hard, very hard, about my Captain. I sent my feelings for him, my warmth that matched his so well, out as far as I could. Suddenly I felt it. Right in my heart, my head, deep inside... he was there, with me, holding me close. I felt him. “We’re coming for you, Elizabeth. Hold on. We’ll be there very soon.” I felt dizzy. This wasn’t possible. There is no such thing as telepathy. Or is there? I didn’t know anything about the Hegrioans. Or their technology. They hadn’t seemed to be very advanced, from the outside. But then, what about the front desk lady who knew who we were and what we needed without asking. The sensor pad that knew my palm-print. The wedding rings that had permanently attached themselves. Who knew what else they had up their sleeves? What was in that drink the leader had served us? What were the vines, really? I sent my thoughts back, “I am here, waiting! Be careful, Amy is here, and they have weapons.” I felt myself again wrapped in warmth, as though in a blanket. I couldn’t help smiling, but quickly stifled it, I didn’t want Doctor Amy to see. As I lay back down on the cold floor of the cave, I thought I might as well try to sleep, or at least pretend to. Maybe they would speak more freely if they thought I wasn’t listening. And I needed to try to asses what Doctor Amy had meant about needing my skills. What did they need me for? I kept listening and after a while they did begin speaking again. Doctor Amy said, “Where is that nephew of mine? He should have contacted us by now. We need to get our people onto that Ship and into the Lab.” One of the thugs answered, “Maybe they found him out, Doc. He’s been reliable so far. He knows how important that dirt is. He knows we can’t finish our mission without it.” Doctor Amy snapped, “Keep quiet! Do you think she’s really sleeping? Don’t say another word!” I turned my face toward the rock wall. They were after dirt? What dirt, and why? The only place on the Draco that had any dirt was my Lab. And the only dirt that they would know about or care about would be the soil samples from Morgos. Again, why? What did that have to do with their fleet or their plans? I tried to think. The soil had no nutrients, no minerals, no bacteria, nothing. It was sterile. I still did not know how it got that way, soil is naturally full of life, even on other planets besides Earth. Perhaps the secret was in how it became sterile. Perhaps there was... “Hey!” They were all shouting, and began running out of the cave. Suddenly, there was weapons fire outside. Finally! I stayed where I was, I didn’t want to get in the middle of a firefight. I reached out with my feelings and my mind, and was rewarded with the touch of my Captain. Close, very close. “I am here, my Elizabeth, I am here.” I saw flashes of light, and heard the loud cracks. Weapons. I saw Lieutenant Quinn run past the entrance to the cave room that I was in, chasing one of the thugs. My Captain came into the room, followed by the other thug. He turned quickly and fired his laser pistol. The thug dropped to the floor. I got up, went over to the thug’s body and picked up his gun, then ran over to my Captain and into his waiting arms. He held me tight and ran his fingers through my hair. He kept repeating, over and over, “You’re safe, you’re safe, you’re safe...” “My dear Paolo, of course I am safe. I never doubted that you would find me. Especially after we discovered the secret we share. Nothing is going to keep us apart.” “Not so fast.” We turned, and there was Doctor Amy, holding a laser pistol, aimed at us. The Captain still held me, but

he maneuvered so that his shooting hand, still holding his pistol, was freed, and that he was facing away from her, and I was facing towards her. I maneuvered my hand into the trigger mechanism of the large gun I was still holding. He said, “Amy, what are you doing? Why are you betraying your people?” She said, laughing a phony laugh, “You just don’t understand. They betrayed us first. The Colony did not have to be destroyed. We would have corrected the problem. They never meant to cause harm, it was an accident. Not treason. But the Federation couldn’t let it go. So now neither can we.” He looked at me and lifted his brow. Then he said, “And the Agrints. What do they have to do with this?” “They were going to help us. They have technology that would have renewed the soil. We needed that new planet to get the materials. The Federation was holding us up. We had to act, before someone discovered there were still people alive who had been involved in the accident.” I felt it. She was lying. Not all of it, but she was lying. There was something else, something she was definitely holding back. Accident, she had said. But that wasn’t truly what she meant. I felt the deception. She went on, “And now, my dear Captain, you have found me. I escaped from that so-called rehabilitation facility so easily! But I can’t have you, either of you, messing up our plans, or giving us away, can I?” With that, she fired. But she was not a very good shot, fortunately, she completely missed both of us as we ducked. The Captain pushed me away and down, and fired back. She fell. She didn’t get up. He went over and looked down at her, and then bent down. He touched her to make sure she was not breathing. Then gently touched her hair, and ran his fingers down her face. “I’m sorry, Amy.” He turned back to me, took my hand, and we left the cave. We found Lieutenant Quinn sitting on a rock outside the cave entrance, laser pistol in his hand. “I got the other one, Captain. Hello, Doctor. You’re all right?” I went over and hugged him. “Yes, Mr. Quinn, thank you.” He blushed bright red. I smiled, and kissed his cheek. Then I embarrassed him further by sending him my feelings of gratitude and relief. His eyes opened wide, his mouth dropped. But he hugged me back. Then I said, “Can we get back to our Ship now, please? I would like to clean up. And get some food, and an explanation. Please.” I handed the Lieutenant the gun. The men each took one of my hands and led me over the rocky terrain in front of the cave entrance, to where they had stashed the Shuttle. We left that cave behind with no backward looks.

chapter 18 ************ I harnessed in to my seat in the Shuttle. The Captain harnessed in beside me. Lieutenant Quinn harnessed himself into the Pilot’s seat, and we lifted off. The Captain said to me, “There is a ship in orbit that we need to avoid. Hold on, we may have to execute some sudden maneuvers.” “Yes, Sir.” I turned on my viewscreen. The Lieutenant took us up and out of the atmosphere. Then I saw the Draco, and she looked so beautiful. She is a sort of distorted cylindrical shape, about a kilometer long all together. Her body is quite organic looking, I think. The designers had made many improvements to appearance over the previous models that were so industrial and cold-looking. She has external sensors and weaponry and such that blend in perfectly, you’d never see them unless you knew where to look. Her power cores and shield generators are on her belly, relative to where we, or rather I, would consider her head to be. From where we were I could almost see the details of the outer hatches, and the Bay doors. She really is a beautiful lady. Right now it seemed that she was in danger, though. I could see flashes of light. The Captain got up out of his seat and went up front to sit next to the Lieutenant, in the Co-Pilot’s chair. I heard him on the communicator with his Bridge, talking to Commander Walker. “Commander, we are coming in to the Bay. Cover us and prepare for immediate departure.” “Yes, Captain!” I felt the pressure change as the Lieutenant maneuvered us down and around the Draco, and around again, then suddenly turned us once more to enter into the Shuttle Bay. I was a little dizzy from that, but glad to be home. The Captain said, “We are in, Mr. Walker, get us out of here!” He turned back to me and said, “I think we have rather a lot to talk about, my dear.” “Yes, I think so too,” I said. He took my hand, and we and Lieutenant went up to the Bridge, or rather to the Captain’s ready-room on Level One, which is next to the Bridge itself. We sat. A few minutes went by, then Commander Walker came in and sat with us. We all began talking at the same time, until the Captain held up his hand. “All right, all right. I shall go first. This will be a brief meeting, tomorrow morning we will go over every detail.” I held up my hand to interrupt. “Excuse me, Captain?” “Yes, what is it, my dear?” “What time is it? How long was I gone? I don’t see a timepiece.” “It is approximately Twenty-Two Thirty, you were gone for almost a day.” I felt the wash of his warmth, and his residual fear. My hand tingled. I sat back and nodded. He continued. They had contacted the Admiral as soon as they realized I had been abducted again. The Admiral was furious that what they were calling “the rebels” had been so bold as to snatch me again. He also had some news for us. They had found the man who had been arguing with the Agrints the day I first met the Captain and Doctor Amy. He worked in the Department of Engineering as a researcher. He had been stealing the codes for the rebels by accessing the terminals at Headquarters. He was the one who had enabled them to steal the old ships that had been decommissioned, and stored at a facility off the current campus. However, he wouldn’t be able to help us or give us any further information, as he was dead. Apparently the Agrints and their allies on Earth had gotten wind of the investigation. The Captain continued, “We still do not know exactly why the traitors and their Agrint friends have been trying to get aboard my Ship. Nor what this has to do with the events on Morgos Colony. We have some ideas, but the details are hazy at this point. However, we have Lieutenant JG Morris in the brig. I am sure he will be forthcoming when he is informed that his aunt has been killed.” I felt the twinge of sadness and guilt. He was so unhappy that he had had to shoot Doctor Amy, even though he knew he had no choice. “But that is for tomorrow. For tonight, we will all go and get some rest. Meet me back here at Zero Eight Hundred. Dismissed.” I waited while the Commander and the Lieutenant left the ready-room. Then I said, “You didn’t mention anything about what Doctor Amy told us about the Colony, and the accident.”

He looked at me sadly, “I do not want to drag her through the mud until we are sure of the facts. We do not know what happened yet. There was some cover up, but until we know what it was...” “I think I may be able to help with that, Captain. I’d like to go down to my Lab and check over my findings on the soil samples.” “Not tonight, my dear Elizabeth. There will be time enough for that tomorrow. I want you with me tonight, right next to me. In the meantime, I have Ensign Miller staying in the Lab, just in case. He has my permission to disturb me personally if anything happens. Good enough?” “Yes, my Captain.” We left the ready-room and went down to Level Six. My Captain told me that he had been immediately informed of my abduction. Apparently my tracker implant had set off alarms all over the Ship when I was Transported. No-one was able to say how the rebels had managed to get through the shields again. But as we enter Hyperspace, there is a brief moment where everything sort of gets turned inside out, and we lose our sight, and the shields drop for a fraction of a second. If they had managed to time the abduction so exactly as to match that exact fraction of a second, what else were they capable of? I had some ideas about that, but I had to wait until I could get to my Lab and complete my tests. I wondered once again what I had gotten myself into. My whole life had been dedicated to my science, and my research. I may have worked with the Federation for many years, but I was certainly not military material. Everything I had been through in the past few months had proven that. In my heart I knew that I was the luckiest woman in the Galaxy. To have my Captain who loved me, who showed me that every day by his actions and his true feelings. To be living and working on the greatest Starship in the Fleet. To be able to do a job that I enjoyed, and was extremely good at. But my head kept wanting me to crawl under the covers and hide until we got back to Earth. I resolved to contact Jenny at the earliest opportunity. Captain Paolo sat down on the bed and beckoned me. “Come here, my lady. You are not leaving my side, at least for tonight. No-one will dare to attempt anything while you are with me. This I promise.” “Yes, my Captain.” We slept holding each other close all through that night. Just slept, bodies touching as much as possible, enveloping each other in comforting warmth and love. As I drifted off to sleep I thought pleasantly about the sensation of my Captain’s thoughts in my head, his feelings in my heart. How the Hegrioans had made that possible, I had no idea, but I was very glad. I nuzzled my head into my Captain’s shoulder, and slept soundly. When the alarm chimed in the morning, we both got up and began getting ready for what promised to be another long day. I said, “Captain, I would like to go down to my Lab. I need to examine the soil samples. They were after them, and me, for some reason, I need to know for sure what it was. It might be the key to what they are after. Doctor Amy was lying about something, I am not sure what, but it has to do with this mysterious situation on Morgos, and the old Colony.” He responded, “All right. I will have Ensign Parker come up here and escort you down. You will let me know when you find something?” I smiled, “Of course.” He contacted Ensign Parker and gave him the order to escort me to the Lab. I could feel the Ensign snapping to attention wherever he was. “Yes, Sir! On my way, Sir!” When Ensign Parker came to our door, I went over and let him in. “Good morning, Ensign. I hope you are ready for some hard work today.” “Yes, Ma’am. I mean, Doctor.” I went over to kiss my Captain, then left with my Ensign. Ensign Parker looked uncomfortable. I felt uncertainty coming from him. “What is wrong, Mr. Parker?” “Doctor, I am so glad you are all right. I feel responsible for you being abducted, it was because of what I found.” “Wait, Mr. Parker, it was absolutely not your fault. One of us would have discovered the connections sooner or later. Besides, I am a prime target, unfortunately. They know I am not Fleet. They also now know that I am the Captain’s wife. This sort of thing apparently goes with the territory. Now, what I need from you is not regret, but assistance. We need to get those samples and re-examine our findings. There’s something in there that we have missed. Something that will tell us what happened on Morgos

Colony, and what these rebels are trying to accomplish now. Are you with me?” “Yes, Ma’am!” I couldn’t help it. I laughed and ruffled his hair. We went into the Lab work area to begin our day.

chapter 19 ************ Ensign Miller had been reviewing our previous data, while he had been babysitting the Lab overnight. As we came in to the Lab, he said, “Good morning! I’ve been looking at all of this data, and I can see that something is off, but I can’t for the life of me figure out what it is. There’s something else here. I know it. ” I said to him, “All right, Mr. Miller. I will look at your work again, and perhaps I can see something. You must be exhausted, you’ve been here all night. Please go back to your quarters and sleep for a while, then you can come back and help figure this out. You won’t be any good to anyone if you fall asleep at your station.” He nodded, thanked me, and left. Ensign Parker and I worked all through the morning, scoping, analyzing, searching for some clue as to why this soil was so important. Our results were still inconclusive. Until I decided to run samples through the micro-analyzer one pico-gram at a time. There had to be something here, there just had to be. I put on a mask and changed my gloves, got the tiniest pincers, and started over. We would have some results today, if I had anything to say about it. Sample after sample went through the analyzer. The display was scrolling page after page of data. I kept on. Ensign Parker was reviewing the data as it appeared on the screen. Hours passed. Then, “Doctor! Look at this!” I took my gloves and mask off and went over to the screen. “What have you found, Ensign?” “Look! It’s a mycotoxin. In the soil. It’s not a naturally occurring substance, I don’t believe, on any planet. No wonder we missed it though, the concentration is much lower than anything we were looking for originally. It’s also microscopic particles, much smaller particles than we were searching for.” I thought for a moment. Mycotoxin. Why would anyone introduce a toxin, a fungal toxin at that, into the soil of a planet, a planet that was home to many hundreds of thousands of people? We had another piece of the puzzle, but I still couldn’t see how it fit in. Then I got a chill. Another toxin, what were the odds? I had to wonder if the Agrints and their mercenaries had anything to do with this current situation. I resolved again to do research on Doctor Amy’s husband, and the destruction of the Colony on Morgos. I took a cleansing breath and turned to Ensign Parker. “Great detective work, Ensign. Please send that data to the terminal in my office. Then take a break. Have lunch with your lady friend.” “I cannot do that, Ma’am. I mean Doctor. I need to stay with you. You are not to be left alone. Captain’s orders.” I sighed. “All right, then, how about asking her to join us down here for lunch? I will have something sent down. Perhaps Lansa would do me the favor.” “That would be wonderful, Doctor. Thank you, I will call her.” While we waited for our company and our food, we went over the data again. And tried to figure what had happened to the soil, how the toxin could have gotten there, how it had spread, and what it could have been intended to do. I had not heard from the Captain, so I assumed that there was nothing introduced in the morning’s meeting that I needed to know. His feelings were fairly calm and quiet, so I was not anxious to disturb him with our news just yet. Maybe we would have something more concrete to share later. He probably felt that I was getting excited about something. If he became concerned, he would contact me. Lansa and Ensign Greta Spozos arrived, each carrying a tray of food. I took them into my office, and we sat on the low couches under the windows. The two women looked a bit uncomfortable. Lansa excused herself, saying that she had reports to file. I had to try to put the two young Ensigns at ease, so I began by asking Ensign Greta about herself. “I work in the Astro-Lab, Ma’am. I analyze the star charts and feed data to the Bridge for Navigation. I work directly with Lieutenant Quinn, Ma’am.” “Fascinating, Ensign. How long have you been aboard?” “I’ve been on the Draco for about a year, Ma’am. It was an honor to be assigned here.” She looked over at Ensign Parker, who was emanating such pride, and his attraction to her, that I wished she could feel it. He said, “Ensign Spozos was ranked highest in her class at the University, Doctor, as well as in the Fleet Training. We are lucky to have her here.” I asked, “And how long have you two been dating? It’s none of my business, I know, but I am curious and

