The Meaning of Blue

I'm going to post the second chapter now so I don't forget to, but this is mostly a filler chapter~ Enjoy~

When Chase awoke the next morning, it was to the feeling that he really didn't want to be awake. A sense of dread hung in the pit of his gut, and something told him that today wasn't going to be a good day. He heaved a heavy sigh and rolled over so instead of facing the blank wall, he was facing the blank wall furthest from his bed. He stared and the plain white stared back. His staring contest with the wall lasted until he realized walls couldn't stare, and that he had to get up soon to report to the conference room to be handed a mission.

Joy.

Chase pulled the covered over his head and heaved a deep sigh, hoping that he'd hear a voice over the speaker than would tell them that Monday was cancelled and –

He blinked.

Monday was cancelled, at least as far as he remembered, due to the fact everyone who had attended the gathering would be too damn exhausted and hung over to complete work – including the Commandant, Chase thought with mild resentment.

And they said he was reckless.

Now he knew that Monday was indeed cancelled, he could lie in bed and do nothing – except now that he knew he didn't have to do anything, he wanted to get up and do something.

Dammit.

He heaved himself upwards, his basic looking blanket slipping from him as he sat upright, the vibrant purple pillow he had stolen from the couch last night held loosely against him as he raised his bleary eyes to the singular window in the room. The sun was streaming through it, although Chase couldn't feel it as the glass was made to block the outside temperature. A few white puffy clouds lazed passed the panel, a stark contrast against the bright blue of the outside world.

Chase's cold feet hit the floor beneath him – wooden, not metal, as thankfully STORM had decided not to put them through the torture of having to see and feel metal everywhere they went. He pushed a few buttons next to his door – metal and automatic with lock functions, which was a blessing and a curse, especially the one time he had almost forgotten his lock code.
The common room was empty yet again, but unlike last night – or was it early this morning? – his friends rooms were occupied. Bren's door was closed, but the rest were open, and he could see their slumbering forms in their beds, chests rising and falling peacefully. Chase's lips quirked up in a small smile before moving to the common room exit, planning on having an early breakfast for once.

The mess hall was almost empty, save for a few early risers – Samantha, Rose's medic-in-training, was having an animated conversation with Garret, a rather old and gruff soldier who could be blunt, but was friendly enough, while a few seats down, an elite he vaguely recognised was idly stirring her coffee with a bored expression on her face. To the far right of the hall was Daire and Vinni, who weren't soldiers but worked as apprentices in the kitchens and mechanics respectively, and a few tables down from them was none other than –

"Morning, X-Ray!" Chase said casually, sliding into the seat across from the smaller teen, a tea in one hand and a piece of toast in the other. X-Ray jumped and looked up at him with wide eyes, almost dropping his book.
"Chase? What are you doing up?" he inquired, looking puzzled. "I've never seen you up until the Commandant comes out."

Chase shrugged idly, taking a small bite from his jam covered toast. "I…couldn't sleep," was all he said. "Are you usually up this early?"

"Yeah," X-Ray gave an embarrassed smile. "I'm so used to getting up this early that I can't sleep in. Besides, it's…nice, it being this quiet," he said after a moment's thought before hurriedly adding, "Though I'm glad to have company! It gets really lonely, sitting here for an hour with no one around."
"I'll bet," Chase frowned. "Who usually comes out first?"

"Tango usually," X-Ray shrugged, turning back to his book. "Though sometimes Alpha comes out before her."

Chase nodded absently, and the table dissolved into silence. X-Ray was engrossed in his book, while Chase nibbled at his toast, peering around the room now and again, marvelling at the calm and quiet. He was never usually up this early, and when he did come out the Hall was a cacophony of sound that made his ears hurt; now all that could be heard was the thrum of soft conversation.

Silently making a vow to get up early more often, Chase's eyes wandered to the window, where a flock birds were soaring in the blue, a scattered formation of wingbeats that soared effortlessly through the sky. Earlier dread forgotten, he allowed the smallest of wistful sighs to escape him Sights like this made him miss flying on Evo, not for a panicked get away, but for fun. He remembered the first time he had flown on a monsuno, clutching onto Bren as they both crowed in exhilaration at the wind whipping through their hair and the ground flashing before them in a sea of greens and grey's, Quickforce screeching his freedom to the late evening air. It hadn't just felt like a dream – the sky had the familiar feeling of home.

Chase was so lost in the sky that he hadn't heard the newcomer to the table, nor the quiet conversation that followed their arrival; in fact, he would have missed his name being called if a hand hadn't waved in front of his face. Teal eyes blinked rapidly as his visions of cloud disappeared and reality made its sudden appearance, and Chase turned his head to face the table's new addition, still a bit out of it.

"Hm? Wha?" he said eloquently.

"Good morning to you too, Suno~" Alpha said dryly. "Finally come back to Earth?"

"Chase," Chase corrected, and Alpha looked confused. "My name is Chase, not Suno. Well, technically Suno is my name, but I prefer Chase." He explained, and X-Ray snickered.

"Uh…sure," Alpha nodded slowly, taking a swig of his coffee instead. "So…what are you doing up this early? I didn't think you knew what seven o'clock was."

"Couldn't sleep," Chase mumbled, sipping at his cooling tea. "So I decided it was time to meet seven o'clock personally and see if it was worth it."
"And was it worth it?" X-Ray peeked over his book.

