[A/N]: Here's chapter five! I don't really have anything to say this time,

Feel free to leave a review, please, I'm getting nervous about the lack of feedback.

As previously stated in the last couple chapters, this is a cooperative project with Touhoufanatic and his fic "Daemons Of the Fog". I'd wager most of you have already seen his fic, but in the event that you haven't, go check it out.

As always, I hope you enjoy!

"Rise and shine Alaska! It's time for your checkup!" Hope cheers as she claps, turning on the lights inside the medical bay. The bright lights give me an almost instant headache before they dim.

"Fucking hell…" I grumble sleepily, squinting and blinking several times while my eyes get accustomed to the light. "Just as the dream was getting good too…"

"Language!" Hope nearly growls as she walks in.

"Yeah yeah, I know. I'm not even starting to scratch the surface of my colorful vocabulary, so lay off me." I yawn and rub my eyes with my good arm. "Deja vu."

"I will not. No one uses such language in my presence, not even the flagship and Intrepid." Hope says with a huff. "Why deja vu?"

"Because it feels like I'm talking to my mother."

"Did you get your mouth from her?" Hope asks curiously.

"Meh, it was a collaborative effort between my mother, my uncle, and my dad."

"How lucky for you and them to have such language be a common thing then." Hope says as she pulls out some tools.

"Well, a sailor, a tailor, and a mechanic… I was doomed from the start."

"Ah, impressive. Who was what if you do not mind me asking?"

"Dad's in the Navy. Last time I saw him he'd just gotten command of a guided missile destroyer. My uncle was a Diesel mechanic, and Mom is a tailor."

"Sounds like a good way to learn viable skills, as well as respect and honesty. Too bad all armed forces, whether they be air, naval or army have a habit of swearing worse than truckers."

"Oh, and I can't forget about Grandpa. That old geezer taught me everything I know about metal machining, along with probably a solid quarter of my vocabulary."

"Ah, I see. What did he specialize in?"

"He used to build aircraft propeller shafts on the milling machine."

"Hmmm, my husband was the same, though he built heavy duty construction equipment primarily. A mountain of man, but as gentle as a spring breeze."

"Grandpa was kinda stout, so he'd usually have to use a step stool so he could see what he was doing. He was amazing at his job though." I stretch my good arm off to one side before looking at her sort through her tools. "So what's first?"

"First off I'll check your nanomaterials, make sure they are still working to heal you. Then your bone strength. If you've healed sufficiently, you'll be able to lose at least one cast, and may be able to walk with crutches instead of a wheelchair."

"Awesome. Let's get this show on the road."

"Of course. Tell me. Did you tell your friends about your talk yesterday?" Hope asks as she sticks a thin needle in my arm.

"Oh hell… I knew I was forgetting something…"

Hope chuckles slightly as she takes the syringe out. "Hoping to warn them were we?"

"Something like that. I just think she's someone to be kinda… wary about."

"Scylla is a visible worry, you may be more worried about others in our fleet though. Mobile and her sister Topeka, or our flagship Brisky for example."

"I'm worried about us all as a whole. Human, hybrid, or otherwise. Killing people and destroying their homes… it's just not who I am. I mean, I was a girl scout during high school."

" A noble pastime." Hope mutters as she sets the Syringe in some sort of machine, then pulls a machine off the wall and holds it above. "Do any of the girls in your fleet think differently?"

"I… no, not really… we follow the orders to a T and that's it. We've… come to blows a few times over collateral damage. Scylla though… she treats killing people like going down to see when the next softball game is."

"Yes, Mobile and Topeka are similar, though not as, Gung ho about it. They also keep far quieter about it. From what I've seen, it is often based upon how lucky or unlucky people were before being found by the fog. I'd say about half of our fleet is reluctant to kill, while the other half is either understanding about the necessity, or completely willing. It makes my job a bit difficult when I have to consider their mental states."

"Mobile sounds alot like Oakland from my fleet. She doesn't talk about it, but I've seen her level a hospital with a full broadside before."

"Oh dear. I hope it was empty."

"I don't think it was… but when I confronted her about it she said that she didn't remember doing it."

"Hm, possibly a case of an amnesiatic conscious, or simply being embarrassed or afraid of admitting it." Hope says as she moves the machine over my head down to my torso.

