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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:36:08 GMT -6
Lucian Lucian heard the comment about the queen. It's true that she was a cornered animal, but as far as he was concerned, when she started hunting humans, she'd become an unwelcome pest that deserved to die, just like the Cylons who insisted on exterminating all of the human race.
Besides, Lucian thought, any creature that could cut through durasteel, even in relatively thin cross sections, would be difficult to trap. Lucian used the small computer device to sample the air. Finding no traces of explosives or other unusual components in the air, he whispered into the comm, "Go!"
RaycerX threw a flare around the corner, and Lucian extended a small mirror he'd taped at an angle to a 50 centimeter long pole. Angling it, he peered around the corner and saw the queen beast suspended a couple meters away. With RaycerX going "high" using the corner as cover, Lucian went in low, rolling and firing. In the limited height of the ventilation system, he almost laughed at how close together "low" and "high" really were. He heard the other Warriors approaching from the other branches of the system.
Even as he fired, the queen dropped from her position, and reared back to expose the probe projecting from under her body. Lucian's first two shots hit the queen, but due to the strength of her carapace and the smooth, almost polished surface, they riccocheted away. The queen "spat" at Lucian, but the little purple globules sailed wide since she had been knocked slightly off balance by the shots. She literally ran forward, swinging at least two of her front legs which sliced through Lucian's laser pistol. He threw the remaining piece at her, but it bounced off harmlessly. Hearing the others approaching, she sent out another call to her children to rally around her. Lucian saw the remaining few dots disengage from the walls and roof of the shaft, but there were not that many left in comparison to what they'd faced already.
Seeing that her brood was ready to take out the biped in front of her, she launched herself at one of the other Warriors who were now almost right on top of her.... * * * Amy Anna had burst though the sealed door like it wasn't even there. Dolet and I followed as quickly as we could, but it was difficult to keep up with Anna, or whatever the crawlon bite was mutating her into.
As we moved quickly through compartments I realized that we we rushing ahead with no regard to caution. We could easily run right into a nest of crawlons. I called out to Anna to voice my concerns.
She turned around, stopping suddenly in her tracks, and I could hardly even recognize her anymore. "Oh, Anna.." I whispered, my voice full of sadness and pity.
"Go" was all she said, as she pointed ahead through the next doorway. She didn't wait for any reply, but assumed an odd position with her hands on the sides of her head. Dolet and I squeezed past her, and I could feel the intense heat radiating from her. She needed medical attention!
And then I saw them. "By the lords" Dolet shouted, "She's bringing the crawlons!" And it was true. They began to appear from nowhere, but they passed by Dolet and I, heading straight for Anna.
"It's like she's calling them to her", I said. After a moment the thought struck me. "She's on a wavelength with the crawlons! If she's calling them to her, they won't be as many defending the queen!"
My excitement dwindled as I saw the crawlons make contact with Anna. The began to burn and melt into a coating over Anna. But still they came, oblivious to the fate they were rushing headlong into. Anna's plan was working, but it was obvious that soon there wouldn't be much of Anna left.
"Come on Dolet", I said. "If we don't escape, Anna's sacrifice will mean nothing." It was the second time Anna was making such a sacrifice, I thought bitterly. But there was nothing I could do to help her. Even now the coating was so thick I had lost sight of Anna.
Dolet and I slipped away down the corridor, and found ourselves emerging into the main hallway of level 6. We had made our escape. I found myself crying, and Dolet looked like he was about to.
"I'll never forget you, Anna" I whispered, looking back the way we had come. She had saved us, and I hoped that she was drawing enough crawlons to make the queen vulnerable to attack, where ever the queen was. * * * Randrius A fist-sized laser bolt caught her in the abdomen. The bolt ricochetted away, leaving a shallow char mark on her exoskeleton, but it hit with enough force to knock her wide of her intended target. Randrius stood and fired the weapon again. The military laser rifle, four feet long, shot went wide as Randrius side-stepped some of the poison flying his way. The Crawl-on queen rose and launched herself at Randrius. But now, more warriors were focusing there fire on her. Still smarting from the wound caused by rifle, she launched herself at Randrius. He swung thebutt of the rifle into her head, but this didn't seem to slow her in the slightest. One of her leg swatted the rifle from Randrius' grasp. She hit him full force, knocking him flat on his back and sending him skidding into a wall. Randrius felt his head hit the wall and, for a moment, he struggled with unconsiousness. When his vision cleared, he saw the crawl-on queen poised for a kill shot. He drew his knife and prepared to meet her. * * * Brie It took her a few centons to free her leg, but finally Brie managed to pull herself free. As she picked up her weapon she realized that it was now useless. She found the fire extinguisher and her comm unit. As she was preparing to leave, the door opened. She quickly hid behind a table that was lying on its side. Two men entered. Brie couldn’t see them, but she could hear their voices clearly. They were talking about something that they were planning on making, probably out of the spare parts that they were keeping in that storeroom.
“If Collie got those last two pieces we’ll be able to start putting it...frack, what happened to Collie?” Brie heard one of them say. She realized that they had just seen their partner’s dead body.
The footsteps of the two men rushed over to where the man lay. Brie moved slightly, trying to hide herself better. “Must have been those crawlon things,” the other man said.
“Frack,” the first man said again, “you mean that was true? Frack!”
“We can’t leave Collie here, can’t risk anyone finding out what we’re up to,” the second man said. “I’ll take his arms, you grab his feet.”
“What are we going to do with him?” the first man asked. He was obviously not the brains of the operation.
“Garbage chute,” the second man said. “I heard that an ensign met his end that way a while back, and they never even found any traces of him.”
Remaining totally quiet, Brie waited until the men had left. She counted to 100 then slipped out into the hall. The men were nowhere to be seen. She made a call to the Security Offices, they couldn’t do anything at the moment because of the search for the crawlon queen, but obviously someone was up to no good. * * * Lucian Lieutenant Stadia was positioned just behind Randrius in the ventilation duct, so she pulled him back slightly to avoid the queen's initial attack. She watched as the two larger legs slashed, missing their target, but hitting and gouging into the "floor" of the duct. She couldn't get off a shot due to the tightness of the space and the danger of hitting Randrius or someone else.
* * *
RaycerX knew something was wrong but he couldn't see because Lucian was blocking his line of sight. He looked surprised when Lucian turned and dropped the remains of his laser pistol. "Weapon! Quickly!"
* * * Skyler Skyler was back tracking looking for any signs of Amy he might have missed the first time, with out any luck. He was hoping to catch up with Brie and help her look. Just then Brie's voice broke across the Comm Channel calling the security office. Skyler looked up and checked the bulkhead markings and saw he was close to Brie's position. He keyed up his mike and called her.
"Major, Skyler here. I am close to you now. I am heading your way. Do you have any special orders?"
Skyler placed his hand on the grip of his blaster. He wanted to be ready, but he didn't want to look like he was expecting anyone. * * * Artus Brotherjoe and Artus were approaching the firefight. "It looks like there's a whole lot of shooting going on there that's not doing much good" Brotherjoe shouted over the sound of the blasts. "I know, " Artus replied; "But I may have another idea. Hand me all the spare clips you are carrying"
Brotherjoe had no idea what Artus wanted to do, but handed him the three clips from his garison belt. Artus took all the clips from his belt and added the one he took from his blaster. He then started taping them together.
"I don't know what you're up to Artus," Brotherjoe said;"but you've just rendered your gun useless..."
Holding up the bundle of taped togehter clips, Artus answered; "If this works I won't need to shoot. Think you can hit this?"
"Well yeah," Brotherjoe replied ;"but if I do, that bunch will go up like the holy fire of the Lords of Kobol."
"That's the general idea" Artus said as he tossed the bundle into the melee, making sure it landed right in front of the crawl-on queen...... * * * Lucian RaycerX handed Lucian the pistol but before he could even align for a shot at the beast, he saw a bundle land almost beside her. It was too close to Randrius and Stadia, so Lucian yelled to distract her from them, "RUN! FIRE ON FIVE!"
Seeing her hesitate, he started counting aloud as he backed up to the next intersection.... * * * Randrius Randrius saw Artus toss the cartridges under the Crawl-on queen and saw his plan. "Stadia, get out of here!!!" Stadia didn't hesitate, darting past the queen and to the relative safety of the vent. Randrius turned his full attention back to the queen, "C'mere, you!!!" The queen took a cautious step forward and Randrius heard Artus hollering a count-down. At one Randrius leaped sideways, kicked into the wall, propelling himself upwards. He grabbed a overhanging beam and swung up into an air vent just as Artus fired. The force of the blast shook Randrius and he felt an unbelievable pain rip through his leg as he landed in the air vent. An unearthly shriek arose from the crawl-on queen, sending chills down his spine. His ears rang from the blast. As the sound faded, he dropped out of the vent and suddenly discovered the source of his pain, a three inch piece of shrapnel had cut into and through his lower leg. The bone was shattered and it hung by a chunk of muscle and skin. Blood fountained out of the wound. Randrius landed and fell limp to the floor.
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:36:40 GMT -6
Stargazor I wish i knew who the woman in my dreams is ,she ‘s always there when these attacks start. Like if she is watching over me. Then there is this voice talking to me, telling me i still have a lot to do. While Stargazor told Holodoc what was going on when he is out she looked over some of the reading she took. Her eye came across some strange readings, while he still had the aspects of a human , his body was changing. She could see his need for air was becoming less then normal. He was becoming twice as strong and fast as a normal person. But what concerned her most was the energy reading she got from his body. They wore way above normal and not stable, if they would raise higher he could burn up. Then she looked over to Stargazor who was looking at his hands while he talked about the strange things he’d seen while he was out. He opened his right hand and concentrated on it . Suddenly a ball of light formed in his hand. Holodoc was seeing this event and was puzzled , she could see him control this ball of light with ease. Then Stargazor said to Holodoc “Place you’re hand above the ball of light”! Holodoc was afraid but Stargazor said “There’s no need to fear me”! Holodoc “How do you know this”!
Stargazor “I just do”!
