Nothing In The 'Verse
Episode 30: Empire
Warning! This program has detected the possibility of (relatively minor) LEMONS ahead. Proceed with caution.
Fortune's Favour. En route to Persephone.
Dani leaned back in her captain's seat on the bridge, Lori reclining in her lap. She softly stroked her lover's short red hair, trailing her hand down her freckled neck and shoulder. The scar from her wound a month ago was pretty well healed now, one round puckered bit of pink flesh below her left collarbone and a matching one in the back behind her shoulder blade. "It's a gorram shame, really," Dani murmured.
"Hmmm?" Lori purred, snuggling against her while running her hand along Dani's other arm.
"Well, yer scars," Dani explained, smiling. "Means you lost some freckles."
Lori snickered. "Really? That's what yer concerned with?"
"Oh absolutely," Dani whispered as she nuzzled the neck in front of her. "I kept a very accurate count, now I hafta start all over again."
"Oh, darn," Lori breathed dreamily. "Wanna get started on that now?"
Dani's response was interrupted by footsteps on the stairs leading up to the bridge. The two women straightened themselves in case it was one of Dani's girls, as they tried not to embarrass them overly.
Instead, Jess and Keith entered, hand in hand.
Dani smirked at the couple. "You two look 'specially glowin' today."
Jess smirked right back at her. "Tried something a little new last night." Keith just rolled his eyes good-naturedly.
Lori, though, jumped up excitedly, grabbing Jess by the shoulders. "Was it my suggestion? Did I inspire you?"
"Um, yes? I suppose so?" Jess actually blushed a little.
Lori jumped back and did a little twirling dance. "I'm helpful, I'm helpful..." she sang as she skipped off the bridge.
Keith grunted. "Jie-jie (older sister), your girlfriend is a dork."
Dani smiled fondly after her beautiful redheaded lover. "I know."
Inbound to Persephone. Lux.
That evening as she was heading to bed (and a pair of sultry freckled arms), Dani got a call from Rain on the bridge. She plopped herself in her chair to answer the Wave.
Of course, since she was disheveled and ready for bed, it was Ms. Harrison from Blue Sun.
The corporate drone quirked an eyebrow, the most expressive Dani had seen her. "Did I catch you at a bad time?"
"No, no," Dani tried to reassure her, vainly attempting to pull her hair back in some semblance of order. "Just gettin' ready for bed with... um, yes, bed... gettin' ready... What can I do for you, Ms Harrison?"
"We were very pleased with your crew's performance on the last job," the corporate drone started without further preamble, "and we'd like to extend another offer to you. It has potential to meet with your crew's... unique qualifications."
Hmmm, that got my attention. "Yes?" Dani prompted.
A half hour later and she was at the galley table with several disgruntled and disheveled crewmembers who had been roused out of bed. Dani had to force Lori to return to the bunk and put on more clothes than just the skimpy robe she was wearing, else she'd not be able to concentrate on her briefing one whit. Lori gave her a wicked little smirk on the way out, making her blush slightly. How does she still manage to do that to me?
"Alright, folks," she began once everyone was assembled. Julie and Kelly were nice enough to rouse out of bed as well to pass out coffee and tea, and were in the alcove playing cards while Cali watched them with interest.
"We have another job offer from Blue Sun. This one's a doozy, and I apologize ahead of time, but I already accepted. And I'll explain my reasonin' in a sec."
Keith gave a sleepy grunt. "I think we all trust you, jie-jie (big sister)."
His assertion was met with nods from around the table. Dani just sighed, smiling. "I really don' deserve you guys," she said softly.
She cleared her throat and continued. "So, here's the deal. Blue Sun is trackin' an ex-Independent terrorist who they believe is plannin' on releasing a bioweapon on Ariel."
She let that sit for a spell, as there were shocked gasps from around the table. Even the women in the alcove sat up straight when they heard.
Jess laid her hand on Dani's arm. "And you thought of the Copperline job, right? Yes, absolutely, I think we're all with you on this."
"Great," Dani smiled, "now for the details. It's gonna be a little diff'rent from our other jobs, but I think we c'n pull it off."
She continued to explain how Blue Sun knew the identity of the terrorist, a man called Alex Sebastian, and the details of how he stole the bioweapon. A scientist by name of Dr. Vladimir Nekhorvich was defecting from Biocyte Pharmaceuticals to Blue Sun with a copy of the bioweapon, as well as the only existing copies of the antidote. The scientist was on a passenger liner from Persephone to the Blue Sun system when Sebastian, who was posing as crewman, gassed the crew and passengers, stole the biologicals, and set the engine to self-destruct. The entire ship was lost with all hands, but a recording of the event survived, hence the intelligence.
Blue Sun was able to detail the weapon, a new virus called Chimera and its cure, Bellerophontes. Chimera was as highly virulent as the one from Copperline; however unless it was injected, it is only infectious when the victim expires, when it is released into the air.
"And this Sebastian is on Persephone right now?" Lori asked in a hushed voice. "That's a pretty populous planet in itself."
"Yep," Dani nodded, "which is why Blue Sun hasn't asked the Alliance military to bomb the place. Even though they know how it gets transmitted, still pretty dangerous, yeah?"
The crew agreed unanimously that this was definitely worth their while, especially as Blue Sun was paying handsomely to avert disaster. While the company wouldn't mind if they were able to retrieve the virus itself, they were far more interested in obtaining the cure, Bellerophontes. In any case, it was imperative that Alex Sebastian be stopped.
Persephone. Lux.
The Favour had travelled to Persephone, where Sebastian maintained his hideout. The ground team set out to do a basic recon without being spotted.
"One here," Keith murmured over the comm where he lay with Jess on a hilltop nearby the complex. "You guys seeing this?"
"Roger that, One," Dani whispered back. She and Lori were set up on a large rock on the opposite side, concealed by the shadows of a mountain range. "Five and I have eyes on target." While Lori had her scoped sniper rifle, Dani had borrowed a pair of binoculars from her brother.
"Four here," Sara chimed in from the Mule concealed well down the road. "No traffic so far. What do y'all see?"
Keith gave a grunt. "It's a gorram fortress, lots of troops. Pity Blue Sun needs this done cleanly. If I were running this op back in spec forces, I'd recommend orbital bombardment."
Dani sighed. "One, I genuinely wish we'd taken the time to see Mikki and Dev. Those body armors could've come in real handy 'bout now."
"I know, Two," Keith rumbled quietly. "Nothing to do about it now."
"Nope," Dani replied darkly. What I get for puttin' it off till we had full coffers again, shoulda made smaller trips... ah well, like he said. Work with what we gots.
"Hey, Two," Keith mused, "got an idea. What about Badger?"
Dani laughed. "What, that xiao pianzi (petty crook)?"
Keith barked a laugh back. "Yep, but he's the only one we know here. Might have something for us, either info or where to get it. We need intel, no way we can handle a frontal assault."
"You're right," Dani sighed again. "Not like that drug dealer's hideout, is it?"
Badger's Den. Persephone.
"Well now, if it ain't the good Capt'n an' her big gorram hun dan (bastard) of a brother," Badger drawled as Dani and Keith entered his office, escorted in by a few gun-wielding goons. "An' what c'n I do fer ya on this fine day?"
"Evenin', Badger," Dani smirked, sitting down, "you wouldn't have any of that very fine tea you served us last time, wouldya?"
Badger barked a laugh, showing his bad teeth. "Sorry luv, not that partic'lar brand, but I gots somethin' else ya might 'preciate." He gestured to the side, and a thin waif of a girl brought in a tray with three tea cups. Dani raised her eyebrows in her direction, and Badger waved away her concern. "No, luv, not like tha', she's me daughter, learnin' the trade, as it were. Than' ya, luv," he smiled at the girl as she left.
