Rommie stopped in her tracks and looked at the three men with wide,
surprised eyes. Dylan, on the other hand, had his blank stare, and his
eyes, now darker were looking at Rommie intently and angrily. Tyr was by at
Dylan's right, using his brown eyes to tell her that he meant business.
Harper, for his part, also looked at Rommie with anger plus interest.
"Dylan?" This was the last thing she wanted and expected. She was hoping for more time to make the decisions she needed to make
"We're here to take you back, Rommie" Dylan replied
"and the mission?" Rommie was having trouble taking this all in.
"We will wrap it up somehow and you will go back to the ship, where you will spend time in V-deck" Dylan's was using his 'don't argue with me voice'
"What?" She asked this although she knew the answer: Harper had somehow caught her with John and hadn't told her, then reported it to the crew. But she couldn't leave. She loved John and couldn't possibly turn him nor their friends in.
"I dumbly trusted you, Rommie, but then I saw you with the guy, wearing his necklace, carrying information that you hadn't given us." When she heard his reply she could hear several weeks worth of supressed anger rear its ugly head.
"Where is the information?" Tyr demanded. Rommie's act of betrayal did not affect him in the same way as it did Dylan and Harper as he was never close with the Avatar, whose humanity he doubted.
"In that computer I got"
"Get it" Dylan ordered
"Okay, but I have to fix something here."
"Well, do it "Tyr said impatiently.
"With her A.I. Quickness, she shorted out the computer and had it go on fire"
"What the hell are you doing?" Dylan demanded to know. His face was turning red and his eyes started to look more brown than blue.
"What does it look like?" Rommie retorted after she put out the fire. As much as she hated to do this to Dylan, she did not want to turn in her friends at the organization, especially John.
"These people are not terrorist or criminals!" Rommie exclaimed, continuing "They just want to make life better for Synthetic life forms by raising self awareness. I've come to know many of them"
"Especially Orich" Harper interjected sarcastically.
"Rommie, you are not being objective and have become emotionally attached. I suggest that you get off this case" Dylan answered her.
" Well neither are you. You just assume that they are these dangerous radicals instead of trying to see what they are really like"
"Oh please" Tyr said.
"What he said" Harper added.
"Look, Rommie, you are leaving this mission and that is final!" he said, voice rising just a little.
"What if I don't want to go?"
"This is not a debate. You are going."
Suddenly, Rommie remembered that she had a mini-smoke bomb in her desk, thanks to a friend from the organization, in case of capture from the authorities. With her unmatchable android reflexes, she used it, and then left the room.
Once she was safe, she started to cry from the guilt and implications of what she just did. Rommie would probably never see them again, and they would more likely than never see her as a friend again.
Meanwhile, as the smoke cleared, all three men were stunned at how Rommie got out of their grasp.
"Well, I guess she's not coming with us" Tyr remarked.
" Yes she is." Dylan stated with more determination than ever. " I have reason to believe , thanks to Yabor intelligence, that this organization could be getting progressively more violent when the new leadership comes in." Dylan wanted to prevent Rommie from making what he perceived to be a big mistake
Later, Rommie went to John's apartment and told him that some people helping Yabor intelligence tried to get information from her, but she burnt out the computer and used a smoke bomb.
Back in Rommie's former apartment, the three men were trying to figure out ways to get Rommie to come back.
"Dylan?" This was the last thing she wanted and expected. She was hoping for more time to make the decisions she needed to make
"We're here to take you back, Rommie" Dylan replied
"and the mission?" Rommie was having trouble taking this all in.
"We will wrap it up somehow and you will go back to the ship, where you will spend time in V-deck" Dylan's was using his 'don't argue with me voice'
"What?" She asked this although she knew the answer: Harper had somehow caught her with John and hadn't told her, then reported it to the crew. But she couldn't leave. She loved John and couldn't possibly turn him nor their friends in.
"I dumbly trusted you, Rommie, but then I saw you with the guy, wearing his necklace, carrying information that you hadn't given us." When she heard his reply she could hear several weeks worth of supressed anger rear its ugly head.
"Where is the information?" Tyr demanded. Rommie's act of betrayal did not affect him in the same way as it did Dylan and Harper as he was never close with the Avatar, whose humanity he doubted.
"In that computer I got"
"Get it" Dylan ordered
"Okay, but I have to fix something here."
"Well, do it "Tyr said impatiently.
"With her A.I. Quickness, she shorted out the computer and had it go on fire"
"What the hell are you doing?" Dylan demanded to know. His face was turning red and his eyes started to look more brown than blue.
"What does it look like?" Rommie retorted after she put out the fire. As much as she hated to do this to Dylan, she did not want to turn in her friends at the organization, especially John.
"These people are not terrorist or criminals!" Rommie exclaimed, continuing "They just want to make life better for Synthetic life forms by raising self awareness. I've come to know many of them"
"Especially Orich" Harper interjected sarcastically.
"Rommie, you are not being objective and have become emotionally attached. I suggest that you get off this case" Dylan answered her.
" Well neither are you. You just assume that they are these dangerous radicals instead of trying to see what they are really like"
"Oh please" Tyr said.
"What he said" Harper added.
"Look, Rommie, you are leaving this mission and that is final!" he said, voice rising just a little.
"What if I don't want to go?"
"This is not a debate. You are going."
Suddenly, Rommie remembered that she had a mini-smoke bomb in her desk, thanks to a friend from the organization, in case of capture from the authorities. With her unmatchable android reflexes, she used it, and then left the room.
Once she was safe, she started to cry from the guilt and implications of what she just did. Rommie would probably never see them again, and they would more likely than never see her as a friend again.
Meanwhile, as the smoke cleared, all three men were stunned at how Rommie got out of their grasp.
"Well, I guess she's not coming with us" Tyr remarked.
" Yes she is." Dylan stated with more determination than ever. " I have reason to believe , thanks to Yabor intelligence, that this organization could be getting progressively more violent when the new leadership comes in." Dylan wanted to prevent Rommie from making what he perceived to be a big mistake
Later, Rommie went to John's apartment and told him that some people helping Yabor intelligence tried to get information from her, but she burnt out the computer and used a smoke bomb.
Back in Rommie's former apartment, the three men were trying to figure out ways to get Rommie to come back.