Station Chronicles II - Heller and beyond by Simon Kattenhorn

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Station Chronicles: Heller and Beyond
by Simon Kattenhorn

Chapter Five

The final day or two of preparations was always a period of frantic rushing around for deep-space projects, irrespective of the amount of time that had been available in which to prepare. The Eden Project was no exception.

As Julia exited along the main entry way into the Advance vessel, she was met with the sight of tens of people milling around the gangway, attending to various equipment or other boxes and packages that needed to be put aboard the vessel. Julia was slightly taken aback by the bustle. It didn't help that she had trouble recognizing a fair deal of the dockside workers, despite the Adair Corporation symbols clearly emblazoned on their overalls. Julia had become particularly adept at her observation skills, and it bothered her that so many seemingly new faces were suddenly hovering around the Advance vessel. She assumed last-minute relief workers had been brought in to take up the slack.

Moving into the corridor from the gangway, Julia walked over to the large observation window that overlooked the One-Nine bay, where she had stood gazing at the Colony ship over a week before. There was a hive of activity around that vessel too, except that it seemed to be predominantly colonists moving to and from as they went about their final stationside business before settling in for departure. Julia made out the unmistakable form of Dr. Vasquez, hovering over Syndrome children with their parents who had dared to take them off the ship again after they were already supposed to be fully settled in the Colony ship hospital ward.

The doctor had mentioned to Julia over dinner the previous evening that looking after numerous wards full of Syndrome children had been *nothing* when compared to trying to deal with their parents. He was spending more time than he had originally envisioned trying to orchestrate an efficient hospital ward start-up. He hadn't considered that the parents would be so difficult in terms of having their movements restricted after boarding the vessel. Especially when they insisted on taking their sick children back off the ship with them while they made their final good-byes with friends and family, or some other seemingly pressing matter. No amount of reasoning with regards to allowing their children rest before the cold sleep seemed to sway their intransigence.

"He'll probably be out there until the last minute, battening down the hatches himself," Julia mused out loud with a chuckle.

"Pardon?"

Julia spun around at the sound of a woman's voice. The question was still plastered on the young woman's face, as she frowned at Julia. The woman was carrying a small box- similar to an old-fashioned cigar box- in her hands, and fingered it nervously as she waited for a reply.

"Oh, sorry," Julia directed at the younger woman. "Talking to myself," she smiled sheepishly. "Doctors' habit, I'm afraid. All those gear med-reports."

The woman nodded and gave Julia a smile that said that she didn't really understand, but was happy to accept and move along.

"I'd better get aboard," she said with a faint hint of what Julia recognized as an American accent from the south. "It's hard to believe we're leaving the day after tomorrow! There's still so much to do..."

The woman disappeared down the gangway, appreciated by numerous watching eyes from the dockside workers. Julia couldn't imagine what it was that the woman found so important to do before departure. Julia had recognized the woman immediately from the medical reports she had just been examining. She was the Earther member of the Advance team. The wife of the level four. 'Probably as nervous as hell about her first cryo-sleep run,' Julia thought to herself. 'She'll probably be unpacking and repacking her bags all night, just to have something to keep her mind off things.' Julia felt just the slightest bit reassured, however, to have someone along who knew about planetside survival. Even with all their supplies and preparations, setting up the New Pacifica colony was bound to meet with some difficulties. Someone to read the planet. Weather for instance. Julia realized she wouldn't recognize an approaching rainstorm if a banshee dropped down from the heavens and personally belted out a tune for her.

Moving away from the viewport, Julia headed along a corridor that headed deeper into the station's belly. She had put aside the day to take a final walk along the shore of the lakeside at her favorite recreation area within the primary ring. And to make one final, important stop.

Julia stared at the plaque, although her vision was focused inwards on all too faded happy memories. She had lost count of the number of times she had stood here, with the lake visible off in the near distance, and read and re-read the gold-embossed words on the only remaining testament to a life that had touched hers so deeply.

"Eloise Porter. From God- to us- to God. Her visit was brief, but we are blessed forever."

Julia reached out and rubbed her fingers over the words, as if in hope that the memories would return with the clarity they once had. She felt the tears begin to well, and she found that she could not hold them back this time. Because she realized, for the very first time since beginning her visits to this place, that they were finally tears of joy.

"This is for you, Eloise. It's finally more than a game. Good-bye my friend."

