Date: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 14:09:57 -0500 (EST)
From: SeaLady100 <SeaLady100@aol.com>
Subject: [seaQuest-ff] king Goerge's Army, Part 8B
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On the _King George_, Dr. Perry sat quietly at Lucas’ side. There was nothing
more she could do for the lieutenant, try as she might. The damage was just
so extensive... he’d have to be conscious before she could gauge it, but he
couldn’t regain consciousness until they repaired some of the damage. It was
a Catch-22. 

She sat quietly for more than an hour, until she felt a hand on her shoulder.
She lifted her head sleepily, and was confronted by an older man in an
outdated black UEO jumpsuit. He wore the patches of the first _seaQuest_, and
his nametag read "CPO Crocker". 

"Can I help you?" she asked politely.

Crocker nodded. "Yes, ma’am. I think you can. I now you’re not gonna believe
me, but I’m..." he stopped, embarrassed. "I’m a friend of Lucas’. I _was_ a
friend... until I died."

Perry swallowed. "Until you... died?" There were strange things on this ship,
but she’d thought that Wideman was the only ghost aboard.

Crocker nodded. "Now I’m sort of Lucas’ guardian angel. He is in between Life
and Death right now. He has to decide if he wants to come back, but where’s
he’s at is a pretty tempting place."

Perry didn’t know what to make of this. "Just where is he? Spiritually
speaking."

"On _seaQuest_. The first one. That’s his perception of Heaven. Spending
eternity with Captain Bridger and the rest of the crew."

Perry caught that. "Bridger isn’t dead."

Crocker shook his head. "Doesn’t matter. Lucas wants them there, so their
there in whatever manner he’d like. It’s his eternity. He can do what he
wants with it."

Perry shook her head. "I wish there was something I could do for him. There’s
not."

Crocker stepped back from her. He smiled sadly. "Yes there is. What you’re
doing now is all that can be done."

He vanished before Perry could ask him what he meant.



Aurora was in the ballroom, looking at the decorations hanging from the
ceiling and on the walls. She and Lucas had spent hours getting the room
ready. Now, because of Deegan and his insanity, Lucas would never get to see
the room for what it had become. A place for joy and merriment. 

Her gaze strayed to the ‘head’ of the room. It was there that Wideman had
placed Lillian’s body. Now, rather than a coffin, there was a table, on which
rested an old violin left behind by the orchestra. She walked slowly to the
instrument, studying it as she walked.

It was a Stradivarius, one that had belonged to the soloist Lord Deegan had
imported for the wedding. It was beautifully carved and polished, even the
shine was still within the wood. A music stand stood close by and there were
sheets of music set up, ready to be played. She picked one up and glanced at
it. It was a song that she had learned to love as a little girl in
English-held Dublin, when her father had been stationed there. An old IRA
soldier, well in his fifties, had been singing it as she’d wandered past a
pub. She had listened and learned, then gone home to sing it to Father.

She replaced the sheet. She was tempted to flee the room, for while the
violin was just coincidence, but the music she had loved... That was too much.
But a force greater than anything she had ever felt before told her to stay
and play. So she sat down in a comfortable chair with the violin and picked
up the bow, checking the strings. They were still good. She put the violin to
her shoulder and played the song. After playing through it several times, she
began to sing.


"‘The minstrel boy to the war is gone,
In the ranks of death you will find him;
His father's sword he hath girded on,
And his wild harp slung behind him;
‘Land of Song!’ cried the warrior bard,
‘Tho' all the world betrays thee,
One sword, at least, thy rights shall guard,
One faithful harp shall praise thee!’

The Minstrel fell! But the foeman's steel
Could not bring that proud soul under;
The harp he lov'd ne'er spoke again,
For he tore its chords asunder;
And said ‘No chains shall sully thee,
Thou soul of love and brav'ry!
Thy songs were made for the pure and free
They shall never sound in slavery!’


She sang it more times than she would ever remember. She played for hours,
and sang, not caring what she did, so long as she did _something_. Lillian
had said that the only thing anyone could do for Lucas was to be waiting for
him on this side. So Aurora waited. Her own way.