Keith and Dani shared a look. Badger procreated? She repressed a shudder.
Taking a sip of the tea, she could not, however, conceal her reaction this time. "Wo kao (well fuck me / holy shit)!" she exclaimed. "Is that... didya put gorram sake in the tea?"
"Tha' I did, luv," Badger gave her a wink. "Ya like?"
"Ji du (Christ) yea," she grinned. Turning to her brother, she gave him a nudge. "Okay, now I gots my new fav'rite way to drink tea."
"No rutting way am I letting you drink sake in your tea before you pilot a ship," Keith grunted. He was, however, greatly enjoying his own cup as well.
"Now then, business, luv," Badger continued after taking a healthy slurp of his tea.
"Right," Dani cleared her throat. I drink this whole cup an' Keith's carrying me back to the ship.
Keith started in with the explanation of what they needed, and were willing to pay for. They requested both information and a nice landing pad that might be set aside for less-than-legal activities, where they could conceal the Favour for awhile. Eavesdown Docks was just too exposed if they were engaging in covert activity.
"Well, then," Badger grinned, leaning back in his chair and lacing his hands behind his crumpled, dirty bowler hat. "I c'n help ya on both accounts. It'll cost ya, one o' two ways as I see it."
Keith gave a grunt. "Go ahead, what do you have in mind?"
"Well," Badger explained, "I 'ave this here cargo tha' needs moved, see, an' my reg'lar crew ain't been seen in awhile now. You move it fer me, out ta Space Bazaar, an' we c'n call it even."
Dani coughed lightly. "I don' think we're gettin' out to Space Bazaar anytime soon, Badger. Much as I'd like to help ya out, I think we'd better just pay you in hard coin."
Badger shrugged carelessly, putting his hands on the table in front of him. "Up to you, luv. Now, 'ere's what I got for ya. Landing pad, coords I c'n give ya, good place ta hide out fer a week until I need it again. And for the intel you need on this fella, I c'n give ya a name. Only cost ya a grand, but that's 'cause I like the two of ya."
Dani smirked. "Pleasure doin' business, Badger."
The siblings were on their way a little bit later, Dani perhaps swaying slightly on her feet though she'd deny it if called out. She transmitted the coords and passwords to the Favour for Rain to move the ship on over.
Meanwhile, they had a gentleman by the name of Luther Stickell to meet with.
Southdown Abbey. Persephone.
The two siblings were sitting in the lobby of the Abbey patiently. They had requested an audience with one of their Shepherds, who had at one time worked with Sebastian before seeing things in a different light.
Soon enough a burly, dark-skinned man walked through. His barrel chest strained the Shepherd's vestments he wore, and the collar of his order was tight around his burly neck. His head was shaved, and a face that likely could have intimidated the toughest of criminals wore a broad, welcoming smile.
"Hello my friends, I understand you wished to see me?" Luther asked. "Although you will pardon me if I don't recall having met you before."
"Mr. Stickell," Dani smiled, shaking the proffered hand, "my name's Captain Dani Grant, this's my brother and First Officer, Keith Grant. Would you mind helping us out by answerin' a few questions?"
"Certainly!" he boomed, shaking Keith's hand next. "But please, call me Luther. Now, what is it you wish to know?"
"We're tryin' to stop a very bad man," Dani began, lowering her voice, "that I understan' you were acquainted with. Alex Sebastian."
Luther's eyes drew down and his face lost it's civil veneer. "Yes, I knew the hun dan gou niang yang de (bastard son of a bitch). You say you want to stop him?"
Keith nodded. "He's got a bioweapon."
"Ta ma de di yu (fucking hell)!" Luther exclaimed, then lowered his voice again, looking about sheepishly. "Er, I mean, yes certainly I will help anyway I can. What do you need?"
"What c'n you tell us about 'im, his weaknesses?" Dani asked hopefully.
Luther gave a heavy sigh, and sat down on a bench against the wall. "I used to run with his gang before I saw the light. The things he's capable of... You have to understand, he's one seriously sharen bu zhayan (stone cold killer). Going up against him? Well, you're gonna be in shui shen huo re (deep water and scorching fire / abyss of suffering), no two ways about it."
He leaned back with a trace of a smirk. "As far as his weakness goes? I only know of one, really.
"Redheads."
Fortune's Favour. Smuggler's docks. Persephone.
"No. No ruttin' way."
Dani was pacing around the galley furiously. They can't seriously be askin' me to be okay with this.
"Dani," Keith began again, "I know you feel deeply about this, but for the love of Buddha, will you at least try to listen?"
"I'm not listenin' because there's nothin' to listen to. Already said it. No. Ruttin'. Way." She continued to pace, head down, not wanting to look anyone in the face, especially not...
She had to come to a halt at a pair of bare feet. It was obvious who they belonged to by the freckles on the tops, running up the legs and disappearing under the short skirt her girlfriend always wore. Gorramit she's wearin' my favorite green one, too, she thought miserably, tears blurring her vision.
"Dani," her redheaded lover said gently, "we hafta do this."
"No, we ruttin' well don't hafta, we c'n find another way, some other... we c'n talk to..." she trailed off, hiccuping, tears now flowing freely down her face as she wrapped her arms around her own middle.
Lori whispered something to the rest of the crew, and then gently led Dani towards their bunk, easing her down the ladder and closing it behind them.
"Lori I... I don' want you to do this, please please don' do this..." Dani trailed off.
"Why not, lian ren (sweetheart)?" Lori asked quietly, as she stepped forward and enveloped her in an embrace.
"Because I can't stand the thought of you bein' with a man, of bein' with someone other than me," Dani wailed, her voice muffled in Lori's shoulder.
"An' it won't mean a gorram thing, bang jiar (lover/partner)," Lori answered quietly. "Yer the only one fer me."
Dani looked up at her, still hiccuping. She ran her thumb across Lori's freckled cheek lovingly. "I wanna marry you," she whispered.
Lori's eyes got wide. "Now?"
"No, not now you lan ren (loon)," she choked out, "but I do wanna marry you. Yer my zhi'ai (most beloved), and nothin' in the 'Verse will change that. You've met my whole family and they love you. I wanna meet yer family. And then I wanna marry you."
She slipped out of the embrace and faced the wall, sobbing quietly. "So you jus'... you just 'member that. I can't tell you not to, you're right, we hafta at this point. But I don' hafta like it."
"Okay, wo de ai (my love)," Lori whispered. She laid her hand on Dani's shoulder, and then started up the ladder to talk with the others, closing the hatch behind her.
Dani flung herself on the bunk, feeling like a gorram idiotic teenager, and even though she hated herself for it she wailed into her pillow anyways.
Skylight Lounge. Persephone.
Lori.
Lori couldn't blame her lover for her misgivings. Truthfully, she had some of her own. Oh, not that being with this man would mean anything to her, quite the opposite. She didn't know how good an actor she could be to pretend to enjoy it, when all she would be seeing in her mind were a brilliant pair of green eyes staring at her with love and compassion
She was easily able to slip into her role of a waitress again. Fortunately the Skylight Lounge, where Sebastian frequented the most, happened to be hiring, and she was easily the most qualified. Even if it had been a long gorram time since she waited tables.
Some things, she mused, come right on back to you.
"Here you go," she said cheerfully as she delivered the table's food order. "Anything else I can get ya?"
"Nothin' just yet, darlin'," the beefy redneck drawled, patting her behind familiarly, "but mebbe some dessert later?" His buddy at the table leered at her suggestively.
"Now boys," she demurred, easily maneuvering out of his grasp, "eat yer food 'fore it gets cold. I'll be back with the check in a jiff."
She walked back to the waitress station, putting a little extra wiggle in her walk. Always racks up the tips, she smirked to herself. Yep, comin' right on back to me...
