FSE

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formerly SoFurry search engine

There was a light bump as the skids touched down onto the bay's deck. The massive doors closed and there was a pause as the bay depressurized. A light above the personnel hatch into the rest of the ship turned green, indicating safe pressure and it opened; a human wearing a rakkan uniform briskly striding through in a beeline to the Farrom 8. "That would be our Commanding Officer," Rika said, climbing out of her seat. "Oh lord, I really hope he's just here to welcome you." Systems were shutting down, and she waited for Shave to walk to the hatch, his hood in his hand. [Are you ready sir?] Rika said. He nodded. She cycled the hatch open as Smokey and Lost lined up behind him in similar fashion. She opened her Face shield and released Eve from her seat before shutting down the remaining systems. She turned to walk through the hatch time to see the CO point to her officers. [You three. My office. Now.] Rika gulped and started down the ladder. The colonel looked up at her. [Get back in there.] [Yes sir!] She said, and quickly retreated up the ladder. Flick was at her heels. [Sir, this is my fault. I am responsible for-] "Yes," he said, "It is and you will be." She backed away from the hatch to allow the C.O. through. He came face to face with the suited form of Lt. Cmdr Sadok. "Let her take her hood off." Rika didn't wast any time inserting a claw into the hood's release at the throat. The material instantly separated from the suit and relaxed. "There." Col. Oontini said. "You can just pull up now and- There you go." Black hair fell part way down her neck as Eve pulled the hood off. She ran her hand over her head to keep it somewhat together as she looked at the man standing in front of her -who had just stuck out his hand. "Lieutenant Commander Sadok, I am Colonel Oontini, Commanding Officer of FLI-682. We are set to arrive tomorrow, but it is a pleasure to meet you early, circumstances aside." Eve shook his hand firmly. "Good evening sir." "Sergeant Yasoi, where is the commander's uniform?" "I hung it to dry in the suit cabinet, sir." "Get it and the rest of her belongings so she can change." "Yes sir." Rika opened the cabinet in the back room and handed Eve her now dry clothing along with the rest of her belongings; including her cellphone, which Eve stared at in mild surprise before snatching it along with everything else. She stepped into the room at the sergeant's beckoning. "The suit is hard to undo without claws ma'am," Rika said. Eve turned away from the door and Rika pressed the release in the collar before quickly leaving the back room, closing the door behind her. [How is she?] Flick said. [She's scared sir. As I would be in her shoes, but she holds her bearing well. She knows she's eaten a lot of forbidden fruit and is worried about what will happen to her because of it.] [That's an... interesting way of expressing it. Her fear is understandable. What do you think of her?] [I'm sorry sir?] [As a person. As an officer. Who am I dealing with?] [She is level headed, collect, and up front sir. She seems honest, but her loyalty is definitely to her country and her people. I'd trust her to be quiet once she realizes we have no intention of harming them, but convincing her of that might be difficult. I've done my best, sir, but it's likely far above my pay grade sir.] Flick gave a hint of a smile, but quickly sobered. [I went over the mission log.] [Yes sir.] Rika said, fighting the urge to wilt. [You disobeyed your vessel commander.] [I did sir.] [Why?] [Because it was the right thing to do sir.] [You will still be punished.] [I knew that before I did it, sir.] [And yet you still disobeyed.] [Few punishments are worse than living life with a guilty conscious, sir.] The CO eyed the sergeant for a few seconds, then clapped her on a shoulder. [Make sure it doesn't get you or your crew killed.] [Yes sir.] The door to the backroom thumped a couple of times. Colonel Oontini nodded at it and Rika opened it. "Sorry ma'am! I forgot you don't know how to work the latch." Eve stood in the doorway wearing a dirty but dry flight suit and a poker face. One of her boots was tied a little looser than the other. Her eyes went from Rika to the CO. "Thank you. We need to talk." "We do." Flick said. "And we will. I don't doubt you've had a very long and stressful day though, and unless the flight log on the Farrom 8 missed something you haven't had the opportunity to eat anything since about eleven hundred your time." Eve opened her mouth to protest, but the Colonel cut her off. "A cup of coffee and a granola bar don't count, Shepard, even if you had them at twenty-one hundred. You know that." Her eyes narrowed as her mind suddenly flashed several images across it. "You were at the briefing... and the debrief too. In the back, wearing a jacket over your flight suit. You didn't say anything and practically vanished anytime someone tried to talk with you." He broke into a smile. "Indeed I was. Sergeant Yasoi will take you to dinner. The mess here is actually quite good." Rika nodded in agreement. Flick kept talking. "Afterwards she will show you to my office and I will do my best to answer the questions that undoubtedly weigh on your mind. In the mean time," he cleared his throat, "I have another issue to attend to. All clear?" "Yes sir." Rika said. Eve nodded. "Clear sir." Flick turned and started climbing down the ladder. Across the bay Gamun was opening the fueling port and checking the iron mass in preparation for tomorrow's missions. Rika should be doing the same- It was an early go and doing it now would be easier than getting up early and risking trouble getting supplied. "Sergeant Yasoud." Col. Oontini said. Mallet scrambled out from under the interceptor and popped to attention. "Yes sir!" "Accompany Lieutenant Commander Sadok and Sergeant Yasoi to the mess. Return to your duties with Sergeant Yasoi after you escort the commander to my office." "Yes sir." She said, dashing under the Farrom to close the hatch. She trotted up to Rika and Eve as their commanding officer walked out of the hanger. Rika grinned. "You look relieved, Mallet. Lieutenant Commander Sadok, this is Sergeant Yasoud, whom you know as Mallet. Mallet, this is Commander Sadok, whom you know as Shepard." Gamun nodded as she wiped greasy hands on her enviro suit. "Nice to meet you ma'am," she said with a nod. "Rika... I thought he was coming to drag me out by my tail... Tack really laid into me and once I could see what I was doing... oh my god. My fucking mouth -I thought my tail was toast. I never want to have a conversation with anyone outside our military again, no offense to you ma'am." "None taken." Eve replied. "Have an impromptu OpSec briefing did we?" Gamun's face turned bright red. "You played me like a- a... piano?, ma'am. I don't doubt what I said is part the cause of your worry." "Why do you think I'm worried?" "Because you smell like fear." "Oh." Mallet smiled. "You'll be fine ma'am. You wouldn't be left with the mechanics if they were worried about you or if there were sinister plans waiting. Think about it: Would you leave a spy or prisoner officer with your maintenance crew?" "Especially one who can't keep her mouth shut." Rika said. Shepard thought about Gunny Owens and the other marines in her department. "I would if they were causing trouble. But-" "But if your maintainers were the same ones that had plucked her soggy, broken tail out of a swampy desert," Gamun said, "treated her leg and kindly not left her locked in a dark and silent room while they chased each other across the system, ma'am?" The playful spark had returned to her eyes. "I see your point Sergeant." They rounded the corner out of the bay and into a brightly light passageway. "The day before my first night aboard the Trisona I was picked up from Earth and had just seen 'Fire In the Sky'," Rika said "-I remember convincing myself that everything was just a ruse and I was about to be carted off at any minute to have some horrible experiment done on me." Gamun laughed. "I bet you were disappointed." "I was, but they had me going pretty good during my enlistment screening." Rika pushed open the door to the mess, which was nearly vacant. "Fifteen minutes till support breaks." Mallet said, looking at the clock on the wall. "Better not dawdle then." Rika said, handing Eve a tray and a pair of chopsticks. "Is this all they have?" she said, holding up the sticks. "Unfortunately." Gamun said. "Everyone carries a knife and sticks are way easier to clean than a fork. And spoons are moot because... well, let's just say you don't want to see Rika eat soup." Rika lolled a very long tongue out the side of her mouth with a goofy look on her face before pulling it back in with a slurp. "Ah. Gotchya." They stepped up to the counter manned by a couple of rakken wearing aprons and gloves. Eve eyed them curiously as they politely waited for someone to say something. "Would you like me to order for you ma'am?" Rika said. "I can get you a tasting of things that won't rock your digestive system." "Yes please." [Good evening,] she said to a cheerful looking rakkan behind the counter, [I'll have the gorugani mesh, grilled dako-dako and the ribisu please. For the american officer, can you give her a little of everything that's well cooked please?] [Are you sure?] he said, [The gorugani is pretty good. It's not going to last long.] Rika pointed at Eve with the thumb. [The human digestive tract isn't very good with raw things, so sorry. I'll just have to tell her about it.] [Not an adapted one?] "Oni" [Well, then I hope she finds this good.] The server winked and smiled as he handed over two plates. Rika handed Eve hers before setting her own on her tray and getting a drink. "Why isn't anything labeled?" Eve asked. "Hm? Oh the food." "Yes. I noticed there isn't even a sign on the counter." "Unless they make food to order, no place has or needs labels, signs, or menus." Gamun said, walking up with a smile on her face. "Gorugani tonight! Is known throughout this whole section of the Trisona." "Then how do you know-" "With this." Rika said, pointing to her nose. "I knew exactly what they had down the hall. And there are so many words for different smells in the language it's not hard to describe what you want even if you don't know what it is." "Ah. Like those places in Japan that have the entire menu displayed in a model out front, only without the pointing." "Exactly. My first time here was a pain. I had to just guess and hope until the cook crew knew me well enough to steer me away from the undercooked stuff. Rakkan guts are built for a very different diet." Mallet dove into a booth by the door and patted the seat next to her. Eve slid in while minding her leg as Rika sat on the opposite side. "Interesting." Eve said. She configured her chopsticks and grabbed a morsel off her plate and popped it into her mouth. Her eyes went wide as she was caught off guard. She expect flavor like this from a mom-and-pop hole in the wall or restaurant with a dress code. Galleys were supposed to serve semi-flavored glop, rice and chicken nuggets, nothing like this. "Wow!" she said. "This is the general mess?" "It is!" Gamun said. "There is an officer's mess about fifty decks above us, but only big brass like the admiral, captain of the ship, generals and the like eat up there. It all comes from the same kitchen though. The Atinoko family takes a lot of pride in being the cooks for the entire Trisona. It's not often one name backs every kitchen on a ship this size, nor carries a reputation like theirs." "You make it sound like a business." "Almost. Our infantry here is a lot like yours: in and out after a term limit. Everyone has a mandatory three years, etc. If you go in to a military career field, though, you'll be assigned a family, which is like a chain- we add links at the bottom every few years and they die off at the top, with the matriarch running the show about two-thirds of the way up. Flatface tells me it's weird, but our families have an informal structure that closely mimics chain of command anyway, so the military just takes advantage of that. When your service is done you'll move on to a civilian job. It ensures that the people around you have a very vested interest in A)making you behave and B)ensuring you're functional- both in and out of service. It mitigates a lot of the problems that Flatface tells me veterans here face otherwise." They busied themselves with eating for several minutes. Eve enjoyed watching dirty mechanics, tired looking security personnel, and a handful of officers filter though the door. "See?" Rika said, catching her eye. "They're people just like you and me." "Mmm. It's both a relief and worrying. I know what we are capable of, which is what concerns me." "We are a far cry from an utopia," Gamun said, "but from what I've read about human history we aren't any worse, either. Not by a long shot." She motioned to Eve's empty plate. "Are you ready to talk with my skipper, ma'am?"

