2137

He pressed the command key. A warning light flashed.

"No! No!" There was a banging sound. "Don't fucking do this to me!" she shouted.

On his dashboard, Waits could see the lab disconnecting. His stomach heaved harder than it ever had in his life. A white flash of shock obscured his vision, and he stood up, staggering away from the desk. He threw away his headset, collapsing on his knees.

"Jesus!" Jav ran over with a first-aid kit.

Raine knelt by Waits. "Get me a water bottle, Jav."

Waits retched. Nothing came up. There was nothing to send up. He was locked on his knees, arms wrapped around his belly, heaving, retching. His heart was still pounding in his ears.

"Stay back and give him air," Raine ordered. "He's got dry heaves."

Waits felt every muscle in his torso clench. What have I done? What have I DONE?! He let out a moan. Ripley's scream and pleas echoed in his brain. He grabbed his head. He retched one more time, then tipped his back to scream. "Dear God, what've I done?!"

"What the hell is going on?" Jav asked.

"He disconnected Gemini from Sevastopol with the girl still in the lab!" Raine said.

Waits let out a mournful sound.

"Was the creature in there, too?" Jav looked at Raine.

"Yes." Raine opened a water bottle, but waited for any signs that Waits was calming down. At this point, it didn't look like that was happening anytime soon.

Jav looked like he was torn between celebrating and remaining silent. He knelt by Raine and Waits. "It's over, then. It's gone. We can . . . We . . ." He lost his words.

"I got it." Waits moaned, then sobbed. "I got it."

"You did it."

"I didn't want to have sacrifice anyone for it, though!"

"Waits, how many more of us would've died if you let that thing get out again? We can do battle with the fucking androids and Seegson Security, but not that fucking creature!"

"Jav, stop," Raine said, calmly. "Let him breathe."

The room fell silent, aside from Waits's breathing, sobbing, moaning, and retching. What would Lingard think? What would Em think? He managed to open his eyes, seeing puddles of his tears on the floor.

"Waits?" Raine whispered. "Take a deep breath . . . That's it . . . easy. Now, sit up . . . slowly."

As slow as he could possibly go, Waits sat back up on his knees. His face was red and wet.

"It's all over," Raine said. "I guess . . . that's all that matters now."

Waits nodded. Raine handed him the water bottle.

"Now what?" Jav asked. "Didn't he send that Samuels model to Apollo to make the Working Joes stop attacking us?"

"Will you be patient?" Raine snapped.

"Oh, don't make me put you in a headlock, Raine!"

"Stop . . ." Waits weakly held up his hand. "Just . . . please . . . s-stop." He struggled to stand. He struggled to put himself back in the mindset of a leader. I didn't fail. I protected these people. I did my job.

After forcing himself to take a drink of water, Waits tried to stand. Raine helped, easing him up and back to his desk. The shock was still present, but it was fading, albeit slowly.

I did what I had to do. Jav's right-how many more people would've been killed if I waited and that creature escaped again? It's gone now. I succeeded. Maybe I didn't save Lissa or Sterling or Morley or Lingard, but I kept everyone else in here from ending up like them. Waits put his head in his hands. Through his fingers, he could see his headset lying on the floor. There was only static coming from it. He was afraid of picking it up, of listening. Either the lab module was so far away that the signal was out of range, or Ripley was truly gone.

"I should've gone out myself," Waits moaned.

Raine gestured for Jav to leave them alone, and pulled his chair closer to Waits. "Don't say that."

"Why? If I sacrificed myself . . . it'd . . ."

"Waits, none of us would have the heart to press the button. I couldn't. Jav couldn't. None of us. Hatcher, Relinka. No one. Not just because we'd be leaderless without you, but . . . I think most of us . . . really care about you. We've watched you grieve the last week or so, and it's difficult to watch. Yet, you still took charge. You still kept the supply runs going. You worried sick about us when we went out. You volunteered to go with us. You've already sacrificed your own health and strength by refusing to take food until each of us received our rations." Raine swallowed hard, and gripped Waits's shoulders. "You didn't do this because you wanted to kill her. I've gotten to know you the last few weeks, and I know that if there was an alternative, you'd have taken it. I watched you do this, and I could see it was the hardest decision you've ever made. I know you want this to end as much as the rest of us."

