"From the Void"
Part 5
"Colleen?" Colleen bolted upright, wide awake, her hand on her blaster. "Hollis?" "I can't move my legs." She scooted closer and fumbled for his light, flicking it on. "Your power's running low." she informed him after checking the readout. "It must have gotten damaged and leaked when I blew the shelf up." "What are we going to do?" Hollis asked, his eyes betraying the panic he was beginning to feel. "I don't know." she sighed, letting her head fall back against the wall. "I don't know if the is anything we can do." Hollis's eyes narrowed. "Are you saying we should give up?! I have too many things to do with my life to quit this easily." "I don't know anymore." Colleen whispered, feeling the hot wetness of her tears brush her cheeks. "I stupidly thought I could get us out of this. I was wrong. I'm sorry." She bit her lip to keep from crying out loud. She had failed everyone counting on her and it wasn't a good feeling. The people of Chaos, Hollis, her troop, and, most of all, herself. It wasn't fair. She still had so much to do. She had barely begun to live. She hadn't even told J.T. how she felt about him. "I'm glad you're here, Hollis. I don't want to be alone when..." her voice died. Hollis's fist thumped dully against the wall. "I cannot believe you would give up so easily, Lt. O'Reilly. We are not going to die here. I..." He stopped abruptly. "I don't believe it!" he exclaimed in excitement. Colleen brushed her tears away with the back of her hand. "What?: she asked, confused. "This wall," he smacked his fist against it again experimentally,"is hollow." She scrambled to her knees and slammed her own hand against it, listening to the dull ring. She turned to him, her eyes sparkling with happiness. "Hollis, we're getting out of here."
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Nara was in the garden, gently pulling weeds from around the delicate green sprouts growing there. She found the work a perfect balm to soothe her troubled mind. Jerron and she had gotten into an argument the night before. He'd been asking too many questions. Questions she wasn't ready to answer yet. Her dodging or blunt refusal to answer them had caused him to accuse her of not trusting him. It had escalated into a full fledged fight until Jerron stormed out of the house into the night. She'd lain awake most of the night worrying she'd run him off for good, until she heard him come back in close to dawn. She was so lost in thought she didn't notice what was happening until the pain lanced up her arm and down her side. It caught her unprepared and she couldn't bite back the scream of pain. Nara curled into a ball on the ground and cried. Jerron skidded around the corner with blaster in hand. "Nara?!" he shouted, dropping to his knees next to her. "What happened? Talk to me!" "Leave me alone." she gasped. "No. Never again." He pulled her into his lap and held her close, rocking her slightly. She buried her face against his neck and whimpered softly. Her fingers twisted in his shirt and her teeth clenched when a strong pain ripped through her, making her whole body tense, and a small moan escaped her. Jerron was helpless to help her other than to stroke her hair and murmur soft reassurances. Her body suddenly went slack against him and she began to tremble. He could feel her breath strike his throat heavily. He rested his cheek against her hair. "This can't go on, Nara. There can't be anymore secrets between us." Nara nodded without lifting her head. The story just started pouring out and for 20 minutes he listened without saying a word. When she finished he felt her pull away from him both physically and mentally. "Nara?" he finally asked after finding his voice. She couldn't meet his eyes. "It's okay. I understand. You're leaving. No one wants to work for a monster." Jerron hooked a finger under her chin and tilted her head until he could look into her eyes. "You're not a monster and I'm not leaving. It's not your fault what happened. I hate that you have to pay for what this Ketzer did to you." he told her. "Why?" Nara croaked past the tightness in her throat. He brushed the backs of his fingers across her pale cheek lightly. "Because I love you, Nara Burns, and nothing is going to change that." Jerron replied tenderly. "I want to help you. If you'll let me?" Nara couldn't stop the tears that welled up in her green eyes. She raised a shaking hand to his face. "I love you, too." she whispered. He pulled her close for a long kiss then tucked her head beneath his chin. "What are we going to do now?" she asked. "I don't know yet." he answered.