I like to know about my people.” Ensign Parker said, “Just a few weeks, Doctor. And since our R & R on Hegrioa we’ve been more serious. We were able to spend more time together there and get to know each other better. It’s a very pleasant and relaxing planet.” I touched my wedding ring and said, “Yes, I know.” Ensign Greta smiled, and went over to take Ensign Parker’s hand. She sat down next to him on the couch. I felt the attraction between them, and it was nice. It felt so unlike what the Captain and I had, though. More of physical attraction and less of love, I suppose. Not my business. After Ensign Greta had gone back to her station, Ensign Parker and I went back into the Lab. He went immediately to his terminal and began searching the Records for anything resembling what we had found. I took a walk through the garden. I needed to think. I ended up at the trees, as usual, and sat down on the ground. I tried to blank out my mind, to let the puzzle resolve itself. I knew that when I think too hard about a problem I end up blocking myself. This was a good time for Tai Chi. I got up and began my routine. It felt so good to be in that grove, alone with my thoughts. I took off my lab coat, and my workboots, and worked my routine in my tank top and khakis. It was tempting to strip down to my shorts, but that would have been unprofessional. It would have also embarrassed my Ensign Parker no end if he had walked in on me. I felt my Captain’s calm strong warmth, I thought it was coming from the Bridge, as it had been all day. When I was done, and went back to the tree to sit down to put my boots back on, I saw a pair of booted feet in front of me. I looked up. “Elizabeth.” “Captain.” “What are you doing? I have not heard from you all day.” “We have been working, Captain. We have found something interesting. But we don’t know how it fits in, yet. I was just taking some time to myself to try to clear my head.” “Elizabeth.” “Captain.” “You do not need to explain yourself to me. I apologize. However, I became concerned when I did not hear from you, and suddenly felt that I needed to see you.” He pulled me to my feet. I put my arms around his neck, and he lifted me off my feet as he kissed me. I asked, “Can you send Ensign Parker on an errand of some sort?” He looked down at me, and smiled. His hands remained on my waist as he kissed me again. “Why, yes, I believe I can find something for him to do, elsewhere.” Captain Paolo Bianchi is a Galactic Federation Alliance Fleet Officer, who had spent his entire life aspiring to be, and becoming, one of the most powerful and respected men in all the Galaxy. He is strong, determined, and responsible. He has a brilliant, sharp mind. He had been hurt in the past, by family, friends, and lovers, one in particular. He had become hard, unsmiling, and kept his feelings hidden from the people he worked with. He did not have much of a social life as Captain of the Draco. He is also extraordinarily caring, and respectful of others, even in his capacity as Commander of The Starship, he was always fair. His Crew adores him, and obeys him with no reservations. I see him as My Captain, my knight in shining armor. My protector. My husband, the love of my life. From his soft black hair, to his shining grey eyes, to his wonderfully sexy, sensual, muscular body. From his quick mind, his intuitive way of taking in information and making sense of it, to his bravery and forcefulness and the way he takes charge of a situation and makes the correct choices. And most of all, the way he makes me feel like I am the only person in the Universe, when we are together. As he did then, under the Oxygen-producing trees in my grove. No matter what was happening in the rest of the Galaxy, for that time, it was just us, no-one else existed. The peacefulness of the trees, the smell of the flowers was a perfect backdrop to our passion in that moment. The grass felt so cool on my skin. My Captain’s hands were so gentle as they roamed over my body, his lips hot on mine. I felt his warmth as it turned to heat, as his emotions overtook him. My warmth matched his, my breath began to come faster. I felt his love washing over me, wrapping around me as I wrapped myself around him. Our only thoughts, our only feelings, were of each other and how we each wanted to make the other feel. But then we had to try to focus on our current situation, and the danger. We dressed each other, then sat together under the trees and talked. The situation involved danger to all of us, danger to the Draco, and perhaps danger to the entire Federation Alliance. I had a hard time getting my mind around the responsibility that had fallen onto my shoulders.

The Captain was very disturbed by the developments over the past few days and weeks. He had been in many sticky situations in the past, he had been Captain for a long time. However, this was different. It was something that had spread from the aliens of the outer Galaxy to the Federation itself. I could see that it hurt him in a personal way. I wanted so badly to comfort him, but I couldn’t. I didn’t have the answers, all I had right at that moment were more questions. We discussed my and Ensign Parker’s find from that morning. “So, my dear Doctor, what is a mycotoxin and why is it important?” I took a deep breath and began, “It’s basically the toxic byproduct of a fungus. It can be grown, or created in a lab. This particular one is microscopic, and it looks like it was synthesized. It’s important because it could have spread easily throughout the soil of the main continent of Morgos, and it would have caused havoc with the ecosystem. It could very well have penetrated into the ground water and propagated there as well. Though why anyone would create such a thing is beyond me. Unless it was designed to be some sort of weapon. I don’t think that way, that’s your department.” I was also thinking that I didn’t know of anyone other than myself who would have been capable of designing something like this. There were no other Botanical Virologists in the Federation at my level. The Captain voiced my thought. “Is there anyone we know of who would have been able to design and grow this toxin?” I answered, “Not that I know of, but Captain, I don’t know every specialist on every planet. There could well be researchers we have not heard of, both on the side of the Federation, and not.” “That is what I am afraid of.” When Ensign Parker returned from his errand, the Captain went back to the Bridge. I asked Parker to escort me up to Level Six. I needed to contact Jenny. We still had a bit of time before the Admiral would be contacting the Captain, to let us know any recent developments on Earth, and to send us on our continued way to Morgos. There was a bit of delay, then she came into view. “Liz! My goodness you’ve been a busy lady! Are you all right?” “Jen, I can’t tell you how good it is to see your face! And hear your voice. I’ve missed you.” “Yes, I bet you have. You’ve been traipsing all over the Galaxy, and getting yourself into all kinds of trouble. And what’s this about you getting married? Without me?” “Trust me, Jen, I had no idea that was going to happen. But I’ll make it up to you, I promise. What I really need now though, is information. What’s the grapevine on the situation out here? Anything on your radar?” “You only love me for my gossip,” she pouted, then lit up with a big smile, “But you have come to the right place, Mrs. Captain of the Starship. There’s all kinds of whispering going on around here. I don’t hear everything, really, you know, I am stuck down here at the desk. But I do see who’s coming and who’ s going, and have seen quite a few folks taken out of this building in restraints.” “Restraints? As in arrested? Who?” “Don’t know names, dear, but I may be able to find out. Looked to be higher ranking Officers, though a couple were civilians. I’ve seen the investigators coming in with their portable tablet terminals, and they stay upstairs for hours at a time. I’ve heard that the Draco is being sent to Morgos? Isn’t that where that Colony blew up a while back?” “Yes it is, Jen. There are some events in motion that I can’t talk about, but if you hear any details about the Draco or Captain Bianchi, or Morgos, you’ll let me know? Please? The Admiral has been good about keeping us informed, but I have a feeling that if you put your mind to it, you may be able to help us even more.” “Will do, my friend. I have to go now. Talk to you soon.” She looked sideways at something, then down at her desk. She blew me a kiss and clicked off. OK, Jenny was on the job now. She would let me know somehow if she found out anything. If anyone could get inside information it would be her. I turned the terminal off and turned back to Ensign Parker. “It’s almost dinnertime, Mr. Parker, what do you say we go down to Level Eight?” “That would be nice, Doctor.” It was disconcerting, having a bodyguard. I was not used to being watched, and escorted everywhere. It had to be awkward for the Ensign as well. He was a quiet young man, unassuming. He was quite intimidated by the Captain, as I suppose he should be, but I wished he wouldn’t be intimidated by me. I was his boss, but we were also a team. He was quite a good scientist in his own right, though, thorough and efficient, and knowledgeable. He had graduated with honors from the University before heading to the Fleet Training Center. I was glad that he had found a companion, he had seemed lonely.

We had finished our dinner, and were sitting watching out the big view window, when the Captain contacted me. “Elizabeth, please come up to my ready-room.” “On my way, Sir.” Then, “Ready to drop me off, Ensign? It’s been a long day for you, keeping an eye on me almost the entire day.” He said, “It’s a pleasure, Doctor. Yes, let’s go.” My Ensign escorted me to my husband’s office, bowed, and left. I went into the ready-room. Commander Walker was there with the Captain and another Officer I didn’t know. “Good evening, Commander.” “Good evening, Doctor... Sir, I will see you in the morning.” Then he left, walking rather fast. I turned to the Captain, “Is there something I should know? The Commander looks upset.” “Sit down, Elizabeth. Please.” I suddenly felt cold. I had had no warnings from him, no wafts of unusual emotions or turmoil. What was happening? “Elizabeth. This is Colonel Zuajko. The Colonel is in charge of our Military Police. He has done an initial interview with Lieutenant JG Morris in the brig. The Junior Lieutenant had some disturbing things to say.” He paused. I had known that the Draco carried a complement of what they called Military Police, but who were also the armed forces that would do the actual fighting if it came to a battle on the ground. I hadn’t come across any of them, they did not participate in the day to day operations of the Ship. And they were not required to accompany a landing party, unless it was certain that they would be needed. They were on call at all times, though, and they were in charge of what the Captain had called an interview, but was really an interrogation. “Captain, please tell me what is going on. You are making me nervous.” “Yes, I know, Elizabeth, I can feel that from you. I am sorry. This is difficult for me as well.” He took a deep breath and continued, “How well do you know your friend Jennifer?” I jumped out of my chair. “What?? What are you saying? Why is this Colonel really here?” He took a step back, I had projected my surprise and hurt. The Colonel looked at me strangely. I resisted the urge to send him my resentment. He said, gently, “I think your friend may be in trouble. She has been seen speaking to several people who are known to be involved with the rebels. Mr. Morris has told us that she has given them several pieces of classified information.” “She is trying to help me! Don’t try to tell me she is a traitor, I don’t believe it for a minute. I just spoke to her!” “You spoke to her? When? What did she say?” That was the Colonel. I had almost managed to forget that he was there. I remembered that last moment, when Jenny had looked off to the side as she was terminating our conversation. I wondered... was someone coercing her? What was she involved in?... I had been close to her all these years, I would have seen if something had changed. If she was involved in any of this, it was not her choice. I looked daggers at the Colonel, pointedly not sending him any of my feelings, then turned back to the Captain. “Captain, I think someone may be blackmailing her, coercing her somehow. It is well known that she is my best friend. They use me against you, why not her against me?” He said, thoughtfully, “Yes, that is true. Just please be careful what you say to her from now on. I cannot stand the idea of you being hurt in this way.” Colonel Zuajko said, “Captain, I cannot do my job if I am not permitted to question everyone involved in this situation. I must have complete information.” The Captain looked at him for a moment, then very quietly and calmly said, “Colonel Zuajko. You are not to question Doctor Thorne without my express permission, is that understood? I will keep you informed of any developments that you may need to know about. That is all. Dismissed.” The Colonel looked as though he might be starting to say something else, then changed his mind and left the ready-room. I felt anger coming from him, he did not like being dressed down in front of a civilian. I went over to the Captain’s desk and turned off the terminal.

“Let’s go. I cannot think about this anymore. I want to go watch the stars... Oh, yes, did you hear from the Admiral? Are we going to continue on to Morgos?” “Not just yet, they are going to try to get more concrete information first. They do not want to send us into a war zone until we have more facts.” “War zone? There’s fighting? Who?” He sighed. “Apparently, the Agrints have moved most of their current fleet to the Morgos system. They seem to be trying to occupy the planet. Our ships that we thought would be there behind us have arrived, and they are having to defend the planet as we speak.” “OK, Captain Bianchi of the Flagship Draco, the Admiral knows how to reach you if he needs to. Right now you need to get some rest. Come with me, that’s an order from your wife.” “Yes, Sir, Ma’am!” He laughed. It sounded and felt so good to hear that. I took his hands and began walking backwards out of the ready-room. When I got to the door, he turned me around and kept his hands on my shoulders as we went into the lift. We went back to our quarters and the Captain turned on the fireplace. I changed into pajamas, then went and sat on the rug in front of the fire. He brought me a drink, then went into the bedroom area to change. I watched him, I couldn’t help it, I cannot take my eyes off of him when he is near. His back muscles rippling, pectorals flexing, quadriceps contracting... He felt me watching him, and smiled his bright smile, his eyes sparkling. He brought his own drink back to the fireplace, and sat down beside me. “I love you, Elizabeth. You know that, right? With everything I am, I love you and I trust you. I do not and will not doubt you, ever.” I moved closer to him on the rug. “You are my life, my Captain. I had never truly loved until I met you. I don’t know how I lived so long without you. My love for you is my reason for being. I trust you, completely, with my self, my heart, my love.” He put his arm around me, then leaned in to kiss me. Softly, gently, his warm lips, his tongue barely touching mine. I maneuvered around until my legs were across his, and we cuddled in front of the fire, just barely kissing, stroking each other lovingly. Eventually we went into the bedroom, and held each other through the night. We could feel each other’s warmth, feel each other’s thoughts of love, as we wrapped each other in a blanket of comfort and complete trust and faith.

chapter 20 ************ I got up extra early the next morning to get my workout started. I went into the Lounge and moved the tables out of the middle of the room. Yoga first, stretching felt so good. Then I dug deep in my memory for some of the other martial arts that Jenny and I had studied eons ago. We had taken self-defense classes, we were two single women living alone. The name of the discipline is Tae Kwon Do. It involves kicks, punches, and stylized blocking moves, and it’s absolutely perfect for working off tension and stress. As soon as I began, I remembered the moves, and went through a long routine. I worked myself to exhaustion. I wanted to blank out my thoughts and feelings and receptors completely. I had been almost overloaded the day before, too many emotions, too many feelings, too much trying to figure everything out. It was just too much. I had not been properly keeping up with my training. I needed to be more vigilant about that. Even with my Captain supporting me, even with his love wrapping around me, I still had to handle my Sympath abilities on my own. No-one could help me with that, it had to come from inside me. In my heart I knew that I was the only one who could take control of whether I was able to resist an overload. When I was done with my workout, and had dropped to the floor sweating, panting, I heard someone come into the room. I tried to refocus on my surroundings. Of course it was the Captain. He had been watching me from the doorway. “Do you feel better, my dear? I was worried about you, you weren’t in the bed, and I couldn’t feel you. I should have realized that you were being overloaded with all the events of late...” “I’m sorry, Paolo, I needed to be alone without any distractions for a bit. I didn’t want to wake you just to tell you that.” He pulled me to my feet and led me over to the comfy sofa. We sat. He said, “I do not want you to think that I am judging your friend harshly. I will indeed wait until we have more facts. But I do want you to be careful. You have been thrust into the middle of a dangerous situation. I do not want you hurt. As to the rest, I know you can get to the bottom of this mystery. You are the most capable Scientist in all of the Federation. I have no doubt that you will solve the problem.” I laid my head on his shoulder. I said, “I don’t know what I did to deserve you, but I will do my best to earn your faith in me. Now, I have to go refresh, and get back to work.” When I got out of the Refresh I saw that the curtain to the living area had been drawn. I dressed in my work clothes, then came out of the bedroom, pulled the curtain, and found Ensign Parker waiting for me. “Good morning, Doctor. Are you ready to go to the Lab? The Captain has gone up to the Bridge.” “Good morning, Ensign. Yes, let’s get back to work. I have some ideas on what direction to take in our research.” Taking his arm, I led Ensign Parker out to the lift, and down to the Lab on Level Twelve. Ensign Miller was just walking in as we arrived. I went immediately to the terminal in my office. The Ensigns went to their workstations. I had them begin by continuing our analysis pattern from the day before. Might as well see if there were any other surprises to be found in the samples we hadn’t examined yet. I pulled up the data from the day before. I wanted to review the findings, I was thinking that I had a starting point for us. I would review each and every test, and retest anything that looked off. But I thought I knew what I was looking for. I sat at my terminal, reading every report. Every piece of data, for hours. Then I had a break. I found a small inconsistency in one of the analyses. There was the mycotoxin, but there was also something else. Something that looked a lot like a bacterium. I looked at the sample number, and went back to the workstation to pull that sample. I put the sample through the micro-analyzer again and watched the results on the screen. Then I stopped the scrolling of the data. There. There it was. “Ensigns! Come here, I think we have it.” “What is it, Doctor?” “Look. Bacteria. They tried to kill the mycotoxin themselves. I have never heard of anyone using live bacteria to kill a toxin, but it seems they might have tried. Let’s go look up the Records of that Colony again. Now that we have this, we may be able to focus our search.” More searching in the Records turned up a lot of interesting facts, but not anything useful. We still did not know who had designed the toxin, or why. Or how it had been disbursed through the soil of the continent without killing the occupants. Or maybe it had, there seemed to be a lot of gaps in the history. I did know it had affected the water supply. Perhaps the water... “Ensign Miller, see if you can find any references to people on Morgos Colony getting sick with an