Waits couldn't muster any satisfaction. The weight of the creature had finally lifted from his shoulders, but a new weight had rested in its place. Guilt. The weight didn't rest on his shoulders, though; it rested on his heart. His chest felt like someone had filled it with lead. "Why don't you feel bad, son?"

"I do feel bad. I also know . . . bad things happen in life."

"What if that was someone you loved I just shot into space?"

"If she volunteered, then . . . it's something I'd have to live with. We all volunteer to go out for supply runs, despite knowing how dangerous they are." Raine looked lost for words. "I just . . . I-I wish I had something better to say. I know you didn't do this maliciously. What's done is done, and . . . now we move on to the next step. We all want to go home."

Waits nodded a little. "Yeah." He drew in a breath. "I gotta get you guys home."

"Just tell me your orders."

"I got nothing for you at the moment. I haven't heard anything from Samuels yet. Once he brings news from Apollo, then we'll figure out what to do next."

Raine leaned over in his chair to picked up the headset from the floor. "You'll need this, then." He gave Waits a sympathetic look. "I remember you telling me about Hazelton. What do you think he would've done?"

Waits shook his head. "Hazelton would've gotten all of you killed. Unintentionally, but he . . . he wouldn't be able to handle this. I've been in a lot of shitty situations, but . . . never as bad as this. Even . . . Even LV-112 was less of a clusterfuck."

"The colony attack by the Dheldroi?"

Waits nodded. "Yes. They jammed our radar and strafed the Marshal headquarters before we could get word out of what was going on. Twelve were killed in the first attack and most of us were wounded. Some of them died from their injuries because we couldn't call for help. We were trapped inside the complex while the fuckers sent in their ground troops and slaughtered the civvies." He suddenly felt like icy water had pulsed through his veins, and shivered hard. "A group of us managed to get out with whatever weapons we could get our hands on. We fought, and fought hard, until we ran outta ammunition. Bastards chased us around the colony. Shot whoever they saw. I got into a bunker with the rest of the surviving Marshals, and . . . couldn't do anything.

"It didn't take long for the Marines to show up because they had a base further up in the northern hemisphere, rather than off on another colony. Now, this is a heavily forested planet, which means if something catches fire, it'll spread fast, and the trees there produced a horrendous smoke. Very thick and acrid. That shit got in the bunker, and everyone was coughing so hard, we threw up. One after the other. Imagine being trapped somewhere with the stench of smoke, blood, vomit, and bodies starting to decompose all mixed together. I spent several hours in there, listening to . . ." Waits paused, his head starting to hurt with the memories, "screaming, explosions, gunshots, missiles. I was screaming a lot. I had ash and smoke in my lungs. I had . . . blood all over my clothing. People were dying all around me. I can . . . I can barely remember what happened when I was rescued. It's all in pieces. I know I wasn't . . . I wasn't myself when I was let out of the hospital. Couldn't handle loud sounds for awhile."

Raine was quiet for a moment. He looked down at his lap as he thought about what he heard. "I'd say that sounds worse than what's happened here."

"The difference between LV-112 and Sevastopol is that LV-112 lasted about forty-eight hours. We've been stuck here for almost a month."

Raine nodded. "Wow." He sighed. "Feels like time is just passing. How much, I . . . I haven't paid attention to how much time has passed. Before joining you, I was always focused on surviving the next day, or the next hour."

"Why did you and Jav join Sinclair in the first place?"

"We didn't 'join.' We're both medical personnel, so we were of some use to Sinclair. He still held us at gunpoint when treating someone. He picked on me, particularly, because I had the balls to talk about you."

"How come you didn't run earlier?"