Holodoc raised her hand and placed it above the light ball. When she did she felt this bright flash inside her , then she was like inside Stargazor’s mind. She could see what he sees she could feel his feelings, and more. Then he showed her the horror he had seen in the attack. She was becoming more tense so Stargazor stopped the connections as she regained to herself she felt tired but had a glimps of what was going on inside of Stargazor. She looked at these sad eyes of Stargazor, and said “Now i know, what ever is going on whit you i know you would never hurt any of us, I felt what you felt , i saw what you saw”! * * * Holodoc Holodoc quietly stood there next to Stargazor's bed thinking about what he had been able to do & what he had shown her. She knew that Stargazor was different from the others, but was having trouble figuring out what had given him the ability to do what he was able to do with the light ball & being able to show her things the way he had just shown her. After a couple moments of silence, Holodoc looks back up into Stargazor's eyes. "I am puzzled by how you are able to create the light ball & control it the way you just did Stargazor," Holodoc says, "plus showing me what you were able to show me. In several ways I have a feeling that it will remain a medical mystery to some extent."
Holodoc reached over & pulled the chair up closer to Stargazor's bed & sits down. Running her hands over the back of her neck some trying to releave some of the tension in her neck from so much work & very little rest, Holodoc looks up at Stargzor & wonders about the mystery he has just added to for her to try & solve. "The mystery just seems to keep growing," Holodoc says quietly, "with different things & I am unsure where to begin now on how to solve it." * * * Stargazor Stargazor said “The mysteries of my past aren’t so important now”! “I like to be discharged from the med. Lab, so i can help my fellow warriors”!
“I heard some things from the nurses talking to each other”! “Are we in so much trouble”? * * * The following series flashes back some 3 yahrens or so ago, to when Lt. Amy first arrived aboard the Callisto. Below is a prelude to Amy's arrival on the Callisto. * * * Amy sat in the launch bay, watching through the windows of the great Agro ship. She could see the shuttle slowly close in on the great bay, and finally enter it. With a whooshing sound the airlocks engaged, and the lighting went from red to normal, the sign that meant it was safe to enter the bay.
Looking around behind her, Amy looked for a sign of her parents, but she couldn't spot them anywhere. Their last talk had ended in sharp words, for her parents were flat out against Amy leaving to join the military. There were fields to tend, and crops to harvest-- what more important than that for a hungry fleet? Besides, Amy had grown up a farmer. She had no business pretending she could become a warrior. Or so her parents had insisted. And to the end, they had refused to offer any blessings or approval. Wiping away a tear, one of many that had fallen, Amy gripped her duffle bag of belongings and began to walk toward the shuttle.
She could be a warrior! She could! Crops were important for sure, but ever since she began hearing tales from a disabled warrior that now worked security on the Agro ship, tales of glorious combat and incredible bravery aboard the ship called 'Aggememnon', Amy's heart was drawn to pursuing a life defending the fleet. And since then, her peaceful life began to shatter as she bucked the plans and dreams of her parents, and fought them for permission to chase her own life's dream. In the end, she decided to go anyway, hopeful that blessings would finally come when her parents realized how serious she was. But like Amy, her parents were equally as stubborn, and now, with tears streaming down her face, she boarded the shuttle.
Nervous and just a little afraid, for she was leaving the agro ship for the first time, Amy found herself a seat and strapped in. In microns the shuttle would be in space. A few microns after that, the shuttle would complete the short journey to the Callsito, and Amy would begin her new life as a cadet. Double-checking to make sure she had her papers, she sat back and tried to make herself as comfortable as she could. * * * Charybdis As head of the personnel department aboard the Callisto after my transfer from commanding Gold squadron and my promotion to Major, I had the opportunity to work side by side with Commander Sheba and a few of the other high ranking officers. It was strange, but most were being transferred off to the Galactica, thus leaving the Callisto with leadership opportunities. Someday, I had hoped to make it higher up in the chain of command.
Right now, however, I was waiting in the Callisto's landing bay for one of the shuttles. It was returning from a fleet run to pick up citizens who had recently enlisted in the Colonial Military. A new batch of recruits. That Cpt. Lazant would have field day with these, I thought, from what I had read in the recruiting officer's report. Seemed like they were picking the bottom of the barrels now. A couple had done time in the brig and we even had some young farmer girl who wanted to be a Warrior! How had it come to this?
5 centons until landing. From the far end of the bay, I could see out the landing portal. IN the distance, the small speck of the shuttle could be made out against the stars as it approached. Time to get serious and try to scare the pogees out of these recruits. Sometimes, it was fun to be in command... * * * Amy Nerves were getting the best of me as I began to fidget. The awe of being away from the agro ship for the first time faded quickly enough. The fact that my parents hadn't come to see me off had something to do with my trying to forget all about the agro ship. I tried to focus on what was ahead.
I looked around, wanting to start a conversation with the other recruits, but couldn't. Maybe my parents were right. Maybe I didn't belong. What made me ever think I could do this? Me, a warrior? It suddenly and for the very first time sounded laughable. I rested my chin on the dufflebag that I still clung to with both arms. It was wet with tears. I was overhearing two other recruits talking about how hard they made things for new cadets, and this did nothing to calm my suddenly, panicky doubts.
A voice came over the speakers. "Docking with Battlestar Callisto, one micron."
I sat up straight, and looked out the viewport. There it was, the huge battlestar! Bigger than my imagination had ever dared to conjure up. I swallowed the lump in my throat, and wiped my eyes. This was no time for second guessing myself. I had something to prove to myself, and to my parents. I had to remember that. I had taken control of my destiny, and only I had the power to determine my fate. If I gave it my all and failed, so be it, but I could not allow myself to cheat myself of this opportunity. Nothing but my best would do.
The shuttle settled onto the floor of the huge hanger bay, and the door popped open. We all stood, and I was about fourth in line as we filed out of the shuttle. My mouth nearly dropped in awe as I took in exactly how huge this hanger really was! Down the steps I went, and for the first time I set foot on the battlestar.
A warrior of some higher rank was walking our way, and I swallowed hard again. I looked at this man, so handsome, so sure of himself, and so unlike anyone I'd ever met on the agro ship. My heart began to pound, and I wasn't exactly sure if it was because my new career was about to start, or if it was because of something entirely different. All I knew was that I couldn't take my eyes off of him. * * * Brie It had been a little over a year since Brie had been transferred to the Callisto. Her husband, Turner, had disappeared before her transfer, MIA, and she was still mentally trying to deal with the fallout. Much to her surprise, she had recently been elected as head of Gold Squadron. Captain Brie...it would take her forever to get used to the sound of that.
She had heard that a group of new recruits were about to arrive. She felt a little bit sorry for them. She didn’t know Captain Lazant well, she didn't really want to, but she knew that he was rough on the new recruits. That was good, she didn’t need unprepared warriors joining her squadron.
After thinking about it for a little while, Brie decided to take a stroll down to the landing bay. The shuttle had just landed, the new cadets were getting off. While she was standing in the shadows she noticed one girl. The poor girl seemed so scared, like she was realizing she was in over her head. There was one other thing that Brie noticed. All of the men were staring at this girl, some with their mouths wide open. Having seen enough, Brie left the landing bay. “I hope she doesn’t end up in Gold Squadron,” she muttered under her breath. * * * Charybdis I stood there with a couple of other officers who would help with the cadet transition and getting the new recruits placed in their quarters. Out they came from the shuttle. They were raw, most were pretty young.
One of the first people I noticed was a young woman, girl, really, who looked wide eyed and scared. I thought to myself that this HAD to be that little farm girl from the report I had read. I scanned over the recruitment list and found her name, Cadet Amy from the Agro ship...
About two dozen cadets filed out and stood in two rows in front of me. I began to give my brief orientation:
"I am Major Charybdis" I spoke. "On behalf of the Colonial Military, I bid welcome aboard to all the new recruits. If you'll step to one side as the rest of the passengers disembark, I can set you up for orientation."
We went through a few major regulations and what they would be experiencing for the next few cycles and then, with that, I dismissed them into the command of one of the lower ranked officers who would take over and lead them to see Cpt. Lazant, head of the training academy aboard the Callisto. That was the final step before becoming a full-fledged Warrior.
As I walked away, the recruits stood at attention. I looked over my shoulder and caught sight of Cadet Amy. She looked like a fish out of boraton, but still, she was rather cute. Maybe I could speak with her sometime soon...
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:37:17 GMT -6
Amy I watched Major Charybdis walk away until he was completely out of sight, then I followed the rest of the recruits as we were led from the launch bay. We walked down quite a few corridors, and I kept my head down, sneaking peeks at the full-fledged warriors that passed us on the way. I could overhear some of the comments, most of which were slight jokes made at our expense. I knew it was just teasing, but my skin was a little too thin right now. I wondered if everyone else was right, and I was just being a fool to try and chase this dream of mine.
At last we reached a barracks where we were to stow our gear and wait for further instructions. I found myself a bunk and sat down heavily. I still gripped my dufflebag with both my arms wrapped around it, and was surprised when the recruit on the bunk opposite me spoke up.
“You can let that thing go now,” he said with a smile. “Noone’s going to steal it.”
I looked up at the young man, and managed a half smile. “Guess you’re right,” I said. “I must have looked pretty stupid holding it like that.” I tossed the bag to one side, trying to act like it meant nothing to me, like it didn’t hold all my worldly possessions.
The man held out his hand. “My name’s Adrian. What’s yours?”
“Amy,” I said. I took his hand and we shook. “Thanks for snapping me out of the funk I was in.”
“Not at all,” he said, “though you did look a little lost.”
“That’s me,” I sighed. Just then the officer returned and we all stood up. I guessed that we were now going to meet Lazant, though I secretly hoped for another look at that Major Charybdis. Adrian stood next to me. “You know, they put us in pair,” he whispered. “If we stick together, maybe they’ll pair us up.” I nodded, but my mind was on other things. * * * We were instructed to fall into line and again follow this officer. Again we were marched around a few corridors until this time we ended up in an eating area. The officer told us this was our chance to eat something if we hadn't in a while, because afterwards we would be quite busy being issued cadet uniforms, attending further orientation, and a list of other things I found myself tuning out. My mind was on the Major, I realized guiltily. My mom had said that love at first sight strikes hard, as it had done for her and my dad. I'd only half believed it, for it had never come close to happening on the agro ship. But NOW?! I realized I'd better get myself focused. What would the Major want with a farmer like me? Besides, I knew nothing about him. There were a million reasons to just forget him and focus on trying to become a warrior.
I picked out some food, all of it alot worse for wear than the fresh foods I was used to on the agro ship. Something in the back of my mind poked at me, and I got the first indications that life outside the agroship wasn't as great as I'd made myself think it was. I had heard the stories, but as I looked at the limp food, stuff that I would have tossed back home, I realized that I was in for a very big eye-opener.