"Definitely." Chase confirmed, hiding a small smile behind his mug as conversation continued from there. This was something he could get used to.

–

Had this place always been so loud? Chase winced and ducked his head as the table next to him burst into ear shattering laughter, the sounds of hands slamming on tables sounding like cracks of thunder to his ears.
Of course, he thought this every morning, but it was either is was getting worse or he was finally noticing just how bad the noise was. Beside him, Alpha was having a loud debate with Bravo, although about what he couldn't make out, and in front of him Bren and Beyal were having an amiable conversation, if a bit confusing judging by their expressions. Jinja and X-Ray were arguing over his book, which was being manhandled roughly as both sought out evidence for some conspiracy theory from the books pages while Tango, Kilo and Dax watched in interest, quietly placing bets on the outcome.

Normally he would have joined in on the conversations around him, but he honestly couldn't find anything to add. What was there to add? He wasn't sure. All he could do was sip his third tea and awkwardly nod as someone asked his opinion.

"So, who do you think's right?" Dax asked under his breath, leaning over to Chase and motioning to Jinja and X-Ray. Chase shrugged.

"I dunno," he said uncomfortably. "I haven't been paying attention. They're…both good, I suppose?"

Dax gave him a strange look as Jinja and X-Ray's argument reached a crescendo, X-Ray's squeaking voice reaching even squeakier pitches and Jinja throwing in some arm flailing to prove her point. It was when Chase missed being hit in the face by an arm by a mere hairs breadth that he decided he couldn't handle it anymore. He quietly slipped from the table and out of the Hall, unaware of two sets of eyes following him.

The quiet of the halls was soothing, and the only sounds he could hear was the chatter still coming from the Mess Hall and the quiet sounds of conversation from patrolling soldiers, some who gave Chase a polite nod or a friendly wave as he walked past. He gave them a small smile back, although he still found it strange that the soldiers were so friendly with him even though they had tried to kill him on several occasions not a few months back. Charlemagne had had a stronger effect on STORM than he had thought.

Wandering down the hall, Chase almost didn't hear the hushed whispers coming from the next hall until he had heard the word 'Suno' breathed in a hushed tone. He paused in surprise, listening closely to their conversation, but all he got were snippets that he understood nothing of.
"Does he really believe that –" the voice got quiet and Chase strained to hear. "Why would he let a monster in here?"

Chase's heard skipped a beat.

"This always seems to happen," a deeper voice groaned. "Maybe –" Chase nearly fell over in his desperate attempt to hear what was being said. "But we'd be killed if we even tried it."

"By who – him or the boss?" came a dry reply before a few more hushed whispers, the voices fading away along with the footsteps of the whisperers. Chase stood still, his heart pounding and a sick feeling in his gut, wondering why he had left the Hall at all. The voices reverberated mockingly in his head, and he turned to leave when –

He yelped as he turned to see Alpha not a few steps away, a hand flying to his chest to calm his pounding heart. "You have to stop doing that!" Chase exclaimed n a high voice.

"Sorry," came the distracted reply. "The monk told me you'd left so I followed you and…here we are."

"Right…" Chase said. "Did…did you hear them too?" he said in a small voice, referring to the rather disturbing conversation he'd just heard. Alpha nodded.

"Though I couldn't understand a word they were saying," he muttered, although worry was alight in his eyes. "It didn't sound too good though."
Chase nodded slowly, his earlier dread reappearing full force. "Something bad's gonna happen soon, isn't it?" he asked quietly, and got a slow nod in return.

"Yeah. Something really bad." Came an even quieter agreement.

Chase knew he shouldn't have gotten out of bed that morning.

Alpha had parted ways with him not too long after their rather ominous discussion, apparently having to talk to Trey about something, and Chase was left alone in the middle of the corridor once more. Mindful of the fact that he had heard his name in the conversation, he hurriedly made his way back the way he came, hoping to catch one of his friends before they left the Hall so he wouldn't be alone around strangers.

The conversation had unsettled him deeply, and he wasn't sure why. They had only mentioned, well, his name, and…someone letting a monster in STORM…and something about them being killed if they attempted something…

He swallowed harshly and sped up, pushing aside his thoughts as they swirled like sickness inside him. He would not think about what the monster was. He would not think about who the monster was. He would not consider for a moment that he was –

Chase pumped into someone and flinched away in shock, looking up in panic only to exhale deeply in relief when he looked up into the familiar face of Kilo, Tango tagging alongside him, both who were giving him concerned looks.
"You alright there, Suno?" Kilo titled Chase's chin up to look him fully in the face, frowning. "You look mighty pale."

"You look rather sick," Tango added, pressing a cool hand against his forehead. "Are you feeling okay?"

"N-no – I mean yeah – I mean -" he took a deep breath. "Can I stay with you guys for a bit? I'm just – I –"

"No need to explain," Tango said briskly, hooking an arm into Chase's. "You need to sit down first of all, and we were just on the way to our rooms."

"You can stay with us as long as you need, lil man." Kilo said easily, walking on Chase's other side, although he exchanged a look over his head with Tango, both of them reflecting the worry they felt, and their protective flocking of Chase tightened, and the first thing they did once they'd reached their common room was seal the door and convince Chase to nap on the couch.

All they could do now was wait for Alpha to return.