Rolling over in bed, I awoke and groaned after reading the time on the alarm clock.Too early. Guess that's what I get for going to bed so early. I climbed out of bed and looked towards Lance who was still out cold, though his body jerked around from what I assumed were either spasms or bad dreams. I rubbed his shoulders gently until he calmed.
Needing to kill some time before practice, I jogged to my favorite park spot and completed a few T'ai Chi exercises followed by meditation. I quietly prayed to my ancestors for the strength and guidance to help Lance through his ordeals.
When I returned the rest of the team ambled around the apartment, getting ready for the day. Lance, still wrapped up in that leather jacket, looked terribly sullen and shakey. "We don't have to fly in the simulators today, you know," I mentioned quietly.
"No, I need to. Flying is what keeps me going, even if it's just a simulation. I'll be okay."
I nodded. Maybe it would be good for him to get back into the pilot's seat.
After the morning briefing, we headed to the simulators. The Garrison, with limited help from Arus, knew very little about the structure and mechanics of the lions. They programmed what they did know into the simulators, which resulted in essentially souped-up versions of their top fighters.
"Remember, team," I announced once they were settled into their simulators, "today's objective is to use efficient battle strategies to cut attack time in half and conserve resources. The faster we can eliminate an enemy, the less likely they are to do damage to the citizens of the planet. I'm implementing some new and unusual attack formations today, so be prepared. Go ahead and launch spacecraft."
I inserted my key and the simulator roared to life. "Pidge, run program beta-six-two-six."
"Aye-aye, Commander."
"Enemy ships approaching," Sven announced. "Twenty Drule fighters at two-five-three mark one-zero."
"Maintain altitude. Hold pitch steady. Prepare for battle formation delta-zeta-niner on my mark."
"Drule fighters within range."
"Now!" I commanded, giving the signal.
Our ships fell into formation as the Drule ships appeared on the view screen, launching into attack. "Fire photon canons!" I commanded.
A barrage of photon missals collided with the ships, doing heavy damage. "They are still firing on us," announced Hunk.
"Increase power to shields and fire thermal torpedoes when ready."
The small metal objects detected the heat from the damaged Drule ships and exploded on impact. "Twelve ships destroyed, the rest are retreating," Pidge cried out.
"Way to go, team!"
"Don't celebrate yet, Hunk. Twenty new fighters and five battle ships coming in at two-five-niner mark eight," Sven warned.
"Execute formation gamma-four."
The simulator fighters shifted into a new position with Hunk flanking Pidge and Sven flanking Lance. I rose to a higher altitude and fell back.
"Ten more Drule fighters approaching two-five-zero mark eight!" Sven called out.
"Maintain your positions."
"This is suicide," Pidge nervously mumbled.
"Drule ships within range," Sven announced.
"Hold steady," I ordered.
I heard Lance tapping nervously at his controls. "C'mon, Keith, they're in range. What're you waiting for? Let's take the bastards out!"
"Calm down, Lance. Wait for my command."
"Order it NOW. Let's go after them."
"Do NOT leave your partner, Lance. Wait for my order."
"This is a mistake," he grumbled under his breath.
"Charge gamma ray bursts."
The Drule ships came into view. "Fighters are charging weapons!"
"Steady, team," I reassured.
My weapons panel indicated that all but one of the fighters were fully charged. "Lance, charge your gamma rays now!"
"Screw this, I'm going in," he announced, breaking formation and flying away from the team.
"Lance, get back and cover me! I'm wide open!" Sven shouted. "Faen!"
"Lance, get your ass back into formation!"
I was livid. My strategy would only work if all five of us fired in unison. Lance had left the team completely exposed to the Drule attack, not to mention disobeying my orders in the middle of a battle. "Lance!"
Lance flew back around, firing laser canons at the Drule ships. They assaulted our fighters with every weapon they had available. "Shields up! Evasive maneuvers!" I cried out.
It was too late. The heavy artillery of the battle ships took us out easily. "Computer, end simulation!" I shouted, infuriated.
