Welcome to the 2nd installment, Those who have read the original incarnation and the new, may notice that I'm trying to .. clean up some plot holes a little, and make things alittle more... uhm, sensible? Many of the basic plot devices are remaining the same, but the drive behind them is changing.

-Enjoy!

Admiral Darkmoon stared at the documents littering his desk, shuffling them around. He knew all the numbers but he didn't like what they told him, and he really didn't like what the Doctor would have to say about it. Ezekiel Darkmoon, Fleet Admiral of the Planetary Defense Department and widely accepted as the leader of the colonized solar system, was a facade.. a figure head put in place for his diplomatic ability, so as to draw attention away from the true power.

A recent poll showed the public support of the PDD down. Sources indicated Ion-Tech was amassing an improved guard force. All his top analysts gave him the same conclusion, civil war was eminent and the PDD would probably lose. Then, there was the matter of the human that had been recovered by the Jump Pad.

He examined the assorted reports regarding the origin of the human, as he did so a plan formed in his mind. He knew the Doctor would not be favorable towards it at first.. but he could likely be persuaded. Of course that meant talking to him.

“Thiss had besst be important.” The Doctor hissed, showing his irritation at the call. The way he eyed Ezekiel through the screen made it clear he regarded the mouse as prey.

“It is, sir.” The Admiral kept his voice calm, refusing to actually show the fact that the ancient snake terrified him. Snakes were a rare breed and frightening to behold in the best cases, but this snake supposedly pre-dated the war. “It is about the human.”

“Ahh. He iss to be releassed today, yess.” The Doctor hissed. “How ssoon until I have him on my table?”

“I could have him to you in a days time, sir. However, I have an alternate plan for him, which could solve several problems.”

“Sst! I want the human now!” The Doctor snapped at him, hissing violently. “However, I shall lissten to your propossition.. ssee if you can ssway me.”

“As you know, we are on the brink of civil war.” He slid a couple of documents to the screen to show the Doctor. “According to polls and my expert analysts, we have a very high chance of losing. The only company we can reliably expect on our side is Stellar.”

“Thiss is unfortunate. What doess it have to do with the human?”

“There is rumor he comes from a hidden colony of survivors. These rumors are false according to our experts,” Ezekiel smiled, showing the Doctor the reports on the human. “however, were they true... were there really a hidden hostile colony of humans.”

“You sseek to usse the human to improve our popularity?” The Doctor hissed. “How?”

“Not just improve our popularity, sir.” Ezekiel put on his best politician charm. “To incite a civil war, and to turn the masses against Ion-Tech. The only issue is it will require him running free for a time before the plan can fully mature.”

“Sst. You are confident thiss will work?”

“Yes, sir.”

“.. Very well, I will get my toy after he sservess thiss purpose.”

“Thank you, sir.” The Admiral nodded. “I will keep you up to date on the progress.”

“Do not dissapoint me, mouss.” The doctor hissed as the screen went black.

Ezekiel let out a sigh of relief, he always got unnerved when he had to deal with the Doctor. He assumed it was a combination of the relation between snakes and mice, and the fact that the Doctor could have far worse things than that happen to him.

One he regained his composure, Ezekiel called his assistant in to his office and began dictating to her messages that needed to go out. Different news sources needed different information, all at least rooted in truth right now, then there were two special messages that had to go out pertaining key players within this game.

* * *

Nathan idly paced his cell glancing occasionally at his watch, an antique even in his day. It reminded him of simpler times, working on old cars after school with nothing to worry about but keeping his grades up.

“How fast things change.” He mused to himself, looking around his cell again. Several of his possessions now sat out, the few bits of familiarity brought him a measure of false comfort. More comfort than anything else in this forsaken pit, at least.

In the two days since waking, the only interaction he had was with the machine that brought his meals, and the woman. He assumed, at least, it was a woman. Her voice was rather gruff and deeper than most women, he'd thought her a man until she gave her name the second day. Unless he missed his guess she would be by soon, and with little else to look forwards to, he paced the room and waited.

“Hello Nathan,” Tiera's voice came over the speaker just a few minutes later. “I have some good news for you, the final tests have come back. You're healthy and not contaminated by some strange super virus.”

“That's good to hear.” Nathan chuckled. “Does this mean I get to leave this little cell I call home?”

“It does.” She sounded slightly nervous, which struck Nathan as a little odd. “If you want to gather your possessions, I'm just waiting for the unlock authorization to come through.”

“Finally, I get to see a 26^th century space station.” Nathan chuckled, tossing his few things back in to the duffel bag. “Though, I gotta say, I'm a little concerned in regards to things like.. a place to live, employment..”

“Temporary lodgings for you are in the works.” Tiera replied. “Long term lodgings will depend on employment, which may be a little harder.”

