Dawur stood in the command center of the Reach ship, tapping a finger impatiently on one of his crossed arms. The Reach's head of security was irritated. It had been four days since the Reach had arrived at a planet known as Debstam, and they had barely been able to make contact with the planet's infiltrator, let alone land and begin a take over. From what little information their agent had been able to give them during a brief transmission, there was some sort of issue with the planet's security. It also didn't help that there had been difficulty maintaining contact with the infiltrator. Though they weren't completely accurate, scans of the planet showed force fields were present around the more heavily populated areas, and it had been determined that these were interfering with their transmissions.
And on top of that, the infiltrator was late in reporting to the ship. All of these put together made the Reach's enforcer angrier than usual, with a dark aura surrounding him that told others to keep away.
'The new Head Scientist has been waiting to get your attention for quite some time now.' The black scarab said, interrupting his thoughts and bringing him back to the present. Indeed, the newly appointed Head Scientist was standing a few feet away, waiting for him to notice her. Dawur had been so focused on glaring at the planet on the monitor that he had missed her presence completely.
The Scientist stiffened slightly when the two made eye contact, clearly nervous despite her act of not being so. Both stayed silent for a few moments, each waiting for the other to speak first.
"If you need to speak to me then speak, Scientist," Dawur snapped.
"Ah! Y-yes, my apologies," the Scientist stammered. Regaining her composure, she continued. "What could cause the infiltrator to be so late to report to us?"
"... We don't know what the situation is on this particular planet. There have been other cases where it was difficult for our infiltrators to get around easily," Dawur spoke as he turned his head back to the monitor. As much as he hated waiting so long, he hated the attempt at small-talk even more. He hoped his attitude would tell the Scientist this and she would leave him alone.
It didn't. After waiting a few moments, she asked, "Is it possible that the scarab could be malfunctioning? Not listening to orders?" The warrior looked back at her with a glare, making her flinch. "There has never been a scarab that was found to be off-mode. Every scarab that has been recovered has been fully functional," he growled. But then he paused, his glare becoming more questioning. "What would make you ask such a thing?"
The Scientist seemed a bit more confident now, as she replied, "I worry about using such old technology. Even though we have more than a basic understanding of the scarabs, and though the infiltrators are a huge advantage when it comes to our invasion of worlds, are we certain that we can continue to count on them to do as they were programmed? We sent out so many to so many different worlds, it is possible that there is a planet that could cause a scarab to lose control of it's host, and I fear that could cause our downfall."
Dawur remained silent, so the Scientist continued, "I have read reports where after the planet was taken over, the host managed to terminate itself. Yet we continue -"
She was interrupted by Dawur's deep chuckling. She watched him in shock as he spoke, "Your first assignment and you're already criticizing the methods that have been used for millennia and claiming us to be so weak? What a way to make an introduction." Dawur continued to chuckle as embarrassment took over the Scientist's face and made her avert her gaze to the floor.
"My apologies. I did not mean..." she trailed off as he waved her comment away. "Honestly, I could care less. You are not entirely wrong in your caution, but I recommend you keep such views to yourself. There are others on this ship who will care."
The Scientist looked at him for a few more seconds before nodding silently and turning to face the screen. He turned back as well, remembering the annoyance that kept him waiting here in the first place.
"I would ask you to refrain from killing the infiltrator when they arrive," The scarab's voice rang through his head. Dawur smirked at that. 'Well, if our new Scientist is correct and the scarab has malfunctioned, I won't have much choice, will I?'
"The chances of that happening are small to none, as there little reason for her to think so. Her thinking is flawed and she assumes too much."
'Are you saying you don't like her?' Dawur asked jokingly. "The former Head Scientist would have been a better choice for an unexpected situation such as this," replied his scarab. It did have a point. The new Head Scientist had been a last-minute replacement, with the former being called away for a different assignment that their leaders had deemed more important. This was an unusual occurrence, but considering that the former Head Scientist had been an older woman close to finishing her years of service, it was understandable enough. 'I suppose you are correct,' admitted the warrior. "I am always correct," his scarab automatically replied. But before Dawur could make another comment, the Scientist spoke again.