"Come in Commander." Eve stepped through the door. Behind her she heard the engineers turn and walk away. Inside was a small room with a desk and several chairs. The cramped appearance and lack of decor reminded her of offices aboard the Thomas Jefferson. Colonel Oontini motioned her to a chair as he closed the door. "Thank you sir," she said, sitting in a plain, very utilitarian chair mounted to the floor in front of his desk. He returned to his seat and put his PDC (personal data computer, same thing they've been using, just finally settled on a name) into the top drawer. "Well, where would you like to start?" he said. "Now that I have seen what this 'school' we are hosting is pitting us against, sir, I have to wonder what the real point of it is. Sergeant Yasoi tells me your show today was nothing compared to what we can expect from Skinnies, if they are indeed different from you, and after what I saw of the training your unit does I know we don't have a hope in hell. Is that the point?" Flick broke into a smile and leaned back in his chair. "Shepard, if every officer in your navy was this astute you wouldn't be wasting your time trying to cut and past scrap aircraft together. Yes. The point is that Earth has a snowball's chance in hell to protect its self from another Koaku- which are Skinnies to you- invasion. You were on your way to being destroyed the first time had we not intervened, and you would be destroyed again if we don't." "So then why bother making the point at all? Why not sit back and let us get stomped or hang out here like you are now? We play the same game down there: what is it you want? I know it's something. What is it that you are planning to do?" "Well, Earth does provide some tactical advantage." "Some, but is it enough to warrant the massive expense of building an outpost there and moving equipment, supplies, and people in and out of that gravity when you can just park this behemoth in orbit out here? I know you can't be here for the resources on an over crowded planet. If that were the case you could simply take it like the Koaku did. Unless..." Her eyes narrowed as she looked in thought. "Unless humans are the resource. You developed a fast, easy method of turning a human being into a... a rakkan. That project must have cost an exorbitant amount- more than what would be recapped by adding a few volunteers to your shallow gene pool. Which means... A few billion though..." She looked up at Flick. Now she knew. The focus was on her people, the human race and that conversion method. She knew the direction it was headed, but it was how... "What are you going to do to my people?" Flick sighed and leaned forward. "Now that," he said, crossing his arms on the desk, "that is what I hoped you wouldn't figure out. You are right: a few billion people would make that project worth it, and that is exactly what it was created for. We need the diversity the human race can provide. Your reaction, however, is exactly why that project is classified as highly as it is." Shepard took a deep breath in an attempt to keep herself from shaking. She had let on to too much and it had sunk her. She had crossed the line and now she was either going to disappear or end up on Earth with no recollection of any of this. Col. Oontini looked at her for a moment. Was that in interest? It was a strange expression. He must have been watching her anxiety. Or thinking about how to dispose of her. "Hm," he said. "Rika and Gamun are obviously very different from anyone else aboard this vessel, would you agree?" "Yes." "Would you believe me if I told you neither of Mallet's parents were born rakkan? Do you believe that Rika was once human?" "Yes." "Do either of them look like they are slaves?" "No." "Then what makes you think..." He paused for a moment, looking at her in contemplation. "There is nothing I can say to put you at ease that you would believe coming from me, is there?" The fear that had nearly overcome her was now blended with anger. If he thought she could be made to believe anything at this point he was dead wrong. In fact she was seriously doubting that the Koaku and Rakkan weren't two sides of the same coin. "No." "Would you believe Sergeant Yasoi and Sergeant Yasoud if I left you completely alone with them with orders to answer whatever questions you asked?" She froze, dumbfounded. The two flight engineers clearly knew what was going on, and Rika had first hand experience. Mallet, too, seemed intimately familiar with the mission and its intent, and fishing information out of her had been cake. Believe them though... she wasn't sure about that. On the other hand, if she was going to loose her memory anyway why pass up what might be an opportunity? "I would." He pulled his PDA out of his desk and she watched him work the screen. It wasn't long before she heard Lost's voice. [Good evening, sir. Sergeant Yasoi is currently in the belly bay doing the turn around inspection.] "Send Sergeant Yasoi and Sergeant Yasoud to my office immediately." "Yes sir." He set the PDA back down on his desk and waited. It was less than two minutes until there was a thunderous pounding at his door. "Come in!" The door opened and the two Sergeants blasted in, popping to attention to either side of Eve, panting hard. Some how the door miraculously found its way closed again. "Sergeant Ya-" "Quiet. At ease." The mechanics relaxed. "Computers and multi-tools on my desk. Shepard, your cellphone." There was the crash of computers and holstered tooling onto his desk. Eve reluctantly placed her smartphone along side them. "Lieutenant Commander Sadok has, unfortunately, put the pieces together that you two gave her." She noticed the fur on Rika's tail bristle slightly, despite the rest of her not moving. Their commanding officer continued. "Since the cat is already out of the bag, as they would say, I want you two to take the Lieutenant Commander to an isolated area, some place where you cannot be overheard, electronic or otherwise, and allow her to interview you. You will answer her promptly, clearly, and with complete honesty. Before you do, however, I want you to take her on a short tour." "Yes sir," Rika said. "A tour of where sir?" "Show here in there," he said. "And make sure she understands why we like it the way it is." "Yes sir," the two said in unison. "Then you will have Smokey or Brakes turn a Farrom around, if they haven't already, and run up friend or foe. I want her to see every ship in the system- both ours and the Koaku armada." Rika gave pause at that. ALL of them? "Yes sir." "Then you will stop by the liaison unit for North America and you will pick up a tag." "A red band for safety aboard, sir?" "No. Passive and alarm. After the interview you will give her a choice. [she will either wear the tag so she knows we will track her down and do far worse than a wipe to her if she leaks anything, or I will arrange an escort to take her in there. Oh, and she has a daughter, living with her aunt and uncle. If you feel that won't be enough of a threat, let her know we'll be tagging her daughter, too, and take her as well if anything gets out.]" "Yes sir." "In the end, you will let her make that choice. All clear?" "Yes sir." "Good. You are dismissed." "Aye sir," they said, stepping back. "Your escort and tour guides, Commander Sadok," he said, motioning to the two engineers. Eve got up and the three of them entered the hall. Rika closed the door behind them as Sgt. Yasoud guided her in one direction. "You were thinking aloud again, ma'am," Rika said. Eve blinked and looked at Rika. It had come as a statement rather than a question. She nodded. "Yes." "And now you have good reasons to be worried." Eve tensed up. "Don't run," Mallet said. "Do as we say and you'll remember all of this while walking around your unit's quarters tomorrow afternoon." "Oh? And why the hell should I believe that?" It came out harsher than she had meant it to be. Harsher than should be heard from a Navy Commander in uniform, especially one to enlisted. "Because if anything happens to you I wouldn't be able to keep my mouth shut about it around your unit," Mallet said. "That's why, ma'am." "And because I think the alternative is just wrong," Rika said. Mallet nodded. "That too. This way. We're going to give you the tour, and that's all it is, I swear, and then we're going to answer any of your questions, and then, if you let us, we're going to show you how to get out of this mess, ma'am." They walked down the hall. Eve's feet felt like lead, and her body trembled while her stomach climbed ever higher towards her throat. She wished she hadn't just eaten. They made it down the passage way, then turned down another and climbed a ladderwell, down another passageway, then up another ladderwell, more walking, then down again. They had rounded a corner when Rika suddenly stopped by a hatch. "Liaison is here." Rika said. "Might as well save a trip." She pounded on the door. A few seconds later it slid open, and a rather disgruntled looking human stood in the doorway. "What's up kiddo? You might want to get on the right time zone for down there. We're slee-oh." His eyes fell on the nervous looking officer. He extended his hand, his face brightening somewhat. "It's not often I see a fellow human up here, despite the lookalikes. Matt, North American Liaison." "Commander Sadok." "A pleasure to meet you. What the fuck did you two do now, Rika? Please tell me you didn't kidnap this poor woman." "Sort of," Mallet said. "Rika saved her life, but now she knows too much." "Oh. Oh!" the man said. A grey furry form with reddish grey ears appeared beside him, took one look at Eve and extended a hand. "Ehy, er, hello. I'm Grenkle, one of the liaison team members to North America." "Eve," she said, taking it and shaking. "Geeze you smell like fear," he said. "You know too much? What they hell did they teach you? ...Rika, you had better not be escorting her to there. If so we have an obligation to hold her here until Commander Voramn can tear your skipper a new one. That needs to be approved by him, the admiral, and the theater CG first. Your CO knows better." Rika shook her head. "No. He wanted us to give her a tour so she knows we're not