Julia wiped at the wetness on her cheeks with one hand, and turned and walked away from the dedication wall for the last time.

The room was entirely festive, and the first thing that struck Julia as she walked in the door was the deep, bellowing laughter of Broderick O'Neill, who clutched at a bottle of champagne and wallowed in being the center of attention.

"I guess the party got started early," Julia spoke to no-one in particular.

The large room hosting the party had a wide window overlooking the One-Nine bay, and the Colony vessel filled the view: a marvelous phoenix that had risen from the mire of station bureaucracy, ready to escort them away to a new existence. The ship design was utilitarian rather than architecturalsome might even call it ugly- but what it promised made it seem like the most magnificent object in the universe. Julia caught sight of Dr. Vasquez staring out the huge window, and walked over to him.

"It's hard to believe the time has come," she let out an exhausted sigh. "It seems like only yesterday that was nothing more than a blueprint."

Dr. Vasquez smiled and wrapped Julia's forearm around his so that they were standing with their arms loosely locked, staring at the huge ship. All around them was laughter and excited chatter.

"Julia, this could be one of the most significant events in human history," he mused. "And the wonderful thing about it, is that for the first time in the longest time, it's something motivated by love rather than greed. To be a part of it..." Dr. Vasquez faltered for a few seconds. "I just can't find the words to describe how rewarding that feels."

Julia patted his hand and loosened her arm as she gave the doctor a broad grin.

"Dr. Vasquez, I do believe you're getting all emotional on me!"

He returned her grin with a chuckle as they turned from the window and walked across to the drinks bar.

"It always seemed so much in the realm of fantasy," he continued. "Now that the time is here, I'm not really sure *how* to feel."

"I think everyone here is having difficulty deciding how they feel," said Julia. "All for their own reasons. Leaving loved ones. Looking for a new start. Looking for themselves. It must all be pretty hard to fathom. Twenty-two light years is in another time completely."

Dr. Vasquez nodded his agreement as he looked at the various people in the room.

"I just pray that the people going armed only with hope find what they're looking for..."

Julia cocked her head and studied the doctor for a few seconds.

"There are never guarantees," she said evenly. "But giving that hope in the first place...it's more than anyone else ever tried to do for them."

Dr. Vasquez looked into Julia's eyes and gave her a warm smile. "Thank you, Julia."

With a parting smile, Julia headed into the crowd of people who stood, walked, or danced about the room. There had been no-one in particular that she had really gotten to know since being assigned to the Advance vessel, but the faces were becoming familiar.

The orientation and cocktail party had been arranged by Broderick O'Neill as a final celebratory affair before they headed out into the starry blackness of space, and the turn-out was impressive. Everyone had been invited, of course, but many of the parents of the Syndrome children had chosen to spend the evening aboard the Colony ship with the children to calm their restlessness as the departure time approached. Many of the medical staff aboard the larger vessel had also chosen to mind the hospital ward instead, although they seemed to be taking small shifts in coming in and out of the party for at least a brief chance to enjoy the festivities.

In one corner, Julia could make out the level four talking with his wifethe woman she had encountered outside the ship earlier in the day. The woman was gorgeous, dressed in a stunning purple dress with her golden, curly hair flowing freely. The government liaison didn't appear even half as relaxed as his wife, who was whispering in his ear and giggling as he shiftily darted his eyes around the room, looking out for who knew what? Julia wondered what the woman could possibly see in him- he certainly didn't seem to show her much attention.

A few meters off to one side, Julia caught a glimpse of the Eden pilots as well as a collection of women who had seemed to become engrossed in whatever the conversation was. Julia recognized the Colony ship's pilot as Shelia Willis. Julia had spoken to a her a few times during her involvement with the hospital ward setup, and had enjoyed the pilot's company. She was a no-nonsense woman for sure, even if she did enjoy the company of the arrogant Advance vessel pilot, Alonzo Solace. As Julia looked at the man, he happened to glance her way and gave her a wide smile. She responded by looking away uncomfortably, taking in some of the other people in the room.