unidentified illness, something that might have come from the water supply. That may be how the toxin was spread. I believe we saw something to indicate that the water table is widespread, it could have seeped upward from an underground water source.” Just then we heard the Klaxon that indicated we were about to enter Hyperspace. I went over to my office and looked out the window. After a moment, I saw the stars begin to move past, faster and faster until suddenly everything went black. But this time, only for a split second. Then all was as before, except the Hyperspace flow outside the window. So beautiful, those flowing ribbons of rainbow color. But I wondered what it was bringing us to. I went back to the workstation. I knew the Captain would contact me as soon as he was able. He must have gotten orders suddenly. Something must have happened to cause the Admiral to order us to depart immediately. I was anxious to tell our news, but I knew better than to interrupt him if there was trouble or an emergency. The afternoon turned into evening. “Elizabeth?” “Yes, I’m here in the Lab, Captain. What’s going on?” “We have been ordered to Morgos immediately. Our Fleet needs our support. I will be sounding a Red Alert shortly to prepare the Crew for the battle that will be awaiting us. We should be in the Morgos system in a few hours. Please go back to our quarters, you are safest there.” “Yes, Sir, on my way.” I went back to the work area and instructed the Ensigns to pack up and secure the samples, and forward the newest results to my terminal. We worked for another hour or so, clearing up and making sure everything was in order. It seemed that we would not be able to continue our work for a while, at least in the Lab. I would be able to do some research on the terminal in our quarters. The Red Alert Klaxon sounded. The two Ensigns hurriedly finished their work and departed for their emergency stations. I had nothing to do in an emergency, much less in a battle situation, so I went back to my office, forwarded all of the results to the terminal in my quarters, and went back up to Level Six to wait. Sitting at our terminal, I pulled up the reports. I needed to figure out who, what, why. We already knew where. I looked through the analysis of the bacteria. It seemed to be in every sample we had retested. That meant whoever it was had seeded the ground, or the water, with their treatment. I didn’t know if it was the same people who had done the damage trying to fix it, or someone else. I started another search of the Records. Now I was looking for something from before the accident, or event. I found Records regarding the agriculture on Morgos, they had a rich and productive farming community. The Human population was growing. They were comfortable, and began to expand their Colony. The natives of the planet were happy and prosperous, and helped the Colonists build new compounds. Until the water began to dry up. The water began to dry up. So, this was not a recent event, not even really a drought. It wasn’t due to the climate, it was due to the water supply drying up. The rivers began to recede. The wells began to run dry. People were getting sick. Crops died. Why had we not been informed of this? This was exactly the sort of project that my team at Headquarters should have been given. I wondered why no-one had told us about it, why we were not given a chance to fix it before it became a planet-wide catastrophe. The Admiral hadn’t said anything about this, ever. Was I the first to search these particular Records? Had the Morgosians and the Colonists kept it a secret for a reason? I shook my head. OK, my job was to solve the problem. Right now I needed to know what had happened to the water supply. I went back to the bacteria, something there had caught my eye. I pulled up the analysis again. Then it hit me. It was bloated, and it had crystallized. Crystallized... It had absorbed the water. The bacteria had absorbed the water! They had destroyed the soil with the mycotoxin, then had realized it was not going to just die on its own. It would continue to spread. Then they had to have tried to kill the fungus with this bacteria. The bacteria had indeed killed the toxin they had developed, but then it continued to grow, and multiply, and use up the ground water. My goodness. I sat back in my chair. Could all this be true? Why anyone would have introduced a mycotoxin into the soil of their own world, I still didn’t know. Could that have been the accident that Doctor Amy was referring to? An industrial accident of some sort? She had family who were living on the Colony at that time. They must have been involved in the research that developed the mycotoxin, or else she would probably never have known about it. I still thought that she had been trying to get my samples and research from the Lab with her treacherous attempt at sabotage and my abduction. Perhaps she thought she could use my work with them to solve the problem on her own, or she thought she could get me to help her. Those thugs would surely not have been able to help.

I wondered if the researchers had done it on their own, or if perhaps they had been coerced by... the Agrints. The Agrints, as I knew quite well by now, were always trying to find ways of taking over worlds already occupied and habitable. They did not want to have to terraform the planets themselves. They could very well have found capable Scientists on Earth, or the Colonies, and perhaps gotten them to emigrate to Morgos. They had access to the Federation, we knew they had agents and informants there, and there were always mercenaries looking for work, both the guerilla types who had abducted me, and Scientist researchers as well. I wondered again about Doctor Amy’s husband. Morgos is far enough away from Earth that it is not easy to keep an eye on. The Federation would not have had a hand in any of the day to day operations, and probably did not even have any agents living there in person. Most of the Colonies where the Federation had agents or liaisons living on planet were much closer to Earth, and had more of the resources that Earth needed for trade. The great distance from Earth, coupled with the lack of oversight, and the agreeable natives with their abundant natural resources, would have made Morgos a perfect location to conduct research that needed to be keep secret. The Captain hadn’t said, but Morgos had to be the world that the Agrints were trying to get the rights to in their treaty. Probably because of what we were discovering now. Other than making a mental note to ask the Captain more about the Agrint Treaty, I decided to leave that part of the investigation to the Admiral and his investigators. My part was to correct the problem on Morgos, which, now that I was almost sure I knew what it was, I thought we could indeed do. However, I was going to need fresh samples from the planet. The ones I had were quite old, for our purposes. And there was a possibility that there would be live bacteria still down there. At least I now knew why the samples were so dry. I logged my findings, and shut down the terminal. The Red Alert was still sounding. Then the status light above the door began to flash. Red. We were close to emerging from Hyperspace. Emerging into a battle. I could feel the tension coming from all over the Ship. It was growing stronger with every moment. I began to feel more and more of the anxiety, washing over me. I went into the Lounge to watch out the window. The Hyperspace flow suddenly flashed, and disappeared. I could see the stars again. And a Fleet of Ships. Ours, I assumed, since they looked a lot like the Draco. Then I thought I saw another ship that didn’t look like ours. We were moving fast, so I was not sure what I was seeing. I felt a burst of excitement from all around me, most especially from the Bridge. I sent the warmest feelings I could to my Captain, to encourage him, and let him know I was there, supporting him. I put my left hand over my heart and thought, “I have faith in you, my love.” I felt the response, in a warm embrace. Then it was replaced by anger, then anxiety, then a mixture of both. It was not only coming from the Bridge, it was coming from all over the Ship. I sank down to the floor. I would stay there and be as much support to my Captain, and to my Ship and her Crew as I could. I had to try to support them, all of them. The battle raged outside the window. Flashes of light were all I could see. But I felt every person on the Ship, every person who was feeling anxiety, tension, excitement, fear. There was a lot of fear. I couldn’t filter it all. I hadn’t realized how strong, how intense the emotional bombardment would be, I hadn’t prepared at all. I hadn’t taken the time to meditate or do any breathing exercises at all. It took me completely by surprise. I sat there, on the floor, huddled into the blanket, lost in the intensity of the emotions of a thousand people.

chapter 21 *********** I cannot say how long it was that I sat there. I felt myself rocking back and forth, trying to control the overload of the emotions coming at me from all directions. I tried to focus. I could not. Until I heard, through my pain and fog, the door chime and someone yelling. “Doctor! Doctor Thorne! Come quickly! We need you!” Slowly, painfully, I made my way to the door to open it. It was Lansa. “Doctor Thorne, we need you in Medical, right way. Come with me, please! Lieutenant Quinn has been injured.” I blinked at her. “Lansa? What do you need me for? I am not a Medical Doctor.” “Doctor, we need you, please come with me. You’ll know what to do when we get there.” I followed her out, and down to Level Ten, Medical. When we got there, I saw the Lieutenant, lying in the bed, looking so weak. I forgot all about myself, my pain. I got the chair and brought it over to the bedside, and sat down. “What happened? How long has he been like this?” Doctor Palmer came in and said, “Lieutenant Quinn was brought in here about half an hour ago. There was an explosion of some sort at his station. His injuries are going to heal, he had some burns, and a small fracture. But we cannot get him to wake. He is so weak. We were hoping that you could get a feeling from him? I don’t know, we are just trying to exercise all of our options.” I looked down at the Lieutenant. My friend. He looked so very weak, and his skin had turned ashen. I took his hand and brought it to my face. “Mark? Lieutenant? Where are you? Please wake up.” I reached out to him with my feelings, my receptors that had become so overloaded in the past few hours. It hurt my head. But I felt something. He was hurting. His mind was in pain. More pain than his external injuries seemed to warrant. I felt it in my bones. “What really happened, Doctor? Please tell me, this doesn’t make sense.” “Doctor Thorne, I have told you everything I can. There was an explosion, Lieutenant Quinn was injured, and brought down here. I cannot tell you any more than that.” I looked back at the Lieutenant. I reached out again. I got a sudden flash of intense pain, then fear. Fear? “Tell me what’s wrong, Lieutenant. Mark, please. I want to help you.” He suddenly reached out and clasped my hand. “Help me, Liz, please. Help me.” Then he was out again. I held his hand with both of mine and tried to think. What was going on here? What was the explosion? I made a decision. I touched my communicator. “Captain? May I see you please?” He responded, after a moment, “I will be right there, Elizabeth, you are in Medical?” “Thank you, yes.” The Captain came into Medical a few minutes later. He looked awful. Tension and weariness poured out of him in waves. I had never seen him like this. He looked at his Lieutenant, lying in pain on the bed. Then he beckoned me out of the room. He began, “I know you would like to know everything, but all I can tell you at this time is that yes, there was an explosion. But we think that his station was sabotaged. Probably by Lieutenant JG Morris before he was arrested. There may have been some sort of toxin released.” “Toxin? As in mycotoxin?” “Perhaps, or something like it. We have decontaminated the area around the Navigation station, and the Engineers are working to to to find out how this happened at all. Doctor Palmer is treating the Lieutenant with a comprehensive antidote, but now it seems as though there is something else going on. He should be awake by now.” I said, slowly, “Captain, I have more information regarding the events on Morgos Colony.” I held up my hand. “I know you don’t have time for that now, but the pertinent part is this: There were bacteria in that soil as well. They may still have been viable, and if they or something like them were released with the toxin, they could be responsible for our Lieutenant Quinn’s condition.” He turned and went back into the treatment room.

“Doctor Palmer, please test for toxic bacteria, in addition to or in conjunction with the other toxin. You may give any and all information to Doctor Thorne. Thank you.” I followed him out of the room. He kissed me, and ran his fingers through my hair. “You are my lifeline, my love. I feel you supporting me, all of us. I know how difficult this is for you.” He kissed me again. “I have to get back, let me know when Lieutenant Quinn wakes up.” “I will, my Captain.” I went to the other room where Doctor Palmer was running her tests. “Is there anything I can do? Have you found anything?” She said, “Yes, as a matter of fact, you were correct. There is a toxic bacteria here. It is absorbing the water from Lieutenant Quinn’s cells. How did you know?” “I am sorry but I can’t tell you about that, Doctor. Can you treat him?” She nodded, “I think so, yes. This bacterial infection is very like some others we have treatments for. I will get him started on a treatment right away.” “Thank you. I will just go and sit with him.” My thoughts were churning. I was still weak from having to deal with all the emotions of the Crew of a Warship in battle. I hadn’t stopped to think that the bacteria could have been adapted to become something that could affect Humans directly. It was probably some mutation, but whatever Doctor Palmer found to help the Lieutenant could end up helping us as well. I would have to find time to speak to the Captain, and get his permission to have Doctor Palmer help us. The treatment worked. Lieutenant Quinn awoke shortly after the course of treatment was begun. He reached out and took my hand. I had not left his bedside. He said, weakly, “It was you that saved me, right? Ma’am?” I laughed. “It was actually Doctor Palmer, though I steered her in the right direction. I only sat here and held your hand, dear Lieutenant Quinn. You actually helped me as well, it took my mind off of all the turmoil for a while. I was only concentrating on you.” “You are a good friend, Madame Mrs. Captain.” I bent down and kissed his now-cool forehead. “You rest now, I will try to visit you later.” I thanked Doctor Palmer, then went out into the corridor and touched my communicator. “Captain? Lieutenant Quinn is better, Sir. Weak but better.” “That is wonderful. Thank you. I will get back to you later.” I went back to Level Six. I didn’t want to be in anyone’s way, we were still in the middle of a battle. I took my position at the window of our Lounge. It was a little bit easier this time to block some of the emotional bombardment. But it was still overwhelming me, slowly but surely. Now that I was no longer needed in Medical, now that I was not concentrating on something other than the feelings, anxieties and emotional bursts of the Crew, I was not able to control the reception any more. I had been weakened by the day’s events. I had begun working early in the morning, and had not been able to catch my breath since then. It was now the very early hours of the morning. The battle had been going on for many hours. I still saw flashes of light through the window. The Captain was still on the Bridge. But Doctor Palmer contacted me to let me know that Lieutenant Quinn was sitting up, and wanting to go back to his station. The Captain had refused that, of course. I wished I knew what was really happening out there. But I was in too much pain to sit at the terminal and monitor the screens. Suddenly the Ship shook. There was a flash of light from outside. She shook again, harder. I felt the fear and anger of the Crew, along with sharp bursts of pain. I sent out the calmest feelings I could. I forced myself to get up, and made my way over to the terminal. I had to know. What met my eyes was a shock. We were in the space above Morgos. There were ten of our Fleet Warships around us. There were also twelve of the Agrint fleet. The same type of ships we had seen in our reconnaissance mission, the ones that had been stolen from the Federation, as well as several Agrint Destroyers, their own ships. We were outnumbered. There were too many blips on the screen for me to make sense of it. I switched to the Medical screen and saw that there had been quite a few injuries. Apparently the Navigation station was not the only area that had been damaged. The blips on the screen, and the shaking of the Ship were merely the visual manifestation of the battle still being fought outside my window. The casualties were real, real people were being hurt. Real damage was being done, to the Crew of the Draco as well as the rest of the Fleet. And the Draco herself must have been damaged as well, though I couldn’t feel that with my Sympath ability. Real people were afraid. I felt every one of them. I felt every one of their fears, their pain. The Ship shook again. More bursts of pain.

I had to help, I was not doing anyone any good here. I slowly got up, fighting the dizziness, went out the door and over to the lift.

“Bridge.” I surprised myself with that. My intention had been to head down to Medical. I knew that my place was not on the Bridge. I am not an Officer, I have nothing to contribute. But I had to be up there. I hoped the Captain would understand and let me stay in the ready-room. I felt I could be of the most support from there, and perhaps get some back. But I was beginning to feel disoriented. I had been overloaded from an entire night of emotional bombardment. By the time the lift arrived at Level one, my head was buzzing and I could barely see. I felt the anger, fear, and excitement coming at me stronger and stronger as I neared the Bridge. I stumbled out of the lift, and made to move toward the door to the Captain’s ready-room. Then everything began to spin, and I fell to the floor. There were arms around me, lifting me up, and someone was speaking to me. I couldn’t make out the words. My left hand was tingling and it didn’t make sense. The Captain’s voice: “Elizabeth. Elizabeth, can you hear me? I am here with you. Elizabeth, where are you?” I tried to reach out. I felt someone touching my hand, my face. Distant, as in a dream. Then nothing. Then came the dreams. Dark rooms and reptilian faces. Laser pistol fire. Giant plants with long tendrils. Dragons breathing fire in the dark of space. A waterfall, drying up before my eyes. I saw an entire continent turn from green to dead brown. I whispered, “They didn’t want to do it. They had to do it. It was an accident. It was an accident.” “Elizabeth? What was an accident?” “Paolo? Where am I?” He was bending over me. I opened my eyes and saw that I was in the ready-room, on the sofa. I looked back at him. I could see the tears in his eyes, then they began to fall. He lowered his head until his forehead was touching mine. I put my hand up to brush the tears away from those wonderful grey eyes, as my own began to fill. He said, “We found you unconscious in the corridor. You did not respond to me, I could not feel you at all... I thought I was losing you.” He sat down on the sofa next to me, I felt his warmth, his love, his fear. He pulled me into his lap, wrapped his arms around me and held me to him, rocking. Then, “You were speaking, Elizabeth. Something about an accident? Do you remember anything?” I thought. My head still hurt. I pushed the emotions and fears that were still coming from the Bridge, as well as the rest of the Ship, away from me as hard as I could. They receded a bit. “I am not sure, Captain. I may have an idea about what caused the disaster on Morgos. But we can’t know for sure until we get down there and can investigate in person.” He sighed. Then he said, “I do not know when that will happen, these Agrints and their friends are determined to keep us off that planet. We cannot get close enough to send a Shuttle down, certainly not close enough for Transport. Is there anything you can remember that may assist us?” Taking a deep breath, I tried to organize my thoughts. It was still so hard to focus. I needed to get away, to be alone, to switch off my receptors... “Elizabeth? Elizabeth!” I had started to lose consciousness again. I forced my eyes open. “Captain?” “My dear, you need to rest. We can finish this conversation later. Stay right where you are, I will be back to check on you shortly.” He got up, and paid me back down on the sofa, covering me with a blanket. He bent down and kissed my cheek, softly. After a while, I heard him come back into the room. He came over to me, touched my face, sighed. Then he went over to the desk, and placed a call. I listened. “Admiral Wilson, Sir.” “Captain Bianchi, what is happening out there? We are getting reports that the Fleet is being thwarted in the attempt to reach the planet Morgos.” “That is unfortunately correct, Admiral. We are unable to get close enough to get our Shuttles through. At the moment, the Agrints and their fleet are not trying to destroy our ships, they simply do not want us to land. They are doing a good job of keeping us away, they seem to be quite well armed. However, at this time it does not look as though they are landing, either.”