playing a game, and then run up the radar and show her why." The Matt scratched his head. "Ah. That's a scary sight out there, I'll give you that." "Then what?" Grenkle asked. "You're bring here back here so we can return her where she belongs, right?" "We are to allow her to interview us, and not hold any answers back. Then present both of her options to her and allow her to choose." "Oh. What choices?" "One is that thing, and the other we came to you to pick up." "Oh. A tag," Grenkle said. "That's no problem then. I'll get it." "Yep. She's from our host unit, so-" "You are?!" Matt said. A grin plastered across his face as Grenkle ducked back into the darkened room. "Er, yes." "Is there a Mark Thompson still there?" "Yes..." "Does he still have that piece of shit truck?" Her eyes narrowed. "He just ran me over with it. Why?" Matt suddenly relaxed into a warm smile. "I was just wondering. That thing stands out like a sore thumb- or in your case a broken leg. Oh! You have Staff Sergeant Owens, too!" "I do have Gunnery Sergeant Owens in my unit, yes." This man was becoming more and more unsettling. "Oh. I'm sorry. I didn't know he got promoted. Gunny Owens and his patrol supported us in repelling Koaku forces in Okinawa. We were making a delivery to our counterpart team when they attacked." Grenkle reappeared with a long blue strap, one end of it plugged into his PDA. "If you'll give me your computer I can show you how to work the menu." "Sorry," Mallet said, "Flick made us leave everything with him." "Everything?" Matt looked confused. "Computers, multi-tools, even Eve's cellphone. He wants us to explain everything without extra ears or intimidation." Matt's eyes got big. "Oh shit. You really do mean everything. Holy moly, what all did she hear? [She doesn't know about the-]" "She does," Rika said. "And it's partly my fault. I let it slip I wasn't always rakkan and she put it together with the other stuff she *ahem* found out." Matt shook his head and sighed. "Eeesh, that's pretty deep. My daughter and Gamun will do their best to guide you out of this ma'am, but you have to trust them. We'll likely see each other later. We do a lot of, well, handling family members of people who volunteer or work with us. Some of then get a little bent out of shape at what their brother or mom or cousin is doing. Kind of like when some people enlist, I guess. We're professionals at peaceful persuasion." "Thief," Grenkle said. "I came up with that saying. Take care, ma'am. These two will take good care of you." She nodded. Grenkle handed the rolled up strap to Rika, who stuffed it in her tool pouch. Gamun and her bade them goodnight and continued on. It was a few moments before Eve got the nerve up to voice her concern over a phrase that left a vile taste in her mouth. "A tag?" "Passive tracking, ma'am," Mallet said. "I had to wear one like it when I left Earth," Rika said. "Only mine was an active tracking and confinement tag while I was aboard, since I couldn't read directions or warning signs and couldn't understand what people were saying. Think GPS meets invisible dog fence. I hated it, but it did keep me from literally walking out of an airlock a couple of times. (It fucking hurt though.) None of that with this. This is the complete opposite of what that was." "But let's get everything on the table first, and then talk about it," Mallet said. "Hmm." They arrived at the set of double doors with the soggy green "T" and alien written above. Gamun pushed them open and Rika guided Eve in. Inside the rows of seats, the desk with an attendant, and the large double set of doors beside it gave Eve the immediate impression that this was a medical or science facility. Had Rika not maintained a firm grip on her elbow she would have spun around and bolted. Instead her stomach completed its climb into her throat, stalling just before purging dinner as she watched Mallet speak with the attendant at the intake desk. Suddenly the doors opened and Mallet motioned them forward. She didn't want to go through those doors. She couldn't. She didn't care how much she was reassured that nothing would happen; nothing good could ever come to a human in an alien medical facility. Especially when that human knew a lot of what they shouldn't. "Come on," Rika said, half pulling, half pushing the officer forward. Eve locked her legs out, fighting the movement No. No way in hell was she going. Fuck no. "If we were going to do something to you we would have just knocked your ass out and drug you in here," Mallet said. "So move or we'll have security take you back to Flick, and then the next time you come here won't be for a tour." Her knees unlocked. She didn't know if it would out of horror or submission, but it allowed Rika move her forward, and after that first step she moved her leaden feet forward on her own. They went down a couple of corridors before going into a dark room. Rika closed the door behind them and touched something on the wall. A window lit up in front of her, and despite the horrific scene in front of her she was relieved that she was in the observation room, and that they weren't showing her from inside... there. There was a table, separated into sections for the arms, legs, torso, and head. There were no straps, but the angle at which the table sat told her there must be a way of securing the victim to it. Around the head though, that was what scared her. A nasty mess of machinery and wires hung above it, with panels and clamps for securing it to someone's skull. There were several carts in the room to either side of the table, and a counter with drawers and a couple of cabinets. It looked like an execution chamber, only she knew that it was used for much, much worse. "That," Mallet said, "is the most fucked up thing I know of. I hate it. I disagree with the ethics of it in every way shape and form. I think it would be better to kill someone than to violate the privacy of their mind, because that is exactly what that thing does. It reads, it deletes, and it can even write, although the mind usually figures out what's been written pretty quickly if the person suspects it's fake." Rika nodded in agreement. "Do you see how dirty it is in there?" She said. For the first time Eve noticed the very thick layer of dust on everything. "Yes." "I'm proud of how filthy it is. It's the dirtiest room aboard, and the captain forbids anyone cleaning it unless it will be used. I want us to agree to keep it that disgusting, ma'am. Can we agree to that?" Eve was about to answer when Rika cut her off. "Just think about it. You'll have some choices to make, ma'am. I'll let you know where each one leads, because I want to keep that room as nasty as possible and I need your help to do it." They stared at the horrible machine for a few moments "I don't know about you, but I've had enough," Mallet said. "How would you like to look at every spacecraft in the solar system?" "I would love that," Eve said, eager to get away from the monster lest it reach through the glass and grab her. They walked back through the maze of passageways and before long Eve found herself back in the hanger. Lost was marshaling the Farrom 8 as it spun around in a hover to face outboard again. He looked up at Rika as the craft came to rest on its gear again. "Ehy. Are you done with Flick, ma'am? We can find you some quarters if..." Rika shook her head. "Taking her on a tour. Where is Smokey?" Lost pointed to the farrom. In there. "Thanks." She dropped the ladder and opened the hatch, and the trio climbed inside. "Hey Smokey." "Ehy- whoa! You can't bring her in here without a hood on!" Rika shook her head. "Flick wants you to show her all the vessels in the system, sir." "All?!" "All. Ours and theirs." "You're joking. No." He started going off on her in a guttural language. "Flicks orders," Mallet said. "Call him if you need to, sir." Smokey shot her a dirty look and picked up his computer. A few taps later there a breif but formal conversation in alien tongue. At the end of it Smokey sighed, turned back to the console and turned it on again. "Well... I'm not giving her a tour of all the farrom's systems, too. Put her in a hood." "Yes sir." Rika said, snatching Lost's from his seat and handing it to Shepard. She reluctantly put it on, wary about the conversation that they had hid from her, and closed it when Smokey motioned for her to do so. As before, the farrom vanished, now along with the carrier. This time instead of the vast emptiness of space she was surrounded by a smattering of green circles and squares. "Holy-!" The number almost overwhelmed her: they were everywhere! She walked in a circle, looking above and below her, taking in the dizzying number of green padlocks. "The circles are little craft, like fighters or farroms or assault vessels," Rika said. "The squares are heavies. Think like your destroyers, battleships, cruisers, cutters, submarines, and the like." "The green is all of our craft," Smokey said, "except for these." A handful of the green circles turned blue, mostly in a cluster she realized must be Earth. "Which are yours. Please note that they are the same color as ours to our friendly-foe system." They turned green again. "Now the red, on the other hand, are Koaku forces," he said Suddenly a band of red lit up part of her view from the darkness, like an angry, nearly solid galaxy of additional red circles and squares spanning the sky like the Milky Way. "And now you know why there is a battle group in your back yard," Rika said. Eve slowly nodded. "Koaku... those are skinnies?" "Yep," Gamun said. "Oh my god." "Still skeptical we are one in the same?" "No. I mean, I'm much less inclined to think you are lying. I've never met one, but my airframes division chief has seen both Koaku and rakkan, and what he describes as rakkan fit everyone I've seen here so far." Rika breathed a sigh of relief, then reached up and stuck a claw in Shepard's hood's release. "I'm glad. That will make the rest of this easier. Thank you sir. Let's go someplace quiet, ma'am, and Mallet and I will answer the questions I'm sure you have." It wasn't long before they arrived at a door along a passageway. Eve fidgeted nervously as Rika worked a keypad