Most of the Advance vessel crew were present. Julia recognized them from the remainder of the medical reports that she had examined during the course of the afternoon. She noticed, however, that the Ops crew member she had met outside her quarters the day before didn't seem to be around. Julia imagined that he was probably still tending to last minute maintenance on the ship. He seemed the type. As she thought that, she noticed John Danziger across the room, kneeling down and talking to a little girl seated in an armchair, her face set in an indignant pout. He seemed to be involved in a fatherly-type discourse, and Julia silently chided herself for jumping to conclusions about his overindulgent work ethic.

Julia ambled around the room, nodding and smiling at vaguely familiar faces, and finally came to the edge of the observation window, stopping to glance out again. She was suddenly distracted by the sound of Broderick O'Neill's voice through the partition separating a room that led off of the larger room, with a door off to Julia's right. The door was slightly ajar, and Julia inched her way over to it casually, sipping at her drink and appearing to concentrate the numerous partygoers as they enjoyed themselves.

O'Neill's voice sounded clearer and she could tell from his tone that it was laced with agitation.

"This is ridiculous! What do we have to do to *show* these people we are ready?"

"They're just toying with us," Julia heard a woman's voice. "Trying to stall until the last moment in case we relent and invite them aboard." There was a brief pause before the woman continued. "I wouldn't be at all surprised if they had four or five Council operatives waiting in the wings for just that exact go-ahead. But we are not...we *will* not give in to them."

Julia realized who the woman must obviously be. And from the conversation, it would appear that all was not going quite so smoothly after all. Julia's mind raced at the repercussions. 'They still haven't been given level six clearance!' She wondered what agenda the stalling tactics implied. Julia was positive Adair had hit it right on the button with her comment to O'Neill.

Julia was sure Blalock would have told her if they were planning on stalling. But he had said nothing. 'Could this be outside the Council?', she wondered. 'A government stall?' The authority would come directly from the Port Authority, who answered to the station government rather than the Council. Of course, it helped that Blalock was also the Port Authority Commissioner, although his Council affiliations were completely unknown, of course. But if it were a government ploy, the Council would know soon enough through Blalock. Julia frowned as she tried, albeit without much success, to make sense out of what she was hearing. If it *was* a Council move, she had been left out of the loop. Julia gritted her teeth and made silent epithets towards Dison Blalock. Behind every hidden agenda was another layer of subterfuge. Sometimes it seemed that Blalock was running his own personal Mafia. Things would be so much easier if the Council were a little less shady in their activities. Instead, they continued in their capacity of making the station government delude themselves into thinking they were in control.

"They're going to pull something, I know it!" Julia heard O'Neill pipe up again. "I want both ships on full security alert until we clear those bay doors and sub-space zero."

"Agreed," came Devon Adair's voice. "But we can't let Blalock think we're planning on doing anything other than continuing to follow the bureaucratic red tape all the way to level six. We can't afford any more delays, my friend. Let's not give them a reason, hmm?"

Julia heard motion and moved back towards the observation window as the door opened and Devon Adair and Broderick O'Neill rejoined the party.

Julia watched them casually, noticing how Devon departed immediately while O'Neill resumed his boisterous role of party host. Deciding she was not much in the mood for partying anymore herself, Julia headed towards the door. It seemed almost silly to go to bed less than thirty-six hours before putting the body into a twenty-two year coldsleep, but Julia could feel her eyelids beginning to weigh heavy. It was time for bed. If her thoughts didn't keep her up too long.

The next day was a busy one. The corridors of the Advance vessel were crowded as people boarded the ship for good and helped secure last-minute cargo. The Ops crew were as industrious as ever, attending to the ship as if it were in need of a major overhaul despite it being the maiden voyage. At one point, Julia was amazed to find the John Danziger fellow dangling from a rope, high up in the ceiling panels of one of the major circuit feeder corridors, which ran along the length of the ship from the command center at the front to the nuclear reactors at the rear. 'Must have worked in construction', Julia decided, shaking her head in dismay as she recalled many an injury she had treated for badly banged up station construction crewmen. 'Some people never learn'. She gave the precariously dangling man a sour expression as he looked back in indignation and shrugged at the doctor's apparent coldness as she continued on along the corridor.

Julia had lingered until the last moment before boarding the ship finally before the officially sanctioned boarding time of 1900. The overheard conversation between Adair and O'Neill the previous evening had been playing on her thoughts the entire day. Julia was half expecting Blalock to come crawling out of the wiring any time to update her on the latest turn of events that she had been *neglected* to be informed of earlier. For a while, she assisted Dr. Vasquez in his tireless crusade to assist the Colony ship stragglers aboard, as they made their good-byes to family and finally boarded. It was important that her hesitance to board not look overly suspicious.

