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Post by Skyler on Jan 24, 2006 18:15:12 GMT -6
"Well, since you are back, and I know how you love History..." Skyler reached into the inside pocket on his jacket and pulled out a data disk. "Here is the scans of the derelict that I took with my Viper. Its scans of everything from the time we launched till I, um, landed. I know its not the same as being on the derelict, but atleast its something." Skyler said as he handed the disk over. "I will let you get back to the others waiting to talk to you, I have to go check on someone.....
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Post by Astraea on Jan 25, 2006 1:54:48 GMT -6
Astraea watched Skyler walk off in stunned silence then turned her attention to the data disk. That was a gift that she never would have expected, but did she dare watch it? Getting more information on the derelict ship was very tempting, but seeing how she ended up losing five yahrens of her life might be a bit much. She rubbed her thumb across it before tucking the disk away in her jacket. She didn’t need to make that decision just yet.
Astraea took a drink from her cup and held the ambrosa in her mouth for a moment before swallowing. She had forgotten how sweet it tasted. There were so many things that were familiar and yet she occasionally felt as if she was experiencing them for the first time. She stared down into her glass as she pondered old memories. Skyler had answered some of her questions, but there were always more. Was her capture even a subject that she wanted to delve into again? Being able to forget almost seemed like a blessing to her now.
She glanced up and spotted Brie across the room. So many yahrens had past, but there were times that Astraea could remember the way she ended up in Cylon hands quite vividly. There had been a lot of pain from her injuries. The exhaustion and dehydration that she had experienced distorted her mind like an alcoholic bender. When the Cylons arrived to cart her off, it had been like a nightmare she couldn’t wake from.
She felt a shiver run up her spine as she struggled to push those memories aside. She stared at Brie for a long moment. She had blamed Brie at one time, but Astraea eventually figured out that the only ones responsible for her imprisonment were the Cylons themselves. That had given her focus to do what she, as a Colonial Warrior, was trained to do. Fight.
Before she even realized what she was doing, Astraea crossed the meeting room and walked up behind Brie. “The last five yahrens doesn’t come out of my furlong time, does it?”
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Post by Brie on Jan 25, 2006 9:05:01 GMT -6
Brie smiled, slightly surprised that Astraea's first comment to her was a joke. "No," she replied, "but don't be expecting any backpay. The military tends to be stingy.” She paused. “So how are you?” It seemed like such a hollow question.
“Good,” Astraea replied. She glanced at the wheelchair. “And you?”
“I’ve got a taskmaster for a physical therapist, so I’ll be up and walking again in no time.” Brie paused again. This wasn’t the easiest conversation that she had ever had. What should she say to someone that she had sent off into five yahrens of hell? “How’s Charybdis?”
Astraea tried to hide the slight grin that started immediately at the thought of him. “He’s been wonderful. Really helpful.”
“I’m glad he still remembers some of his friends,” Brie mumbled.
“What was that?” Astraea asked. “I didn’t hear you.”
“Oh,” Brie said quickly, “nothing. Charybdis has to be the luckiest man in the fleet. No one seems to die on him, they always come back alive.” Except my husband Brie thought to herself. She wondered how much, if anything, he had told her about Amy. “I thought I saw him here earlier. It was nice of him to stop by.” She paused again. “So...are you enjoying the party?”
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Post by Astraea on Jan 25, 2006 9:55:30 GMT -6
Am I enjoying the party? Astraea asked herself. First she walked into the party instead of the meeting with Brie that she had been stressing over. Then she found out that the woman who she thought she had inadvertently put into an irreversible coma, the same woman engaged to the only man she has ever loved, is suddenly awake. Skyler, who she had assumed was killed during the mission where she was captured, is miraculously standing in front of her and, as if that wasn’t enough, Skyler presented her with footage of that very battle.
“It has been one surprise after another,” she said judiciously after a long pause. “It really is great though. I never expected anything like this.” Another weighty silence fell between them where they both shifted uncomfortably.
Astraea rubbed at the back of her neck, then decided it was simply best to address the one conversation that they were both avoiding. “Look Major, concerning the mission and everything that happened after…” She swirled her ambrosia around the cup as she searched for the right words. Writing was her forte, speaking was not. “I just want to let you know that there are no hard feelings on this end. We were both just doing our jobs and the situation took an unexpected turn.”
