Ch# 26 Taking the next Step

"No." She said, around a mouthful of noodles; sitting crosslegged on her bed in her underwear and a tank top.

"Sarah, you are gonna have to talk to him some point." He responded from where he sat at her desk. He couldn't help but smirk at the a glare she threw back at him— which was made markedly less menacing with her cheeks stuffed with noodles.

"We'll go debrief in the morning." She said after finishing her bowl and walking over to set it on the desk. "It's already past dinner time, anyway."

After she set her empty bowl on the desk next to his she grabbed his hand and pulled him back towards her bed with a smile.

"Plus, there are more pressing issues at hand." She said before gently and eagerly attacking his mouth with hers. The only sound filling the room was whispered words and an occasional peal of delighted laughter.

Just as Sarah had slipped off his shirt and started kissing down his chest, there was a firm knock at the door.

Michael immediately started to get up and grab his shirt before Sarah kissed him roughly and pushed him back down on the bed.

"Relax. It's just Vargas, I told him that we would be here if he needed anything once he finished dinner." She explained before pulling the blankets to cover them slightly, before calling over to the door, "Come on in, Vargas."

They both froze with wide eyes as High Elder Lyons stared back with an equally stunned expression after the door opened.

"D— What the are you doing here?" Sarah asked while she scrambled to stand up and create a barrier between her father and Michael, who was busy putting on his shirt backwards. Only after she was standing did she notice that she was only wearing panties and a tank top that were both slightly askew.

"I could ask you the same question." Her father stated, glaring threateningly towards Michael— who was sitting in a t-shirt and boxers with a blanket pulled over his lower half, avoiding any eye contact with anything but the floor. "Care to explain yourselves?"

"We were ju—" Michael started to say before a thought occurred to Sarah and her anger flared and she cut in.

"That's none of your business, sir."

Both men looked at her in surprise.

"Sarah, I—"

"What I do, in my quarters, on my time, with my boyfriend is none of your business. Sir." She practically growled. "So unless you had an official reason to come and talk to me, I think you should leave."

"Sarah…" Michael started, trying to calm her a bit.

"Stow it." She ordered without turning her head.

The High Elder opened his mouth to speak again but stopped when he saw the look in his daughter's eyes; he deflated slightly and exited without another word.

"You didn't have to snap at him like that." Michael said with his arms crossed.

"I thought I told you to stow it." Sarah snapped back at him as she leaned her hands on her desk. She was angry and embarrassed— not really sure what to do with the emotional cocktail that she had been suppressing, that was once again now swirling inside of her mind.

"Sorry but I don't take orders when we are in our underwear, Sentinel." He said with a bit of sass. "You don't have to be snippy with me either, I'm just trying to help."

"Yeah, well how about you worry about your relationship with your own damn father before you go sticking your nose into mine." She bit back bitterly.

"What the hell's that supposed mean?" Michael asked feeling more than a little attacked.

"It mean's don't start telling me what to do about my father when you can't even look yours in the eye." Sarah stated bluntly, getting louder and turning to face him as she continued. "You couldn't even tell him you don't like the idea of him boning that doctor, instead you act like a moody teenager. He's the whole reason you came out here and you can't even be honest with him about what you did out here or give him a piece of your mind for leaving! How the hell are you trying to tell me what to do?!"

"How that fuck am I supposed to tell him any of that?" Michael yelled in return. "Hey, dad I've just been spending my time killing an ungodly amount of people out here because I was chasing you down. Not sure if I was gonna kill you or save you— since you were my only family then up and abandoned me in a fucking hole in the ground with people who either wanted me dead or only wanted to use me. Oh, and by the way, how long have you been fucking my mom's best friend without so much as a word of fucking warning?! Maybe it would be better to have a tantrum and tell him I don't want him in my life anymore, like you! You call me a moody teenager but you're not much different!"

