Chapter Ten
There was a package for her on her desk, it was wrapped inexpertly with white paper. She brushed it aside to see data disks and a hastily scribbled note. She held up the disks, running a experimental hand over the casing. It was older technology than she was used to dealing with, despite the fact she herself was outdated. The Cyborg set down the disks and glanced at the time, it was nine, and she had rationalized that she could work until at least eleven to make up for all time she had lost while in the infirmary.
Now that she actually saw what she was to be working on, she regretted her decision. She sat down in her chair and clicked open the outer casing and withdrew the hard drive. The Cyborg quickly stripped the device down to the bare minimum before attaching all the ports that she could. She let out a low breath of something between annoyance and indifference at how old the Son's of Korhal's technology was. She decided that as soon as they reached a station with any kind of purchasable upgrades, the Cyborg would have to insist on getting them.
The Cyborg was in the Systems before all of her wires were in. Accessing where the drive was located was easier said than done, the limited connections made entry nearly impossible, but once inside the device everything was muddled, information whispered at her in different voices, a muttering of different encryptions. It was like drowning, her mind was trapped.
A knock at the door pulled her out of the Systems so quickly, the Cyborg had to take a moment to settle her head. She took a shakey breath and closed her eyes.
"I know you're in there, Kathrine, you've been in there for the past nineteen hours. Open up, I brought dinner." The southern accent was recognizable anywhere. "It's now 13h15, you've worked enough."
The Cyborg quickly disconnect from the Systems entirely, slipping her hair on. She gave it a quick straighten. She went to the wall and type in the access code. The door didn't open. The Cyborg frowned and resubmitted the number. The Ship grumbled and a light bulb shattered.
"Kathrine? Everything ok in there?" The Marshal called through the door. The Cyborg let out a small sigh and pressed in the combination one final time. This time when the Ship tried to block the command to keep the Cyborg's office closed, the Cyborg punched in the code again. The door slowly slid open, in a reluctant manor. The Marshal grinned at her, holding up a box. "Hard as hello to get them to box it, but they wouldn't allow me to take the tray out. Are you gonna let me in?"
The Cyborg stood to one side, keeping her arm against the door to insure the Ship did not lock the Marshal out or try to close the door while the man was still in the door frame. The door closed slowly as the man put down the box on the desk.
"Not much in here. Though ya would've made it your own by now." The Marshal commented as he opened the box.
"I do not have th time to make this office personalized." The Cyborg said standing stiffly as the Marshal withdrew a bowl and two spoons.
"Yeah, I already had you pegged as a busy bodied neat freak, but not as someone who wouldn't spend four years in a room without taking the time to make it your own." He shrugged, "Ah well. Dinner, I know you are hungry. If I remember correctly your body needs at least 4200 calories to run effectively, meaning you should be eatin' every three hours. Not that you do."
"How do you know that?" The Cyborg said after an moment.
"You're not the first cyborg I've had the pleasure of talkin' to. And the Doc told me about ya a bit. Dn't worry, nothing bad, just the basics. Your age, your favorite color, your rank, want you like to eat."
She frowned at him, "That should be against the law."
James let out a laugh, "Darlin', we're in a stolen ship, on the run from the government we've all belonged to since birth with a bunch of people who are considered terrorists, and you are worried about confidentiality?" The Cyborg took a moment to process what he had just said, then nodded slowly. "Don't worry, we were talkin' as people with a mutual friend. Nothing for ya to worry about. We discussed your bad habit of not eatin' enough, a common habit with Cybernetic Beings."
"It's a hazard of being programmed the Cyborg stated calmly.
"I don't blame ya for not eating. I also get so wrapped up in my work I forget time is still goin'." By this time,. He had spread the dinner out. The meal was small, a bowl of soup, a sandwich cut in half, two cookies and a bottle of something that glowed an odd shade of purple, "Well, ya going to sit?"
"There's only one chair." The Cyborg stated.
"And it's made for someone your size. You're not exactly a giant." James shrugged. "I'll stand until you decide your office needs more chairs." He lent back on the desk, "I couldn't get two bowls, hope ya don't mind sharing."
The meal wasn't as awkward as the Cyborg had expected on being. Raynor was sharp, having more knowledge about things than she would have expected. He had a less refined sense of humor than the Cyborg was used to, but by the time they were walking back to her room, the Cyborg had a hint of a smile tugging at her lips. When they reached her door, they paused.
"Thank you for dinner, James." The Cyborg said, awkwardness finally making it's appearance.
He grinned, "Thanks for lettin' me in your office." He let out a chuckle as the corner of her mouth twitched as she suppressed a smile. "I'll see ya, Kitti. G'night."
"Goodnight." She said, typing in the code to her door. Just before she pressed the final number in, it hit her. "Kitti?" Kathrine turned around to ask James, but he was already gone. Biting her lip, she punched in the final number.
The door slid open smoothly revealing that the lights were already out and someone was breathing lightly inside. Not wanting to wake up the sleeping woman, the Cyborg found her way around the room by hearing and touch. She undressed quickly and got ready for bed.
The Cyborg woke before the woman, the room was still dark, but as before the Cyborg didn't need light to find her was around the place. She made her way to the bathroom, closing the door and switching on the light. She dressed, making certain that she looked sharp in the mirror. The Cyborg had just put back on her wig and straightened it when the door slid open.
"You could've woken me up." The woman said, her red hair pulled back in a messy ponytail.
"I did not want to, it is considered rude to do so if it is not an emergency." The Cyborg spoke, turning to face the woman. "We have met before, have we not?"
"I don't think so." The woman stated. Her tone was flat, no voice-inflection was present.
"My mistake." the Cyborg said, "My name is Kathrine Seline, Second Lieutenant, Cybernetics Corps."
"Sarah Kerrigan." The Ghost said. The Cyborg did not want to mention that they had in fact met, because that was rude and cybernetic beings were not supposed to be rude. "You done with the bathroom?"
The Cyborg nodded, "I'm going to breakfast now. Have a nice day." The Ghost let her pass by. As the Cyborg left their rooms, she didn't notice the dark glare being shot her way.
Sorry for the delay, life keeps throwing stuff at me. Before you get on my case about the whole Raynor/Kathrine thing, as a romantic relation, it's not going to last. I like Sarah/James waaaaay to much. But for the good news, I'm out of school, my french final was easy, my history final is another story entirely (tested on 1 1/2 sections of info we hadn't even read). As long as my latest curve ball doesn't try to kiss me on our date tomorrow, things should go faster. Hopefully. Happy Holidays and New Year! I hope to post before New Years, but no promises.