"The Ambassador must know something we do not, considering he is just as late as our infiltrator." Indeed, while there were a few technicians below them, they were the only two on the upper level of the room. Dawur's eyes narrowed as the scarab commented "I wondered when you would notice his absence."
"You be quiet," he hissed, then said to his companion, "It would not surprise me if he chose to withhold information." He paused before adding, "But there are times when I can't quite tell if he's scheming something or just being incompetent."
"I find it unwise to give her such information."
'It's fine,' the warrior reassured the scarab. Something told him the Scientist wasn't going to repeat anything he said to the Ambassador.
The Scientist's face became pensive at his statement, but she made no comment, and the two again waited in silence for few minutes with the only noises coming from the technicians below.
The relative quiet was interrupted by the sound of the large door of the room sliding open. Both warrior and scientist turned to see the Ambassador finally arrive, walking up to and past them to the monitor, not bothering to explain his tardiness. Instead, he zoomed in on the screen.
"It seems our infiltrator has decided to arrive," the Ambassador said. Dawur looked at the screen and, indeed, there was a figure flying away from the planet towards the ship. The Ambassador pressed another button to give instructions to the guards.
"Not in the mood to fight with him today?" Dawur's scarab asked. To say that he and the Ambassador had a bad relationship would have been an understatement. The two men had different ways of doing things, and neither had any desire to listen to what the other had to say. This often caused conflict.
'No'. Dawur was not in the mood, and from the looks of it, neither was the Ambassador. A snide comment would probably lead to another argument.
"Now, Miss Head Scientist," the Ambassador spoke in an almost condescending tone, still not turning from the screen. "I trust you know what your duties are?"
"To make certain that all scarabs are on-mode, to study them if there is anything new to learn, and to oversee all experiments preformed on any captives we collect?" The Scientist spoke automatically, but she seemed nervous again. Speaking with Dawur earlier had helped calm her down, but the Ambassador's presence must have put her on edge again.
The Ambassador waited a few moments before clasping his hands behind his back and finally turning away from the monitor to face her. An annoyed expression was on his face, making her avert her eyes to the floor. "Correct," he answered quietly.
'What is going on?' thought Dawur. This was very unlike the Ambassador to be treating a new member so coldly. Whenever a member was transferred to their ship, regardless of rank, Dawur's superior made it a point to personally welcome them and treat them politely. Now that he thought about it, Dawur wasn't sure if the Scientist had received any such welcome. Out of the whole ship, he was the one the Ambassador wouldn't bother pretending to be friends with. And even then, he tried to keep his dislike somewhat hidden from others. The only explanation for the shorter male's behavior seemed to be that these two already knew each other, and whatever had happened between them had left bad feelings.
Dawur had never any desire to learn anything about his superior's past (and he still didn't), but he found himself unable to keep from wondering what could cause the Ambassador to treat the Scientist in such a way.
The Ambassador turned back to the screen, still ignoring Dawur. There was yet another moment of silence before it was once again interrupted by the opening of the doors.
All three of them turned as a figure came in, escorted by two guards. The person was dressed in blue and black armor, almost exactly like Dawur's. They were very obviously a woman; unusual in itself, but what stood out most was her lack of a mouth. And since the scarab armor was designed to make the host look like the Reach, it left the woman's face with only a pair of yellow eyes.
The woman continued forward as the guards waited at the edge of the room, and when she was a few feet away from the trio, she stopped and bowed to them.
"Infiltrator Khaji Ro, reporting for duty."
Author's Note: ((Thank you for reading! This is my first fanfic, so any feedback or constructive criticism is welcome! And in case you were confused: Dawur is Black Beetle, he just hasn't gotten that title yet. :)
Also, special thanks to my sister for being my editor.))