Hyperspace -- within debris field from Drakh battle. July 12th, 2267.
It is a sight not to be looked at too closely by living eyes, the evidence of death all around us... and of differing ideologies. The battle is over, but the memories will not go away so easily. Nor, as I have observed, will the evidence we have accumulated.
As I have learned the hard way over the past several days, it would appear that we have made many enemies during our more then six months of guarding the Earth Alliance Destroyer ‘Excalibur’ – and now, either through a combination of coincidence or precognitive betrayal, my first officer has been stolen away from me. There is a choice to be made… do we attempt to reclaim her from those who have taken her from our side, or abandon Klairika to them to ensure the continuation of the mission?
Julia resignedly set down her pen as the red mists of hyperspace slipped by outside the ready room portal. It was a difficult prospect, to be sure… and this time, unlike during their recent encounter with the Fen and their predators in this domain, there didn't seem to be an easy way out.
<chime> “Larieken – what’s up?”
“Val’na,” the Minbari replied a moment later, as his image appeared above the desk, “May I suggest you join us on the main bridge? Anla’shok Keynes and I have detected a small vessel approaching this location – the pilot of that craft wishes to speak with you.”
Julia frowned. Her Minbari operations officer wasn’t usually this evasive about rendezvous made between Ranger ships… but now that she thought about it, how in Valen’s name could this ship he was talking about be Anla’shok? Even though she’d passed on the report of the battle and subsequent loss of her first officer to Minbar (in response to which the Council had ordered them to hold their position for the time being) there wasn't any Ranger ships in the area that she knew of... besides her own, that was. And so it was with her curiousity heightened that Julia emerged onto the bridge… and there saw a familiar figure on the viewscreen, a dark-robed individual with a dark grey triangular face and bulging red eyes...
“Moreil?”
“Is I, yes-sss.” the Z’shailyl agreed a moment later. “Much time has-sss passed since las-sst we spoke, Huntleader – I have been very busy.” She could believe that – the last time she had seen him, back in the spring, Moreil had told her he would need to walk apart from them for a time, to try and find others of his kind that thought as he did.
“How did your own hunt go, if you don’t me asking?”
Moreil's head lowered in resignation. “As good as-sss can be expected – some success-sss, not as much as-sss I had hoped – we will talk more on this in time, Huntleader. For now, however,” her ally continued, as he concentrated to reduce the hissing in his speech, "News I possess that you may find valuable. When first I came into this region in search of your vessel, observed battle in progress – your fight with those who forced race to submit. Also observed crisis-sss of Brakiri…” the Z’shailyl cunningly added. “Thought to aid her, I did, but was-sss too dangerous to make approach. Others there were in area, they were the first to reach her.”
Her heart leapt at this news… another coincidence, to be sure... but in their favour, this time. “Moreil,” Julia entreated, “Did you recognize their ship, the ones who stole her away from our side?”
Moreil inclined his head, and hissed darkly. “Vessel was Brakiri in nature, Huntleader – does this-sss mean something to you?”
Julia drew in a sharp breath – oh yes, it did indeed. For a number of months now, Klairika had from time to time spoken of the enmity between her and the rest of her family, especially her powerful mother, who was head of a syndicate back on their homeworld, Brakos. Her first officer had also mentioned that there might be ‘hunters’ looking for her, and that they should watch carefully for such individuals. Well, it looked as if they hadn’t been careful enough… with the assistance of someone, possibly a seer, but more likely an Observer sent by Aeilyn to harass her, the hunters had finally caught up to Klairika.
“This is a tremendous piece of news, Moreil!” she finally replied. “You've come to us at an ideal moment – now we finally know for sure who's taken her, we may make certain… other decisions. And if all goes well, we may even pursue those who have taken her to Brakos… there to fight them on their own battleground.”
“You are the Huntleader,” Moreil reminded her. “So this-sss I do not find surprising. I place myself at your service for the duration of this crisis. Understand that I have certain talents that may prove… useful to you – that her Brakiri captors will not see me unless-sss I wish them to.”