next to the door. She closed the cover to the keys and slid the door open before motioning them inside. Behind her Rika slid the door closed again after pressing a few more keys on a pad inside she heard a solid *thunk*, which Eve had heavy suspicions was a lock. Was it to keep others out, or her in? The lights came on and Eve saw that largest bed she had ever seen in a ships quarters. It was easily the size of a queen mattress. Large cabinets hung over the low bed, which she noted only had a bottom sheet on it, leaving only a couple of feet of clearance above the mattress. There was a measly foot of walking space around the bed with a bench along one side mattress, relieving some of the claustrophobic feeling ...but not much. Both Rika and Sgt. Yasoud pealed off their name patches and stuck them to a small board just inside the hatch. "Welcome to the Yasoi quarters, ma'am," Rika said. "In berthing, at least those with single family units, rank is removed at the hatch, along with formalities. Authority stays. It's how we can leave work at work. Makes sense?" She nodded and pealed off her velcro patch. She was surprised when it stuck to the plate, as if held in place with a large static charge. Rika motioned to bench and the bed. "Please, have a seat." Eve stared, finally comprehending what was in front of her and dumbfounded by the size of it. Aboard a ship space was a commodity, and these quarters, even with the low ceiling, were downright luxurious. She shook her head. "I'm sorry, it's just..." "It's not as big as you think," Rika said. "This is the quarters for the whole Yasoi crew, although since they hold six for fighter crews and farroms only crew four we have extra space." "You all sleep in the same bed." "Yes." Mallet said. "Bad things happen to the rakkan psyche if they sleep alone, a bit like humans trying to sleep bathed in bright blue light. Remember that the chain of command doesn't go away outside of the military for us, and this is how even civilian families berth as well. Well, they have a bigger mattress and more headroom." She knocked on a cabinet. Eve nodded and sat on the foot of the bed. "It's just so..." "Weird?" Rika said. "I was going to say different." Rika waved it off. "It's ok. Now, what would you like to know?" Eve sat up straight and gave Rika a contemplative look for a moment. "What is the real purpose of this deployment of yours?" "To make the people of Earth see that they helpless against the Koaku." Rika said. Her reply had been so blatant and without hesitation it lacked both sincerity and a 'canned' feeling. Like getting facts from a computer. "Why?" "So we can give them a choice." "Which is?" "Let the Koaku take the Earth for its resources, and human population for slave labor and food," Gamun said. "Or?" "Become rakkan," Rika said. "If the planet votes to accept, people can choose to be translated or sterilized. Arlon won't spend a huge amount of money defending a race that is going to kick, scream, and bite; and they sure as shit won't do it without getting something in return. If you think waging a war in the middle east is pricey you should see what it costs to move all of this half way across the galaxy." "Humans don't seem to win in either of those choices." Rika shrugged. "They don't. They can only choose how to lose." "I'm beginning to wonder if they even have that. You're here, after all, what's stopping you?" "The fact that we need people to be willing," Gamun said. "Oh?" "You can't disperse billions of people into your population and expect them to become part of your population unless they consent to both the change and the diaspora. You might be able to breed slaves, but that would be a huge investment in equipment and labor for a practice that would throw most of our society into open revolt at even the thought of bringing that option to the table. No, we need people to choose this, even if they do so reluctantly." "They also want everything," Rika said, "not just the people themselves." "What do you mean? Like rare earth metals?" Rika shook her head. "No. Stuff that means more to them than that. Like Christmas, Chinese New Year, soul food, and Latin Music. They want kilts and lutefisk and Bar Mitzvahs and gumbo and Egyptian Mythology. They look at Earth culture like an anime fan boy looks at Japan. Niedka -Lieutenant Yasoi -hounded me to teach him english for a year. Gamun here did for three. She's actually a prime example of what I'm talking about- she's been reading about each of the different religions since she learned how to read english. Translated stuff even before that. And the past month has been nothing but the history of the United States. She'd put most high school graduates to shame on her civics know-how." "No," Gamun said. "Don't exaggerate to her. I don't know that much." "Who started the college the first black american fighter pilots graduated from?" Rika said. "Booker T. Washington. He started Tuskegee College. Why?" Mallet look up at Rika, then Eve, who was trying to keep her jaw from falling off her face. "-that's from an alien, ma'am," Rika said. "They can't get enough. So they want to wait until people realize the gravity of their situation before they spring their proposal, in hopes that it will be accepted. If it is, then they will translate and transplant everyone who wants to, and the rest will be sterilized with the exception of a very small handful of controlled volunteers- a zoo, basically- to provide a living memory of what humans once were." Eve frowned, bit her lip for a second, then scowled. "That doesn't explain the development of this in the first place. That," she said, motioning to Rika's body, "couldn't have been a fast development, nor last minute." Rika and Gamun looked at each other for a minute. "It seems rather sinister, doesn't it?" Eve said. "Well," Rika said, "it could be seen that way. I know it's been developing for over a decade now at least. My adopting family - the team back there - actually looked for volunteers to test the final version on, and that's why they have a real human with them. But-" "Volunteers?" Eve said. The word dripped with sarcasm. "Oh please," Rika said, "Have you ever been to a furry convention? My dad said they had more volunteers than they wanted, and having been dragged to one once myself I believe him." "They develop translation projects for all species they would like to incorporate," Gamun said. "They sat on the Walker project for close to fifty years before an opportunity arose to seek a proposal. They have several others in the wing that haven't had the opportunity to be pursued, and they've had them for a lot longer than that. Humans, well, Koaku have made that opportunity come a lot sooner." "I don't like it." Eve said. "I don't like it either," Rika said, "and I'm not even facing the choice! At least on one side my birth people will live, and after they have been moved, live free. The koaku though... you know what they did the first go around." "But what guarantee do we have of that, Rika?" "I was translated Eve. I was married to a family under orders. And now I stand before you, free outside of my obligation to the military and the bond I have with my family. I vote. I pay taxes. I worship whatever god I want to. I cannot be searched without reason other than the military, just like you. When my service is over I can tell my politicians to kick rocks just like you, too. I can, and have, told my spouse to go fuck himself outside of work without legal repercussion. I can drive. I can own a gun. I can start a business and own property free and clear. That's the only guarantee I can give." Eve sat for a moment, and Rika watched as she felt her anger slowly evaporate way, replaced with exhaustion. "I don't like this," she finally said, slumping forward to put her head into her hands. Rika and Gamun didn't move. After a few minutes she looked up. "I know," Rika said. "It's a lose-lose. I think one lose is worst than another, but everyone has their own opinion. At least there is a choice." They sat in silence for a few minutes. "Now what," Eve said. "Do I forget all of this?" "Only if you want to, ma'am," Gamun said. "What do you mean?" Rika pulled the blue strap out of her pouch. "You need to keep all of this secret in order for there to be a fair vote when the time comes. Do you understand that?" Eve nodded. "I do." "And you realize that saying anything won't change the situation. And that if you do say something it will likely only ruin the chance for people to choose life over a violent death." "I do. And I want us to live, but god, why does it have to be like that?" "Because that is how powers way above both you and I have set things up to be. But you can see the situation now. If there were no repercussion from us, would you still remain silent about this?" "I... I would be extremely selective. It's very hard when you have nobody to confide in." "What if you had us?" Eve looked at Rika for a moment. Her expression was relaxed, but blank. "I would be quiet, unless I thought something shady was being pulled." Rika smiled. "If you have any questions, just ask us ma'am. We want a good relationship with our host unit, and since you already know all this stuff we would rather answer questions to make things clear than do a messy clean up or excuse your disappearance for a wipe." Eve nodded. Rika held up the blue strap. "This is a passive tracking tag. It is used to locate people and animals that we might want to find, but don't want emitting a beacon. All we do is sweep with a unique call signal, and the tag we are looking for responds, regardless of where it is. In other words, nobody can locate you with this unless we, meaning your administrators, want to, and if we want to find you there is no place on Earth where you can hide. It is made out of the same stuff our environmental suits are made out of, so Matt likes to encourage wearers to try and cut it off if they get bored. You have two choices: Option A is to visit Flick to get a security escort, and then make them clean all of my beautiful filth out of that room; Option B is to pick an extremity for this tag to go around, and we will put one on your daughter as well-" Eve looked up at