Miciah halted in place her finger moving to the ready position on her carbine, with her goggles she could plainly see Voice Sister Leutgard's raised hand. The IR pads on her gloves flashed as she signed for contact ahead. Miciah slowly spun 180 checking the roomtrusing her sisters to handle what was ahead. The room was a dorm commons room typical of such things, The Waywards had seen a great many of them in their infiltrations. This one was full of sleeping tankers they had been having a party that night, but a few gummy sleep supplements added to the trail mix had ensured that everyone was turned in in time for the team to shut off the lights to this part of the ship.
Having completed her sweep and found nothing of note Miciah rejoined her sisters. Their sudden weariness had ensured that the girls behind them had little prepared to sleep on. Most only had pillows and more than a few were cuddled under a large mat with many colored circles form some sort of game. She saw the problem in front immediately there were two tankers in the room with package primary conversing softly by candlelight. The Voice sister didn't take her eyes off the obstacles as she signed out her plan.
Miciah took her finger back of ready position as she aimed her carbine. She toggled the secondary laser sight, the primary one was in IR and therefor not helpful here, she was aiming at a glass bowl on the far side of the room. The laser reflected off the bowl and both women turned to see the light. What they had turned their backs on was Iedida and Leutgard rushing them from behind. Two finger clamped their noses shut a palm held to the chin kept their mouths closed, that was to keep them quite, the other arm formed a sleeper hold, within seconds the Waywards had incapacitated both "sentries". Iedida looked around and point to a supply closet, then helped move the two unconscious women to it, a pair of handcuffs retrieved from the game with the circles joined the two at the wrist to slow them down if the woke early. By the time her sisters were done Micaiah had retrieved Package Primary. Time for exfil.
Cpt. Sabrine Lahm was sipping her morning Coffee in her office when her desk phone began ringing. One of the advantages of being a department head was that she got her own secretary, from a work study program, to screen her calls so anything she actually received was worth her time.
Miciah watched her Hunt Mother take her, she liked watching her work, it was informative. The three Waywards were waiting in their corner of the dim office. Elli who is now Lt. once called their corner The Raven's nest due to their habit of perching rather than sitting. None of the current occupants needed much light to see, so the lights remained low unless there were visitors. It also helped The Waywards nap to recover from the previous night's mission. The Hunt Mother's voice broke through as she was finally done listening to who ever was on the phone.
"Searria, Sierra stop, SIERRA STOP, for just one moment please. You do NOT need a test. You are absolutely not going to get…."preggos" from kissing a girl. No not even if it was on the mouth." "Yes I am sure. " "No Serria there is no fade to black when people" do one" in real life that is a thing for the movies...Why don't you stop by my office at 013:30 I will have some material ready for you then, especially if you are considering….. continuing your relationship with Cpl Godin. One last thing what kind of coffee does your platoon commons room stock? I see."
Micaiah wateced has hunt Mother place her head on her desk and groaned, she had seen other people do this after talking to this Serria person at length. Without looking up she snapped her fingers, and the Waywards lept to the front of the desk at attention. Cpt. Lahm removed her sunglasses as she stood and walked around the desk.
"Let me guess, when I was putting together a grocery list last week you forgot to mention we were low on coffee."
Voice Sister Leutgard spoke "...Y…Ye...Yes"
"So when we ran out yesterday, then the three of you decided to mount a raid on the 5th platoon victory party to acquire more. In the process of which you ended up locking Cannonier Black and Cpl. Godin in a closet together, which is why I now get to explain to Sierra why she cannot be pregnant from that?"
The voice sister tried to speak again but failed, and Sabrine raised her hand. All three flinched, and hated themselves for it, Hunt mother had never and would never lay a hand on them in anger, and it hurt her when they though she might, but the false ones had left deep scars on their psyches. But it hurt her when they thought she might. Micaiah locked on the phrase, running in through her head over and over again. They, she had hurt Hunt Mother, she hurt Hunt Mother. Sabrine stopped mid sentence whilst stroking Ieddida behind the ears fixing her gaze on Micaiah who was so lost in her spiral she didn't even notice when Lahm scooped her up in a bearhug, pirouetted, and fell; taking the impact on her back. It was one of the first "tricks" she had learned in dealing with the Waywards, their kidnappers had forced them to stand while being punished, sitting them down or laying in this case helped them reset to the present.
Micaiah tumbled into darkness, her despair enveloped her, drowning her in sorrows. Every wrong, every mistake, and every single failing came welling up from inside her. It was so cold. But all around her was warmth it was pervasive and comforthing. Micaiah rejected it, she didn't deserve it she never would. But it would not leave, she tried to raise her arms to push it away, but her arms were penned help with great strength. The warmth was all around her, and singing in german? The oddity of it shook her and she stopped fighting, and the love around her salve her psyche and soul.
Micaiah woke up in the Hunt Mother's arms. Cpt. Lahm sat up against her desk with Micaiah in her lap, her sisters slept with their heads on her shoulders, her jacket and over shirts were spread across the four as blankets. She had no idea how long they had been there. But the sun was fully up in the window behind the captain's desk and Lt. Toliver was waiting in the office sitting room with a stack of books.
"Feeling better little one?" Micaiah nodded to her Hunt Mother. The others stirred back to alertness as well.
"Good then I have a task for you." Micaiah's heart leapt there was something for them to do.
"Go to the store on the Aft deck and pick up a triple supply of coffee. Then head home and ask your parents to help you write an apology letter to 5th platoon. Then return" The tio's eyes brightened, round trip that was almost 3km and they would get to run the whole time. Also they would go home to, those that came before the pain, they had forgotten to go home in all the haste to correct their oversight with the coffee. After confirming there were no other orders the three ran out the door in a race to the stern deck.
Cpt. Lahm sighed as she sat down across for Lt. Toliver and sighed, the Lt was a married woman and a mother of four herself and a valuable source of guidance for Lahm. Now the two went through the books on hygiene, bodies, and self care; to prepare for the next person to need guidance. Sierra would arrive soon and giver her state, it would be best to make sure Sabrine and Amy were on the same page. There was a long way to go, before all wounds had been made right, but that was the lesson of Panzerfahren, always forwards, always together.