"Lori, hon, you sure you've been outta the business for awhile?" one of the other waitresses, Darlene, asked.
"Sure enuff," Lori smiled, "guess it's in my blood, huh?"
They turned as a party of four men came in. "Oh no, it's that Mr. Sebastian," Darlene hissed. "He's a gou se (shit/crap) tipper and grabby as well."
Lori smiled again. Perfect. "It's no problem, hon, I gots them. Close to your break time anyways, yeah?"
"Oh thank you sweetie," Darlene gushed, scurrying out into the kitchen.
Lori took a deep breath, squared her shoulders and put on her best professional smile before walking over to where they had seated themselves.
She walked up to the table and got her first good look at Alex Sebastian. Problem was, he didn't look like a murdering terrorist. Looks more like a vid star, she thought wryly. Dani's gonna give me hell once she sees what he looks like...
"Hi there," she chirped. "My name's Lori, and I'll be your server today. Can I start y'all with some drinks?"
"Well, well boys," Sebastian drawled. Gorramit he's got a nice voice too. I am madly in love, I am, and I do not need to be remindin' myself of that fact. "What have we here? Where have you been all my life, gorgeous?"
Only one person gets to call me that, she snarled to herself. Okay, maybe it won't be so hard to resist his advances... Outwardly, she tried her best to look abashed. "That's awfully nice of you, mister, but I'm just the new help. Can I get somethin' for ya?"
The four men ordered drinks and appetizers, and Lori flounced off to get them, taking extra care to give them a good view as she left. C'mon little man, take the bait...
She really wished there was some way to keep in contact with the crew. In fact that was the only point of this whole op that she had reservations about. She felt very isolated, but there was nothing she could do. She had her handheld in her purse, currently stored in a locker, so she could get information out, but there was no way to keep her comm on or to bug her in any way that Sebastian wouldn't detect.
So she was on her own.
When she brought the food and drinks back, Sebastian was staring at her with an intensity that almost took her aback. It was full of lustful need, but she was pleased to note that all it did was repulse her.
"So, darlin'" Sebastian began as she set the drinks down, "what time do you get off?"
An' the trap is set, she thought to herself, as she smiled prettily and looked as coy as possible from under her eyelashes.
An hour later, she was leaving the lounge on Sebastian's arm towards his hovercar. From the shadows across the street, Sara whispered in her comm, "This is Four. Target is on the move with Five."
Fortune's Favour. Smuggler's docks. Persephone.
Dani was back to pacing the galley again, this time in irritation. She was snapping at everyone, even her daughters. She knew she was acting like a biao zi (bitch), but she really couldn't care right now. The thoughts and images that kept swirling around her head were driving her to shen jing bing (insanity).
"Dani," a quiet voice intruded on her brooding. She stopped and looked up to see Maribelle and Kelly sitting at the table, watching her warily.
"What," she asked irritably.
"Sit," Maribelle commanded, pointing to a chair in between her two friends. She gave an aggrieved sigh, but did so. They both immediately latched on to her, giving her comforting hugs.
"This sucks so much gou se (shit/crap)," Dani whispered angrily.
"Yep, it does," Kelly answered. "It's go tsao de fang pi (dog fucking bullshit), and you've got every right to be shengqi (pissed) at the situation, but you've got to stop taking it out on everyone else."
"That's 'cause I can't take it out on who I wanna take it out on," Dani growled.
Maribelle looked at her in surprise. "Who, Lori?"
"No, of course not!" Dani shouted, leaping to her feet again and continuing to pace. "It's that qiang bao hou-zi de, qing wa kao de liu mang (monkey raping, frog humping son of a bitch) Sebastian, and I wanna take a pair of pliers to his balls!"
"Shenme ta ma de (what the fuck)," Keith rumbled as he walked in the room. "Tell me how you really feel, jie-jie (older sister)."
Dani whirled around and stalked towards her brother. "You! You let her do this, you, you... bun tyen-shung duh ee-dway-ro (stupid inbred sack of meat)!" she screamed.
"I know, Dani," he said calmly, planting himself in front of her. "Just let it out, okay?"
"Aarrggh!" she screamed again, incoherently, and started hammering away at his chest with her fists. She wasn't really trying to hurt him, but she imagined he would have some bruises come morning. After a few minutes she had spent her aggression, and slumped against his chest, sobbing angrily.
"I know, jie-jie (older sister)," he rumbled in his quiet baritone, wrapping his arms around her. "I know."
Dani just whimpered one last time, and then let out a sigh of frustration.
"Better?" he asked mildly.
"Strangely enough, yes," she smirked wearily. She looked around at Maribelle and Kelly. "Sorry guys."
"It's okay, sweetie," Maribelle smiled at her.
"What about me?" Keith asked.
Dani barked out a laugh. "Oh, you deserve it one way or t'other. I'll just thank you instead."
Keith chuckled and gave her a squeeze before releasing her. "I'll take it. Now, if we're all calmed down, I got a transmit from Lori."
Dani used the hem of her shirt to wipe her face, and nodded. "Alright, let's hear it."
They sat down at the table, and Keith placed both hands in front of him, splayed out. "It was a short-burst transmission. She confirmed she's in his complex, and actually got some useful intel right away from an overheard conversation about Chimera. Something we didn't know about."
Dani sat back in her chair. I am not going to think about what's goin' on in the hun dan's (bastard's) bedroom. Focus on the mission. "Okay, didi (little brother). What did we get."
"The Chimera virus has a 20-hour dormant period before it causes death through mass destruction of the victim's red blood cells," Keith read from the handheld he pulled out from his thigh pocket. "Bellerophontes can only save the victim if used within the 20-hour window."
"Wo kao (well fuck me / holy shit)," Dani whispered.
Skylight Lounge. Persephone.
Dani knew it was a bad idea, but she had to see Lori again. If nothing else, just to make sure she was really alright. And yes, she was using the excuse of debriefing her for more intel. Didn't stop her from getting her gorram way for a change.
She strode into the Skylight Lounge in the middle of Lori's shift. According to Sara, who was posted outside the building again, Lori had been dropped off by Sebastian right before her shift began, so she hadn't had the time to contact the ship.
Noting the sign indicating patrons should seat themselves, she picked a small booth at the back of the lounge, near the employee area. They didn't seem terribly busy. Fortunately Lori had seen her walk in, and her only reaction was a brief widening of the eyes before she murmured something to another waitress and headed over to her table.
"What're you doing here?" Lori hissed through her smile.
"Relax," Dani smiled up at her, keeping her face pleasantly blank. "Nobody's close enough to hear you, and nobody's watching." She looked down at her menu as if trying to decide what to order. "I hadta see you, see how you were doin'," she whispered. "Duibuqi (I'm sorry), I'm jus' not strong enough for this wo de ai (my love)."
Lori sighed softly. "I missed you last night," she whispered back.
Dani buried her face into her menu to hide her brilliant smile. "I'm glad. I missed you too."
"Deng yi miao (hold on a sec)," Lori murmured, "Be right back."
She was back maybe a minute later with a cup of tea, done just the way Dani liked it. After placing it in front of her, Lori smiled and sat down in the bench across the table from her. "I told them you were a close friend who came to see where I worked," she smiled. "I'm due for a break anyways."
"How are you doin'?" Dani whispered.
"My feet hurt," Lori complained softly. "An' I forgot how much I hated random guys grabbin' my ass. An' I wanna drive a steak knife into Sebastian's neck."
"Oh good," Dani murmured under her breath.
Lori giggled softly. "I heard that."
Dani rolled her eyes. "Well, I'm sorry, I jus'..." She sighed again. "This sucks."