the mention of her daughter, her eyes wide. Rika continued, "-And if we fine ANYTHING leaked we will clean the nasty room anyway and you will wake up on Earth remembering nothing of what we have talked about OR about your child... and possibly some other career related stuff. Your daughter is innocent, and so she'll be unharmed and bringing joy to a happy rakkan family somewhere across the universe. With a tail, of course." Eve glared at Rika. "Look, none of that is the point." Rika growled. "The point is to make sure you shut the fuck up until there is a vote." "And you want-" "I want you to wear the damn tag, Eve. We're trying to get you out of this, not into trouble, and not to hurt anyone in your family. I want to put this on you and one on your daughter. Then I want you to be quiet until the vote. After that, we can pick you up together and transplant you permanently into another family together, even if Earth votes for death by koaku, and only if you want to." Eve didn't think. Her nation wasn't at risk by being silent. She'd be with her child and her child would be safe. When it was put like that she didn't have to. She thrust out her left wrist. "I thought there were regulations against anything but a watch," Rika said, "but ok." Eve realized her mistake and jerked her wrist back, but it was too late. The dark blue strap finished resizing its self down snugly around her wrist. "Um," she said, "About regulations..." Gamun shrugged. "We don't have our computers here," Rika said. "You'll have to ask my commanding officer." Eve nodded. "I understand." "Anything else, ma'am?" Gamun said. "If not we can go back to his office. He'll be happy to see your choice and I'm sure he has quarters for you tonight that don't involve a... what do you call it Rika? A dog pile?" Eve stood. Rika unlocked and opened the door and they snatched the patches off the wall before walking back to Colonel Oontini's office. Eve sighed. "You won't do anything to my daughter, will you?" "You mean if you don't talk?" "I mean in tagging her." "Only what we did with you. Without threats, of course. I imagine Bar will handle it. She can be really sweet and gentle when she wants to be. Your aunt and uncle will probably throw a fit like most would, but the liaison team is pretty good at dealing with people being upset. Every volunteer was someone's son or daughter or spouse after all, and has a life to live." "When?" "She'll probably be tagged before you set foot back on Earth tomorrow." Eve looked at the floor in thought for a few moments, then straightened up. "If I talk, I could ruin a chance at life for everyone. My daughter is safe, and I know what to look for if you are lying. I shouldn't be moping. I made the right call." "I'm glad you see it that way ma'am. And I'm sure our C.O. will honor our open door offer." Gamun stopped suddenly and pounded on a hatch. "Come in." She opened the door and motioned for Eve to enter. "You too, Sergeants Yasoi and Yasoud." They followed. The skipper motioned for Eve to have a seat. His eyes fell on her wrist, then her face. He smiled. "That's a relief. I hate that fucking thing. It's worse than the paper work, and you should see that beaurocratic nightmare. You two, clear off my desk. Give her the phone back." Rika and Gamun grabbed their computers and multitools. Rika snatched Eve's cellphone and handed it to her. "Anything to report, Sergeant Yasoi?" "Yes sir. Pending your approval I offered an open door to Lieutenant Commander Sadok so that she might have someone to confide in, sir." "What?" "It's easier to keep a secret if you can talk with someone about it, sir. I thought it would be better for her to speak openly with us than risk leaking it to a friend." "Hmm. I'll approve that Sergeant. Eve, you may approach anyone in my command with questions regarding what we've discussed tonight. Is there anything you would like to ask now?" "Yes sir. Can I have the tag moved to an ankle? Navy regs limit what I can wear on my wrist." "Will it interfere with your ability to fly where it is now?" "No sir, but I might have some unpleasant interactions with my superiors." Flick stared at the commander in thought for a moment. "No. I think it is in both of our interests that it stays as a visual reminder. I don't want you to fail in your agreement, and I know you don't either. I will make sure your command is aware of your circumstance regarding that band, and I will make sure they don't dare press you on it either. If anyone tries more than a passing question, let one of us know. Do you understand?" "Yes sir. What if I don't get that chance?" "Then by all means panic. A fight or flight response will trigger an alert. We will know someone might be trying to force you, and we will... well, they won't bother anyone ever again. Sergeants." "Yes sir?" They chimed in unison. "If Commander Sadok so much as utters a syllable of what you two have leaked to her, you will both be in line in front of her to go in there, do I make myself clear?" "Crystal sir." Rika. "As a bell sir." Gamun. "Do you have any more questions for me, Commander?" "No sir." She said. "Very well," he replied. "Please feel free to share all the koaku padlocks you saw tonight with your fellow service members and nothing else. Sergeant Yasoi and Yasoud will show you to your quarters. You'll be staying across the hall from the Yasoud quarters. You are all dismissed." Eve stood and turned to go, then paused. "Actually sir, I do have another question. Well, more of a request." "Oh?" "When we return during tomorrow's exercise... there will be a flight with the callsign Ledger, and I'd like to be aboard the vessel that engages them." Flick broke into a smile. "Have a grudge to settle?" "Echo hit me with a truck tonight. He's flying tomorrow afternoon. Or was." Flick grinned mischievously. "That won't be a problem."

Mallet popped though the door into the hanger and nearly ran Lost over. [Shit! Sorry sir!] [Careful! Done with Shepard?] [Yes sir,] Rika said. [She's in her quarters. I didn't lock the door: I don't think she's going anywhere. I pointed her to where both of our quarters are across the passageway.] He nodded. [Sounds good.] [Need a hand in here?] [Nope. Just finished doing the turn around and daily. You keep a good craft- I can't find even a superficial complaint.] [Thanks. How did it go with the skipper?] Lost sighed. [That good, huh?] [Both aircrews are being punished -whole crews. Smokey and I for arguing with our commander and doing nothing when life was in danger. Shave for doing nothing in an emergency, preventing aid to an allied service member in need and exposing the craft to unnecessary damage, as well as an unauthorized contact and use of a military vehicle. Tack, Brakes, and Lube for blackmailing, failing to assist an allied member in need, failing to assist a wingman vessel, failing to rescue personnel in peril. Mallet for leaking a lot of stuff, and you for disobeying. He gnawed on my tail so hard I'm surprised it's still attached. And I got nothing compared to Smokey, Shave, and Tack.] Rika licked her chops nervously. Mallet groaned. [There was no winning in that situation then.] [No.] Lost said. [Those are very serious offenses,] Rika said. [Are we going to the brig here or being sent home and court marshaled first?] [You're the only reason we aren't,] Lost said. [He went on about why he has a sergeant making better decisions than those that command him and why he had to disobey orders from incompetent people to do so. He also made it clear that the only reason Shave isn't dismissed as the XO is he needs his engineer to be in the United States. I'm not supposed to tell you that though, so don't get me in trouble.] [Tell me what?] She winked, then sighed. [Fucking Shave. If he hadn't-] [It doesn't matter who anymore,] Lost said. [Both of us have double duty for the next month: training sortie with the humans in the morning, then patrol at night.] Rika stared at him, slack jawed. [Jebus Crust! When the hell am I supposed to sleep?!] [Between the patrol and next morning's mission.] She pointed her hand at the farrom. [Not if I have to keep that thing up! I have a phase coming due, Lost! A delta! That's a two week downtime at least!] Lost shrugged. [That's above me. You two need to go to bed. Lube and I are finished in here, and our go tomorrow is in nine hours. Let's not give Flick anything else to get on us about.] He steered the two of them back out of the hanger door. Lube killed the lights and slipped out behind them. He reached around Mallet in a hug, snatching off her rank patch in the process. He gave her a peck on the cheek. [We need to find a place to have a date down there. With the work-ups it's been too long. I'm beginning to feel like one of those asshole, self-centered officers that ruin both work and home life.] She smiled and scratched his head. [Maybe Rika can show us where the good places are.] [I like that idea,] Niedka said. He was fingering Rika's own rank patch in his hands. [We'd have to go to Wisconsin,] Rika said. [The first time I was in the southwestern United States was tonight.] Niedka shrugged. [Maybe we can catch a tram.] [Sure thing. A train ride from the southwest to Wisconsin. How many days of leave should we put in for? It'll take about four one way.] [Four days?!] [Yeah, your right. More like six with how they are routed. We don't have high speed trams here. A bus is like a shuttle, and will take you slightly longer. A taxi is faster, but you would have to be filthy rich to afford it. You'd be better off buying a car and driving yourself.] [That's the only way to get there? I find that hard to believe.] She shrugged. [Most people fly that distance, but it would be a bitch for us to be allowed aboard an airliner; and there's no way in hell I would get through security. Not looking like I do. They're way too skittish.] Niedka looked at his feet for a moment, then he made eye contact with Grum and laughed. [I guess we'll just have to take a Farrom then. We can leave, have dinner, and be back within an hour.] [Right. Take a military craft as a personal ride. That'll go over well after tonight.] [Meh,] he said, [We have a month to figure it out. It'll be ok.]

