Star Trek: Terra Alpha

Leo hummed happily to himself as he walked back to his office in the security wing of the hospital. He had badgered Tess enough to let him at least have a security office in the hospital, at least that way he could still work and feel useful and if something happened, at least he was close enough to have whatever taken care of. He opened the door and the office erupted in cheers and applause.

"Congratulations grandpa Leo!" one of the younger guards said with a laugh. "Another granddaughter... wow man..."

"Yeah no kidding right? At my age I should be worrying about great-grandkids..." Leo said and opened up his briefcase "And as per tradition... cigars. The good kind. Just don't let Dr. Ryder see you smoking these or I'm going to be sleeping in that chair tonight and every night until she fumigates."

"Gotcha boss." another guard said with a smile. "So you got pictures?"

"Of course... Talia was getting annoyed by how many I was taking of the baby." Leo said as he pulled out a padd. "Nora Nicole Singh. Or Ryder. Both are on the birth certificate. Depends on which name will get her further."

"Aww... so cute... those little cheeks." one of the female guards said with a coo. "I so want one..."

"Then tell Billy to get off his ass and on your's!" one of the other female guards told her. "You DO know that works... you actually have to sleep together or do it in the stairwell on the East Wing."

"Please tell me you didn't tell her to do that." Leo cocked his head at her. "I thought we stopped that."

"Bunch of horny doctors or nurses will always find a way to do it... and that was the South Wing. They moved to the East."

"I've been a guard longer than your parents have been alive and I never did it in a stairwell." Leo said with a roll of his eyes. "And not for lack of trying." he muttered and looked down at the padd. "Anyway... get another patrol there, I don't want a repeat of that incident with the ex-boyfriends throwing themselves down the stairs fighting with each other."

"Got it boss." one of the guards said with a salute and reached into the desk. "Oh and... you had a package." he handed him a large slim envelope.

"Who'd be sending me anything?" Leo mused as he opened it. "Wonder if its those new plaques for the patrol cart, that actually spell 'Security' right."

"Sexurity is pretty funny though." the guard sitting behind the monitor station said with a laugh. "Sexurity... that had to be a joke right?"

"Prob... ably..." Leo said as he pulled out a thin device from the envelope. It was covered in circuitry and had a simple hand written note that said 'Good bye Old Man'. "BOMB!" he shouted as he looked around and pulled out his firearm from the holster under his jacket and started to shoot out the window. "Blast the window out... hurry!" he said as he threw the envelope out of the hole that everyone was making in the reinforced transparent aluminum window before it exploded.

--

Fire crews were pulling debris out of the office as a reporter stood outside the hospital.

"Today the Naval Medical Center was the site of a terrorist attack... four security guards including the father of former President Nicholas Ryder were killed today. Less than fifteen minutes after the blast a message was sent out stating that the former Empress of Earth, Julie Lei was the reason for the attack. It is not certain if she caused it or if it was caused because of her. ANC will continue to keep up with this story. I'm Lia Takashi... back to you." she waited for the camera man to stop recording before she left the press perimeter and flashed a special badge she always kept on her, ever since Olivia pretended to be her, she was given a 'special agent' status.

"Not now Lia... I'm... I'm still trying to find my husband." Tess said through streaked mascara and messy hair as she helped the crews remove rubble.

"I know... I came to help." Lia said as she pulled off her blazer and put on a pair of gloves.

"I appreciate it... " Tess replied and came across Leo's wedding band in the ground. "Oh God... " she shakily picked up the band of gold and held it to her chest. "He's really gone... really..."

Noella wasted no time in storming into Julie Lei's town house with a security team.

"I didn't have anything to do with this!" Julie protested as she tried to keep the security team from taking her.

"Yeah right... I never should have granted your asylum." Noella said with a scowl. "Bringing you to the Mount for questioning."

"I want my lawyer." Julie stated as she held up her hand. "And don't cuff me... I'm not going to fight you."