Lori reached out her hand to lay it on top of Dani's, but then stopped herself at the last minute and returned it to her lap. "I know."
"No, you don't," Dani hissed. "I'm sitting here across from you, I'm shengqi (pissed) as diyu (hell) about this whole situation, and all I c'n think about is tearing yer clothes off!"
Lori flushed a light pink. "Exactly."
Dani's eyes widened slightly, and Lori gave her a smirk.
"What d'ya think I've been imaginin' doing since I saw you walk through the door?" her redheaded lover asked quietly.
They sat there for a couple of beats, staring at each other. "It's a sou zhu yi (rotten idea)," Dani murmured desperately.
"It is," Lori agreed. "Employee bathroom is through those doors. It locks."
"I'll be right behind you," Dani whispered.
They locked themselves in the employee bathroom, and immediately shared a fierce, passionate kiss, grinding their bodies together desperately.
"Dani," her love panted, breaking contact with her lips. "I gotta... listen, I gotta tell you..."
"I'm listenin'" Dani murmured against her skin, nipping at her neck.
"Ai ya, huai le (shit on my head)... " Lori sighed breathlessly. "Okay, yeah... so Sebastian, he's not at all anxious to... oh, god Dani... he's not in a hurry to get to Ariel... but he's been talkin' to... Merciful Buddha will you let me finish..."
"Not stoppin' ya," Dani smirked as she ran her hands over Lori's body.
"Mmmm, okay, so he's been talkin' to a local Blue Sun rep here, top guy, don' know the name... Ta ma de (fuck me blind)," she ended in a whimper.
"You done talkin'?" Dani murmured.
"Cao (fuck) yeah, yes I'm done..." Lori moaned.
"Good," Dani growled heatedly.
YOUR PROGRAM HAS CAUSED A LEMON TO OCCUR. CONTINUE (Y/N)?
Dani pushed her lover up against the wall, pulling Lori's skirt up and plunging her hand down her soaking wet panties. They both gasped as her finger slipped right in with no resistance, even at that angle.
Lori seemed to have the same idea, and used both hands to undo the front of Dani's pants enough to slip her own finger down into Dani's equally wet clitoris. They shuddered, mashing their lips together again. Neither one was inclined to be gentle, working their fingers in and out of each other furiously, juices flowing down their wrists and onto the floor.
She needed her, needed this. She desperately craved the contact, the connection with her bang jiar (lover/partner). One finger was joined by another, simultaneously as if they were synchronized. Their fingers moved in rhythm together, their bodies squirming in unison. Dani moaned into Lori's mouth, their undulations were sending her into a frenzy.
Panting desperately, Dani broke away and cried out Lori's name as she started to crest quickly, her body aching with need. Her explosion still took her by surprise, and was enough to send Lori over the edge as well. They trembled in each others supporting arms, sighing as they caressed their partner's clits soothingly, bringing each other down from their high.
Dani gave Lori another passionate kiss as she withdrew her hand gently, and Lori did the same.
YOUR PROGRAM HAS RECOVERED FROM THE LEMON CRASH
"I love you," Dani murmured. I will not cry, I will not cry...
"I love you too, beautiful," Lori murmured back. "And yeah, in case it wasn't obvious, I wanna marry you too. You're my zhi yin (soulmate) an' I wanna spend forever with you. Okay?"
"Okay," Dani whispered, and cried anyway.
Blue Sun Local Branch. Persephone.
Later that evening, the ground team (minus Lori) were in position to gather more intelligence on the situation.
Keith and Jess were watching from a rooftop across the street from the local Blue Sun building. "One, target on the move," Keith rumbled into his comm.
"Two, roger that," Dani whispered back.
The head of the Blue Sun Corporation branch on Persephone, T.R. Devlin, was walking out of the front doors of the building, on his way to dinner. As usual, his ground car was waiting at the curb for him. He stepped inside, and ordered briskly, "To the restaurant please, Agatha." Then he looked up in surprise. "Wait, who are you?"
Dani smiled into the rear-view mirror. "Agatha came down with the flu. I'm her replacement for this evenin'."
"What?" Devlin huffed. "This is most irregular, I'd like to see some- Wait, now who in the rutting hell are you?"
Sara had nimbly slipped into the back with Devlin through the other door. "All part of the package, sir!" Sara chirped, as she quickly injected him with a knockout serum. The Blue Sun rep slumped over wordlessly, and Dani sped away to the rendezvous.
A few kilometers away, Maribelle was waiting for them outside a local doctor's office which had already closed for the day. They got Devlin out of the car as Keith pulled up in a hovercar. He'd left Jess behind to observe the Blue Sun building for any sort of reaction to Devlin's abduction.
Keith quickly defeated the lock and they hustled Devlin into one of the examination rooms. The team quickly stripped the room bare of any posters or medical implements, and Keith strapped their victim securely to the examination table. Then they got out the pair of spacesuits they had stored in the back of the hovercar. Unfortunately they didn't have access to hazmat suits, so this would have to do.
"You really think he'll buy this?" Sara asked doubtfully.
"No worries, sweetie," Maribelle smirked. She held up a vial and tapped the bubbles out, cleaning a patch on his arm before injecting Devlin. "This will wake him up, but it's also got a mild hallucinogen in it. He'll buy it."
They all left the room, Dani listening at the door while Maribelle and Keith got their suits on. Soon Dani heard moans coming from the room, and shortly thereafter a series of panicked shouts for help. She turned and nodded to her crewmates, and they stepped past her into the room.
"Who... who are you people?" Devlin asked in a trembling voice. The man was neatly groomed but somewhat heavyset, and his face was sweating furiously. Of course, that was likely due to Sara having cranked up the heat for that room.
"Hello Mr Devlin," Keith answered gravely. "Who we are is not important. There is only one thing you need concern yourself with now."
"What? What's that" the strapped-down man asked tremulously.
"We have injected you with the Chimera virus," Maribelle answered offhandedly. "You are eighteen hours into your twenty-hour window. That gives you another two hours to live."
As the man's eyes widened in horror, Dani giggled to herself quietly. Maribelle is pretty good at this, gotta 'member that the next time some subterfuge comes up.
"But, but... oh sweet Buddha, no... ni zai jiang shen me pi hua (what the fuck are you saying)? What do you want? Please, do you have a dose of Bellerophontes?" Devlin was fairly close to tears already, obviously not thinking clearly as his eyes bugged out of his head, looking around the room frantically.
Maribelle kept the overhead swinging light directly in his face, as Keith leaned over menacingly. "What we need to know, Mr. Devlin, is everything you know about Chimera, and Bellerophontes, and what you've been talking to Mr. Sebastian about."
"Yes, yes alright, I'll tell you everything, alright!" he babbled anxiously.
And Devlin proceeded to spill the beans, as it were, in a spectacular fashion. Nekhorvich had actually injected himself with Chimera, the only way he could smuggle the virus from Biocyte, and had all the known samples of Bellerophontes, now presently in Sebastian's hands. And the terrorist seemed to be more of a criminal than the mass-murdering type. He was in talks with Devlin, wanting money to not infect Ariel and for the copies of Bellerophontes.
After returning Devlin in his groundcar, passed out again in the back seat, to the original destination of a fancy restaurant, Dani and Sara hopped into another rental hovercar parked nearby, while Keith and Maribelle picked up Jess.
Something was bugging Dani, and she couldn't quite put her finger on...
"One," she said thoughtfully into the comm, "we gots full vid of Sebastian on the liner, right? And his grabbin' the case?"
"That's correct Two. What are you thinking?"
Dani suddenly stepped on the brakes, swerving to the curb. She stared at Sara in shock.
"He never took any blood from Nekhorvich," she whispered into the comm. "Sebastian doesn't have a copy of Chimera."
Fortune's Favour. Smuggler's docks. Persephone.
