While Corr went to the bridge to see Vult, the rest of the crew was left to their own devices. Hesa and Kazak remained at the simulator talking with Aero, Rem was too busy piloting the ship. Rha relieved Kazak after cleaning up the mess hall, taking watch over the prisoners. Sula organizing her medlab, eyeing the makeshift patch put into the wall from earlier, still grateful to Hesa for possibly saving Vult's life.
All that left was Haxx and Volx...and the latter was still in her room, hoping Vult knew the gamble he was taking and what the payoff would be. She's improved somewhat since she nearly shot her commander over protocol...but she's kept much to herself, trying to work through everything. While some of the others have talked to her, she kept her distance. Part of her still worried the gamble wouldn't pay off...somehow…
Haxx, on the other hand, was oblivious to what was ailing his commanding officer. With the exception of Sula, Vard, Corr, and Hesa, no one else was aware of what happened that day in the infirmary between her and the Commander. Since then, it had been the standard fare of duties and training. A welcomed tedium compared to the chaos and danger of being in the field behind enemy lines.
It would be were it not for his self-inflicted punishment of scrubbing the latrines. Only a few more days and he would be free of that. Thoroughly spent having been on his hands and knees deep-cleaning to promote good hygiene, he reeked of sterilizing spray with a tinge of underlying sweat.
Walking down the corridor of the barracks towards his own quarters, he stopped briefly at Volx's door. He hadn't seen or heard from her in days. She was always on his case about something. Slacking here. Not paying attention there. Cutting corners. Being a general nuisance and not appreciating his sense of humor. The silence was deafening and he felt compelled to seek her out.
Checking down either side of the hallway for activity, as well as hesitating to follow through with his own good intentions at the risk of enticing her wrath, the Heavy Weapons Sergeant rose a hand, rapping soundly on the metallic door.
"Lieutenant?" He began, clearing his throat awkwardly. "You in there? It's...uh...Haxx."
The short Lieutenant rose from her desk, looking over past events, looking at her Commander, trying to figure out what happened. Did that building falling on him have something to do with it? In such a short period of time so much has happened, but why? What went wrong? ...Who was wrong? Was it her all along? The knock on the door disrupted her train of thought.
Despite still dressing properly, she looked weary, like she hadn't slept much at all recently. She almost welcomed the distraction of someone's presence...at this point even the most careless of the group was a welcome change from her self-imposed confinement. "What is it, Haxx?" Even her tone sounded different than usual...less imposing than she normally was. She was quieter, seemingly worn out. Even without Vult elaborating on the details of what transpired, it was painfully obvious it affected her much more than first let on.
Standing outside the closed door still, he heard her respond. Albeit difficult to make out, he heard her well enough.
"Just...checking on you, Ma'am." He stumbled, unsure of how to phrase his concerns. "You haven't been at roll call the last few days. Is everything alright? Are you sick or something?"
The door opened, Haxx seeing the weary Lieutenant, looking him right in the eyes. There wasn't any hostility. Her usual fire wasn't there. Even with the recent improvements she had, what happened recently still ate away at her. "Didn't the Commander fill you in on everything?"
"No…?" He blinked, confused. "I've had nothing but a faceful of toilet and shower heads since we left Vort. I know Aero's been on sick call forever. Was just making sure you weren't catching whatever she had...it's not contagious right?"
"No, not unless I let that Vortian prisoner of ours do...something to me." The second part of that was much easier to answer. There was a stretch of silence after that as she looked down. "I nearly shot Vult, Haxx...almost did...I was going to shoot him in the head in front of the prisoner, Vard, Sula, Aero, Corr, and Hesa. He'd be dead, because of me, because I wanted to adhere to protocol."
The Heavy Weapons Sergeant's eyes went wide at this news. His superior officer had drawn a weapon on Vult and threatened to shoot him? He struggled to imagine Volx being capable of such. She was straight as a razor when it came to procedure and protocol. Anytime Corr or Vult said "jump", she asked "how high?" without hesitation.