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Post by Brie on Jan 25, 2006 10:35:38 GMT -6
Brie sighed. "Yours was the first mission after I was elected CO where we lost anyone. I ran over things so many times in my mind afterward, wondering what I could have done differently, and I only made the mission assignments. Just so you know, some good did come out of it. Missions have been more carefully planned since then. We've walked into a lot less traps, we've been more skeptical. I know that's a small consolation for what you've been through, but the loss from that day has saved probably dozens of lives."
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Post by Astraea on Jan 25, 2006 13:33:25 GMT -6
Astraea smiled. “There were moments when I second guessed myself as well. If I had gone south instead of north, would I have found shelter?” She shrugged her shoulders. “But it all doesn’t really matter in the end. What matters is what we do with what life has dealt us.”
Brie looked at her skeptically, as if she was waiting for the axe to fall. “That’s a bit philosophical considering everything that you went through.”
“Actually, it’s what one of the prisoners said to me when I was on a tangent and I found some truth in it.” She gave a small chuckle before growing serious. Memories were flooding back to her. “The only constant in life is that things change. You either roll with it or get crushed under it.” The corner of her mouth turned up. “More jail house philosophy.”
Astraea cleared her throat. She felt like she was starting to ramble. “Anyway, I’m glad some good came out of it.” The words sounded hollow even to her own ears, but she needed to focus on the positive and stop living in the past. Ironically, her past was the immediate part of her future.
“Actually, there is one thing that I want to clear with you before proceeding. In a conversation earlier, some of us were talking about writing a basestar survival guide. We were joking about it really,” she admitted, “but, after some thought, I believe the project has some merit. I’ve already had a couple of ideas on where to begin. I learned a few tricks while I was in Cylon custody that I wouldn’t mind passing on. It might even help someone some day.”
When Brie didn’t answer immediately, Astraea was surprised by how much she anticipated the response. She needed to feel like her captivity amounted to something. Creating a survival guide for other warriors who may be led to the same fate could be that something.
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BRIK
Viper Pilot
Posts: 227
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Post by BRIK on Jan 26, 2006 3:32:00 GMT -6
Still relatively new to the Squadron, Brik had been a little worried about taking on the job of acting Third Officer of Gold during Brie's trials and tribulations and, to be honest, was glad that someone else was doing it.
Not to be mistaken, ran the dialouge in his own head, he was proud to be asked by his friend Skyler and was quite willing to do his best...but it was GREAT to return to being just a plain old Colonial Warrior!
He made his way over to Astraea to introduce himself not long after the party started but quickly left her...he could only imagine waht she'd been through and didn't want to add to the confusion of trying to get to know too many people at one. On a ship hurtling indefinitely through space with no truly known destination there would be plenty of time.
He decide to follow Ike as he watched the man pass out of the room, no doubt to check on his ship.
"Ike, wait up!" As the man pasued and turned, Brilk caught up with him and gestured that they could continue walking. "Everything ok, Brik?" "Oh, yeah, just fine, didn't mean to alarm you. After all that's happened in the last bit it's just good to spend time with your friends. Vera?" "Vera" Ike confirmed. "Well, can't keep your girl waiting!" he said with a grin. And they continued toward the bay, simply glad to have something to celebrate.
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Post by Brie on Jan 26, 2006 7:27:09 GMT -6
As Brie thought about the possibility a smile crossed her face. "That's a very good idea, but will you have time for it?"
"I could make time," Astraea replied.
Brie thought for several more microns. "It can't be your first priority. I saw in your updated file that you're trying to get back your flight status. That has to come first, if you really want to be a viper pilot again."
"I do," Astraea assured her. "More than just about anything."
"Okay," Brie continued, "then there's two things that you're going to have to do that will come before your work on the survival guide. The first is obvious, you'll need plenty of simm time. As soon as you've passed the test I'll assign you to a routine patrol. Nothing fancy to start off, I promise."
"What's the second thing?" Astraea asked.
"Exactly what you're doing right now," Brie replied. "You need to spend time with the other members of Gold Squadron, regaining their trust and vice versa. If it had been up to me you never would have received private quarters and with my return the quartermaster has been released from his duties. I won't change your housing assignment, for now, but it can't be dinners alone, reading a book like it used to be. You need to take the time to make friends. The most important part of a battle with Cylons is trusting those you're flying with. That can take time, but it's worth the effort."