"I don't know, but she's not allowed on raids anymore. She stays with Enterprise as an escort."

"I see. That sounds similar to Mobile, except for she would not deny doing something, but won't say anything about it unless directly asked, I suppose it's why she and Scylla hit it off, talking about more efficient ways to kill or destroy. Tell me, what is the worst thing that has ever happened to you that made you think less of an individual or group?" Hope asks as she moves the machine over my legs.

"We got robbed right before my twenty-first birthday. They stole everything from the television to the fuckin' toaster. I came home from going to the store and the front door was kicked in. Broad daylight robbery and nobody in the neighborhood saw anything."

"My, awfully audacious. . . . . Mobile and Topeka, who you will likely meet later today. They were raised in New Santa Maria, in the slums by their parents who lost their home to a businessman who conned an entire neighborhood out of their homes, to tear them down and build a resort. Because of one man's greed they were subjected to the worst our kind had to offer in the lowest recesses of society. They watched their parents die in a gang war, trying to protect them. Mobile tried to get other children to safety as well, but in the end, only the two of them survived, and the gang war continues even now."

"I… I guess I can sort of understand why she's so open to the idea then."

"It is no different for Scylla or a few others in a way. The world is not always such a nice place, and often those that are hurt by it have done nothing to deserve it. Do you know what happened to Scylla? Did she tell you?"

"No, and I didn't want to ask in case she was sensitive about it."

"She's not, in fact she considered it proof to why she can think how she does. You are aware that a couple decades ago some places tried to introduce gene therapy to keep childbirths high, yes?"

"Uhh… yeah. We covered it briefly in health class."

"That is good then. Her mother used them as well, but only used some, not all of them that were supposed to be used. This created a chemical and hormonal imbalance in her body. It made her growth slightly strange."

"Strange…? But… she has such a good figure!"

"No, she doesn't truly. She lost her father when young to an arson, and was forced to move in with her divorced mother her mother treated her like shit, making her do all the homes chores, and giving her only a mattress, and pocket change to buy herself food. She wasn't allowed to eat food her mother bought for herself. She was put to the brink of starvation and malnutrition for years as I understand it. That is why she is so thin."

"But you said the hormonal imbalance made her growth weird, not malnutrition."

"Yes. Her growth was stunted, making her grow tall, but not getting the usual curves a girl would as they grow. Couple with the malnutrition her body had difficulty maturing. This led to her getting picked on by many people. And some even went so far as to throw a cinderblock at her. It shattered her shoulder instantly, and then they broke her arm and a leg. She was in the hospital for over a month if she recalls it correctly."

"I see…" I taper off, unsure of what to say next.

"Her mother refused to pay for treatment, leading to her arms being healed incorrectly, giving her shoulder a hunch a her arm a permanent bend. And all she did was complain about her not being home to do the chores. Scylla told me that point was when she began gathering funds to strike out on her own, and get as far away from his mother as possible."

"His? What?" I ask.

"Hmm?"

"You said his mother, not her mother."

"Oh, excuse me. That was a fraudulent slip of the tongue." Hope replies almost a little too quickly.

"Come on Hope, I have a younger sister who I lived with my entire life. I know when somebody is trying to cover something up."

"It's not my right to tell." She snaps, brooking no further argument about it.

Hope spends the next half hour performing various tests on me. She tests my nanomaterials, then the bone and muscle density in my left elbow. Upon finishing the latter she smiles and hums in approval before moving to my lower back. A few minutes later there's another approving hum before she moves to my legs.

"...Mmhmmm… well, you'd do well to stay in bed. However, your elbow and left leg are healed, so I would see no problem in using crutches if you're feeling antsy."

"Yes please." I almost immediately respond. "I need to move. I can't stand lying here."

Hope chuckles and snaps her fingers before heading to a storage cabinet. I start feeling pins and needles in my arm and left leg as my nerves presumably wake up. Then begins the trial and error of trying to get the crutches adjusted to the correct size. Finally after roughly another ten minutes I'm up and moving around, albeit slowly as to not mess up my still-healing back.

"Right then. Follow me. Your fleet should be here soon." Hope says before leaving the medical room. I follow along to the best of my abilities, as moving through a ship with crutches is about as difficult as one would think. I stumble a few times getting through bulkheads, but otherwise the journey to the deck is short, and I start hobbling my way over to Intrepid, letting Hope fall in line behind me so she doesn't accidentally leave me in the dust.

