Title: Bad Ass
Author: Pinkcat4569
Description: Jess is feeling out of place with the lethal members of the team. Until a computer disaster threatens.
Rating: G/K
Pairing/Characters: Jess, other characters series 4-5, very slight Becker/Jess
Disclaimer: I only write for fun. I don't own Primeval or the characters.
Author's note: For Trope Bingo, Category 17: Character Traits: Bad Ass
1407 Words
Bad Ass
"Look out, Becker! They're swarming your position!"
Jess watched in horror as six large wasp, hawk-like things descended on the lone black figure. Then she watched in amazement as he calmly took one after the other down. In a matter of moments, he stood inside a circle of passed out future wasp hawks.
"Wow!" she cried.
He chuckled. "Any more?"
"More? No, Becker. I can't believe you took all those."
He laughed. "Part of the job."
"I know you're a soldier, but that was so bad ass! You weren't even panicking or breaking a sweat!"
"Trust me, it wasn't as easy as it looked. How are the others?"
"Fine. They're bad asses too. A whole swarm of beaked, feathered, acid stinging wasp things are gone in minutes. I'm surrounded by bad asses and I can't even kill a spider."
"I think it's cute when you scream and hop on the desks."
"Not helping Becker."
They returned to the ARC. Jess was grumpy. "I feel helpless."
"You aren't," said Abby.
She looked at the blonde. "Coming from you, that doesn't help. None of you are weak and soft like me. I'd be dead right now if I was with you this morning."
"No you wouldn't," said Becker.
"Really?" she asked, looking at him with hope.
"Nope. I'd keep you safe."
"Great. Thanks."
"I do not understand your distress," said Emily.
Jess sighed. "You're all so...lethal, even Connor"
"What do yo mean even Connor?" he asked.
Becker laughed.
Jess sighed. "I just sit in Ops, safe and sound."
"That's how I want you."
She blushed and smiled at Becker. "I know, it's not my job to face creatures, but next to this group I feel intimidated and useless."
"You aren't useless, Jess," said Abby.
"Far from it," agreed Becker.
Jess just frowned.
The next day, Jess had briefly left the ADD to take something to Lester's office. Lester and Becker stood in front of the ADD reviewing some footage.
Suddenly the footage stopped playing and a warning popped up on all the monitors.
"What is happening?" asked Lester, looking at the computer screens in shock.
Becker shook his head. "It looks like...files are being copied."
He heard a clatter of heels. "Move!" cried the petite woman in the bright lime green heels and equally bright orange dress. She pushed them out of the way and jumped into the seat. "Someone's trying to get in."
"What?" asked Lester in alarm. "We're being hacked?"
"Nobody hacks us on my shift." She began typing like mad.
"I'll get Connor."
"You'll what? Becker, that's the meanest thing you've ever said to me! I don't need Connor!" she cried, but never stopped what she was doing.
"It's his system."
"It's his base system," she said, correcting him. "I've added, enhanced and worked on it everyday since he went on vacation in the Cretaceous."
"That's hardly fair, Miss Parker."
"Fair? Who sits in front of this thing hour after hour? Me! Where is Connor? He's down in his little lab making anomaly things."
Becker watched as the screen indicated files copying and transferring. "Jess..."
"Shut it, Becker! I working!"
"Connor can help," he said quietly.
Lester agreed. "Yes."
"I don't need help! Seriously, the nerve of you two!"
Becker chuckled, trading eyebrow raises with Lester.
"You are very capable," said Lester, "but as the Captain pointed out, it is Connor's system and we are in the very real danger of losing every bit of our precious data!" To Becker, he said, "Get Connor."
"Fine. Get him. Then you can all sod off!"
"Miss Parker!"
"Stow it, Lester. I'm furious! Furious with you, with Becker, and with this...person...who thinks he can waltz in under my watch and help himself!" Jess typed with fury.
Becker eyed her as he moved to the lift. That's when the lights dimmed.
"What's going on, now?"
"Nothing, Lester, I'm just letting him attack certain unimportant areas."
"Excuse me? Letting him...attack? And what precisely do you deem unimportant? The lights are considerably important."
"It's all part of the plan," said Jess.
"Some plan," muttered Lester.
"Jess, my comm's not working."
"I know, Becker."
"I'm afraid I'm not confident with this plan."
"Thank you, Lester," said Jess.
"What else are you sacrificing?"
"Nothing, just creature containment."
"I beg your bloody pardon?"
Becker laughed "She's joking."
"Now is not the time for humor," said the ARC director.
"Lester, relax and let me do my job."
"All you're doing is putting us in the dark and cutting off our communication!"
She sighed, with a slight growl. "I'm trying to get him to be complacent. I want him to think he's hacking into our heart. He's getting confirmation that systems are being disabled. I want him to think he's succeeding. The more I lead him on, the further he gets into my web," she said.
Becker abandoned the lift and moved over her. "You think it will work?"
"Yes."
"Captain, I gave you an order."
"I know. I trust Jess."
She looked up and smiled. She quickly turned back to her work. "OK. He's fallen for it so far. I let him hack the lights and comms, as you've seen. He's hacked into the door locks, not in the menagerie, of course, some superficial medical files and now he's going for the research data."
"Oh Lord!"
"Don't worry, Lester. He just thinks he's going into research," said Jess, "let me finish this code and..."
An alert rang out.
"Oh, God! He's got the files!"
Jess however was laughing. "No, he didn't. He hacked a phony file that I led him to, complete with a phony warning. It's not even ARC material, I just made him think it was."
"And?"
She smiled at Becker again. "And, we're safe. I promise."
The lift opened with Connor and Matt running out. "How much did they get?"
"Oh, everything," said Jess, laughing.
"Miss Parker claims it was fake material."
Jess sighed. "It was. The phony alarm should stop ringing about..."
Just then the alarm hushed.
She smiled. The men all looked at her. "It's part of the show," she said. "OK, maybe the alarm was a bit too much." She giggled.
Connor moved over her, and Jess watched as he examined the files. He laughed and patted her on the back. "That was brilliant. She led him into a trap. Not only did he not get anything, she stopped him cold. He can't move into our files any further."
"Nope, and I've logged his IP address. I'm running identification and tracking software as we speak. We'll have his name and location as soon as..." A beep interrupted her. "Done. Becker, go get him."
Becker smiled. He actually leaned down and kissed her head. "You are such a bad ass, Jess."
She smiled with a pleased gasp. "Really? That's the sweetest thing you've ever said, Becker."
He laughed. "Well you are," he said, then he lowered his voice. "You're a sexy bad ass."
She blushed and giggled as he smiled at her, his face inches from hers.
Lester cleared his throat. "The criminal, uh, Captain?"
"Right, Lester," he said. He straightened up but smirked at Jess again. Then cleared out.
"Can I study this?" asked Connor. "How you did it in such a short time is amazing."
"Oh, Connor, you're embarrassing me," she said. "Study away."
He nodded, looking over the monitors.
Jess swiveled in her chair. She looked at Lester and smiled. "Apologies?"
He sighed. "Yes, I am sorry. You are capable, as I did say before. However, I confess that I did not consider you a 'bad ass."
She giggled.
"I am sorry that I didn't trust you."
"Oh, it's alright. I forgive you."
"Thank you, Jess."
She smiled sweetly. "You're welcome."
He nodded and began to walk away.
"You're buying me new shoes, though," she called after him.
"I beg your pardon?"
Matt and Connor laughed.
"A bad ass needs to be properly attired, Lester," she said with a wink.
He rolled his eyes. "Good grief."
The End