This time Dani was joined in her pacing around the galley by Keith. The others had to grin at the obvious similarities between the two siblings as they moved about, arms crossed, but they themselves were oblivious to it.
"But how c'n we use this?" Dani pondered. "We can't tell Blue Sun, they'll just call in an orbital strike, and Lori's in there still. Plus, then they don' get Bellerophontes."
"And it does us no good yet..." Keith mused with an identical expression on his face.
Then the intercom crackled to life. "Kaasan," Rain said, "we got 'nother flash transmission from Lori!"
Dani strode over the the speaker quickly. She could just as easily head to the bridge, but it'd be easier if everyone present got the news at once. "Can you read it for us, sweetie?"
"Yeah, um, lemme see... okay, so Sebastian is goin' out tomorrow night, to raid a lab... yeah, it says he's gonna hit the Biocyte lab here on Persephone."
Dani looked up at Keith, grinning. "That's it!" she crowed. "He must be frustrated with Devlin's draggin' of his feet. He's gonna go get a copy of the virus itself!"
"Then they must have copies still in that lab," Keith rumbled.
"And we're gonna get to them first, and destroy 'em. Sara," Dani whirled to her middle daughter. "Stake out the lounge as usual tomorrow. When you see Lori, pull her out right away. We'll plan to raid the Biocyte lab right at dusk, Keith and I, 'fore Sebastian gets there."
She then turned to Jess. "While Sebastian has all his men out on the raid, you and Sara and Lori will raid the house. Lori will know where stuff is, you c'n grab the Bellerophontes for Blue Sun. Sebastian is foiled, and Blue Sun c'n have the Alliance navy blow the gorram place into a crater fer all I care."
Keith leaned against the wall, smirking. "Sounds like a plan, jie-jie (older sister). Let's start organizing some raids."
Biocyte Pharmaceuticals. Persephone.
The plan had seemed flawless at first, but as such things often do, fell apart quickly.
The first problem was that Lori never showed up at the Lounge for work. She didn't transmit any more either, so she was either a prisoner or Sebastian decided to keep her around. Dani refused to consider other, more permanent, possibilities.
So instead of a three-person raid to steal Bellerophontes, it was now a two-person rescue as well as a theft. They would be going in fairly blind, but Dani had faith in both her sister-in-law and daughter to pull it off. Please, god, let them pull it off...
The other problem was that they had no blueprints of the Biocyte lab. Fortunately that was quickly rectified by Dani calling up Badger again. They were delivered within the hour for a fair price, for Badger anyways.
And so Dani found herself on the roof of the nine-story Biocyte laboratory building, with only a very narrow window of opportunity to get in. They assumed Sebastian would simply barge in the front, as it was the easiest path. They had to be more circumspect so as not to tip the terrorist off to their presence there.
Keith, who had dropped Dani off on the roof, would stand by on the comm and in the car on the next roof over. He'd keep an eye on the building front. "If they come in through the underground garage, though, I won't be able to give you warning," he had warned her.
Alright, Dani, here we go. Ready to be the big damn hero?
She stood at the entrance to the airshaft and adjusted her Ares pistol in her holster. There would be a fifteen second time period when the air recyclers would be shut off every hour, to reset the breakers. They were of an older design which necessitated such measures, fortunately. During that time, the fans would be off, but more importantly, the alarms to the grates (which were tied into the power to the fans) would be off as well. Keith didn't think they were aware of this deficiency in their security system.
She watched the seconds tick down on her wrist display, holding her power tool in a tense grip. Five... Four... Three... Two... One... With an audible thump, the fans in the roof unit came to a halt, and Dani quickly started to undo the bolts around the grate. Keith counted the seconds in her ear.
"Three seconds... Five, six, seven, Dani move your pigu (ass), ten seconds, eleven, Dani, Dani! DANI!"
"Ta ma de (fuck me blind)!" she screamed as she ripped the last bolt away, threw the grate and tool aside, and dove through the fan blades. Her foot had barely passed through before the fan started up again.
"Wo kao (well fuck me / holy shit) that was close!" she panted.
"Had me worried there, Two. Get moving, keep me informed."
"You got it, One." She sighed, and started crawling through the ventilation ducts.
She got about fifteen meters before the ducts started sloping downward at a 45-degree angle. And what Dani had not taken into consideration, the moisture inside the ducts that had been sucked out of the humidity-free rooms, quickly made her descent an uncontrolled one.
"Oh, shi-" Dani squeaked as she hurtled downward at a speed she felt should be reserved for spacecraft, not people. Fortunately her descent was halted when the airshaft levelled out again, and her rear bumped against the bottom of the duct, hard.
"Oof," she exclaimed, rubbing her butt. "Gonna have a bruise on my pigu (ass)..." she trailed off in horror, realizing that she could very easily have landed right overhead from security guards. She strained to listen, but couldn't hear any reaction.
"I'm such a bendan (idiot)," she muttered irritably. She adjusted her comm in her ear, as it was jarred in the fall, and opened the channel to Keith.
"One, this is Two, sit check," she murmured. She tried several times with no response other than static. Must be too deep inside the building for comms.
"Jingcai (brilliant)," she muttered, starting forward again.
According to her handheld, which somehow survived the fall, she was actually right around the fifth floor where the lab should be. At least, that's where they hoped it would be. Dani wished they had the time to get ahold of a Biocyte employee to find out more, but they had no idea who would have access to the lab, or who would go unnoticed if missing. Plus, they didn't want to tip their hand too early. Alright, alright, so it's just wishful thinkin', get yer head back in the game...
With any luck, the air vents would not be alarmed. She would be able to tell from this end if they were, and so far none had been. The labs themselves were too cluttered for a decent alarm system other than on the doors and windows.
And then, after a few turns, she was above the lab. The first vent didn't give a very good view, but it wasn't alarmed. The second one afforded a better view, and was also not alarmed. She was able to peer around, and found a medical storage cabinet against the wall. Bingo. Now, if the gods of thieves and criminals would just be with her a little longer...
Sure enough, she couldn't spot a camera anywhere. Must be too sensitive an area, can't make recordings of what goes on, she thought.
Dani pulled out her unpowered tool and slowly began to unscrew the bolts. It was a laborious and clumsy process from this side, but eventually she got all free and, holding onto it, twisted the grate around so she could bring it back up rather than let it fall to the floor.
She tried reaching Keith one more time before heading down into the lab, but she could barely make him out through all the static. Dani shrugged her shoulders, hoping the reception would be better outside the ducts.
Gripping the edge of the vent, she slowly lowered herself into the room so as to avoid detection. She got about halfway before slipping and falling straight down in a heap.
"Tai-kong suo-yo duh shing-chiou sai-jin wuh duh pee-goo (shove all the planets in the universe up my ass)," Dani muttered angrily, rubbing new sore spots on her body. "They make this look so ruttin' easy on the vids!"
"That's because they can fake it on the vids," came a quiet baritone voice over the comm.
Dani jumped up and did a little dance. "Hey there, One! Missed ya!"
"And I got eyes on you right now. Stop dancing."
"What? Why?" Dani spun around, trying to get her bearings and spot where Keith was watching from.
"Because it's unprofessional, bendan (idiot)," Keith grunted back. "Get to work."
Dani blew a loud raspberry into the comm, and started moving over to the medical cabinet.
"You are so lucky we have the same mother," Keith grumbled irritably.
"Oh wen wo de pìgu (kiss my ass), dork," Dani answered with a smirk. She stood in front of the cabinet, examining it thoughtfully. "Don't see no alarms. Looks like a normal cabinet. Didn't think they'd just keep it in the open like this."
"They wouldn't," Keith said grimly.