"I wanted to run, but Jav got friendly with a couple of the engineers and techs, and they figured it was best to collect enough supplies and plan carefully rather than just bolting."

"That's fair." Waits adjusted the way he was sitting, his brain still rattled. The echoing in his mind was gradually fading.

"Are you . . . feeling a little better?"

"Starting to." Waits sighed. He looked at his headset. "Thanks for listening."

"Anytime."

Waits put his headset back on. His heart suddenly beat faster when he heard a familiar girl's voice and cough.

"Hello? . . . Hello? Can anyone hear me?"

Oh my God . . . how is she alive? "Ripley? Is that you?" Waits struggled to contain his relief.

"Yes, Waits," Ripley snapped. "Me, you son-of-a-bitch! You locked me in! You blew the lab into space!"

"I had no choice. No choice at all! You saw that thing! You saw what it could do! I had to get it off this station, by any means necessary!" Oh . . . maybe that wasn't the right thing to say to her right now, Jethro.

"Yeah. Use me as bait! Leave me to die!"

"And it Goddamn worked, Ripley, it Goddamn worked. I got that thing. Jettisoned it into the gas giant. The station's safe."

"There's that, and there's the fact that you're a heartless bastard. I'm heading back to the Bureau. We can discuss your methods there. Ripley out."

Waits felt as though someone drove a corkscrew hard into his chest. Is that what I am? Am I really heartless?

He searched his memories. He saw himself driving his father's truck out to Boston in the middle of the night when he was eighteen, just a few weeks before he headed to training. Em had called him, in tears. She had hitched a ride with some friends to the city; they had all gotten drunk and she had no money for a hotel room.

"Jethro, I'm alone in the street and I don't know what to do," Esmeralda sobbed.

"OK. First thing you're gonna do is stay calm," Waits replied. "Find somewhere safe to just hang tight. Message me the address. I'll find you. Don't worry."

It took him a little over an hour, but he made it to Boston, to the address of a hotel overlooking the harbor. As soon as he stepped in the lobby, Esmeralda jogged over to hug him. "Thank you," she said, voice muffled by his jacket.

"No problem. Let's get you home."

"Dad's gonna kill me over this."

"No. He'll be happy you're safe and unhurt. Don't worry about it."

Was I heartless then? Em wouldn't think so.

Then there was Lingard. There was no way in hell she would think he was heartless. He had given her the key to his heart. She had gotten to see him at his most loving and sensitive. It became a bit of a joke between them that she "saw the mean son-of-a-bitch at his most sensitive."

The memories were endless. He had made her smile and laugh. She was always overjoyed to see him, hug him, kiss him. She told him he had a big heart, and he loved her so much it hurt.

At the moment, his heart was hurting. The residual grief for Lingard. The shock and fear from when he thought he killed the girl. A pang when he heard her crying. I know I got a heart, and dammit, it hurts.

"You'll be able to talk to her," Raine said, softly. "Hopefully, you can work things out."

Another voice filled the headset. "Ripley? Ripley, it's Ricardo! You made it!"

"No thanks to Waits," Ripley said.

"He's a ruthless son-of-a-bitch. Always has been. Stubborn, too. If he'd ever listened to me, things would never have gone this far."

"He does know the radios are connected, right?" Raine whispered.

"I don't think he cares," Waits mumbled.

The conversation on the radio continued. "It's done now," Ripley replied.

"I'm sorry for fucking up with the lockdown earlier," Ricardo added.

"Forget it. You got me out in the end. I'll see you back at the Bureau."

There was a half-second of silence, then Jav howled, "You treasonous bastard!"

Both Waits and Raine stood up, entering the main part of the Bureau to see Ricardo had entered the room, greeted by a vengeful-looking Jav. Ricardo looked terrified, and his terror turned to shock when Jav swung his fist at his jaw.

"Hey, hey, knock it off!" Waits snarled.

"Did you not hear one word he said?!" Jav screamed.

