Chapter 1
Clicking a pen: some people do it when they're nervous, others when they're bored. He wasn't sure which emotion made him do it, but regardless, he did.
"The Admiral will be here shortly."
The woman at the end of the table looked very much unenthused about this meeting. Her sharp Chinese features and formfitting black jumpsuit made her already intense stare all the more potent. Was he about to get a summons for a court martial or something? It's not every day that you're dragged half way across the galaxy to Alliance Naval Command for a personal meeting with an Admiral and a "representative of interested parties".
James cleared his throat, and move anxiously back and forth in his swiveling the chair. The space station's artificial gravity was noticeably lighter than most ships, and the room's dark blue, uncomfortable atmosphere made the entire thing seem very surreal. The bright white lights that extended up from the floor and arced along the curved wall and ceiling seemed to produce little light, but were all too bright to look at simultaneously.
The door hissed open. Bolting to his feet, the young officer saluted his superior and shouted "Sir!" The whole thing was meaningless in these times, but James had always had a flair for the old traditions.
"As you were Lieutenant, we have a lot to discuss." The Admiral's voice was even raspier and darker in person than James had anticipated. The Admiral sat down across the table from James. Removing his cap, he ran his hand through his hair and nodded at the mysterious woman.
Still maintaining eye contact with the woman, Admiral Hackett addressed James, "You've heard the news I presume."
"If you're referring to what I believe you're referring to, yes sir." James raised a curious eyebrow.
"We tried everything we could to contain it, but it slipped out." Hackett continued, his steady iron-like gaze shifting to James. "We also sent in a spotter, to verify. He confirmed, and then went offline."
"Sir, permission to speak freely?"
Hackett leaned back in his chair, and shot a wary glance at the woman. "Go ahead."
"With all due respect, what's this got to do with me?" he inquired, resting his elbows on the table.
"Son, we all take orders from someone." Hackett explained, furrowing his brow. "That someone has come to the conclusion that Agent Li's friends over at F.I.S. are ill-equipped to handle this sort of… operation."
The woman finally piped up, her fiery stare meeting Hackett's, "Which is untrue, but orders are orders, and this operation must go forward."
"What operation?" James questioned.
Raising a hand, Hackett continued, "I'm getting there. You've been assigned to lead a clandestine operation, top secret stuff. At this point I can't continue the briefing without you committing to the mission."
"I don't get to know what I'm committing to?"
Hackett laughed. "I don't think you *want* to know. I can say this, I know I wouldn't do it. Its risky as hell, could get you killed. A suicide mission."
"A suicide mission?" James pondered for a minute. "I'm in."
Author's Note:
This is a "test" screening. If I garner good viewership for this fiction I will write and release more of it. If not, well, I have plenty of things on my schedule as is.
- WS