The team from _seaQuest_ finished their jobs and were preparing to go back to
the ship. It was very late in the evening and Christmas was the next day. The
crew had hoped to be able to spend time with their families, but this mission
had changed those plans. They would hold a celebration on the _seaQuest_, as
well as one on the _King George_. But it wouldn’t be much of a Christmas
there. Everyone was preoccupied with Lucas’ condition and repairing the
damage done when Deegan had tried to flood the ship. Hull siphons brought by
the _seaQuest_ engineers were draining the deck out, but it would take a
while to finish, to say nothing of attempting to fix the damage the water had
done. There would be no holidays for the crew of the _King George_ this year.


Ford was wandering the halls when he heard the sound of music coming from the
ballroom. He walked in that direction until he could identify the song. ‘The
Minstrel Boy’ by Thomas Moore. A female voice was singing it, a horse voice,
but a soft soprano, and the sounds of a violin were also heard.

He entered the ball room. It was gaily decorated for a party and by the looks
of it, only recently had it been done. In the front of the room, near a dais,
was the player. It was Stratharian. Everyone had been looking for her lately,
and it appeared that she had been here a while. Her hair was strung about and
she looked like she hadn’t slept for a while.

Ford walked up to her. She apparently hadn’t heard him. As Ford got closer,
he could see that she was exhausted. He stood almost over her shoulder as she
played the song flawlessly. He noticed blood streaking her hands. That was
when he made his presence known by grabbing the bow from her hands. She
gasped in pain and surprise.

Ford took the violin from her hands and set it on the floor. Then he turned
her hands palms-up. Nearly every one of her fingers were blistered, and many
of the blisters had burst and had bled as a result. There were also some deep
cuts where the heated strings had dug into her fingers from carelessness. He
took her gently by the wrists, careful to not touch her hands and began to
lead her away from the front of the room, towards the exit. When she realized
what he was doing, she began to fight him.

"No!" she cried hoarsely, her voice so weak it was barely above a whisper. "I
can’t leave. Not yet. Not yet. I promised to say and hear the waltz..." She
was
so out it that Ford was able to grab her by the shoulders, something he could
never have done otherwise, and shake her. 

"Commander Stratharian, it’s Commander Ford. I’m taking you to Doctor Perry
and she’s going to take a look at your hands. Your hurt, and we’re going to
take care of you." Ford realized as he said it that it was truer than he had
thought. For the past six months, these people had been in complete
isolation. Stratharian was a military officer for life, but she had to deal
with a command she hadn’t expected, an injured friend, and a saboteur she’d
thought she could’ve trusted. She was under stress that could have killed
most people.

She reluctantly let him continue to take her from the room, but several steps
out of the door, she sagged and fell to the floor, unconscious. Ford picked
her up, and cradling her in his arms began to walk away from the ballroom.


On the music stand, the music rustled. The crisp white rice paper began to
yellow and curl, and the words blurred. They cleared a moment later, but they
were not the same as they had been a moment ago. Now they read:

"Waltz of the Dead"




To Be Continued...
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Date: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 14:10:29 -0500 (EST)
From: SeaLady100 <SeaLady100@aol.com>
Subject: [seaQuest-ff] King George's Army, Part 8
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King George's Army, Chapter 8

It was cold. That was all Hudson could think about when they entered the open
compartment of the _King George_. The water was as close to freezing as
seawater could get, which was _very_ cold.

Over the intercom, Stratharian spoke to the team. "Okay, we’re here. Watch
yourselves, there’s debris all over in here. This used to be an engine
room..."
She walked around a piece of a gear shaft. "That’s what I mean. Be careful."

They navigated the room quickly. It had been eleven minutes since the
flooding had started. The hull plates they had installed had allowed for the
section to be cut off, and therefor only threatened a few unused rooms. But
the stress on the superstructure might be enough to crack the rest of the
plates and imploded the ship. They had to work quickly.

Kimura and Ford held the repair plate. Stratharian got it into position with
Ford’s help and she and Kimura began to weld it into place while Hudson held
it properly.

It was hard work, but after about ten additional minutes, it was done. The
weld was finished.

Stratharian sighed heavily. "Thank God we got it in time."

Hudson wasn’t so relieved. "If Deegan was the saboteur, why’d he let himself
be killed in the sabotage? The _seaQuest_ was here. Why not sink the boat and
wait for a rescue?"