“I'm no stranger to hard work.” He slung his bag over his shoulder. “And I catch on fast with machines.. I'm sure something can be found.”

“We will see, someone may have an opening for you.” She paused for a moment. “Unlock orders just came through. Uhm.. I should warn you.. my appearance may be a little alarming.”

“Oh dear..” Nathan laughed, he expected that over 400 years, and living in space for part of that, humans would have evolved a bit. “I've been held captive by aliens claiming to be humans!”

“I never claimed to be human.” Tiera replied as the door hissed open.

For a moment, Nathan just stared, his mind telling him that he couldn't possibly be seeing what his eyes told him he was seeing. Before him stood an anthropomorphic wolf, standing near seven feet in height and covered in shiny gray fur, wearing a dark blue single-piece uniform with military insignia. If they still meant what they used to, she was a Corporal in the Marines.

“Gaaah..” It took him a moment longer for his mouth to decide to actually work. “What.. uh.. wow.. I missed a lot..”

“I'm sorry Nathan.” She sighed, looking down at the ground and apparently doing her best to not look imposing, which unfortunately didn't work. “There's a few things I didn't tell you. I didn't want you stressing and panicking in the quarantine room.”

“Yeah, sure.” Nathan growled, “You just conveniently lead me to believe that I was at least in human hands.. not .. whatever the fuck you are.”

“Nathan, calm down.”

“Calm? Easy for you to say!” He snapped, “You're not the one standing face to face with some towering creature out of a horror movie! God only knows what you're planning too do to me, hell you probably alr-”

“Nathan!” Tiera cut him off, her voice coming out as a growl, though she quickly brought it back to an even tone. “If we were going to kill you, we would have done so already. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you the full truth up front, but if I had, you would have tried to find a way out of the containment chamber.. and probably gotten yourself killed for it.

“Now, if you can calm down and act like a civilized person, we can talk and I will answer any questions you have. Everything I have told you thus far has been truth, and I have no intentions of changing that.”

“I'm sorry..” Nathan sighed, sitting back down on the bed. “This is just.. it feels like I'm in some bad sci-fi movie.”

“I know it has to be disturbing.” Tiera nodded, leaning against the wall across from him. “I'll try to get you up to speed on the 26^th century though.”

“The most obvious question..” He paused, trying to think of a way to not sound either insulting or just plain stupid, and realized it wasn't really possible. “What are you?”

“Short answer? I'm a wolf.” She paused a moment, reading the still clueless expression on his face. “Which doesn't do you much good. We were created near the end of the 21^st century, initially as expendable soldiers, but were used for many purposes afterword, including the primary builders of the colonies.”

“I see, and now?”

“Now, the various species of 'animals' created are the dominant species in the solar system.”

“Huh.. and what of humans?”

“I was dreading that question.” Tiera sighed. “Extinct, in so far as we know.”

“.. extinct? Really?” It took a moment for the reality of that statement to really sink in for him. “Where does that leave me?”

“To put it bluntly? Fucked.” She looked at the floor for a moment, trying to decide how much to tell him. “After The War.. my kind out numbered and out powered humans. With no fear of retaliation from Earth, a second war broke out. At least, that's what they tell us, truth is.. it was a purge, genocide spearheaded by a charismatic commander.”

“Why was I even woken up?” Nathan asked, trying to fully comprehend exactly what he was being told.

“I wish I could tell you it's because we're more advanced now and don't judge someone by their species.” Tiera sighed. “Unfortunately, certain high ranking individuals think the pre-war derelict was a ruse and you're really from a hidden colony of humans bent on attacking us.”

“Why tell me all this?”

“I told you I'd answer your questions.” She smiled. “Besides, I know you're not from some hidden colony bent on war.”

“That's reassuring.” He gave a bitter laugh. “Let me guess, the better part of the populace will either want to see me dead because of what I represent, or on display because I'm the last human?”

“Pretty much, and a larger percentage of the former.”

“Joy. What about you?”

“What do I want to see happen to you?”

“Yeah.”

“I want to see you find someplace peaceful to settle down.” She smiled, choosing to leave a few things out. “Spend the rest of your days around friends who don't really care that you're a human. Maybe find a job that your unique outlook is ideal for. Possibly even find a lover, if you can.. and maybe, when you have time, get the occasional chance to talk to you, myself.”

“That.. was a little more detailed than I expected.” he chuckled. “Now I'm curious as to why you would feel that way.”

“I am something of a history buff, my main area of interest is the 21^st and 22^nd centuries.” She said, moving to sit on the bed with him. “To most of us, humans are evil tyrants which no good can come of, but I've looked past the 'approved' history. There were a lot of good humans, even those that fought for our equality. The stories are countless, but no one can be bothered to learn them.”

