11 - On Assignment
They landed on an open field, not very far away from the location from which they received the distress call. As they switched off all systems, Dylan gathered all around him and explained his plan.
"We do not know what is awaiting us. We don't even know if someone is still alive. Maybe the Kalderans are still somewhere hiding. First, we have to reach the source of the signal. Then we'll see what the situation will require. I expect we'll have to split up in two groups. Tyr and Trance, you'll be one group and Rommie, you'll go with me. Take all necessary equipment with you and all the armaments you can carry. Don't forget that we're on hostile territory and must expect the worst. Our goal is to find out what happened here and to find possible survivors. Just remember to be extremely careful."
Everybody nodded and they took all what they needed in order to fulfill the mission.
After leaving Maru, they made their way to the buildings they registered about half a mile further. The way was leading through the forested area, for they landed on a small clearance, which was surrounded by trees on all sides. Tyr took the obligation to be the first on the trail, followed by Trance. Rommie was going third and Dylan was the last. He had a bad feeling about all this and he just wanted to make sure, they wouldn't be ambushed. And besides, he was worried about Rommie, for it was her first mission since she had turned human. And he wasn't really sure if she could adapt fast enough to the fact that she was very much vulnerable now.
Tyr headed into direction in which the scanners registered the buildings. He carried a big gauss gun and some forcelances with him. His step was quick, but yet very careful and his eyes blinked all around him, trying to find a possible threat. He growled quietly: "I don't like this forest. It is a perfect place to make an ambush. Let's go as fast as possible. Trance, you take over the left side and I'll take over the right side. Remember, should you notice anything threatening, shoot first and then ask!"
Trance just nodded. She also had a bad feeling about this forest. It was somehow threatening and she couldn't get rid of the vision, something very bad is going to happen to them. She tried to think about this situation - had she seen it in the future, but couldn't really find any memories. She concluded she'd have to be even more careful as before.
Rommie wasn't exactly completely concentrated to the mission. She still saw Dylan's eyes in front of her as he was staring at her. She clearly saw his emotions and it made her feel very happy. She shook her head to chase away these thoughts and to concentrate on the task. Somehow she managed it, and feeling of Dylan's breathe on her back, made her feel safe. She knew now, he'd do anything in his power to protect her. And she knew very well, she'd also do anything to protect him. Her human emotions, her instincts haven't evolved enough yet to judge the situation, but nevertheless, she too had some strange feeling. As if something would be lurking in the woods that spread before them. She caught up Trance's pace and they continued through the high grass, which was covering the clearance.
As they stepped into the forest, the light dimmed and the vision lessened. They found a narrow path, leading straight into the forest just in their direction. Tyr took the path and continued quickly, yet carefully, while looking constantly at all sides. He tried to see everything that could possibly endanger them and to destroy any possible enemies, which might have been hiding in there.
They continued through the forest and managed to cross it without any threats detected. As they stepped out from under the trees, they saw some buildings in front of them. They counted five buildings and they didn't seem to be damaged. But they couldn't detect any living beings there.
"Rommie, do scanners show any presence of life forms in the buildings?" asked Dylan as they stopped. He stepped to her and put his hand on her shoulder. Rommie checked the scanners and shook her head. "No, according to the scans, there are no living beings inside. But the readings are somehow disturbed. It seems, that the buildings are very well shielded, so I cannot confirm it without any doubts. We'll have to go inside to get complete scans." She looked at him worried and added: "Dylan, I'm not sure if it's safe to simply go inside. There might be some Kalderans, hiding inside and I can't detect them."
"Don't worry about that, Rommie," reassured her Dylan. "We'll be very careful."
They started towards the biggest building, which they assumed to be the command center. "I wonder, what this buildings were used for?" remarked Trance quietly.