"I'll try," Astraea promised.
"This guide you want to work on might be a good place to start," Brie continued. "Talk to the other squadron members, see what it is that they would want to see in such a guide. You can trust any Gold Squadron member, I've staked my life on that more than once." She paused, not sure if she should bring up what she was thinking. "I've heard that you've had some problems with some Bronze Squadron members. If it continues, come to me. Major Jorlan has already asked me to report any problems to him."
"Major Jorlan," Astraea repeated. "I don't recognize the name."
"You'll come across it in a history scan, I'm sure," Brie replied. "I led a mission to save his people from the Cylons several yahrens ago."
"So you two are close?" Astraea asked.
Brie laughed. "Not exactly, but we do have a professional respect for each other. Plus I've saved his butt more than once. He won't accept disrespect for you from his squadron, I can promise you that."
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Post by Astraea on Jan 26, 2006 13:02:42 GMT -6
Astraea thought about that for a long moment. The adverse attention that she had received since being back on board had been minor. Before returning, she half expected to be jumped at the first opportunity and shot out an airlock for collaboration even though she hated the Cylons with a renewed passion. “There really hasn’t been a problem Major,” she said and gave a slight shrug. “A few words and looks aren’t going to affect me in any way. Besides, I’ve learned to defend myself.”
“It’s not about defense,” Brie said with the note of authority that her voice always carried. “It’s about respect. We take plenty of felgercarb from the civilians in the fleet. We will not tolerate it from other warriors.”
“Yes ma’am,” Astraea replied. She had forgotten how stern Brie could be especially when it came to protecting her pilots. “I will let you know if there are any incidents concerning other warriors.”
Brie’s eyes narrowed. She wasn’t sure she liked the way Astraea worded that. “You will let me know if there are any incidents…period,” she insisted.
“Yes ma’am” she repeated then quickly changed the subject. “I’ve already arranged another sim session in the next available time slot,” she informed her squadron leader. She wondered for an instant if she should inform Brie of a certain sergeant’s belligerence, but decided against it. People were entitled to their opinions even if they were prejudice. “I wasn’t happy with the results of my last session and I’m determined to get back to flight status so I’ll be spending as much time in there as possible.”
“And spending time with other pilots?” Brie prompted. Astraea’s solitary life had always bothered Brie just a bit. There wasn’t any problem finding her because Astraea was always in her office working on history scans, but Brie was concerned about the trust issue, especially now. Most of the pilots had no clue who Astraea was, including a few who were with the Callisto at the time of her disappearance.
Astraea gave her half a smile. “You don’t need to worry about that Major. I’m not the quiet mouse I use to be. I don’t have any problem sharing meals with the squadron and I’m more than willing to move into pilot billeting as well.” She leaned a little closer to Brie. “I think Charybdis was concerned about my safety when he arranged the quarters,” she whispered conspiratorially.
Brie let out a burst of air. “There’s a shocker,” she returned sarcastically and Astraea chuckled. Charybdis had always been there to insert his opinion when it came to assigning Astraea to anything. Brie wondered for a moment if she would now have to deal with Charybdis concerning assignments for both Astraea and Amy.
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Post by Brie on Jan 26, 2006 13:56:22 GMT -6
Something that Astraea had just said was starting to boil inside of Brie. "If you're happy with your quarters, you can stay," she said, making sure that her anger didn't show. "It's really not a problem, just not what I would have done. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm supposed to take it easy. When Doc Bkj hears about the party, I want to be able to tell her that I didn't stay for the whole thing. Unfortunately my return to more active duty is in her hands. If there's anything that you need, just let Skyler or me know."
"Will do, Cap...um, Major," Astraea replied.
After quick goodbyes to several people, Brie wheeled herself over to where Skyler was standing. She knew that he had been keeping one eye on her. "We need to talk. Make your excuses and meet me in my office in ten centons."
"Brie, I can take you..."
"Listen, Captain," Brie interrupted. Her voice was quiet but full of authority. "I'm not helpless. I know that you just want to make things easier but Skyler, life is never easy. I can take care of myself." She started to wheel away, then looked back. "Ten centons."
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