Hey guys! I've been working on this on and off for a while, and I figured I'd chuck it up. I haven't written anything in a long time, not since my last mammoth project, which you can find on my fictionpress account from my profile. Talk about shameless self-promotion, huh?
Summary: After the destruction of Aiur, the Protoss faced a dilemma: face their own extinction, or merge what little they had left with their Terran allies. The Protoss and Terran's paths intersected on many planes, but would Artanis cross the stream that no other Protoss had ever dared to cross?
I don't own most characters. I do own Claudia, Marcus, Kara and Perkins, though.
Please tell me what you think, because it's my first time writing in this fandom. Please be nice, or at least constructively critisising. Thanks, and enjoy!
Commander Jim Reynor rounded a corner into the main recreation room, eyes scanning over the four people scattered over the room. His eyes fell on a small figure curled up in a chair, green eyes blank and staring at one of the walls. He mentally sighed before making his way over to them, nodding at the others.
He came to a stop before the chair and glanced down at the figure. Long dark hair, almost black greeted him, swirled around a thin, pale, slightly pinched face that most of the crew was sporting. Rations had been spread thinly, and not even the highest officers ate well. They would be landing soon, to restock supplies on their way to fight another Zerg invasion that was threatening yet another world. At least this time, they had the help of the Protoss.
Her large green eyes stared out of her face, glazed over and sporting heavy bags. He shook his head very slightly before clearing his throat.
She jumped, exhausted eyes blinking and searching for imagined threats, a hand automatically bringing up a modified pistol. She stared stupidly at the hand restraining her gun for a moment before she looked up. She blinked a few times before lowering the weapon to her side and looking up into the amused face of Jim Reynor. She immediately uncurled herself, her feet finding the floor clumsily.
"I'm up. I'm up. What needs fixing?" She blearily grounded the palms of her hands into her eyes before standing up. Stumbling, she almost tripped over her own feet before Reynor could steady her.
"Whoa there, Captain. Nothing needs fixing but you. When was the last time you slept more than two hours?" He asked, more than a little concerned. The Captain was one of the best technicians he had ever come across, and was well adapted in leading teams. It would not do to have her as exhausted as she was.
"I... I don't know. There's just so many things that go wrong on a ship this old, and we need new parts, and probably some more sheeting for the decks, because they're running thin, and the new techs need decent training, and the crew keeps coming to me with every little thing, but I can't refuse because that would be rude, and ther-"
"Okay, I get the picture." He chuckled, cutting her off. She gave a faint smile.
"I'll put it out that you're not to be disturbed until we reach orbit. Come on." She stumbled after him as he strode out of the rec room towards personnel quarters.
He paused outside the door to her quarters to look at the haggard captain.
"There'll be a meeting onboard the Protoss carrier ship about trading information. You're my primary tech officer, and I want you there. Meeting's in 20 hours, dropship leaves in 18 hours. You're off duty until then." He ordered. The captain straightened herself up before saluting him.
"Yessir." She muttered, trudging into her quarters. The door hissed shut behind her. Reynor shook his head and grinned. Sleep deprivation, while worrying in his primary tech officer, was still funny as hell to watch.
He made his way to the bridge and stared out at the vast inky blackness of space. Without taking his eyes off the rapidly approaching planet known to them as Aureilies, he called over a junior technician.
"Post a bulletin over the tech commlink that Captain Black will be unavailable for the next twenty hours." He ordered, the low reflection of the window granting him a glance at the terrified expression that flitted across the young techie's face before being smoothed over.
"Yes sir." Was the dutiful reply as he backed away, hand drifting towards his ear to activate the commlink. Jim gave a half sigh before turning and heading towards his own bunk. The captain wasn't the only one who needed to rest before the meeting.
Reynor leaned next to a wall, a light frown adorning his features. Captain Claudia Black was the only one missing from the small convoy that comprised of the few to join the Protoss carrier. A few soldiers milled around the entrance to the dropship, cracking jokes.
"Hey, Commander! Who're we waiting on?" One called out, absently playing with a lighter.
"Captain Black." Jim replied. He glanced at a soldier on guard duty before beckoning him over.
"Get Captain Black here on the double." He ordered tersely. The Judicator wouldn't be pleased if his party were late.
"No need, Commander, I'm here." The captain replied, cheerfully rounding the corner.
"Claudia, girl, you're de-zombified!" The captain grinned up at the marines, slapping one on the shoulder.
"Marcus, my boy, you'd be surprised what a decent sixteen hour sleep does to a person." She grinned again before nodding to Jim.
"Reynor. Sorry I'm late." He nodded at her, the beginning of a grin playing around his lips.
"Typical woman, always late." He grumbled good-naturedly, the marines around him laughing. Claudia's lips flattened into a thin line.
"I'm sorry sir, but the maintenance of your vulture will take an extra week, I've just remembered. My techies working on it need some additional training in welding. The vultures can get a touch tricky if you don't precisely know what you're doing." She said sweetly before sweeping into the dropship that had been prepped for them. Jim's mouth dropped open as he stared after her, the rest of the soldiers following suit. Marcus gave a low whistle.
