Captain Burton's Discovery


On March 16, 2134, Star Control Captain I. Burton, a highly respected 28-year old female Earthling, was leading a task force of heavy cruisers on a deep recon into what was believed to be a friendly sector near the Zeeman-Vela star cluster. Burton was brilliant and beautiful, with wide-set deep blue eyes, a white even-toothed smile, and silky straw-colored hair. She also had a figure that turned heads, even aboard a warship hurtling through deep space. She had just taken a navigational star fix when the ships from Earth were suddenly ambushed by an elite force of Androsynth Guardian combat vessels. The Androsynth ships had been modified for extended blazer mode, giving them increased speed and range. The task force was cut to shreds and only Burton's vessel, the Tobermoon, escaped immediate destruction. Knowing the Tobermoon could not outrun the Guardian ships, Captain Burton engaged in a desperate ploy to save the ship and crew. Fear crinkling the corners of her deep blue eyes, she warped her craft toward the heart of Zeeman's Star, a nearby supergiant sun. She had a desperate plan, a last ditch ploy she prayed would confuse the pursuers' sensors. The bridge crew began to panic as heat in the cabin climbed to oven-like temperatures. Two enlisted men finally broke under the pressure and came for Burton, terror in their eyes and sweat pouring down their faces. But the captain had guts as well as beauty. She drew her sidearm and held the mutineers off, gaining the precious minutes she needed. Finally, the cabin temperatures now nearing 150 degrees Fahrenheit, she judged they were close enough to the titanic star for her plan to work. As the Tobermoon's outer hull began to liquify, Burton jettisoned the ship's entire stock of nuclear missles and detonated them. From the Androsynths' perspective, the vessel they were chasing had exploded when it flew too close to the superhot sun.

As the Androsynth task force warped out of the system, a severely damaged Tobermoon slowly emerged from its hiding place behind Zeeman's Star. Burton ordered a damage report. As she'd suspected, the craft sustained severe damage. Worse, the ship's engineers informed her they couldn't make repairs without a planetfall on a world with a breathable atmosphere. Like most supergiant stars, Zeeman did not have any Earth-like planets in orbit around it. The Tobermoon limped through space for almost a week before Hyper-Radar reconnaissance located a hospitable planet orbiting the dwarf star Vela. The planet was called Vela II, and it proved to have both an oxygen rich atmosphere and deposits of metal ore the humans could refine and use to repair their ship.

After a successful landing, Burton ordered the engineers to begin repairs. She sent the rest of the crew off to explore their surroundings. It was only pure chance that a young ensign chose to enter an unremarkable cave in a nearby hillside. What he found within the cave was the most remarkable discovery of the century -- a huge underground installation, the size of a small city, built in the distant past by an extinct race known only as the Precursors. The cave was massive, over 2500 meters long and averaging 50 meters from floor to ceiling. Off the main tunnel were countless side passages and hidden niches, almost all crammed with futuristic equipment and hundreds of long-dormant robots. Halfway down the main gallery, a deep crevasse sliced across the tunnel floor, evidence of a tremendous prehistoric earthquake that had offset the adjoining walls by more than ten meters. Over the centuries, water trickling into the cave from the planet's surface had carried countless minute traces of calcium carbonate that settled out as lime. As the limestone sediment built up, the deposits covered much of the Precursors' wonderous machinery with a smooth coating called flowstone that was now five to ten meters thick in places. Artifacts of this powerful and technologically advanced alien species had been found in every quarter of known space. Yet this was the first time an entire Precursor base had been discovered. Captain Burton recognized that the wealth of advanced technology could bring the Alliance victory over the Ur-Quan -- but only if scientists could be brought to Vela II to study the fantastic find.

Realizing that the surrounding region of space could fall under the control of the enemy at any time, Burton accelerated repairs to the Tobermoon and rocketed back to Earth at emergency warp speed to report her findings to her superiors at Star Control. Within a week, the Tobermoon was on the return leg to Vela II, crammed full of hastily assembled scientific equipment and experts on both the Precursor's civilization and their advanced xenotechnology.

Expedition to Vela II


The most respected but least liked Precursor expert in the expedition to Vela II was Professor Jules Farnsworth. The professor was well known for his formidable intellect and his extensive knowledge of the Precursor civilization. Though recognized as a great mind, Farnsworth was also widely disliked for his flamboyant egotism and rude impatience with peers who did not hang on his every word. The man was simply impossible to work with for anyone with a modicum of self-respect.

It wasn't long before both his fellow scientists and Captain Burton rued the decision to bring Farnsworth along, for the professor did little but complain during the voyage from Earth to Vela II. Yet, as irksome as he was, Professor Farnsworth proved his worth almost immediately upon his arrival at the Precursor installation. Within hours he located the base's deactivated central control computer. While the professor worked feverishly on the ancient alien's computer, Captain Burton received a fateful message from the Star Control High Command.

As feared, the Ur-Quan had smashed through the defensive lines drawn between the Mira and Indi constellations. Star Control reconnaissance ships reported taht a large Hierarchy task force was hurtling toward the Vela star system. Captain Burton was ordered to evacuate all personnel from Vela II and return to Earth immediately. Burton's heart beat like a hammer in her chest as she read the rest of the message. Star Control was paranoid that the Precursor's advanced technology would fall into the hands of the hated Ur-Quan. To prevent the Hierarchy from obtaining these ancient secrets, Burton was ordered to install nuclear devices throughout the Precursor intallation. Once the Tobermoon was in orbit, she was to set off the weapons and destroy the entire complex.

The non-military members of the Vela II research team were stunned by the order. Destroy the most signifigant discovery of the century? It was unthinkable! Professor Farnsworth was especially distraught for he was in the middle of several critical research projects that promised to unlock ancient Precursor technical secrets. In an uncharacteristic display of courage, Farnsworth offered to remain behind, promising to detonate the nuclear bombs if the Ur-Quan found the Precursor caves. The majority of the other scientists and engineers also asked to stay on Vela II and continue their research. Finally, Captain Burton was persuaded that saving the treasure trove of advanced Precursor technology was more important that obeying a direct order from the High Command. Still, she didn't trust Farnsworth to detonate the nuclear bombs should the Ur-Quan land. She decided the only logical thing to do was to remain behind herself.

On August 11, 2134 Captain Burton gave over command of the Tobermoon to First Officer Chi, with orders to leave the star system immediately. He was to return to Earth at best speed and brief the High Command on the expedition's desperate attempt to save the Precursor installation. Chi promised to return with a relief party and supplies as soon as the Ur-Quan attack was repulsed. After the Tobermoon had lifted-off, the team quickly moved all their equipment deep into the cave system and obscured all signs of their presence from the planet's surface. Now, if an Ur-Quan reconnaissance ship scanned the terrain, Vela II would appear uninhabited. The weeks turned into months as Captain Burton and her team of 200 waited for the return of the Tobermoon.

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