On the flight deck stands the entirety of Hope's fleet, lined up off to the side and watching as my fleet approaches from the southeast. I see Intrepid standing on the far end with a cold looking woman beside her. Closer to me though, I recognize Scylla, who's talking to girls on each side of her while looking in my direction.

I stumble and turn my attention back to where I'm placing my crutches while muttering curses under my breath, praying Hope doesn't hear me.

Eventually I find a good enough spot to stand off to the side and settle on my crutches, watching the ships all anchor roughly two miles away. A few minutes later I can see the dark specks of a pair of PT boats speed out from behind Helena and make a beeline towards us, the distant specks eventually getting bigger and bigger until it's easy to identify the eighty foot vessels.

They weave through the sparse formation of ships and slow down to pull up alongside the carrier.

First person up the holoplate staircase is a woman in her mid-thirties, wearing a red sundress with a large-brimmed straw hat. Behind her is Enterprise, then Guam. Eventually most of everyone files up the staircase and lines the deck, lining up on the opposite side of the flight deck from Hope's fleet. I recognize every single one of them aside from a young redhead woman, and the woman in the sundress.

As the last of the fleet reaches the top of the stairs I recognize a third new face to the fleet, except the face isn't new to me, and neither is the look in her eyes as she looks around at the other ships in awe.

"No fuckin' way." I mutter while staring in disbelief. "You've gotta be kidding me."

"Language!" Hope hisses at me, but I ignore her and move my crutches forward so I can swing my legs forward. Still staring at the girl I slowly move towards her, the sound of my crutches hitting the deck followed by my foot landing still audible above the sound of everyone's talking.

Clack,

Pat.

Clack,

Pat.

Clack,

Pat.

She finally looks my way and freezes in her tracks, staring wide-eyed at me in the same way that I'm probably staring at her.

My mini-me.

My little nerd.

My little sister.

We both hold our positions and stare at each other for a few seconds before Turner bumps into her, and the motion seems to jump-start her. She jogs over to me and gently hugs me, burying her face in my left shoulder. I drop my left crutch and hug her back, resting my chin atop her head while she sobs into my shoulder.

She tries to compose words through her sobs, but I shush her and throw my other crutch to the side, balancing on my good leg while I coddle her.

A minute or so later I hear a woman's voice speak out from my right. "I am Oktyabrskaya Revolutsiya, Flagship of the north pacific Patrol and Acquisition fleet. Which of you leads your fleet?"

I look over to find Intrepid and the newly introduced woman standing together,

Enterprise steps forward and sends a salute their way before introducing herself. "I am the suppression vessel Enterprise. I am the acting flagship of this fleet, and this is our Fog liaison Portland."

Portland steps forward and curtsies, a big smile on her face. "Hello Oktyabrskaya, it's been a while."

I manage to pry my sister off of me, and she collects my crutches for me while I watch the interaction.

"Indeed it has. I was not aware you were acting as a simple liaison, instead of a fleet flagship."

"Oh, that? I figured I'd put my mentor plugin to use. It's been very laid-back work."

"Very well. you understand what will be expected of you and those you are mentoring then whilst here?"

"Yes I'm well aware. However, the ships I was mentoring are no longer under my jurisdiction. Their training is done and I have handed them off to Enterprise here for their fleet assignment. I'm simply along for the fun of it!"

The flagship turns her attention to Enterprise, who stands a little straighter. "Same question."

"We will do everything asked of us to the best of our abilities ma'am!"

"Very well. In respect to the reason you are here, this day shall be free to all ships. you are free to move your ships among our own and speak with whomever you wish. Report to me at 0900 hours tomorrow morning so we may decide upon patrol schedules for our combined fleet." The Fog woman takes a step away before pausing. "If you have any questions, ask my second in command, Intrepid."

With her orders given she starts to walk away, dissolving into nanomaterials that float on the air like powdered aluminum, floating off towards a Soviet-era battleship. Everyone watches her leave, and after a few moments I hear Oakland speak up.

"What a hardass."

"Eh, it could be worse," Intrepid shrugs. "I just soured her mood a bit with trying to see if I could get her and Gato drunk last night. It didn't work. Essex class carrier, Intrepid, pleasure to meet you both!"