Throwing open the door and jumping out of the simulator, I headed straight for Lance. Sven stormed over to him first and grabbed him by the collar. "What the fuck, Lance? You killed us all! What kind of dumb-fuck move was that?"
I was in shock. Sven never swore and rarely showed signs of even being upset.
"Get your filthy European hands off of me!"
"You're a fucking liability to this team! What's going to happen when we're in deep space and the Drules attack? Are you going to disobey orders then, too, and get us killed for real?"
Lance pushed at Sven until he was released. His fist reeled back and punched Sven square in the nose. Sven stumbled backwards, wiping away the blood dripping over his lips. "That's enough, you two!" I ordered.
Lance continued to assault Sven, kicking him in the ribs before he had a chance to react. A few more punches later and Sven was on the ground. "Stand down, Lieutenant!"
Lance swung his head around, eyes full of rage. "You did NOT just pull rank on me, Kogane!"
"You heard my order!"
"Fuck you!"
He burst towards me, fists at the ready. I braced my feet and easily flipped him onto his back. He landed with a gruesome thud. I rolled him onto his stomach and pinned his arms behind his back. He struggled with all he had, but I held him tightly. "Hunk, Pidge, call the infirmary."
"Let me go, Kogane!" Lance spat through gritted teeth.
"One more word from you and I'm knocking you out, Lieutenant!"
"Go to hell!"
With that, I jabbed sharply at his neck and he fell into unconsciousness.
x~x~X~x~x
Chaos ruled for the next few hours. Medical and administrative personnel hounded me all morning with the same questions over and over. When I finally was able to break away from their pursuit, I checked in on Sven. The doctor diagnosed him with a broken nose, three fractured ribs, and several contusions. He rested uncomfortably with a bandaged torso and nose. The morphine in his IV line made him drowsy, so my visit was short.
Next I visited Lance. He was positioned on his back and restrained at the wrists and ankles. The doctors administered a strong sedative while he was passed out in fear that he might erupt when he woke.
"What's the verdict?" he asked flatly, staring at the ceiling.
"The jury's still out. I told them about the drinking, Lance."
"Did you tell them I stopped?"
"Yes, but based on your recent behavior they don't think you'll recover. Best option is they'll listen to me and let you off with a short suspension. Worst caseā¦," I paused for a moment.
Lance already new. "Yeah, I get kicked out. Shit, what will I do? This is all I have left." He sounded hopeless.
"Lance, are you ever going to tell me what happened in Nebraska?"
He turned his head away and remained silent, hiding his thoughts from me. "How soon?" he finally asked.
I sighed. "We won't know until later tomorrow what the decision will be. They've cleared you to go back to the apartment for the night, under my direct supervision to make sure you don't run off."
Lance let off a curt laugh. "Like I have anywhere to go."
x~x~X~x~x
After signing the discharge papers, I escorted Lance back to our quarters. He slunk off to our bedroom and closed the door behind him. Hunk and Pidge were waiting in the living room, biding their time by building a small mouse-like robot from spare parts that were lying around the place. Hunk really had a talent for turning random shit into something amazing. Or at least some kind of arbitrary robot.
"How's Sven?" Pidge asked.
"Sore, but he'll be fine. And upset, of course."
"And Lance?"
I simply shook my head. No words could be used to describe his situation at this point. Or I just didn't have the energy to discuss it anymore.
"What about the mission?" Hunk finally asked the question we were afraid to ask.
"They won't replace Sven, so it's delayed until he recovers. Lance is the uncertainty factor. If they kick him off, they'll need to find a couple of replacements."
"A couple?"
"I'm not going if he's not going."
"Why!" Hunk and Pidge clamored together.
"It's...complicated," was all I could muster up for an explanation.
My whole military career could be up in smoke because of my decision, but it was the only strategy I could foresee working in the favor of Lance. They were going to kick him to the street as soon as they found out, but I bought him some time. I was their golden boy, the one person they would kneel before in order to keep. I needed to do what I could to protect his career, even if it meant risking mine.