"Well, thanks sunshine, that's reassurin'," Dani snorted. She grabbed the handle and pulled it open, to be confronted by another door, this one a combination safe. "Okay, that's more like it. Keypad combo on a heavy reinforced door. Do I use the doohickey now?"
"Doohickey?" Keith mocked. "You mean the Ruxcon Combo Cracker?"
"Right, the doohickey!" Dani grinned, pleased to be getting under his skin so easily tonight.
Keith just sighed tragically. "Yes, Two, by all means use the doohickey."
"Alright!" Dani cheered quietly. "Deploying the doohickey!"
She hooked the device up to the combo lock as Keith had demonstrated earlier, and hit the keys. Nothing happened. "Um, sorry One, no lights on the doohickey."
"Did you turn it on?"
"Um, sure I did..." she trailed off, finding the switch on the side. She then was able to get the keys to work. "Oh, hey, yeah it's workin' now!"
Keith just sighed over the comm again. If Dani didn't know better, she could have sworn she heard him counting to ten quietly to himself. Then he murmured back, "So I suppose Cali doesn't fall too far from the tree, eh?"
"Now what's that supposed to mean?" Dani snarked back, watching the lights spin by as the combination lock was slowly cracked. Suddenly it lit up green, and the door popped open. "Right, we're in," she reported tensely.
Opening the door, she could see several different shelves of liquid ampules. Unfortunately they were marked by number, not name. "One, I need the specification number for Chimera."
"Right, I have that... Okay, Alpha Foxtrot Charlie Five Four One Niner."
Dani searched the shelves until she came across four ampules with the corresponding identifier. "Alright, we're in business, One. Movin' to the decom cabinet."
For high-risk biologicals such as Chimera, there was a separate chamber to use for working with them. The sample would be put into one end of the large transparent plasteel box and sealed in. Then the scientist would use the integrated gloves on the other side to work with them. The chamber in this room also had a high-UV light to destroy samples, and that was what Dani was preparing to use. She loaded all of the ampules, plus an injector, into the chamber and then walked around to turn on the UV light and thrust her arms into the rubber gloves that stretched inside. Loading up one ampule into the injector, she pressed the lever to disperse it into the box.
"One, got the first done."
"Roger that, Two," Keith answered. "Still no activity."
She was starting to dare that they might be able to pull this off without incident. Dani got the second and third ampules loaded and dispersed safely, but as she loaded the last one, her luck predictably ran out.
The door to the lab burst open, and gunmen entered. On seeing Dani standing at the cabinet, they immediately opened fire.
"Wang ba (son of a bitch)!" she screamed, lunging towards the safety of heavier lab equipment behind her. The cabinet behind her was shattered by the high-velocity shells from the gunmen's assault rifles, and glass rained down on her head. Her comm unit went skittering off into the back of the room as she clumsily shoulder-rolled into cover.
Dani wasted little time in pulling out her Ares sidearm and returning fire. She dropped two in quick succession, then darted towards new cover as her old position came under fire again. She repeated the process, only to see several more henchmen enter the room, firing at her.
She could only squeeze one shot off before she was forced to scramble back towards better cover, finally lunging behind a heavy-duty steel counter. Dani checked herself frantically, finding no bullet wounds but plenty of scrapes. Also, just within reach was her comm unit. She waited for a brief lull in the gunfire before darting out to grab it, and then quickly returning. For her efforts, she took a small graze to her forehead. Nothing serious, but she had to pause and grab a bandage out of her kit before blood started to block her vision.
As she was bandaging herself, she noticed the rate of fire drop off, and then cease at the shouted instruction of someone. She peeked around her cover, desperately searching for the last ampule... and immediately spotted it on the floor, just outside her reach and in between her and the gunmen. One of them was crawling towards it for retrieval, and she quickly dispatched him
Putting the comm unit back in her ear, she winced at Keith's panicked shouting. "One!" she hissed furiously. "I'm here! Bi zui (shut up)!"
"Ta ma de di yu (fucking hell), Two, what's going on?"
She poked her head back around cautiously, trying to see her opposition. "I think Sebastian just crashed the party," she murmured.
"Ai ya, huai le (shit on my head), must have come up through the garage. I can see movement now, they've got the lobby sealed off... Gorramit Two, they've got a small army in there!"
Dani laughed mirthlessly. "Yeah, dao xie (thank you), I c'n see that."
"Can you extract?" Keith asked worriedly.
Dani looked around the room. "I can't see any way out that's not in the line of fire. There's a window across from me, behind some more cover, that I could make it to... Looks like north side? Fourth window from... yeah, from your right corner."
"Alright," Keith murmured. "Fifth floor, north side, fourth window from right."
"Not yet though," Dani warned. "I still gotta get the last ampule, can't let them get ahold of... deng yi miao (hold on a sec)," she whispered. Someone had started clapping condescendingly. Sebastian.
"Well done, pengyou (friend). You played a very good game. But I'm afraid I win now." Sure enough, that would be Sebastian. "There's no way out, and I hold all the cards now."
"Shenme ta ma de (what the fuck), all the cards?" she muttered to herself, risking another peek around the corner.
Alex Sebastian was standing just behind a set of his goons, and next to him, restrained by two more henchmen, was Lori in a short dark blue dress. One of the men had a gun pointed at her head.
Clenching her jaw tightly, Dani ducked back around. "One. That ching-wah tsao duh liou mahng (frog-humping son of a bitch) has Five hostage."
"Ta ma de (fuck me blind)," Keith groaned. "I'll notify Three and Four to abort. Hang in there."
Sebastian had seen Dani, and he chuckled evilly. "Ah, it's you, of course."
Dani squirmed uncomfortably. How does he know me?
As if in answer to her unspoken question, Sebastian spoke up again. "I've suspected this little chang fu (whore) for some time now, so I made sure to view the security footage from the Skylight Lounge. Oh yes," he laughed, "I should mention I do own the place. I saw the two of you in the employee bathroom, it made for very kinky viewing, my thanks for that."
Dani heard Sebastian move, and looked around again to see him grab ahold of Lori, gripping her arm tightly and putting his own gun to her forehead. "Now then, please tell me, is that the last sample of Chimera there on the floor?"
Dani growled deep in her chest. "Shi a (yes, affirmative)," she gritted out angrily.
"Excellent. Now then, my pretty little biao zi (bitch)," he directed at Lori, thrusting her in front of him. "Go get the ampule. Get it for me, and both you an' your little friend c'n go free."
"Fang pi (bullshit)," she growled under her breath. No way was Sebastian letting either one live tonight. "Keith, what do I do," she whispered desperately. I can't save her, I can't get us both out alive, gorram useless once again...
Lori walked slowly over to the vial, her sandaled feet crunching over broken glass. Peeking around the corner again, Dani could see she had a massive bruise on the side of her face, and a split bottom lip. She still thought Lori was the most beautiful person in the 'Verse right then, especially when she looked up at Dani with those light brown, fierce eyes.
She crouched down and picked up the ampule, still inside the injector, with trembling fingers. Standing up, she looked back over and gave Dani a sad smile. "I'm sorry, beautiful," she whispered.
And then injected herself.
Dani and Sebastian both screamed "No!" though Dani's was more from shock and fear, while Sebastian's was full of fury.
Dani looked at her lover numbly for a beat, and then thinking quickly she tapped the keys on her wrist display, setting a countdown timer for twenty hours from now. She dimly heard Sebastian ordering his men to grab Lori and kill Dani. They opened fire again, but Dani hardly flinched, she just stared uncomprehendingly at Lori as two of Sebastian's henchmen dragged her backwards, the ampule falling from her fingers to shatter against the floor.
"Why...?" Dani whispered, panicked, though it couldn't be heard over the sounds of gunfire.
Lori must have understood, but all she could do was give her a small smile as she was pulled behind the other gunmen.