I sat down, and Adrian plopped down next to me. This guy seemed to making himself my shadow. I liked him, and was grateful for him for reaching out and cracking my shell, but I was used to a little more space.
"Aren't we taking the 'sticking together' thing a little far?" I asked him as I shifted down slightly on the bench.
"Wingmen got to stick close", he replied. "The sooner we start practicing it, the more it will become second nature."
"Well, I'm not your wingman yet" I replied, trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice. "Besides, I see a whole room full of potential wingpeople, or whatever you call it."
He didn't say anything, and I immediately felt bad. Before I could say more, three other cadets walked up and sat down opposite us at our table.
"Private table, or does the little lady like a group?" asked one of the guys.
"Funny" I replied, shooting him a quick glance.
"Not many girls in this class", another of the newcomers observed. "Are you in the class, or just the entertainment?" His buddies laughed. I just rolled my eyes. Boys will be boys, I supposed. Words are just words, no matter how dumb they are put together, or how dumb the person is that is doing the putting together part.
Adrian slammed down his hunk of what passed for food. "Stow that feldgercarb, daggit." I put a hand on his arm. "Forget it", I said. I didn't want trouble, but I was afraid that it wanted me.
"Yeah, prettyboy", the first of the men said. "Let your girl defend you." He then reached over to touch my hair. Now touching I don't go for, especially from a scum like this guy was. I instinctively slapped him before I could stop myself, the thought dawning on me that I didn't know the first thing about self-defense as I did so.
I then noticed that my ring had drawn the slightest trickle of blood on the cheek of the loudmouth. I didn't know what his problem was, if it was just me or women in general, but he snapped. Just plain snapped.
He struck out at me before I ever saw it coming, hitting me on the side of my face and sending me off the bench backward. As I lay there stunned I saw Adrian leap over the table, and all hades broke loose. I got unsteadily to my feet and tried to break the two of them up, but it was already getting way out of hand. I jumped onto the back of the loudmouth and somebody jumped on mine and we were soon one big mass of humanity rolling on the floor, knocking into anything that might tip over and making more noise than I ever thought possible.
My head hit the floor hard several times, and somebody had a good grip on my hair. My lack of self defense skills was something I'd really have to work on, assuming I wasn't put on the next shuttle back to the agro ship.
I thought I heard someone shouting above the din, a voice of authority maybe, but we didn't stop wrestling until we heard the sound of a single blaster shot. Then it got quiet in an instant. I wriggled my head up out of the headlock somebody had me in, and my heart sank a million miles. Staring directly at us, his face tightened by anger, stood Major Charybdis. * * * Charybdis There they were, several cadets rolling around on the floor spilling food and everything else they came in contact with.
THe blaster shot got their attention and all became deathly silent and still.
Their eyes were fixed on me and the fear was evident. I made a motion with my hand to the several Warriors who stood by my side and they quickly picked up the Cadets who were on the ground, including the young Cadet Amy. I couldn't help but wonder what she had gotten herself into. Her hair fell ragged in front of her face and her clothes were disheveled and turned in all sorts of directions on her body.
I just said one thing to them all, "This had better not happen again, or you'll find yourselves in the brig so fast you head will spin."
The Warriors who accompanied me let the arms go of the men who were around Amy and they slowly got back to cleaning up the mess they had made.
I stared directly at Cadet Amy. "Cadet Amy, you come with me." I tilted my head to one side and I could see her face go white. She probably thought that her career in the military was over before it had begun.
She lowered her eyes and slowly walked toward me. I turned and mentioned to one of the officers there to contact Cpt. Lazant and get him over here to address the recruits. He would be needed sooner than expected with this group.
Amy followed me out of the mess room and didn't say a thing. I led her down a series of corridors until we arrived at my private quarters. I punched in the code and invited the young Cadet inside. She seemed a bit hesitant because she didn't know what her future had in store for her. She was scared, that was plain to be seen. She stepped inside and looked around wide-eyed. I'm sure she had never been inside a high-ranking officer's quarters.
I asked her to sit down on the couch which she did immediately. As I sat in a chair opposite, I stared at her. She was really uncomfortable. It was almost comical the way she was fidgeting and looking around. She seemed so innocent, yet here she was wanting to be a Warrior. Someone totally out of place.
"What is the problem, Cadet Amy?" I asked her. I almost knew that she didn't cause any of that fracas in the mess hall, but I felt that she needed a bit of reassuring and someone to help out if necessary.
It was her turn to answer... * * * Amy The problem, I thought? That was easy. Saying so was not. The problem was that I could sit here forever getting lost in your eyes, Mr. Major, sir. Oh yeah, how’d that go over? The problem was I know I’m at point A, and being a warrior is at point B, but I don’t know how or if I can ever find a way to get from A to B. But how to say THAT to your possible commanding officer, I thought with dismay.
Then there is the fight. I thought about Adrian, and about the 3 loudmouths, all people I might actually serve with someday. I remembered what by old friend on the Agro ship told me once, while entertaining me with stories about the brave ship nicknamed the “Aggie.” He said the key to why the ship was so successful as a fighting unit was that each man would fearlessly step into the line of fire knowing that the next man had his back. They all trusted each other. Break that trust just once, and you never get it back, he had said.
Well, here I was. I could tell the Major here the truth, or I could cover these guys’ backs. But I couldn’t tell if it even was going to matter anymore. I might already be done for. Lord, the Major’s eyes are the prettiest I think I’ve ever seen. So deep, so sincere, so….
I needed an answer. “Well, sir,” I started, finding my voice weak like it had never been before. I cleared my throat, and I could fell my heart pounding in my chest, but I didn’t think it was because I was on the hot seat. I WAS feeling a little warm though.
“Well sir,” I tried again, speaking a little softer to demand a little less from my unreliable voice. “I don’t think I understand exactly what it is you are asking me.” Well that sure sounded intelligent! I felt like burying my head, but tried to stay still, just bringing up a hand to brush away some of my messed up hair. * * * Charybdis Cadet Amy was real nervous. Normally, I didnt' take Cadets off to the side to question them, never mind bringing them to my personal quarters, but this Amy was different. I could tell that she needed some reassurance.
She sort of asked me to clear up my question, so I did, "Well, Cadet Amy, it's not usual that I have to break up a fight between recruits hardly 1 centar after they get onboard the ship. What happened in the mess hall?" I tried not to sound too harsh or like I was grilling her. I really did want to know what was going on and why a cute farm girl like Amy was fighting with some pretty big boys.
Amy was staring at me, almost intently. She had a strange look on her face, but I couldn't tell exactly what she was thinking...whether she was afraid or whether it was something else.
I waited to see what she would say...
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:37:58 GMT -6
Brie Captain Brie had returned to her quarters. Her room-mate, Captain Joey, who was the leader of Black Squadron, was already there. "I just saw the latest group of new recruits," Brie informed her friend. "Looks like a pretty sorry bunch."
"It's worse than that," Joey said. "Lt. Titon told me that there was a fight in the mess hall. He didn't really know what happened, but it somehow involved a recruit named Amy. She's from the Agro-ship or some strange place like that."
A farm girl wanting to be a warrior. Brie couldn't help wondering if it was the same girl she had noticed earlier. "I hope she picks Black," was all she could say. * * * Amy So the Major wanted to know what had happened in the mess hall. Lords, I couldn't betray fellow cadets no matter how much they deserved it. I swallowed hard, and cleared my throat again. I had this picture in my mind of the same thing happening to Adrian and the others who were fighting. What kind of story would they tell? If they believed in sticking together, it would be the same one I was going to tell. I hoped they had some honor under all that ego.
I looked directly into the Major's eyes... and lied through my teeth. I felt horrible. Not on the battlestar a centon and I'm already doing stuff like this. Was this the reality I was so determined to find? "Well, sir" I began, "it was nothing really. I'm not even sure how it started. I think that we are all on edge, wanting to get started and all, and I'm sure it won't happen again. Assuming it's not too late already? Sir."
I dropped my gaze, and let my head hang down. I guess I could have laid it on thicker. There might even be enough truth in my answer to make it stick with the Major. I looked back up into his eyes, and felt my heart racing again. I began to get an uncomfortable feeling being alone with him. I felt myself wanting to chuck the whole crazy idea of becoming a warrior, and tell him that I think I'm...
I stood up suddenly, trying to break my mood. "Begging the Major's pardon, but..." I tried to go on, but my voice failed me again. I took a few steps away from him, keeping my back to him. Come on, Amy, don't lose it now! Stay focused! Don't lose hold of the dream! "Am I to be sent back, sir?" My face was screwing up and I knew tears were coming, and I willed myself not to shed them.
I also willed myself not to turn back and look at the Major. I didn't trust myself or what I might do. It would never work, Amy! The Major and the farmer girl! What a laugh. You stood a better chance of becoming a warrior!
Yet I needed to know if my dream was over. "Am I being returned to the Agro ship?" I asked, my back still toward him. * * * I began to shake a little, very restless, and with a sharp intake of breath I woke up. I sat up on my bunk, getting my bearings. "Lords, what a vivid dream!" I muttered to myself.
As the dream faded from my mind the things I had hoped to forget came flooding back. Those rotten crawlons... I had heard that they were pretty much under control. Since I was off duty anyway, and quite tired, I just left the round up to the professionals.
I got up, stretched, and thought about what to do. I had time off, and wasn't due for duty in a bit. Cool, I thought. Sometimes nothing is a great thing to do. * * * I sat back on my bunk, looking up at the ceiling. It felt good to do nothing, just get my bad leg up and just rest. Stop the battlestar I thought, I want to get off.
I thought back on my dream. How strangely vivid it all was. And that's not even how it happened, I thought as I focused in on the tiny holes in the ceiling tiles above me. Funny how you replay events over and over, smoothing things here, adding there, wishing things could have been different. Maybe I was just nostalgic at the ripe old age of 20 yahrens. With the mess things are now, maybe I just wanted to go back to when it all made more sense. I had a direction then, a purpose. There wasn't much of anything anymore.
I shifted, got myself more comfortable, and closed my eyes. Images swirled around, faces of those I had known, and of those who were no more. Adrian. Arianna. Anna. (Lords, my name is Amy! is anyone whose name starts with "A" doomed??) I thought about My parents, lost somewhere with the rest of the fleet. Maybe that's why I felt like there was no purpose. I joined to help protect the fleet and find our people a home. Since I became a warrior I hadn't done either. I wondered if I'd ever see my parents again. Or walk the lush fields of the agroships. Or go on patrol and take in the strange majesty that was our convoy of ships, the surviving members of a once proud race.
