| They Call You Lady Luck |
| Chris Larabee walked quickly down the hallway. Most people he encountered sidestepped to get out of the way before he neared them, rather than face his sometimes-volatile temper. When he finally reached his objective, Larabee stopped and looked at the door warily. He had no idea why the council had called him here on this particular day and he honestly didn�t care. All he wanted to do was get back home so he could continue mourning his wife and son. They�d been dead for two years now, but the pain was still as fresh as if they�d only just gone. At first, Larabee had stopped living his own life as well, shutting himself away from the world and finding solace in the bottom of a bottle. With the help of his old friend, Buck Wilmington, he�d finally been able to crawl back out of the pit of despair he�d been trapped in. He was by no means happy, but he could at least function day-to-day. Since his return to sanity, Larabee had been commanding a small out-of-the-way station. His drinking had cost him his promising career with Earth Force, but Larabee wasn�t really upset by the loss. He was content to work for the Confederation in any position they saw fit to give him. All he really wanted was to be left alone. Taking a deep breath, Chris pulled himself out of his thoughts and back to the present. He reached out and tapped the communication pad on one side of the door. It chirped softly and a voice from inside bid him enter. The doors slid open and Larabee stepped into the council chamber. Standing before the table where the council members were seated, was a tall man with dark brown hair. Chris frowned for a moment before recognizing him as Jack O�Neill. O�Neill was something of a maverick himself. He had little regard for rules or authority but, once you gained his trust, there was no one more loyal. Like most people of Loyalian descent, he tended to be sarcastic and had a biting wit, which he used on just about everyone � including his commanding officers. O�Neill had retired a few years ago, when his son had accidentally killed himself. He and his wife had been trying to put their lives back together and, if rumors were to be believed, they weren�t doing a very good job of it. O�Neill blamed himself for his son�s death � Chris knew what that was like � and he�d sunk into a deep depression, even becoming suicidal. Chris scowled, wondering why the council had called himself and O�Neill there. He turned curious eyes to the council and said, �Hello, sirs, ma�am.� O�Neill turned to Larabee and grinned impishly. �Hey, Larabee,� he said. �Glad you could make it.� Chris blinked in surprise. This man didn�t seem depressed, let alone suicidal. What had happened to bring about this seeming one-eighty? �Hello,� Chris said, nodding politely. �Commander Larabee,� Orrin Travis called, gaining the attention of both men. �I�m sure you�re wondering why you were called here.� Chris shrugged and nodded. �Yes, sir,� he answered. �I was.� �Well,� Jed Bartlet, another member of the council said. �The Confederation of Sister Planets has decided to search out its lost colonies and find out what happened to them. To do this, we need a crew and a ship.� �We have the ship,� Leo McGarry put in. �We�d like you to captain her.� �Me?� Chris said incredulously. Orrin nodded. �That�s right,� he said. �Commander O�Neill will be your second-in-command, but the two of you can choose whomever you please to help you.� �Aren�t you lucky?� O�Neill asked, smiling at Larabee. �You get me as a first officer.� �Oh boy,� Chris said sarcastically. Turning back to the council, he asked, �You said you have a ship?� �We do indeed,� Bobbi Latham said softly. �It isn�t much to look at, but it should get you where you�re going until something more suitable can be arranged.� �Why the rush?� Larabee asked. �Why not just wait until you have something more suited to our needs?� �Well,� Bartlet said. �That�s a little complicated.� �We need two worlds checked out at soon as possible,� Leo put in. �One is Tembria and the other is Aurora.� �The colonists on Tembria suddenly stopped communications about three months ago,� Orrin explained. �We need to know that they�re alright.� �And Aurora?� Jack asked, joining the conversation. �The families of the Auroran colonists want to know what happened to them,� Bobbi explained. �We haven�t heard from them in over fifty years. A sweep of the planet forty years ago revealed it to be completely desolate�no signs of the Cygman colonists could be found�but no one has ever explained what happened.� Chris nodded. �When do you want us ready by?� he asked. �You have two weeks to decide on your crew,� Travis answered. �You leave in three weeks.� Chris nodded slightly, then bowed and turned to leave the council chamber. O�Neill followed closely on his heels. As they excited, Chris asked, �Do you have any ideas yet?