BeyHop Chpt 62

==Beyond Hope- Chapter 62 - Prelude to the Storm==
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”Here’s the thing about Helena and why she is so truly remarkable. Everyone thinks she was raised to be a viable heir to the Hegemony throne and the First Lordship of the Star League. As the third child, she was not given the same attention and effort I was growing up. Indeed, after Simon’s death and with Richard’s poor treatment of her, she never received the formal education she should have.In other words, she’s a natural. Her instincts are good, she’s a quick study, and she’s not so full of herself to not listen to the people around her.If there’s one issue she has, it’s her temper.”-Interview with Jane CameronRecorded 7 June 3074
Heir and a spareBut they left you there.No one caresNo one caresFor the one thatisn't an heir or a spare.-Debra MacAulliffe, "Royal Sickniss"From the Someday Hymnal album, Hayseed Records LLC, Arluna, 3065
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===Dreaming of those whom are long Gone===
21:30 hours, June 1st, 3065
Hyperspace travel was still supremely uncomfortable. Bad enough that every time Elizabeth came, she was put into chemical hibernation to avoid dealing with her TDS.
Arthur hated it when she insisted, because he had more than reasonable worries that someone would make a mistake. And his wife would either not wake up, or wake up a vegetable.
"You okay?"
"Mmmh… ******. I'm not sure this isn't worse than the nausea, disorientation and weird ass hallucinations! We're here?"
"Look out the window,” he told her. "We're on schedule, Gateway Two is starting in…" he checked the countdown. "Five minutes."
"Good…" she sat up. "How bad do I look?"
"Like someone who just spent the last two days in a medically induced coma," he told her. "Other than that, you're my beautiful wife, so… some compensation there."
"The kids handled it well?"
"Hannah got upset when you went to sleep and refused to wake up. Simon… handles it better."
She sighed, "Children are never the same, I guess."
"You should've invited more people."
"Helena's doing the First Lord's job. That means she has to stick close to the office and not take stupid risks, like being in the same solar system if this goes wrong."
"But you're okay with having me and the kids here?"
"Then we'll all go together when we go," Liz asserted. "Though the three of you will have to wave down to hell at me… Let me see the instrument readings, we need to be sure nothing's gone wrong."
He helped her into the monitor station.
"Good…good…"
She reached up, and pulled her husband close as the countdown reached zero.
The starfield through the massive hole in the middle of Gateway One station changed.
"It works… well, partly," she said. "We'll know if it actually works once we send something through, but…" the computer helpfully matched starfields. "That's out past Broken Wheel, Arthur. Your sister could take her Avalon right through it, as long as the connection is stable."
“First, the unmanned remote controlled shuttle with instruments,” Arthur said. “Then manned trials.”
"Spoilsport. You're being safe."
“You know how many waivers we’d still be signing if we wanted to go straight to manned trials?”
"Depending on who's in the seat?" she shrugged. "Yeah, I know. I was teasing. Give me a kiss.”
“And for that I will have to tickle you in that spot. Just to punish you.” Arthur kissed his wife.
"Mmmm…" 
The automatic fired its thrusters and made for the open gateway.
"Telemetry…"
It passed through. “Coming through loud and clear.”
"Gateway Two, this is Gateway One Control, did the package arrive?"
"Gateway One Control, the packet is on this side… and Gateway Two confirms RF and Laser Links work through the wormhole."
"Start the instrument package from your side, we need to know if this is a two way connection, Gateway Two," Liz instructed.
“Logs collected, recalibrating instruments… Sending back to you now.”
The return package arrived.
"Velocity and vector are stable, this is good," Liz said. "The dampener assemblies you added means it's not hurling objects around. You improved my design, Honey.”
"It seemed logical. You move an object from one side of the Inner Sphere to the other, it's going to arrive with the same inertia it left with. If you don't damp it based on the radial motion of the galaxy…"
She glanced around the mission deck of the Hot Rod II. "Kenneth! Grad Student! Make sure you include that in the report you're giving to your home clan," Liz ordered.
"Your Grace?" The Blood spirit Scientist looked abashed.
"If you weren't reporting to your home clan, you better start. I didn't tender the invite for you guys to keep secrets, especially as foreign exchange personnel. Make sure you include the details of this test in your next letter home."
"Of course…"
She eyed the rest of the room, "Adept Collins, you too, and Adept Herlinger. I want both Comstar and Word of Blake to get full details, seeing as both of you are paying customers on this."