I thought about our enemies. The Cylons. I wondered where they were at this moment. What planets they were conquering, what races they were trying to destroy. I wondered if we'd shook them for good. There hadn't been a trace of them in a long while. It's odd. It was almost easier back when they were the enemy. They were easy to pick out. Easy to recognize, and easy to get pumped up about fighting. The enemy was harder to pick out now. They came disguised as humans, in black shirts or refugee's garb. When they weren't lizards or spiders of course. The thought of lizards made me think of the ones that had captured me on Axces Gamma. I wondered what they were doing right now.
I sighed, and stretched a little. Yeah, the universe was going down the launch tube without a viper, but there wasn't much this little girl could do about it. Except lay back and watch it go. * * * This time alone really was doing me a lot of good. I'd spent so much time and energy getting myself into so much trouble, I hadn't had any time to reflect on where my runaway life was taking me. In such a short amount of time I'd managed to get lost on Axces Gamma, with huge chunks of memory still gone, managed to get captured by lizard men and nearly killed, and managed to get lost again once I'd returned to the ship. Too much excitement. I was living to close to the edge. Maybe it was time to stop.
I remembered that I'd managed to keep from filing a report about my incidents on the planet's surface. Maybe that was a good thing. Time to move on. What's done is done. I don't make the command decisions, and the universe certainly doens't revolve around me. If any of the information that I did have was required, they knew where to find me. I wondered if they'd even believe it if I ever tried to tell them what happened to Anna and what she had turned into. Probably the Gastronovians would be the only ones who'd truly care. If Anna had any family. I knew Dolet would care. He and I would never forget.
I couldn't help but think about the fleet, and the life I was in such a hurry to leave behind. I wondered if there even was an agroship to return to. Maybe the Cylons have been quiet for so long because they had found the fleet and turned it to dust.
No, I couldn't think like that. They were still out there. Mom, Dad, the fleet, and the life I should have stuck to. I got the feeling more and more that I should return to that life if the fleet was ever found. Maybe this warrior life wasn't for me. If I was even wondering that, then there must be some truth to it.
Yeah, I'd keep it quiet for now, but Amy, I think you're done. Time to stop beating your head against the wall. Let it go. * * * As I sat there on my bunk, my comlink buzzed. I could hear the beeps coming from my locker, where I had set the thing down. I swung my legs around and stood up. My injured leg was really feeling pretty good. I tested it, put some good weight on it, and was happy to see that it felt nearly 100%. Now if the bruising would just go away. I had nightmarish visions of my leg being a gruesome black and blue forever. That'd sure put a curb on my fashion aspirations!
I wondered what the bridge wanted. Maybe they were ready for my report. I still didn't really have all my thoughts in order, but mentally I started lining up what I did know as I picked up the com.
"Amy, here" I said. "Lt. Amy" I added belatedly. Oops, I'd have to watch the old slips of the tongue.
"Core Command here" came the response. "Your name is up for viper patrol duty. Proceed to the launch bay in 30 microns."
I paused for a second. "Well" I began, "My injured leg is acting up on me. I might not be able to pull the duty."
"Says here that you're cleared", the voice responded.
"I know that" I replied. "It's gotten worse recently. I need to report to medlab, get it checked out again."
"I'll make a note of it, Lieutenant. Commander will want to know. Better get to medlab and get something on record."
"I'll do that" I replied and closed the com. I flipped it into the locker and listened to it clatter among the items on the top shelf. "Don't think I'll be climbing into a viper or any other situation any time soon" I muttered as I flopped back down on my bunk. I lay back, and started counting the holes in the ceiling tiles above me. * * * I sat up, blinking my eyes from the strain of counting the ceiling tile holes. I wondered if we'd ever find the fleet again, and what exactly I might do if I wasn't going to be a warrior anymore. Maybe I could work in hydroponics or something. I couldn't just be a bum, though the idea sounded pretty good.
I decided to weed through my belongings, so I'd be ready to transfer should the fleet ever be discovered. I got up and started through the top shelf of my locker. I took the comlink and tossed it on my bunk to get it out of the way.
I saw the folded piece of paper up there, and remembered exactly what it was. A note from Najinn, from a long long time ago. He had made up a cot for me during the gold barracks expansion, and had left a note for me. I read the note, and couldn't help but smile. Then my smile faded as I began to wonder what had happened to Najinn. I'd lost track of him, hadn't seen him in lords know how long. I supposed I didn't really need to save the note, and I tossed it into the trash.
I pulled out the rock I had picked up on the first planet I'd ever been on. What planet was that? I couldn't remember the name. I wanted to keep this momento, and tucked it into my duffle bag. And so it went, keeping this, chucking that, until the shelf was clean. One thing struck me as I finished up-- I hadn't one thing from my days with Charybdis. Not that he didn't try to give me something. It just seemed strange, symbolic or something, that I had nothing to prove it ever happened.
I supposed it was time to go and get my leg looked at again, and see if I could get out of duty with it. Zipping up the bag, I stuffed it into the locker, and flipped the comlink back onto the top shelf where it rattled around and came to rest by itself. * * * I figured I'd better get myself presentable before I went to medlab, since my plan after that was to hit the O-club and get my hands on whatever watered-down feldgercarb that passed for ambrosia, and work on getting myself a nice buzz. I planned on being off-duty for a while. A good long while.
I sifted through the outfits that still hung in my locker, and picked out a dress that was long enough to cover the bandages that still covered my bad leg. I changed clothes, and put on as little make-up as I could get away with. I didn't want to look too good for when I presented my sob story to medlab. I backed up to look in the mirror. Not bad. Can hardly notice the bandages.
Now I practiced a slight hobble. It was easy really. The bandages made my leg feel heavier. It was almost hard not to walk funny. Guess I was all set. Now to get this over and get on to the bottle that sat somewhere with my name on it.
I caught one last look at myself in the mirror, and felt my mood souring. If it could sour any more. I sighed, then spoke to my reflection. "Mom, Dad, you were right. I shouldn't have tried to be something I'm not. I'm no warrior." Then I gave myself a tiny grin. "But I did make it. So there!" I left the barracks and made for medlab.
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:38:42 GMT -6
Amy
I left the gold barracks and made my way to medlab. I practiced my hobble along the way. Had it perfected pretty good by the time I'd reached the medical section. I was surprised to see how busy it was, but then I hadn't heard on exactly what scale the crawlon battle had grown to. Judging from the amount of people there, it must have been quite a battle. Too bad I'd missed it.
A tech was actually out in the hallway, greeting the new casualties as they arrived. As I approached, this poor tech greeted me with tired eyes and an expression to match.
"Name?" she asked.
"Amy" I responded. "Wow, giving away free cubits or something?"
She smiled a weary smile. "Yeah, I wish. Rank?"
"Oh sorry: Lieutenant."
She checked me up and down with a quick glance. "You don't look so bad. What's the problem?"
"Pre-existing injury" I said as I lifted up the bottom of my skirt so the tech could see the bandages. "It was getting better, but it's starting to bother me again. Bridge called to put me on duty and I don't think I can pull it yet."
The tech was entering things into a hand computer, pausing in between keying in more stuff. Finally she looked up at me. "Axces Gamma mission?"
"Yup."
"Put some weight on it for me" she asked.
Time for the act. I had it down to perfection. I shifted weight to the bandaged leg, twisting my face into a barely disguised show of discomfort as I did so.
The tech just nodded. "Frankly this is low priority" she announced. "No offense."
"None taken", I replied with a blank look.
"I've entered you in, you're off-duty for two days. Report back at the end of that time and we'll give you a better look-over." She sighed. "If we're back to just swarmed by then."
"Got it" I replied.
"Stay off the leg as much as possible. Do you need something for the pain?"
"I think I'm okay if I can just stay off it some more."
She looked at me closely again, then straightened up. "Okay then. Your done."
I said my thanks, then walked patheticly till I was out of sight. Then I straightened up and broke out in a big grin as I headed for the O-club. Vacation time for this girl! <Back to the regular story timeline> * * * Charybdis It is my pleasure to announce that Ensign Killjoy has graduated from the Callisto Training Academy and has been assigned aboard the Battlestar Callisto.
He has chosen assignment under Major BatGal and Black Squadron.
Congratulations to our newest officer! <Chorus of welcomes> * * * Brie Major Brie had just finished her call to the Security Office. She had been careful in what she had said, although things were better between the blackshirts and the warriors she still didn’t trust all of them. Having been almost blown up and having to pretend she was dead had had quite an effect on her. She hadn’t come right out and told them what she had found, just mentioned a major mess that was going to have to be cleaned up quickly on level 5. Some people, like Captain Urdea, would see through what she had said, others would have no idea.
"Major, Skyler here. I am close to you now. I am heading your way. Do you have any special orders?" she heard over her comm.
Brie smiled. If Skyler had heard the message he would realize that something was off. “I’ll hold my position, Captain,” she replied. “Meet me as soon as you can.” Since she knew that security would probably not have time to check out the problem, and since Amy didn’t appear to be anywhere on level 5, maybe she and Skyler could do a little bit of investigating on their own. * * * It only took a centon or so for Captain Skyler to meet up with Major Brie. She led him into an empty room and told him all about the room filled with spare parts, the man named Collie who had apparently been killed by the crawlons, the two men who were planning on building something out of the spare parts and how they were going to dump Collie’s body. She knew that they were probably too late to catch them with the corpse, but with a little bit of luck they would have a few centons to check over the equipment in the storage room.
