Pax

"Frankly I'm too expensive for you"

"I'm sure you are, I don't have any money anyway," I replied still watching Pappy.

“you’re completely allowed to sit with me and watch the show –“

The situation with Silas was heating up. Nathan and his accomplice had dived in. Pappy soon followed tagging Silas. **** this was messy.


“How about you go help out your friends hun, this bar will turn into a mess when they stir it up.”

I looked back at her as she was sipping her wine. Her eyes seemed to be undressing me. I could see plots, schemes, analysis all working behind her innocent gaze. I knew her type. The sort of seductress whose voice and body promised everything but whose heart delivered nothing. I'd met my share, and even had my heart broken by a couple. She made me uncomfortable yet set my heart racing at the same time. I didn't like it. Without responding I turned back to the fray in time to see a sly man slip through the back entrance and point a gun at Pappy's back.

"****!" I drew my pistol, pointed it over the table and shot the man in the arm. He dropped the gun clutching his bleeding forearm howling. He stumbled out the way he came. I twirled my trusty pistol around my finger before holstering the smoking barrel. I hoped no one had noticed where the gunshot had come from, so I spun around facing the woman.

"I just shot someone so erm... Some conversation cover would be nice, so erm, whats your name?"

 

"Follow my lead. Try to act like you're UEAF."Richard felt like saying something about that, but held back. He held the credentials and ID to place him fairly high on the rank scyme technically, but the technicalities were always overlooked, he could of persuaded them to let him go easily, lower ranked officers melted under gunnery sergeants, let alone specialist’s, but then again, he hated using his rank to get things. He let his friend talk.
They walked outside, hailing a taxi, after several empty’s pass, one stopped, they both got in.
“Were to?” The driver asked over his shoulder.
“Hun Tavern, or as close as you can get” Then quietly, so that only Nathan could hear “Lets get you back with your squad, unless you have a better idea”

 

"Nope, that idea sounds great." Nathan replied.'

The taxi came to a halt at a blcoked road. A police officer came to the driver's window and explained that this was as far as anyone could go, they were still cleaning up at the Tavern.
The two got out, paid, and made there way to the tavern by foot.

He surveyed the chaos. Most of the fighting had died down, but the tavern was in ruins. To his, right, Nathan saw Carter chatting up a girl. Of course he was... Wait, Carter!

Not wanting to ruin his friend's chances, Nathan walked by and found Pappy.

"Sorry about all this... Sir."

 

Oliver had a four of spades, and a ten of hearts. If he asked for a hit, he might overshoot the twenty-one mark and lose the money he bet already. He eyed the other players, the military men who were contently flicking the edges of their cards to round out where they stood.

He was on his third glass of beer, and decided on ordering shots to quicken the numbing buzz creeping up at the back of his head. But before he could, the grizzled man who Nathan had stuck him with received a message.

"Well ain’t that all just a kick in the head. Carter, you dumb son of a---and you! Where the hell is Trin, she was supposed to watch you pups. I suppose you had some hand in all this,” he said, pointing at him with his thumb.

"In my humble defense, your man did one bang-up job helping me snuff the organ thieves off this part of Ceres. So, in turn, anything within my jurisdiction here I will gladly lend," Oliver replied, wryly smiling, but sincerely offering the aid. From the looks of him, didn't look like he needed much help regardless. Damn, Davis thought, I didn't even get his name.

“Aww cripes, alright, you just stay your butt right there while daddy takes care of business. And Nathan, maybe you can care of our mister googley eyes over there.”

Suddenly, Nathan and another man, with an mechanical augmented eye, made their way to who was evidently the target the war vet had mentioned earlier. They cause an immense ruckus, and soon the entire bar was bustling as the target was manhandled to the floor. His cronies closed in to protect him, in vain.

The older military man who had invited him to the blackjack game prowled in, and shot the grounded man with a gun Oliver knew wasn't lethal, but meant to zero positions of the person or thing. Although, the detective had never used one himself, and couldn't come up with the name.