"Scans show, that it is some kind of environmental center," replied Rommie. "I get readings, that in the biggest building various controls are placed. Especially ones for communications and for complete control of the atmosphere. Additionally there is a wide array of sensors, which should have been used for detecting the oncoming ships. Their technology is however a bit old, so the range of the sensors isn't exactly overwhelming."
"Well, in that case, we should go in there first," said Dylan in a dark tone. He expected troubles to come. And he was a bit nervous, not knowing how the things could turn out. "We go in and then we'll have to split in two groups. Rommie, do you have any data about location of these controls?"
Rommie nodded: "Yes, as far as I can judge, the communications center is located on the ground floor, while other controls are under the surface, about five stories deep."
"OK, then we'll make it so: Tyr and Trance, you try to find out if the underground controls are still functional, while Rommie and me will try to find the communications control room and see if we can access their recordings. Maybe we will be able to reconstruct what happened here."
They were already close to the building and their nervousness grew with every step they made. Rommie was all the time carefully checking the scans, which didn't reveal anything more than what they already knew. Still no traces of life signs in the buildings. The tension was virtually hanging in the air and no one really was prepared to talk too much.
As they stood in front of a big door of the building, they noticed it has been forcefully opened and Dylan's face smirked: "I guess, they have had a not so nice visit here."
"You're right," confirmed Rommie. "According to the readings, this door has been fired at from kalderan weapons. The security system is down. In fact, all systems are down. It looks like the complete control had been shut off."
"OK, then, let's do it," sighed Dylan and entered the building. As they stepped in, they found themselves in a large lobby, with many doors along the walls. Otherwise, aside from a nice arrangement of some strange plants in the middle of the lobby, the place was completely empty. No tables, no chairs, no nothing. They stopped and looked around. "So, what do we do now? Does anybody have any idea which doors are leading to the control rooms?" remarked Tyr and held his gun at hand, just for a case.
"I guess, we're all unwise," answered Dylan. "Let's just go and try." He went over to one door, which stood partially open and carefully pushed them aside as to be able to look inside. He saw a long corridor behind the door. No plates, no signs, just blank white walls with another door at the far end of the corridor. He stepped back and tried another door. The same picture. They gradually opened all the doors and they always got the same impression - a long, white corridor, with another door at the adjacent end. They gathered again in the lobby and looked helplessly at each other.
Finally Dylan broke the silence: "As it seems, we have no other possibility than to check each corridor separately. So, Rommie and I are going to check the first door on the right, you both try the one on the left. If you find nothing, just simply return here and try another one. But, maintain the contact with us. You should report every ten minutes and tell us what you've found. In case you find something that look like a command center, report in-between. Well, good luck!" With these words, he grabbed Rommie's hand and headed for the first door on the right. Tyr and Trance nodded and turned to the left.
As they entered the corridor, Dylan asked: "Do you get any reliable readings from this part of the building?"
Rommie just shook her head, but then remembered, he's not looking at her and answered: "Nothing new. The scans are still blurred and incomplete. But I know for sure, there are no life signs in the closest range, about 150 feet around us."
"Well, at least we can hope no one is waiting here to wish us a nice day," grinned Dylan.
Rommie gave him a questioning look and as he noticed it, he added: "I'm just kiddin' Rommie. I wouldn't expect anyone here to be pleased to meet us. Except if there were any survivors."
She didn't comment on this, so they continued down the corridor in silence. Dylan held his forcelance ready in his hand, while Rommie carried the scanner and had her weapons at her hip. However, she carried the scanner in her left hand to be able to pull her forcelance immediately, should it proved to be necessary.
The corridor was about 100 feet long and as they reached the other end, they stopped in front of the door there. Rommie lifted her hand to push the opening button, but Dylan stopped her: "Wait! I'll go first. Remember the condition, under which I allowed you to come with?" and looked her questioningly.
Rommie smiled and nodded: "You see, how hard it is for me to forget the habits I had before."