The Adepts nodded.
“You know, I think those two would actually hit it off if they’d just get over the split,” Arthur chuckled.
"Give them time," Liz urged. "Sooner or later, the leadership of the two factions will settle down. Maybe even over going after the gate network, who knows?"
“Maybe,” Arthur nodded. “And that’s the part that worries me. That we might be giving them something to unite over.”
"It would happen sooner or later," Liz dismissed. "This way, nobody can claim an exclusionary lock on the technology, so there's nothing to fight and kill over. They're going to have to compete by way of quality services instead."
“Free air freshener each trip?” Arthur joked.
"Who knows?" Liz shrugged. "What do you think, Singh?"
The Free Worlder frowned. "Temperature's rising in the assembly… as for what I think about this policy? Glad you're taking the risk instead of us. Happy to get the tech details without having to sort through intel reports, and worried you're being too cavalier. This is going to be the next strategic objective for warfare."
“Hmmm…” Arthur studied the readings. “I think we can compensate for the heat buildup short term but we’ll need to do some fine tuning for a long term solution.”
"Monitor durations, let's see where our safety margin really is," Liz ordered. "We need to know how long the gates can be held open."
“There seems to also be some slight attenuation from the gravity manipulation technology. I would recommend any ship equipped with the technology turn power levels down to minimum and go in on conventional thrust and thrust gravity only for now.” Kenneth was reading the logs.
Liz frowned. "We know it works. So now, before we start building it for paying customers? Let's see what it takes to break it.."
“Ramping it up,” Arthur smiled.
Boys and their toys. But that’s okay. I like playing too, and he shares.
"Yup," Liz said. "Ladies and gentlemen, strap in. We're not doing the safe science anymore. We're going to see what it takes to make my hypothesis fail."
The lack of explosions or visible failures for the next three hours almost became a disappointment.
"Okay, so… shut it down."
And now, came the problem.
Power was removed, and the gateway stayed open.
"Is it feeding from the other station?"
"Gateway Two says their power plants are at cold idle, Your Grace."
Liz looked at Arthur. "Your five percent chance," she said. "Once we tore it open and stabilized it, it turned metastable."
“Okay, sending the probe through one more time with the gravitics turned to maximum. Let’s see how bad we can make this attenuation.” Arthur had a grin familiar to any parent with children in the toy aisle or a candy store.
There was a brief rim of colorless chaos in the gateway, and then… the probe was clear.
"We can't close it,” Liz said. “I mean, physically can't close it."
"Mass readings on the gate show a point-one percent increase in mass in the conduit assembly… and there's voltage coming out."
“It’s going to overload.”
"Dump the charge," Arthur ordered, and matched actions to words.
Lightning crossed the aperture as the 'charge dump' he'd come up with went active, an emergency method of cooling using several thousand PPC's to drain residue charge.
The aperture blinked out, and the star field beyond was what it was supposed to be.
"Didn't break it dear," Liz said.
“Good news is that means our safeguards work, and the power setting on the gravitics needs to be so high no human could survive it to get dangerous levels of attenuation.” Arthur was entering notes into his console.
Elizabeth was also making notes for the next few series of tests to find the structural limits of the gateway mechanisms themselves.
“We’ll need to make a control pair. Ones we just leave connected and monitor.”
"Near Tharkad to near New Avalon," Liz said. "The FedCom's project version is further along than the others, and it makes sense with the dual monarchy."
“Two control groups then. One for Tharkad and New Avalon that receives normal traffic flow and a second pair that we leave on that receives no traffic flow at all beyond stray astronomical items that we can’t entirely prevent,” Arthur nodded.
“For science.” Liz chuckled. “That will be a hell of a hit to the funding but yeah, we need more control groups.”
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===How to Filter Unwanted Ones Out===
Offices of the First LordIa Drang, KowloonFederated Commonwealth (Lyran State)3065
"They did it again, Helena." Jane almost crowed. "Look!!"
“I see it. Oh my god, Jane. Did you ever think we’d get to see something like this?” Helena smiled.
"I had the advantage of being older, Helena," Jane said soberly. "Before Richard tried to stop my academy application? I saw speculations on this from DOME funding proposals. The major difference is that Lizzie and Arthur figured out the 'unobtainium' we didn't have."