She was startled out of her stupor by Keith's voice barking in her ear. "Two, I'm outside the window! Extract!"
Eyes flashing, Dani turned her head back towards Lori, though she could no longer see her past the gunmen. "Lori!" she screamed. "You stay alive gorramit! I will find you and I will come to you, but you stay alive!" Tears filling her eyes, she shot out the window across from her and sprinted towards it, leaping out into the night air, trusting in her brother to be there to catch her.
Fortune's Favour. Smuggler's docks. Persephone.
Dani slumped in her chair at the table, exhausted and drained. Maribelle was tending to her graze on her forehead, as well as another on her arm she hadn't noticed. Must've picked it up flying out the window, she thought with detachment.
"We were able to get in pretty easily, there were few guards left," Jess was reporting to Keith. "Got a decent layout of the place, between Sara and I, if we're going in there again. But we got your signal before we could explore too far."
Sara was sitting at Jess' side, but looking at Dani worriedly. She gave herself a shake. No time to fall apart right now. Lori needs me, my crew needs me. Get your gou se (shit) together, girl.
Dani straightened up in her seat and placed her hands on the table. All eyes turned towards her as she cleared her throat. Sara was looking at her with trust and confidence that empowered her immediately.
"So. We need to rescue Lori, and we need Bellerophontes. And we need to kill Sebastian. All within the next..." She looked at her wrist display, wincing. "Sixteen an' a half hours. Keith, gimme a plan."
Keith gave a grunt. "We need to make sure everything is in one place for us to hit. Let me check some things, I got a tap into the local Blue Sun network from when we pinched Devlin..." He tapped a few keys on his handheld. "Right. This will work. Next morning, twelve hours from now, Devlin is due to meet Sebastian at the fortress. Looks like he's bringing payment this time for the Bellerophontes."
He looked up from his display at Dani. "We use that as our entry time. Sebastian will have the Bellerophontes with him. Lori should be there as well, maybe as a demonstration of its effectiveness."
Dani nodded firmly. "Right. Full frontal assault?"
"Oh yes," Keith smirked. "Sebastian's going to realize he shouldn't ta ma de gen women (fuck with us). Jess gets to use the grenade launcher again." His wife grinned a little at that announcement. "Jess, Dani, and myself will go in the front, crash the aircar that I flew tonight into the front doors when Devlin pulls up. Gate guards will be occupied. Sara, you use the noise and distraction to sneak in through the back and find Lori."
Keith steepled his fingers in front of his face thoughtfully. Dani knew her brother was the best around at this sort of thing, and she had every confidence in him pulling this off. "Primary objectives," he rumbled, "are Bellerophontes and Lori. Secondary is killing Sebastian. Dong ma (understand)?" He directed the latter at Dani.
Dani nodded again. But no way is that go tsao de wang ba (dog fucking son of a bitch) gettin' away from me if I have a shot.
Sebastian's Compound. Persephone.
Dani stared at her wrist display. Only four and a half hours left. They were cutting things so close. She couldn't sleep a wink last night, instead taking out her frustrations on the poor punching bag in the hold of the Favour. Every other available time was spent planning and equipping their raiding party. I'm coming, Lori. Hang on.
Their aircar had dropped Sara off well behind the large house, and now they were circling in, waiting for Devlin to pull up to the gate before they began their assault.
"There!" Jess cried. "I see him, moving down the road... about one minute out!"
"Four, you copy? One minute to insertion," Keith murmured into the comm.
"Roger that, One," Sara piped back.
They sat in their seats tensely, waiting for Devlin's car to approach the gate... and then it was time. Keith hauled the controls over, and they sailed down towards the front doors of Sebastian's compound.
Dani clenched her arms around her harness tightly, bracing for impact. This is gonna hurt...
With a loud crash, and a screech of metal, they were down. Dani was thrown against her restraints but they held. She fumbled with the buckle, releasing to tumble out onto the floor of the lobby. "Wo kao (well fuck me / holy shit)!" she mumbled dazedly, looking around at the devastation. The bodies of several guards lay under the rubble, and Keith was already up and moving, assault rifle in his hands, and firing at several gunmen who raced into the destroyed room to see what happened.
Dani gave herself a slap upside her head to clear the fog. She looked around but couldn't see where her shotgun had fallen in the aircar. Shrugging, she pulled her Ares out and headed towards Keith. Jess was stationed by the front to delay any reinforcements.
The two siblings quickly made their way down the hallway to where Jess and Sara had indicated Sebastian's study lay. Several guards attempted to stop them, but surprise was on their side now, and the response was sporadic and, ultimately, ineffectual. Dani and Keith handily dealt with any guard in their path.
They crouched at the final intersection to the study. Several guards were inside, under good cover and firing back. "Gorramit," Keith shouted, then opened the channel on his comm. "Three, need you back here, stat."
After but a few seconds (Damn that girl is freaky fast, Dani thought with amusement) Jess arrived at their location, sliding into position next to her husband.
"Lian ren (sweetheart)," Keith began with a smirk, "would you mind clearing that room for us?"
Jess grinned excitedly. "Deng yi miao (hold on a sec)," she giggled, adjusting the controls on her grenade launcher and setting it for close range. She used the digital selector to choose a high-explosive payload and swung out into the hallway, quickly sending the grenade into the room ahead. She ducked back around just as quickly, avoiding the splinters of wood and furniture fragments that came flying towards them. The explosion was deafening in the close confines of the hallway.
"Niubi (fucking awesome)!" Jess yelled exuberantly, and Dani had to agree. The doors to the study were still intact, though barely. They looked about to be blown in by a stiff breeze.
Keith gave his wife a wink, and moved quickly ahead to secure the study. Dani moved up right behind him. She heard the barking of Keith's rifle, and a few shots shattered the wall panel next to her. She ducked cautiously, but immediately popped back up again as Keith reported "Clear!" into the comm.
Dani walked into the study to see a large metal case sitting on top of a massive wooden desk. The carpet in front of it was smoking slightly from Jess' grenade.
Keith was standing behind the desk, rifle pointing at something behind it. She walked around to see Sebastian, clutching his bloody abdomen.
Dani smirked, as she crouched down next to the terrorist. "Looks painful," she commented nonchalantly.
"Qu si (go to hell)," he groaned, blood spilling from his mouth.
"You first," she grinned darkly. She stood back up and leveled her sidearm at his right eye.
"One, this is Four!" Sara broke in. "I can't find Five anywhere up on the second floor!"
"Gorramit," Dani snarled, shoving her pistol back in her holster furiously. She gave Sebastian a kick in his side, causing his to yelp in pain.
"Where is she?" Dani growled, bending over the bleeding terrorist.
Sebastian coughed weakly, blood dripping down his chin. "Why, I let her go, of course." He coughed again, a wad of blood spilling onto his chest.
"Where?" Dani screamed, grabbing the front of his shirt, heedless of the bloody mess.
Sebastian gave a bubbly laugh. "Eavesdown... Docks..." he wheezed in one last breath.
Dani dropped him and stood up. He meant to release the virus into the population, let her die right there and infect all the ships coming in an' out of the port... She looked at Keith with wide eyes.
He gave her a firm nod and barked into the comm as he grabbed the metal case, "Favour, we need extract, now! Everyone, front lawn!"
They raced out towards the lobby again, meeting only very minor resistance. Sara dropped down in front of them as they entered the lobby, and they raced out into the yard.
Over the hill they could see several guards moving up towards the house, but they were ignored. Rain was bringing the Favour in to pick them up, maneuvering with deftness that made Dani proud. The ramp was already down, Cali clinging to the strut and waving them in frantically.
The four members of the ground crew jumped on, and Cali yelled into her comm "Go, Rain, go!"