"#Outreach, Ghost one, entry six three niner fife from your location, heading straight down. Altitude one five three thousand and dropping-#" "#Ghost one you're not on my scope. Flight level is one five three?#" "#Negative, altitude is one five two zero zero zero miles. Speed at... point zero zero fife C. Three wingmen, no lag.#" There were a few moments pause, then, "#Still no on our scope Ghost one, but at mach point fife it'll take you a while to get within range.#" "#Point fife percent C, Outreach. Breaking for atmosphere entry. Requesting permission to start this party.#" More silence. Rika snickered. "What's so funny?" Smokey said. "I can only imagine what's going on down there. Some poor lieutenant is probably sitting at his station confused as hell. I can see him calling his superior and saying 'Sir, I think the CIA is prank calling us again. What should I do?'" "Hah!" Eve said. There were a few chuckles along side it. "Yeah, you know Flick is enjoying himself." Smokey said. "#Ghost one, Still not on my scope, but you are clear to go downtown early.#" "#Thank you Outreach. Ghost, kicking the furball off.#" "Smokey," Shave said, "I want into their secure channels, then start jamming the [piss] out of them. Lost, locate me local channel for a Ledger flight. Look for callsign 'Echo' and... Sheep-ard, who was other crew's callsigns?" "Sparks and Cypher, but it may have changed." "Secure net hacked," Smokey said. "You just broke into our secure net?" Eve said. "Oh yeah, it wasn't too hard. Computer does most of the heavy lifting." Eve sat staring at the back of Smokey's head, stunned. "So you knew everything that was going on yesterday." "And before that." Smokey said. "It's how the Nova's jammed and hid the Thomas Jefferson battle group from the Koaku several years ago. -HAH! Socks just turned all their GPS points to our squadron numbers." There we a few seconds of silence, then: "Shave," Lost said, "I found local for Ledger, marked on your scope. Active channel for them is one three seven, same as yesterday." "Thank you." #[Ghost flight this is Ghost one, remain under jam and cloak from closest until Shave's go. We will be assaulting from the perimeter as briefed with the exception of Ghost two who will be engaging Ledger before joining us.]# There was a chorus of #[Copy Ghost one]# from the vessels. [Ooh Shave, have a grudge match?] Tack said. [Sheep-ard does. More than happy to oblige,] Shave said [Let me guess: She has to defend her honor.] "Flatface, what are they saying?" Shepard said. "Tack is making fun of Shave for going after Ledger specifically." "No defending needed." Smokey said, "Ledger drove over her with a truck last night." "Is that what all of that was about?" Tack said. "Ehy," Shave said. "Well then I hope she enjoys herself!" "Tear him a new one, Shepard!" Dip said. "Yeah, make him run to mama with his tail between his legs!" Mallet said. "Send him home crying in a dirty suit!" Socks said. "Make that ass hole your bitch, Shepard!" Slosh said. Rika didn't have to turn around to know Shepard was smiling. "I plan on it. Thank you." Shave pulled up, leveled off, and slowed as he came up beside a flight of aircraft. She could see the pilot of the closest jet, a two seat "foxtrot" model, had 'Echo' across the back of his helmet in reflective letters. Cyphers tall form gave her away in the back even without her callsign across the back of her own helmet. She guessed Sparks was the lead, but was at a loss as to who was behind him. "Shepard, Flatface, pulling you from Ghost net and putting you into Ledger local," Smokey said. "-but I don't know Sparks." Shepard recognized the voice as Echo's. "I mean, she was with us when we left right?" There was a few seconds silence. "Actually," Sparks said slowly, "I'm not sure of that. She wasn't in the cab, that's for sure." Shepard watched as Echo grabbed the sides of his helmet with his hands. "Oh fuck! Nobody was in the bed! We left her! I left her! Oh god damn it. Cypher, are you sure you didn't see anything when we flew overhead?" "Echo." Sparks said. "Nothing Echo." Cypher said. "It was just a massive washout. I even swept the surrounding area. Nothin'." "Echo!" "We have to go bac-" "ECHO!" "Yes, Sparks?" "What kind of interference are you getting?" "I'm not....OH SHIT. It's all fucked like it was yesterday when that thing showed up!" "Thing?" The voice sounded feminine, relatively speaking. While it was higher pitched it held a tone similar to Cypher's. "You mean like a growler playing a prank?" "No. It did this yesterday, and then an honest to god U-F-fucking-O showed up, screamed through the middle like a scalded hog, and smacked Longarm out like it was a soggy piñata." "Hah!" the woman said, "Now that I'd like to see! You need to work on your stories Echo, I-" "It was there Poke." Sparks said. "I saw too. We all did. Didn't you pay attention to the brief today?" Shepard watched Spark's WSO cross her arms and shake her head. "You two are really something," Poke said. "What would Shep say? Probably something along the lines of-" "Echo." Shepard said, stepping on Poke's transmission. "You left me Echo." "Real fucking funny, Cypher," Echo said. "What if she's dead?" "It wasn't m-" Cypher said. "You left me Echo. You drove off and left me in the storm." "Are you hearing this Sparks?" Echo said. "Ye-" "You hit me with the truck, Echo! You broke my leg and left me in the desert!" "Shepard? Shep where are you?" Echo said. Shave rolled the Farrom over the top of Echo's hornet and then flipped the tail back so the craft were almost nose-to-nose. "I'm right in front of you, Echo." She said, the rest of the farrom's crew laughing at their stations. "Right under your nose." "Sparks, this is too much. I'm hearing shit, I can't think clearly, and I shouldn't be up here. I need to go back." "Mission Echo!" Shepard said. "You didn't turn back for me, so don't turn back now!" "I did! We went to the squadron. We thought you were still there, so we went home. When you never came home we got worried and went looking for you! Your phone went straight to mail!" "You broke my leg Echo! You broke my leg and left me in the flooding desert last night!" "I'm sorry!" Echo said. "God I'm so sorry! Please forgive me!" "I'm lucky to be talking with you Echo," she said. "They kept me from being lost in the desert. They kept me from being gone forever. They brought me back to Earth. They brought me to you Echo. They're letting me tell you what happened." "They?" He said, suddenly perplexed. "Who are they?" [Go] Shave said. The Farrom instantly materialized in front of Echo as a lock tone sounded at the same time. In a flash it was gone, leaving him stunned in the cockpit. Sparks slumped back and smacked the canopy rail as a similar tone sounded in his ears almost simultaneously. "#Ledger Three, kill on your flight.#" Outreach said. "See me in my office after debrief Echo." Shepard said. "Yes ma'am." Echo said, following Sparks on his exit vector. They dove into another furball, this time with four of the craft flittering about in the sky. Longarm was toasted again, as were two tankers. Outreach was having difficulty keeping up with the kill notifications as the world blurred around her. "Oh my god." Poke said. She sounded tired. "You weren't kidding. It's like sharks in a school of halibut." "They fucking took her, Sparks." Echo said. "I know." "What if they weren't lying about being aliens?" "Then you had better hope they brought more than her voice back." Outreach called to knock it off, and the calls came in. Sparks and Echo formed up on Ledger one and two, also "killed", and headed back towards their home base. "Well," Woody said, "That was a waste of gas." The flew back in silence for a few more minutes until Cypher must have checked her mirrors, because "Woody, Sparks," Cypher said, "we're being followed. Four bogeys, six o'clock high and closing fast." Three seconds later the black craft were upon them, slowing to form up on their section at five o'clock high. "Ledger, this is Ghost. Ready to learn yet?" "Ledger," Woody said, "meet Ghost, our red air and instructors for our six months school." "This is going to be a long six months." "You're mic is hot Drone." Cypher said. Drone palmed the face of his helmet. Woody, who sat in front, didn't seem to mind. "You did put on one heck of a show Ghost. I'm not sure we're going to be able to do much against that." "Not like that no, but we hope to give you some insight and help you develop a few tactics." Flick said. "We might need to start stocking beer for the maintenance department," Drone said. "I can smell the over-stresses from here." "Don't let the MO hear that," Barf said. "She'll tear you a new one." "Too late," Shepard said. "I hear it. If you over-stress my jet you'll be buying my maintenance department a lot more than cheap beer if you want to fly again. They're taxed as it is." "Shepard!" Woody said, "Where have you been? We've been rather worried about you when you didn't report in this morning. Nobody has seen you since last night." "I've been doing a lot of traveling. And I do mean a lot. You'll never guess where I had breakfast this morning." "Wait, are you ON Ghost?" Drone said. "I am." "She's itching to get back," Flick said, " 'mentioned something about rolling heads last night." "Why do I have a feeling this has something to do with Echo?" Woody said. "Because it does." Echo said. "I'll take my beating. A group of us took a hike yesterday evening and it started raining. We were in such a hurry to leave I didn't notice she wasn't with the rest of us." "Oh, Echo," Drone said, "I am glad I'm not in your boots." "And what else Echo?" Shepard said. "...And then I drove over her as we left and broke her leg. And then the place flash flooded. And apparently after all that she was abducted by aliens." "Good lord Shepard," Drone said, "How many lives do you have?!" "You confirmed this Flick?" Woody said. "All on record. Vessel logs have video of the whole thing, 'cept the last part. No abduction; she came willingly." "So," Barf said, "Do we go with 'Blue' for Echo's new callsign, 'Falcon', or just BF and let it go at that?"

#### "Line, Control." Sergeant Mingez reached over and grabbed the radio off the desk to answer maintenance control's call. "Go control." "I have jets ten out. Also need four extra PC's to catch the visiting birds from FLI 682... No clue what they are. Sounds like C-130 sized without the wings." Mingez watched eight of his plane captains get up, grab their cranial helmet and walk out to the flight line with a nod, AD3 Moore in the lead. "Roger that control. They just headed out." "Good." Out on the flight line, AD3 Moore leaned against one of the barrel-sized halon fire extinguishers among the parking places, waiting for the aircraft to break overhead before coming around and landing. Cpl. Pearson walked by with a hydraulic servo over his shoulder, followed by Jamison carrying a toolbox. "Last day of this 'red flag wanna be' as gunny put it." Pearson said. Moore nodded and spat into a drip pan -one of many used to catch the multitude of leaks that appeared wherever the aging aircraft were parked. "Yeah," he said, "But th' other one star's 'morrow." "The one they were talking about aliens that weren't skinnies or some shit?" Moore nodded and spat again. Pearson shook his head. "What a hokey brief! Do they really expect us to believe that shit? Probably like some of these other 'exercises' we do. I bet they'll even have people in fucking costumes." Moore laughed quietly. "I can see that. Poor basters out in the heat. Prolly in some old experimental jets from the nineties or some shit too." "Yeah." Said Pearson. "Either that, or skinnies themselves show up." "Could be. We're about to find out." Moore said, pulling the dip out of his lip and flicking it into the drip pan. "They're comin' in with our own jets any minute." As if on cue two Hornets screamed over the runway; the deafening roar as they powered through the break announcing their arrival at the air station. They were shortly followed by two more in a similar pattern. "Well," Pearson said as he adjusted the servo on his shoulder, "have fun." "Always do." Moore said, kicking the drip pan further away from the parking spot painted on the flight line. Cpl. Pearson kept walking towards the broken aircraft, parked several spots further down the line, with Airman Jamison in tow. Suddenly Pearson heard the crash of a toolbox behind him. He stopped and turned around to see the sailor staring at the sky, dumbstruck. Pearson followed his gaze and saw a black, sleek looking aircraft perform the same maneuver the hornets just had, only so fast he could barely catch it, and while completely and utterly silent. Maybe they were hosting aliens after all, he mused to himself. After a few seconds of nothing more, he turned back to the still dumbfounded airman. "Pick it up Jamison. We can gawk later. Senior Chief wants this bird to fly this afternoon."