Admiral Wilson was silent for a moment. Then he said, “I will get back to you. Maintain your position for now. End call.” The Captain sat at the desk for another minute or so, then came over to me again. “Perhaps we will be ordered to retreat, my dear. I do not want to give in to these rebels and traitors, but we need to figure a way to resolve this without destroying ourselves or killing so many more. And we need to take care of you as well.” He picked up my hand, and brought it closer to his face. I couldn’t tell what he was doing but he said, softly, “What is this?” He sighed again, and went back to the Bridge.

chapter 22 ********** We were indeed ordered to retreat. Not exactly retreat, more like regroup. But the Draco and the rest of the Fleet left the vicinity of the Morgos system, to complete needed repairs, and await the next orders. The relief that flooded the Ship woke me from my stupor. I hadn’t been completely awake for some time. I had had to give in to the need to get away from the onslaught. I looked around me. I was still in the ready-room. The Captain was coming in from the Bridge. “I felt you wake, Elizabeth. How are you feeling? What are you feeling?” “Captain. I do feel better, stronger. What’s happened? I sense relief.” “We have been ordered to go away from Morgos to await news and further orders from Earth.” I sat up. “No! I need to get down there! We need to get more soil samples, and water samples!” “I am sorry, my dear, we cannot do that right now. If you are to continue your research, it must be using what you already have. When you are ready, I need for you to tell me what you were speaking of when you said it was an accident. That is what Amy Morris said. I think we need to know what it means. And soon.” I tried to put what I was visualizing in my head into words. I began by explaining that mycotoxins are produced by fungi. Some mycotoxins are increased in intensity by moisture. If there is a lot of moisture, the toxin gets stronger. If the toxin is given an opportunity, and enough moisture, it can spread, and become a deadly force. “I believe that this particular toxin was accidentally introduced into the water supply on Morgos. It would have spread quickly, and would have destroyed the crops, and killed the animals, and made the Humans, as well as the Morgosians, very , very ill.” The Captain nodded. He was following me. Good. I continued, “If the researchers, whoever they were, then decided or were forced to create an antidote, or a treatment, using live bacteria, they would have had to be extremely careful how they introduced it into the ecosystem. The ecosystem would have already been jeopardized by the toxin.” What we didn’t know, of course, was still who had created this toxin, and why. Another plausible scenario came to mind. A lot of time and energy goes into creating weapons, on every planet. Both for offense and defense. On ancient Earth, there were many instances of researchers developing deadly neurotoxins, and diseases that could have killed millions. This practice had not been abandoned. There would always be those who wanted more than their share, and who wanted to take what others had, by force. It was also possible, however unlikely, that the Morgos Colonists could have worked on the toxin on their own. Though why they would do that was not at all clear. The Colonists had a burgeoning society, they were doing well with their agriculture, the Morgosians were happy to have them living there. But there had to have been Scientists with the Colonists, there always were. There would have had to be people there who knew about Medicine, Agriculture, Chemistry. I had a feeling, though, that they would have contacted the Federation for help if they had developed something that had ruined their ecosystem and their Colony. They would have known that they would have gotten help, no matter if they had caused the problem. If they were able to call for help, that is. I did think that the Agrints and their mercenary friends were the most likely explanation. It would certainly explain why they were trying so hard to keep us away from the planet. “In our case, it seems that the cure was worse than the disease. The bacteria went wild and killed not only the mycotoxin, but all other life it came in contact with. Simply because it absorbed the water. It did not allow the water supply to be replenished, it used it all up. What I, and my team, need to do now, is work on a way to reintroduce the correct life into the ecosystem, the water supply, the soil. Without reactivating any of the bacteria that may still be viable. The best thing, of course, would be to destroy all of the bacteria, make certain it could not reactivate, ever. I think Doctor Palmer might be able to help with that.” The Captain looked at me, and smiled. He said, “You are amazing. You worked all of that out while you were so overwhelmed that you could not stay conscious. I am constantly amazed by how brilliant you are.” “You make me blush, kind sir. I would still like to get fresh samples of soil as well as water, though. Any idea what we are going to do next?” My Captain looked at me, and said, quite seriously, “You are not going to do anything right now. I am going to have Commander Walker take you back to our quarters so that you can sleep more comfortably.” I felt his concern for me come to the surface.

“Can I not just stay here? I promise not to get in the way. Sir. Please?” He relented and agreed. I lay back down and he put the throw blanket over me. I slept. I slept for a few hours. I had no dreams, no visions. The Captain was there with me when I woke in the late morning, he was sitting at his terminal. He looked so drawn, so tired. I reached out with my tired mind, trying to comfort him, smooth his tension away. He looked over at me and smiled. He said, “Good morning, my dearest Elizabeth. Are you feeling well this morning?” “Good morning. Yes, I think I am. Where are we now? What is happening? Did you get any sleep?” “We have not moved since last night, and no, I did not manage to get any sleep. But my main concern was you, my dear. And if you are better, then I will be fine.” I got up off of the sofa and put the blanket aside. I went over to the desk and reached over to switch off the terminal. “You are going to escort me back to our quarters, Captain Bianchi. We both need more rest. You know that the Admiral can reach you there if need be.” He smiled. “Yes, Ma’am. On my way, Ma’am.” After we had both slept for a few hours, I got up and went into the Refresh to shower and put on clean work clothes. Then I changed my mind. I splashed my face, and changed into workout clothes instead. I went into our Lounge. The stars were beautiful. I began with Tai Chi to clear my mind. Then as I began to feel stronger, I went into some Tae Kwon Do. It felt good to get my tension and frustration and residual fears out. The Captain came into the room. I turned to him. “Would you like to join me, Sir?” “Certainly, Ma’am. Let’s go.” We bowed to each other, then began our sparring match. He was good, he had practiced this before. Another secret was revealed. I kept up with him blow for blow, kick for kick. I even managed to throw him to the floor once. We kept on for quite a while, until we both were short of breath. We bowed to each other again, then smiled at each other. He said, “If this is what you need to keep your mind clear, I would not mind helping you with it. May I?” “I would enjoy that very much, Captain. You surprise me once again, you never mentioned being proficient in martial arts. Now let’s go get cleaned up, I’m sure the Admiral will be contacting you soon.” We went into the Refresh together. As we undressed, I smiled at my husband, and beckoned him to get into the shower with me. As the warm water cascaded over us, we washed each other’s bodies, massaging each other with the slippery, scented soap bubbles. Kissing, tasting, exploring, the heat of our bodies and minds mingling with the heat of the water as our passion increased. The tension of the past days was rinsed away as we moved together under the flow of the water. Luckily, the Admiral did not try to contact the Captain for a while after all. When the Admiral finally did contact us, his orders were simple. We were to go back to Morgos, all of the Ships of the Fleet that were in the area, and use whatever means necessary to defeat the Agrint fleet, and get them away from the planet. The Captain went up to the Bridge. I went down to Level Twelve. As soon as I arrived at my office, I got a call from Engineer Dalton. “Excuse me, Doctor? The Captain has asked me to take a look at your Vindan bracelet, Ma’am. Could you come down here please?” “He did what? Why?” She answered, “I am not sure Ma’am. He only said I needed to look at it.” “Did he say it was an emergency, Lieutenant? We will be heading out soon, as you know.” “He did not, Ma’am. It was not an order. I suppose we can take care of this later. I do need to oversee the preparations.” I sat still for a moment, wondering what was going on. My bracelet? I looked at it. It was still beautiful, golden and shiny. The woven vines with their tiny intricate flowers looked the same as they always had. But if the Captain wanted it examined by Engineering, that was what would happen. A few minutes later the Red Alert Klaxon sounded. My two Ensigns headed to the lift, to go to their emergency stations in Navigation. I knew that I was not supposed to go anywhere during an Alert, and also that Engineering was sure to be the busiest place on the Ship besides the Bridge. Lieutenant Dalton not have time to do anything but take care of her Department. We would shortly be in the middle of a battle, they needed to continue to prepare. Since the Captain had not said anything to me regarding going to Engineering, I went to work. I took some of the samples out of the storage containers and brought them into my office. I watched out

the window until we entered Hyperspace, then began putting the samples through the analyzers again. I wanted to see if there was anything in there that would lead me to something that would kill the bacteria without endangering the fragile ecosystem further. We wanted to make sure it was all gone, in addition to the toxin, before we reintroduced the good minerals and nutrients that had been eradicated. We emerged from Hyperspace in the vicinity of the Morgos system. The Agrint fleet was still there, waiting. The rest of the Federation Fleet arrived. I could not see much out of my window, but the flashes of light were coming faster and faster. I turned to the terminal and began watching the screen. There were too many blips to keep straight, but our ships were beginning to surround the Agrint ships. I could see as several of their ships disappeared from the screen. The Fleet had come out of Hyperspace ready for battle, they did not give the Agrint fleet any time to think. I wondered why I was not feeling so overwhelmed today. I did feel the emotions of the Crew. I did feel the anger and tension coming from all over the Ship, especially from the Bridge. And yet it was not painful, I was not dizzy, I was all right. I reached out to my Captain. “Thank you.” His response came to me once again in the warmth that surrounded me, and the tingling of my hand. I thought again that someday we needed to go back to Hegrioa and thank them in person. And to perhaps find out more about what had happened, about their technology, about their strange customs and why everyone who went there was so content and calm and happy. It was a long afternoon, waiting, not being able to do anything but try to support and comfort the Crew. I watched the terminal display, and watched out the window as well. The Federation Fleet was chasing down the Agrint ships, one after the other, chasing them down and destroying them. Since the orders from the Admiral were to do anything necessary to remove the threat, that was exactly what our Ships were doing. Captain Bianchi was the Fleet Commander for that battle. I felt his strength, and his leadership of the Federation Fleet was impeccable. He was in Command, of his Ship, and every other one of our Ships out there. There was no hesitation, no uncertainty in his actions or in his emotions. I felt his power, and I was so proud to be his wife. There was no doubt that our side would be victorious this time. I saw ship after ship disappear from the screen. Each time a ship vanished, there was a burst of excitement and joy from all over the Draco. I did my best to augment the joy, and lessen the fear that was, of course, still present as an undercurrent in the emotions of the Crew. I called up to Medical and asked about Lieutenant Quinn. Doctor Palmer answered, “He has been released back to duty, Doctor Thorne. He is back at his Navigation station on the Bridge. All is well. Thank you again.” “Thank you, Doctor! I may be contacting you about a project I am working on. Soon.” “I look forward to that.” Suddenly there was a burst of surprise, then happiness, from all over the Ship. Something momentous had happened. Before I had a chance to look at the terminal screen, the Captain contacted me. “Elizabeth, please come up to my ready-room right away.” “On my way, Sir.” When I arrived on Level One and went over to the ready-room, I could feel the Captain, that strong warmth that had drawn me to him in the beginning. I also felt pride, and relief. I went in. I looked at the monitor screen. It showed only the Draco, and the other Federation Ships, no Agrint Destroyers or any other ships in the vicinity. The Federation Fleet had been victorious. All of the Agrint fleet that had been guarding Morgos was gone. That was the reason for the burst of happiness and pride I had felt. I felt like cheering myself. Instead I went over and hugged my Captain. I let him feel how proud I was of him, how happy I was. He smiled that smile. My heart skipped a beat. Then he got serious again. “Elizabeth, you shall get your wish. We will be establishing orbit around Morgos shortly. Tomorrow morning, first thing, I will escort you down to the planet, to see what we can see.” “Thank you, Sir!” “And, Elizabeth, you will be armed as well. I do not normally authorize civilians to carry weapons on missions, but I have to make an exception in your case. You are certified, I know.” “Yes, Sir.” Then he put his arms around me and whispered, “You will be careful, I do not want you hurt again. I expect you to defend yourself, by any means necessary, understood? This time we will be prepared.” I put my arms around his neck and said, “Yes, Sir. Will do, Sir. Now kiss me, Sir.” He did, until the chime that announced that we had arrived in orbit. I finally remembered my conversation with Lieutenant Dalton.

“Captain, why did you ask Engineer Dalton to look at my bracelet?” He answered, “I thought I saw something, when you were in my ready-room, something that shouldn’t be there.” He took my wrist and held it up. He peered at the bracelet, turning it back and forth. Then, a glint of something. “See, there? A substance, something.” “But, Captain, when Doctor Amy was taking care of me, she told me it had been damaged by the aliens who had tortured me. She told me then that I should have it repaired. I didn’t see anything at the time, so I didn’t give it another thought.” “She did, really? I wonder... Please have Engineer Dalton look at it when we return from our mission to the planet.” “Yes, Sir!” We went back to our quarters on Level Six, and I packed my Lab bag with everything I thought I would need for the next day’s mission to Morgos Planet. Then we both went to bed, to sleep, so that we would be rested and prepared for whatever we encountered.

chapter 23 *********** The next morning we woke early. I went into the Lounge to do my workout. My Captain followed me in, and we had a short sparring match. When we finished, and bowed to each other, I went into the Refresh, and he went to check the terminal for messages. Then he took his turn while I got dressed. I made as sure as I could that I had everything I would need to collect samples, both of soil and water. Gloves, masks, containers, collection bags, pincers, scoops. And a video camera. The Captain went over to a locked cabinet, and brought out his laser pistol, and another. He handed the second one to me. He said, “I do not expect you to have to use this. But you will be prepared to defend yourself. It is fully charged, keep it set to kill.” Unhesitatingly, I took the weapon from him. I had not fired a pistol, of any sort, since I had been aboard the Draco. But it all came back to me, the training I had had on Earth. I had passed my certification as soon as I was allowed to, before I graduated from University. Re-certification is required every year, so I had kept up on my training over the years. It suddenly occurred to me that I should take one of the courses that the MPs offered on board, so that the Crew did not have to go back to Earth every time someone needed to be re-certified. I resolved to speak to Colonel Zuajko. I held the pistol, weighing it in my hand, sighting along the barrel, keeping it pointed well away from my Captain at all times. I saw that the safety was on, but I could not take a chance. He watched me, and nodded with satisfaction. He said, “You will be fine. It will come to you when you need it. And never forget that I will be there, supporting you at all times.” “Yes, Sir.” I put the pistol in the outer pocket of my pack. “Ready, Sir.” He took my hand and led me out, and we went down to the Shuttle Bay. On the way he contacted Commander Walker and gave him his orders for the time we would be on planet. When we got to the Bay, I saw that the waiting Shuttle was smaller than the others I had seen. The Captain’s private Shuttle. He would be piloting us himself. I turned to him. “Captain? It’s just us?” “No, Elizabeth, Colonel Zuajko will be accompanying us, as well as two of his MPs. We cannot go into this type of situation without backup.” I let my breath out. “OK, good.” The Colonel and his men came into the Bay. The two Sergeants were not introduced to me. They saluted the Captain. I greeted them. “Hello, Colonel, Sergeants. Good morning.” The Colonel said, grudgingly, “Good morning, Ma’am.” The two Sergeants simply nodded to me and said, “Ma’am.” I sighed. Military discipline at its finest. I could feel the power and determination and purposefulness coming from the MPs. They were two of the most robust and brawny men I had ever seen. Perfect to have at your back in an unknown situation. I began to have a new respect for Colonel Zuajko. These were his men, he was their Commanding Officer. I hoped I could change his mind about me as well. The Captain entered his Shuttle and motioned the rest of us to board. He directed me to a seat directly behind him. The MPs and the Colonel went to the back. We all harnessed in and I turned on the viewscreen. This might be my only chance to observe the planet Morgos. I wanted to see all I could, perhaps I would see something that would help us. “You have the Bridge, Commander Walker.” The Captain took his Shuttle out of the Bay, and started down to the planet. I watched on my screen. When we entered the atmosphere, I gasped. “What is it, Elizabeth?” “Captain, this planet is dead. I did not realize how bad it would be when we got here. I don’t know if we can fix this, it’s too much.” Morgos, from above, looked like a desert planet. There was nothing green as far as I could see. Whatever had happened here, it had turned this lush paradise into a parched wasteland. I could not see how the Morgosians were surviving at all. The Captain followed his coordinates, and landed us in a field, or what used to be a field, of what looked like wheat. There were buildings at the edge of the field. We got out of the Shuttle. Colonel Zuajko said, “Captain, if you please, we will go first, and check out that compound. Some of the