“You have a lot more technical knowledge than I have,” Brie said to Skyler. “Maybe you can figure out what they’re planning on building.” She led Skyler to the room that she had found, hoping he could figure out what the men were up to. * * * Killjoy Ensign Killjoy awoke with a start as the almost painful noise from the computers alarm system broke the silence of his cabin to alert him to the start of his first day of duty aboard tha Callisto. Reaching for the controls he managed to shut the crazy thing off, but only after touching the button for the communications system and hearing a call go out to security and then a short conversation between Majors Brir and skyler two offices who had welcomed him the night before. He heard something about a "mess" and Level 5 but really didnt pay much attention to it. After getting dressed he stood in front of the mirror to check that everything was in place, and his mind began to drift. "I wonder if my father was this proud of his first uniform". He shook off the thought and the emotion that went with it. The truth is Killjoy knew little of his father or mother. His mother was killed in the attack on the Caprica, just minutes after his birth, and his father was rumored to have been killed in the attack that destroyed the Battlestar fleet. Commander Apollo(then a Capt.) of the Galactica had to leave a young officer behind during the patrol that found the Cylon attack group. In a Damaged Viper,this young officer, was overtaken and destroyed by a Cylon raider.Killjoy belives that this young office may just be his father. But only the dead pilots brother, Commander Apolo, can confirm this. "Well you look as pretty as your going to get" killjoy say aloud to himself. Turning around he taps the communications baord."Flight control Ensign Killjoy here, Got anything for me"? "Nothing yet sir" returned a male voice,"But check back in a while". "Will do, Im going to be on Level 5 if you need me, Maybe i can be of some use to Major Brie .... * * * Skyler They entered the room and Skyler looked around. He noticed stuff that had been reported missing over the last sectar or so. How they had kept all this junk hidden was beyond him. He was trying to piece the junk into a working something when he remembered the body the two guys were hauling off to the garbage chute.
"Captain Skyler to the Bridge, lock down all garbage chutes on level 5, repeat, lock down all garbage chutes on level 5."
"Roger Skyler, all garbage disposal units on level 5 are now off line and the hatches magnetically sealed." came the response from the bridge.
"Thanks Geenie, Also, see what you can do about getting me a Warrior or two down here. We will need them on Level 5 outside storage compartment #3263527."
"Not a problem Skyler, I have an Ensign Killjoy on that level right now. I will dispatch him your way in a micron."
Skyler smiled, Geenie was good at her job. If he had asked, she would have had half the Infantry compliment up here in less than 10 microns. "Thanks again Geenie. I owe you one."
"Just one, if all you Warriors paid up on those ones I was owed, I could retire early and buy the Rising Star." She paused for a micron, " I will put it on your tab, Bridge out."
Skyler smiled a little he heard Brie chuckle behind him. When this was over, he needed to treat Geenie to dinner, and a drink in the O-Club. Turning his attention back to the collection of parts on the floor, he saw several possible devices they could be used to make. A weapon crossed his mind first. Some of the key components were still missing, but he didn't know if there was another stash somewhere around here that had the critical parts for it. The two most obvious were a subspace radio, or even a droid of some sort. The parts were there, but did the idiots that collected them have the know how to build it. That they would find out when they caught up with them. Just before he turned back to Brie, he noticed a smashed object in the corner. It was a blaster, Brie's blaster.
"Okay Major, There are several things they could be making, one is a radio, the second some kind of droid. I do not know how advanced it would be, but I am sure it wouldn't be to high tech. They have the basic parts, but some are kinda crude. A weapon is an option, but they are missing some important parts, maybe they are hidden else where, but I think it is unlikely. Now, the first thing to do is to find you a replacement blaster."
Brie was amazed at how quick he had spotted the options for that pile of junk. She still couldn't see where he had gotten it from, but she trusted his judgment. * * * Geenie, whose main duty was a flight control officer, often handled secondary jobs like this, especially when the Callisto wasn't conducting flight operations. She turned to Lt. Argina, the a Bridge Operations Officer to make sure Ensign Killjoy hadn't received an assigment already, and then get the ok to assign him to this task. Aegina gave her the go ahead and Geenie reached over and punched a few keys.
"Brigde to Ensign Killjoy" Geenie called over the comm system. "You have orders to report to Level 5 Compartment #3263827. Capt. Skyler will have further orders when you arrive. Bridge Out.
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:39:20 GMT -6
Killjoy As Killjoy walked along the corridors, he found the Calliso to be a very easy to navigate. The veiw he had from the transport that he arrived on showed the Callisto to be a huge, massive ship, yet her inner working and layout were very "use friendly" so to speak. He was now on Level 5 and looking to find the area where he had over heard Major Brie mention a "Mess", to ask if he could be of any use.Duing his stroll though the decks he ran into many of the ship crew and was greeted with a smile by most of them, funny that he had no idea who any of these people were yet they treated him like hed had been onboard for a life time. Turning down the corridor to his left he was confronted by a couple of men dressed in the Black uniforms of Fleet security. As he came near them the older of the two put up his han and pressed his palm into Killjoys chest. "This area is locked down by order of Fleet Security", the officer said as he gave Killjoy a little shove. "Go easy there "super trooper", I was just om my way down to see if I could lend a hand to the Major", was The Ens responce". The security officer looked at Killjoy hard and his right hand came to rest on his wepon, "Look flyboy"... the officer shot a brief glance down to his gun hand, "I said this area was shut down. Now turn around and go ba....the Black shirt's words were coverd by a message from the Bridge telling Ensign Killjoy to report to Capt. Skyler. "Killjoy to bridge, Message recived. Please inform Capt. Skyler that im on my way. Killjoy out" Looking at the Black shirt with a grin, "Now do one of you boys want to run down there and explain to the Capt. why Im not there yet?" "On your way " the officer spat.
" Bet you two are a real blast at a party. Oh and one more thing, you need to be a bit more careful about how quick you grab that wepon, some folks are not as forgiving as I am". With that Killjoy removed his hand from the small laser pistol that he carried in his waist band in the small of his back and walked to compartment #3263827. As the compart ment door opened, he walked in and saw two people, the man he must assume was Capt. Skyler. "Ensign Killjoy reporting as ordered Sir". As he reported he noticed the woman, she looked shaken , some of her hair hung into he face, and her uniform looked like she had rolled around on the floor before her duty shift. Trying to look as if he hadnt notied he turned to her. Nodded his head and gave her a one word greeting. "Major"… * * * Brie Major Brie smiled at the new ensign. “I looked a lot worse than this when they tried to blow up my locker, and me with it.” He looked a bit embarrassed. She held out her hand. “I’m Major Brie, this is Captain Skyler. We need your help with something.”
“Anything, Ma’am,” Ensign Killjoy replied.
“It’s pretty simple,” Brie explained. “We just need you to stand guard. Something strange has been going on in this room, and we’re trying to figure out what it is. Just stand outside the door, looking as casual as possible. Let us know if anyone is coming, or if you see anything suspicious. As I said, pretty simple.”
Looking a little bit disappointed, Ensign Killjoy said, “Yes, Ma’am, Sir.”
As Killjoy closed the door behind him, Brie wondered why lately she kept working with the new Black Squadron ensigns before anyone from Black Squadron did. * * * Killjoy After making his way out the door, Killjoy stepped to his left and leaned against the wall. Looking around he noticed that the two Black shirts had now taken a position to his left some distance away, at the point where this hall intersected the main corridor. Other than that he was alone. To his right was a bulkhead that marked the end of the hall. "Look casual, now that shouldn’t be hard, even if you do stand out, who will notice"? Talking to him self drew an unwanted look from the Black shirt that had given him a rough time just a few centons before. The fact that the man seemed to always place his hand on his weapon when he looked in Killjoy's direction, made the young Ensign very uncomfortable. After a short time a third security officer came into view. There was allot of low whispers and at one point, Killjoy noticed one of them pointing in his direction. A few more whispers and the three began to walk in Killjoy's direction. He couldn’t explain it if he tried but for some reason his discomfort had now grown to a full alert. Trying not to be noticed didn’t work, something was going on and he had walked right into the center of it. Keeping his back against the wall he used his foot to tap on the door to get Major Brie and Capt. Skylers attention. As the door opened he place himself half in and half out of the room so he could talk to the others and still keep an eye on the Black shirts and with his left side now hidden from there view he could draw his weapon without the security goons seeing. "Ma'am, Sir, I think we may have a small problem here."
"Problem, what kind of problem" demanded the Major
"That kind Ma'am" Killjoy pointed to the three men who were advancing on the compartment, one with his weapon now drawn. '" You know, the kind that just might get someone killed,” he added.
As the Major looked to see what the Ensign was talking about, Killjoy wondered just how much worse could this day really get.... * * * Brie Brie hadn’t seen the men who had been in the compartment earlier, only heard their voices. The man who had died because of the hunger of the crawlons had not been wearing a security uniform, that didn’t mean he wasn’t off-duty when he died. Brie had hoped that the problems in the security offices had ended, but that didn’t appear to be the case.
As the black shirts drew nearer Brie tried hard to listen to their voices. None of them sounded familiar, but Brie didn’t know how many people were involved with whatever was happening in compartment #3263827. As the men were getting closer Skyler position himself between the black shirts and Brie. That type of thing normally drove her crazy, she wasn’t sure if the men in her squadron did it because she was squadron leader or because she was female, but this time it was welcome. Very casually, with Skyler blocking their view, she switched on her comm. She was hoping that she had the right channel, she wanted to reach only the bridge, but she knew that the message could go just about anywhere on the Callisto.
“What’s the problem?” Brie said as authoritatively as possible.
“Warriors don’t usually come to level 5,” the man with his weapon drawn said.
“As a squadron leader I’m allowed anywhere on the Callisto,” Brie said. “But you already know that.”
“Why level 5?” the same man asked, slightly annoyed.
“We’re looking for someone,” Brie explained. “A call came into the security office, saying she was stuck in a closet on level 5. You can call to the office and check our story if you want. Although I don’t know if Captain Urdea is going to think too kindly of wasting his time when most of his people are involved in either the search for the queen crawlon or the cleanup.”
The man didn’t move his weapon. “Who are you looking for?”
Brie smiled, anticipating the reaction. She held in a laugh. “Lieutenant Amy. Have you seen her?”
All three black shirts rolled their eyes, almost as if they had rehearsed it. “Lieutenant Amy! She’s in trouble again?” one of the others exclaimed.
The man with the blaster lowered it but didn’t put it away. “I guess we should have known. I don’t see why you keep her in the service, she’s more trouble than she’s worth.”
“You do realize the penalty for drawing your weapon on an officer,” Brie said. “But I’m willing to forget all about this if you just turn around right now and leave.”
The man hesitated and then put his weapon away. “We’re assigned to level 5.”
“I’d suggest that you get back to your post,” Brie said. The men turned and walked down the corridor, but stopped where they could still see Brie, Skyler and Killjoy. Brie led her fellow warriors into a different room and turned off her comm. “I don’t think it was them, at least not the ones that were there when I was.” She looked at Skyler. “I hate to think that the problems with the black shirts are going to start up again.”
“I know what you mean,” Skyler replied.