“Even in the 26^th century, people are still lazy, ignorant and bigoted?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” Tiera sighed. “Some things never change. No matter how far back in history you look..”

“So, what happens now?”

“I don't know, exactly.” She shrugged, “Officially I'm to keep an eye on you, observe your behavior to confirm you are, in fact, from the 21^st century. I believe quarters are being arranged for you, alternatively though, I have a couch you can sleep on.

“Beyond that? You try to stay out of trouble, get up to speed on this century and we try to find you a job someplace where you will be accepted. Ion-Tech may be a good place for you, they're one of the more progressive companies.. alternatively, I may be able to call in a favor and get you a job with Stellar Industries.”

“You realize neither of those meant anything?”

“Yeah, sorry.” Tiera laughed. “Ion-Tech is primarily a defense contractor, but does a few other things as well. Stellar Industries is the galaxy's leading ship manufacturer.”

“I see.” Nathan paused a moment, looking at her. “If it's all the same to you, I think I would probably be better off on your couch than I would be alone. Besides, that will make it easier for you to report about me to your bosses.”

“You're probably right.” She nodded. “Gives me the added bonus of being able to ask you questions about the 21^st century, too.”

“Only fair, I suppose.”

* * *

In a dimly lit and outdated office, and older overweight tiger sat at his desk, heaving a sigh as he looked at the months numbers. He was owner and curator of a pre-war museum, filled with relics of a time long past. The museum had slowly been dwindling in business, to the point now that he had to consider selling parts of the collection.. except there were no offers.

His thoughts were interrupted by the buzz indicating a call. He gave himself a moment to put on his charming face before accepting the call.

“Thank you for calling the Museum of Old-World curiosities,” He greeted his caller with a pleasant voice and a polite smile. “I am your curator, Al. How can I help you today?”

“Hello Alphonse,” The caller, a wolf in a PDD uniform, replied. “the real question is, how can we help you today. I am calling you with a proposition handed down from Admiral Darkmoon himself.”

“I'm listening.” Al replied, this set him slightly on edge, but he had to at least hear the offer out.

“Recently the Jump Pad picked up a derelict space craft drifting towards Earth. It turns out this craft is a true piece of pre-war history, the first manned deep-space craft launched in the 21^st century.”

“As much as I'd love to,” Al replied with a sigh “I can't afford to buy anything right now, let alone something of that magnitude.”

“That's the beauty,” The caller smiled. “We don't want to sell it to you. We want too give it to you, in exchange for a small favor that will benefit you as well. A single crew member survived in cryogenic stasis, and we would like to ensure he gets employment where we can keep tabs on him. Your museum could benefit exceptionally from having someone who knows that much about the 21^st century, as well as knowing so much about the new ship you are obtaining.

“As such, it seems to be that it would be mutually beneficial for you to hire him. If you are willing, the ship is your just for offering him a job. We are aware of the costs associated with hiring a new employee, so if he accepts you will receive an extra hundred thousand credits to cover them.”

“.. hundred.. “ Al stared for a moment and then nodded. “You have yourself a deal, I will do what I can to hire him.”

"Excellent.” the wolf replied. “You will find round trip accommodations to the Jump Pad, an additional ticket back to Lunar 1 for the human, and a freight order for the derelict waiting for you when you close this call.”

“Thank -” Al found the call cut off before he could finish, sure enough though the promised tickets were there. “Terrence! Get in here!”

“Yeah boss?” Terrence poked in to the office a moment later, holding a cleaning rag in one hand. Al had offered the young mutt a job keeping the collection clean to keep him off the street, since then the boy had become a very valuable asset. “Whatcha need?”

“Pack your bag, my boy.” Al said with a smile. “You are taking a trip to the Jump Pad to pick up our latest acquisition and deliver a message.”

“What'd we acquire? For that matter, where'd we get the money?”

“We're not paying for it, it's a gift from the admiral.” Al replied, “If things go according to plan it will include enough money for this place to stay running another year, with no new business.. but we'll get new business!

“I thought the Admiral didn't like us?”

“I don't know,” Al shrugged. “but I am certainly not going to question his generosity.”

“Fair enough.” Terrence nodded. “So what'd we get?”

“Genuine piece of history! The first ever deep-space craft!” Al ushered Terrence out of the office. “Now get packed my boy, I'll fill you in on the details later.”

“OK OK I'm going!”

As he watched Terrence run down the hall, Al paused for a second, wondering why the PDD had decided to make such an odd offer, seeing as they had tried to shut him down in the past. Regardless, at the moment he had an excellent new exhibit piece, and perhaps the greatest asset he could ever get, a real live human from before the war.