� �A few,� O�Neill replied, eyes sparkling. �I worked with a team on my last mission. One guy in particular was very quick on his feet. Made a big impact on me.� �Guy got a name?� Chris asked. �Daniel Jackson,� was the soft-spoken reply. ** By the end of two weeks, Chris and Jack had picked out 31 people they thought could get the job done. Some of them were people that one of the two had worked with, but others were suggested by the people Chris or Jack had spoken to. Dr. Jackson was having a hushed, but animated, discussion with one of the latter. As the head of the Anthropological team, Daniel had asked to pick the people on it. The request seemed reasonable at the time, but now that he saw whom Jackson had chosen, Chris was beginning to worry. Ashley Sandburg wasn�t too much of a problem and seemed quite capable. Her husband, however, was another story. Blair seemed far too scatterbrained to be trusted on a mission of this type. Between that and his incessant chatter, Chris felt like telling the smaller man to shut up. He probably would have too, except that the man had a very large and intimidating shadow looming over him. That shadow took the form of one of the security officers. Jim Ellison was everything Blair Sandburg wasn�t. He was focused, determined and very stubborn � very much like Chris, according to Daniel. Everyone on the security team had distinguished careers with the Confederation, making them ideal candidates for the assignment. Ellison though, had already said that he needed to have Sandburg with him when he went into most situations. This gave both Chris and Jack pause since the anthropologist didn�t seem suited to the possibly violent situations that Ellison might be going into. However, Dr. Fraiser had looked through their files and said that Jim was right. Since he was a Sentinel and Blair was his Guide, going into any situation without Sandburg could lead to a �zone-out� with possibly deadly results. Once the crew was settled on board, Chris had called the members of the command crew to his briefing room to describe their mission in full. When he cleared his throat, to get everyone�s attention, Jackson flashed him a brief smile and finished his discussion with Sandburg. The longhaired man grinned at his friend and then bounded out of the room. �This first trip out,� he said softly, as people quickly took their seats. �We have two worlds we need to check on. The first is Tembria, the second is Aurora.� Turning to Jackson, he said, �Daniel, why don�t you tell everyone a little about the colonists and why we have to check on them.� Daniel smiled and adjusted his glasses. �Yes, well,� he started softly. �Tembria is, basically a colony of Loyalia, so the people are very much like your typical Loyalians. They�re hard working and unflinchingly loyal. They also tend to get a little sarcastic when they�re nervous or worried about something. Finally, and this � this may be important, they are prone to understate problems or difficulties.� �Why would that be important?� Buck, the third officer and Chris� dearest friend, asked, leaning back in his chair. Daniel blinked and looked down at the data-pad in front of him. �Well,� he replied. �The last time the Tembrian colonial government contacted Loyalia, they said they were having a �small problem with some of the local wildlife�.� Daniel looked meaningfully at the taller man. �What Loyalians call small problems, can sometimes be quite serious.� �Yeah,� Jack said, grinning. �Sometimes.� �And Aurora?� Toby, the chief of the Diplomatic team, prompted. �What � what�s the problem there?� Chris shrugged. �They haven�t been heard from for fifty years,� he said softly. �The last sweep, done forty years ago, turned up with no life signs. Their families want to know what happened to them.� �Awful long wait to find out about people who are long dead,� Vin said softly. Chris turned to the younger man and smirked. �Yeah, well,� he said, shrugging slightly. Jack nodded and grinned. �Okay, campers,� he said, getting to his feet. �We�re getting deployed tomorrow, so I suggest everyone get a good night�s sleep.� Chris rolled his eyes slightly and said, �See you all tomorrow at 0900 hours.� The other people nodded and quickly left the room. Chris turned to Buck and Jack. �Colleen was telling me there were some problems with the ship?� he prompted. Jack nodded. �They call her �Lady Luck�,� the older man started, grinning impishly. �But there is room for doubt,� Vin sang, as he headed out the door. Chris sighed deeply and, putting his hand to his head, asked, �What exactly is the problem?� �Quicker to tell you where things are working smoothly, pard,� Buck said gently. �That bad?� Chris asked, suddenly nervous. Jack smiled and began ticking off problems on his fingers. �The internal communications have a tendency to cut out, so do the external communications, the sensors need a complete overhaul, the engines are horribly out of date and the furnishings in the quarters are� well, let�s just say sleeping is going to be interesting.