"Save the tragic hero bullshit for someone else. At least I'm fucking speaking my mind, asshole!" Sarah picked up his discarded pants and threw it at his face. "Why don't you go spend the night in your own damn bunk and keep your fucking nose out of my business."

"Fine, yeah, just push me away like you're doing to your father." Michael said, grabbing up the pieces of clothing she was chucking at him into a bundle in his arms. "It's obviously making you miserable but, go ahead and do whatever you want— I won't do jack-shit to try and help."

"Good, now get the fuck out!" Sarah yelled, throwing a book at him since she ran out of clothes to throw.

He deftly dodged the book and grabbed his coat before storming out and slamming the door behind him.

Sarah was left alone once again, her breath slowly evening out but her fists still clenched in anger. She walked over and picked up the book before chucking it across the room again.

"Fuck!" The young woman yelled in frustration before collapsing into the seat at her desk and putting her head in her hands. "Fucking dammit."

—

"Soooo…how've you been Leo?" Vargas asked hesitantly. The young man in question huffed under his breath while he pulled on his clothes.

Vargas had been gotten back from the chow hall and was coming to see the Sentinel when he had heard the tail end of their fight. When Leo stomped out and slammed the door all he had managed was an awkward wave.

"I don't want to talk about it, Vargas." He responded, slipping on a knit beanie and his large coat. "And I'd advise you to give her some space as well."

"Fair enough. You aren't gonna go running off into the snow covered night again, are you?"

"Nah, I'm just getting some air to clear my head." Leo said with a casual wave, departing through the doors of the Den.

Once he was outside, the brisk air nipped pleasantly at his exposed skin. It was a clear and cold November night. All was relatively quiet, save for the changing of the shift for the guards at the gate and the occasional echo of gunfire from outside the walls of the Citadel.

The anger slowly faded while he continued to walk aimlessly and really thought about what she had said. To his slight annoyance, he had to admit she had a point. Always sticking his nose into people's business had become sort of a habit while he had been wandering.

His current wandering had taken him up to the rooftop. He slipped his pack of cigarettes from his coat pocket but, when he put a cancer stick between his lips and tried to light it the flame wouldn't come out. Leo looked down at the lighter and struck it a few more times in frustration; only resulting in a futile spark.

"Damn, forgot to refill this thing again. Wonder if I can find something to refill this with around here." He said to himself, before looking around and spotting someone else leaning against the rail with smoke being puffed out into the cold night air every so often. The man was an officer judging by their matching coats, but he couldn't make out the insignias on the shoulder from here.

The young Paladin walked over and tapped the other man on the shoulder.

"Hey, do you have a light?" He asked, holding up his empty lighter with a shake. "Seems mine ran o—"

The words died in his throat as the unlit cigarette hung limply from his lips. Owyn Lyons looked back at the stunned young man almost as surprised as Leo. A lit cigarette was in his right hand and a lighter was in his left.

The older man's face contorted in anger at first and he stood up straight, opening his mouth to say something but stopped. He deflated with a heavy sigh and back to lean against the rail, but not before tossing the younger man his lighter without a word. The elder's eyes were directed back out to the clear night sky, a tired look written on his face.

"Thanks…" Leo mumbled hesitantly, lighting his own cigarette before handing the lighter back. Leo leaned backwards against the rail and looked up at the clear and beautiful blanket of stars above them. This night just seemed to get more interesting.

—

Smoke drifted in the air around them, occasionally dissipated by a stray breeze that bit at any exposed skin. Everything beneath the clear night sky was dusted white. The heavenly bodies looked down as they always did while they crawled their way westward.

They sat together smoking in relative peace until the younger man spoke up again.

"She told me about times she had been up here with you when she was younger, you know. When you taught her about celestial navigation." Michael said, not really sure why he felt the need to share but continued none-the-less. "It came up when we were looking up at the stars like this one time— that was when I found out we shared an interest in astronomy."

The corners of Owyn's mouth turned upwards ever so slightly at the warm memory.