"Well, you'll have to! Otherwise I'll have to leave you on Andromeda next time!" stated Dylan with a smile. He really didn't have the intention to do so, but he was concerned about her and wanted to prevent any possible threat to her. He stepped to the door and pushed Rommie behind himself. She willingly gave in and remained behind his back. She put her hand on his shoulder and felt the warmth of his body. It was a nice feeling. She could feel such sensations before, as an android, but it was somehow different, more ... real this time. She thought 'So, human sensations are different from android ones. It's more direct, not processed but felt. I could really get used to this.'
Dylan pushed the button and the door swung open. He stepped to the side, holding Rommie with his left arm behind him and pointed with his forcelance into the room that just came into his sight. It was a small room, which obviously served as some kind of office. There were two tables and chairs in there, as well as some other chairs at the walls. On the left wall there were two doors, which were closed. No one was in there, so he stepped inside with Rommie in close pursuit. He headed for the first door on the wall and opened it. As they opened, he saw another office, but no door. "Well, it seems, this is a dead end street. Let's try the other one."
He opened the other door and this time he saw a big room, with computers and various control panels along the walls. "It seems, we have found something. Can you recognize any of this equipment Rommie?"
"Sure! I think this is a control room for the building. I see there are video panels, controlling different corridors and rooms inside it. Maybe we can find out, where the communications center is," replied Rommie.
They entered and checked the panels. Each had its own video screen and under the screen there was everywhere a tag, depicting which room it showed. "Nice! Now we can check out, where the communications center is," said Dylan satisfied.
They strolled along the panels and suddenly Rommie stopped: "Here! This one is for the communications center. It is situated in Section B, Level 0, Room 12. Now we just have to find out, where is this section B. Maybe they have a plan somewhere."
"Well done. Rommie, do you think you could find the switch to turn these monitors on?"
"I can try," answered Rommie and sat behind one of the consoles. She checked it and then touched some fields on it. Suddenly the screen lit up and they could see the picture of the room it has been monitoring. It was completely empty and deserted. Rommie tried some more operation and then turned to Dylan: "Dylan, I think this system has been shut down in emergency. I can see, that the recordings end abruptly without proper shut down procedure. They were probably overruned by the Kalderans and simply shut down the system to protect something."
"Can you get it up again?" Dylan was curious, why would they shut down the system. He got a vague idea, that there must be something that they wanted to hide from Kalderans at any price.
Rommie nodded: "I think it shouldn't be a problem." For few seconds she played around the console and then all the screens lit up und soft humming of ventilation system filled the air. "Done!" she said with a smile and turned to Dylan.
He smiled back and gave her a friendly tap on a shoulder: "Thanks Rommie! You're really a treasure!"
She blushed at his words that flattered her. Not in the way she'd like to, but nevertheless. As Dylan saw it, he quickly withdrew his hand, and hastily looked away. "Well, now let's try to find out, what they were so desperately trying to hide."
Rommie turned back to the console and worked on it. After a while she said: "It might be more difficult as we think. There are some databases, which are protected and the level of protection is very high. I believe, I can break the codes, but it will take some time. So, I suggest, you just sit down and relax a bit."
Dylan nodded and sat beside her. As he looked at her, working and being fully concentrated at her work, he again admired her beauty. Suddenly a streak of her hair fell down and partially covered her face. Without really knowing what he's doing, he reached out and gently stroke the streak back. Rommie stopped her work and looked at him in surprise. He realized what he'd done and blushed while withdrawing his hand. "Um .. sorry, Rommie. I .. I don't know why I've done it."
Rommie's expression changed to a mild smile as she said: "Don't be sorry Dylan. I found it very nice from you. I .. I think I liked it a lot." She blushed too at these words and dropped her eyes. She wished he hadn't withdrawn his hand. If felt so comfortable, touching her cheek, stroking her hair. Her body cried for his touch and she looked at him, directly in his eyes. She didn't want to hide her feelings any more. Her eyes revealed everything she hoped for, everything she wanted so desperately to come true.