He began to speak, stumbling over his words with a shake of his head as a collection of thoughts and questions all demanded to be satiated. He settled for an exasperated sigh, lifting his hands with a shake of his head.
"Can I...permission to enter?" He managed, looking down either side of the corridor of the barracks. He saw none of his squadmates or any of their "guests". Such sensitive topics weren't meant to be heard openly.
Without a word, her back turned as she motioned for him to enter. The Lieutenant returned to her desk and sat down, seat turned to face her subordinate...at least, right now he still was. Vult forgave her, but she still couldn't forgive herself yet. She just looked at him, waiting for him to break the silence. She wasn't keen on starting the conversation in her state.
Haxx entered the room after being granted access. Each of them had their own private quarters aboard the ship along this corridor, Volx was no different. Maybe he was expecting something vastly contrasting to what he and his fellow enlisted had. The taller one was in the Armada, the more preferred the treatment they received, after all.
Instead, he found a small room not unlike his own. A pressed, clean, made bunk. Footlocker and rack stowed away and secure. Not a single speck of dust could be found on the floor or any flat surface. Even her terminal and desk were uniform and in order. Impressive, really. Then again, unsurprising given how much of a pain she could be about neatness and order.
The door whisked closed behind him. Turning briefly, he tapped a few keys on the haptic interface near the door, locking it shut.
"Okay...so...just so I heard you right just now...you said you...almost shot the Commander. Right? Why? What'd I miss?"
Volx heaved a sigh, head hanging, unable to look him in the eye as she began her answer, "Yes, I almost shot him. Aero was in the lab with Turb'Zharic...he was unshackled. I reacted as could be expected. I started putting everything together in my head...he confessed what I was thinking. He had our prisoner disconnect Aero from the control brains. I was going to shoot him as a traitor. Everything in me that held tightly to protocol was screaming for it...even as I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt."
There was a lengthy pause as her left hand tightly gripped the rest of her chair. "He said he forgives me...but I can't…I don't think I should be here, Haxx."
"Whoa, whoa, wait...what?" Haxx stammered, catching up to what he was hearing mentally as he stepped closer. "He unhooked Aero from the Control Brains? How?"
It clicked a second later in his head.
"Wait...like all the stuff he did to Hesa? Is that what he did? And Vult let him?!"
A moment of silence followed as she rubbed her forehead, "Told me it was his decision...and that Sula and Vard were assisting the Vortian under his orders." Her head rose, looking right at him, "That's why I almost shot him in front of everyone. I don't know the exact details...but I know Vult directed it all. Aero and Hesa are now the only two of us on this ship who can't be deactivated by the Control Brains...and technically don't even have to obey orders anymore if they don't want to."
"...and we weren't even supposed to bring Hesa or that science guy back with us." Haxx added, shaking his head with a scoff. "...but Aero is okay...ish. I've seen her doing...whatever it is that she does. Maintenance in the hangar on stuff, upkeep, etc… Aside from the funny bumps on her chest and uniform looking too tight, she's still Aero...right?"
"She...was more openly defiant than usual." At least that was according to her own standards, "You've seen her mouth off before...now there's nothing holding her back, except us and herself." Haxx was right, she didn't like that they deviated from their mission parameters, even for one of their own...the circumstances were certainly muddied. "The claim is that this was done to save Aero's life, that the Control Brains would kill her when they found out about her condition."
"I mean...yeah." He shrugged at that. "By Empire standard, she is defective. So is Hesa...doesn't mean I wanna see 'em deactivated, but I don't make the rules...so in that sense...they're still around to do their jobs even if they are, right?"
"They are, yes…" and in a far greater capacity than herself. Her black eyes closed as she took a deep breath, "Do you think I should hand in my resignation?" Part of her was anticipating a strong, emphatic 'yes' given their previous interaction, but she wanted to hear what he thought right now. Even what he says as to why could give some insight into what he's thinking.
Haxx gave an audible laugh, Volx's expression immediately demanding an answer from him.