He played the bystander, and focused on the cards in front of him.

On the far side, he can make out the UEAF navyman, Carter, socializing with a beauty of a girl. She seemed out of her field, elegantly and attractively clad, opposed to the rough-talk all-walk manhood present at Hun's Tavern.

Then, as the riot began, Carter had leapt to attention. He put a precise round in a man's arm, who dropped his pistol squealing.

Oliver wasn't going to leave any more to chance. He stood from the table, half-wondering if the other military men were going to do the same. Striding in the direction of where they'd "tagged" the criminal, or whoever he was, the detective flicked the leather cap of his holster open.

 

"Sorry about all this... Sir." Nathan said again with the puppy dog face.

"Can it, I should see to it that the Skipper busts your ass down to---aw hell you're a boot, he can't bust you down to anything. Count yourself lucky, the Fleet is hurting for officers. If you and your new boyfriend are done playing ring around the rosies you can kindly return to the safehouse. Specter may want to give us a sitrep*." Pappy growled.

"Alright boys, pack it up, we're getting out of here, all of us this time if we can manage that miracle somehow!"

***

From outside the Underworld club was nothing but a bright and loud stampede disaster waiting to happen. The average age: 20? Average IQ: slightly higer than that, one hoped. The ladies and men were both dressed in tight and often scanty black clothes, synthetic leathers, actual leather was rare and expensive (cows are hard to ship, they weigh more than several colonists, and produce too much 'byproduct' for a closed environment).

Wolf couldnt help but chuckle watching Akinlabi walk in his new disguise, he looked absolutely uncomfortable, and seemed at least to him, to stand out like a diamond in a goat's ass. Akinlabi no doubt thought the same thing about him.

"And how are we supposed to find this Andres character?"

"I don't know Akinlabi, you're the tracker. I'm practically a space rat, even though I was born on Earth the only place that ever felt like home to me was up in the heavens. I wouldn't know a blood trail from trail of slug slime." Wolf tried to imagine Andres' face, that thin, cunning, foxlike face of his.

"How do you hunt a Fox?"

"A Fox? Ah, you must simply go where they like to go, do we know what this Fox likes?"

"Women and booze? And card games."

"We must then find large groups of women and an abundance of alcohol. Foxes are clever and sometimes startle, they have been known to run from bushes if they know a hunter is nearby---"

"I'll check out the bar and see if I see him, and you, you old lady killer---you look for groups of women and see if some pencil necked little tweeker is laying the charm on a little too thick."

*situation report

 

"I just shot someone so erm... Some conversation cover would be nice, so erm, whats your name?"

You idiot! You think you can just shoot someone in a public place and not have anyone know by way of a simple conversation cover? Are you out of your mind? But Lasky knew that she would lose her in to the group and to the leader if she let him be killed by one of that guy’s friends, or started yelling at him. So she kept her mouth shut and instead just gave him the least annoyed look she could muster, but it still looked like her actions bothered him greatly.

From the corner of Alison’s eye, she saw a large man with a short blade coming up behind him silently. ****, I’m going to have to give myself away a little to save him. Damn it, this is ruining my high. She acted quickly, grabbing the military kid and throwing him into the chair. Then she grabbed the hooked blade out of her bag and flung it with a flick of her wrist at the man’s arm, all done through one fluid motion of her arm swinging down into her purse. It stuck right through his wrist, causing the large man to cry out and drop the blade. Lasky lost a little bit of control then. She felt his death was necessary for the annoyance.

Alison walked up directly to man writhing in pain. She grabbed the blade stuck in his arm with her left hand, and grabbed the arm with right. Then she ripped it out, not minding the blood that got onto her white dress. And for the kill, with one elaborate motion, Alison forced the blade into his temple, twisted his head around while turning over to the soldier, and violently ripped it out behind her back. The man’s limp body crashed to the floor. Alison used her dress to wipe the blade clean, and then put it into her bag.