Enterprise strides forward and picks up Intrepid in a bear hug, squeezing her tightly before setting her back down. "Come on Cass, you already know me!"

"Erm… I do? How the hell do you know my human name?"

Enterprise slumps her shoulders. "...You seriously don't remember me…?"

"...No?"

"Oh for the love of Pete- It's me, Emily! Your cousin?!"

"...Which side of the family…?"

Enterprise pinches the bridge of her nose. "Your mother's side. My Mom was Kyrstyn."

It finally seems to click in Intrepid's head as I approach, having retrieved my crutches.

"OH! I remember you now!" Intrepid cheers, glomping Enterprise.

I continue towards them, my sister almost glued to my side, though giving me enough room to use my crutches. "Right then! I believe introductions are in order!"

The two carriers pick themselves up and look between themselves. "Uhh… who should start?"

"Is it not proper human etiquette for the hosts to introduce themselves first?" Portland asks, making a solid point.

"Yeah, I suppose it is." Intrepid says as she suddenly smiles. "Alright, everyone down to the lobby!"

The entirety of Brisky's fleet break rank and all jog over to the conning tower, filing through the bulkhead and out of sight while a majority of my fleet just looks confused. Some people get the idea and slowly move that way, waiting for Enterprise's official order to do so, but others practically have 'uh, what?' Scrawled on their faces as they look between each other.

"Ah, right sorry. I have a Lobby, a sitting and gathering room inside. It'll be more comfortable to meet and greet there than standing on my flight deck. Don't worry, there are a lot of chairs!" Intrepid explains.

"Alright! You heard the lady, fall in!" Enterprise yells, waving an arm towards the open bulkhead while looping the other over Intrepid's shoulder.

I wait while everyone else files through, heading down a staircase to a well-lit area. Eventually everyone gets through, leaving just myself, my sister, and Hope on the deck while I try to get through the opening, being mindful of both my back and my leg.

"Hnng! God... damn things…!" I groan while halfway through the bulkhead. Hope starts to yell at me until my crutch slides out from underneath me, dumping me down the stairwell.

"Watch out!" Someone calls out while I tumble ass over teakettle down the stairs. My final landing is softer than I thought it would be, and I open my eyes to find a slight tanned face and scarlet red eyes staring back.

"Ouch… thanks for the save." I groan as pain flares up in my lower back.

"You okay?" The crimson-eyed girl asks while she sets me down against the doorframe.

"I've seen better days, but I'll be fine." 'Eventually'

"Well, if you say so. Cmon, everyone will have sat down already and be waiting on us."

I slowly turn to look up the stairs, watching my sister scramble down them with crutches in hand, and Hope not far behind her.

"You alright Sis?!"

"Yeah I'm fine. Thankfully this isn't the first time I've fallen down the stairs." I chuckle, each laugh making my lower back throb.

"I'll check you over once we get you seated, just to be sure." Hope says as she comes down the stairs.

"Sounds good, just help me up!"

Eventually with the help of my sister and Hope I get back on my crutches and manage to hobble my sorry ass into the lobby, where a seat is cleared for me by Scylla. I ease down into the chair and turn sideways in it, allowing Hope to take a peek under the bandages on my back while I listen to everyone.

"Alright, now that everyone is here and comfortable we can begin!" Intrepid exclaims from her own chair. "For those of you from Enterprise's fleet that didn't hear, my name's Intrepid, her cousin, and the Second in command of this fleet! In order we have Roe and her sister Hammann, both Sims class destroyers. Leningrad class destroyer Baku, and Ognevoy class destroyer Vlastny who is our youngest member. Then we have Molotov, a Kirov Class Cruiser, Mobile and her sister Topeka, Cleveland Class Cruisers. Pensacola class Cruiser Salt lake city, just call her Lake." Intrepid took a breath for a moment then continued. "Aurora here is a Pallada class cruiser, while Chervona Ukraina is a Admiral Nakhimov class cruiser and takes care of the destroyer girls. And finally, our newest member to the fleet, Scylla, Minotaur class light cruiser! Oh, and the other Fog in our fleet, Gato, is around as well. somewhere."