rebels may be hiding there. We didn’t see any landings, but they may have gone around the other side of the planet during the fray.” The Captain said, “Yes, Colonel, keep in contact.” The MPs moved off toward the group of buildings, weapons drawn, in a sort of triangle formation, motioning to each other in their MP code. I didn’t understand what the motions meant. They gradually disappeared into the compound. A few minutes later the Colonel contacted the Captain. “It’s clear, Sir.” We headed over the field to the buildings. As we got closer I saw how dilapidated they were. They looked as though they had not been kept up or repaired for a long long time. Broken-down shacks, most of them, some were bigger than others. Some looked like homes, some looked like they used to be administration offices. People came out of the doorways and stood there watching us. They looked so sad in their raggedy clothes. They watched us as we came up to their town, and I could feel just a little of their sadness and hopelessness. I was tempted to turn and run away, but I had to try to help them. That was why I was here. I looked at the Captain and tilted my head in the direction of a group of Morgosians. He nodded, OK. I went over to the group, they did not move. I said to one of them, “We are here to help you. Please don’t be afraid. May we speak to your leader?” The woman answered, “Yes, kind Earth Woman. We need your help. Our leader is on his way. Please will you make the water come back? There has been no water, we cannot grow our farms. We have no food. Please?” I felt something like pain coming from her. Again I wished I could run away and hide. Instead I said, “We will do our very best, my friend. We will do our very best.” She came over closer to me. I stiffened. The Captain reached for his pistol. Then she hugged me. I felt the tears come into my eyes. These poor people were so in need of help. I only hoped that I would be able to accomplish what they needed me to. I straightened, and resolved to get these good people the help they needed, whatever it took. I had to. Another Morgosian came up to us as we stood there, I with the woman, the Captain behind us. He was about as tall as the Captain, but thin, almost skeletal. Morgosians are Human-looking, but their noses are mere slits in their faces, and they have no lips. This one seemed to be the leader of the community. The other Morgosians, still standing in or near their doorways, bowed their heads as he passed them. “Our thanks to you for coming to our aid, kind Earth People. Our supplies are dwindling, and we are nearing the end of our capabilities to survive here.” My heart hurt for these people. They didn’t deserve to have had their planet ruined by the apparent greed of a few unscrupulous people. And in addition, they still regarded us as friends, even after all they had been through. I was getting upset. I felt the Captain trying to sooth me, calm me down. I took a deep breath. I said, “Sir, may we look around, please? I would like to get an idea of where this drought began, and perhaps sample some of the soil and water. If that’s all right with you, of course.” He answered, “It is, kind lady. Come with me.” I looked at the Captain, he nodded and we all three went into the compound, and through, and out the other side, into another field. This one was even drier than the other, only fragments of the crops remained. I took a mask and a pair of gloves out of my bag and put them on. I knelt down and sifted some of the soil through my gloved fingers. It was like sand it was so dry. I put several different samples in my containers, and labeled them. Then I looked up at the leader and pulled my mask down. “Sir, where is the water source for this farm?” He said, sadly, “It is gone, kind lady.” “Please show me where it used to be, then.” He turned and beckoned to us to follow. I watched him as he led us over the field. He was so very thin. I knew that Morgosians were prone to being thin, but not like this. He walked awkwardly, as though he had been injured. I wondered what had happened. We walked over the dry, dead field. All I could see was brown, everywhere. Finally the leader motioned to a slight indent in the ground that looked as though it might have once been a riverbed. It was bone dry. “Here is where there used to be water, kind Earth People. No more. We have had to dig deep wells for our water for our people in the town. Occasionally we have rainfall, but it is not enough.” I bent down at the edge of the former river and replaced my mask over my face. I put on another pair of gloves and brought out more sample containers. The Captain took a pair of gloves also, and I motioned him to also put on a mask. He helped me mark the vials when I put the samples in. Then we stood, brushed the dust off our clothes, and removed our gloves and masks. “Great Leader, is there any flowing water at all? Please show us. I would like to help your people get your community back to its former glory.”

He looked at me. I couldn’t tell from his expression what he was thinking, but I did feel something. Confusion? Fear? Distrust? Alien emotions are complicated for me to sort out. He shook his head sadly. Then he seemed to come to a decision, and led us back toward the compound. A voice came over the Captain’s communicator. Commander Walker. He said, “Captain, Sir. There is a ship heading to the planet, Sir. It was hidden until you were on planet, we did not see it until it had entered the atmosphere. It’s heading your way, Sir. I am sending another team of MPs down. I have not gotten a response from Colonel Zuajko, is he with you?” The Captain said, “No, he is not, Commander. We are heading back to the compound now. I will get back to you. Out.” He turned to me. I nodded, and we both took our weapons out, safeties off. I took a cleansing breath. Here I go. The Captain motioned to the leader of the Morgosians, and we continued on our way back to the buildings. We looked up when a ship flew over us, and then back again. It flew over to the far side of the compound and looked to land near to where we had landed in our Shuttle. The Colonel’s voice suddenly came over the Captain’s communicator. “Captain! Do not approach the compound! We were ambushed. We have taken care of them, but now there is a ship landing near our Shuttle.” “Yes, we saw that, Colonel. Are you and your men all right? Who attacked you?” “They were Human, Sir. I cannot identify their uniforms, they are not Federation.” The Captain sighed. “All right, Colonel, we are on our way, coming at you from the far side of the compound. Keep an eye out for us, we will be with you shortly. Out.” I mentally shook myself. OK, this was it. My chance to prove myself, prove that I was not the helpless damsel in distress. I could do this. I could help protect my Captain, and these gentle Morgosian people as well. I felt the warmth from my Captain. I gripped my pistol in both hands and we continued on toward the buildings. When we arrived back at the compound, there was silence. No-one was in sight. We went into the main building on the square. Then suddenly the Colonel appeared in a doorway and motioned to us. We went toward him, then stopped as we heard noises from outside. Whoever it was in that ship was coming toward us. Quickly. The Captain pushed me behind a large box, and he himself knelt down behind another. The leader watched us and just stood there, he ignored the Captain’s frantic and insistent motions to hide. The Colonel slipped behind the door. Just as the Captain was going to get up to go over and drag the leader into the hiding place behind the box, someone came through the door. He was Human. He wore an unfamiliar uniform, at least that’s what I assumed it was. It actually looked as though it had been stitched together from pieces of other uniforms. He lifted his weapon, and without hesitation, shot the leader of the Morgosians. Right in front of me. I opened my mouth, and immediately felt something preventing me from making a sound. The Captain. I closed my eyes and took another deep breath. I peeked around the corner of my box. The Colonel was still behind the door, weapon in hand, looking steadily at the intruder. Waiting for his opportunity to shoot. The Captain would have been in his line of fire, and might have been hit if he had missed the shot. Then the Captain stood. He held his laser pistol steady, trained on the intruder. “Who are you? And what are you doing here? You have no business here.” The man laughed. He also held his weapon steady, aimed at my Captain. I felt his anger, his determination. He was about to fire again. On my Captain. Time slowed, and I felt and saw everything clearly in that moment. I crawled around the side of my box. He was not looking in my direction. The feeling of anger grew in the intruder until suddenly it was red hot in my head. My weapon came up, I was not even thinking. I fired. The man dropped like a stone. I had not really meant to kill him, but I also knew that he would not have revealed any information. I let my breath out, and sat back, hard, on the cold floor. I had never killed anyone before. The Captain came over to me. “You once again amaze me, Elizabeth. Cool under pressure, you are. I did not feel any hesitation or nervousness from you. None.” “I had no hesitation, my Captain. He was going to kill you. I had no choice, I did not even think about it.” He smiled, and helped me up. Then, the Colonel’s men came running in. They looked at us, then at the two bodies on the floor. The Colonel raised his brow. The Captain raised his. Then the Colonel said, “There are a few more of these,” indicating the intruder, “coming from their ship. We will take care of them, Sir. We also have one of our Shuttles on the way with more men, they will land in the same area we did.” The Captain said, “Try to take at least one of them alive, Colonel. We need information.” “Yes, Sir. Let’s go, men.” They left, heading toward the Shuttle and the intruder’s ship.

I went over and knelt down by the leader’s body. “I’m so sorry. I will help your people. I promise.” “Elizabeth, we must go.” “Coming, Captain.” I got up, took a last look at the leader lying there on the floor, and followed the Captain out. When we stepped outside, I noticed that it was darker than it had been before. I looked up. “Captain, it looks like it’s going to rain!” “Yes, my dear, it does. Why am I feeling such excitement from you?” “You don’t understand! Rain! We will get to see what happens when the water hits the ground!” I felt it as he comprehended what I meant. We would see, in person, the reaction, if any, as the water fell. And I could get samples of wet ground. This was perfect timing. I brought out my video recorder. It would take video in various spectrums, and the video itself could be manipulated to view the smallest microscopic detail. The Captain assumed a protective position next to me, watching and observing everything around us. We could hear some shouting in the distance, in the direction of the Shuttle. The rain began to fall. As the water hit the ground, it was instantly absorbed. The ground was so very parched that it drew in all of the moisture immediately. I pointed the video recorder at the ground and kept it running. With my other hand I reached into my bag and brought out another few sample containers. “Captain, your assistance, please?” He took one container at a time from me, all the while keeping his eyes moving around us. He never let his guard down. I directed him where to take samples from, some of the wet soil, and some I had him simply hold until they filled with rainwater. When I felt satisfied that we had all we were going to get, I turned off the recorder and put it, with the samples, in my bag. The rain stopped. It had only lasted for a few minutes, it was a symptom of how dry the planet had become. There was not water left to evaporate enough to create a good soaking rain. Now we had to get back to the Shuttle, and try to get out of there. I held my pistol at the ready as we went slowly toward where we had landed, and where the other ship had landed. As we neared, we heard several shots, and more shouting. Colonel Zuajko appeared from the far side of the Shuttle. I did not see any of the intruders. There was another, larger Shuttle a short distance away. I saw more MPs over there, spread out in formation. The backup team that the Commander had sent. “Sir, we have eliminated all but one of the invaders. We have him in our Shuttle, I would like to request permission to being him back to the Draco for questioning. Sir.” The Captain nodded. “Permission granted, Colonel. Have one of your men fly the intruder’s ship as well, we will check it out and see if we can identify it, and where it came from. Let’s get back to our Ship. I have a feeling that Doctor Thorne has a lot of work to do.” I said, cautiously, “Captain? We should take off our shoes and leave them here. They are probably contaminated.” The Captain looked down at me thoughtfully. “You are correct, Doctor. All of you, remove your footwear as you enter and throw them outside. We may be able to collect them later.” The Colonel and the Sergeants hesitated a moment, then nodded, and began to take off their boots. The Colonel contacted the other Shuttle and instructed them to do the same, as well as to go through decontamination when they arrived at the Bay. We three, and the two Sergeants, finished boarding the Captain’s Shuttle, and we headed back up to the Draco. The Captain contacted Commander Walker. “Headed your way, Commander. Have a decontamination team waiting.” “Very good, Sir. You are clear to land, Sir.” I couldn’t wait to get the samples and the video back to my Lab. As soon as we had landed in the Shuttle Bay, I took off my harness, and turned to the Captain. “Where is the decontamination, Sir?” He pointed out the door, to a waiting Lieutenant that I didn’t know. “Lieutenant Marshall will assist you, Elizabeth. Go on.” Picking up my Lab bag, I followed the Lieutenant to a small booth that had been set up in the Bay. There was a row of them set up down the middle of the Bay. I noticed a shimmer, a forcefield between us and the Bay door. The booths were on the dividing line between the outer Bay, where we were, and the inner Bay, where the door to the corridor was. He motioned me to go inside, then as he closed the door behind me he said, “Please remove all of your clothing, Ma’am, and put it in the receptacle. You will receive

clean clothing when you are finished. Please leave your bag here.” I looked around as the door closed. Brightly lit cubicle, smooth walls with what looked like giant ultraviolet lamps all around, and on the ceiling. I peeled off my clothes and looked for the receptacle. I found it, a shelf in the middle of the wall. I put my clothes on the shelf, and they were drawn out of sight. “Are you ready, Ma’am?” “Yes, Lieutenant, fire away.” Sudden, intense blue light flooded the cubicle. Hot, almost painfully bright. I put my hands on my head and turned around, even though the lamps were everywhere, it just felt like something I should do. After a couple of minutes, the lights went out. I blinked to clear my vision. Then I saw that there was a pile of clothes on the shelf. Not mine. I went over and pulled on what looked like pajamas, top and bottoms, and went back over to the door. “May I come out now?” “Yes, Ma’am. The opposite door from where you entered, please.” I went to the other side of the booth and saw that there was a door that said Exit Only. I put my hand on the knob and the door opened by itself. I stepped out into the inner Bay and looked for the Captain. After a couple of minutes, he came out of an identical booth a few meters away. “Captain, where is my Lab bag, Sir? May I have it back?” “Just a moment, Elizabeth, Lieutenant Marshall will bring it out to you in a moment... Ah, here he is.” Lieutenant Marshall came out of another booth, wearing the same pajamas the rest of us had on, carrying my bag. He handed it to me, and bowed. “All clear, Ma’am. We put the bag itself through the decontam process but not the contents. They were encased in an impervious container. I hope that is satisfactory.” I nodded, and turned to the Captain. “Permission to get to work, Sir?” There was amusement coming from the MPs behind me. The Captain smiled as well. “Permission granted, Doctor. On your way, then.” I blew him a kiss as I left the Shuttle Bay in my pajamas and bare feet, carrying my huge Lab bag. The MPs were barely containing their laughter. Then the Colonel glared at them, and they straightened their faces. I went into the Lab and over to the worktable. I set up an ultraviolet light, pointed away from the table, just in case. Then I took a mask and gloves out of the drawer, put them on, and began to create slides from the samples, wet soil and dry soil, as well as water droplets. After I had taken as many slides as I thought I would need, I thought, Where to start? I decided to start at the beginning. So I took the wet samples of soil and began to scan them. All the rest of the afternoon and evening I went back and forth, between my desk terminal, and the worktable, and the analyzers. The data was streaming, page after page. I set the auto search for anything regarding the bacteria. If it was present at all, and if it was, how it reacted to the rainfall. I didn’t think there would be any of the toxin left at this point, but I set a search for that as well. If there were no hits, I would have to go over all of the data myself. At the moment I did not have time to sit and review the data as it was coming in. I was alone in the Lab. Suddenly, the alarm chimed. I turned to my terminal. The page displayed was flashing. The bacteria were still there, alive, viable. It must have been there this whole time, all of these years, soaking up any drops of water that became available. The toxin was not still there, as far as I could see. OK then, a starting point. I brought out the video recorder and attached it to my terminal. I set it to display the video at the microscopic level. It was difficult to distinguish what I was seeing, until I saw the movement of the bacteria. It was indeed absorbing the water. It was becoming bloated. Then I saw it multiply, again and again. I felt sick. Then I mentally shook myself. “Elizabeth Thorne, this is what you do. You are The Plant Doctor of the Federation. You are The Expert in agricultural Immunology and Virology. You can handle a thirsty bacteria. You’ve done it before, you can do it again.” Back to work. A few hours later I pushed myself back from my desk and rubbed my eyes. I wasn’t getting anywhere. Then I thought, “Doctor Palmer!” It was too late to contact her now, but first thing in the morning... I secured the samples in sealed storage containers, logged my findings, and closed up the Lab. Then I went up to Level Six. When I arrived in our quarters, the Captain was already there, at the terminal. He had accessed my findings and was trying to review them. I went over and turned off the terminal. “My Captain, we need to get some rest, it’s been a difficult long day.” “Yes indeed, my lady love. Come with me. I need you to keep me warm. And you certainly do look lovely