"Ellie, Sarah's mother, is the one who taught me about the constellations." He said quietly after a while. "I had grown up in a vault, so I didn't actually see the night sky until I was already an adult. Even then, I never really paid attention to it before Ellie was with me…looking up at the stars tends to put a lot of things in perspective. I tried to do the same thing for my daughter when she was old enough to learn."

A comfortable silence settled between the two men before Michael noticed the older man looking down with a melancholy feeling exuding from him once again.

"She doesn't hate you or anything, just so you know."

Owyn turned his gaze towards Michael with an expression that practically said 'Could've fooled me.' out loud.

"Don't get me wrong— she's angry; about as a pissed off deathclaw and due to some real, legitimate grievances— but she still loves you." Michael said with a bit of a chuckle before adding, "If it makes you feel any better, she kicked me out too."

Owyn couldn't help but laugh at that. Somehow they had both managed to invoke his daughter's ire within the same evening. The younger man laughed along at their shared circumstance. When a comfortable silence once again settled it was the elder that decided to break it by saying something he knew was long over due.

"I'm sorry."

Michael looked over at him in surprise while he continued and explained.

"When I first found out about you and Sarah, I don't know what came over me." Owyn ran a hand down his face, feeling a mixture of things but still continued. "After her mother passed away, it's just been me and her. She's my whole world. I wanted to protect that; and when I found out, I thought you might be taking advantage of her and I just…lost it. So I am truly sorry, to both you and her."

"It's ok, I think I can understand where your coming from a little bit." Michael said with a smile, rubbing the healed scar on the side of his head which was surprisingly small. He reminded himself to thank the medic for the good needlework. "The blame is also partially on us for hiding it. We should have at least acted like adults and told you honestly."

"I guess we both learned a little bit from this whole ordeal." Owyn chuckled.

"Agreed. " Michael finished his cigarette and looked down at his pack to find it was nearly half gone despite having been full when he came up. "I think I'm gonna head back down and see if she will let me apologize. By the way, I think she forgot to mention we need to meet with you tomorrow about some things we found out while we were out there that are…important."

"My schedule is relatively clear tomorrow morning so feel free to drop by my office with Sarah— if she'll be able to tolerate being in the same room as me." Owyn said burning closer towards the end of his own cigarette, looking up to the stars again. He was looking at the Polaris when the young man's footsteps stopped, prompting him to look at the serious expression on the young man's face as Michael turned to look at him.

"I love Sarah."

Owyn wasn't really sure how to react but the surprise was at least evident. He had know that his daughter had strong feelings for the young man but, he had never been sure of what their actual relationship was other than sleeping together. Let alone just what this young man specifically felt or intended in relation to his daughter.

"If that list of marriage candidates or suitors, or whatever, is still around— or even valid anymore— I want my name added to the list." Michael stated firmly, taking a few steps toward his superior with his shoulders squared and head held high, eyes set on Owyn's. "I'm not sure what your customs are; whether I have to be a certain rank or social status, whether I have to go in front of the council or bring you the head of a deathclaw or something but no matter what it is I will do it. I will move heaven and earth to show her, you, and everyone else that I am serious."

Owyn stood silently, momentarily to stunned to really have any discernible reaction until he threw his head back and erupted in laughter. Michael shifted his weight for a minute from one foot to the other. He wasn't really sure what to make of that reaction but he didn't shoot him in the head, so it was an improvement at least.

"Our traditions aren't so medieval as that, but it does give me a few good ideas." Owyn said when his laughter slowed down. "But, before I start adding anyone to that thrice-damned list I will have to talk to Sarah. The only thing that really matters is how she feels about you."

"Good." Michael said with a broad and genuine smile. He was happy to finally tell her father up front and honestly how he felt. "Thank you, sir."

"Your welcome." Owyn said, turning back to lean on the railing once again.

"Goodnight, sir."

"Goodnight, Decker."

Owyn let the cigarette hang from his hand and slowly burn away while he looked up at the stars with a smile lingering on his lips.