Enterprise stands up and looks once around the room before addressing everyone. "Alright! As you all have heard I'm the fleet's flagship and carrier Enterprise. You all also know Alaska to some degree I hope, as she's the main reason we're here. Alaska and Guam are my second and third in command respectively." She points to both of us and takes a sip from a glass of what looks like soda. "The new battlecruiser to the fleet is Samoa. Our contingent of heavy cruisers are a bunch of clowns but they get the job done. Helena and Fall River are both Baltimore-class. Astoria over there in the corner is a New Orleans-class, and Augusta is a Northampton-class." Once again pointing at everyone she lists them off, getting nods or waves from some.

"The light cruisers are a lovely group too. Cheyenne… Cheyenne where are you?- oh there you are. Cheyenne is a Fargo-class, and she's the mother of the group so to speak. Savannah over there by Guam is a Brooklyn-class, and Juneau is over there hiding behind Helena. She's a Juneau-class cruiser and is also Helena's sister. Oakland is a modified Atlanta-class, and Pasadena is a Cleveland-class, as well as the new girl." After another drink of soda again she's ready to go again.

"Our destroyers will always have a place in my heart. Probably right next to the dead tissue from every heart attack they've given me. Thank you all for sitting together for once. From left to right we have Hailey, La Vallette, Healy, and Taylor. They're all Fletcher-class. Turner is a Gearing-class, and Samuel B. Roberts is a destroyer escort with a long ass class name. Just call her Roberts and I can guarantee she won't yell at you."

"Hey! You got us mixed up again!" Healy and Hailey yell at Enterprise.

"Whoops, oh well. Moving on we have Victoria and Atascosa. Those two are our nanomaterial tankers, and they help us remain combat-ready. Then we have our three LST's, which carry our PT boats during really shitty weather. And last but not least we have our PT boats. I'm not gonna list you guys off because it's too much work. The squadron leader is over there with the cowboy hat. She's nicknamed Lightning, and if electricity starts flying just make sure you're as far away from her as possible."

Having finished her spiel Enterprise looks around and smiles. "Now that I've successfully bored you all half to death, I'm done."

Everyone starts conversing while alcohol is passed around. I sit patiently and wait until Hope has my bandages wrapped back up. "You don't have any new injuries, but I would recommend heading back to bed soon."

"Thanks Hope. Will do."

Hope saunters off towards the exit as I pivot around to sit in the chair correctly, and Samoa scoots a chair up next to me, looking very nervous in the large crowd.

"So how's Mom and Dad?" I inquire just as Enterprise brings me a glass of soda from the machine in the far corner.

"Last I saw them they were both alright, Dad has been running himself ragged trying to find the Fog though. Mom's been searching high and low trying to find you."

"I kinda figured she would be…" I sigh. "So how's the fleet been treating you since you arrived?"

"Everyone's been nice, and Guam has been helping me learn the more advanced stuff but I'm still trying to figure out the firing solutions…" She keeps talking but I stop paying attention to her words. Her body language is twitchy, and much more nervous than she was the last time I saw her. Her eyes dart around nervously, and though I have some suspicions of what the reason is, they're only solidified when a loud bang resonates through the room and she freezes stiff instead of looking for the source.

Seconds pass, turning into a minute, but she remains frozen. Tears start to roll down her cheeks and I can tell from her hazed-over eyes that she isn't completely mentally there.

"Hey." I try to get her attention, but she continues to stare off into space. I even wave my hand in front of her face, to no avail. I look around the room, and find the person I want standing a few yards away talking to Molotov. "Mobile! C'mere for a sec please!"

She looks over at me in confusion until she sees Samoa, then she quickly scoots past Molotov and weaves through the crowd before kneeling down next to my sister.

"What's going on with her?" I ask, still uncertain, but I have my suspicions, hence why I looked for Mobile specifically.

"She's having some sort of flashback, similar to Shellshock. How long has she been like this?"

"Ever since that loud noise."

"This happens to Topeka sometimes, though she usually pulls out a knife when she freezes.. You have to carefully comfort her until you can figure out what happened, or until it passes."

I get up from my chair without the use of my crutches and hop over to sit on the arm of her chair before putting my arm over her shoulder. She flinches at the contact but otherwise remains zoned-out.

"Hey, Dani. It's alright, I'm here." I mutter quietly into her ear, looking to Mobile to make sure I'm doing everything correctly. Upon receiving a nod of approval I start rubbing small circles in Samoa's back, and she finally snaps out of it, burying her face in my chest while sobbing.