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"Marsh to the Remington. Open the hanger." A sliver of light appeared against the endless dark and gradually widened as the cloaked ship prepared to admit them. J.T. settled on the deck first. He listened as the rest of the squad landed behind him but kept his gaze directed on the man striding toward him. "Permission to come aboard, Simbacca?" "Permission granted, J.T. Marsh." he formally replied before his face broke into a feral grin. "We've been waiting for you." "There were some loose ends to tie up." J.T. responded. Simbacca nodded knowingly. He looked over J.T.'s shoulder. His smile reflected his obvious pleasure. "Alec DeLeon. You're joining us to formulate our plans?" The question came out as more of a demand than a request. Alec grinned at the pirate. "Perhaps later, Simbacca." He nodded curtly and draped his arm across J.T.'s shoulders and began to lead him away. "We've plotted a course..." Their voices faded as they walked toward the door. Alec's smile disappeared in an instant. J.T.'s venomous glare when Simbacca acknowledged him hurt more than being crushed in his own e-frame had. He squared his shoulders. He wasn't going to let J.T.'s denseness keep him from doing his job. He noticed Maggie watching him and smiled at her.
"Bronski..." Rita warned. "Yeah, yeah. Can it." he mumbled. "But I still want to know." "So go ask." Kaz inserted. "Ask what?" Jace questioned. "Something personal, kid." Bronski responded pointedly. Jace shoved his chair back angrily and stood. He slammed his hands down on the table and leaned forward. "We're a part of this squad, too!" Bronski's chair tumbled backwards loudly when he jumped up. "You weaseled your third-rate self in her because three of our teammates are gone!" he exclaimed. "Third-rate!?" Jace exploded. "I can fly circles around you, lard @$$!" "Why you..." Bronski snarled as he started around the table. "Jace..." "Be quiet, Jenny." Jace told the petite raven-haired beauty. "I'm not gonna take this from that bag of hot air." Everyone was shouting now. "Will you both stop it?!" Eve yelled over the noise. "Whoa, Wolf-man. He didn't mean it." Kaz tried to placate him. "Stop it! That's an order!" Rita demanded. A blaster shot bounced off the table, silencing everyone. "Am I interrupting?" Alec asked in a deceptively calm voice. "We're all teammates here. No matter the circumstances behind it." "Stay out of this, you..." Bronski growled. "Clone?" Alec finished. He arched a blond eyebrow at him. "Are you going to hold the fact that I'm not in my original body against me, too?" Silence answered him. "I thought so." He spun on his heel and walked away. Everyone was quiet for a moment. "I'm sorry, kid." Bronski apologized, extending his hand. Jace took it. "Nah. It was my fault. I shouldn't have been prying." Kaz left the group and wandered over to where Alec sat alone, working on a comm board for his e-frame. He looked up when Kaz neared. Kaz tapped his head. "You're still the same up here, right?" Alec nodded slowly. Kaz smiled in satisfaction. "Good. You need help with that?"
"Commander?" J.T. looked up from the planetary charts he was studying and towards the pirate standing in the door. "Yeah?" "There's an incoming transmission for you. It's been patched into the terminal to your right." "Thank you." J.T. mumbled, swiveling his chair toward the console and flicked it on. The static cleared and the face became more defined. "Marsala!" "J.T." the Neosapien replied, stress reflecting in his eyes. "Let me guess." Marsh leaned back in his seat, a cynical smile on his lips. "This call is because the Senate is in a snit because I left against their orders. Being a friend and former squad member you were volunteered to try to talk some sense into me and, if need be, to threaten. Am I right so far? Then you'll tell me I'm being irrational. Spare me Marsala, nothing you say will change my mind." "You have to understand where we're coming from..." Marsala began. "We?" J.T. interrupted. "How easily you forget. Do your loyalties change so easily?" The Neo looked stunned. J.T. irritably ran his hand over his eyes. "I'm sorry. I know you have to be there. The future of the entire neosapien race rests with your support. It's just a little frustrating that no one believes me. In all the time you've known me, have I ever scared easily?" Marsala smiled wryly. "No. Which is why I was calling to inform you the Senate has sent the Damocles loaded with three squads of e-frames after you. To bring you back with force if necessary." J.T. smiled thinly. "Maybe when they get here they'll have a real threat to shoot at." he replied dryly. "Thank you, Marsala." Marsala nodded and the screen went blank. J.T. clicked his own monitor off and rose from his seat. He began to pace the length of the room. Where were the alien ships? His instincts had never been wrong before and they told him the vessels were a threat. He froze mid-stride as the harsh wailing of the ships alarm resounded thru the ship. "No." he muttered. "It's too soon." He shuffled thru the charts the checked the readouts Simbacca sent him. His calculations told him that they had barely passed Mars. How could the ships have gotten that far so fast unless... J.T. dropped the papers on the desk and ran out the door towards the hanger.