“Well, since our time in the storage room seems to be over,” Brie said, “why don’t we take a look at the garbage chutes? Maybe someone will have left a clue.” * * * Killjoy As trio stepped into the corridor, Killjoy took a mental inventory of his day. First he arrived in the wee hours of the morning to find that his new ship was a breeding ground for crawlons and had only two centares of sleep before his duty shift began. The he was assigned as a watchdaggit for a room full of junk, and had a blaster pointed at him by a guy who was supposed to be on the same team, and now he gets to go play around a few garbage chutes.
“All this fun in less than Five centars” he said, not realizing he had spoken out loud.
The others stopped and looked at him. “What was that Ensign? “ the Capt. asks.
Embarrassed the Ensign looks at the Capt. “Well, sir, nothing really, just been an odd morning, and I guess I’m a little shaken with what went on with that Black shirt. I’m just not really into letting people point blasters at me. I’m glad you spoke up when you did Major, another two microns and, well lets just say we would have had a mess in the corridor.”.
Killjoy reaches under his flight jacket and retrieves the small hand laser he keeps there and hands it to the Major.
“Ma’am you may want to hang on to this a while, its got a short range, and a limited power cell but it beats that empty holster you packing. Works pretty well against humans, but if shot a Cylon with it you’d just dull his polish and they hate that, makes em mean." (He thought a little humer would lighten the mood, and it did, but not has much as he had hoped.)
"Now if we are going to be rummaging around in the garbage, shouldn’t I know what we are looking for”… * * * Brie "Now if we are going to be rummaging around in the garbage, shouldn’t I know what we are looking for?”
Brie couldn’t help smiling at the new ensign as she put his non-regulation weapon into her empty holster. If he thought that his morning had been odd so far..... "We’re looking for a dead body," Brie said as if it was an everyday occurrence. “A man who was killed by crawlons. I overheard his partners saying that they were going to dump the body. Captain Skyler got them to shut down the garbage chutes, hopefully not too late. If we don’t find the body, maybe we’ll be lucky enough to find something else to lead us to their identities.”
As they grew nearer to one of the chutes, Brie couldn’t help wondering if Ensign Killjoy was sorry that he had asked.
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:40:05 GMT -6
Skyler Skyler, Brie and Killjoy made their way to the closest garbage chute on level 5.
Skyler stopped and rubbed his chin like he was remembering something. Then he walked towards a small locked closet. "Lets hope Core Command hasn't change any codes in a few yarhen." he reached out and punched a few buttons on a key pad. The door slide open and he stepped inside. A small compartment located inside was also secured by an electronic lock. Keying in another code, the compartment opened. Inside there was a number of blasters, grenades and other Infantry weapons. Skyler pulled a blaster from its resting place and handed it to Brie. "Here, Colonial Infantry stores." He could tell by the look on Brie's face that she was not sure why they were here. "If, for any reason a Battlestar was boarded, and the infantry needed weapons for whatever reason, they have these storage lockers located around. You need a special code to gain access, without it silent alarms go off and you would be surrounded by Infantry in about 2 microns." he glanced at his chrono and smiled, "and since I don't see any troopers, my codes must still be current." Skyler closed the compartment, entered a locking code, closed the closet door, and locked it. "Killjoy, nice hold out blaster, but if we run into that queen thing everyone is looking for she might need a little more punch. Make sure you tell Major Batgirl and Capt. Kris you have it. Squadron CO's like to know what their Warriors might be carrying if it is needed in a pinch" Skyler thought about the arsenal of items he had collected during his time as an infantry grunt and decided to show Brie after this was over.
Brie checked the blaster over real quick. Full charge and clean enough to eat off of. Those Infantry Grunts sure took great care of a weapon. She dropped it in her holster and drew it out again in rapid secession a few times, the last time she gave it a little spin before returning it to her holster. "OK, lets see what kind of trouble we can find."
"Knowing our luck, too much" Skyler mumbled as they headed out towards the chutes. * * * Brie "Nice of them to tell the squadron leaders about these things," Brie said to Skyler as she place the new blaster in her holster. She handed the non-regulation one back to Killjoy. "I never saw that, Ensign," she said.
Suddenly Brie remembered something. During the confrontation with the black shirts she had turned on her comm unit. She wondered where she had sent the message. Laughing slightly, she realized that she had keyed it not to the bridge like she had hoped, she had sent the message to her own quarters. They shouldn't be expecting help any time soon. * * * Skyler "I never... um... knew you didn't know....its.. er... one of those...er.... things that ....um....they like to keep......you know.....if I hadn't been a grunt........and all...uh....besides, we kinda never told...er.... the Blackshirts....ew...that the grunts...er...um...well, maybe we should go find that chute now. OK?" * * * Killjoy Killjoy placed the small hand laser back into its holster at the small the small of his back. True it wasnt exactly a military issue weapon, but it came to his rescue many times back in his merchant pilot days and he had no doupt that it would be needed again. "OK, lets see what kind of trouble we can find." the Major said has she holstered hew new weapon.
"Knowing our luck, too much" Skyler mumbled.
Killjoy agreed with him but said nothing.
As the three set a course for the garbage chute near the bulkhead at the end of the corridor, Killjoy gave a quick look over his shoulder. When he did he noticed something strange
"Excuse Major But didnt those security guys tell you they were posted on this level?"
"Yes Ensing, why do you ask?" came her reply.
"Well Ma'am they are gone"... * * * Skyler Skyler turned and looked over his shoulder. Yep, the blackshirts that were hanging around in the back ground a few microns ago were now gone. Maybe they were playing it safe and increased their distance, so not to appear like they were following the three Warriors. Maybe they got wise and just went back to what they were doing. Something didn't quite add up either way. Sure Security and Warriors never got along that great, but these guys seemed more than willing to start trouble. That one guy just drew his weapon for no reason, then he wanted to mouth off to Brie. Even the dumbest Warrior hating blackshirt knew enough not to draw on a Major. Sure they might get away with pulling down on an Ensign, even a Lt. under the right circumstances, but never a Major.
"Maybe they decided to really return to their jobs after all." was all Skyler said. He didn't want to voice what he thought just yet. If those guys were following, they might still be able to hear them, and as long as they thought, that the Warriors thought they were Security.... * * * Killjoy "Maybe they decided to really return to their jobs after all." was all Skyler said.
Killjoy responded, "When I flew mechant ships I had to deal with the Blackies almost every day and I learned a few thing about those boys Sir".
"Really Ensing, What exactly have you learned?" Pespomds Skyler with a chuckle.
"Well first off, any well trianed daggit can qualify to be in Fleet Security. Second, if we could a build Battlestar from their egos, we could walk to Earth because the darn thig would strech from there all the way back to the Colonies. Third, Even though these guy are not known for being the sharpest knife in the kitchen, they are smart enough to know their place in front of a high ranking millitary officer."
Now the three have come to a stop in front of a chute and the Major joins the conversation.
"I assume you have a point to make Ensing" she ads.
"Yes Ma'am" he says nothing else as the Major give him a a raised eye brow.
"Well Im waiting" with a look that could burn through a bulkhead.
"Thats is my point Major, in that whole conversation or confronttation or what ever you want to call it. That Blackie was in front of both of you and not one time did the word Sir, Ma'am, Captain, or Major come out of his mouth. Im sorry Ma'am, Sir. Maybe Im just thinking too much".... * * * Skyler "Careful, don't touch anything, we don't want to smear any prints they might have left behind." Brie told the other two as they looked over the door to the garbage chute.
One could guess by the damaged areas that someone had recently tried to pry it open. Apparently Skyler's order to shut down the system had reached the Bridge in time.
"Spread out and search the area for any signs that they dumped the body nearby. You can't go around lugging a body for to long with out someone seeing and reporting it."
Killjoy turned and eased back down the way they had came from. Several doors off the corridor led to storage areas and various rooms. Any of them could be an ideal hiding place for a body.
Skyler took the corridor straight ahead. This lead into a service area for deck 5. Thinking to himself, he guessed this would be where he would hid a body. It was used only by techs for maintenance reasons, what better place for a tech to hide a body.
Brie eased down last corridor. It lead to the right of the garbage chute. Some quarters were down here, mostly for techs and personnel that worked on deck 5. At the end of the corridor there were several rec. rooms and storage closets. She knew that they were on the right track since they had found the damaged hatch, now she only hoped they could find something to link all the pieces of this puzzle together. One thing for sure though, when they had this area secured, a forensic team from the science lab had to be called. If there were evidence to be found on that hatch, or that room, they cold do it. * * * Brie Knowing that Collie’s body couldn’t have been taken too far, Brie decided that they needed to search the few closest compartments. The men probably wouldn’t have taken the body any farther than that, if they went to the quarters they would risk being seen. She and Skyler decided to try the first room on the right. “Ensign,” Brie said, “we need you to...”
“I know,” he interrupted, “stand guard.” Realizing that he had just cut off his superior officer, he quickly added, “Ma’am.”
“Standing guard well is an art form,” Brie said half seriously. “And your fellow warriors gain your trust.”
“He’s certainly enthusiastic,” Skyler commented as he and Brie entered the room.
“Aren’t they all at first,” Brie said. It didn’t look like there were a lot of places big enough to hide a body. She motioned towards a closet on the other side of the room. “Who knows,” she said as she keyed her security code, “we might even find Amy.”
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:40:45 GMT -6
Killjoy “Standing guard well is an art form,” Brie said half seriously. “And your fellow warriors gain your trust.”
As the Major and Captain entered the room, Killjoy took his post beside the door. He couldn’t help the grin he had. He was impressed with the Major’s level of sarcasm; it almost rivaled his own. He had a feeling that theirs was going to be an interesting working relationship.
In a whisper,”If standing guard is an art form, Then soon ill be a master artist.”
Still puzzled about there whereabouts of the three Blackies, he ran over the events in his mind. He thought about their faces. Killjoy thought he knew every Black Shirt on every ship in the fleet, due to the merchant flights he made. Even though he had never gone farther than the Callisto’s lading bay, all Security people are posted there at one time or another because of duty rotations. With all the smuggling, parts scavenging, and Black market stuff that went on around the fleet merchant pilots always got to meet the blackies up close and personal, if they wanted to or not.
His lost his train of thought when he heard a noise come from around the corner, so he changes his position so he could see where the noise was coming from and still be able to keep an eye and the Majors door. What he had heard was the noise of the hatch open as a Maintenance tech crawled out of a service access tunnel.
