To all appearances the launching of Enterprise IX, the first rocket to Mars, seemed perfectly normal.  Everyone in the country was watching the countdown on television.

But behind the scenes, two and a half hours before blastoff, a strange and horrifying drama was being played out.  A NASA director was warning the three astronauts that their spaceship was faulty.  He told them they must fake the trip through computer magic.  This way they could convince the President the mission had succeeded. Failure would mean the end of the space program.

Nothing would stop these maniacs.  Not the truth. Not reality.  Especially not the astronauts, who became reluctant conspirators.  For them, a special fate had been arranged.....

Star Trek TOS/ Capricorn One  X-OVER FANFIC by Paul Robison.  All rights reserved.