Marcus was used to the routine now; each morning the field would part to allow a guard to bring him the grey sludge that made up breakfast, each morning a guard would escort him down the corridor to the showers, and each morning Chi-Young arrived to repeat how Marcus needed to keep to his story or he would be killed. It was therefore a surprise when, instead of Chi-Young coming to his cell, Admiral Allison appeared instead.

"Bring him," Allison said to the guard.

Marcus stood up and faced the wall, hands behind his head. The guard laughed. "You're getting good at this, Mr Fenig."

He didn't respond, and with a firm grip the guard put cuffs on his wrists behind his back, and dragged him out of his cell and down the corridor. The guard ushered him into a nondescript room and sat him down facing the Admiral. He left the cuffs on, which Marcus thought was harsh.

"I hear your sessions with the Captain are going well." Allison gave him a wry smile.

"There's only so many times I can hear 'don't mess up'. To be honest, Admiral, if I could ruin your conspiracy by saying the wrong thing, then it can't be a very good one."

"It would be an inconvenience, but only an inconvenience. Besides, I hope you might do something more for me. We all have our parts to play."

"Is mine sitting in a cell all day?" Marcus raised his cuffs to emphasise the point.

Allison didn't flinch. "Do you not care about what happens to your world?"

"I care about what happens to my wife. I just wanted to get home to her and my son." The cuffs dug into his wrists and no matter how he tried to move them, nothing made it better.

"What if I told you I need your help to keep your family safe?"

Marcus coughed out a laugh. "You've said that before, but I find it hard to believe."

Allison reached over and tapped the screen. To Marcus' astonishment, a video of Sophia played. Tears streamed down her face but she still smiled at him. "Hello Marcus. You're probably a long way from Caxis now, but they told me how close you came to getting home. I got your messages, it was so good to see your face again. I hope you feel the same when you receive this.

"I want you to know I don't blame you for not coming home, you did everything you could. The Prime Minister herself came to visit me, to explain what's happening, and I--I'm so proud." She choked out a sob and wiped her eyes. "You'll do us all proud, and we'll be waiting for you when you get back.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"Lio sends his love, he's so big now. He talks about you, I keep playing him your messages so he doesn't forget. For now though, know that I love you, and I'm proud of you. I'll see you soon."

Marcus couldn't hold back the tears when the video blinked off, his head dropped and his chest shook with deep sobs. He didn't know how long he cried for, but at some point he felt the cuffs being taken off his wrists. When he finally stopped, Allison was sat looking at him with a strange expression on his face--one which showed he was moved.

"What does she mean, when she talked about why I couldn't land?" Marcus said.

"This is what I wanted to speak to you about." Allison clasped his hands on the desk. "I can't say too much or Chi-Young will be after me--Caxis needs a voice, and by default we need you to be that voice."

"What? I mean, I can't--"

"You can, because you have to. For now, sit tight--we need to ride out the storm that's coming."

"What storm? Admiral, I don't understand." Marcus' head span, this was all too much.

"I can't tell you, we need to evaluate how well you'll do under pressure. But trust me, pressure is coming--be ready." Allison stood and straightened his uniform. "The guard will escort you back. Oh, and you can keep the tablet. I know how important it is to feel connected to those you love."

With that, the Admiral left Marcus to his memories.

#

Marcus dreamt of Sophia that night.

He had been chasing her, but she was always just out of reach. He ran through the corridors of the Mandrake, his legs getting heavier with each step, slowing him down. He almost caught her but just as his fingers were about to close around her arm he was shocked awake. The floor of the Mandrake rushed up and knocked all the air out of him. Gasping for breath, he tried to get to his feet, but the floor moved again and he smashed his face on the floor.

After that things were a daze, but it was almost as though the ship itself was jerking and swerving. There was no where for him to go, no refuge in the cell. In the detention centre there were no announcements or any sign of what was going on.

Eventually the movement stopped. When his head stopped spinning, Marcus realised his nose was bleeding, so he grabbed the thin sheets that formed his bedding to stem the flow. He was so focused on his nose that he was surprised when footsteps thundered down the corridor, the field securing his cell dropped, and a well groomed man with dark hair burst in. He an immaculate Alliance uniform on, but rather than the usual navy this one was all black. He was followed by grey-clad officers with weapons. Captain Chi-Young squeezed in after them looking flustered.

"So," the black-clad man said. "This is the traitor."

"Mediator, if I may--"

The man held up a hand to quiet Chi-Young, and to Marcus' surprise, he was silent. "I'm Mediator Silas, and I have some questions for you. Grab him," Silas said to his armed support.

Two of the grey clad officers lunged forward and before Marcus could react, they trapped him in a vice-like grip.

"You can't do anything," Chi-Young said. "Don't fight, it won't help."

Marcus glimpsed their faces before they pulled him out of the cabin. He stopped struggling and tried to walk but it was difficult with the grip the two officers had. He was sweating already--he didn't think he could withstand an interview by whatever invention of the Alliance a 'Mediator' was. The look on Chi-Young's face said it all, this is what he had been trying to prepare him for with all those sessions.

Marcus only hoped they would be enough.