"Resignation? You forget what unit you're in?" He leaned closer, lowering his voice. "Deactivation would be merciful to anyone trying to leave. We all accepted that the day we took the Commander up on his offer. I may not always understand how or why we do what we do, but that ain't my place to. Above my rank, not my problem."
A pause, eyeing her with contemplation.
"...and as mean as you can be, I know you don't wanna leave me alone with Corr as my immediate alone. He's no fun."
"No, Haxx, I'm completely aware what it means." Her tone was dead serious, but lightened somewhat, "You should lay off of him. He has a strong mind. Smart man, one of the smartest officers I've ever seen. In a traditional military sense, the man could be a High General if the opportunity were afforded him." Her mind skipped back to what he said just before that. "How are you so sure that wouldn't be a more fitting punishment for you than scrubbing the latrines?"
"Because latrine duty ain't got either of you over my shoulder, barking in my antenna. The Captain really likes his PT. I ain't built for runnin'." He answered earnestly. "...and is that sarcasm I'm detecting? I didn't think you were capable of humor."
"Remind me next time if you need a punishment to assign you to run on the treadmill...if there is a next time." There was still the fact she didn't think herself worthy of taking up her old position. "I still can't forgive myself for what I almost did, Haxx. Everyone was devastated when we thought Vult was buried alive, and I was almost the source of a second round of that...that or Hesa would've blown my head off with that revolver right after I shot Vult. Then you'd have lost two of the team." She may as well cut to the center of what ails her. "I don't think I can go back into the field with the rest of you after what I did...and by rights, Vult should have either shot me or thrown me in the brig."
"Well...he didn't. You're still here and if we're stuck here, so are you. No easy way out." He matter of factly spoke. "Look...yeah, you're kinda really mean...a vodeta sometimes...but that's just how you are. You were doin' this type of stuff while we were all still Irken Elite during ID1. Obviously Vult thinks you belong here or he wouldn't have picked you. He may be in command, but your experience and leadership is why we all know how to sneak around and stuff."
Growing weary of standing and more relaxed with his commanding officer's presence one-on-one, Haxx glanced to the bunk before moving to sit down on it.
"...you an' Corr got us back to friendly lines while he was gone...there's a reason why he chose soldiers like you two."
"You wonder why I've been so hard on you?" She didn't say anything about him sitting on her rack. If anything, his company was welcome right now. "I had a subordinate just like you. We got caught in a melee...Vortian officer with a blade caught us by surprise. He didn't take a sword wielding officer seriously and charged him with a combat knife. In three strokes he lost his wrist, then his arm, then he was made a head shorter...excellent form. Something I sought to emulate after that."
A soft sigh escaped her, not bringing up the scar gained from that fight before it was interrupted...unfinished business, if she could ever find the man responsible. "I didn't want to see the same fate befall you, which is why I'm tough on you. You were just like Norb, Haxx, and he paid the price for not taking things seriously."
Things started to make more sense now. Projection of past mistakes in fear of repeating them. Maybe some of the rumors he'd overheard about the history between her and Kazak weren't unfound, after all. Nevertheless, he searched for an appropriate response in silence, patting his thighs with an exhale of breath through pursed lips.
Thinking quickly before the silence grew uncomfortably and awkwardly long, he settled for doing what he did best: Being him.
"You do care after all." He commented with a smug undertone in jest.
Black eyes rolled at his seemingly expected response, "Yeah, maybe I do. Which is why I don't think I can go back out after what I did." Such a response usually would've merited a harsher response, but she wasn't in a position to speak from where she usually would. "I've been trying to prevent you messing things up, and I'm the one who nearly causes a major issue for everyone involved."
"Now you know what it feels like to be me...but in all seriousness...what other choice you got? Hide in your room for the rest of your life? Beg for deactivation to please the Control Brains that obviously care about you, me, and the rest of us among the trillions of other Irken?"
Leaning back, Haxx planted his palms on the bunk behind him, looking to the smaller, onyx-eyed woman across the room from him.
"Honestly? Permission to speak freely?"