"Hey it's alright, I'm not going anywhere. Just let it all out." I keep muttering words of assurance for several minutes until she finally stops sobbing, though she still clings to me as if her life depends on it. I look up at Mobile and mouth the words "Get Hope", hoping she'll understand. Thankfully she nods once and jumps up, running out of the lobby.

A minute of so later Mobile jogs back in with Hope hot on her heels. The older woman kneels down beside us, and I lean into her ear. "Do you think you could sedate her for a little bit? She's really jumpy and I don't want to cause another episode."

Hope looks at her for a moment and lightly shakes her head. "Sedation does not work well on Hybrids unless it's a full sedation, and that would last roughly twelve hours at least... That would be less than perfect here. I can give her something to calm her down however if you prefer? Could give you a chance to talk to her about it as well, and that often helps."

"That works. So long as she's not like… y'know. This." I flick my eyes in the direction of my cowering sister and Hope nods, pulling a small wooden case out of the pocket of her labcoat. She puts it on the floor and extracts a syringe from inside, followed shortly thereafter by a small glass vial containing a clear liquid. I continue to comfort my sister while the doctor measures out the correct dosage and taps the needle to get the air bubbles out.

"Alright. Samoa I'm going to give you something to help you calm down, okay?" Hope talks to my sister using a gentle voice, shuffling around so she's in Samoa's line of sight. "You'll just feel a little poke and in a few minutes you'll be feeling much better."

"O-o-okay." She stammers back softly, sounding absolutely terrified. Hope gently takes her left arm and pulls it out straight, slipping the needle in and injecting the serum before Samoa even acknowledges the needle jabbing her.

"There! You'll start to feel better in a couple minutes." Hope chirps happily as she starts to put the syringe back in the case as deftly as she had taken it out.

"Hey Alaska, is Samoa okay?" I hear a familiar voice and look up to find Guam walking up to us.

"I don't know. She froze up after that loud noise. Mobile said she was having a flashback. Hope just gave her something to calm her down so hopefully we'll find out soo-"

"So, what broke?" Another familiar voice interrupts me, and I look past Guam to see Scylla and Topeka approaching. I glare at Scylla for being so rude and continue to rub circles in Samoa's back.

"As I was saying before you interrupted me, we don't know. The loud noise scared the hell out of her and she froze up. Mobile says she was having some sort of flashback."

"Oh, so shellshock basically. That's always fun," She says sarcastically, as if understanding.

"I believe the proper term is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Regardless, unless it happened right after I joined the Fog then there shouldn't be anything that would be the cause of this." I try to keep my voice low for my sister's sake.

"It may have occurred when she was, enlisted. Sometimes the fog that catch people are, less than gentle," Hope says sourly.

"N-no… Sis is right…" A quiet mumble sounds from my sister, though she sounds like she's trying not to remember. "I-it was right after she disappeared."

"What was?" I ask, moving so I can hear her better.

"I-I was on break a few days after you disappeared and… I bent over to grab my wallet from under the counter… something out front exploded…" She shudders, but continues. "When I got up everyone in the front of the store was…"

"It's alright, you don't need to say anymore." I mutter, giving her shoulders a reassuring squeeze.

"There was blood everywhere…" Samoa clenches her eyes shut as tears start again.

"Boom, mashed people." Scylla suddenly chuckles.

"Alright that's enough of that!" Chernova declares as she storms over and grabs Scylla by the ear. "You may be new, but I will not have you harassing someone when they are having difficulty speaking about something as it is. You're coming this way, now!" She declares as she drags Scylla away while the latter complains about her ear.

" . . .Go with her, before you say something too." Mobile mentions to Topeka with a glare.

"What- but I. . . . I'll just go get scarce." She says as she notices Mobile's glare and leaves.

Hope watches them leave and sighs before muttering to herself. "Looks like i need to do some more psych evaluations again. I apologize for that."

"F-forty six people," My sister hugs me and buries her face in my shoulder again, once again turned into a sobbing mess. "And I walked away without a scratch!"

I look around to find most of the nearby people listening in, and grit my teeth before muttering in my sister's ear. "Let's head over to my ship, alright?"

She gives me a nod before getting up. I grab my crutches and start to follow her, glaring across the lobby at Scylla before I open up a communications channel with her long enough to say one thing.

"You and I are going to have a talk later."