"I heard every fucking word! That doesn't give you the right to attack him!"

"You should remove him from his position as deputy! First, he lets the creature escape from Systech, then he insults you! What kind of Marshal staff do we have anymore?!" Jav turned back to Ricardo. "What kind of deputy are you, you asshole?!"

"Jav, that's enough! Touch him again, and I'll nail you to a desk by your fucking balls!"

Face contorted in anger, Jav backed down.

"I told every single one of you beforehand that I will not tolerate fighting amongst yourselves." Waits turned, catching the gaze of every survivor sitting in the Bureau. "We're in this together. I know that sounds fucking sappy and cheesy, but dammit, that's what it is! You all came here seeking my help, and fuck it, you're getting my help! I've had an obligation to serve and protect you all since I set foot on Sevastopol two years ago. No, I've had an obligation to serve and protect you all since I took the oath forty-one years ago! All I ask is that you not only listen to me, but you give as much as a damn about the other people in here as I am. We're all fighting to get out of here. Every single one of us probably has family that they'd like to see again back on Earth, and even if you don't have any loved ones, think about how you'd feel if you did. In all honesty, I can't say we haven't become some kind of a family in the weeks we've been here. I've gotten to know you all pretty well, and I do care about you like you're my brothers and sisters. I will not, repeat, will not leave any of you behind when rescue comes, and I want you all to make sure the person sitting next to you is put first."

Waits looked at Ricardo. "How's that for a ruthless son-of-a-bitch and a heartless bastard? I really should take away your badge and discipline you for insubordination, but I'm not going to, because I have no other Marshals, no one with any important credentials we might need to get out of here. Once we get back to civilization, you're gonna be in a shit-heap of trouble."

"Like you when Command finds out what you did to Ripley," Ricardo murmured.

Jav pulled out his revolver, flicking the safety off. "Piece of-"

Waits stepped in between him and Ricardo. "Put it away, Jav," he growled. "I'm not giving this speech again, son."

Putting the safety back on, Jav holstered his revolver.

"Now, let's get back to work. Ricardo, get on your station and let me know when the kid gets back. I want to talk to her in person-"

Waits turned around when he heard the doors open, and saw a young man gasping for breath. He was covered in white fluid. "The Joes . . ." he panted, "I-I dunno what's going on . . . They're leaving their designated areas! Attacking people! I . . . Kellis . . . he . . ." The man looked down, resisting a sob. "Dead."

Jav helped the panicked survivor to another room for treatment. Raine glanced at Waits. "This isn't good, sir."

"I know. They were a problem before, but we don't need them becoming a bigger problem now." Waits stepped over to where Ricardo was seated. "Let the kid know."

Ricardo still looked rattled from Jav's attack, but Waits could tell he cared about Ripley. "Rip, I'm about to rain on the parade; something's up with the androids."

"Something's been up with the damn androids since I got here," Ripley said.

"No, this is new. They've left their posts. We just saw some of them in a public area-that's not normal!"

"Great."

"Watch your back."

Anxiously, Waits put his headset back on. I can't let her get killed by one of the sons-of-bitches out there. He sat, heart pounding hard again.

"Waits, it's Ripley. What's going on with the androids?"

"I don't know," Waits said.

"What about the change in alert status?"

"Dammit, I don't know! I'm trying to contact Samuels. Maybe he knows what the hell Apollo is playing at." Waits switched radio channels. "Samuels? Samuels!" A growl started deep in his throat. "For fuck's sake, Samuels, will you give us an update?!"

A shriek was heard outside the Bureau. Human voices mixed with the mechanical ones of the androids. Waits picked up his shotgun. "Everyone capable of fighting, grab a weapon! Raine?"

"Yes?" Raine swallowed.

"Start getting ready to move people outta here in case the Joes try to break in."

Ripley's voice filled his headset. "Waits, for God's sake, Apollo's let the androids off the leash! They're attacking on sight!"