“Thank you.” She replied, the gratitude in her voice not just for show. “This just might be our hardest mission yet – and the more help we have to pull this off, the better we’ll be. And speaking of which,” she muttered, as Moreil bowed in her direction and then faded from sight, “Larieken…”
“Val’na?”
“Get me High Councillor Westcastle on Minbar, soonest.”
* * *
It was in orbit that one could see the patterns-of-fate most clearly, Sionaya zei’chaal Alidiae observed – the patterns never repeated, as Derchal willed… sometimes they stood against you, but occasionally, everything synchronized and one was allowed to carry the day. Such had not often been the case of late, but now, as the ship commanded by her most trusted servant Mezhik zum Berane approached the slowly spinning annular form of Serathas habitat, she found that her faith had been restored. To behold this image was to understand the meaning of victory… Berane’s ship, suspended between Brakos below and the darkness above, the orange-red mingled glare of the sun and its wandering companion just beyond.
The lifegivers were even now approaching conjunction with one another and also closest approach… as such, the lightseasons were warmer now then they had been at any time in recent memory, a period that had been heralded by the Comet’s return. A potent sign, this was… and now that her wandering miskaa` firstborn was about to be returned to her, anything might be possible.
“So,” Kareina observed, her expression cool and full of cunning as she came to her matriarch’s side, “It is true, then, what I have heard – Mezhik zum Berane managed to track down and capture Klairika-miskaa`… an astonishing success, even for him.”
Sionaya’s eyes narrowed, as she turned to face the first-daughter of her younger brother. Since Klairika’s abrupt departure from Brakos after the Day of the Dead, she had begun grooming Kareina for the role that her own first-daughter would have one day assumed, if all had gone as she had originally planned. The younger Brakiri had stepped into the gap with uncompromising ferocity for one so young, and had ruthlessly used her beauty and sharp wit to pursue those things that all members of the syndicate and race coveted – wealth, position and power. An enviable successor, she was, to replace what had unquestionably been her greatest failure… but there would be time enough for this later. “This is an accurate observation,” she allowed. “I shall be most interested, Kareina, to learn how Mezhik succeeded, when all others before him had failed.”
“And now that he has returned Klairika-miskaa` to the fold,” Kareina continued, her expression now suspicious, “I would have another answer from you, nei-leidrei… word has reached me of this new technology being worked upon by one of our syndicate-divisions – a technology that may return the lost-one to us as one of our most loyal servants. Should this procedure succeed as the scientists believe it will, would you seek to set me aside and replace me with the first-daughter you lost, so long ago?”
You will make a worthy successor when I am gone, Sionaya noted, as she briefly met Kareina’s now-hostile gaze with an icy glare of her own… a blast reminiscent of the glacial winds of Mekarr province, where she had been born and raised – but then she allowed the glare to fade, and a smile to emerge onto her face. “As you no doubt have already determined, Kareina, that will now be impossible. Klairika-miskaa` will have to pay a price for what she has done – the new technology you refer to is the gate through which she will walk to begin her penance at our side.
If all goes well,” Sionaya concluded, her tone now bitter and vengeful, “My *darling* little zei-leina will shortly become the most loyal member of the family in the history of our syndicate – and I assure you, Kareina, that all will go as planned.” And with that said, she turned her attention back to the now-docked vessel commanded by her na raen-shahn, and abruptly strode forward towards the docking bay to meet her hunters.
This, she grimly concluded, was going to be a most pleasurable experience, indeed.
* * *
“So…” Mezhik zum Berane silkily inquired, as he arrived at the docking portal, the mysterious dark-robed agent at his side and the rest of the raen-shahn close behind, “I am going to assume that this is where the paths we walk upon diverge...”
The agent inclined its head, the dark amusement in its eyes obvious to all. “It is as you say, Brakiri – now that the task you wished performed is complete, the pattern summons me elsewhere. Another opportunity to cause harm to the fallen-one and her followers may soon arise, and my master was clear on this matter – I must… observe the pattern carefully, and take advantage of enemy mistakes where and when I can.”