Dylan was taken aback by this look that burnt into him like a dagger. He realized she wants him, she wants his touch, his love. He slowly lifted his hand again and placed it on her cheek. She tenderly cocked her head a bit, so as to feel his hand and continued to look at him. Dylan felt, how a flood of emotion overwhelmed him and he stroked her cheek gently with his thumb. Her soft skin felt so silky under his fingers, so tender and warm. He pulled her closer and before he could realize what's going on, his lips were on hers. The tenderness of this touch sent a jolt through his body and he felt, like something that disappeared long ago came back: love, tenderness, satisfaction. He tried to withstand, but lost. The touch of her lips on his was the most beautiful sensation he experienced in the years.
Suddenly, somehow embarrassed, he withdrew: "Sorry, Rommie ... it .. it shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry."
Rommie's big dark eyes looked at him: "Please, Dylan, don't be sorry. I wanted it. And I wanted it desperately to happen. So please, don't apologize, just tell me it's true."
Dylan was taken aback by this sudden confession. He really didn't want his feelings to burst out so suddenly, but . here it was. It happened and nothing in this universe could reverse it. "Rommie, yes, it's true. But we shouldn't let ourselves be carried away by emotions right now. We have work to do. Maybe we should concentrate on it. We'll discuss this whole thing later, when we are back on Andromeda, OK?"
Rommie smiled. She finally got him admit his feelings for her! And she didn't mind him backing up now. She was aware of the fact, that they both need a clear mind right now. So she just nodded and turned back to the console.
After some seconds she said cheerfully: "I did it Dylan, I'm in! Now I'm looking for some interesting data." She suddenly went completely still and her eyes opened wide in disbelief. Her lips parted and she turned to Dylan with such a shock in her face, he'd never seen before. Then she spoke, spitting each word separately from her mouth and almost choking on them: "Dylan .. you ... won't .. believe .. what ... I've ... found!"
They landed on an open field, not very far away from the location from which they received the distress call. As they switched off all systems, Dylan gathered all around him and explained his plan.
"We do not know what is awaiting us. We don't even know if someone is still alive. Maybe the Kalderans are still somewhere hiding. First, we have to reach the source of the signal. Then we'll see what the situation will require. I expect we'll have to split up in two groups. Tyr and Trance, you'll be one group and Rommie, you'll go with me. Take all necessary equipment with you and all the armaments you can carry. Don't forget that we're on hostile territory and must expect the worst. Our goal is to find out what happened here and to find possible survivors. Just remember to be extremely careful."
Everybody nodded and they took all what they needed in order to fulfill the mission.
After leaving Maru, they made their way to the buildings they registered about half a mile further. The way was leading through the forested area, for they landed on a small clearance, which was surrounded by trees on all sides. Tyr took the obligation to be the first on the trail, followed by Trance. Rommie was going third and Dylan was the last. He had a bad feeling about all this and he just wanted to make sure, they wouldn't be ambushed. And besides, he was worried about Rommie, for it was her first mission since she had turned human. And he wasn't really sure if she could adapt fast enough to the fact that she was very much vulnerable now.
Tyr headed into direction in which the scanners registered the buildings. He carried a big gauss gun and some forcelances with him. His step was quick, but yet very careful and his eyes blinked all around him, trying to find a possible threat. He growled quietly: "I don't like this forest. It is a perfect place to make an ambush. Let's go as fast as possible. Trance, you take over the left side and I'll take over the right side. Remember, should you notice anything threatening, shoot first and then ask!"
Trance just nodded. She also had a bad feeling about this forest. It was somehow threatening and she couldn't get rid of the vision, something very bad is going to happen to them. She tried to think about this situation - had she seen it in the future, but couldn't really find any memories. She concluded she'd have to be even more careful as before.