Nevertheless, no word ever came from Blalock. As far as he was concerned, Julia's mission was as fully defined as she would ever hear it. At least, this was all that Julia could conclude.

The official word from the Eden Project command center was that all systems were go for an on-time launch. Julia doubted that this was fully the truth. After all, nothing had been mentioned about the Port Control's stalling tactics before. Why start now? So it was with much reservation and trepidation that Julia finally boarded the Advance ship at 1900. Dr. Vasquez had opted to board late and "risk Devon's wrath", as he had chuckled, in order to assist with the final details of preparation in the Colony ship hospital ward. So Julia had wandered back to the Advance ship alone, confused still about exactly who was pulling the strings. Or why.

Julia glanced at the medical lab's digital chronometer above the doorway. 2156. It was getting late, and Julia considered contacting the cockpit crew to inform them that Dr. Vasquez had yet to come aboard. Devon Adair would undoubtedly be calling on him before too long to tend to her son's runny nose, or something equally trivial, and *she* didn't want to have to be the one to inform her of the doctor's absence. Then, considering the possibility that a call to the flight deck could precipitate an unwanted conversation with the smart-aleck pilot, Julia hesitated. Perhaps she should just call straight over to the Colony ship hospital ward.

"Five more minutes!" she exclaimed at the chronometer, which responded with 2157.

But Julia's attention had already shifted to the glass of water on the tabletop, sitting beside the medical supply inventory she had just been examining. The surface of the water in the glass displayed gentle concentric ripples that danced from the walls of the glass to the center in a continuous flow. Then she felt the vibration in her bones. The ship was moving!

"Oh my God!" Julia felt momentary panic. Launch was not scheduled for another eight-and-a-half hours. Something was wrong!

Julia jumped up and darted out into the corridor, almost knocking over Devon Adair's cyborg sidekick, Yale, in the process, as he was hurrying by along the corridor.

"The ship is moving!" she yelled at Yale, as if the man's perception of ship movement were lacking, requiring him to be informed of the fact.

"Yes, I know," he responded patiently, but with a noticeably worried expression. "I must get back to Uly. He'll be worried..."

Julia grabbed Yale by the shoulders forcefully, and for a moment, the man considered that the doctor was temporarily deranged. Then, she emptied out the sobering news.

"You don't understand! Dr. Vasquez hasn't boarded yet! He's still aboard the Colony ship!"

Yale's eyes widened in shock as the news hit home. Within seconds however, his intellect kicked in as he regained his calm and considered the only available option.

"You'll have to prep Uly for cold-sleep," he said matter-of-factly. "I'll tell Devon."

Julia nodded and watched Yale head off down the corridor without either of them saying another word. Her mind was a whirlpool of fragmented thoughts, spinning around and coalescing into a giant jumble of confusion. 'I'm the only doctor on board!' 'What happened? Are we making a run for it?' 'I'm responsible for Uly!' 'Will the Council try to stop us?' 'Please let Dr. Vasquez not have gotten left behind!' 'Are we in any danger?' 'How are we going to get out of the bay doors?' 'Is the Colony ship ready?' 'I'll have to set up the New Pacifica hospital alone!'

Julia's head was beginning to spin furiously as she stumbled back into the medlab and headed across to the medical supply cabinet in search of something to help clear her head. This was bad! Very bad! What would she do?

Julia found an appropriate sedaderm and applied the medication quickly before sitting down on the stool beside the table holding the glass of water. The surface still rippled gently, almost soothingly, as if trying to demonstrate the tranquillity amongst the chaos. Julia sat transfixed by the fluid in motion and was beginning to feel a sense of calm return when the door to the medical lab burst open, half scaring the wits out of her.

"Oh! Sorry, doctor. I didn't mean to startle you!" Julia recognized the man filling the doorway as one of the senior Ops crew. His folder was amongst the medical files of the Advance crew going planetside on G889. He was obviously out of breath, as if he had been running around vigorously inside the ship.

The man continued into the room and without explanation began ripping open cabinet doors and emptying carefully stacked contents onto the medlab floor.