in those pajamas.” I laughed, I hadn’t taken the time to change. I was working alone, and I had so much to do. He, of course, had put his uniform on, there was not much chance that the Captain would enter the Bridge in other than his uniform. “Well, Captain, I think I might need your assistance in removing them.” I went over and pulled his uniform jacket off, and threw it over the chair. Then I went to work on his dress shirt, and his trousers. He allowed me to undress him, then began to do the same for me. I breathed deeply as his warm hands moved over me, slipping the top over my shoulders. He nuzzled my neck as he removed the pants, and his mouth moved slowly downward to my breast. As he took the nipple into his mouth, my heart pounded, my hand tingled. I reached out for his feelings, and was rewarded once again by the love and trust and desire that I received. I took a step back and looked at him, catching my breath as I always did. His muscles rippling, his eyes shining. My arms went around him. When I turned up my face to kiss his mouth, he responded, hungrily. His fingers continued to roam my body, softly, tenderly. The warmth of our feelings grew hot, inside and out. He picked me up in his strong arms, and carried me over to our bed. We didn’t get very much sleep that night, but in the morning we were both refreshed and much more relaxed. I asked the Captain whether he was all right with me asking Doctor Palmer for help. He said of course, anything I thought would help was OK with him. I contacted her, and asked her to join me in my Lab. The Captain said he would be assisting Colonel Zuajko in the interrogation of the intruder they had captured. And he would be overseeing the Engineers as they examined the intruder’s ship that we had brought back with us. I met Doctor Palmer at the door to my office. She looked at me questioningly. I explained what our mission was, and what we had found, and at what point I had left off the previous night. “So now, Doctor Palmer, I would like you to educate me on this treatment that you used to cure Lieutenant Quinn. We may be able to adapt it to eradicate this bacteria wreaking havoc on Morgos Planet.” She described the treatment. Simple, really. An ancient treatment, a medication called “penicillin.” We did not use such things anymore, there had been many other more efficient substances discovered and developed over the many years of the Federation. However, the current bacteria had no defenses against it. It was brilliant. I hugged her and thanked her. We got to work. I showed her the samples, and we took specimens of the bacteria from the wet soil to test and retest. She went up to Medical and got her specimens of the penicillin for us to adapt to the new requirements. The morning flew by, but by noontime we had something we could use. Once we knew where to start, it was a matter of isolating properties of the antibiotic, increasing some of them and decreasing others. I silently thanked whoever had designed and outfitted my Lab, for supplying me with every conceivable tool and analyzer. Back at Headquarters, it would have taken me and my team days to come up with the solution, but here on the Draco, Doctor Palmer and I were able to complete the project in a matter of hours. We were able to intensify and augment the antibiotic specifically to match the properties of our bacteria. Doctor Palmer was not used to doing the hand-on kinds of work that I was used to. She was used to having the treatments and cures delivered to her in a useable form. She did do some research, of course, that was how she found the penicillin. But she had had to get it synthesized by the Federation Med-Lab on Earth. She is not a Scientist, she is a Medical Doctor. I had to demonstrate how the analyzers and chemical synthesizers worked, and how we used the terminal displays as monitors for the microscopes. She was a great assistant, another pair of hands. But really, in the end, I had to be the one to do the actual development. Eventually, we felt satisfied that we had come up with a good solution, an antidote, an antibiotic that would kill the bacteria. We then isolated a single bacterium, and introduced it to a sample of the rainwater to see what it did. It began to absorb the molecules of water. Then we introduced our intensified antibiotic. The bacterium died. Spectacularly. It exploded. We cheered, and I hugged her again. I touched my communicator. “Captain! It works!” “Elizabeth? You have found a cure?” “We think so, Captain. We need to test more, in larger quantities, but I think we have it.” “Fantastic work, Doctors. Keep me informed.” The tests proved conclusive. We had done it.

I swore Doctor Palmer to secrecy, then closed up the Lab, and we went up to Level Eight Lounge to celebrate. We were not under a Red Alert anymore, but the lights were flashing orange. High Alert. Caution, not emergency. I sensed and felt a wash of calmness through the Ship that had not been there for a long time. The Crew were feeling better, so I was able to feel better as well.

chapter 24 *********** Doctor Marla Palmer is a lovely woman. She had not made a good impression when we had first met, but as the weeks had gone by I had begun to like her. And now, of course, she had helped me to develop the cure for a disease that had been plaguing an entire planet for years. We made a good team. We had a nice lunch and a very nice chat. I had not been able to have any real girl-talk since I had left Jenny on Earth. It felt good. Of course I could not give her any of the details of my life, but we chatted about Earth, and University, and the cure we had discovered. She had to get back to Medical, but I stayed in the Lounge and watched out the window. I could still not get enough of the sight of the stars drifting by. I waited for the Captain to contact me. I wanted to know about the interrogation, if they were able to get any new information. He did not call, and I did not feel any extraordinary tension from him, so after an hour or so I got up and started to head down to the Lab. I wanted to walk through the grove. I had a renewed appreciation for green, growing, healthy plants after our visit to dead, dry Morgos. I was almost to the Lab when I realized that I hadn’t been to Engineering yet. I had promised the Captain, so I continued to Level Twenty. “Lieutenant Dalton? Do you have time to look at this now?” She said, “Of course, Doctor Thorne, come right in.” I went into her office. It was really a cubicle, separated from the main Engineering Bay by a low wall. She had a simple desk, a terminal, and a viewscreen. If she needed to accomplish anything more than basic Official Business, of course she had all of Engineering at her disposal. She took my wrist in her hand and brought it up to her eyes. Then she reached into a drawer and brought out what looked like an ancient jeweler’s loupe. She put that to her eye, and continued examining the bracelet. “Could you take this off, please, Doctor? I think we need to analyze it further.” I unclasped the bracelet and handed it to her. I felt excitement, perhaps apprehension from her. She got up and brought the bracelet over to a station where there were scopes set up. The bracelet went onto the bed of the scope, and we watched the monitor. I had no idea what I was looking at, but Lieutenant Dalton was increasingly agitated. “What’s wrong, Lieutenant? What do you see?” “Ma’am, there is definitely something here. It looks like a transponder, almost microscopic. We do not have any technology like this. I don’t know what to make of it.” “I think I do, Lieutenant. I think I do. Keep that bracelet here, see if you can find a way to remove that transponder. I will speak to the Captain about this.” She nodded slowly, still staring at the monitor screen. I contacted my Captain. “Sir, I am here with Engineer Dalton. We have found something that I think you ’ll be interested in.” He answered, “Good. I will have to speak to you later, Elizabeth, I am in a meeting. You are all right for now?” “Yes indeed, Sir. I will speak to you later.” I said goodbye and thank you to Lieutenant Dalton, and went back to the lift, to go back to my Lab. I still really needed that walk. Now more than ever. I was enjoying my walk through the trees when the Captain contacted me. “Elizabeth.” “Captain.” “Please join us in my ready-room.” “On my way, Captain.” I felt his tension then. I left the grove and headed up to Level One. When I opened the door I was greeted by Colonel Zuajko. “Ma’am.” He bowed. “Please accept my apology for my behavior the other day. You are indeed a warrior. It is an honor to work with you.” I felt genuine regret coming from him. I was shocked. But I remained calm. Then I said, “Apology accepted, Colonel. All is forgiven, we will start fresh.” I put out my hand, and he shook it. “But you must call me Doctor, not Ma’am. Please.” The Captain laughed. I frowned at him, then smiled.

Then I sat down on the sofa and waited for the Captain to tell me what had happened. The captive was in the employ of the Agrints, of course. He was a former Federation employee, he had worked at Headquarters in one of the Research Labs as a housekeeper. He had become a mercenary, apparently a good one, then was hired by the Agrint Fleet. He was not Human, but the Federation had many non-Humans working at their offices. He did not know who the leader of the rebels was. But he did know who Lieutenant JG Morris was. And he said something else. He knew Jenny. He had spoken to her, had made friends with her. He had introduced her to some of the people he worked with, and they had gained her trust somehow. I sat forward, listening hard. Jenny had not been giving the rebels information. However, she had given them access to one of the secure terminals at Headquarters. I didn’t understand why she would do that. They must have threatened her. I wanted to go over to the terminal immediately and contact her. I wanted to go back to Earth and get her alone so I could find out what had happened, really. Had they threatened her? Threatened me? At least the fact remained that she had not purposefully given away Federation secrets. Even Colonel Zuajko had to admit that. There was something else going on, but Jenny was probably not in the middle of it. The Colonel asked, “Captain, Sir, what should we do with this intruder now? I do not think he has any further information to impart. I do not believe that he will tell us where the Agrints are hiding now, or how many of their fleet are left.” “We shall leave him where he is, for now, Colonel. He will be taken care of until we can get him back to Earth.” “Yes, Sir.” “Thank you, Colonel. Dismissed.” The Colonel nodded to the Captain, bowed to me, and left. The Captain turned back to me. “So now, my dear Doctor. You have created a cure for this disease? We can truly use it to help the Morgosians?” “Yes I believe so, Captain. But I was thinking, we still don’t know really how all this started. Even if we kill all the bacteria, what’s to stop the cycle from starting over once we leave? Not to mention we don’t have a delivery system for the antibiotic.” “Elizabeth, you have voiced my exact thought. We shall have to go back down to the planet. I think I know where we can begin, there is a building that was set far away from the others, it looked to be burned out. That may have been where the toxin was created.” “OK, Sir, whenever you are ready.” “We will go first thing in the morning. Let us go and have some dinner, and take this evening off.” “Yes, Sir!” The next morning, I put my pack together, then took the laser pistol the Captain handed me and put it in the outer pocket of the pack. He had taken his own pistol, as well as another weapon I didn’t recognize. I made no comment. Whatever he thought was best, he was the expert in such matters. We went down to the Shuttle Bay, where we were met by Colonel Zuajko. It was to be just us three, a small mission to the area of the town that used to be the Colony, where we thought to find the source of the research that created the toxin, and then the drought. The trip down was uneventful, and we landed in the same field we had landed in a couple of days earlier. The area was deserted. We did not see anyone as we approached the compound. We made our way over to where the Captain had observed the burned out building. When I saw it, I felt a chill. “Captain, Colonel. I feel something. There may be someone waiting for us inside. Be careful.” The Colonel motioned to us to stay where we were, then he went into the building, weapon drawn. He came out a short time later and beckoned us to come in. “There’s no-one here, Sir, Doctor. It’s clear.” The Captain and I followed him inside. I looked around and gasped. It was certainly a laboratory, or rather, had been at one time. There were worktables and equipment all over the room. Everything had been overturned, burnt, destroyed. I saw the remains of a terminal, with a video screen attached. There were also some papers, actual papers, in a pile on the floor. I went over and picked them up. “These are Records, Sirs. Records of the research that was done here. They certainly were working on a weaponized toxin. I can’t tell who, but the dates indicate it was just before the Colony was abandoned by the Humans.”

I read further. “There are some pages missing, probably burnt, but from what I can see, they inoculated samples of water with their toxin, intending to later test their bacterial cure on them. There was an explosion, due to one of the machines malfunctioning, and the toxic samples were released into the air and the ground, where they seeped into the water table system below. It was a matter of a chain reaction after that. They couldn’t stop it.” The Captain and the Colonel were listening intently. What a tragedy. The mycotoxin had spread all over the continent. It had killed the crops, and the farm animals. The water was infected, so the Humans and the Morgosians were made sick, and quite a few of them died as well. The researchers could not work fast enough to stop the infection, it spread through the water, and the water was ubiquitous, as it is on most habitable worlds. When rain fell, it only made the situation worse. I continued, “Then, when the researchers finished the tests on their bacteria, and released it in order to kill the mycotoxin, it simply completed the cycle, leaving only dead soil in its wake. It absorbed all of the water, nothing could grow. And there is no-one left here who knew enough about the research to work out a cure for the disease of the bacteria. They all left or were killed.” The Captain said, sadly, “Why would they not have asked the Federation for help? We would have helped. The Colony did not have to be destroyed, the Morgosians did not have to endure years of famine.” I reached out to comfort his mind, and reached out to take his hand. Then I put the papers in my pack so we could review them more, later. I had a feeling that I had been right about the research, that it had indeed been a scheme of the Agrints. They paid the researchers, or bribed them, or kidnaped them, and forced them to work out this toxin. They thought they would be able to use it on occupied worlds, force out the occupants, and take them over. Of course, it wouldn’t have occurred to them that those worlds would not be habitable for them either, at that point. I looked around some more, then I noticed a small doorway, or hatch, on the wall by where the desk had been. I started to head over that way to see where it led, when I felt the chill again. There was a noise, and the Captain and the Colonel instantly had their weapons trained on the door opposite to where we had come in. I was a moment behind them getting my weapon out of my pack. The door slowly opened. I stepped back in shock, and almost tripped over a piece of wood on the floor. It was Amy Morris. Doctor Amy Morris, whom the Captain had shot dead. We thought. She looked thin, very thin, her skin was like crepe, she looked so very drawn, and tired. Something nagged at the back of my brain, but I didn’t have time to analyze it. She looked at the three of us and frowned. “What are you doing here? I was not expecting you. I don’t want you here. Go away.” There was extreme confusion and anger coming from her. It almost knocked me over. She reached behind herself and pulled out her pistol. Both the Captain and the Colonel had their weapons on her, unwavering, ready to shoot. I stepped forward. I knew this would block the men from shooting. I felt the Captain’s fear, and concern for me. But he stayed silent and did not move. I said, “Amy, how did you get here? We thought you were dead.” She sneered at me, “Yes, you would, after all it was him that shot me. I am tougher than I look. I am trying to finish what was started here, go away and let me do my work.” The Captain said, “We cannot do that, Amy, and you know it. We have solved the problem here, what we need to do is figure a way to deliver the treatment. You do not have to do any more. Come out of there, please.” She laughed. Her voice was dry, and cracked, like her skin. I felt the chill of her wash over me. I also felt her resolve. She was not going to leave. She had to complete what she saw as her mission. I felt as her determination grew and grew, until it turned to fury. Her pistol wavered a bit in her hand. I lifted my laser pistol and held it on her. “Amy, you don’t want to do that. You really don’t. You won’t make it out of here, not this time.” She laughed again. Her chill was like icicles cutting into me. I did not move. I felt my Captain supporting me, holding me. “Amy, please just come with us. We will take you back to Earth, you can be comfortable there.” She said, coldly, “I know you must have found our transponder by now. Do you think the people I am working with will let all of this drop so easily? There is so much out there in this Galaxy that you parochial Humans cannot even imagine. Earth cannot always be victorious. I intend to be on the winning side. My family will be avenged.” Her mind snapped. I felt the rush of cold, then the rush of heat from her. I fired my pistol. And fired again, and again. Then I dropped my hand and just stood there, drained.

The two men were staring at me. I went over to Amy, lying on the floor, so cold. I put my fingers on her neck. Nothing. I had shot her three times, once looked like it had been through the heart. I was sure she was dead this time. She would not be coming after us this time. I straightened and went over to the Captain. “Captain, I would like to see what’s in that hatch over there. I was going over there when she came in.” He looked at me with great concern. “Are you all right, Elizabeth?” “Yes, Sir. I just feel like there’s something we need to see, something she didn’t want us to see, over there. Please.” He said, “All right, let’s see what is in there. But first, do you know what she meant by saying we must have found the transponder? You didn’t flinch at that.” ”Captain, I think you have already guessed. It’s what Engineer Dalton and I found. What you found, hidden on the leaves of my bracelet. Amy must have incorporated it when she took it off of me in Medical. Quick thinking on her part, I must say.” He lifted his brow. “Yes, indeed. And none of our sensors picked it up. I wonder how long she had it in her possession, and more than that, whose technology is it?” “We have other concerns right now, Captain. We can look further into this later. Let’s go look at that hatch.” We went over to the small door. I knelt down, the Captain guarded me, pistol drawn. The Colonel stayed in the middle of the room, covering us both. I opened the door and gasped. Then I laughed. “Captain, there’s water here! It looks like it used to be a well.” “What? Water?” “Yes, this must have been what the leader was going to show us. I felt him come to a resolve, a determination, before we ended up in that other building and he was killed. Amy must have been experimenting on this water, still trying to come up with a cure. That would explain why she was so sick. So dry. She had been infected somehow, the same way Lieutenant Quinn was.” The Captain looked at me, amazed, shocked. Then he nodded. He helped me up, and I motioned toward the outer door. I said, “I’d like to leave now, Sir.” He put his arm around me, motioned to the Colonel to take Amy’s body, and we left the building. We three walked slowly back to where we had left the Shuttle. The Captain held my hand. The Colonel carried Amy’s body, carefully. When we got to the Shuttle, the Colonel laid Amy gently in the back, on the floor, and covered her with a tarp. The Captain called up to Commander Walker. “Commander, we are leaving the town. We are going to make one more stop before we head back.” I looked at him, surprised. Colonel Zuajko was silent, but I felt his surprise as well. I asked, “Where are we going?” He said, “We need to check something out. When the Engineers went over the intruder’s ship, they found evidence that the Agrints may have had their own base of operations here, on Morgos.” My mouth fell open. “Really? Why didn’t we know about that before? Where are they? They didn’t come after us, they had to see us when we arrived, at least the first time, there were two Shuttles and a lot of men.” He answered, “I don’t know, my dear. We shall see.” We flew over the dead dry fields, toward some low hills that we had seen from the Morgosian compound. I hadn’t noticed anything there, but then I wasn’t looking for anything. After a while I began to differentiate the browns of the ground from the browns of what looked like a grouping of small huts. The Captain had been right, of course. These huts looked newer than the compound, like they had been at least taken care of more recently. I did not get any whiffs, but the Agrints are reptilians and I don’t get feelings from them. I began to feel apprehensive. The Shuttles are not armed the way a Starship is, they only have the most basic of defenses. If we ran into a battle situation, we could have been in great trouble. I looked back at the Colonel, sitting behind me. He gazed back at me, calmly. He was prepared to deal with whatever we ran across. His emotions matched his demeanor. I sat back in my seat, trying to allow myself to feel secure. I had two great military men there with me, they would know what to do. I hoped. The Captain said, “All right, we are going to land here. Elizabeth, arm yourself. Colonel, you will go first and reconnoiter the area.”

