By Barbara Conrady
"Dr. Russell?"
She gazed at the face on the tiny monitor on her commlock just a split-second
too long, then greeted the new Commander of Moonbase Alpha in a friendly-cool
manner she had developed to the point of perfection over many years.
He entered her office, and only someone who had known both of them for
ages would have noticed the tiny, fleeting change in his expression when he
saw her. Immediately, they plunged into a professional discussion about the
recent alarming events on the Moonbase, in the middle of the preparations for
the Meta Probe. It was several hours later, when he retreated into his quarters
for a short break, that they got the chance to talk in private.
"I hope I'm not disturbing you, Commander," she said formally
while entering, scanning the room unobtrusively. Years and years of training
and experience had sharpened her senses so much that nothing escaped her eyes
- no single detail.
She met his look. 'It's safe. We can talk freely.' His eyes signaled.
She exhaled, but the throbbing of her heart hadn't subsided yet. "What
are YOU doing here?" she asked.
"I could ask you the same," he replied calmly, raising an eyebrow.
"Didn't you quit years ago?"
"I was called back," she said quietly. "They said... I
was the only one for this job. I had to do it."
"But..." He shook his head, looking puzzled. "Chief medical
officer??!"
With calm determination, her look rested on him. "I did a lot of
studying and practical training. It will be enough to keep me going through
this mission."
He snorted unbelievingly, looking at her with an expression that changed
from grim amusement to sincere concern. "I know you've managed many tricky
situations in the course of your service. But this is something bigger than
you've ever done! You'll have to do more than wear a white coat and do some
fake cardiac massage on a fake patient who jumps off the table after making
everybody believe he's dead..."
"Don't you think I realize that!" A trace of worry and insecurity
clouded her face for a second. Then she cleared her throat. "I'm prepared!"
she said firmly. "I'm ready. This is just another mission. In a couple
of days, or weeks at the most, I'll be off this... moonbase." She sighed
irritably and sat down on the white sofa.
He walked over to her, casually sweeping a jacket from the armchair opposite
her, and sat down too. "We'll have to be off this base and present our
reports to the secretary," he said in a slightly nonchalant tone, "before
anybody realizes what happened to the real John Koenig and Helena Russell."
She gazed down at her hands, slowly shaking her head. "What a fate
- to be killed like that! They were so close to revealing the truth about what's
going on here..."
"Hey." He leaned over and lifted her chin with a light, quick
but gentle movement so she had to face him again. "They died while doing
something they believed in. We can't allow their sacrifice to have been in vain."
She nodded. "I guess you're right," she sighed. Then she stood
up. "I better leave now, before people start wondering what the chief medical
officer is doing in the new commander's quarters for such a long time."
"Okay," he said, walking her to the door. "See you at
the command conference."
It was only a couple of days later when she visited him in his quarters
again. Nothing about him was easy-going and nonchalant anymore. She saw a man
stressed and worried, and - struggling to keep his fear under control. She understood
his feelings very well. She shared them.
Their eyes met. For a while, neither of them spoke. Then she opened her
dry lips. "So it has finally happened," she murmured. "The thing
we've always been afraid of."
A bitter grin spread on his face. "The secretary will disavow any
knowledge of your actions," he said cynically, "and the secretary
will give a damn about whether you're alive or dead." He grabbed a folder
of papers and tossed it behind himself. "Or whether we're still in Earth's
orbit, or drifting through space on a rock!"
She walked over to him and gripped his hands. "I'm scared too!"
she said in a trembly voice she barely managed to control. It was new to him
seeing her like that. During all that time they had been working together, she
had never admitted to be scared of anything. "I have... never been this
scared in my life!" she said in a pressed voice. "But - it's too late
now! We... have to go on with it!"
He looked into her blue-green eyes. He saw her fear fighting with her
bravery, her determination to keep going, her unspoken promise never to let
him down - or anybody else on this moonbase.
He returned the grip of her hands. "You're right," he said,
feeling much calmer. "There is no point in panicking. We didn't choose
it to end like this, but... we are responsible now."
They looked at each other in silent agreement.
"I'll help you in every way I can," she whispered.
"And I'll help you whenever you need me. You can count on me."
"I know," she replied, still whispering. "I always could
count on you."
Neither of them noticed their hands were still entwined. "We'll
never let anybody know who we really are," he said earnestly.
"No, we won't!" she agreed. "It will be better for all
of us." She paused, then cautiously said, "John." It was as if
she was tasting the name on her tongue.
"Helena..." he said in the same cautious way. "I'll have
to get used to this."
"Me too."
The man who had thrown away his former life and was now Commander Koenig
on Moonbase Alpha softly laid his hand on the cheek of the woman standing closely
beside him. "All those years we've been working together," he murmured,
"I've never had the courage to admit my true feelings to you. I've always
been in love with you."
The woman who had thrown away her former life and was now Dr. Helena
Russell on Moonbase Alpha softly laid her hand on the cheek of the man beside
her. "I should have told you earlier," she whispered tenderly, "that
I've always been in love with you too."
Absorbed in each other's eyes, the man and the woman stood silently together,
feeling the magic of the moment. They both knew that whatever was waiting for
them out there, they would face it together.
October, 2004
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