"What are you *doing*?" Julia's emotions rushed back towards hysteria. As if it weren't bad enough that the ship was departing without Dr. Vasquez, *now* she had a crazed man rummaging through her medical supplies.

"I'm sorry to inconvenience you, Dr. Heller," he politely attempted to explain while continuing with his emptying of the cabinet contents. "But-"

"Somebody's got to tell us what the hell's going on around here!" Julia cut him off shrilly. "We are *moving* and there are people who have not boarded the ship! What are you looking for?!"

"Explosives ma'am," came the man's calm reply. He had successively worked his way around the entire medlab, searching through each, and without further investigation or explanation, rushed back out into the corridor, leaving Julia speechless in open-mouthed shock.

The explosion had hit Julia hard. Not physically, of course- the explosion had occurred hundreds of meters away from ship out in space and was not even perceptible unless one had been looking directly out a viewport at the bright flash- but the mental strain was weighing heavy on the doctor. They had only managed to escape the station and the subsequent explosion by the skin of their teeth.

Nothing made any sense anymore. Blalock was obviously aware of the explosive, she had gathered through sources in the cockpit privy to the conversation between him and Adair. Of course, the level four toad had been yammering on ever since about the events (including significant embellishment that somehow cast him in a heroic light) and what he perceived to be Adair's incompetent handling of Blalock that had led to their early, and near disastrous, departure. Everyone on board was by now aware of what had transpired on the flight deck.

But if Blalock knew about the explosive, that meant he had double-crossed her. Julia didn't put it past the man- there was no love lost between the two after all. But try as she may, there was just no justification for the action that she could find. Her mission was defined. Clearance or not, the Council was along for the Eden mission. There would be no renegade colony, cut off from Council influence entirely. The Council already had an operative on the planet after all, assuming what she had been told was the truth. So why, *why* were they willing to kill all those people- all those children- to prevent the mission's departure? What was so vital and to *whom* that the Eden Project needed to be eradicated entirely, with no hope of recovery? Or survivors.

Julia was entirely overwhelmed. For every question, there were two more questions and no answers to any of them. It didn't help matters to have overheard the Adair woman denigrating Julia's medical capabilities to the cyborg earlier, just as Julia had walked in on the conversation. Julia felt her teeth grind together as the erstwhile resentment she felt for the woman began to resurface. At the time, she had maintained her fully professional exterior as she explained the need to monitor Uly for twenty-four hours after entering him into cold-sleep.

For a while, the Adair woman had returned to the flight deck, allowing Julia to begin prepping the little boy, all the while trying to ease his fears and explain the cold-sleep process patiently as he bombarded her with one question after another. Julia had decided that she liked the little boy after all, despite his having been subjected to being raised by an overbearing mother. Devon Adair returned shortly to kiss her son "good-night" before he entered into cryogenic suspension. This had been Julia's first exposure to the Adair woman's interaction with her son, and she couldn't help but be moved by the sight of the two of them. Uly obviously meant more to her than anything else in the entire universe. Nevertheless, Devon's words earlier had been eviscerating to Julia, and her unapologetic tone afterwards had left Julia angry and hurt. The last thing she needed right now was to have planted seeds of doubt about her own ability to pull off the enormous project ahead meant for Dr. Vasquez's expertise.

Julia stared at the metal ceiling above her bunk as the thoughts ricocheted in her mind. Sleep would not come easily this night. There was no answer to explain Blalock's involvement in the night's events in her mind. And as the Advance ship glided out beyond the furthest reaches of the solar system, the only certainty was that Julia would likely never know. It seemed unfathomable that Blalock might risk the wrath of a *Regent* by conspiring to kill her only daughter. On the same vein, it was incomprehensible to believe that her mother knew *anything* of this. And in her position, her mother probably knew just about everything going on in the Council. Including the ISA.

Julia closed her eyes and hoped that sleep would come quickly. All that she had now, were questions. And a mission. Blalock may have lied to her about that too. What if there *was* no contact on G889? Then she'd be rid of the Council for good, Julia almost felt relief. 'But if the Council contact *is* on G889', Julia thought to herself, 'I must at least try to make contact. There are too many questions to be answered. And for that, my only recourse is the mission.'

Julia shifted in her bunk and relaxed as she felt a sense of resolution. She would have to continue with her mission if she wanted answers.

"I guess it's decided after all," was Julia's last thought as she drifted off to sleep.

-The End-

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