A HARD LESSON LEARNED

By Mr. David R. Dorrycott

Orbiting inverted, a thousand kilometers above Omicron 2C Star Diamonds screens glowed a dull red under the red dwarfs energy bombardment. A strange, spiraling beam emanated from one of the huge long-range communication dishes's mounted near the ships antiquated engine pods. Reaching from the ship it traveled the distance to Omicron 2C's surface. Where it touched the stars surface was noticeably darker, cooler.

Snowaters stood by, monitoring the makeshift 'gate', carefully aware that if anything went wrong her tiny ship would turn to plasma. Taking that into consideration she had sent her two children, under the care of their plant-woman nanny Yuki to the single planet orbiting this star. If the worst happened, Star Diamond would outshine the star below. For about seven seconds.

"Initiate sequence C-9" she ordered, watching the dimensional readouts as more plasma was drained from the tiny star.

<C9 initiate. Sequence steady. Within parameters.> Kalith reported.

"Open the gate one way, then ready the Class One" she ordered.

"Two?" she tiny woman half-whispered. "There's been a probability split?"

<Probability. 100%>

"Can you get a track, how long?" she asked.

"Lock on the higher phase then send in the probe." She closed her eyes. What could possibly have caused a probability split in such a short time she wondered.

Before her a screen flickered, brightening as the signal settled down. Her probe had completed transit. Strange organic shapes filled the screen. Glistening in the probes light, they seemed to pulsate slightly.

"Ready a Class Four" she whispered, studying the screen before her. What in the name of all the Gods could have happened here? "Track on Chrissies signal, maybe then we can find out what went wrong."

<Searching. Signal is strong.>

Her probe moved, swinging around and heading slowly down one of the ?tunnels? Minutes later it stopped before a half metallic, half organic cabin door.

Snowaters grimaced. She could see the organic material move ever so slowly. "Whatever it is, it didn't get here very long ago." She paused, checking specs. "We can't cut through this door with the One, send the Four. It's Maser is powerful enough."

<Stand-by.>

Five minutes later the second probe had bored a hole large enough for the smaller probe to use. Threading the white-hot metal tunnel its cameras showed a horror story made real. Several bodies, some still recognizable lay within the room. Tendrils of organic material covered their bodies. They were being digested.

"Anyone alive?" Snowy asked, her voice betraying her.

<Negative. Not here.>

"Thank Gods" she whispered. "Are you getting life signs from anywhere?"

<Affirmative. Two hundred meters. Seventeen meters Negative Z axes.>

"Drop a bio-lab, then lets go see who's insane enough to still be here."

Almost an hour later the two probes were station keeping outside what remained of a shuttle. Burnt, its engines melted it lay in the shuttlebay like a crippled whale. Extending a manipulator the larger probe gripped the shuttles hatch. The damaged hatch quivered, then fell open letting the smaller probe enter. Laying face down on the shuttles floor was a single skunk-morph. Swathed in blood soaked, dirty bandages its sex was indeterminate.

"Turn the body over. Let's see who it is."

Extending its manipulator the larger probe maneuvered through the hatches small clearance. Grasping an arm it moved backwards slowly, both dragging and turning the body.

As it rolled over Snowaters gasped, then ran towards the nearest bathroom. When she returned minutes later the mangled body had been removed from the shattered shuttle. As she watched the single eye fluttered, then opened.

"Give her three grains of Qulmorphine" Snowaters ordered, her voice hollow.

"Do you think it matters now" Diamonds Mistress asked. "She's infected. Whatever it is I can't chance bringing her here and we can't change time."

<Administered.>

Slash's face softened as the drug killed her pain. "Who?" she asked, her voice rough, barely discernable.

Keying the com system Snowaters took a deep breath. "This is Snowaters, of the Star Diamond" she half whispered. "What happened?"

"Don' enter station" gasped the dying woman. "No cure... Quarantine..."

<Report from med-lab> Kalith interrupted. <Material is non-organic.>

"Later" Snowy ordered, cutting the alien's channel. "Slash, do you know what happened?" she asked again.

"Physics boys" Slash answered. "Playing nanomites. Something wrong, no warning, no chance....."

"Oh my...." Snowaters gasped. Sitting suddenly, tears filling her eyes she toggled 'Lith's channel. "Did you hear?"

"Came back..." Slash continued. "Broke line, shot me up." She coughed, blood flecked the deck next to her. "Save Chrissie, rest. Admiral say no, shot me." She coughed again. "Tired.... Sorry......" she mumbled, her eye closing.

<Confirm. They are yours.>

In shock Snowaters just stared. She could see tiny tendrils moving on Slash's body. Biting her lip she called up a report.

"What reports from the planet below."

"What effect will this have on planet?"

"Initiate Starbright" she ordered.

Deep within the Diamonds cargo bays a forgotten something woke up. Moving slowly a fat, sausage like device lifted from its resting place. Moving gently for its bulk the device headed for Engineering.

"Inject remaining twenty CC's of Qulmorphine" she ordered. "Send the fleets a warning then standby."

<Acknowledged.>

Deep within Star Diamonds Engineering systems the fat sausage drank deeply from the anti-mercury fuel system. Twenty-seven kilos of death filled the device before it was sated. Disconnecting, it drifted away, heading for the open interface. Snowaters watched her monitors as the device transferred from her current reality to that of the station.

<Ready. Fleets decline escape.>

"Detonate."

In another reality twenty seven kilos of anti-matter mercury suddenly came in contact with twenty-seven kilos of matter. The resulting fireball enveloped station, planet, and the three fleets maintaining their deathwatch.

"No" the stricken woman replied. "Close the gate, pick up CYBERSNAKE and head for the nearest refueling station."

<Understood. Perhaps another day.>

Snowaters nodded. Standing, she left the tiny laboratory, returning to her quarters. Quietly sealing the door behind her she sat on her bed, turning to look at the single picture in the room. "Hell of a One thousandth birthday" she whispered to the two mice-fems smiling from the holograph.

Hearing the sounds of crying, Kalith quietly cut all monitoring of Snowaters room. Long ago it had learned that, in some cases... There was nothing it could do.

When one travels the reality paths, as Snowaters does, there comes the time when you see what could have been, and what was. In this case Snowaters saw a possibility that did not occur, but had not yet lost that 'could-be' energy that is given 'possibilities' upon their creation. She has always been fast and loose with DNA/RNA mixes, Viral infusions and nanomites. Today she has seen what horrors her ways could have unleashed, had those on the station not obeyed orders. A could have been reality that did not happen...

This time.