[Lost.] Shave said. [Yes sir?] [You will get acquainted with the maintenance department. Find a hanger space for us. We have two days to complete the phase before the C.O. expects us on patrols. After you do so, come to the ready room to debrief. If you need to then ask someone. They should all be expecting us.] [Yes sir.] Rika felt the cushioned bump as Shave set the skids onto the ground. Rika immediately released Eve from her seat and stood to allow her into the back room. [First get our engineers oriented with the host maintenance department so they can turn the vessels around while we debrief,] he added. [Yes sir,] Lost said. [Flatface.] "Here, sir." [You will immediately drop us into phase after we debark. Lost will brief you on local procedures and locations. This is a 'C3' phase?] ['D' sir. 'D2'.] Her three crew mates cringed slightly, forming a line by the door. [Two days Flatface,] Shave said. "I will do my best sir. I will not give you an unsafe craft." [Two days.] Rika nodded. "Yes sir. Are you ready?" Shave nodded. He and the others had left their hoods on their seat. It's hard to have an emergency decompression on the surface of a planet and it would be one less thing to carry. Rika cycled the latch before pulling up menus on her console and initiating pre-phase tests. As she did so, she began hydrogen scavenging in preparation to defuel the spacecraft. She could run the reactor off of products and have plenty of power to run the rest of her tests in the capacitors. It was less to vent and saved time. [Mallet,] she said, [are you still hooded.] [Yep. About to take it off for the tour though. Why?] [Do you have room for about a thousand kilograms of hydrogen?] [Defueling? For what?] [Dropping into phase. Shave wants it done before we start our punishment. Do you have the room to take it? I don't want to get the truck if I don't have to.] [Hold on, I'm climbing back in to check. This is what, a 'D' for you?] ['D2'] [Ouch] Mallet said. [Two weeks of down time isn't good.] [He says two days.] [What?!] [I hope supply can keep up. That or everything is magically fine.] [That's insane! And I can't take the fuel: We didn't burn much going down hill. Slosh, can you take about a thousand kilograms of H-2?] There were a few moments of silence. Rika assumed Slosh had his hood off and was having a direct conversation with the engineer. It didn't take long for Mallet to confirm her suspicions. [He says he can take it. They did a proficiency flight before joining us.] [Great. Tell him thanks. I'll get with him later.] [Will do. On to the tour.] [Bye.] Rika watched as some of the tests completed, saving the results to her PDA. There was a knock, and she spun out of her seat, opened her face shield, and opened the door to the back room. "Thank you." Shepard said. "You're welcome ma'am." Rika said, squinting as the hot desert air washed over her eyes. The officer climbed down the ladder, paused, then called back up at the engineer. "Who do I see when it's time to get this cast off?" "It should let go on its own when the bone is healed ma'am." Rika replied. "If it's still in a couple of weeks just talk to one of us and we'll get doc to cut it." Shepard nodded, turned, and walked towards maintenance control. Rika lowered her face shield, saved the remaining test results, and nodded her head approvingly. Minimal gripes. Nitpicking over the '8 was starting to pay off. Maybe this phase wouldn't be so bad after all. ...or Murphy was about to rock her world. [Spectrum, Ghost2.] [Ghost2, this is Spectrum1. Go ahead.] [Permission to stand down for phase maintenance.] [Acknowledged. You are clear to stand down Ghost2. I hope everything goes smoothly. Let us know when you are online again.] [I will. Thank you.] Rika pulled up the reactor page and dropped the internal well to zero. There was a loud WOOF from the back of the craft, and then the cockpit went dark. She switched spectrums until she could see, walked into the back room, opened a cabinet pulled out a shoebox sized case. She set it on the floor between the pilot's and RIO's seats before breaking a plastic seal and opening it. Inside a collection of pins, blocks, and clamps were neatly organized in numbered, worn, and filthy foam-esq cut-outs. Each had a bright orange flag attached to it, and there was a small, grimy notebook that Rika opened while fishing a pen out of her tool pouch. Inside was a long list of all the numbered places in the box, and alternating columns marked [OUT], [VESSEL], and [IN]. Many of the columns were filled with places she had logged the pins in and out for various maintenance tasks. She moved the next open 'out' column, wrote the date at the top and bottom, and drew a line between them. She repeated the steps in the 'vessel' column with 'Farrom 8' before putting the book back in the case and aligning the thrust control to the left of Shave's seat, moving it forward and aft until a set of holes along the armature aligned. She slid a pin though, hearing it click into place. She repeated the process for the other two axis on the control, holding it rigidly in place before moving on to the orientation control, bunching lever, trim knobs, the RIO's redundant flight controls and targeting selector, Lost's redundant targeting selector, and the engineer's station rough position controls, HASS override, and a myriad of circuit breakers in the "off" position all over the cockpit. She took the box into the back room where she opened a panel just inside the door, revealed more breakers. She pulled and tagged several more before closing and sliding the case back into the cupboard. She pulled out another case, this one shaped like a long tube for shipping fishing poles. She checked her multi tool on her belt, and marked off steps on her checklist before turning back to the cockpit. It was decorated in orange ribbons, fluorescing pink in her altered spectrum. She smiled. If they were grounded for parts around Christmas she should decorate the cabin with lights and ornaments. Shave would have a fit, but it would be worth seeing the expression on his face. She switched back to the visible spectrum and stepped out of the main hatch. The sun was shining; her visor dimming automatically. They had parked next to an airplane, and on the closest wing two men were hunched over a hole near the root; and open toolbox at their side. They paused at the sight of Rika's featureless, suited form that was shaped so much differently than the others. Was it her obviously non-human shape, or were they simply surprised that another was in the vessel when they thought all the others had gone? Rika pointed her nose at them, making it obvious that she saw them too. They quickly went back to work, but she noted that they kept a wary eye on her. She climbed to the bottom of the ladder and stopped. A few inches below her lay the sun-baked concrete of the airfield. An airfield on Earth. The last time she had been here was several years ago, last night's rescue aside(it might as well have been Arlon). She had been furless, had long, dark hair, a feminine voice, and human body, smile, and laugh. So much had changed since her feet had last stood upon the surface here. So much had gone away that would never return. She dreaded touching that ground, as if to do so in this form would seal her fate. That as long as she didn't make contact with it she could still covet the quiet fantasy that she might one day wake up a human again, on her home planet, with her human friends and- She stopped, remembering the people she had given that title to before she had left. Sadness crept over her, like a dark cloud overshadowing the melancholy light of the moon. The people she had kept company with before leaving were a far cry from what she now considered a friend to be. The people before; Max, Emma, Seth, Ann, Sarah; were all people who's only interest in her was what they could get out of her, and she had only wanted them for what she could get out of them. Christine was perhaps the only exception, but they had grown apart when she began hanging out with her other crowd. Gamun had set that bar high- where it belonged, she realized- and those who now held that title of 'friend' were well worth of it. She also had a career beyond her wildest dreams, despite the less than glorious parts of it, and a group of people that loved and cared deeply for her, even if they often acted otherwise (like Shave). Would she trade that to be a human again? Would she see this differently if she had been given a choice? She stepped onto the concrete. It didn't feel like she was home again. She felt just like she felt on Arlon: An outsider in a familiar yet distant place. She sighed. If Earth no longer felt like her home, then no place did. She removed her multi tool from its holster, holding the release for the defense attachment as she did so. She pulled the panel tool from her hip pouch and snapped it in place before using it to open the reactor vent panel. It unzipped silently until it swung open and she removed the attachment and holstered her multitool. The place she felt the most at home, she realized, was here, with her vessel. She knew it inside and out and had spend so much time in, on, and around it there was a warm sense of familiarity; one that had begun growing the entangling roots of a bond. Perhaps staying in the back room instead of base quarters would be the most painless option for her. After all, she didn't suffer the negative affects of sleeping alone the other rakkan. She looked around to make sure people were clear, checked the wind, and reached up into the panel. Inside was a rectangular handle that was locked in place with a pin. She checked a small temperature gauge next to it. It was still warm, but not too hot. She unpinned the handle, leaned as far off to the side as she could, and twisted the handle before yanking it down. There was a loud POP, followed by a thunderous rush of air. Rika quickly pulled her hand to the side as hot flames of gasses and flecks of carbon, boron, beryllium, and lithium came blasting out of the hole. As soon as the rush had stopped, she pushed the handle back in, twisting and locking it back into place. She left the panel open, but took out her multitool again and opened small panel several inches behind it. This time it opened to the side, and Rika faced the rear of the craft as she opened the end of the case and held it up to a circular opening inside the panel. Gingerly she grasped a lever above the circular opening, pulled it out and turned it ninety degrees before snapping her hand away. Something long, the diameter of a soup can and glowing bright orange, slid out and into the tube. Rika grunted as the tube became very heavy, the iron ingot taking up almost all of the volume. She carefully set the insulated tube down and gingerly closing the door. Even though her suit was meant to protect her against the radiation of a star in space she didn't want to push it around a hot chunk of metal. Conduction is a very different animal than radiation, and she didn't take chances with either. With the tube closed, she half carried, half dragged it back to the ladder where she slid it up and into the cabin with a strain and a grunt. She updated her checklist again, and as she put her PDA back in her pocket she noticed the two mechanics still watching her. She didn't need her hood anymore. The dangerous part was done with, and normally she would have relished at the idea of being out of it, freeing her ears from their cramped confinement. The desert heat and sideways glances of mechanics convinced her to keep it on. They could wonder a while longer. Rika was going to enjoy the suit's environmental control as long as she could. The next step was to place the farrom's skids on rollers so it could be towed. For that she needed lift jugs -a set of hydraulic jacks that were linked hydraulically, allowing her to lift a skid up enough to place a roller pad under it, and the roller pads themselves. She watched as a large forklift carried an angular grey box the size of a cargo van to an area by the hanger that had several green conex containers for the navy unit staged. She stowed the ladder and closed the hatch to the Farrom 8 before setting off across the flight line. The pads and jugs were in that pack-up, assuming they had been delivered the right container, and a cart should be in there too. With a little luck, she'd have the Farrom 8 ready for tow in less than half an hour.