—

He looked at the door to her office/quarters and hesitated, then looked around at the handful of other soldiers that were passed out already. Her light was still on which meant she was probably still up, but as to whether she was still angry or not was still up in the air.

Michael couldn't help but feel that he was walking into a possibly inhabited deathclaw nest as he inched towards the door. Finally gathering the courage, he knocked firmly.

"Who is it?" His lover said back in a firm but tired voice.

"It's me."

There were a few tense moments of silence before she said, "Enter."

He slowly opened the door and stepped inside before quietly shutting it behind him. She was still in the same state of dress when he left earlier; panties and a tank top with nothing underneath. To say it was distracting would be an understatement but he managed to focus for now.

"Hey." He said weakly, trying to get a read on her mood as she leaned against her desk.

"Hi." She said, glancing at him but looking mostly at the floor.

They both seemed at a loss for words but the tension in the room finally pushed Michael to fold first.

"You were right." He blurted out, guiltily rubbing the back of his neck and looking at the floor as well. "I developed a habit of poking my nose where it doesn't belong and giving advice I don't follow myself. I just…I thought…I don't know— I guess I sort of suck at stuff like this."

"No, it's my fault." She conceded with a guilt heavy tone. "You were just trying to help and I directed my anger at my dad to you because I didn't know what else to do with it. I'm just so frustrated with him I just…" She padded forward and thudded her head lightly on his chest. "I'm sorry for being a bitch."

"Well, I'm sorry for being an asshole." Michael responded with a smile, sliding his arms around her; making her smile up at him in return. They connected their lips gently, and then again with a bit more passion. They slowly parted their lips and slid their tongues into each others mouths but Sarah made an unexpected noise the was muffled slightly but her partner's mouth and tongue.

She withdrew with a scrunched up expression on her face and put a hand on his chest as she leaned back to look at him.

"Ew, you taste like an ashtray…" Her sentence trailed off as she registered a vaguely familiar shape in his chest pocket under where her hand rested. She slipped her hand into his coat and then extracted the crumpled half full pack of cigarettes and held it out in between them. Her face changed slightly as she narrowed her eyes.

Michael didn't need superhuman senses to notice the abrupt shift in the atmosphere of the room.

Thinking back on it, he would remark it was similar to the feeling of being ankle deep in scrambled deathclaw eggs and seeing a dull green glow in his peripheral vision.

"Michael…" She started in an eerily measured tone. "Care to explain why you have these?"

—

"A cyborg?" The Sentinel asked, voicing both her and the Paladin's thoughts.

"Yes." The High Elder confirmed, nodding. "Star Paladin Cross was on the initial voyage from California to the D.C. ruins. She was severely wounded while defending Rivet City— which at the time, was just a newly developing settlement with not much in the way of defense capabilities. One of the founding members of Rivet City, Dr. Pinkerton, wanted to repay her for her sacrifice for them— so he equipped her with a significant amount of cybernetics which let her continue serving as a soldier. They make her faster, stronger, and more efficient— she barely needs to sleep or eat to be able to function normally but she is still very much human."

"That's good to know." Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. Star Paladin Cross was a close friend of her father's and even though Sarah technically outranked her, she still very much looked up to her as a role model— as she had since she was younger.

"However, as for the other android— Security Chief Harkness— the council will have to decide. It is very fortunate that you have discovered this operation in the Capital Wasteland." The High Elder stated. "It may prove to be a difficult task to counter an enemy such as this, should we become adversarial."

"For the time being I believe since we've already made contact under the guise of a team of mercenaries, that it would be best to continue to act as such." The Sentinel proposed keeping a firm and business-like tone. "This being their first operation in the area may mean they aren't very interested in it in the first place. If we were to either find their android successfully or deceive them into thinking it has died then they would most likely cease their operation. If we eliminate Dr. Zimmer, it could attract attention from the main organization."

