Battlecruiser Hyperion, Koprulu Sector, Date Unknown

[on_her_korhal]

There was not supposed to be a platform here.

It had been sheer accident: a quick veer into abandoned space to get away from Confederate troops with an axe to grind. Rather than find empty space, however, they found this platform, this large, impossible space platform that held little trace of being previously occupied.

Well, except for the Warp Gate. It was kind of hard not to notice the Warp Gate, considering that it was a colossal... well, building didn't seem the right word. The Protoss built sturdy and big.

[ and thus we doth begin! ]

Mengsk	"Something must've found them before they had time to set up their defences," Arcturus Mengsk mused, grinning faintly at the surface of the platform. He was standing by one of the viewports of the battlecruiser Hyperion, his arms behind his back and a thousand and one plans cooking in his mind. The Hyperion was floating low above the surface - not close enough to crash, but far closer than was entirely comfortable for the nerves of most of her crew.
Raynor	Marshal James Raynor was not nearly as calm as his grudging leader. Or as trusting about the safety of the plan being tabled. "I smell a trap," he said, simply.
Kerrigan	"Getting cold feet, Jimmy?" Kerrigan asked, faint amusement sparkling just behind her eyes. "Arcturus, we've run all the necessary scans. It's as empty as it looks."
Mengsk	A smile curved onto Mengsk's face, but as per usual, it was tainted with a deliberate edge of plotting malice. "Good. Then we'll carry on as planned."
Raynor	"I've got a squad of Marines all lined up downstairs," Raynor remarked, fiddling nervously with one of his own belt loops. It was possible he was simply trying to keep himself from doing the same with his gun. "Kerrigan?"
Kerrigan	She, on the other hand, was having no problems at all. Not even really any kind of wariness. Locked up tight in her Ghost suit, however, it was sometimes hard to tell. "I'll be fine, Jimmy."
Raynor	"I just don't like the idea of you going out there alone," Raynor said, and even if she couldn't read his mind, the fear would have been visible, spread out over his entire face.
Kerrigan	"We've been over this before," she said, annoyed, but not unkindly. "I can handle myself out there. I'm not a kitten up in a tree, I don't need a hero, so just get me my squad and I'll take care of it, okay?" Kerrigan stepped towards the viewport, taking her position as Mengsk's right hand -- always. "You just make sure you don't get killed while I'm not out here to save your ass."
Raynor	"I'll try," he said, covering for his anxiety with a smile, "But I can't promise ya anything, darlin'."
Mengsk	"If you're quite done being a mother hen, Marshal, it's high time Kerrigan gets us some intel on that damned Warp Gate." Irritation, thy name was Arcturus Mengsk, glaring over his shoulder.
Kerrigan	Kerrigan clicked the last one of her guns in place; the modifications she'd made to the Ghost suit to allow for more back-up weaponry were working really well. She wasn't particularly looking forward to testing their durability much, though. "Ready when you are, Arcturus," she said.
Marines	"I'm tellin' ya, Dean, that was the biggest fucking Hydra anyone ever bagged." "Yeah, must've been big enough to crawl through a fucking rabbit hole. Shut up, Sam." Three Marines were quibbling by the shuttle bay, while a fourth stood a few stoic paces away, scraping the remains of an old Confederate flag from his armor.
Kerrigan	"I shot an Ultralisk once," Kerrigan deadpanned, stalking into the room. "That doesn't give me the time to stand around chatting when there's an army of Confederates shooting at me. Get in the shuttle. That's an order."
Marines	The trio of arguing Marines shot up into formation as quickly as was humanly possible. "Yes, Lieutenant," the quiet Marine barked. There was mild amusement written in the lines of his face. He was the first to march into the shuttle, the others following in a neat line.
Kerrigan	Kerrigan slid her hands over the shuttle's metal exterior, gripping the door momentarily. Smaller than a dropship - far more unprotected. Lucky them there wasn't anyone around. "I told you, Jimmy," she said, without looking behind her, "I've got all the backup I need in here."
Raynor	"I just got a bad feelin' about this," Jim answered. He was standing just in front of the door, clad from tip to toe in Marine armor. His helmet was still open, however. "I'm comin' with you, darlin', whether you like it or not."
Kerrigan	Her glance was pulled towards him in the end; she just looked at him for a long moment that seemed to stretch out indefinitely. Finally, she sighed. "Fine," she said, aggravation evident in her voice. She slipped the Ghost suit's own helmet over her head. "But I go first." She slid into the shuttle.
Raynor	"See? Compromise." Raynor clunked aboard the ship. "Something we can all live with."
Kerrigan	Half an hour of surprisingly uneventful shuttle time later, Kerrigan set foot on the old space platform. She had a hunch that, had the area had a breathable atmosphere, she would've been able to hear it teeter dangerously under her feet. The area seemed... mostly empty, except for the ocean of stars all around, casting ghostly light on the scratched metal of the platform. Had she been any less well trained or experienced, she would've been jumping at shadows. But, no: she approached the Warp Gate with a professional sense of trepidation, her eyes searching the surface for some kind of entrance, a control panel, anything. "Randleman, Biggs, Small, secure the area. Wilson, keep my back. Raynor," and only then did Kerrigan glance away from the gigantic, alien metal structure that kept an unnaturally bright warp field in check, "Don't do anything stupid."
Raynor	"Tryin' my best," Raynor crackled in over the radio. He stepped out onto the empty platform, heavy metal Marine boots clanging loudly against the surface -- or, at least, that's what it felt like from the inside of the suit. His evaluation of the situation was a little more wary as he followed Biggs around the building, gripping his gun tight.
Marines	On the other side of the structure, Biggs came to a stop, staring up at the large hull of the Warp Gate. He tapped the metal with his weapon. "Them Protoss build these things pretty solid," he said, "Bet you couldn't crack this with fucking C-4."
Raynor	"Don't touch anything, Biggs," Raynor said, glancing at him worriedly, "That's an order. You don't wanna know what the Protoss are capable of."
Kerrigan	Kerrigan was frowning at some weird little bubbles she'd spotted in the covering, reaching one arm above her head to shield her eyes from the overwhelming light of the Warp Gate as she inspected the... bulkhead? Wall? What would you call something like this? It seemed to hum with energy before her eyes. They should pull back, and just fly a dropship in. Protoss technology rarely worked well in Terran hands. For all they knew, this gate led into empty space, and she'd seen no intention to murder in Arcturus' mind. His own people, at least.
Marines	"What?" Corporal Dean Biggs was not the smartest man to flee the Confederate Army, a fact which he was once again displaying quite brilliantly. "You seein' any Zealots I'm not? There's no Protoss around, I can mess with whatever I feel like." He slammed his gun into the metal again for emphasis.
Kerrigan	Suddenly, there was a blinding flash of blue light. The Warp Gate grew outside of the bounds of its socket for an instant, barely missing Biggs but bubbling towards Kerrigan, fast enough that she barely had the time to react before it swallowed her whole. And then, just as abruptly as the explosion had started, every trace of the energy dissipated. The Warp Gate depowered in an instant, leaving only an empty metal shell behind.
Raynor	Raynor dropped his arm away from his face when the light faded. "Kerrigan!" he shouted, running as fast as the heavy Marine armor would let him. "Kerrigan!" Where Kerrigan had been, however, there was nothing. "KERRIGAN!" And then, finally, with all the pain and worry pouring through his chest into his lungs, into his throat: "SARAH!"
Mengsk	"Well," Mengsk said, staring down from the battlecruiser above, a forboding smirk grafted onto his face, "She certainly found her way in."