She turned up to carter with her brilliant, green eyes, “I am Camille Moreau. And I would suggest getting out of this bar before you get yourself killed, hun. Your friends are leaving anyways.”

 

“I am Camille Moreau. And I would suggest getting out of this bar before you get yourself killed, hun. Your friends are leaving anyways.”

After recovering from the initial shock I knelt by the poor mans side, but it was obvious from the entry wound that he was a goner. I looked up at Camille with fire in my eyes, "That was..." I stood up shaking with anger "Unecessary." I grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her outside. I then drew my gun and pressed it against her stomach, drawing myself close enough that passerbys would simply think us as lovers.

"The only reason I'm not killing you is because you saved my life."

I pulled away holstering my pistol. I jabbed an angry finger at her, "I don't know who you are, bounty hunter, assassin, murderer, femme fatale, and I don't much care. But stay away."

I backed off, and waited until I had rounded the corner before turning and jogging to Specters safehouse.

 

"Can it, I should see to it that the Skipper busts your ass down to---aw hell you're a boot, he can't bust you down to anything. Count yourself lucky, the Fleet is hurting for officers. If you and your new boyfriend are done playing ring around the rosies you can kindly return to the safehouse. Specter may want to give us a sitrep."

Nathan wasn't sure, but Pappy, while angry at the squad, seemed partly relieved they had finally tagged this guy. He followed Pappy back to Spectre, it'd been a long few days, but now, now it might all be over.

 

“That was…unnecessary”

But it was necessary. I wouldn’t feel comfortable with myself if it wasn’t done. He doesn’t need to know that though. Then he sprang on her, but she didn’t tense. She just loosely followed his actions, much like she had done many times before.

“The only reason I'm not killing you is because you saved my life.”

She contemplated this for a second while the gun was in her stomach, smirked, and thought about being forceful in getting what she wanted. He’s just a low grade officer; he doesn’t have the reaction time or the experience. I could move my left hand just enough to stab the nerve with my nails to open his hand and drop the gun. I could just force-snap it right from his hands and shoot him with it. I could… Her mind drifted. Then it came back to her own reality. You won’t shoot me because you’re a little bitch who couldn’t kill anyone. That answered satisfied her enough. She would force him to bring her where she wanted, but then she remembered, he’s still kind of cute. Maybe she would save him for later.
During that time she wasn’t listening to what he said. It was like a drone of past experiences. It was boring Alison. But when he backed off and rounded the corner, she became simultaneously concerned and annoyed. I need to track and follow.

She quickly turned over to a parallel alley and ran as fast as she could, flinging off the little shoes she had and tearing her dress. She knew she was faster than him; she was faster than almost anyone. She was trained to be nimble, decisive, and swift. She had mastered them all over only a few years. The seductive nature, cruel mind, and violent pleasure came from her own innate character. She was tool made for hunting people.

Alison’s feet cut and scraped as she ran on the hard surface, but she moved as fast as if that wasn’t the case. After about two blocks she made a sharp cut into another alley and charged for the street. As soon as she got there she heard her prey’s half running steps only a few seconds away. She got ready, kicked a box out right in front of him and move out as he was about to fall. The soldier tripped on the unexpected box, while Lasky immediately went for his gun and pulled it out. As he fell nearly down, she was already moving her knee down onto the center of his back, and his own gun to his head.

“I didn’t want it to be this way, hunny, I wanted it to work smoothly. Now you’re just going to do as you’re told. Take me to whoever’s running the show. Just bring me straight there. I don’t want to kill them. Nobody’s life is in danger.” Yet. “Just bring me there. Can you do that, hun? Or do I have to find colorful, interactive ways to make that so?”

 

"Just bring me there. Can you do that, hun? Or do I have to find colorful, interactive ways to make that so?”

I squirmed innefectully for a moment before accepting defeat. Or at least appeared to do so.

