Let it breathe, let it breathe, let it breathe for the space cadets

The beginning of the battle plan

Laura hugged Paul.

"You come back, okay?" Laura asked, then stepped back out of the hug.

Paul took her hands.

"I will try my best," Paul said. "Don't worry about me. Worry about making it off the planet into Federation territory if I don't come back."

Laura grew a tearful smile as he squeezed her hands.

"I will," Laura said.

The emergency hangar bay was different from the normal as that the space station clamped on to the seekers with a artificial gravity generator that grounded it to the floor and allowed it to be boarded freely without needing a extra structure to enter it. Smith walked toward the open large vessel directly past the group. Paul stepped aside to the captain of the group without giving them a farewell but only a hard glare toward Chris. Chris and Paul shared a long hug being reluctant to split apart then Adrian and Paul shared a small hug. There was no words to share between the group as it had been said non-verbally.

"Loki," Laura said.

Loki was no longer the short seven year old boy found on Zalon but had grown considerably taller. He was around the same height as Will had been around his age in the first year being stranded on Priplanus. His face still had a childlike quality about it. His face showing the signs of slowly aging. His copper hands were linked behind his back and his eyes were set to attention. He was still a young boy to the blue team.

"I know you can do this," Chris then added. "We know you can. And believe you can."

Loki grew a smile.

"I won't blow my cover, Chris," Loki said. "Not even if a Federation ship arrives."

"Make sure to follow along to whatever the colonel says," Laura said. "Whatever he says." Her voice cracked, becoming emotional, ready to fall apart at the idea that things could become desperate up there and they wouldn't be there to help out the group.

Loki approached Laua and gave her a hug then so did Adrian, Chris, and Paul comforting the teary eyed young woman.

"Cadets Christopher Gentry and Laura Gentry report to Emergency Command Control," came over the intercomn. "Report to Emergency Command Control."

The group hug broke apart then Paul and Loki went into the space craft.

"I wonder what that must be about," Chris said, as Laura wiped her tears off.

"Robinsons?" Laura suggested. "It has been awhile since we have been in contact."

"Contact that we shouldn't be making," Chris noted.

"It could be important," Adrian said. "Very important in our side of the situation. The planet could be entering its last winter in a way that machines can't tell but human intuition can."

"The last winter," Chris repeated, grimacing. "We can't risk not communicating with them. You're right about that, Adrian."

The group turned their attention onto the space crafts. The heavy doors creaked opened protestingly against the system which came to a full stop displaying the calm blue sky decorated in rolling, bubbly clouds. They watched the forty-four seekers fly off into the sky. The rescue seeker tagging behind the crowd. The group left the emergency bay very quickly to the control room. They were sprinting down the corridors until they made it to the control room. Chris and Laura came side by side in front of the console.

"Cadet Gentry here," Chris said.

"Are you serious about going out there without a army?" Don asked.

"We have a army," Chris said. "It is going to be alright, Major."

"No, you don't," Don said. "And it isn't. People are going to die."

"Yes, we do," Chris said. "We have lost ten people in the last week. We are not going to lose anymore people."

"Chris!" Laura turned away from the window. "They are gone!"

Chris came over to his sister's side.

"What?" Chris asked, his eyes scanned the barren ground. He turned around placing his hands onto the dark console. "What happened in the last six hours?"

"You didn't know," Don said.

"We were watching the play," Chris said. "A reward for getting this plan together and being prepared."

"I thought we had their cooperation," Laura said, turning toward Chris.

"Medusa's castle is no where in sight," Adrian reported. "Space monitor can't pick it up on Preplanus."

"We just sent a doomed rescue party to space," Chris said. "We have to call them back!"

"It's too late," Adrian said. "They have gone through the void."

There was a long period of silence.

"Camelopardus!" Chris said, then earned surprised glances from the surrounding cadets. "Oh? Did I say that?"

There was laughter from the group that eased the tension in the room.

"We tried to take Smith out but his friend froze us and threw us out," Don said. "A couple times. Don't go out there!"

There was a robotic groan from over the comn.

"No more attempts, Major West," The Robot said. "My circuits ache from falling down the stairs."

Chris and the cadets exchanged a glance.

"Control out," Chris said. "We are going in five minutes."

"Chris," Laura said. "Ten thousand people."

"We are going to warp into federation space as fast as we can," Chris said. "If we get attacked, just enough, and make it back with five thousand people or nine thousand people. . . Gampu would approve of that. Saving who we can. That's the way of the Space Academy."

"It is risky," Adrian said. "This is too risky to pull when we have no one on our side to provide cover."

"Risk is our business," Laura said.

"We do it every day from helping people out and saving people no matter what they are or who they are," Chris said. "We have been trained for this moment in the last four years."

"Think of it as a test," Laura said. "Are we willing to see if this compromise will work?"

"It's like us being under pressure," Chris added.

The camera rested on the faces of the cadets from different places at where they were. Loki and Paul in the large space craft seated from across one another. Tee Gar in the rescue vessel that had been adapted for a fast speed rescue internally and externally. Tee Gar was in the silver space suit that belonged to Gampu. Chris, Laura, and Adrian. A cadet in the rescue vessel pressed a few buttons until a song began to play much to the surprise of the rescue medical staff.

"What old Earth song is that?" Tee Gar asked.

"Under Pressure by Queen," came the cadet pilot turning toward Tee Gar with a smile.

The spacecraft tore through the void as the chorus rang while the scene transitioned to display Laura taking Chris's hand then Laura took Adrian's hand looking on toward the sky, hoping for the best.