"I don't know what the hell this is," Waits said, controlling his breath. "They're not just responding to trespass violations. It's like they're . . . hunting."

"For who?"

"For everyone and anyone."

"What do you mean?"

Waits's blood froze when something began pounding on the doors. "Stand by." He looked around at the survivors gathered in front of him. "We're gonna split into two groups; one group is gonna start getting the sick and wounded outta here. The other's gonna stay behind and gather as much supplies as they can. I want everyone to head up to the apartments."

Not a single person was standing or sitting around after Waits gave his instructions. He was amazed at how calm everyone was. Only a few seemed shaken up and panicked.

"I need someone to hold this gentleman's IV drip!" Hatcher called.

"I got it!" Waits slung his weapon over his shoulder, taking the drip bag from Hatcher.

"Thanks." Hatcher and another medic lifted the stretcher, Waits walking alongside them.

"Get as many as you can in the elevator," Waits said. He moved out of the way of others coming in with stretchers. Once the elevator was full, the doors closed. Waits noticed Jav standing in front of him. "Where's Raine?"

"Helping the second group with supplies," Jav replied.

"OK."

Jav glanced at Waits. "You sound worried about him."

"About Raine? Of course I'm worried." For a moment, Waits wondered why he worried for Raine. Is it because I have no one left? Everyone else I've cared for is gone.

The only other person he could think of was Em. She was alive. She was safe. He longed to see her again. He longed to apologize for being scarce for the last forty-one years. He longed to make up for so much lost time. Even if he lost everything here on Sevastopol, at least he would have Em to go back to.

Raine had been the only person out of all the survivors to talk to Waits as a person, to listen to him and understand what was going on in his mind. They connected, and trusted each other enough to where Waits would let Raine stay with him once they escaped and headed to Gateway. After all, Waits felt like he would need somebody to help him continue grieving Lingard.

Waits went back down with the group to retrieve more of the wounded. He spotted Raine holding one end of a stretcher when the elevator door opened. He stepped out of the elevator, and unslung his shotgun to hand it to Raine. "Here. You're gonna need this when you get outta here."

Raine looked at the shotgun. "Sir, that's yours."

"I know, but this is more effective against the sons-of-bitches. You'll need it."

"But . . . you don't have a shotgun if I take it. Sir, I've seen what the Joes can do."

"Raine, I'm putting you in charge. Get everyone out. You and Jav. If something happens to me, you two are the bosses."

The pounding continued. Jav was directing everyone else as they carried sick and wounded survivors out to another section of the Bureau to escape. Raine hadn't budged.

"Dammit, Raine, take the shotgun and go!"

"I can't leave knowing you could die!" Tears streamed down Raine's face.

Waits swallowed. "Son, you've trusted me the last couple weeks. I really need you to trust me now."

Raine's face and hazel eyes reddened. "Waits . . . y-you've . . . Please, don't . . . You can't-"

"I know you can do this, son."

Raine grabbed Waits's hand, and Waits pulled him in for a brief hug. "Thank you, Waits. For everything."

"You're welcome." Waits gave him the shotgun. "Go. Everything will be alright. If anything does happen, at least . . . at least I'll be able to see Lingard again."

"Raine, they're coming in! Let's get a move on, buddy!" Jav called.

The Working Joes had already broken into the hub, and were starting to get into the lobby. Waits swore to himself when he jogged in to find the androids walking so eerily calmly to the survivors still there, grabbing them and choking them. Waits couldn't help but feel he should have kept the shotgun, but knew he made the better choice giving it to Raine. Just fight with whatever you have left! More people will die if you don't do something! He fired at the androids with his revolver. He stayed by the door, swearing aloud when the gun ran out of ammunition. Working Joes were grabbing anyone they saw. Rage boiled up in his chest and stomach as he smashed the handle of the revolver into an android's skull. "You bastards! You murdering bastards! Leave them alone! Stand down!"

Question: Is it possible Ripley could have come to see Waits's perspective if they had the chance to talk face-to-face?