"Sonovabitch..." I began, my voice muffled by the ground, "Colourful interactive ways eh? I could comment, but I'm not in the mood for sexual banter."

I groaned with pain, I think she had cracked one of my ribs, "Your quick, and your weapon of choice is still a knife... Assassin it is then."

While I was speaking I was subtly sneaking my right arm down to my boot, where my combat knife was concealed.

"Alright, I'll tell ya what ya need to know, although it may be a little hard with my face crushed against the pavement. Any chance of easing off a bit?"

I grabbed the hilt of my blade, although I didn't withdraw it yet. Instead I felt her knee let some weight off my back, so I lightly turned over so I was lying on my back. I saw the contempt in her eyes, she thought of me as nothing. That was good, she underestimated me. The gun was still firmly against my forehead, this would be tricky.

"See now we're face to face, this is the proper way to begin a relationship see?" I eased the knife out of my boot, "Now what was it you wanted to know again?"

I raised my empty hand in a placating gesture, "And why are you so interested?"

Suddenly I took action, with my empty hand I slapped the pistol away, and jerked my head to the side simaltaneously. The gun fired, hitting the pavement and leaving my ears ring. Refusing to be fazed I bought the knife up to her neck, and pressed just hard enough for a little trickle of blood to slide down the blade.

"There we are, much more comfortable."

Using the knife to guide her, I pushed her off me, snatched the gun away, and stood up.

I grinned, slid my knife back into my boot and blew the smoke off the gun.

"Perhaps we can talk like civilized people now? Who are you, and why do you want to know all that stuff?"

 

If you and your new boyfriend are done playing ring around the rosies you can kindly return to the safehouse. Specter may want to give us a sitrep."
Richard clenched his fist at the last comment, he gave people 3 undue insults before he hit, this was the first, so he let it pass.
The fun things allways seemed to go by so fast, the adrenelin was still in his system from the last little bout, he needed something to do. He followed behind Nathan and Pappy. He hated the silence, other times he craved it, but being this deep into something without understanding it properly could be dangerious, so he asked the obvias questions. "So who is this spectre then? You leader? I wouldn't mind being filled in on everything at some point, is this the guy I'll need to ask or will I get that from one of yous?"

 

"So who is this spectre then? You leader? I wouldn't mind being filled in on everything at some point, is this the guy I'll need to ask or will I get that from one of yous?"

Nathan sighed. This guy really needed to know...

"Spectre is... Spectre is a friendly. Just, when you meet... Spectre... er, do what... Spectre tells you."

Nathan didn't want to reveal the gender of Spectre, he had already done enough to the team...

 

"Perhaps we can talk like civilized people now? Who are you, and why do you want to know all that stuff?"

What part of me can you possibly believe to be civilized? I’m a monster and I know it, and I like it. I’m a nightmare that you just don’t seem to understand.

Lasky had fallen through the motions of where the man was moving her. She made him feel as if he was being smart and smooth. It was a technique she had perfected. Why fight and maybe lose when I can just win full out later? It wasn’t that she didn’t have strength and speed, mental capacity or dexterity; she just didn’t want to lose him. And it was beginning to feel he respected her abilities somewhat. Not as fully as if he knew what she had done, what she could do. Instead, he respected her base value. She was a weapon that wasn’t supposed to be seen unless it was to be displayed. The less he understood the better.

“I’ve already told you who I am, and I never asked for any information. I simply wanted an escort to where you are going.” Alison’s face was emotionless in the conversation now. “Please hun, just take me there. I have business with your boss. I assume a spectre is leading this crew.” And I suspect they're sitting behind in a comfy chair getting fatter as the less intelligent do the fun work. I wish someone would give me a laundry list of targets someday. All I want to do is lie and kill some more. All I want is something to sustain the appetite.

Lasky stared straight at him. “And that is the only question I will answer right now. Maybe later you’ll learn more, maybe not, it’s a chance you should take. You’re one of the few people who have ever actually talked to me who I didn’t plan on killing.” Immediately. “You know I’m not planning on murder right now.”