"What you say is true, but until the council decides what to do, try to minimize contact. At the very least, consider them extremely dangerous— especially that bodyguard in tow. We still don't know what kind of combat capabilities they might have." After he got a 'yes, sir' from both of them he continued. "Now then, you mentioned there was a second discovery you had while you were out?"

"Y-yes, that…" Sarah hesitated and glanced back at her subordinate. "What I'm about to tell you should be kept in the utmost confidence unless absolutely necessary."

Her shift in tone gave the High Elder a strange feeling. He looked over to Rothschild and once he got a nod in agreement at the unspoken next step, the High Elder pressed a button underneath his desk. Immediately all of the locks on the doors clicked shut and armored shutters came down over the windows. He looked to a small light on his desk that switched from a blinking red to a steady green.

"Alright, SCIF mode has been activated. We're clear to speak freely."

Leo was still looking around, clearly surprised and a little confused. Unlike Sarah, who had been privy to meetings in SCIF mode before. Rothschild looked at him and let a small chuckle escape him as he explained.

"Don't worry to much Paladin, SCIF stands for Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility. It just means we secured the room and scanned for any possible bugs. We got the idea from some designs and documents found here from the old world military; it works quite well. This isn't our first secure meeting and it won't be the last."

"Oh, I see." The young man cleared his throat and refocused.

"Alright, now that we have the room secured you are free to brief us on your findings." The elder Lyons said to the younger.

Well, it's a bit difficult to explain…" Sarah started, trying to think of a way to explain without sounding ridiculous. "Do you remember that old movie we were playing on a projector that time you came to visit the Den?"

"I believe so." The elder answered, not sure how it was relevant. "I seem to recall it was about abductions, or some kind of life from another planet. Fire in the Sky, I believe was the name. Interesting film but, it seemed far-fetched to say the least."

"Well, turns out it's not as far-fetched as you'd think…"

—

"This…I can barely believe what I'm seeing…" Rothschild half whispered in awe, as if speaking to loudly would make the alien technology and weapon sitting on the desk vanish without a trace.

"Then I take it you are willing to believe that we aren't joking or crazy?" Sarah said with a slight smirk. She forced it off her face again when she looked at her father.

Her father was silent, like he had been while she had generally explained the situation with the USS Kickass. Her stomach was busy tying itself in knots.

"Yes we believe you, but we will need to see this before we decide on how to best handle the situation." Her father finally said. He look at the two younger soldiers seriously.

"Well, getting there is a bit difficult and I don't think more than one of us at a time cou—"

"That can be arranged." The Paladin said, stepping forward and placing a small metallic cylinder— about the size of a purified water— onto the desk. Immediately, all eyes were locked onto the cylinder. It was smooth and completely clean; no visible markings on it that any of them could see.

He twist the top and small lights along the side of the device blinked to life.

"What is that?" Rothschild asked excited curiosity.

"It's— Well, I think it will be easier to just show you…" He said with a smile as he reached towards the top of the device that now had a small green light on top in addition to the white lights on the sides. "It can only be used by one person at a time, but to use it you just place your hand here on the top and…"

He lowered his hand to demonstrate as he spoke and a few seconds after his skin made contact with the top of the device, light suddenly engulfed his entire body and then disappeared in the blink of an eye.

He was standing there with them one second and in the next, he was gone.

The other three in the room stood like statues looking at where the Paladin was standing a moment before. The light on the top of the device had turned red and then switched back to green.

Before Sarah or her father could comment Rothschild placed his hand on top of the device like Leo had. The smile on his face got even more giddy as light enveloped him and he disappeared as well. Her father shrugged and after the light turned green he followed suit with the same result.

Sarah was the last one to arrive on the ship but once her vision cleared enough to see with general blurriness, she found herself on the USS Kickass in the Captain's quarters. Dizziness and nausea caused her to reach out for something to support her but, she soon felt a pair of muscular arms reaching out and keeping her steady.

She leaned against Leo's chest for a moment as the nausea and vertigo dissipated and looked up at him gratefully. She knew she was still supposed to be mad at him but, she felt herself folding into his now familiar warmth once again.