"You were free to this whole time, Haxx." That was a first, especially coming from her, "Spill it."
"You're too uptight. Too wound up. You carry yourself like one of those wannabe Tallest from High Command thinkin' it'll benefit you, by extension, us in the long run. Volx, they don't care 'bout us. Look at all the dumb stuff Grimm had us do...or even that crazy not-Invader that bit me in the face...all because the Tallest didn't think it important enough to give us all the information we needed...an' before you pop an antenna, this isn't dereliction...just the facts that none of us wanna acknowledge because if we do, it makes everything we do not matter."
A long stretch of silence followed as she thought over what he said...even in Spec Ops this would've been true if not for more cunning and forward thinking commanders. General Vaukt was one such individual that popped into her mind… maybe Vult was right about what he was thinking?
"I got some serious questions for you, in that case. Do you think Vult was right to disconnect Aero? Do you think he was right to save those Vortians and Hesa? Lastly...did you ever hear anything that Turb'Zharic ever said that stuck with you and made you think?"
"Well...I get why he'd want to. Aero's really good at what she does. Reliable, dependable...be a shame to lose all that time, effort, and energy that went into training and preparation for the stuff we do just because she's different from what the Empire deems "normal"." He emphasised with air-quotes. "...and seein' how you are havin' this crisis over almost shooting him over it, I can see why he wanted to do it discreetly and talk about it at a later date. Far as the Vortians and Hesa go...maybe he's got a weird instinct or sense about stuff that we don't. If he had killed them like we were supposed to, he wouldn't have found out about saving Aero's life."
He leaned forward, elbows to his knees as he looked directly at Volx.
"Question for a question...I may not be the sharpest blade in the armory...but I'm pretty sure that all officers in the chain of command of a unit are responsible for their subordinates...yet you, Corr, or the Commander didn't report Aero's defective status. Leaving the dirty work for someone else isn't your style. Why didn't you if you're such a stickler for doing things by the book with the rest of us?"
That caused her to sink slightly, shaking her head. "Trust...that whatever he was doing was right...but the changes recently started gnawing at me...going back to when he let that Drone go. The more it went on, the more concerned I became...and seeing what happened in the medbay, I guess that's what made me snap. If the control brains decided to peruse what's going on here...we may very well be up the creek without a boat."
"So? How's that different from normal? There's always gonna be another race to conquer. Another planet to invade. Another war to fight. Universe is a big place. You tellin' me you don't wanna endanger our chances of gettin' to go get shot at an' blown up somewhere else?"
"There's something of a brain in that head of yours after all that's not just cushioning isn't there?" It sounded harsh, but it was a way of saying he had a point. "...Maybe. I'm starting to wonder now if I'm either getting sick of this or if I don't want to see anyone else I care about die in some abyss. I don't know…"
"I'm the smartest me I know," He smiled at her facetiously. "...and you're not the only one. Vult wants us to trust an' rely on one another...somethin' the Empire made no attempt to teach or train in the rank-and-file because there was no need to. Just send in more reinforcements. Lose a company of men? Wait for another one an' try again. We ain't got that luxury. Throw in all the classified, super-duper sneaky top secret stuff on top of that and it makes for a whole complicated mess."
His attention drifted to his hands, wringing them momentarily in contemplation before speaking again. His focus remained there, not lifting his eyes to meet Volx's.
"I'm worried 'bout you, Lieutenant. Not about leadership or duty or any of that dookie...about you. Don't like seein' you rattled like this. Nothing shakes you. Ever."
"You and me both." She didn't get up from her chair, but she pushed herself up. "I don't know if I can go back out, Haxx, I really don't...not right now. I...I think I need to talk with Vult, honestly, clearly...find out where in the blazes things are going."
Sitting up, Haxx extended one of his feet across the small expanse of floor between him and the Lieutenant. Placing his foot on one of the rolling caster legs of the chair, he brought his leg back beneath him, rolling Volx closer to him. She came to rest with a few scant inches between them as he resumed his more casual posture, meeting her eyes.