It was true; she wasn’t planning any murders at the moment. She had already planned them.

 

Silas grinned in satisfaction as his hired men handed over the case.

“It’s here?”

“Yes sir, whatever it is, it’s heavy.”

“You mean you don’t know?” Silas opened the case and looked the thermonuclear charge over. He wasn’t qualified enough to know if it was in working condition, but he didn’t have to, that’s what his experts were for. And if those damn smugglers tried to pull a fast one on him, well, let’s just say that their transport ride back home would have an unfortunate 'accident'.

“If this is done properly, we can make it look like a reactor malfunction. Contact Andres, Voltan, and Rico. It’s time to move, I want this over with soon, I miss the red sands of Mars.”

“You got it boss,” the hired muscle said and began to contact Silas’ special lieutenants on his PDD.

***

Giving the secret knock on the entrance to the safe-room, Pappy had an odd feeling. He quickly jumped down the shoot, checking for booby traps, and did an adept combat roll across the floor to the mission briefing room. Where was Specter? He heard a clapping sound.

“Were you trying to impress me, or are you just practicing your moves to keep your old joints loose?” Specter chided. Her cloaking field was on high, giving her an apparition appearance. Her voice was scrambled, barely perceptible as speech.

“Screw you, I tagged Silas for you,” Pappy mumbled.

“I noticed, something is happening, I think that Silas is ready to make his move soon.”

“Really? That‘s good, right?”

“Maybe, I don’t think he has sabotage in mind though, something else.”

“Like what?”

“BOOM!” Specter shouted.

Pappy frowned.

“I can’t allow that to happen.”

“I’m already way ahead of you. Get your recruits together, tell them to load up with tactical gear, mission briefings gonna be, hell, right about now I suppose…”

 

“And that is the only question I will answer right now. Maybe later you’ll learn more, maybe not, it’s a chance you should take. You’re one of the few people who have ever actually talked to me who I didn’t plan on killing.”

"Oh Jeeze," I slumped against a wall rubbing my eyes, "It's always me isn't it. I always get the psychotic femme fatales... Hello I'm Mort, I'm bat**** bonkers and I wanna hang out with you Carter! Hey there Carter I'm Eve, I'm a sassy cop with street smarts and a badass attitude. Whats Up Carter I'm Davis and I... Actually Davis is pretty normal. Well at least I can imagine sharing a drink with him without him attempting to murder or main me. More then I can say for you."

I looked back at the cold woman, and her dead look spurred me to action, "Alright you can come, but on one condition, well two, well three if you include the gun."

Using my knife I cut away a strip of cloth from my uniform and tied it around the assassins eyes, "Don't be alarmed, I'm blindfolding you."

I then took her by the shoulders and began to spin her five times, "We used to do this on earth- spin people I mean, not blindfold beautiful killer assassins- we used to bash open things called Pinatas, with sweets in them. They'd give us a big stick, blindfold us, spin us so we were dizzy as hell, then shove us roughly in the direction of the pinata," I finished spinning her, held her steady and pressed my gun against her head, "Needless to say Pinatas were a lot more fun if there was someone you didn't like in the room, and you could perhaps see a little better than you let on. There we go, nice and hostagisized. Thats not a word, but your not in a position to make demands are you?"

I moved her along the alley stopping every few hundred paces to spin her again. Eventually we reached the trapdoor to Spectres lair, and when we moved down the staircase I knocked on the door, "Team it's Carter, open up, I have a visitor with me."

The door hissed open and I shoved Camille through, "Sorry I'm late everyone, but this young lady wanted to ask our illustrious informer a question... And in all honesty if I hadn't complied she probably would have slit my throat. So Camille what did you want to ask?"