"Because none of us are leaving this boat for two years except Ensign Lewis.
Once her replacement’s here and she’s gone we seal the place off for two
years. No evacuations whatsoever."

Kimura piped up. "Why did you chose to do that, Commander? It doesn’t seem to
fit with the ideals of the UEO."

Stratharian laughed softly as they walked back to the dive room. "Even though
the UEO is the major contributor to the project, it’s being run by the EDC, a
more fatalistic group of nations within the UEO.  Also, ‘No surrender, no
retreat’ was the division motto at SEAL training, and since most of the crew
were trained together at Coronado..." She laughed. "I guess you can figure out
that we can take care of ourselves"

Monroe, on the bridge, cut into the comm. "Commander... I think you and Hudson
had better get back up here A-SAP. It’s Wolenczak..." The tone of his voice
wasn’t good.

"On our way."



When Stratharian and the others arrived in Wideman’s quarters, they were
shocked. Perry had attached Lucas to every type of monitor available, and had
oxygen tubes in his throat and nose. There were i.v.’s and needles stuck into
him in both arms, and there were bandages around his eyes. The bandages were
thick with blood.

Perry stood up from her seat next to Lucas. She walked over to the cluster of
officers, a grim look on her face. She spoke to all of them, but her focus
was on Stratharian. 

"While you were repairing the hull, he went into cardiac arrest. We were able
to start his heart again, but there was a period of time where no blood
reached the brain."

Stratharian, who knew little of medicine except battle wounds, asked what
that meant.

"He was without oxygen for eight minutes. After six, there is irreversible
brain damage. If you add that to his existent injuries, the chances of his
ever coming out of this coma are very slim."

Stratharian took the news in stride, and didn’t allow her emotions to show.
Weakness was a sign of failure, and failure was unacceptable. "Thank you for
trying, Doctor Perry." She turned to the men and women from the _seaQuest_.
"I suggest that you all try and get some sleep. If anyone needs me for
anything, I’ll be in my cabin." 

She turned away from what was left of Lucas and walked out the door. It was a
short trip down the halls to reach the first class cabin that was hers. It
had been Lillian’s cabin during the _King George’s_ maiden voyage. She had
wanted it so she could better understand how Lillian had felt, trapped at the
bottom of the sea for eighteen months. Now, for the first time since she’d
arrived, Aurora felt like she was trapped in a tomb.


In an attempt to comfort herself, she opened the top drawer of the desk and
withdrew Lillian’s journal. She flipped it to a random page and began to read
aloud.


	" ‘May 13th, 1913

Today my beloved Robert passed away. He contracted pneumonia while trying to
fix the engine. Captain Wideman called it a tragic circumstance. It is right
to call it tragic, but more honest to call it murder. I am trapped alone with
him now. I have nothing in my heart but venom.’ "


	
Aurora stopped reading. 

The unreleased emotions of the past two days and the fear for Lucas released
themselves in one burst. She began to weep, and no matter what she did, she
could not stop.

After several minutes, a voice, soft and feminine, could be heard. "You shed
the tears you dare not let others see."

Aurora turned to see Lillian Stratharian standing at the foot of the bed
across the room. She was dressed in the same gown she had worn when Wideman
had placed her body in the ballroom. Aurora wiped away the tears that were on
her face, only to have them replaced by more.

"I wept for Robert more times than I can remember. You weep for young Lucas,
tho he is with those who love him." She saw the look on Aurora’s face, then
smiled pleasantly. "He is not dead, never fear. But where he is now is a
place I cannot describe to you. There are no words that do it justice. Those
he loved and lost are there. They will care for him until he makes the
choice."

"What choice?"

"To come back to you or to go to them. When Robert passed away... he did not
have the choice. But Lucas does. If he wants this life, he will fight for it.
If not... then all we can do is mourn him." Lillian was straight and to the
point. Just like Aurora had been told by her grandmother. 

"What can I do to help him, Lillian?"

Lillian spoke softly. "There is nothing to be done but be here for him,
should he return."



Lucas opened his eyes. Instead of Engineering or his cabin on the _George_,
he found himself standing on the bridge of the _seaQuest_. The first one. The
one that had been destroyed trying to save the world from his father’s
mistake. But something was wrong. There was no one on the bridge, and he
doubted that there was anyone on the entire ship. If this was the ship.