Not really sure what to do, He called out to the worker. “ Hey buddy, Ya mind stepping over here a micron, just leave that tool kit where it’s at and keep your hands still if ya don’t mind.”
The man walked over to the Ensign. Killjoy noticed he was a much older man. “Something wrong Ensign?”
“Not exactly, But I think we need to talk, How long you been inside there?”
“Oh a couple of centares I guess.” Came his response. “Did I do something wrong.”
Killjoy answers. “ No not exactly, but after the day I have had ya can’t be to careful. Anyone know you’re down here and working in that tunnel?”
“Why yes, we all have to report as we move from one job to the next. What did I do? ”The man was getting a bit shaken.
“Nothing, just calm down, ill get in touch with the bridge and if they can get someone to see if your story checks out then you’ll be on your way, Just relax and tell me your name.”
“My name is Kaylib. Am I in trouble?”
“Probably not Kaylib, But I need to check out your story?’ with that Killjoy called Major Brie with his comm. Unit.
“Killjoy to Major Brie”
“Brie Here go ahead Ensign”
“Ma’am, I got a guy here who just crawled out of a service tunnel, says he’s been in there for quite some time. With your permission I was going to call the bridge to see if I could get someone to check out his story, but thought you may want to talk to him first… * * * Skyler Ma am, I got a guy here who just crawled out of a service tunnel, says he s been in there for quite some time. With your permission I was going to call the bridge to see if I could get someone to check out his story, but thought you may want to talk to him first ..
Brie and Skyler stepped closer to the door to see who Killjoy had found. "Did you happen to get a name Ensign?" Brie asked as she stepped closer to the doorway.
"Yes ma'am, his name is Kaylib." Killjoy responded.
The name caught Skyler off guard for a micron. "Kaylib, I know that name...." He worked it over in his head for a few microns, then he remembered who he was.
"Is he someone we should worry about Skyler?" placing her hand on her blaster grip.
"No Brie, I don't think so, he is a tech. I thought he worked down in the shop area with Grubber. I didn't realize he worked maintenance."
Stepping through the doorway, Skyler and Brie say Ensign Killjoy talking to one very worried looking Tech. When the Tech saw Skyler his expression changed from one of worry to one of relief.
"Lieutenant" glancing down at Skyler's collar brass "sorry, Captain, musta got promoted since I last seen you, anyway, I was worried big time when this Warrior stopped me. All kinds of weird stuff going one around here if you know what I mean. Crawlon things, strange Security Officers lurking around..."
Skyler cut him off "What do you mean strange security officers?"
"Sir, I don't gots to tell you that most of those, what do you Warriors call them, Blackshirts are weird to start with, but these are a different class by them selves. Just showed up one day, never seen them before, said they were rotated from another deck to replace the ones who were normally here. The other ones never bothered me, they just sat in that closet they called and officer and played pyramid. These new ones musta stopped me from working a dozen times in the last Sectar in various areas. They have even locked me out of several storage closets, says it is top secret and classified. I should have told someone else, but I have so much work to do already, and putting up with those 3 just adds to the work."
"Kaylib, do you know a Tech named Collie?"
"Yes ma'am, he is another weird one. All he talks about is some kind of electronic felgercarb gizmo he wants to build. I can't make heads or tails out of it. He says that he will finally get the respect he deserves when it is done. Why do you ask.?"
"We think one of those Crawlons got him. We are looking for him to make sure. Do you think you could show us some of those restricted areas the blackshirts keep you away from?"
"Yes ma'am, I sure can. Anything to return some of the headache to those three. I must warn you though, if they find out, they might cause trouble." as he turned to lead them farther down the corridor.
Skyler grinned as he tightened his hand around the grip of his blaster. If anyone was listening they would have heard his knuckles pop one at a time as he squeezed the grip and pulled the blaster out of the holster a few inches before letting it fall back in, checking to make sure it could be drawn in a hurry if needed.. "I kinda hope they do start something, I owe them a little something from our last encounter" turning to follow Kaylib to the areas he was talking about, Skyler mumbled under his breath "No one pulls a blaster on, and threatens my Squadron Commander and gets away with it."
Not sure if anyone else heard it, Brie cracked a little smile, leaned towards Skyler and whispered "Thanks!" * * * Killjoy With Kaylib leading the way the Warriors made there way down the corridor. Killjoy felt kind of bad for giving the older man such a start, but he was only doing his job, and stopping the little man seemed like it just might pay off. At least now they knew more about this Collie fellow that they did before, and now that Kaylib was going to be showing them around a bit, perhaps they could get a few more answers in one of the locked compartments. As they walked the Captain had his hand on his weapon as if to make a few adjustments and there were a few whispers between him and the Major. This made Killjoy very nervous. He knew he was only an Ensign but if they thought there was going to be trouble then they should at least pass their feelings on to him. He took a quick glance and checked his weapons power cells and looked back over his shoulder, other than the four of them the corridor was completely empty. The only noise, other than their footsteps on the deck plates was the constant low drone of the ship’s engines resonating through the decks and bulkheads. With all the tension in the air this sound was becoming quite annoying. The two ranking officers were continuing their whispered conversation when Killjoy walked past them to catch up to Kaylib. “Excuse me uh, Kaylib was it?”
“Yes Ensign” Kaylib looks at him
“Call me Killjoy. Look I didn’t mean to frighten you back there, but with all that’s going on aboard this ship a guy cant take too many chances. I mean we nearly had a firefight with those three Balckies and well……he was cut short.
The old man slowed his pace and looked at the Ensign. “Killjoy forget it. If I was told I had to cover the backs of these two, Id be a bit nervous myself. Besides you were polite enough, not your fault an old man is a bit high strung.”
“Just didn’t want to seem like a jerk. Its just my first day here and well to be honest it aint gone so well. Having a blaster pointed at you aint exactly the best way to start your day, and these two officers here seem to be the only ones who have any idea what’s going and they aint saying much.”
Kaylib placed his hand on the Ensign’s shoulder, “Killjoy I was a Warrior back in my younger days. Made Lieutenant when I was just a few yahren older than you. In fact that’s how I gots this.” He pulled off his glove t reveal a robotic lower arm and hand. “ A Centurion gave me this on Carillon, when the Cylons tried to feed us all to the Ovions, but that’s another story.”
Killjoy looked at the man and tried to imagine him in the uniform.
Kaylib continued, “These two offices have one thing you don’t, experience. But that’s the one thing you need the most as a Warrior. So until you get a few more yahren under your belt, just relax and go with it. Learn by watching. Your instincts are sharp but you lack the knowledge to use them right.”
Killjoy responds. “Yea I do like to jump right in with out thinking don’t I, then at other times I’m thinking when I should be jumping. Maybe I should just listen and watch more.”
The old man pats Killjoy. ‘I see a lot of you father in you son. He couldn’t wait to get out there in that Viper and shoot at Cylons either, but if he would have slowed down a micron and listened to your uncle he would have lived to be an old man too.”
Killjoy couldn’t believe what he just heard. This old man knew his father and what really happened to him.
Arriving at the first locked compartment Killjoy takes Kaylib by the arm. “When this is over Id like to talk with you more about my father and uncle”
“Sure thing kid”
Kaylib pressed the button that should have opened the door, but all he got was a beep to inform them the door was indeed locked.
“See what I mean Captain, Locked up tight”…
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:41:23 GMT -6
Brie Kaylib pressed the button that should have opened the door, but all he got was a beep to inform them the door was indeed locked.
“See what I mean Captain, Locked up tight”…… “Excuse me,” Brie said, walking between Skyler and Kaylib to the locked door. The first thing she did was try her security code. Being a squadron leader her code should open almost every door on the Callisto. Nothing happened. She took out a pocket knife, gently fiddled with the panel, moved a couple of now exposed wires and the door slip right open.
“Major, um, is there something you want to tell me?” Skyler said, obviously surprised.
Brie grinned. “No, not really.” She and Skyler stepped into the room.
“Why don’t I just stand guard,” Ensign Killjoy suggested before anyone had the chance to say it to him.
“I don’t know how long you’ll need to,” Brie informed him. “Looks like we found what we were looking for. Lying in a heap on the floor of the junk-filled room was the lifeless body of Collie. * * * Killjoy “Why don’t I just stand guard,” Ensign Killjoy suggested before anyone had the chance to say it to him.
“I don’t know how long you’ll need to,” Brie informed him. “Looks like we found what we were looking for".
Hearing this Killjoy peeked passed the Major’s shoulder, sure enough, there on the floor was the body of a middle-aged male. “ Well Ma’am, theres our boy, now I guess the question is did the crawlons really get him or did some one just want him out of the way?”
Brie walks over and kneels next to the body, and the Captain follows. Killjoy stands close to the door so he can see old Kaylib out in the corridor
The Captain looks at Brie, ”What do you think?’ he asks.
“Not sure yet. Give me a minute” she answered
Killjoy spoke up and broke her chain of thought, “What are we going to do about our new problem?”
Frustrated over her broken concentration she snaps at the Ensign, “ And what problem is that Killjoy?”
“Kaylib Ma’am, what do we do about him?”
“Ensign, Kaylib led us to this guy, how do figure him as a problem?” She responded with a raised voice.
“Well Ma’am, He did lead us to the body, and whoever put the body here is not going to be real happy about it now are they? They may just decide that Kaylib here knows more than they thought and talks too much and we”…….
Detecting the raised level of sarcasm coming form the Ensign Capt Skyler cut him off. “Rookie has got a point Brie, they may try to go after the old man next?” * * * Brie Kaylib spoke up before Brie had the chance to answer. “I can take care of myself. You warriors don’t spend a lot of time on level 5, I know my way around. Admit it, you need my help.”
Brie looked at Skyler. She trusted his instincts, and since Skyler knew Kaylib his opinion was important. “He’s right, Brie, we could use his help.”
“Ensign,” Brie said to Killjoy, “I want you to stick close to our friend. You’re his protection. Makes more sense for us to keep an eye on him then sending him to security, until we know more about what’s going on.” She liked Kaylib, there was something familiar about him, she just couldn’t figure out what. She examined Collie’s body more closely. The purple welts were everywhere. There didn’t seem to be signs of any other types of trauma. “Definitely the crawlons,” Brie determined. “Which is good for us.”
“Why is that good, Ma’am?” Killjoy asked.
“Because if it was murder, it would become a security issue,” Brie explained. “As it stands now, we’re just a group of warriors looking for a missing comrade, with the help of someone who is familiar with the area.”