 

Now, the key to understanding the path you’re taking requires a complex mind, and a lot of practice. A subject needs a mind that works somewhat like a stack register on a calculator. One must calculate the number of spins (the easy part), figure out the angle of which you were left off in your last spin versus where you began. This involves figuring out a base for knowing what angle you are at, and that is usually the spinner. Some assassins use wind, but that’s subject to too much rapid variable change for Lasky to want to worry about. Besides, the spinner is usually human, and is at least subject to a few sounds and touches.

Combine this with counting paces, and worrying about false turns, it is an almost impossible task. One of which Lasky tried very hard to do, but ultimately failed this time because of losing part of her mental map. It was the combination of being overly tired, and not being focused as clearly as she had hoped on the situation. And the itchy blindfold. Lasky always had problems with shutting out little annoyances like that.

It didn’t cost her too much though. She doubted she would need to get out of the place in a real hurry. Most specters had a need for her kind. She could fit in real nice with the group. She had made it obvious who she was, and hoped they would get the hint from that that they were safe for the moment. Safe, unless someone paid a price.

Alison heard a trap door open and climbed in. it was warmer below the ground, and she was excited to be done with the blindfold. Excited to do business.

She was pushed through an open doorway and stopped in a room that seemed to have many people in it. The blindfold wasn’t taken off, and she was annoyed already from losing her position. If they keep this up, they’re going to piss her off.

Sorry I'm late everyone, but this young lady wanted to ask our illustrious informer a question... And in all honesty if I hadn't complied she probably would have slit my throat. So Camille what did you want to ask?

Well, at least the false name caught on. And yes, I would have slit your throat, but that would probably be the last thing I’d do to you.

“No question will be asked with this many around to hear it. Spectre, and I know you are present, will you be so kind as to allow me to present a business proposition to you in at least relative privacy? And remove this bandage from my eyes?” The last sentence wasn’t said as kindly as the prior ones. “I have already seen most everyone in this room already. There is no need to hide identities for safety.” You are all already unsafe to begin with.

 

Pappy yawned and scratched at his chin, not even a whole day in space and he was already growing stubble. Microgravity makes everything bigger. It's damn hard to tell what time it is without a sun to set your watch by.

He sat at a seat and waited for the misfits and an officer to begin the briefing.

 

Richard sat in the briefing room, his eye in hand, using a small tool to alter the focus slightly. He placed it back into its socket, blinked as the nerves reattached themselves, then put the tools away.
It was taking to much time, he hated the wait when travelling through space, knowing he had no controle if the captain decided to plow them into a star. It always made him nervious, right up to the mission.
“How much longer is this going to be before we can get started? I need to runs several tests on some of our mobile weapon systems”

 

Nathan crashed through the doors, his un-tucked uniform trailing behind him. For him, this was a nightmare. He just HAD to have everything perfect, and this was the first instance in all his time in the UEAF that he had been late for a briefing.

He had grabbed his clothes, pulled his pants on, and gotten dressed on the way.

When he crashed through, he found multiple people eying him.

"Sorry..." He took a deep breath. "Sorry I'm late. Alarm... alarm clock didn't work."

 