"You're in for it now, Commander." He stage whispered before following the techie into the dropship. Another soldier, another Commander, passed by Jim, clapping him on the shoulder.
"Don't want to keep them Protoss waiting for us, ey?" He exclaimed, following the others onto the ship. Jim shook his head in disbelief before following the rest of the crew on board the ship. It would not do to be late. The Judicator wouldn't be as forgiving as Zeratul.
Through the front window of the dropship, the Protoss carrier ship, clearly the flagship, steadily became larger. The chatter in the cabin was quiet, and the stench of apprehension was prominent.
"Five minutes till arrival." The pilot called out behind him before sending a signal towards the looming ship.
"This is Terran dropship two-oh-eight, requesting docking." He said, keeping one eye warily on the ship through the window. He didn't know what to think about the Protoss; their habits of reading thoughts was alarming, to say the least. He was started out of his thoughts as the screen to his immediate left flashed. After a second of adjustment, a Protoss face stared up at him.
"Terran dropship two-oh-eight, you are cleared to dock in bay twelve." It said expressionlessly, its golden eyes flashing softly. The pilot exhaled lightly in relief as the screen flickered and went blank.
Bringing the ship up to the docking bays, he cut engines as they glided slowly into docking bay twelve. The doors clanged loudly behind them as they shut, and pressure began to fill the bay.
Within minutes, the occupants of the dropship made their way into the hanger, staring around at the alien ship. It's too neat, Claudia mused, eyes wandering around the large space. Even the scraps of metal and parts are stacked neatly. She made a slight face at the stacked piles. Marcus caught her expression and grinned.
"What, it's not good enough because it's not covered in oil and grease?" He asked laughingly. She smirked at him.
"Nah, it's just too neat. Nobody ever died from a little organised mess." She replied easily, eyes trailing over the stacks of parts. But I really want to go through them. Meetings are so tedious, she thought grumpily. Too frickin' neat! It's unnatural!
Organised mess never helps in an emergency, Captain Black a wry voice... voice? The opinion had not been said out loud. She had caught a visual flash of rummaging in a pile in an utter panic to go with the voice.
Whirling around, she came face-to-chest with what was obviously a Protoss. She would recognise those double knees anywhere. She slowly looked up, having to crane her head to see the figure's face.
"But if it's organised mess, you already know where everything is." She reasoned, simultaneously stepping back and attempting to send an image of her workshop.
And if others require access to your... workshop? Damnit, the Protoss was amused. She caught it in the timbre of his voice, and the flashing of his eyes, for he was undoubtedly male.
"Then they should ask for whatever they need while I'm in there." She replied shortly. A snicker from some of the Terrans, and amusement rolling off the other Protoss in waves brought her out of her ire.
"Since you know who I am, perhaps you should introduce yourself." She said, raising an eyebrow at him.
Very well. I am Praetor Artanis. Her mouth dropped open, and her face involuntarily flushed. No, damnit, do not do that, not he- She cut herself off mid-thought and slammed a mental wall up in place.
"I apologise for my rudeness, Praetor Artanis." She said shortly, noticing for the first time the other Protoss in the bay. She recognised Zeratul with a jolt, although the one and only other time she had seen him was at a distance through a pair of optics a ghost had asked her to repair. Several pairs of eyes appraised her, not all human, before turning towards the entrance to the hanger, the only conversation between Jim Reynor and Zeratul, and the Terrans amongst themselves. Claudia found herself walking next to Artanis, but did not speak.
You hide your thoughts well for a Terran, he offered, glancing down at her. The side of her mouth twitched involuntarily into a grimace. A mental flash of a laboratory, a Terran ghost helmet sitting in front of her as she tweaked a few points on the helmet floated into his mind before another mental wall slammed down. The image only lasted a split second. Keep out of my head, she snapped mentally, drawing a few curious glowing golden eyes.
Mental wall firmly in place, she lifted her chin and continued to march alongside the Praetor, completely ignoring him. A small snicker from behind her caused her to tense her shoulders.
"Shut up Marcus, do you want to have your weapons downgraded?" She hissed backwards. The snickering stopped abruptly.
The Terrans appear to be intimidated by their female, Zeratul thought to Artanis, who laughed in response.
A ruthless nature under a soft exterior, he commented privately to the Dark Templar. A mental sigh racked through Zeratul.
Watch her, the old warrior warned as they came up to another set of doors. They hissed open, entering into a large conference hall. There were already some Protoss milling around; it was odd to see the High Templar and the Dark Templar sitting together. They all stood as the party entered the room.
En taro Adun, Reynor. You're late. A High Templar had risen out of one of the groups and headed over towards the Terrans.
"We're not late, Judicator, we just stopped to admire the scenery." Jim replied cheerfully, eyes darting over to the captain, who merely smirked in response.
I see, the Judicator said uncertainly.
We must start the meeting, Zeratul's mental voice echoed the hall. Obediently, they all gathered, and the meeting officially began.
Yeah, tell me what you think. Cookies for reviewers.
~le freak