"Colleen?" Colleen bolted upright, wide awake, her hand on her blaster. "Hollis?" "I can't move my legs." She scooted closer and fumbled for his light, flicking it on. "Your power's running low." she informed him after checking the readout. "It must have gotten damaged and leaked when I blew the shelf up." "What are we going to do?" Hollis asked, his eyes betraying the panic he was beginning to feel. "I don't know." she sighed, letting her head fall back against the wall. "I don't know if the is anything we can do." Hollis's eyes narrowed. "Are you saying we should give up?! I have too many things to do with my life to quit this easily." "I don't know anymore." Colleen whispered, feeling the hot wetness of her tears brush her cheeks. "I stupidly thought I could get us out of this. I was wrong. I'm sorry." She bit her lip to keep from crying out loud. She had failed everyone counting on her and it wasn't a good feeling. The people of Chaos, Hollis, her troop, and, most of all, herself. It wasn't fair. She still had so much to do. She had barely begun to live. She hadn't even told J.T. how she felt about him. "I'm glad you're here, Hollis. I don't want to be alone when..." her voice died. Hollis's fist thumped dully against the wall. "I cannot believe you would give up so easily, Lt. O'Reilly. We are not going to die here. I..." He stopped abruptly. "I don't believe it!" he exclaimed in excitement. Colleen brushed her tears away with the back of her hand. "What?: she asked, confused. "This wall," he smacked his fist against it again experimentally,"is hollow." She scrambled to her knees and slammed her own hand against it, listening to the dull ring. She turned to him, her eyes sparkling with happiness. "Hollis, we're getting out of here."
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Nara was in the garden, gently pulling weeds from around the delicate green sprouts growing there. She found the work a perfect balm to soothe her troubled mind. Jerron and she had gotten into an argument the night before. He'd been asking too many questions. Questions she wasn't ready to answer yet. Her dodging or blunt refusal to answer them had caused him to accuse her of not trusting him. It had escalated into a full fledged fight until Jerron stormed out of the house into the night. She'd lain awake most of the night worrying she'd run him off for good, until she heard him come back in close to dawn. She was so lost in thought she didn't notice what was happening until the pain lanced up her arm and down her side. It caught her unprepared and she couldn't bite back the scream of pain. Nara curled into a ball on the ground and cried. Jerron skidded around the corner with blaster in hand. "Nara?!" he shouted, dropping to his knees next to her. "What happened? Talk to me!" "Leave me alone." she gasped. "No. Never again." He pulled her into his lap and held her close, rocking her slightly. She buried her face against his neck and whimpered softly. Her fingers twisted in his shirt and her teeth clenched when a strong pain ripped through her, making her whole body tense, and a small moan escaped her. Jerron was helpless to help her other than to stroke her hair and murmur soft reassurances. Her body suddenly went slack against him and she began to tremble. He could feel her breath strike his throat heavily. He rested his cheek against her hair. "This can't go on, Nara. There can't be anymore secrets between us." Nara nodded without lifting her head. The story just started pouring out and for 20 minutes he listened without saying a word. When she finished he felt her pull away from him both physically and mentally. "Nara?" he finally asked after finding his voice. She couldn't meet his eyes. "It's okay. I understand. You're leaving. No one wants to work for a monster." Jerron hooked a finger under her chin and tilted her head until he could look into her eyes. "You're not a monster and I'm not leaving. It's not your fault what happened. I hate that you have to pay for what this Ketzer did to you." he told her. "Why?" Nara croaked past the tightness in her throat. He brushed the backs of his fingers across her pale cheek lightly. "Because I love you, Nara Burns, and nothing is going to change that." Jerron replied tenderly. "I want to help you. If you'll let me?" Nara couldn't stop the tears that welled up in her green eyes. She raised a shaking hand to his face. "I love you, too." she whispered. He pulled her close for a long kiss then tucked her head beneath his chin. "What are we going to do now?" she asked. "I don't know yet." he answered.