Rommie wasn't exactly completely concentrated to the mission. She still saw Dylan's eyes in front of her as he was staring at her. She clearly saw his emotions and it made her feel very happy. She shook her head to chase away these thoughts and to concentrate on the task. Somehow she managed it, and feeling of Dylan's breathe on her back, made her feel safe. She knew now, he'd do anything in his power to protect her. And she knew very well, she'd also do anything to protect him. Her human emotions, her instincts haven't evolved enough yet to judge the situation, but nevertheless, she too had some strange feeling. As if something would be lurking in the woods that spread before them. She caught up Trance's pace and they continued through the high grass, which was covering the clearance.
As they stepped into the forest, the light dimmed and the vision lessened. They found a narrow path, leading straight into the forest just in their direction. Tyr took the path and continued quickly, yet carefully, while looking constantly at all sides. He tried to see everything that could possibly endanger them and to destroy any possible enemies, which might have been hiding in there.
They continued through the forest and managed to cross it without any threats detected. As they stepped out from under the trees, they saw some buildings in front of them. They counted five buildings and they didn't seem to be damaged. But they couldn't detect any living beings there.
"Rommie, do scanners show any presence of life forms in the buildings?" asked Dylan as they stopped. He stepped to her and put his hand on her shoulder. Rommie checked the scanners and shook her head. "No, according to the scans, there are no living beings inside. But the readings are somehow disturbed. It seems, that the buildings are very well shielded, so I cannot confirm it without any doubts. We'll have to go inside to get complete scans." She looked at him worried and added: "Dylan, I'm not sure if it's safe to simply go inside. There might be some Kalderans, hiding inside and I can't detect them."
"Don't worry about that, Rommie," reassured her Dylan. "We'll be very careful."
They started towards the biggest building, which they assumed to be the command center. "I wonder, what this buildings were used for?" remarked Trance quietly.
"Scans show, that it is some kind of environmental center," replied Rommie. "I get readings, that in the biggest building various controls are placed. Especially ones for communications and for complete control of the atmosphere. Additionally there is a wide array of sensors, which should have been used for detecting the oncoming ships. Their technology is however a bit old, so the range of the sensors isn't exactly overwhelming."
"Well, in that case, we should go in there first," said Dylan in a dark tone. He expected troubles to come. And he was a bit nervous, not knowing how the things could turn out. "We go in and then we'll have to split in two groups. Rommie, do you have any data about location of these controls?"
Rommie nodded: "Yes, as far as I can judge, the communications center is located on the ground floor, while other controls are under the surface, about five stories deep."
"OK, then we'll make it so: Tyr and Trance, you try to find out if the underground controls are still functional, while Rommie and me will try to find the communications control room and see if we can access their recordings. Maybe we will be able to reconstruct what happened here."
They were already close to the building and their nervousness grew with every step they made. Rommie was all the time carefully checking the scans, which didn't reveal anything more than what they already knew. Still no traces of life signs in the buildings. The tension was virtually hanging in the air and no one really was prepared to talk too much.
As they stood in front of a big door of the building, they noticed it has been forcefully opened and Dylan's face smirked: "I guess, they have had a not so nice visit here."
"You're right," confirmed Rommie. "According to the readings, this door has been fired at from kalderan weapons. The security system is down. In fact, all systems are down. It looks like the complete control had been shut off."
"OK, then, let's do it," sighed Dylan and entered the building. As they stepped in, they found themselves in a large lobby, with many doors along the walls. Otherwise, aside from a nice arrangement of some strange plants in the middle of the lobby, the place was completely empty. No tables, no chairs, no nothing. They stopped and looked around. "So, what do we do now? Does anybody have any idea which doors are leading to the control rooms?" remarked Tyr and held his gun at hand, just for a case.