“Yes, Sir.” When we landed, a short distance from the huts, the Colonel opened the airlock, slowly, and exited the Shuttle. He went toward the huts, scanning the area, heading around the far side to see if there was anyone there. I couldn’t feel anything whatsoever from out there, it was quite disconcerting. Suddenly, the Colonel’s voice over the communicator. “All clear, Captain, looks like no-one’s been here for a while.” The Captain looked at me, than said, “All right, Colonel, we are coming out.” Then to me, “Elizabeth, please stay close to me, and keep your wits about you.” “Yes, Sir.” We got out and I followed the Captain over to the huts. Colonel Zuajko came back to us and motioned to the closest doorway. He said, “In there. Looks like where they had their administration.” We went into the hut, and began to look around. There was dust everywhere. I reached into my bag, and pulled out three masks and three pairs of gloves. “Put these on, please, Sirs. We can’t risk getting infected. There is dirt and dust all over this place, we shouldn’t breathe it in. I know we have to decontaminate when we get back, but we shouldn’t take chances.” The Colonel looked at me like I was crazy for a moment, then both men took the masks and gloves, and put them on. I nodded. It did look as though this place had been long abandoned. I saw some papers on the floor, and picked them up. “They sure did like to use archaic methods, Sirs. More paper. I wonder why they didn’t use terminals, they would have been able to take more with them when they left. Anyway, this looks like Records of the experiments. Timetables, results. There are no names here, only what looks like code numbers. But here, this looks like a ledger. They must have been paying the researchers.” The Captain came over and looked over my shoulder at the pages. His eyebrows went up as he read. He said, “This confirms some of our suspicions at least. The Agrints were funding the research. We can only guess as to who, but the why cannot be in question.” I agreed. The Agrints had to have brought the researchers here, to the Colony. To develop the mycotoxin as a weapon. I read further in the Records. “Sirs, this is interesting. This sheet is a list of the original Colonists. Look at this, there are several Morrises on here. I guess they would be the relatives. I wonder, though, did they get out of here alive? Where are they? Also, come to think of it, where are the Colonists buried that were killed here? I don’t think the Morgosians would have allowed them to be buried in their burial ground.” The Captain sighed, “I don’t know if we will ever get those answers, my dear. But let’s have a quick look around the other buildings and see if there is anything else of interest.” “OK, let’s.” The Colonel went first, listening carefully, and looking all around him before motioning us to follow. He was going to guide, guard, and protect his Captain. We spent an hour or so looking through the rest of the huts, but there were no other objects of interest. Except one. When we started to enter one of the huts, the Colonel stopped short and blocked the doorway. “There are bodies in here, Captain. Agrints. Please stay out.” I tried to look around him, but the Captain took my arm and led me away. The rest of the huts had been cleaned out when the Agrints and their agents had left the planet. I took one last glance around as we headed back to the Captain’s Shuttle. In the near distance I saw something, a glint of sun on metal.

“Captain, what do you think that is?” I pointed. “I do not know, Elizabeth. Colonel?” Colonel Zuajko shrugged and said, “No idea, Sir, shall I check it out?” The Captain answered, “We will all go, Colonel.” We all started walking in the direction of whatever it was. It took us a while to get through the fields, but we saw and heard nothing as we went. And I didn’t get any feelings, either. When we came upon the scene, I gasped and put my hand over my mouth. It was a Shuttle. A Federation Shuttle. It looked to me as if it had been burnt. Probably it had been shot at, shot down? The Captain grabbed my arm as I was about to go over to the door and look in. “Wait, Elizabeth, let Colonel Zuajko go in first.” The Colonel went to the door, weapon drawn, and looked through the open airlock. Then he went up the steps and entered the Shuttle.

He came back out after a minute and said, “It’s clear, Sir, this must be the agents of the Federation that the Admiral sent to meet us. There are three bodies inside. Looks like they were all shot. Whichever Ship brought them here must have simply dropped them off and continued on its way before this all happened. ” The Captain bowed his head, and sighed deeply. He said, “All right, Colonel, let’s go. We don’t have room in my Shuttle to take all of them back with us, but I will send another Shuttle down to retrieve them. They should have a proper burial.” I said, carefully, “Captain, and Colonel, please make sure that whoever you send to get the bodies takes proper precautions. They have been on this planet for a while, they may well be infected.” The men looked at me, sadly, and nodded. We all turned away and headed back to our Shuttle.

“Commander, we are returning. Have a Medical team waiting. And a decontamination setup as well.” “Is someone injured, Sir?” “No, Commander, just have a gurney waiting. Please.” I harnessed into my seat. I didn’t feel anything except relief. I didn’t feel guilty, or sad, or even angry that I had been put in a position where I had had to kill someone, again, someone that I knew. All I felt was that sense of relief. And the comforting warmth from my Captain, always.

chapter 25 ********** We arrived back at the Shuttle Bay. I unclasped the harness but stayed in my seat until Amy’s body had been taken away. I did not want to see her. My Captain came back and gently took my hand, and escorted me off his Shuttle, and over to the decontamination booths. After that process was completed, we went up to our quarters. I undressed, and immediately went into our Lounge to do a bit of yoga and Tai Chi. The Captain left me alone to my thoughts for a long while, then came in to the room and sat on the sofa to watch me. When I was finished with my practice, I sat down and leaned against him. We just sat that way and looked out at the stars. I felt the stress and tension draining out of him, and myself as well. During the early hours of the morning, while my Captain was sleeping, I got up and went into the living area. I opened my pack and took out the papers I had found in the Agrint hut. Something had caught my eye but I had not had time to look carefully enough. I turned the pages, slowly, looking for the page that showed the Colonists names. When I found the page I was searching for, I went over and sat down on the sofa in the Lounge to look it over. The paper was dirty, torn, but still legible. I didn’t recognize any of the names until I reached the Morrises. They must have been Amy’s family, there were three of them, perhaps mother, father and brother? I wondered why they were there, what part they played. Were they the ones who developed the toxin? Were they the ones who tried to correct the situation when they realized what was happening? Then I looked farther down the list, and a chill came over me. Peter Knowles. I had heard that name before. The Captain had mentioned that name to me. This was Amy’s husband. He had indeed been on the Colony. I went back into the other room and found the page that listed the information on the research. There, there it was. A chemical formula, and a date about ten years before. And initials. PK, Peter Knowles. Now that I thought I had a grasp of some of the code, I continued down the page. More dates, more initials. The initials matched up with the names on the census list. I flipped through more pages. I found nothing else specific, nothing related to the explosion except the fact of it. And the fact that they’d had to try to find a cure for the disease they had released. So many of the pages were damaged, or missing. I found one tidbit that mentioned something about acquiring technology from a planet, a planet only named by a code number. It appeared that someone had orchestrated a mission to this other planet to steal technology. It said that the inhabitants were developing some sort of stealth weapon, or shield, I couldn’t tell. The page was burnt, torn, and the following pages were gone. I wondered who these aliens were that had this technology, and if they had indeed been burgled, and if they had been hurt. And if these aliens had been the source of the micro transponder that Amy had used on me. I sighed. Well, at least I had found out what had happened to Amy’s husband. He had been involved in the research. He had probably been in the Lab when it was destroyed. I didn’t see any death Records, but Amy had been alone on the planet. I hadn’t felt any other Humans except for her. I wished we had found out where the Colonist Researchers were buried, but there was no-one who could tell us, now. I put all the papers together, and put them carefully into the desk drawer. I would have to scan them into our terminal Records later. Then I went back to bed. In the morning, the Captain woke early, and got up without waking me. He went up to his ready room, to file the reports from the day before. I contacted Colonel Zuajko. “Excuse me, Colonel?” “Yes, Doctor, what can I do for you?” “I would like to sign up for one of your firearms classes. I feel like I need some practice, some lessons. Please.” “Doctor, I disagree, you are quite capable. However, if you would like to take part in a class, we have one starting right now on Level Fifteen.” “I’ll be right there!” I put on clean workout clothes, and headed down to Level Fifteen, the practice range. When I arrived, I saw several MPs, including one of the Sergeants that had come with us to Morgos, as well as several Crew members. I nodded to the class, and took a place in the back. I felt the eyes following me, and the curiosity of the Crew. I knew I had to prove myself to these people. They were not at all sure of me. I didn ’t blame them, I wasn’t sure of me either. After the initial instruction, the necessary required items for certification, the actual practice began. We were directed into the empty cargo bay next door, where there was a firing range set up. Colonel Zuajko

handed me his own laser pistol, and told me to go ahead. He was emitting such a positive air of pride, that I had to smile to myself. I checked the range, and noticed that the targets were set up in front of a massive screen made of absorbent material, so that the laser fire could not penetrate the walls, or worse. I let my breath out and took another. I felt everyone watching me while I aimed, and fired several shots in a row. When I looked at the target I thought I had missed altogether, but when it was brought over to me I saw that I had hit the central zone, every time. The Colonel smiled. The MPs smiled. The Crew applauded. I blushed, and motioned them to continue. I took a few more shots at my target, while the others were working on theirs as well. Then I watched the rest of the class as they practiced. Most of them were quite proficient. The ones that were not were mostly the ones that didn’t need to be, the chefs, housekeepers, the support Crew that wasn’t going to be called for missions off of the Ship. I decided to continue to take part in these classes, even though I was already certified and not due yet for renewal. It couldn’t hurt to practice, and Colonel Zuajko and the MPs were the best in the business as instructors. When the class was dismissed, I thanked the Colonel. He was still sending out wafts of pride, and satisfaction. The Captain was waiting for me when I arrived at our quarters. “Have you been working, Elizabeth? You look as though you could use a rest.” “No, Paolo, as a matter of fact I have been with Colonel Zuajko’s firearms certification class. I thought I could use some practice.” “Really. How did the Colonel react to that?” “He was quite encouraging, actually. He was proud of me. I plan to attend these classes regularly.” “Whatever you think you need to feel comfortable, my dear.” We went into the Lounge and sat down on the sofa to watch the stars and wait for the Admiral to call. I told him about my discovery in the Records from Morgos. He lifted his brow. “So you got up in the middle of the night? To look through those old papers? Tell me everything.” I detailed what I had found. While I was speaking I realized that there were still things we didn’t know, that we would never know. But I had at least found an explanation for some of Amy’s behavior. I asked, “Was this what you started to tell me? Did you know that Peter Knowles was a member of the Colony?” My Captain looked at me and said, sadly, “Yes, I did know that. I did not know for sure that he had been involved in anything to do with the Agrints. But when all of this began to come to light, I could not help but question what I knew about him, and about Amy.” I felt his sadness. He was second-guessing himself. He was feeling guilty that he had not known, or seen what was happening. He felt that he should have been able to stop it. I knew he also felt badly about what had become of the Morgosians. They could have been helped much earlier if the Federation had been aware of what had happened there. “Paolo, you couldn’t have known what they were doing. There was no way you could have known. She left you as soon as she realized that you were not going to help her. She found someone who would.” “You may be correct, my dear. And yet I cannot help but feel that I should have seen, should have guessed. I see now that she manipulated her way onto my Ship. That she was not trying to protect me, not trying to be involved with me. She was merely biding her time until she could get back to Morgos and finish what had been started there.” I moved over and sat on his lap, put my arms around his neck and kissed him. “You will not feel guilty, Captain Bianchi. You are an honorable Captain. The most honorable, respected Officer in the Fleet. You are not responsible for any of this. Understood?” He smiled then. “Yes, Ma’am! Understood. Now, I have an idea of how to spend this time, while we wait for our orders.” He maneuvered around so that I was lying on the sofa, and he was straddling me. He clasped me close in his arms, and kissed me hard. My arms went around him, I pulled his shirt up, and slid my hands underneath, touching his warm skin. Then my hand slipped down, into this trousers, to stroke his firm backside. He moaned against my mouth, lifting my shirt, pulling it up to expose my breasts, then moving down to slide his hand between my legs. As his mouth continued to move over me, our hands moved, together, unbuttoning, unclasping, tugging at fabric, our combined warmth becoming heat in our desire for each other. The stars moved slowly by, outside the windows, as our bodies merged. Much later, the Admiral finally contacted us. He had read our reports, and wanted to congratulate us. He also expressed his sorrow about the loss of his agents, he hadn’t known that they were lost. And he probably never would have if we hadn’t found them by accident. I was a bit surprised to hear him speak

that way, but a lot had happened recently, and he did know that we would be understanding. When he asked about my report, I told him that even though we had discovered the cure we still had a lot of work to do. We still had to figure out a delivery system for the antibiotic. There was not enough water on the planet to carry our medicine to the entire continent. He had an idea about that, “We are sending you your delivery system. There has been some research done in the area of weather control, and cloud-seeding. The researchers here seem to think that they can seed the atmosphere to create clouds that will rain your antibiotic down onto the planet’s surface.” I gaped at him. “Admiral? Is this possible? I don’t know anything about meteorology.” He looked at me with concern. “Doctor Liz, you have been through quite a bit. And yet you have managed to solve a problem that has been plaguing a world for many years. Let us help you finish the job. Please.” Please? “Of course, Admiral, I look forward to getting this job done. We’ve been working very hard, and the Morgosians deserve to be able to revive their planet. I’ll get my team, and we will prepare the antibiotic for delivery. We will need to synthesize quite a bit of it to cover the entire continent.” The Captain came over closer to the terminal. “Admiral, Sir, we will make sure this mission is completed in a satisfactory manner. We await the arrival of your research team. Thank you, Sir.” Admiral Wilson answered, “They will be out there to you in a few days. Sit tight. End call.” I looked at my Captain. Clouds? What next? He looked back at me, calmly, confidently. He had no doubts that we would make this work. He put his arms around me, and briefly slipped his hand under my shirt, caressing. I turned, touched his handsome face, and kissed him. Then I pulled away, I had work to do. “I’m sorry, Captain, but I have to go.” I went down to the Lab, and my two Ensigns and I began to synthesize the antibiotic. We would need a very large quantity to ensure complete eradication of the diseased bacteria. The work went on through that night, and into the next day, and the next. The research Ship arrived on the third day. The following day, I was awakened by a chime at my terminal. “Doctor Thorne? Could you please come down to the Shuttle Bay, Ma’am?” “Who is this?” “Ensign Spozos, Ma’am. We met a few weeks ago, with Ensign Parker? Please can you come down here?” “Of course, Ensign, I will be right there.” I contacted my Captain. “I am being asked to the Shuttle Bay, do you know what is going on?” He answered, “Yes. You may go, it is safe.” I started to ask more, but he said, “No time now, Elizabeth, I will speak to you in a while.” I didn’t feel anything amiss from him. I reached out to see if there was anything I might have missed. I felt something... something different. Something familiar. It was weak, but familiar. I decided to take the chance and go ahead down to the Shuttle Bay and see what was awaiting me there. I was not expecting the researchers to be picking up the antibiotic until the following day. They had some tests to run first. As I rode down in the lift, I felt that familiar something getting stronger. When I exited the lift on Level Fifteen, all of a sudden I recognized it. I ran up to the door and passed my hand over the sensor.

“JENNY! Get over here, let me look at you! What are you doing here? How...? I thought...?” I couldn’t stop the words from tumbling out. Jenny came running over and grabbed me. We hugged as only best friends could, best friends who hadn’t seen each other for months, and who each thought the other was in dire straits. I felt the tears come into my eyes, and her eyes were suspiciously wet as well. “Jen, you have to tell me everything. We thought you were in trouble. We thought they were accusing you of all sorts of things, like treason. I knew you wouldn’t do anything to hurt me, but they said you had been seen with the rebels. I told them you wouldn’t have betrayed us. I told them.” She kept hold of my hands. She looked me up and down. Then she nodded. “You are all right, right? I heard all sorts of things about you, too. But my story isn’t nearly so exciting as yours. I was under orders from the Admiral to pretend to be turned by the rebels. I had to give them access to the terminals, and let them think they were gaining access to classified information. It killed me to do it. But I knew I had to do my part. I couldn’t let you have all the glory!” She laughed. I hugged her again. “Come with me, Jen, you have to see this Ship. She is amazing.”