As the Favour smoothly headed skyward, Dani slumped against the ramp controls. "Rain," she shouted frantically into her headset, "we need to get to Eavesdown Docks, fast. Any open pad, don' care if'n someone's in a landin' pattern, find one fast and touch down quick enuff fer us to disembark. Dust off again and get into high orbit, wait fer our call. You copy that?"
"Shi a (yes, affirmative) Captain," Rain answered tersely.
She felt the ship bank as Rain headed for the landing pads. Keith was handing out the four ampules of Bellerophontes, one to each ground team member. Dani accepted hers, staring hard at it.
"Sara," she called out, not looking up. "You stay on the ship."
"No."
Dani blinked, and looked up at her daughter, who had walked over to stand in front of her, arms crossed and a resolute look on her face.
"Am I on the ground team or not?" Sara demanded.
"But, baobei (treasured one)," Dani whispered, tears filling her eyes.
"Forget it. I'm coming." Sara gave her a smirk, one that labeled her as more of a Grant than any blood tie ever could.
Dani sighed and smiled tearfully at her. She just gave her a nod. Sara turned to give Cali a tight hug, murmuring in her ear.
"Touch down in fifteen seconds, get ready to jump, I gots a big freighter about to land on our heads," Rain shouted over the intercom.
The four ground crew lined up at the ramp as Cali started to lower it again. Dani glanced at her wrist display. Less than an hour left. God, please be there Lori...
Eavesdown Docks. Persephone.
The four crew had jumped from the ramp rapidly enough, enabling Rain to fly the ship back off again. They split up, fanning out in the crowds to find where Lori had been left.
What if they just put her in a room somewhere instead of just dropping her off? What if the twenty-hour limit ain't exact? Her thoughts were whirling frantically in her head as she ran through the dense crowds shouting Lori's name.
She pushed past a stall of bright floral scarves and right into the path of a trio of Tong enforcers, who knocked her down without sparing her a glance. As she rebounded off of the pavement, she heard the sound of glass breaking.
Eyes wide in horror, Dani stumbled to her feet and looked down at her pocket where the Bellerophontes ampule had been. A wet stain was now spreading out from it, and she could feel shards of glass dig into her thigh. She glanced at her wrist display. Fifteen minutes left.
"LORI!" she screamed desperately into the crowd.
"Two, I have her!" Sara shouted over the comm. "Just gave her the serum, she's gonna be fine!"
Wiping the tears from her face, Dani sprinted in the direction to where Sara indicated they were. Approaching the square, she could see that Lori had gotten herself propped up against the statue in the middle of a fountain to give her as much visibility as possible before collapsing.
Heedless of the water, Dani splashed over to where Lori was sprawled next to Sara, who was helping her sit up. Dani threw herself at her lover and hugged her tightly. "You are such a bendan (idiot), and I love you so much."
Lori smiled weakly. "Aww, I love you too, beautiful. Never had a doubt you'd find me in time."
Dimly Dani heard Keith call the Favour back down to retrieve them, asking Rain to find an actual open pad at Eavesdown. Dani just kept hugging Lori tightly, sobbing.
Fortune's Favour. Eavesdown Docks. Persephone.
Dani was lying naked on her stomach and on her bed. Lori, still a little wan but recovering quickly, was also naked but sitting cross-legged at the end of the bed, Dani's feet in her lap, massaging them.
"Oooohhh," Dani moaned ecstatically, "that feels soooo ruttin' good..."
Lori gave a giggle. "Well I hear you had a rough day, my xiong jiao (handsome hero). All sorts of thrillin' heroics."
"Gorram right I did," Dani murmured in reply. "Would you mind rubbin' my ankles as well?"
"Your ankles?" Lori repeated curiously, moving her strong fingers up.
"Yeah, mmmm you got it," Dani moaned again. "Ever since that hun dan gou niang yang de (bastard son of a bitch) broke them, they're sore after I hafta run. Not durin', jus' after."
Lori gave a sigh as she kept her attention on her lover's legs.
"Hey," Dani said, twisting her head around. "Now why are ya gettin' all mopey on me? Not 'cause I brought that up, is it?"
"Well, not really, it's jus'..." Lori gave a sigh again. "Are you mad at me?" she asked in a little voice.
"Ni zai jiang shen me pi hua (what the fuck are you saying)?" Dani laughed, turning around and sitting up. She took Lori's hands in her own, staring intently into her lover's warm brown eyes.
"Mi you ling (listen closely)," she began earnestly. "Yeah I was shengqi (pissed) at first over the whole op, at you, at him, at Keith, at everyone. But that was just 'cause of my own selfishness, my insecurity. But what you did in that lab? I was... well, I was awed."
Lori snickered, but Dani shook her head. "No, I mean it, I know it's sounds feng li (crazy), but I've never loved you more, seeing how brave you were. And how much trust you put in me to come to yer rescue."
Lori leaned in and gave her a tender kiss. "You know I'd have done the same in yer position, right?"
"Absolutely, wo de ai (my love)," Dani murmured, kissing her again.
They pulled back, still clasping each other's hands, and somehow their nakedness didn't even register. This was the most natural thing in the world, sitting across from each other and staring into the eyes of their bang jiar (lover/partner), one set a bright green and the other a light brown.
"You really wanna come meet my family?" Lori whispered.
Dani nodded at her. "Jess already picked up a shipment bound for Kalidasa, we lift in the mornin'."
"And marry me?"
Dani grinned and nodded more firmly. "Nothing in the 'Verse I want more, love."
Lori sighed again. "It ain't gonna be easy," she mused.
"What yer family, or marryin' me?" Dani teased.
Lori wrinkled her freckled nose. "My family, you loveable lan ren (loon). I haven't seen 'em since I left fer the war."
"Well," Dani murmured against her lips as she moved in for another kiss, "you'll have me at yer side, no matter what."
Fortune's Favour. Eavesdown Docks. Persephone.
Kelly
Kelly paced restlessly in her bunk, muttering quietly to herself. "It's not my place to ask. I believe in something greater than myself. A better world. A world without sin. That's what I'm doing this for."
She sighed heavily, and reached for her high-tech comm unit. After the appropriate unlocking is done and the connection entered, the visage of the gaunt, black suited man filled her screen again.
"I received your report," he began without preamble. "This crew is... unconventional."
Kelly nodded. "But effective."
"Certainly," the man in black responded emotionlessly. After a brief pause, he continued. "We are also very interested in two of the girls on board."
Kelly's mouth suddenly went dry. "Sir?"
He looked down at something on the desk in front of him. "Subjects... Rain Grant, and her sister, Sara Grant, formerly Jameson." He quickly looked back up. "She was adopted at a very late age," he stated.
Kelly nodded warily. "That is correct."
The stark-faced man leaned back in his chair, tapping thoughtfully on his chin with a blue latex finger. "On your next planetfall, we will require a fuller dossier on both subjects."
"Yes sir." Kelly whispered. She could feel her heart sink towards her feet.
"Report again in five days, Agent Thirty," he finished, closing the connection.
Kelly switched off the screen numbly, putting it away again. She lay down on her back on top of her bunk.
"A better world... A better world..." she repeated softly to herself, like a mantra. She tried to ignore the one small tear that escaped to roll down the corner of her eye.
NOTES: Whew, this one was as long as Episode 10! So, as may be obvious, this is my tribute to Mission Impossible 2, which in turn was inspired by the classic movie Notorious. Some consider MI:2 to be a terrible movie, but I always liked it, and the plot made for a nice episode. And honestly, I'll try to stop bad things from happening to Lori. She deserves a break, don't ya think? In fact, I think the next episode will have something very nice happen to her... eventually...
BTW I think this was the shortest Lemon section in history.
Title track Empire by Queensryche.