"So there's a sharp, deep well formed out in front, and usually an equal but oppositely shaped hill behind." Sgt. Yasoud said, drawing a curve in front of and behind a crude drawing of a farrom. "And there's a larger, much wider hill underneath it. What get people is that these are artificial fields, so they aren't described by the standard ' ', and so you can't assume you'll feel where the pull starts and still be able to get away." AM1 Jones frowned as he stared at the board, the group of marines and sailors of the airframes shop sharing a general look of confusion. There was the quiet squeak of the shop door to the hanger, but nobody looked up. The airfames shop could be a popular thoroughfare for maintainers heading to and from the parking lot into the hanger depending on the time of day. "So," AM1 said, "where are we supposed to avoid again?" "The danger zones," Sgt. Yasoud began again, "Are-" "It's distance squared, Mallet." A rakkan said, her black and tan head having appeared next to AM1 at the back of the group. The LPO nearly jumped out of his skin, the rest of the group recoiling in shock at the sight of a six foot, two legged, talking malinois wearing a uniform. Sgt. Yasoud was completely unfazed, looking back at her formula before drawing a '2' in the offending position. "Oh. You're right. Sorry." "As a general rule don't go..." They paused, looking at all the shocked faces, then splayed their ears out and curled their lips in a smile. "Never seen a two legged talking dog before?" "Sorry," Sgt. Thomas muttered, a word that was echoed by the group. The smile dropped and they looked around at the group. "I am Sergeant Yasoi, the engineer of the Farrom 8. We will cone off the area if we run up any hill or well for testing. During ops never go underneath the vessel; if we start the lower hill while you are there it can pin you to the belly before squashing you like a mosquito. If the landing gear is up stay at least ten yards from the nose in all directions. The actual field in the front and back is much, much smaller than that, but because it's so sharp in shape there isn't any warning before you get pulled in without a paddle. -it's like a jet engine, but you can't see it. Directly above and below in the tail are two vents, about six inches by a foot each. If you ever see them open and not flagged, stop breathing, run away, and come find one of us. Other than that, the vessel is relatively safe to walk around. No tail hooks, flight control surfaces or exhaust cones. Are there any questions?" Cpl. Huizinga raised his hand. "Yes?" "What are you, Sergeant?" AM1 bit his lip. The marine was much less fazed. Sgt. Yasoud looked at Sgt. Yasoi. What was expression? Confusion? No. Curiosity? Damn they were hard to read in this form. Sgt. Yasoi looked at the Corporal. "I am a flight engineer and maintainer. What are you, corporal?" "That, too Sergeant. I'm also human." "Oh. We are rakkan." "Hold on now," Sgt. Thomas said, pointing at Sgt Yasoud, "She said she was the alien. What's going on? Why is Sergeant Yasoud a human and Sergeant Yasoi clearly not but you both say you are aliens?" "We-" Sgt. Yasoud said. "She is altered," Sgt. Yasoi said. "Which is why she and the others look less intimidating than they normally do. I have a condition that makes me unique, so I," she grinned, showing a mouth full of jagged, sharp teeth, "could not be." Sgt. Thomas gave her a flat look. "Is that so." Mallet fished out her PDA. "I normally look like this." She said, showing the NCO her ID. The rest of the shop crowded around him to better see. "Whoa." "Yes. I hope you understand the reasoning for the change is not for you but for those outside of the fence." "I... ok." "Mallet, can you help me tow '8 into the barn?" Sgt. Yasoi said. "The barn?" "Barn, hanger, same thing. Lost says we're clear to the south side." "Ok. You're driving though," Sgt. Yasoud said, walking towards the door. "I hate how vehicles here growl at you like they're angry." Sgt. Yasoi laughed. "Coward." "Do you have wing walkers?" Sgt. Thomas said. "No. We don't have wings either. Do we need them?" "Better safe than sorry. QA has been on a kick." "Ah. I won't turn them down if you're offering. Thank you." "Duncan, Tuloski, Pipes, aaaand Huizinga." The sailors and marines stood as they were called and grabbed their cranials off of the shop wall before following Rika out. "Well that was interesting," Gunny said, getting up out of the LPO's chair where he had been hiding behind the wall of bodies and the computer monitor. "And how. Do you buy any of it?" AM1 said. "You're not worried about any of this?" "Nah," Gunny said, shaking his head. "Like I said: I was in Okinawa during the skinny invasion. They bailed my marines and me out of a tight spot and fought along side us until it was over. Even if they come up with some crazy shit, they mean well. It took me a while to come around, but you'll see. You can trust them." AM1 nodded. "Well, you know better than the rest of us." "Pay attention to body language, you'll get the hang of them pretty quick once you can read them. They don't smile or gesture like we do." Gunney opened the door into the back hall. "Also, the MO is putting them in here with us. Something to do with the OIC." "We were wondering if the Sir stepping in it was just a rumor. We'll clear a space for them now, Gunny, no worries." "Good." "#Airframes, Control#" crackled the hand held radio on Sgt. Thomas's hip. He brought it to his mouth. "Go control," he said. "#How's that Trailing Edge Flap Servo coming?#" AM1 sighed and rubbed his temples. Sgt. Thomas slapped his desk. Gunny laughed and went to his office. "Every five fucking minutes," grumbled the Petty Officer. "It's a four hour repair, not counting waiting for QA or the turn, and they know that." Sergeant Thomas grinned. "It's the only way they work." He held up the radio again. "It's coming. It should be done about five minutes sooner than the last time you called."

Shepard walked into the ready room and sat down. Sparks came in and plunked into the seat next to her. "I can't wait for yet another one of these bludgeoning debriefs." "Mmm." "Nice watch." "Oh how I wish it was my watch." "That's what I thought. What is it?" "Let's just say Eve ate a lot of forbidden fruit, and this is to make sure she doesn't share any of it with Adam." "Ah. I see. Will it?" "Yes," she said. Sparks gave her a hard look. "Is that so?" "There is nothing I learned that affects our security, Sparks, otherwise I would sacrifice everything to inform the command." "That's what's at stake? Your mind?" "Among other things." "And you don't think they're bluffing?" "They took me to where they do it." "Uh huh. So if it doesn't affect our security, then why-" "Because they have the same enemy we do, Sparks, and they don't want them to learn anything. There's a God damn Skinny armada out there," she hissed. "I saw it and I'm free to tell you all about it and they have just as vested an interest in keeping them at bay as we do." "Shepard." She turned around. Woody was in the door, behind several British officers that quickly moved out of the way. She quickly stood. "Yes sir?" "My office." "Yes sir." She followed him into the hall. "Are the four of you still living together?" "Yes sir. Nothing has opened up for us to move." "That needs to change." He sighed. "-but we can only work with what we have. Does any one have a spare key?" "Sparks might. He made some copies." "Get him." She darted back to the door, and it wasn't long before the trio was walking into the skipper's office. Flick was there, along with his two sergeants. "Door." Sparks closed it. Woody's eyes moved from her wrist to her face. "I've been told you learned a lot of things you shouldn't have." "I did sir." "I've also been told that none of it is a threat to our security." "You would know what I know and they'd be hauling me off to delete my mind if it was sir." "No," Flick said, "we wouldn't have brought you back to Earth. Echo would still think you were dead." Woody looked at him a moment, then nodded. "And that," he motioned to the blue band on her wrist, "is for what?" "It's so they can find me if I leak." "And?" Flick said. "And if I'm interrogated something will trigger it. Some biological response, I think. They'll come looking for me, and... deal with everyone involved." Flicked looked at Woody, who was scowling. "We need to protect our own intelligence, I trust you understand that, but I want to give you your officer back, unharmed and without attempting to extract any intel from her, as it wasn't her fault for seeing and hearing what she did. I hope you mimic our act of respecting any of our intelligence the same way we have respected yours in this matter." "You mentioned that. And your sergeants?" "Are the guilty parties. They will be responsible for assisting Lieutenant Commander Sadok in keeping things confidential in such close quarters. Sergeants, your keys to Lieutenant Commander Sadok." Both Mallet and Flatface dropped a key into Shepard's hand. She stared at them. Why-? Woody sighed. "Sparks, do you have a spare to your apartment?" "Not here sir." "You and Shepard will need to have one of the others to let you in. Give Sergeant Yasoi and Sergeant Yasoud your keys." She fished the key off her ring and handed it to Flatface. Sparks passed his to Mallet. "You will not in anyway," Flick said to the engineers, "prevent or discourage Lieutenant Commander Sadok at any time or for any reason from entry into the quarters of either crew of yours, so as that she might get relief from the burden you two have dumped on her." "Yes sir!" "Neither will you in any way, shape, or form disrupt or prevent her or any of the others in those quarters from any duties unless it is absolutely necessary to preserve our information." "Yes sir!" "Sparks, Shepard," Woody said, "these two will have open access to your quarters in order to check on Lieutenant Commander Sadok if something arises. If they become in any way shape or form disruptive you will let me know and they will be dealt with immediatly." "Yes sir." "Aye aye, sir." "Shepard." "Yes sir?" "Is there anyway you can wear a watch over that thing?" "I will try, but I don't think it will hid it." Woody sighed and gave Flick a look. "We could always put it around her neck," he said cheerfully. "No," Woody said. "We just had a new base XO check in and he's a stickler about that stuff. I'm trying to think of what to tell him so she doesn't get into trouble." "Why not tell him the truth?" "That it's for tracking?" "Sure!" "He'll have an aneurysm!" "So? It won't be on her. He can come talk to me if he has a problem." "Oh? And what are you going to tell him? It's not like you're in a position of authority too keep him from going after her or anyone else." "Not at all," Flick said with a twisted grin. "I'll simply ask him if he wants one too. Our liaison can handle him. I've been told the team has a very good track record of putting out those kinds of fires."

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