'Pappy'
Now there was a name I hadn't heard in a few years. A slew of memories ran through my mind as I donned my black flight jacket with the red sash that was customary of a special agent. I looked in the mirror and brushed my short black hair out of my face. For the first time in a long while, I really examined my features. They had grown harder. The small lines on the edges of my mouth that gave a constant impression of laughter has dissolved, and instead relocated to crease my forehead. I had spent more time planetside, and my clean white skin now had more colour and wrinkles. A noticeable scar was slashed just along my left jawline, and wasn't half as dashing as I had hoped. I stood there for another moment. I was still handsome, I decided, but my 'pretty boy' days were over.
'Pappy'
After our mission on Ceres I was promptly court marshalled for dereliction of duty. Luckily (although not surprisingly) I found myself in a dark room with an unseen pannel of higher ups. Although they neglected to disclose their names, I was sure I heard my fathers voice. They simply said to me "You'd rather kill criminals than Martians?"
I had nodded.
They then handed me a list of names and locations and said, "Well then Agent Carter, get to work."
And boy, had I worked. Dozens of pirates, slavers, serial killers and mob bosses had met their ends on the wrong end of rifles, knives, poison, my bare hands and in one rather memorable instance; gravity followed by a large supply truck. I smiled, for every person I killed, I told myself I was saving a hundred others. I was a ****ing hero.
But somehow, I didn't feel like one. I was hollow, cold. In many ways I had become like that assassin Camille (I suspected that was a false name, as she had often hesitated before responding to it in the brief time I knew her). That irony was both chilling and somehow a relief. Perhaps a relief that I had not yet fallen as far as that psychotic murderer.
It was for this reason that when I heard of Marauder incursions in the system, I immediately signed up.
"Agent Carter" My shady superiors had warned me, "You're rank gives you a licence to kill outside of the UEE command structure, but if you choose to work with a group it would merely be one of ceremony. You'd be as a midshipman again. You'd have to follow orders."
I understood the rule. It stopped agents from jepordising missions with lone wolf tactics. I knew that if I broke the rules again, it would be incarceration at the very least. But I didn't care. I wanted to fight on even ground. I wanted my ship on one side, and a whole mess of marauders on the other. A fair fight.
I looked at my watch. I was late, but I didn't care. They were ground pounders, grunts, jarheads, even Pappy. They were the ones who fought the pointless wars, I was the one who made the difference. This train of thought ended abruptly with shock and guilt, I was being pigheaded. There were plenty of good soldiers in the UEE, and hell, who was I to criticise them when I had requested to rejoin them?
I guess I was angry at myself. No use dwelling on it then. I strapped my trusty pistol which was still my weapon of choice after all this time, to my waist, and then strode down the corridor.
I don't know who I expected to see in that briefing room. I don't know who would still be alive, or even who I would care to be alive. I hope to see Nathan, and Davis (I had heard he stuck with the UEE after Ceres). So when I opened the door and spotted Nathan, as youthful and as much of a kiss ass as ever, desperately trying to clean up his messy appearence.
I sat silently behind him leant forward and whispered, "Boots these days, they should learn to shape up or ship out."

 

Nathan collapsed onto a seat doing his top button up. It felt strange to be briefed again, strange, but good.

He observed the room, Pappy had a seat at the front. Pappy! It had been years since Nathan had seen the old man and he felt ten times happier to see him then ever before. This guy was a true leader, a true soldier. Without him, so many lives would have been lost.
They would never admit it, the officials were too cold, too full of themselves, and part of this they needed. If they admitted it was their fault every time they did something wrong, there'd be billions more rebels.
Still, in this case, Nathan felt Pappy had gotten the short straw. After all these years, all these missions, all these lives saved, he was still back sitting here with a bunch of recruits and should-be criminals.

He looked around for another familiar face and found Richard. Wait, Richard? He joined up? Nathan was sure that after the whole organ thieves business, the poor guy would have been locked up for life. In fact, he thought he would be too, and he was supposed to be too. Thankfully, someone somehow got him out. He didn't know who it was, why they did it or how, but somehow, they convinced a few people that he didn't deserve this.

Nathan was going to speak to Pappy or Richard, but he felt it'd be a bad idea. As far as he knew, this would be his last mission. After everything that had happened, he was lucky to even have this one. He didn't want to get attached again, he still felt guilty.

Three strong, innocent lives. Lost because of him. No, more than that. More lives were lost, but they come to mind. JJ, Trin and Mel. All of them, loyal to the end, and it was his fault they were gone. If he had just listened to the officials and done his job, they would still be here today.

But no, he had to make this a personal experience. He got to know each person, and when Carter went missing, he felt it was his duty to save him. His bloody duty. He should have just followed his mission. Carter would have made it back with Davis, Trin and JJ never would have gone missing and Mel would still be alive. Sure, he would have had the odd assassin or two, but that wasn't Nathan's problem. Mel could take them on. Hell, without the excitement of the assassins, Mel would have been bored.