He walked around the bridge, smiling as he ran his hands over the different
stations. He spent more time as his old station and at Captain Bridger’s
chair. There were so many fond memories on this ship. If only his friends
were there...

As if they had been hidden from view until that moment, the crew suddenly
appeared. Bridger sat in the command chair, Ortiz sat at sonar, Tim O’Neill
was at communications, Hitchcock sat at the controls of the HR probe, looking
at something or another. Ben Krieg stood next to her, pestering her as usual.
Dr. Westphalen was animated about something and was sharing it with the
captain. Ford was next to Darwin’s tank, and was talking to the dolphin about
something. Everything was as it had been... in 2018, when he had been sixteen
years old.

"This isn’t right." He said to himself.

From behind him, a voice said "It’s as right as you want it to be, Lucas."

Lucas whirled around to face Manlow Crocker. The chief looked as out of place
as Lucas felt. He was in his dress uniform, while the rest wore the jumpsuit.
He seemed ill at ease amongst the men and women he’d served with.

Lucas took a step forward and was face to face with the chief. "What do you
mean, ‘As real as I want it to be’? This isn’t real. This is the past, Chief.
This is sixteen years ago. Half these people are dead or out of the UEO." He
ran to Ortiz’s side. He waved a hand in front of the young sonarman’s face.
There was no reaction.

"Look at Ortiz! He died on Hyperion when the wall collapsed..." Lucas stopped.
"How did I know that?"

Crocker smiled. "Lucas... I don’t know how to explain all of this. You’re in
that state between Life and Death. This," he said as he gestured to the ship
around them, "Is what you can have as an afterlife. Eternity on the
_seaQuest_ with the crew. Countless adventures, nothing twice unless you want
it that way. You can be an officer, start a war..."

"Start a war?!"

Crocker shrugged. "It’s your afterlife. Do what you want." He paused, then
spoke softly. "Most people aren’t given this chance at all, Lucas. If you
take it, you’ll be one of a precious few."

Lucas was more confused than ever. "Why me? Why do I get this chance and so
few others do?"

Crocker sighed. "I don’t know. You just have."

Lucas looked longingly at his old position. "Can I stay for a while, but not
choose death?"

Crocker nodded happily. "For a while. I don’t know how long. You’ll know when
you have to choose."

Lucas turned to survey the bridge. When he looked to where Crocker had been,
he was gone. Bridger cleared his throat. Lucas turned. "Yes, Captain?"

Bridger half-smiled. "Are you planning on standing there all day, Lucas? Or
are you going to go to your station and answer that call from your wife?" He
laughed. "I don’t suggest keeping the Commander waiting, Lieutenant. Even
though she’s English, she still has quite the temper."

A smile brighter than a super-nova spread across Lucas’ face. "Aye, sir." He
ran up the stairs as fast as he could. Even if it was just the afterlife, it
was more wonderful than he could have ever imagined...



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Date: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 14:23:07 -0500 (EST)
From: SeaLady100 <SeaLady100@aol.com>
Subject: [seaQuest-ff] King George's Army, Part 7A
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I'm sending out parts 7 and 8 as a precursor to the newest installment of the
adventures aboard the King George

King George's Army
Part 7


_R.M.S. King George_
0945 NCQ Time
23 December

Lucas lay on the bed of the Captain’s Quarters. He was heavily drugged, more
to keep him from being bothered than anything. He was in a coma, so he
couldn’t feel much of anything in the way of pain. Lewis was checking his
vitals while Stratharian and Monroe looked on. Monroe had his hand around
Aurora’s waist, letting her know that he was there. 

Unseen as yet by anyone, another figure stood as silent sentinel in the corner
of the room. He wore a double-breasted uniform with the oak leaves and acorns
of the line, and the stripes of his captaincy. He stood a silent guard to the
young officer in his quarters, like a father would when a child were hurt.

It had been more than a century since Phineas Wideman had cared about anyone
but Lillian. But when Lucas had come aboard the _King George_ from the
_seaQuest_, there had been a natural instinct to protect him. Wideman had
never felt that way about anyone, not even his own brothers. Now, seeing the
boy in pain the way he was, it _hurt_ him…

Lewis finished her work. She looked up to Monroe and Stratharian. "He’s damned
lucky. If you hadn’t gotten his heart started again…" she looked to Monroe,
who had started the compressions as soon as Lucas had flatlined. "He should be
dead by all accounts."