"You have to. We need you." He dictated clearly. "I need you."
One leg was prepared to push her chair away before she heard what he said. It came down and she leaned in, blinking, "Did you just tell me that you need me? Did you suffer some traumatic brain injury or sniff the cleaning fumes too hard? I could've sworn you would welcome my absence."
"Maybe. I was dumb enough to join this outfit. If I can't get out of duty, you sure as Irk ain't bailing on us." He sarcastically began, his smirk subsiding to a more serious tone. "What 'bout the others? I ain't the only one that looks to you for orders. Leadership, guidance, all that stuff. Have you read our after-action reports? There's multiple times all of us should've bit the dust...but because you, Corr, an' the Commander were all there, reading, analyzing, and executing...all that fancy stuff you officers do...imagine lettin' your workload slip to their shoulders...or someone like me getting your rank." He teased lighter, leaning forward to flip at her insignia of Lieutenant on her uniform.
"Tuu would be making Lieutenant long before you." She smirked, for the first time in quite some time, and elicited by Haxx of all people. "Let me talk to Vult...Let me do that and give me some more time. You do that...I can tell you I won't give things up."
"Technically Aero would...she outranks Tuu." Haxx pointed out, smiling back at his superior officer. "What's there to talk 'bout? He's just gonna tell you everything I told you, except from a position of authority. At least I'm nice about it."
"It's about something else..I should probably go see if he's done with Corr." She pushed herself back from Haxx and stood, "It's important...I'd say critical to getting firmly back on my feet." The shorter Lieutenant walked to the door and unlocked it, "Oh, Haxx," she looked over her shoulder, smiling softly, "thanks for this."
The Heavy Weapons Sergeant rose to his feet, towering over his immediate commanding officer.
"Anytime...just remember this before the next time you wanna get mad at me an' yell." He playfully addressed.
"Don't get too full of yourself. You start acting like a total meathead I'm gonna knock you down a rung or two on the treadmill." She smirked, waiting until he followed her out of the room before closing the door behind her and heading for the bridge to see if Vult was still there.
"No promises." Haxx smirked, giving a half-hearted salute before turning about to continue on to his own quarters.
As Volx made her way to the bridge, Vult was making his rounds. Standing on the bridge near Rem at the helm, he monitored the stream of recorded flight data as she piloted. Outside the vessel's main viewport ahead lay the endless void of space, sparsely populated with the twinkling of untold billions of stars and celestial bodies.
"What exactly am I looking at here, Rem?" Vult queried of his expert pilot and navigator.
"That, Sir…" she glanced over, her augmented eyes zeroing in on what he was referring to. "Is our power supply and grid management. I have been running several diagnostics and we are getting massive spikes and drops in power. Reactors are stable and running optimal. There's no reason why we should be fluctuating that much."
"Vard has been drawing heavily towards decryption on the drives recovered from Sub Zero Station." Vult commented, scratching his chin thoughtfully with his cybernetic hand. "Is this something we should be concerned about?"
"The sudden drops and spikes can damage relays and circuits elsewhere in the systems running throughout the ship, Commander. Imagine not warming up a craft's engine, then firewalling full throttle immediately after start up. Lot of sudden stress and state change causes structural weakness. Same goes for electrical components."
Lights flickered on the lift as Volx headed up...that was slightly unnerving. The lift made it up, all well and good. She didn't plan on spending her day trapped in an elevator. She made her way over to Vult, stopping just behind him. She stood upright, one hand behind her back fidgeting nervously, trying to hide it from him. "Commander, do you have some time to talk? ...Privately and candidly, preferably." The lights on the bridge flickered this time. "Are we...also suffering from electrical issues?"
Broken from his thoughts on the matter, Vult turned to address her.
"Ah, Lieutenant Volx."
"Ma'am," Rem quickly stood to attention, snapping a salute.