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"Marsh to the Remington. Open the hanger." A sliver of light appeared against the endless dark and gradually widened as the cloaked ship prepared to admit them. J.T. settled on the deck first. He listened as the rest of the squad landed behind him but kept his gaze directed on the man striding toward him. "Permission to come aboard, Simbacca?" "Permission granted, J.T. Marsh." he formally replied before his face broke into a feral grin. "We've been waiting for you." "There were some loose ends to tie up." J.T. responded. Simbacca nodded knowingly. He looked over J.T.'s shoulder. His smile reflected his obvious pleasure. "Alec DeLeon. You're joining us to formulate our plans?" The question came out as more of a demand than a request. Alec grinned at the pirate. "Perhaps later, Simbacca." He nodded curtly and draped his arm across J.T.'s shoulders and began to lead him away. "We've plotted a course..." Their voices faded as they walked toward the door. Alec's smile disappeared in an instant. J.T.'s venomous glare when Simbacca acknowledged him hurt more than being crushed in his own e-frame had. He squared his shoulders. He wasn't going to let J.T.'s denseness keep him from doing his job. He noticed Maggie watching him and smiled at her.
"Bronski..." Rita warned. "Yeah, yeah. Can it." he mumbled. "But I still want to know." "So go ask." Kaz inserted. "Ask what?" Jace questioned. "Something personal, kid." Bronski responded pointedly. Jace shoved his chair back angrily and stood. He slammed his hands down on the table and leaned forward. "We're a part of this squad, too!" Bronski's chair tumbled backwards loudly when he jumped up. "You weaseled your third-rate self in her because three of our teammates are gone!" he exclaimed. "Third-rate!?" Jace exploded. "I can fly circles around you, lard @$$!" "Why you..." Bronski snarled as he started around the table. "Jace..." "Be quiet, Jenny." Jace told the petite raven-haired beauty. "I'm not gonna take this from that bag of hot air." Everyone was shouting now. "Will you both stop it?!" Eve yelled over the noise. "Whoa, Wolf-man. He didn't mean it." Kaz tried to placate him. "Stop it! That's an order!" Rita demanded. A blaster shot bounced off the table, silencing everyone. "Am I interrupting?" Alec asked in a deceptively calm voice. "We're all teammates here. No matter the circumstances behind it." "Stay out of this, you..." Bronski growled. "Clone?" Alec finished. He arched a blond eyebrow at him. "Are you going to hold the fact that I'm not in my original body against me, too?" Silence answered him. "I thought so." He spun on his heel and walked away. Everyone was quiet for a moment. "I'm sorry, kid." Bronski apologized, extending his hand. Jace took it. "Nah. It was my fault. I shouldn't have been prying." Kaz left the group and wandered over to where Alec sat alone, working on a comm board for his e-frame. He looked up when Kaz neared. Kaz tapped his head. "You're still the same up here, right?" Alec nodded slowly. Kaz smiled in satisfaction. "Good. You need help with that?"
"Commander?" J.T. looked up from the planetary charts he was studying and towards the pirate standing in the door. "Yeah?" "There's an incoming transmission for you. It's been patched into the terminal to your right." "Thank you." J.T. mumbled, swiveling his chair toward the console and flicked it on. The static cleared and the face became more defined. "Marsala!" "J.T." the Neosapien replied, stress reflecting in his eyes. "Let me guess." Marsh leaned back in his seat, a cynical smile on his lips. "This call is because the Senate is in a snit because I left against their orders. Being a friend and former squad member you were volunteered to try to talk some sense into me and, if need be, to threaten. Am I right so far? Then you'll tell me I'm being irrational. Spare me Marsala, nothing you say will change my mind." "You have to understand where we're coming from..." Marsala began. "We?" J.T. interrupted. "How easily you forget. Do your loyalties change so easily?" The Neo looked stunned. J.T. irritably ran his hand over his eyes. "I'm sorry. I know you have to be there. The future of the entire neosapien race rests with your support. It's just a little frustrating that no one believes me. In all the time you've known me, have I ever scared easily?" Marsala smiled wryly. "No. Which is why I was calling to inform you the Senate has sent the Damocles loaded with three squads of e-frames after you. To bring you back with force if necessary." J.T. smiled thinly. "Maybe when they get here they'll have a real threat to shoot at." he replied dryly. "Thank you, Marsala." Marsala nodded and the screen went blank. J.T. clicked his own monitor off and rose from his seat. He began to pace the length of the room. Where were the alien ships? His instincts had never been wrong before and they told him the vessels were a threat. He froze mid-stride as the harsh wailing of the ships alarm resounded thru the ship. "No." he muttered. "It's too soon." He shuffled thru the charts the checked the readouts Simbacca sent him. His calculations told him that they had barely passed Mars. How could the ships have gotten that far so fast unless... J.T. dropped the papers on the desk and ran out the door towards the hanger.