“Yeah, but by the time we were around, Venus was already spun up and a thriving colony, and the other DOME miracles were already accomplished. We’re actually seeing the real thing first hand, not just proposals or studies, but the actual real physical thing in action.”
"Yes, it's exciting!" Jane enthused.
"This is going to be the next wave of strategic targets when the next war kicks off." Evelynn Mosovich was in the doorway. "Lizzie just invented the next prime target for the next Succession War."
“True. And I think on some level, she knows it. So we should expect defenses to be added to these in the very near future,” Helena nodded.
"I have a different proposal, now that we know it works," Evelynn added. "We need to put one next to every overcrowded, overdeveloped, overpopulated world, and an exit on the far side of the Periphery, and start sponsoring colonization. Get the Great Houses and the Clans into a race of colonial expansion. These things erase traditional territorial borders."
“Only reason we have them is because jumping is still hazardous enough that bypassing inhabited worlds tends to be just slightly too dangerous for all but the most insane commander,” Jane observed. “I mean, the Clans could have used uninhabited systems the whole way and been on Terra before anyone knew anything if not for that, and their insistence on conquering as they go.”
"True enough," Evelynn noted. "Now, I’ll give you the nightmare scenario: what if a Clan, say, the Blood Spirits, or the unified Star Adder/Steel Viper thing… were to build a gateway and link to one of ours?"
“Well we would at least have the advantage of knowing where to point all our guns if need be,” Helena offered.
"Would we?" Evelynn asked. "It doesn't have to be Gateway One or Two. The Outworlds Alliance has a program, the Free Worlds League has three programs going, the FedCom has two, the Capellans, Taurians, and Combine have THEIR programs going… and you can bet either Comstar or Word of Blake has at least one each. And one of those is probably in the Sol system…"
“It’s still a relatively fixed end point. Which means as long as there is some indication someone is coming that isn’t scheduled, we can have defenses pre-positioned. And a simple authentication signal could give us that warning, or more accurately the lack of one,” Helena offered.
"Counterpoint," Jane said. "Evelynn, it still takes three weeks to travel up the Crimson Shadow Road. How fast could an SLDF punitive expedition transit between one gate, and another?"
"Like I said, these are going to be the next big thing in strategic targets."
“So yeah, we should expect to see several simple but effective approaches to protect them. Gravitic drives to at least re-locate them in system, point defense guns since those can double as anti-space debris protection too.”
Jane looked thoughtful, "What would happen to an incoming force if you turned off the inertial dampeners?"
“Kaboom.”
"Zoom, then Kaboom," Jane corrected. "Depending which way the gate is facing, angular momentum not damped actively could turn that force into a projectile, or even damage the gateway itself."
“Some of that can be handled by adjusting gate aperture. They come through, and all they get is empty deep space.”
"Empty deep space, and the chance to use all their onboard fuel and power to match the motion of the arriving star system," Jane insisted. “Relative to where they started from, anyway. That means the gates have to be actively maintained, Evelynn. An invader will have to bring their own staff and maintenance spares, and come in without the target switching that subsystem off. They'll need agents in place, or complete and total surprise."
“With a few simple settings to transponders, we’ll have a fairly robust system for vastly reducing the element of surprise.” Helena nodded. “There will never be a perfect security system because there must be access, and access creates an entry vector. The best we’ll be able to do is make sure whoever tries has as difficult a time as possible and if they fail they pay dearly for it as a message to those who would attempt it that just maybe it isn’t worth it.”
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===Family Feud===
Ia Drang, KowloonFederated Commonwealth (Lyran State)3065
"They’re Steiner-Davions, Elizabeth. Kate hasn't gotten married, we're still not sure when Tancred is going to ask the question. Peter and Mary are getting along, but…" 
"You have a wife, there's not a single thing wrong with Isis-unless there is?" Elizabeth scowled. "My children do not need to go to New Avalon every year, Victor, or even every two years. Tharkad should be enough."
"They’re part of the Royal Family."
"So are your brothers and sisters, Victor… so is your wife!"
"Art, help me here-" Liz pleaded
"Victor, the key to a happy marriage, is knowing when to let her have her way," Arthur commented. "I don't want to get into this."
"We're at a critical juncture with projects and programs here. One of which is that five is a critical year in a child's development. I won't have my son or my daughter exposed to something as toxic as the Royal Court, not until they're older and have something to compare it to."