Her father cleared his throat from where he stood nearby and they quickly detached themselves with a light blush. Rothschild was examining something in the room when a thought suddenly occurred to Sarah and she turned towards her boyfriend.

"Did you happen to have that thing before or after you stuck me in the back of that flying death machine when we first came up here?" She asked with a tight smile that dripped with poison as she grabbed Leo by the collar to stop him from getting away from her.

When he saw that he was cornered he sighed in defeat. "I…picked it up last time we went by my house in Megaton."

"Flying death machine?" Her father asked, still listening to them with a ghost of a smile on his face.

"It's a long story, let's focus on the task at hand." She said letting go of Leo's collar with a glare that promised that the subject would be visited later. With her ire successfully rekindled, they had corralled Rothschild and stifled his ranting about teleportation before they walked out onto the bridge of the ship.

The Head Scribe looked like he was about to explode as he looked out at the curvature of the Earth beneath the ship.

"The ship is currently in geosynchronous orbit above the D.C. ruins." Leo explained. "We have been able to move it around the planet but we haven't tried to go below a certain altitude because we might not be able to stop it from plummeting to the surface once we get to low."

"How big is this ship?" High Elder Lyons asked. "What kind of crew did it take to operate it?"

"I believe the ship is about the size of two Citadel's stacked on top of each other." Leo said, ignoring the shocked expressions that both Rothschild and Elder Lyons adopted. "We have been able to operate it half decently with a crew of 4."

There was a noise from the teleportation pad and the small group looked back to see Soumah wearing an easy smile.

"Good morning everybody." She said casually walking forward. "Before you ask my names Soma, pleasure to meet ya."

Sally and Elliot also joined them on the bridged. They exchanged greetings and continued to talk about the specifics of the ship until they came to a rather important question that Owyn had been wondering since he had heard about the situation.

"Who is in command of this vessel?"

Everyone was quiet for a moment and both Sarah, Soumah, Elliot, and Sally looked over to Leo, who was still looking out of the viewing port with his arms clasped behind his back. No one needed to say the answer out loud. He now saw why Sarah had been a bit vague on some of the aspects of the situation as it involved the young man.

"I'm sure your aware of the risk your taking showing this to us." Owyn said to him. "So, why do this?"

"Power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely." He answered simply, repeating the phrase he had told to Sarah. His knuckles turned white as he gripped his own hands behind his back and continued to look down on the planet. "I'm sure you can feel it too. The siren's call."

An unseen tension rippled through the small group. Quick glances were shared and everyone felt a slight churning in their guts. They all knew what he was referring to; the power hungry part that was rooted deeply in more primal parts of their humanity. Most people could usually avoid contact with that part of themselves for most of their lives, but it always lurked behind the veil of civility and kindness.

With power as great as what was held on this ship sitting within grasp, it was no wonder everyone present immediately felt slightly uncomfortable. Like part of themselves they didn't like had finally been exposed.

"Not many people would be wise enough to turn away from something like that, let alone someone as young as you." Owyn said, breaking the silence on the bridge once again. Everyone knew if this man decided to embrace those common desires, there would be little they could do to stop him. At 20 years old, he had the power, knowledge and opportunity to dominate everything on the planet but, he chose to walk away.

"For what does it profit a man if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?" The young man loosened his grip and turned around to face them. His eyes softened when he found Sarah's and he smiled. "There are much more important things than power."

Everyone smiled a bit and breathed a little easier; no one besides Owyn, Sarah, and Leo understanding that his reason for walking away from absolute power and world domination was staring back at him, suddenly barely reigning in the burning ache for him in her chest.

Owyn couldn't help but let the ghost of a smile brush across his features again as the young couple got lost in each other's eyes for a moment. If he had any doubts about this young man's devotion to his daughter before, they were immediately extinguished when he saw the raw sincerity in both of their eyes.

'Damn.' He thought to himself. 'I'm starting to like him again.'

.