Skyler quickly scanned the room. “Looks like some of the parts that you had found before have been taken from the junk left in here, Major. This is just bits and pieces, mostly worthless. A lot of parts have been removed. My guess is that the other room is their workshop.”
“Kaylib,” Brie said, “if we showed you a pile of junk, could you figure out what someone is trying to make out of it?”
“I could try,” Kaylib replied.
“Good. The room is off of another corridor on this level.” She paused for a moment, running his name through his mind. “Kaylib, didn’t you single-handedly save about fifty people on Carillon?”
Kaylib looked a little bit embarrassed. “It was actually 47, back in my warrior days.”
Brie held out a hand. “One of those 47 was Turner, who later became my husband. I always hoped that I would have the chance to thank you.”
Although still embarrassed, Kaylib grinned. “I was just doing my duty as a warrior. I remember Turner, a bit of a troublemaker. How is he?”
“He’s MIA,” Brie said without missing a beat. She had said it so may times since his disappearance that it was almost automatic. “He always spoke so highly of you, though, said you put him in his place. That must have been pretty hard to do.” She paused a micron. “We’re wasting time. Let’s take a look at the parts that we found.”
They closed the door behind them, leaving Collie’s body where they had found it. Brie purposely didn’t look at Ensign Killjoy, she knew the surprised look that he probably had upon hearing that her husband was missing. She had seen the same look hundreds of times. * * * Brie Standing in the hallway with no one else around, Brie took out her comm again and contacted Lt. SiressEden, who Brie knew was in the Gold Squadron barracks. “Eden,” Brie said, “has anyone heard anything about Amy?”
There was a pause that worried Brie. “Amy?” Eden half and half exclaimed. “She’s been in here for the last centar, sleeping in her bunk. Talking in her sleep too, but I couldn’t make any of it out. Why, where’s she supposed to be?”
“I had been told that she was missing again,” Brie said. “I guess that information was wrong. Do me a favor, contact security and tell them that she’s accounted for. Lieutenant Colonel Charybdis as well. Major Brie out.”
Slightly frustrated, Brie started down the hall with Skyler, Killjoy and Kaylib. Not having to worry about Amy, she realized that she could better concentrate on whatever it was that was happening on level 5. * * * Charybdis Arien and I had just sat down in the war room when my comm unit went off. I looked down at the small readout screen and the message flashed across: 'Lt. Amy had been found and was sleeping in her old bunk in Gold squadron quarters.'
My heart skipped a beat as a heavy burden was lifted from my mind. She was safe!
Arien noticed the relief and asked if anything was wrong. I replied that it was just the opposite.
Now, I had to find out about Arien and her past...
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Post by LucianG on Apr 1, 2007 7:42:05 GMT -6
Killjoy Hearing the instructions the Major gave to someone over the comm, got Killjoys attention, and as she caught up to them she noticed his puzzled look.
“What is it Ensign?” she questioned.
“Ma’am with all do respect, I can see why you would want to inform the bridge but”.....He paused as if to re-think his position.
“Make your point Ensign”
“ Well, Ma’am, we did tell those three Blackies that we were on this level to look for this LT.Amy. So dont you think it would be wise to keep this information from security for a little while? If those guys come back and we are still snooping around, we no long have a cover story. As far as that goes, shouldn’t we see to it that she stays out of sight till we are done here. If a Blackie spots her its the same as making a ship-wide announcement.”
Thinking about what the Ensign had said the Major ask, “Ensign do you make it a habit to listen in on other peoples conversations? Not to mention the fact that you did so from several meters away.”
“Major in my former line of work, attention to detail keeps you in business and even alive in some cases. Most of my past clients were” he paused. “Well, lets just say they were less than honorable folks. So its become kind of an instinct to know whats going on and being said around me. Especially when I am in situations that involve dead bodies and folks running around pointing blasters at me and my friends.....er...uh ...commanding officers. I didn’t mean any disrespect Major, I just want to help figure out whats going on this level and I would kind of like to do it with out any of us getting all shot up.”
The Major looked at the Ensign rather hard. While looking him straight in the eye she spoke. “Captain Skyler, Lets talk” and the two officers walked several meters away from Killjoy and Kaylib.
Killjoy looked at the old man. “Looks like I may have just talked my way right into a cout-martial.”
Kaylib pats Killjoy’s back. “What makes you say that. The way I see it, you just did your job.”
“How ya figure Kaylib”
“Killjoy, its the job of young officers to look out for the higher ups and to offer advice to them.You saw a potential problem and you pointed it out. After all you earned that brass on your collar, you are an officer and believe it or not those two respect you for that. But you need to learn when dealing with the higher ups, its not what you say its how you say it. In this case what you said was smart, how you said it was, well, not so smart.”
“Story of my life Kaylib.” Killjoy said with a laugh.....Then reached under his flight jacket and again retrieved the little hand laser ...” You might want to hang on to this, just in case. If we run into trouble again, and something happens you’ll stand a better chance.”
“Are you sure, you could get into trouble”...........
“The way I see it, I was in trouble from the moment I set foot on this ship, The Major is probably over there right now telling the Captain what tanker or garbage scow she wants me assigned too. After shooting my mout off like that I dont think it could get much worse. Besides, after your adventure on Carillon maybe you should be the one protecting us.”
The two stood and laughed as Kaylib placed the small weapon in his waist band under his vest, and the laugh came to a sudden end as the Major and Captain returned. The Major had her communication device in her hand.... * * * Brie Brie was holding her comm in her hand, but she didn’t do anything with it. “I appreciate your trying to help, Ensign, I really do. But you weren’t around here several sectars ago, when the level of trust between the warriors and the security forces,” she purposely didn’t call them black shirts, “was almost non-existent. We’ve worked hard on cleaning up the problem. If this weren’t reported back to security, it would look like a squadron leader was purposely keeping information from them, which is exactly what would be happening. Not only that, but all information on Lt. Amy is always supposed to go directly to Captain Urdea, or one of his closest aides. Lt. SiressEden knows that.”
“Why does it go directly to him?” Killjoy asked. He seemed slightly nervous.
“Let’s just say that Amy has a knack for getting into trouble,” Brie explained. She grinned at Killjoy. “Relax. Don’t ever be afraid to speak your concerns. But don’t be upset if your suggestion isn’t taken. Now let’s go.”
Through the corridors of level 5 Brie continued with her group. It dawned on her how strange it might seem to some people. Here was the CO of Gold Squadron, a Gold Squadron captain, a brand new ensign from Black Squadron who had yet to work with anyone from his squadron, and an older man who was now a technician, but had once been a warrior and had saved her husband’s life. And they were searching for something that they had no idea what it was.
It didn’t take long to find the room that seemed to be some type of workshop. Brie and Skyler brought Kaylib inside, while Killjoy once again stood guard. Without moving anything, Kaylib looked over the equipment. “I thought it might be a transmitter of some sort,” Skyler said. “Or a droid. The two don’t seem to go together, though.”
Kaylib looked all around with great interest. “A transmitter is right. Very long range by the looks of it. The droid theory works as well, they probably intend to hide the transmitter inside. Not a bad idea, they could hide it right out into the open.”
“Most droids are banned in the fleet,” Brie pointed out.
“Most, but not all,” Kaylib said. “We’ve all seen the daggit droids that the kids play with. Also some are used for labor, which is what it looks like they’re making here. Make it for heavy lifting, it could have access to almost every area of the Callisto.”
“And with the transmitter inside...” Brie was cut off by a knock on the door. “Major, you’d better get out of there,” Killjoy said. “I hear voices, sounds like they’re coming this way.”
They slipped out the door and closed it behind them. * * * Killjoy ...” Brie was cut off by a knock on the door. “Major, you’d better get out of there,” Killjoy said. “I hear voices, sounds like they’re coming this way.”
They slipped out the door and closed it behind them.
Killjoy made eye contact with Captain Skyler as soon as he stepped through the door,and then looked in the direction of the voices, and back to his left and the bulkhead that marked the end of this corridor. With out any words the Captain understood what the young Ensign was trying to covey. If the men who were about to come around that corner were to open fire then the four of them were trapped and had little chance of getting out in one piece.
Killjoy spoke in a half-whisper. “Sir, I make out at least four maybe five voices, and one of them sounds like the guy who drew down on us the last you guys were in there.”
“I believe your right Ensign, Kaylib we need a way out of here now Got any Ideas?”
Kaylib took a quick look around, “Other than the normal rout, the only way off this level is the access tunnel I used when the Ensign found me, It leads up L-6 or down to too the control area for the personal lifts in the port side landing bay”..... The Captain cut him off. “ So that’s how they got that junk up here with out being seen”...
“Captain, can we discuss this another time?’ Brie interrupted. “Right now we have.....
She was interrupted by a loud voice at the far end of the hall. “HOLD!”
Killjoy and Skyler turned and drew their weapons in one movement, standing shoulder to shoulder they placed themselves between the voice and the civilian. As per her normal style, The Major stepped out into the open with her hand on her weapon and developed a command presence.
The Captain and Killjoy had drawn first, thus they had first shot advantage and everyone on the other side knew it. The first one of them to draw would most likely be dead before his weapon came clear of its holster. However, the other side had the advantage of cover provided by the corners of the intersecting corridor. After the first few shots they would have the Major’s group in a whole world of hurt.
Killjoy found himself thinking two things. He hoped that none of them would be stupid enough to try and draw his weapon, and two that the Majors skill of talking her way out of bad situations would again pay off.
“Oh this just got real cozy now didn’t it?” Killjoy said with a whisper.
“You have a gift for understatement Ensign.” the Captain whispered in return.
The Major gave the two a stern look as if to say “Shut the hell up” and they did.
As she turned her attention back the group at the end of the hall she ask them. “Is there something I can do for you gentlemen?”... * * * Lucian The call for those moving to the CQ had just been issued.
Arien said, “That’s my cue to go, I’m afraid. Perhaps we will be able to continue this conversation after the jump.”
“Does that mean you are returning to the CQ?” asked Charybdis, somewhat disappointed that their time together had been so short, but trying not to show it.
“It has been my home since I was a child, except for that brief recent period I’d rather forget. In fact, it’s the only home I really remember. Deidre and the little girl need me, and some of the others do, too. Call it duty, call it homesickness, or whatever, but I’m going.”
As she turned to leave, she looked back at him with a peculiar look, almost as if she was daring him to do something. “Colonel, is there…something?” She paused, almost afraid to say more…
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