� �Lovely,� Chris said softly. Turning to Buck, he asked, �Can I go back to my quiet out-of-the-way station where everything at least worked the way it was supposed to?� Buck grinned. �I think they�d take your promotion away, Captain,� he teased. �They can have it!� Chris snapped. �I�d rather be a commander at a backwater station than the captain of a ship that�s held together with duct tape and wire.� Jack smiled. �It�ll be alright,� he said optimistically. �You�ve got five really competent people in engineering making sure things don�t fall apart around us.� Chris sighed. �I just hope we can make the jumps we need to, otherwise this is going to be long trip,� he added. Shaking his head, he finished. �I�m going to tour the ship and then I�ll turn in. See you tomorrow.� �See ya, pard,� Buck replied, patting his friend on the shoulder. �Bye,� Jack said, nodding slightly. ** Amazingly enough, the ship held together long enough to reach Tembria, although external communications cut out as soon as they�d gone into orbit around the planet. Chris sighed and shook his head, cursing the Confederation council for sticking him with the ship. �Think I know why they named her Lady Luck,� Vin quipped. �Yeah?� Brittney replied. �Why�s that?� Vin smiled mischievously. �Well, obviously sheer luck is all that�s kept her together!� Chris rolled his eyes at the bad joke, but was tempted to agree. Turning to CJ, he said, �Try to get communications up and running. Maybe we�ll be able to raise someone down there with a hail.� �Yes, sir,� CJ replied, as she began a diagnostic to try and figure out exactly what was wrong. After a few moments, they heard a soft voice say, �This is the colony of Tembria. Can anyone read me?� �Yes!� Chris replied excitedly. �Sorry, we just got our external communications working again. This is Captain Larabee of the Confederation Ship Lady Luck.� �Hello, Captain Larabee,� the person replied evenly. �I�m David Lyndon with the colonial government. We�ve had a little problem that you may be able to help us with.� Chris smiled. At least the colony hadn�t been destroyed. �Yeah,� he said. �You told the Confederation that you were having trouble with some of the wildlife down there and then communication cut out.� Lyndon chuckled mirthlessly. �A pack of the large lupine creatures attacked our colony,� he explained. �They knocked out long range communication, but � obviously � short range works.� Chris nodded, although the other couldn�t see him. �I�ll send a team down and see if we can�t assist with the repairs,� he offered. �Do you know of anything that might have caused them to attack like they did?� �No idea,� came the reply. �Any help would be greatly appreciated.� �No problem,� Chris answered. �We�ll have a team down within the hour.� �Great!� Lyndon stated. �I�ll just send you the landing coordinates and make sure someone meets you there.� Chris nodded and then turned to Jack and said, �Take Jim, Blair, Daniel, Josh and Teal�c down. See if you can figure out what prompted the wolves to attack the city and try and get their communications back up and running again.� �Right,� Jack said, nodding. ** The away team was greeted by Lyndon�s brother, Alexander, who showed them to the communication�s building for the colony. As they surveyed the damage, Jim frowned in concern. �This was the only place they attacked?� he asked. �Here and the armory,� Alexander answered, nodding. Jim�s frown deepened and he looked up at Blair. �Is it possible that these animals aren�t as simple as they appear?� �Why?� Blair asked, looking at the ground where his friend was. Jim knelt down and pointed to some tracks. �It looks like they worked together to get up to the upper level of the building, where they could do the most damage.� �Are you sure?� Josh asked incredulously. Jim shrugged. �That�s what it looks like,� he answered evenly. Daniel frowned and looked at Alexander. �Did anything happen that may have upset these wolves?� he asked. Alexander scowled as he thought over the events of the past few months. �The only thing we�d done before the trouble started was divert a tributary of a small stream, so that we could water some crops,� he answered. �Right after that, the wolves started� scaring the local farmers.� �Scaring them?� Josh asked. �Yeah,� Alexander answered. �They�d be out in the fields tending their crops when a pack of wolves would come over the hill and chase them back to town.� �They never hurt anyone?� Daniel asked, sounding as if he already knew the answer. When Alexander shook his head, the anthropologist looked thoughtful for a moment. Turning to Blair, he said, �Maybe they are sentient.� �Wouldn�t be the first time that something we thought was an animal turned out to be more,� the younger man agreed. �What do we do now?� Josh asked, shaking his head. Daniel shrugged. �We should try to talk to them,� he suggested. �If they�re intelligent enough to plan something like this and they haven�t actually hurt anyone, perhaps we can come to some agreement with them.