We held hands as we left the Bay. I felt Ensign Spozos behind us, watching, she was projecting envy. I almost felt badly for her, but then she did have Ensign Parker, and she was still quite young, she had plenty of time. I didn’t give her another thought. “Elizabeth?” “Yes, Captain?” Jenny elbowed me. I swatted her hand away. “Elizabeth, why don’t you bring your friend up to my ready-room, please.” “On our way, Sir.” When we arrived at Level One and entered the ready-room, the Captain was there, with Colonel Zuajko. Both men bowed, and greeted me, and Jenny, gravely. “Ma’am. And Doctor.” “Elizabeth. Welcome to the Draco, Miss Jennifer.” She curtseyed. “Thank you, Sirs, it is a pleasure and an honor to be here.” The Captain said, “Please sit. We have a call waiting from the Admiral.” He turned the terminal around so that we could all see the screen. Admiral Wilson came on. He looked around at all of us and said, “I see that my message has arrived. Doctor Thorne, I would like to specifically ask your forgiveness. For making you question your friend, even for a moment, and for perhaps making you question your own abilities. Please accept my apology.” After I regained my composure I said, “Of course, Sir!” The Admiral became very serious. He said, “The research Ship Centaurus reports that they are ready to seed the atmosphere of the planet. Are you ready to proceed with the treatment, Doctor?” “Yes, Sir, we are. They only need come and get the vials.” “All right then, that will happen tomorrow. I will check in with you afterwards. End call.” Jenny looked at me. I looked at her and smiled. “Let’s get on with that tour, shall we? If we may be dismissed, Captain?” “Yes, indeed, my dear, go on, I will see you later. Quarters have been arranged for Miss Jennifer. Lansa will catch up with you and give you the number.” I went over and threw my arms around his neck. He smiled down at me, put his arms around my waist, lifted me off the floor and kissed me, hard. As he put me down, his hand stole up underneath my jacket to briefly brush against my breast. The warmth flowing from him was almost tangible. The Colonel coughed and turned away. I felt his embarrassment. But Jenny was watching us, smiling so big that when I finally looked over at her, she looked and felt as though she might burst from happiness. I went over, took Jenny’s hand again, and led her out. We went down to Level Eight Lounge, and we sat there for hours, talking and laughing. Lansa came in and told us that Jenny had been assigned quarters on Level Eleven. We thanked her and she left. She felt uncomfortable interfering with our reunion. Jenny suddenly got serious, and said, “Liz, it’s just so good to see you. You have no idea how hard it’s been. When the Admiral came to me and asked me to help him, he had to swear me to secrecy. I couldn’t tell you anything. He said that if you had been abducted again, they might have gotten you to talk about it. I hated that. I couldn’t bear the thought of me putting you in more danger. And those mercenaries made my skin crawl. So creepy. But you know I didn’t have anything to do with those ships that were stolen, right? That was before I got involved. I hated that you were thinking I was helping them hurt you, or helping to put you in danger. I haven’t slept for weeks.” She was getting upset, I could feel her regret, and her guilt, and it hurt. I got up and went over to her, and knelt down by her side. “Jen. I know you wouldn’t have done anything to hurt me. I know you wouldn’t have done anything to put us in danger, not on purpose. I promise, I don’t blame you for anything, anything at all.” She looked at me, tears in her eyes, and smiled. “Thank you, thanks so much, Liz.” I hugged her tight, and sent as much reassurance and warm feelings as I could. She hugged me tighter, and I felt her begin to relax. Then I went and sat down again and we continued our girl-talk. She is my best friend, after all. I dropped Jenny off at her quarters and continued on my way back to Level Six. The next day promised to be long, but rewarding. I couldn’t wait to see the results of everyone’s hard work, and to get the Morgosians back on the road to prosperity. I slept poorly that night. I had many dreams, which I usually did not. I kept seeing waterfalls, and rain on parched ground. Dragons breathing fire in the dark of space. Clouds. Flashes of light beyond a window. I awoke in the morning, restless and uncomfortable. I remembered images, but none of it made sense.

The Captain was already on the Bridge when I got up that morning, so I dressed and went down to my Lab to oversee the transfer of the vials with the antibiotic to the research Ship. On the way, I stopped to get Jenny. She should be there to see, she had been involved in the whole affair, after all. Jenny wasn’t at all happy to be gotten up and out at that early hour, but I was insistent. “Come on, Jen, I have to go. If you’re coming, we have to go now.” “All right, all right, I’m coming! I do want to see you work, after all these years, it’s about time, isn’t it?”

chapter 26 ********** I sat Jenny at one of the workstations. She sat there, hands folded in her lap, and watched us intently. Ensigns Parker and Miller and I went through all of the vials one more time, checking and rechecking, testing the contents every so often to make sure they were all consistent. We packed them carefully into moving crates, to be transferred to the research Ship. Just as we were finishing the last few vials, I heard the Captain’s voice on my communicator. “Elizabeth, the Crew of the Centaurus is here for the treatment. I am sending them down to you.” “Thank you, Captain.” When the Crewmen arrived, I watched as the crates were loaded onto floats, and then they were gone. I had done my part, all I could do was wait, and watch. I went into my office. “Captain?” “Yes, Elizabeth?” “May we come up there and watch from the Bridge?” “Certainly, my dear, all of you may come up.” I helped my Ensigns secure the storage areas, and clear away the equipment we had been using. Then I motioned to them, and to Jenny, to follow me to the lift. “Bridge.” The Ensigns started, and instantly stood at attention. They were extremely uncomfortable. I smiled at them and tried to send reassurance to them. They did not relax. Jenny looked at them, then back at me. “What’s the problem?” I said, “The Ensigns are not used to being asked to the Bridge. They are not usually welcome on the Bridge, they don’t work there. I do wish they wouldn’t act as though it were punishment, though.” Ensign Miller smiled at that and relaxed a bit. Ensign Parker was still uncomfortable. Nothing I could do about that, hopefully he would relax once we got there. We all went onto the Bridge, together. I looked around for the Captain. He came over to us, gave me a quick kiss, and motioned all of us to chairs by the science station. We could see the viewscreen perfectly from there. Commander Walker came over and greeted me. “Doctor, it seems we are in your debt. We will soon see your work in action once again.” “Thank you, Commander... Commander Walker, I would like you to meet my friend, Jenny. Jen, this is Commander Walker, First Officer. I’m not sure if you remember that you met briefly back at Headquarters?” Jenny blushed, and held out her hand. “A pleasure, Commander.” He looked at her carefully, then bent and kissed her hand. “Indeed, a pleasure, Ma’am.” We sat and watched the viewscreen. It seemed forever before anything happened. Then we saw the Centaurus, moving toward the planet. She went as close as she could, and entered orbit. We saw Shuttles leaving her Bay, and they went down into the atmosphere. We waited. Then, over the Bridge Communications, we heard, “In range and ready to begin run now.” “You are clear, Commander, go ahead.” “Aye, Sir.” The view shifted. We were watching through the viewscreen of one of the Shuttles, flying high in the atmosphere of Morgos. We saw the terrain, the dry dead ground, the bare hills. Then we saw clouds, and the view became blurry. There was nothing to really see at that point, but we waited with bated breath for the next communication. “Run complete, Sir. Heading back to Bay.” I could feel the release of adrenaline all over the Bridge. Our collective breaths were let out. We kept our eyes on the viewscreen, which had shifted back to the view from space. We saw the clouds begin to form over the continents. More and more, until the ground was obscured. The Communications Officer said, “Captain Bianchi, we are getting reports now.” “Yes, Lieutenant Masters? Report!” “The Centaurus reports that the cloud formation contains rain, Sir, and the antibiotic is replicating.” “Keep monitoring, Lieutenant.” “Yes, Sir.”

A few minutes later, Lieutenant Masters said, “Captain, Sir? The Centaurus is reporting that it is raining on the continent, Sir. A big storm. They are quite happy, Sir.” Smiling, I took a deep breath. It was working. I asked, “Lieutenant, has anyone said how long before we’ll hear if the treatment is doing its job?” She answered, “I’m sorry, Ma’am, not yet.” I grabbed Jenny’s hand, and she squeezed my hand in return. We sat like that for a long time, until the clouds had begun to break up and we could see the ground again. “Captain, Sir? The Centaurus now reports that their probes show activity in the ground, Sir. The bacteria are dying, Sir. The water is not being absorbed.” I sat forward in my chair. Then I fell to the floor as the Ship was shaken, and again. We were being attacked. The Red Alert Klaxon was sounded. I felt a burst of shock, of excitement, of anxiety on the Bridge, indeed all over the Ship. The Captain ordered us off of the Bridge. “All of you go back down to the Agro-Lab, and stay there. All together, please. Yes, even you, Ensigns. Elizabeth, please stay down there until I call for you. I will have the science station screen copied to your terminal.” “Yes, Sir, on our way.” We left the Bridge as quickly as we could, and I herded my team into the lift to head back down to the Lab. Jenny was frightened. I couldn’t blame her, I was frightened as well. We hadn’t seen anything on the viewscreen to indicate that there were other ships in the vicinity. The Agrints seemed to have access to technology we didn’t. Something that could hide them from our sensors until they were too close to avoid or get away from. What was happening? Why were they back? Doctor Amy was gone, her nephew was in the brig, their agents killed or captured. There was nothing left on the planet for them to be defending. What did they hope to accomplish? I could not fathom a mind that wanted to attack and kill simply because they were able. They could not still think that the Federation was going to give them land, or a planet. Could they? I felt there was something I was missing, something I had forgotten, or had overlooked. When we got back to the Lab I turned on my terminal and had the Ensigns and Jenny sit with me in my office. We saw the other ships, the rest of the ones that had been stolen from the Federation. And there were more Agrint Destroyers. We hadn’t known they had so many. I knew that the Captain would be contacting Admiral Wilson, but there was no way that the Fleet could get back here in time. We were on our own, just the Draco and her sister the Centaurus. I asked Jenny, “Is the Centaurus armed?” Jenny answered, “Yes, I believe she is. I hope she is.” “All right then, we will defend ourselves. Captain Bianchi is the best and most capable Captain in the Fleet. He will triumph. I know he will.” “I believe he will, Liz. Come over here and sit with me.” We sat, together, and watched the screen, as the ships moved, and the small blips on the screen moved. I occasionally glanced out the window and saw the flashes of light. Then I suddenly got a chill. I got up and went over to the window. “Flashes of light. Dragons breathing fire.” “Liz? What?” “I dreamt about this, Jen. I saw the flashes of light. I saw the ships firing on each other, I saw them as dragons breathing fire.” “Liz, you may be a lot of things, but you are not clairvoyant.” “I know, Jen, but some strange things have happened over the past few months.” We continued watching out the window. We couldn’t see much, really, it was a small view. But the Ensigns reported to us as the Agrint and rebel ships disappeared from the screen. I sent my most comforting thoughts and feelings to my Captain on the Bridge, supporting him as he supported me. The emotions of the rest of the crew did not affect me so much this time. I seemed to be getting the hang of resisting the bombardment. Hours passed. I did not pay attention to the timepiece. Jenny and I sat on the floor of my office, watching out the window. Every so often one of the Ensigns would report on something on the screen. “Doctor, we have taken out one of the Destoyers.” “Doctor, another of the rebel ships is gone.” “Doctor, one of the Destroyers has hit our torpedo turret. Engineering reports that we are down to one turret.”

“Medical reports four more casualties, or rather injuries, Doctor.” Every update was a jolt of pain for me. Every time one of our Crew was injured, I felt it. But this time I was able to direct my emotions in a positive direction. I sent calming, soothing feelings to Medical, and I tried to send the same to Engineering. As well as the Bridge, where the bulk of the tension and agitation was coming from. When I began to feel the pressure, I gripped Jenny’s hand, and reached out to her for the support she was trying desperately to send me. It helped so much to have her there. I knew that the Captain was burdened enough with Commanding a Fleet of two against a fleet of twenty. Every so often I would send him my warmth, my thought, “I have faith in you, my love.” I had lost count of how many of the rebel ships had been destroyed when I heard Ensign Parker cry out. “The Centaurus! She has been seriously damaged, she won’t be able to continue in the battle.” I got up and went over to the terminal. I saw the Draco, and only two other ships on the screen. The Centaurus had moved off. The other ships were the rebels, the stolen Federation ships. I sent my warmth to my Captain. My support. My comfort. I did feel his response, but as though from a great distance, he was concentrating on his tactics. And then it was over, suddenly. The Centaurus had apparently limped back into the battle, and had distracted the rebels for long enough that the Draco was able to take them out. There was a burst of relief, happiness, pride, from all over the Ship. It hit me as an almost physical sensation. I reached out for my Captain. He was there, warm, loving, exhausted. I hugged Jenny. I hugged my Ensigns, ignoring their protests. I didn’t care if they thought it was inappropriate. We had defeated an entire fleet of brutish, incorrigible aliens and their allies. “Elizabeth.” “Captain.” “Come up to the Bridge, please.” I grabbed Jenny’s hand, told the Ensigns to go to their quarters, and led Jenny out and over to the lift. I ran onto the Bridge and over to the Captain. He picked me up and swung me around. The entire Bridge Crew smiled. He set me down. “Elizabeth, look at this report.” I looked at the tablet he was holding. The bacteria were dying, most were already dead. The surface of Morgos would soon be ready to be amended with the nutrients and minerals needed for growth, and the water supply would be able to replenish. The Centaurus had technology that would allow the Morgosians to create water from the atmosphere, temporarily. We had done it. I looked up at my Captain. I felt the tears coming to my eyes. He put his arms around me, and held me, with no regard for the fact that his entire Bridge Crew was watching. The Communications Officer interrupted, “Captain? Sir?” “Yes, Lieutenant Masters?” “You have a call coming in from the Admiral, Sir.” “Put it through to my ready-room, Lieutenant. Elizabeth, Jennifer, come with me. Commander, you too.” Admiral Wilson looked so tired, so drawn. He had been working so hard, so many hours, keeping up with all the reports, at all hours. He said, “Great work, Captain Bianchi. Great work. We are working on how the Agrint fleet was able to sneak up on you. We do not have that kind of stealth technology. What we know right now is that they do not seem to have more ships to send. They and their allies have been routed, scattered. My informants have not seen evidence of any more forces gathering anywhere. In the meantime, I also understand that the situation on Morgos has been resolved?” “Yes, Sir, Admiral. We still do not know for sure who was originally responsible, but we can guess. The Agrints were a little too anxious to keep us away from this planet. They were willing to risk their entire fleet to accomplish that. They knew that Amy was down there, trying to complete the research on her own. She has to have been what they were defending. They also, some years back, stole technology from another race that we have yet to identify. You will want to look into that, Admiral. That may be the source of the stealth and detection technologies we have been taken off our guard by recently. If they had acquired possession of a weaponized toxin, a controllable one that could kill an entire planet’s ecosystem and then die off, they would have been able to conquer as many worlds as they wanted. That has always been their goal, as we have learned. I believe it was indeed the Agrints who initiated the research on Morgos Colony. They must have offered a lot of credits to the people that they convinced to betray the Federation. We included the lists that we found in the Agrint compound in our last report. I do also believe that the Agrints we found, dead, were either killed by the bacterial infection, or else Amy killed them herself.” I looked at my Captain. He had worked that out on his own, without telling me any of it. I had worked

out most of it also, but we had not spoken of the reasoning behind why the Agrints would have had anything to do with Scientific Research. Or what had happened to the Agrints who were living or working on the planet. We were truly on the same wavelength. I am a lucky lucky woman. Admiral Wilson looked at the Captain thoughtfully. “You are probably correct, Captain. I have forwarded your reports to the investigators, they seem to agree with your assessment. We will continue to look into this. However, you will not. You will finish your work on Morgos, you and Doctor Liz. Doctor?” “Yes, Admiral?” “You will go back to the planet to oversee the cleanup and report to me on any additional supplies needed to get these Morgosians started in the recovery effort.” “Yes, Sir. I will get on that right away. I’ll speak to the researchers on the Centaurus and find out when it will be safe to go down there.” The Admiral smiled at me. “When you are satisfied that the recovery is progressing, the Crew of the Centaurus will take over. Understood? You will not stay there for an extended period. Only as long as needed to get things on the right road.” “Yes, Sir.” “Jennifer.” Jenny started. She had been listening, but had also been gazing at Commander Walker, and was not prepared to be addressed by the Admiral. “Yes... Yes, Sir?” “You will stay on board the Draco, and assist your friend Doctor Liz in her efforts. You will also assist Captain Bianchi, as I hear that our Lansa will be leaving the Draco to return to Earth. We will miss you greatly here at Headquarters, but we feel that it is more important for you to be on the Draco right now.” “Yes, Sir!” He smiled at all of us. “Captain Bianchi, you will oversee this project, and make sure it keeps to a timely schedule. And then, you will all be released for R & R. Would you like to go back to Hegrioa? I hear the beaches there are beautiful.” We all looked at each other. My Captain came back over and put his arms around me. “Yes, indeed, Admiral, we won’t let you down.”