Stratharian looked Lewis right in the eyes. "Will he live, Ensign?"

Lewis shrugged. "I don’t know. His back wasn’t broken. That’s a good sign. But
his neck suffered considerable trauma. I can tell you that if he survives the
next few hours, he’ll have to be taken off the ship. There’s no way he can…"

Stratharian shook her head. "No. We’ll not take him off until the deadline.
That was the agreement we _all_ made. ‘Dead or alive, no evacuation until July
4, 2036.’ That was the deal. If you didn’t like it, you didn’t have to come."

Lewis, who had a hot temper to begin with, was enraged. "Is this project worth
his _life_, Commander? Is it worth dying for?"

Straight-faced and boot-laced serious, Aurora answered. "Lucas thought so. I
think so. Captain Wideman, Robert Fitzgerald, and Lillian Stratharian lived
down here. They _died_ down here. Why shouldn’t we?"

Lewis was stunned. "Do you _want_ him to die here?"

Aurora was trying to manage her own temper. "Of course not. However, if he
dies here, then it is cognizant with the will of God. Lucas prepared himself
for that possibility. We _all_ did. Even you, Ensign. I remember sending your
parents a letter. Arlington Heights, wasn’t it?"

Lewis turned her head away. She had signed on for this, but she hated to see
people suffer. She looked around the room and screamed in shock. In the corner
stood a man whom she’d never seen, in a uniform unlike any she knew. He hadn’t
been there when they’d brought Lucas up, and no one had entered the room
since.

"What is that?!" she cried, pointed to the figure.

Aurora looked over. Casually, she replied, "Oh, that’s just Captain Wideman,
master of the _George_. Lived down here for a year and a half. Died in 1914."
She paused, then remarked offhandedly "He’s a ghost."

But Lewis hadn’t needed to hear her to figure that out. When the captain had
doffed his hat to the Virginian, she’d fainted dead away. Wideman looked down
at the unconscious woman, then to Aurora.

"I’m terribly sorry, Commander."

Aurora smiled. In sightings of the captain in the last six months, she herself
was second only to Lucas. He had prolonged conversations about the ship with
him at all hours of the day and night. She just talked about the history of
the last century.

Wideman disappeared from view, but Aurora knew he was still in the room. She
looked at Monroe. He had taken away his arm from her waist when Lewis had
antagonized her. "Mr. Monroe, stay here with Lucas and Lewis. When she wakes
up, send her to her quarters for a rest. I’m going to the Radio Room to
contact the UEO and apprise them of the situation. It appears we have a
saboteur on board who won’t hesitate to kill."



_seaQuest DSV_ 
Six Hours Later


"…I don’t need to tell you how important this project is, Captain."  McGath
said. Hudson rolled his eyes. Of course he knew how important it was. One of
his people was in charge of the damned thing.

"No, sir. I’m well aware of the tenants of the _Horizon_ project. My
lieutenant thought it up. What I don’t understand is why _we’re_ being sent.
It will take us at least two days to get there. The UEO must have a ship
closer to them than us."

McGath sighed so loudly that it could be heard across the bridge. He looked
nervous. "Can we speak privately, Captain?"

"Just a moment, sir."

Hudson looked to Ford. "Have the Secretary transferred to the vid in the
Conference Room."

"Aye, sir."



After Hudson left, Tony looked over at Tim. "What’s that all about? I thought
that _Horizon_ project thing was Lucas’ bowl of crackers."

Tim shook his head. "I don’t know, Tony. But I have a feeling we’re going to
find out."



Hudson addressed the Secretary General. "Yes, sir?"

McGath cleared his throat. "The UEO has been advised by Commander Stratharian
that there is a saboteur on the _King George_. The main power cable was
severed and they barely had time to repair it."

Hudson was confused more now than he had been on the bridge. "Where does
_seaQuest_ come into this?"

"This saboteur did more than severed a power cable. Whoever it is, they also
tried to murder one of the members of the project." McGath seemed to hesitate
at that. Should he tell Hudson that it was Wolenczak who’d nearly died… who
had for a moment been dead? Hudson had a look of shock on his face.