Victor blinked, "Toxic-"
"How many civil wars in the Federated Suns were kicked off by Davion Relatives using Davion Courtiers and internal politics for stupid reasons?" Elizabeth scolded. "My children will not be part of that… scene. I won't have it, their father may be your brother, but they are Kowloonese. They will be raised with a consistent ethical and moral standard."
Victor looked perplexed for a moment, clearly considering carefully what he said next.
“Liz… Like it or not, they’re going to get dragged into those circles anyway.” Victor told her.
"Yes, but if they're dragged in, it will be with their eyes open." she asserted. "They will be aware of what the costs and sacrifices mean, not the glamor and glory… Christ, Victor, it took Helena and I days to convince Melissa to take you off the battle front and make you learn how to govern, instead of being a glorified Heavy Equipment Operator. Helena, me, Maggie Doons… we had to beg her to get you to do your job instead of chasing the glory of emulating an episode of 'Immortal Warrior' until you ended up like your uncle Ian."
“That’s low, even for you, Liz.” Victor shook his head.
"Have I ever lied to you, Victor?" she asked. "Think carefully. You were pulled off the front lines, and put where you should have been. And we started to win, because you were a Ruler instead of playing bullet sponge."
“Lie? No. But insult? There’s a difference, Liz. You can tell me the truth without the dagger.” Victor stood up from his seat. “I’m going to chalk this up to stress. Maybe when you have a chance to calm down and rest we can talk about this more productively.”
"...dammit…" Elizabeth seemed to slump. "I'm sorry. I've been… I'm not myself lately."
“I know, Liz. You clearly need some time, still. We have plenty to spare thanks to you and your husband. Take some of it for self care, okay? We’ll talk another day.” Victor exited the Ngo household.
“He does know, Liz. I was there when he came back. It may not be the same source, but he does recognize the general trauma.” Arthur hugged his wife.
"Arthur, he called you 'my husband'," she said. "Your brother refused to say your name." 
“He’s got several hundred worlds to worry about, not to mention keeping up the Star League. It’s not an easy job and he’s a bit frayed at the edges too. But I’ll talk to him.”
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Outside the house
"Vic…"
"She miscarried again," Arthur told him. "She's scared, and she's hurting."
“Yeah. Part of why I want her to take a break from all of this. She needs it. I can’t imagine how difficult it is while also doing the work you’re doing, her still being Duchess, and running a major enterprise or two. And I’m sorry for dismissing you in there. This job isn’t easy.”
Arthur didn't shrug it off. "Yeah, I think that actually hurt her," he said. "Not you taking her down a peg. She's okay, I think, with that. But she's got these assumptions about US, and that got to her. She didn't know you when I was ten and you were too busy for a little brother."
“I’ll try and make it up to her, but I think we both need to go to our corners for now.”
'Yeah. As it is, as you saw, the boarding school idea is a non-starter," Arthur observed. "At least until Lizzie isn't having nightmares about losing the kids."
This paused Victor. "Nightmares?"
"Yeah. Anxiety attacks too. She hides it well when she's playing the role. But in private, it's like a personal hell for her. It's why she's been delegating so much to Vanh and Mosovich. And why she insisted on getting Li back. To run things while she works through it."
“I’m… Oh god, Art. I can’t imagine. If there’s anything I can do…”
"Patience while we get this worked out would go a long way, Vic," Arthur suggested. "We'll miss Christmas this year, I'm sorry about that."
“I’m sorry, too.” Victor patted his brother on the shoulder.
"A little something to imagine…" Arthur said. "Is what she's going to be like once she's stable again, and not hurting like this. It's what I'm holding on for."
"Art, I saw the medical report on the first one…"
Arthur nodded numbly. "Yeah. We thought we were clear, but she's not… Though it could be radiation exposure during the Gateway tests. We didn't even know she was pregnant when we oversaw the first one."
“My offer still stands. We got some good doctors coming out of the universities. There are any number who could take a look.”
"I know, and I'll be hiring several of them," Arthur told his brother. "Have a good trip home, okay?"
“Thanks, Art. You take care of the two of you.”
Arthur chuckled, "I have four to care for." He grinned. "When my wife lets me.'
“So you do,” Victor smiled. “I’ll probably be back sometime after New Years.”
"Yeah, the start of the 3066 session.” Art agreed. "Give my best to Pete, Yvonnie, and Kate."