"I don't care." Noella said and gave her a right hook to the jaw that sent her sprawling on the floor. "Leo and four of his guards are dead because of you. If it were up to me I would ship your ass back to Earth or just... let whoever take care of you. I'm revoking your Asylum."

"You can't do that!" Julie said as she got up and rubbed her jaw.

"I can and I will." Noella said and pulled out her communicator. "Seven to beam to the Mount and have Ambassador Sasyaki join us."

"Sas... oh shit..." Julie winced.

"I'm going to make your life a living hell Lei." Noella said as they were beamed out.

Rebecca stared down silently at the debris. Here and there her right hand would extend and lift rubble free with the ijulna to expose a new layer. "Liv... I think I found a piece of the bomb."

A peice of duraplast, gold, and wires floated towards her, and stopped a few feet in front of Rebecca slowly rotating, "Julie Lei is behind this?" Rebecca asked Olivia as she examined the clue.

"Not her MO." Olivia said as she carefully prepared an evidence bag and looked at the bomb piece. "If she wanted someone dead, she'd do it in person or she'd use a poison, make it look like natural causes. Explosions aren't her bag." she put on a pair of glasses and examined it. "Blast managed to wipe any DNA traces off it, no finger prints, other than my grandfather's."

"I have." Tony said as he landed from doing an aerial view of the damage. "Homeland Intel, one of their contractors builds them."

"My thoughts exactly Ms. Ryder," she said with a grim smile. "And yet, that is the first name to crop up. Seems to me our suspect is someone whom has a grudge against Julie, and doesn't care who is injured along the way. Of course it could also be someone with a grudge against the Alliance, or your father, and is simply passing the blame off onto your mother."

"Well they murdered my grandfather and four others to make a point." Olivia said as she looked around.

"Using gear that I paid for." Tony said bitterly. "We ordered those to be used for controlled demo, blow out a door, clear debris. Thin and... remote controlled." he snapped his helmet back around his head. "Becki! I need a signal trace, 37.58mhz band."

"Nothing... but I will scan the other sensor systems to see if it detected it." Becki replied.

"While she's doing that..." Olivia said as she pulled her gloves off. "We get my grandmother somewhere secure and my Aunt and my newest cousin."

"I thought you were retired Olivia." Nick said as he walked over with a security team behind him. "I've got it from here. Khan's moving Natalia and Nora to their penthouse, I think a man like Noonian can handle any post birthing issues." he crossed his arms. "I've got an investigative forensics team coming in a few minutes."

"Nick... your father was killed... you can..." Tess said as she walked over to him.

"Mom, I have to do this, I can grieve later and believe me I will, but dad would kick my butt if we didn't do a full forensics sweep and investigate everything." Nick said as he put his hands on his mother's shoulders. "Go to the Compound, you'll be safe there. Alice is prepping your room as we speak. Tasha's already there, Angel's got her. Until we know for sure this threat is over, everyone is staying either at the Compound, The Rafters or Olive Grove." he cleared his throat. "Includes you too Becca."

"What if we moved them to the Erebus? The ship has a full medical suite and staff, and we can control who can come and go. We ought to get the president and key members of
Congress into secure locations as well." Rebecca said as she went to Nick. Hugging him she patted him on the back, "I'm sorry, I'll make sure we catch the bastard. As far as me. You are a damned fool if you think I'm going to sulk off to my ranch! What the hell is wrong with you?" She slapped him on the back of his head. "Now, that that is done let's get to work."

"I spent months upgrading the security on the Compound..." Nick replied. "But Jon and Bella need to go and stay with Clint and Selene, Malcolm and T'Kir are uhm... already in a secure location." he cleared his throat. "I think they're eloping."

"Wouldn't shock me." Angel said as she arrived with the forensics team. "Erebus is on patrol, may need them. But if you want to move your family up there, I won't stop you. Nathan and Trini are on the Kitea with his siblings."

"Let's just try and stay safe, not paranoid." Nick said as he looked at what was left of his father's office. "I want to find whoever did this and nail them to the wall."