"Sir, Lieutenant Wolenczak and Commander Stratharian hand-picked that team.
The notion of a saboteur is… absurd." Hudson wasn’t about to say that he
hadn’t liked this idea, not to the Secretary General of the UEO.

McGath grimaced slightly. "That’s what I thought until this morning. Colonel
Ian Stratharian, the overall head of this project, sent me the files of
everyone on the _King George_, and two of them weren’t picked by Wolenczak.
They’re holdovers from the start-up crew. And one of them has a history of
taking grudges too far…"



"Mr. Ford." Hudson said as he walked onto the bridge. "I want you to plot a
course directly for the _King George_. The UEO is sending us to resolve a
situation of some importance there."

The looks on the faces of the bridge crew were of confusion. The _King
George_? Wasn’t that a restricted area until the _Horizon_ project was
finished? The look on the faces of the bridge crew that knew what was there
were even more confused. There was supposed to be no contact with them unless
it was an emergency.

"Captain," Ford said quietly. "That is supposed to be off-limits to everyone…"

Hudson nodded. "I’m well aware of what it’s supposed to be, Mr. Ford. But the
original plan of the project didn’t take into account sabotage and attempted
murder, now did it?"

Ford shrugged. "It was _Lucas’_ idea, sir. He just might have taken that into
account. They did convert a section of the passenger area into a brig…" At
Hudson’s questioning glance, he shrugged again. "Lucas showed me the plans of
the boat before they went aboard."

Hudson had a menacing look on his face. There was more to this than Ford could
possibly think he knew. Hudson hadn’t believed it himself at first. "Just plot
the course, Commander. I’ll explain later." It was a promise.
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Date: Fri, 16 Jan 1998 14:23:32 -0500 (EST)
From: SeaLady100 <SeaLady100@aol.com>
Subject: [seaQuest-ff] King George's Army, Part 7B
To: seaquest-ff@stgenesis.org
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Office of Colonel Ian Stratharian
UEO European Command Center
1200 NCQ Time
24 December


"…Captain Hudson authorized the use of the aqua jets, and the _seaQuest_ will
arrive this evening, ahead of schedule." Stratharian said to his daughter. 

The link was static-filled but understandable. "That’s good news, sir. But I
want us to have as little contact with them as possible. We have to preserve
the integrity of the project. We can’t have outside interference."

The colonel smiled slightly at his daughter’s dedication. "I know that’s what
you wanted, but you didn’t count on a saboteur, dear. Besides, the main focus
of the project doesn’t begin until mid-January. _That’s_ when you seal off the
ship for the trial run. You’ve got time."

Aurora shook her head. "I know. Have you advised _seaQuest_ of the attempt on
Lucas’ life?" She was concerned that they might try to interfere with the
project on account of Lucas’ being from the _seaQuest_.

"I informed Secretary General McGath of the entire situation, and he assured
me that they know of an attempted murder, but that no one on _seaQuest_ knows
that it was Lucas who was injured. How is he, by the way?"

Aurora sighed. "Ensign Lewis is still with him. She says he may come out in
fifteen minutes, or he may not come out of it at all. His neck wasn’t broken,
but his shoulderblade was cracked. His eyes began to bleed again yesterday,
and…" she stopped, not wanted to go on, but knowing that she must. "He’s
bleeding in the brain. A skull fracture. That’s what’s keeping him
unconscious. That and all the drugs she’s pumping in him."

Stratharian shook his head. "It a terrible thing that this happened. Have you
found who did it yet?"

Aurora nodded. "Monroe was knocked unconscious a few minutes before Lucas was
attacked. He says it was Deegan, who was missing when Lucas went to repair the
power cable. Strange thing is… Monroe was roused by what he described as ‘an
old bald guy in a chief’s uniform.’ " She was as confused by this as Monroe
was, except Lucas had told her stories about Crocker. She had been the one who
told him that Crocker had died. 

Stratharian considered this for a moment. "Wasn’t the ship ‘haunted’ when she
was visited by Bridger and Lucas the first time? There was something about
that in the report.."
 
Aurora was quiet for a moment. "Yes, it was. By Captain Wideman and Lillian
Stratharian… Great-Grandfather’s sister." She rummaged around in the desk she
was using and pulled out an old diary. "Dr. Kristen Westphalen gave me
Lillian’s diary before we left. She said it might help. Captain Bridger gave
Lucas Captain Wideman’s log. Both have been extremely useful over last several
months, and I have just begun to re-read Lillian’s diary again."