No, this time, he'd just do his job and leave. No friends, just soldiers he was fighting aside.

"Boots these days, they should learn to shape up or ship out."

A grin spread across Nathan's face.

"Well, I dunno about you, but technically I'm a boot again." He turned back to Carter. "How's it been bud? After the whole Ceres incident, I heard you got into some trouble. I did too, in fact, I shouldn't even be here today."

 

"How's it been bud? After the whole Ceres incident, I heard you got into some trouble. I did too, in fact, I shouldn't even be here today."

"Ah Nathan you haven't changed. Most people would be givin me a big sloppy kiss, but alas my lips remain disappointed, tis all business with you," I laughed and pointed at my sash, "And thats Agent Carter to you Midshipmen."
It was good to see Nathan again. Despite the fact he was only a year younger, I saw him as a kid. A good strong quick witted kid, but still a kid. His bright eyed curiosity, stalwart loyalty and trust in the UEE seemed unchanged, although his voice had more of an edge, perhaps bought on by experience.
"It's all the same with me, court marshals, state sponsered assasinations, fast woman... What's happened to you? Haven't heard a peep outta you since Ceres"

 

“How much longer is this going to be before we can get started? I need to runs several tests on some of our mobile weapon systems,” Richard asked.

“Hold onto your horses kid, all that armor will still be there when we’re done here. And when it comes to being ready, hell, that’s a Red Herring if there ever was one. No plan survives contact with the enemy. That’s for damn sure."

Nathan busted into the briefing room dressed sloppy and late, a far cry from the neat and squared away boot he knew from years back. His first tours really roughened him up, in a way he missed the old kid, but a salty space squid was just the kind of thing you needed in war time.

“Nathan---how the hell are you kid? Get a damn seat why don’t you?”

Nathan and Carter started chatting. Carter, that knucklehead was still in the UEAF? He figured that reckless cowboy would have been thrown head first out of active duty service by now.

“Hello to you too Carter, you wild ace! Hmmm, Richard, Carter, and Nathan. I miss some of the guys in the old misfits gang, but if I’m going into battle it’s gonna be good to have them by my side again.”

 

"And thats Agent Carter to you Midshipmen."

"Impressive, the years have been good to you David."


"What's happened to you? Haven't heard a peep outta you since Ceres"

Nathan thought back to those years.

"To be honest, I don't even know what's happened to me. I was, well, I was locked up for a bit. I guess I didn't exactly do the right thing back on Ceres. Since it wasn't officially the mission, I guess I murdered multiple organ thieves, but I didn't help save any lives. I also got in some deep s**t for the whole thing with Mort and Richard. Talking to civilians bringing them into official areas, just goes to show what the high up guys think. I mean, I'm not saying they're all bad, but Jesus, for a bunch of people who are supposed to be keeping people safe and happy, they've got no... no soul.
I guess they don't think like I do. In the grand scheme of things, the individual, innocent person isn't as important as the group of guilty.
But, enough of my rants, I'll probably get us both thrown back in jail if I keep this sort of talk up."

Pappy made his way up to the two of them, noticing they had arrived.

“Nathan---how the hell are you kid? Get a damn seat why don’t you?”

Nathan made his way over to the hero. He decided he couldn't ignore these guys, they were his friends, his true friends who would always have his back. He just needed to make sure he didn't do anything stupid this time.

"Pappy, God, it's been years. I'm sure you've had a few nice missions since Ceres. Any memorable?"

 

They all gathered, talking like no time had passed since their last meeting. It was nice to see the start of things going so smoothly. Things where sure to hit the fan soon enough.
“Come on, no hello for me or what you been up to then? Bah... Seems I won’t be sharing my cigars with anyone after we complete this”
He lent back in his chair grinning.