“This is understood – we wish you success upon the road traveled.”
A harsh sound emerged from the creature’s mouth, a cry that sent shivers down Berane’s back – and briefly he saw the amusement in its eyes replaced by mockery before the agent turned away, its features flickering and shifting as it activated its pattern-shifting technology. A moment later a Brakiri walked away through the docking port – and soon passed out of sight. And now that had been dealt with, the hunter concluded, it was time to deal with more pressing concerns – the nei-leidrei would be here soon enough. And there were… preparations to be made.
* * *
Elsewhere.
“You understand what this means, of course.” the information-merchant inquired, his tone polite as always. “That the capture of the Anla’shok upsets the pattern we have followed of late.”
“That is not entirely true, Bekas.” the voice in the darkness replied. “And you know it. The return of Klairika Alidiae to this place does not upset the pattern, it merely allows us to revisit one of the great scandals that have plagued this world since last the dead walked openly among us – a scandal that, as I recall, nearly destroyed her family’s syndicate at one point.”
Bekas chose not to dispute this fact – yet again, his master revealed how he had become lord of one of the great Chadis brotherhoods – unlike so many other Chadi, the master was more then capable of seeing the ‘big picture’ (such an excellent term this was, that the humans had invented) as well as dealing with the smallest and most intricate details at the same time. This made him a dangerous opponent, as the Krona had discovered on numerous occasions in the recent past
“As you say.” Bekas amended. “This humble servant would be interested in learning what it is that my Lord intends.”
Cho-nori leant forward out of the darkness then, his expression terrible to behold, his shaven skull covered with the dark tattoos that symbolized his power amongst the Chadi. “Why, the obvious thing, of course.” The crime lord replied.
“We shall attempt to destroy the Alidiae syndicate, and grind their *great* family into the dust.
And then,” Cho-nori concluded, “We shall spit upon their graves.
Is there any part of this progression you do not understand?”
* * *
Tuzanor, Minbar – the Tower of the Anla’shok High Council.
“Thank you for coming on such short notice,” William Westcastle began, as Anla’shok Te’ras Araella Dechene entered his office, her expression more solemn then he had ever seen before… and for a good reason. Araella was one of his best intelligence agents, a project that Shival and Tashann had whipped up between them several years before. It hadn’t taken very long for the three of them to convince the President that having a body of Rangers dedicated to covert operations was a good idea – a body more secret, even, then the Alliance Directorate of Covert Intelligence, an operation that had been run by Tessa Halloran for more then four and a half years, now. After a moment more, William touched several controls on his desk, effectively sealing the office away from the outside world – when the new technology White Stars began coming off the production lines in a year or so, Valen willing, maybe he could try and arrange to have some of them assigned to the covert operations division…
“I haven’t forgotten the vows I swore to you and Tashann, sir.” Dechene replied, her throaty voice guardedly pleasant, as she took a seat in front of his desk. “What’s up?”
“What we are about to discuss, Araella, is potentially the most serious breach of Alliance security since the Drakh were able to learn the location of the new technology destroyer shipyard…” Westcastle paused, then, and sighed. “Hell, forget that, it’s probably worse.”
“Sounds serious.” Dechene noted with a frown.
“The situation that has developed in the aftermath of the most recent Drakh attack on the ‘Excalibur’ is, to put it mildly, not something I was expecting. A short time ago, Val’na Tikopai of the ‘Shard of Night’ forwarded her own report of the engagements conducted during that operation, and also one other piece of information… somehow, an external group was able to learn the location of Na’lai Klairika Alidiae’s fighter during the battle, and subsequently removed her from the field, their destination and identity unknown at first.
In a more recent communiqué,” he concluded, “The identity of those kidnappers was revealed – they’re Brakiri, Araella… possibly working for the Alidiae matriarch, herself.”