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===Sister Talk===
The knock at the door was unexpected.
When Liz opened it, Helena Cameron was standing there with a bag full of something she couldn’t quite make out.
“You really weren’t going to tell me that you miscarried a second time, were you?”
"Arthur…" Liz sounded frustrated. "No, not Arthur, Jane told you, right? Look, Helena, I'm really very tired today."
“I’m not burning my source. And all the more reason I should be here for my friend. I brought your favorite ice cream and booze. Come on. You can eat and drink away your feelings with me on the couch.”
Liz stepped back from the door to let Helena in. She wasn't dressed for company. She was in a bathrobe and slippers, and her hair looked unwashed.
“Sit. I may be your guest, but you’re now officially my patient.”
Helena fetched spoons and glasses.
“Helena…”
“Shhhh…” Helena shook her head. “No talking until after the first pint or the first glass.”
Liz sat on the couch and downed the first glass.
“There. Now can we get a move on with this?” Liz sighed.
“No empty promises, no platitudes, none of that from me. Because you know what I went through. To be perfectly honest, I was raped so often and so frequently towards the end there, I’m surprised I didn’t wind up pregnant from it, and that I was able to after everything that happened. It’s not the same thing and I know it. So all we’re going to do is sit, eat, drink, and if you feel the need to, you can go ahead and cry on my shoulder or anywhere else you need to.”
“Why…”
“Because the last thing you need to be is alone right now. I know Arthur is doing his fair share, but you also need someone who has the right plumbing so they at least have a glimmer of understanding.”
Liz latched onto Helena and began to sob.
“Go ahead, it’s okay.” Helena wrapped her arms around Liz.
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===Fearing for the Unborn===
Kowloon System, Federated Commonwealth (Lyran States)3065
Helena was watching Jonathan practice the piano while Jakob was cooking.
“You’re having that look again.” Jakob warned.
“I can’t help but think about our plan. What if I wind up miscarrying like Liz?”
“Your meds are being screened, our shopping is being done blind, and you have all of us.”
“Can’t logic away irrational emotions. At least not every time.”
“Do you still want another child?”
“That’s the worst part, I do. And part of me wants to be done waiting but another part is scared and angry.”
“Only you can decide which one wins.”
“There’s also the fact that I feel like I’d be rubbing salt into the wound of my dearest friend if I did it now.”
“There’s no right answer there because we also know she’d be furious with you if you held back on her account.”
“If that’s true then that does actually settle matters.”
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===Not Feeling Alright===
Gabriel woke up feeling woozy.
“Are you okay?” Eddie asked his house guest as she walked into the living room.
“Ne..” Gabriel vomited before she could make it to the bathroom.
She went to one knee.
“Okay something is definitely wrong with you. Come on, we’re getting you to a Doctor.”
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Ia Drang Medical Center
Technically Doctor Huyn was doing something she shouldn’t, answering Eddie Vahn’s questions.
“She’s got Green Fever. A more severe case than we’ve ever seen. We’re monitoring her closely,” Doctor Huyn briefed Eddie Vanh.
“She’s up on her immunizations… So how’d she get it?” Eddie asked.
“It appears to be a more virulent strain. Something the current immunization treatments don’t work against.”
“Shit.”
“We’re working on it.”
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===Underlining Problem===
Helena’s officeKowloon, Federated Commonwealth (Lyran State)3064
“Majery, this is your area of expertise. I want you to get with the local doctors. If we’ve got a mutation of a local disease, I want it nipped in the bud as quickly as possible. Any resources you need I’ll get them to you.” Helena was rubbing her temples.
“There is that other matter you and Jakob asked me about before I tend to this.”
“You have the results already?”
“Yes and they’re not what you think. I haven’t found any trace of poison in either of you but in examining you and Jakob…”
“Out with it.”
“The damage done to you and your reproductive system, it’ll be difficult for you to conceive again but not impossible. I have a number of treatments that could boost that back to a more normal level…”
“Jakob?”
“He’s honestly not much better off and with your added stress of being First Lord on top of everything else, it’s basically a perfect storm,” Majery admitted.
“******… How long would it take to fix?” Helena shook her head. “Damn it.”
“Six months minimum. I know you were looking forward to having Jakob’s baby. Maybe we can figure out some faster alternative.”
“Shit. That’s a lower priority than your other tasks, but yes. As time allows.” Helena nodded.
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