� �That may be dangerous,� Teal�c stated, scowling. Blair sighed. �We got to try something, man,� he argued. �If they are sentient, this was their home first and we need to try and come to some kind of friendly arrangement with them.� Jim turned to Jack, who sighed deeply. �Okay,� he said, shrugging. �Teal�c, Josh and Daniel will go out to the fields and try to make contact with the locals. I�ll report back to the captain and the rest of you will start helping to fix their communications. Got it?� Everyone nodded and headed off in different directions. Alexander stayed long enough to tell Josh and Daniel how to get to the fields; then he ran off to help the others with the communications. Daniel and Josh followed quietly behind Teal�c as the large security officer led the way to the fields. As they crested the hill, Teal�c turned to his companions and said, �This is the place Alexander Lyndon described.� �Yeah,� Josh said. �Now all we have to do is wait.� �Not long,� Daniel added, pointing behind him. Josh turned to see about ten large wolf-like creatures running towards them. He took an involuntary step back and Teal�c stepped between the two men and the wolves. �Wait,� Daniel said, talking to the creatures. �I�m � my name is Daniel Jackson. We � we just want to find out why you�ve been attacking the colony.� The wolves slowed and stopped, eyeing him curiously. Suddenly, one of them stepped forward cautiously. �They flooded our dens,� it said in a husky growl. Josh blinked in surprise; then stepped forward and said, �They didn�t mean any harm.� Glancing uncertainly at Daniel, who nodded in encouragement, he went on. �They were trying to irrigate their fields. Were any of your kind hurt?� �No,� the wolf replied, sitting back on its hunches. �Thankfully none of our young ones were in the dens when they flooded, or they would have been drowned.� �It is fortunate that no one was hurt,� Josh said, relaxing slightly. �We are truly sorry for any damage that was done. Is there some way you might come to an agreement with the people of the colony?� The wolf�s ears tipped back and it looked at its companions for a moment. Turning back to Josh, it replied, �If you will serve as a mediator between us, an agreement may be reached.� �Great,� Josh sighed. �I�d be happy to do that,� he stated, nodding politely. �I�m Josh Lyman, by the way.� �I am Silvertail, the alpha male of our pack,� the wolf answered, nodding in return. Josh glanced at Daniel, who whispered, �The alpha male is the most powerful male in the pack. He�s their leader.� Lyman nodded and turned to Silvertail. �I�ll speak with the leader of the colony and meet you here tomorrow at the same time to tell you what he says.� Silvertail nodded again and said, �Until tomorrow then, Josh Lyman.� Barking softly to his companions, he turned and headed back into the forest. ** A couple days later, Chris listened to Josh�s report. �Anyway,� Lyman stated. �The colonist helped the locals to relocate to a bunch of man-made caves. Silvertail seemed really pleased with the new dens and even offered to share some of their kill with the colonists.� �The colonists weren�t too happy with the idea, but understood that it was meant as a gesture of friendship,� Daniel cut in. Chris nodded slightly. �So they seem like they�re going to get along alright?� he asked. When both men nodded, he said, �Well, hopefully we�ll find an equally straightforward solution on Aurora.� �The families basically just want to know where the colony went, right?� Daniel asked. Chris nodded. �You may actually get to go down and have a real excavation, Dr. Jackson,� he stated, smiling. Although he was teasing, the anthropologist gave him a genuinely pleased smile. �I can hardly wait!� he said. Chris chuckled and turned to Josh, as he opened his mouth to speak, the communicator on the table beeped. �Captain,� came Vin�s voice. �Yes,� Chris said, tapping the talk button. �Colleen says she�s having some trouble in Engineering,� he explained. �She can�t seem to get the forward thrust engines online. Not only that, but communications all over the ship keep �� �Cutting out,� Chris finished, sighing deeply. Turning to Daniel and Josh, he said, �It�ll be a miracle if we make it to Aurora in one piece. We�ll never make it back to Starbright Station.� �Could stop at Babylon Five for some repairs,� Josh offered. �After we�re through on Aurora.� �Good idea,� Chris answered. �Have Toby warn them we�ll be stopping by and let them know what problems we�ve been having.� �Right,� Josh said, nodding. �Soon as communications come back on.� Chris smirked and then shook his head, turning to his datapad to type up his own report to the Confederation Council. As the two men left his ready-room, he could hear Daniel singing, �They call you Lady Luck, but there is room for doubt�� End |
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