There was a few more minutes of meaningless chatting, then the link was
severed. But not before Colonel Stratharian gave his daughter a goodbye
message. 

"Merry Christmas, Aurora."

"Merry Christmas, Father."



The _seaQuest_ was within launch range of the sunken liner. Hudson, Piccolo,
Ford, Dr. Perry, Dagwood and Kimura were going out, along with a repair team
to fix the line break permanently. They were all aboard and the launch was
nearing the ship. There was no place to dock, however, and if the cut into the
hull, they’d compromise structural integrity. So Commander Stratharian was
going to have the emergency launch at the aft end of the ship temporarily
detached and sent to the sea floor. They would recover it later.



Captain Hudson had never liked studying shipwrecks. He had never liked seeing
them and he was certain he would hate being _on_ one. He had decided to lead
the team that went on to the _King George_. He wanted to find out why the hell
there was a saboteur on the ship when Wolenczak had tried to make sure that
nothing like this would happen. 



When the launch docked, the doors were slow to open. When they did, the team
filed out, officers and Dagwood first. They were met by Commander Stratharian.
Wolenczak was no where to be found.

Aurora was polite, but obviously under a great deal of stress. "Welcome aboard
the _R.M.S. King George_. I think I know all of you, except for Commander
Kimura. I’m Commander Stratharian, the EX-O of the _George_ during the
_Horizon_ project." She shook Kimura’s hand. "I’m afraid we have a security
problem here, Captain. All our information tells us that the same man who
sabotaged the power line is also responsible for the attempt on one of the
officer’s lives. The saboteur, as I am sure you know, Captain, is Lieutenant
Thomas Deegan."

Hudson raised his eyebrows at that. "I was told that it was most likely Ensign
Lewis. She has a mental instability…"

Stratharian sighed. "The same mental instability that everyone with her name
has had for the last two hundred years. She’s as sane as anyone I’ve ever
evaluated for BUD/S. Besides, she had an alibi. She was in Medical with Grey.
Broken toe." She grimaced. "It’s Deegan. Hasn’t been seen since the incident."

Hudson was stunned. "You have searched the ship."

She nodded. "Still are. But understand that this ship is roughly the size of
the _Titanic_. We could search for the next week and not find him. We aren’t
set up for a suspect search. We have, though, confirmed that he is not on any
of the upper five levels and main engineering, which are the levels we use the
most. We’ve sealed those off, closed the doors, dogged them, and sealed the
vents off from the rest. Those that haven’t been checked yet are restricted
except for Engineering personnel and security."

Ford, who had been silent the entire time, finally spoke up. "Commander, where
is Lucas?"

Aurora looked away. She couldn’t met the eyes of Lucas’ former crewmen. She
couldn’t tell them what happened, so she told them where he was. "In Wideman’s
quarters."

Ford still didn’t understand. It showed on his face. She gave in. "I’ll take
you up there right away."

She began to walk towards a marble spiral staircase. Hudson, Ford, and the
rest followed. The repair team went in the direction of Engineering, along
with a security team. They’d already been briefed as to what they would need
to do.


They reached Wideman’s quarters a few minutes later. Along the way,
Stratharian explained some of the changes made to the ship, and what they’d
accomplished in the previous six months since the _seaQuest_ had left.

Outside the door, she stopped. "I have something to tell you all. When
Secretary McGath informed Captain Hudson of the events here, he told him of an
attack on one of the officers. He didn’t tell the captain that it was Lucas
who’d been injured. He was attacked with a crowbar."

Everyone’s eyes bugged when she spoke. It was Ford, not Hudson, who spoke
first. "What?! Is.. Is he all right? I mean, will he…"

Aurora shrugged. "He’s lived this long. But he had a skull fracture and a neck
injury." She looked at Dr. Perry. "Doctor, I’d appreciate it if you’d take a
look. We’ve got a medic, but our doctor won’t arrive until the middle of next
month. Lewis can deal with broken bones, but not anything like this. She’s
trained for decompression sickness and nitrogen narcosis, not attempted
murder."

Perry nodded. "I can try. What kind of equipment do you have?"