"I guess, we're all unwise," answered Dylan. "Let's just go and try." He went over to one door, which stood partially open and carefully pushed them aside as to be able to look inside. He saw a long corridor behind the door. No plates, no signs, just blank white walls with another door at the far end of the corridor. He stepped back and tried another door. The same picture. They gradually opened all the doors and they always got the same impression - a long, white corridor, with another door at the adjacent end. They gathered again in the lobby and looked helplessly at each other.
Finally Dylan broke the silence: "As it seems, we have no other possibility than to check each corridor separately. So, Rommie and I are going to check the first door on the right, you both try the one on the left. If you find nothing, just simply return here and try another one. But, maintain the contact with us. You should report every ten minutes and tell us what you've found. In case you find something that look like a command center, report in-between. Well, good luck!" With these words, he grabbed Rommie's hand and headed for the first door on the right. Tyr and Trance nodded and turned to the left.
As they entered the corridor, Dylan asked: "Do you get any reliable readings from this part of the building?"
Rommie just shook her head, but then remembered, he's not looking at her and answered: "Nothing new. The scans are still blurred and incomplete. But I know for sure, there are no life signs in the closest range, about 150 feet around us."
"Well, at least we can hope no one is waiting here to wish us a nice day," grinned Dylan.
Rommie gave him a questioning look and as he noticed it, he added: "I'm just kiddin' Rommie. I wouldn't expect anyone here to be pleased to meet us. Except if there were any survivors."
She didn't comment on this, so they continued down the corridor in silence. Dylan held his forcelance ready in his hand, while Rommie carried the scanner and had her weapons at her hip. However, she carried the scanner in her left hand to be able to pull her forcelance immediately, should it proved to be necessary.
The corridor was about 100 feet long and as they reached the other end, they stopped in front of the door there. Rommie lifted her hand to push the opening button, but Dylan stopped her: "Wait! I'll go first. Remember the condition, under which I allowed you to come with?" and looked her questioningly.
Rommie smiled and nodded: "You see, how hard it is for me to forget the habits I had before."
"Well, you'll have to! Otherwise I'll have to leave you on Andromeda next time!" stated Dylan with a smile. He really didn't have the intention to do so, but he was concerned about her and wanted to prevent any possible threat to her. He stepped to the door and pushed Rommie behind himself. She willingly gave in and remained behind his back. She put her hand on his shoulder and felt the warmth of his body. It was a nice feeling. She could feel such sensations before, as an android, but it was somehow different, more ... real this time. She thought 'So, human sensations are different from android ones. It's more direct, not processed but felt. I could really get used to this.'
Dylan pushed the button and the door swung open. He stepped to the side, holding Rommie with his left arm behind him and pointed with his forcelance into the room that just came into his sight. It was a small room, which obviously served as some kind of office. There were two tables and chairs in there, as well as some other chairs at the walls. On the left wall there were two doors, which were closed. No one was in there, so he stepped inside with Rommie in close pursuit. He headed for the first door on the wall and opened it. As they opened, he saw another office, but no door. "Well, it seems, this is a dead end street. Let's try the other one."
He opened the other door and this time he saw a big room, with computers and various control panels along the walls. "It seems, we have found something. Can you recognize any of this equipment Rommie?"
"Sure! I think this is a control room for the building. I see there are video panels, controlling different corridors and rooms inside it. Maybe we can find out, where the communications center is," replied Rommie.
They entered and checked the panels. Each had its own video screen and under the screen there was everywhere a tag, depicting which room it showed. "Nice! Now we can check out, where the communications center is," said Dylan satisfied.
They strolled along the panels and suddenly Rommie stopped: "Here! This one is for the communications center. It is situated in Section B, Level 0, Room 12. Now we just have to find out, where is this section B. Maybe they have a plan somewhere."
"Well done. Rommie, do you think you could find the switch to turn these monitors on?"