Dechene whistled. “Serious is an understatement… ‘incredibly dangerous’ is a more accurate description, in my opinion.”
“Exactly so. The crew of the ‘Shard’ are only seven months into their deployment, and now there’s a very real chance their existence may be revealed to the galaxy at large, if we don’t move on this now.”
“It’s too soon,” Dechene agreed. “The recent attack on the ‘Excalibur’ is proof of that – Gideon and his people still need our help, at least for the time being.”
Westcastle nodded. “That’s where you come in. I need you to rendezvous with the ‘Shard of Night’ near the edge of Brakiri territory, go in with a covert team assembled from her crew, and attempt to extract Na’lai Alidiae from the trap she’s fallen into. At the same time, we have to assume that the Brakiri loyal to her mother will attempt to interrogate her… and that she may be coerced into revealing information about the ‘Shard’ and its mission.”
‘And that they will then move to sell the information they’ve acquired to the highest bidder.” Dechene mused, her eyes narrow with speculation. “They’re Brakiri, after all – backstabbing like this is all part of their economic game.”
“We cannot allow that to happen.” Westcastle replied. “For the mission of the ‘Shard’ to be compromised at this stage, and in this fashion, is not an outcome I will accept.”
“I understand, sir… please, let me summarize the details of my mission for you. You want me to go in there, rescue one kidnapped Ranger, and tidy up the mess, up to and including terminating the lives of any Brakiri who have learned about the ‘Shard’ and its mission. Correct so far?”
“Be careful on this one, Araella.” Westcastle warned. “Don’t rock the boat too much... just get the job done, rescue Na’lai Alidiae, and get the hell out of there in one piece. Clear?”
“As crystal.” And with that said, Dechene smoothly rose to depart, but then she paused, and turned back to face him. “One more thing, sir… if Alidiae has been reprogrammed and cannot be saved, what then? If she has reverted, and intends to support the sale of the data?”
“Then Na’lai Alidiae may have to die as well.”, William replied, his expression now troubled. “Again, use your judgment carefully on this one, Anla’shok Dechene. Now get going -- Val’na Quintara and his White Star are waiting for you upstairs.”
* * *
[Cue Dramatic Music]
KLAIRIKA ALIDIAE
We are the Watchers...
[Klairika standing on the bridge of the SHARD OF NIGHT, an image of the EXCALIBUR hanging in the air in front of her.]
SHEYNELL KEYNES
We are the Warriors.
[Images: Sheynell at the tactical station, the battlecruiser firing its main gun and destroying a Drakh capital ship]
LARIEKEN
We are the Guardians...
[Image: Larieken defending his Captain against Z'shailyl attackers, warrior pike in hand]
VEYSHAHK
We are the Healers.
[Image: Veyshahk at his desk in MedSection, an image of the Drakh virus on his computer screen.]
DASOURI and NICHOLAS DAWSON
We are the exiles...
[Image: Nicholas in Engineering, Dasouri at the helm of the SHARD]
JULIA TIKOPAI
And I am the Seeker.
[Image: Julia's face, lit by candles, the stars of the Galaxy beyond]
KLAIRIKA ALIDIAE
We are the Rangers of the SHARD OF NIGHT, in this, the Earth Year 2267.
[Image: The SHARD OF NIGHT enters, from the left...]
JULIA TIKOPAI
This is our story.
[... before engaging darklight mode, and going into hyperspace.]
* * *
STAR AND CIRCLE:
“THE SEEKER’S FIRE”
* * *
‘STAR AND CIRCLE’ created by David Goldingay <dgolding@connect.ab.ca>
Legal Disclaimer:
BABYLON 5, CRUSADE and all characters and situations thereof are the creations and copyrighted property of J. Michael Straczynski and Babylonian Productions. This series is a non-profit creation for the purposes of private entertainment only. Original characters and situations are copyright of the author, 1997-2000.
* * *
Coming soon: Act I of Episode 11: "Possessive Necessities"
* * *
Return to "The Seeker's Fire" Episode Index