"The best there was when we came down. Spectrographs, EKG’s, CAT scanners.
Everything." She sighed. "Not like any of it has helped."

She opened the door and led them inside. Captain Wideman was standing next to
Monroe, who was sleeping. Lucas was still unconscious, and he was a pale shade
of blue, as he had been for the whole day. Wideman turned his attention to
Stratharian as soon as she entered the room.

"Commander. The lieutenant isn’t getting better. He’s in danger of dying.
Something must be done to help him."

Stratharian nodded. "We’ve done what we can. The doctor from _seaQuest_ has
come aboard. She might be able to do something we couldn’t have before."

Hudson couldn’t believe was he was seeing, nor could anyone from the
_seaQuest_. The British commander was having a conversation with a ghost. They
were all stunned speechless, except Dagwood. The Dagger walked slowly forward
until he was about a foot from the captain.

"Lucas say you are a friend. Are you a friend?"

Wideman nodded. "I should like to think that I am. You must be Dagwood. Lucas
spoke about you." He looked at Ford. The spirit had apparently never seen a
Negro in a position like first officer of a super-ship. "You must be Jonathan
Ford. A pleasure to meet you." He bowed formally in Dr. Perry’s direction.
"Doctor, it is an honour." To Tony he smiled jovially. "And you are Mr.
Piccolo. Lucas had some… _interesting_ stories about you. I hope they weren’t
completely true or your captain is in for a time…" He cut himself short. He
welcomed Kimura aboard. He knew who she was and what she had done. He couldn’t
fault her for it. He’d done much worse.

At last he spoke to Captain Hudson. "You, sir, must be Oliver Hudson. Lucas
spoke about you at great length. I hope you know how high he holds you in
esteem."

Hudson nodded. "I hope I’ve lived up to his expectations."


Ten minutes later, Perry and Lewis were deep into conversation about Lucas’
condition. Stratharian didn’t want the rest of the _seaQuest_ people to fret
over him all the time, so she offered them a complete tour. As they were about
to leave, Wideman, who had retreated into the corner, spoke up.

"Perhaps dinner in the ballroom this evening might settle everyone’s nerves?"

Stratharian laughed. They had been planning a Christmas Ball for more than a
month. The room was ready, all it needed were people. "Excellent idea,
Captain." She turned to Hudson. "Captain Hudson, for some time now, the crew
of the _King George_ has been planning a Christmas Ball. It is supposed to be
held tomorrow night, and with Deegan on the loose, we had thought to postpone
it…" She was going to continue, but as she took a breath an explosion rocked
the deck below them. The lights flickered, then came up on battery power.

She grabbed her PAL and turned it on. "This is Stratharian! Report!"

The voice that came back was one of the _seaQuest_ crewmen, a security man
named O’Bryan. "This is O’Bryan! There’s a breach in the bulkhead on the
starboard side of the second engine level! Someone opened a compartment that
was filled with water. The ship is taking on water in the second engine level.
Repeat: the ship is taking on water. And…" he paused, and Stratharian could
hear the sound of rushing water and shouting. "… We found your missing
lieutenant. He’d dead."

"Good riddance." She muttered under her breath. "Can the breach be repaired?"

"I’m no engineer, I can’t tell. But if we can close that door… We might have a
chance. But it was blasted open…" 

Stratharian nodded. "Copy that. Evacuate the level and dog the watertight
hatch at the top of the stairs."

"Aye, ma’am." 

Stratharian put the PAL away and looked at Hudson. "I need three volunteers.
Engineers, preferably. We’ll be cutting into the compartment from the outside
and putting up a barrier from the inside. It’s hazardous, though. That
compartment has been exposed to the sea for more than a century." 

Hudson nodded. "I’m no engineer, but I’ll go."

Ford nodded. "So will I. I’ve had some experience with hull patches. Nothing
like this, but I can try."

Stratharian nodded. "Plus me, that makes three. We need four." She looked
around. "All of my people are trying to survive down there. We need another
body."

Kimura stepped forward. "I’ll go. The Chaodi expect a person to be able to do
everything needed for their ship. I can work with a hull breach."

Stratharian pointed to a hallway. "Down this way is the dive room. It’s been
converted. There are EVA suits in the room next to it. We can gear up there,
then go out."
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