"I can try," answered Rommie and sat behind one of the consoles. She checked it and then touched some fields on it. Suddenly the screen lit up and they could see the picture of the room it has been monitoring. It was completely empty and deserted. Rommie tried some more operation and then turned to Dylan: "Dylan, I think this system has been shut down in emergency. I can see, that the recordings end abruptly without proper shut down procedure. They were probably overruned by the Kalderans and simply shut down the system to protect something."
"Can you get it up again?" Dylan was curious, why would they shut down the system. He got a vague idea, that there must be something that they wanted to hide from Kalderans at any price.
Rommie nodded: "I think it shouldn't be a problem." For few seconds she played around the console and then all the screens lit up und soft humming of ventilation system filled the air. "Done!" she said with a smile and turned to Dylan.
He smiled back and gave her a friendly tap on a shoulder: "Thanks Rommie! You're really a treasure!"
She blushed at his words that flattered her. Not in the way she'd like to, but nevertheless. As Dylan saw it, he quickly withdrew his hand, and hastily looked away. "Well, now let's try to find out, what they were so desperately trying to hide."
Rommie turned back to the console and worked on it. After a while she said: "It might be more difficult as we think. There are some databases, which are protected and the level of protection is very high. I believe, I can break the codes, but it will take some time. So, I suggest, you just sit down and relax a bit."
Dylan nodded and sat beside her. As he looked at her, working and being fully concentrated at her work, he again admired her beauty. Suddenly a streak of her hair fell down and partially covered her face. Without really knowing what he's doing, he reached out and gently stroke the streak back. Rommie stopped her work and looked at him in surprise. He realized what he'd done and blushed while withdrawing his hand. "Um .. sorry, Rommie. I .. I don't know why I've done it."
Rommie's expression changed to a mild smile as she said: "Don't be sorry Dylan. I found it very nice from you. I .. I think I liked it a lot." She blushed too at these words and dropped her eyes. She wished he hadn't withdrawn his hand. If felt so comfortable, touching her cheek, stroking her hair. Her body cried for his touch and she looked at him, directly in his eyes. She didn't want to hide her feelings any more. Her eyes revealed everything she hoped for, everything she wanted so desperately to come true.
Dylan was taken aback by this look that burnt into him like a dagger. He realized she wants him, she wants his touch, his love. He slowly lifted his hand again and placed it on her cheek. She tenderly cocked her head a bit, so as to feel his hand and continued to look at him. Dylan felt, how a flood of emotion overwhelmed him and he stroked her cheek gently with his thumb. Her soft skin felt so silky under his fingers, so tender and warm. He pulled her closer and before he could realize what's going on, his lips were on hers. The tenderness of this touch sent a jolt through his body and he felt, like something that disappeared long ago came back: love, tenderness, satisfaction. He tried to withstand, but lost. The touch of her lips on his was the most beautiful sensation he experienced in the years.
Suddenly, somehow embarrassed, he withdrew: "Sorry, Rommie ... it .. it shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry."
Rommie's big dark eyes looked at him: "Please, Dylan, don't be sorry. I wanted it. And I wanted it desperately to happen. So please, don't apologize, just tell me it's true."
Dylan was taken aback by this sudden confession. He really didn't want his feelings to burst out so suddenly, but . here it was. It happened and nothing in this universe could reverse it. "Rommie, yes, it's true. But we shouldn't let ourselves be carried away by emotions right now. We have work to do. Maybe we should concentrate on it. We'll discuss this whole thing later, when we are back on Andromeda, OK?"
Rommie smiled. She finally got him admit his feelings for her! And she didn't mind him backing up now. She was aware of the fact, that they both need a clear mind right now. So she just nodded and turned back to the console.
After some seconds she said cheerfully: "I did it Dylan, I'm in! Now I'm looking for some interesting data." She suddenly went completely still and her eyes opened wide in disbelief. Her lips parted and she turned to Dylan with such a shock in her face, he'd never seen before. Then she spoke, spitting each word separately from her mouth and almost choking on them: "Dylan .. you ... won't .. believe .. what ... I've ... found!"