"As you were, Rem," Vult assured, turning his attention back to his subordinate and fellow officer. "No issues as of this moment...just assuring Vard's work on the intelligence we recovered from Sub Zero Station is not going to jeopardize any of the ship's critical systems. As vital is it is to decrypt those files, it may be in our best interest to not dedicate as much of our resources to it and simply be patient."
He gestured for Volx to lead on as he moved to follow her.
She led the way, hand moving from behind her back as she forced it to stop fiddling. Rem didn't need to know about the extent of her inner turmoil, something that Vult knew when he saw her snap. Once they were somewhere quiet, she locked the door behind them for privacy and took a seat. "Vult, I have to admit I've spent all this time since what happened thinking of what to do...I've thought of handing in my resignation, thought about having you pull me off of active service...at times I've even hoped for deactivation just to end what I was feeling."
She paused to rub one of her eyes, "Were you planning on having the rest of us undergo what Hesa and Aero have? At the very least the removal from the control of the Control Brains. I don't think you would ask us to undergo that maturity procedure unless you saw something of use in it for us."
While not a stickler to a fault about protocol, to be addressed so informally by Volx was mildly jarring. Haxx, he expected. Even Kazak's casualness was par for the course. This, however, was not like her. Right away, something was amiss and she held his undivided attention.
Ever since the chaos that erupted in the infirmary that day, Volx had been taken off of duty rotation. The reasons were kept confidential, as did the events that took place that day. There was a time and place for that information to be revealed. Now was not it. Not with all else that was going on.
Then came the root cause of all this inner turmoil plaguing the steadfast Lieutenant. The constant battle of entrusting her superior officer and his motives and following established Empire protocol and procedure. He was not obtuse. The things he had authorized and done challenged all conventions and beneath normal regulations, he'd be dealt with in quick order as a traitor.
"Planning? No, I was not." He earnestly answered her dire need for confirmation. "Beyond what is asked of us, I do not force you to do things that will jeopardize or endanger you. What was done to Hesa was outside of our control. We had no part in that. I did not force Aero to undergo the same procedure. She chose that of her own volition. I value her addition to this unit and did not want to lose that because of circumstances beyond our control. A risk I was willing to take. I would do the same for anyone else beneath my command."
She got his attention...just as she intended. It was even jarring for her to address him that way. This matter, however, was serious enough to merit such a thing. "It's my guess that sooner or later, we'll all have to. Maybe, just maybe Kazak is the only one of us free and clear right now. He doesn't know what we do. I know you'd never force anything on us, but I'm starting to think that it's only a matter of time before our security clearance doesn't cut it and they start remotely hitting our off switches."
She was running off Vard's hypothesis of their security clearance giving them massive amounts of leeway. Leeway that, in the end, did not mean total freedom from oversight. One day the control brains would come snooping and the whole of their actions revealed. "I'm tired of living in that constant fear. That at the very least has kept gnawing at me since I almost shot you. That...and I don't want to lose you again, and for good this time. Shooting you would've been better than what the control brains won't hesitate to do."
Vult did not immediately respond as he read Volx's body language and expressions as she spoke. This sudden shift in stance on the matter left him mildly suspicious. Was she testing him? Seeking confirmation to catch him in whatever trap she laid and conclude with the separation of his PAK from his mortal coil.
Guilt washed over him for even considering the possibility of not trusting one of his own, but facts were facts. She did nearly shoot him with lethal intent. Were it not for Hesa's intervention, he would have died that day in the infirmary. Even so, they had been through much together and that alone gave her the benefit of the doubt.
"Kazak shares whatever fate is in store for us. He is a part of this unit the same as you and I," Vult began, tipping his chin up with his hands placed behind his back. "...and now you are beginning to understand the depths of my concerns for our future. I remain loyal to the Empire and our people...but look what becomes of those that outlive their usefulness. Vort is in ruins because of that mentality. The same has happened more times over than either you or I can recall to fellow soldiers of all ranks."
"You're right, and I think our historian would back up your statement. That leads me to one of two conclusions. The first is that this is our only way out, which for sure makes us all traitors; we're dead soldiers walking, Tallests' personal scalpels or not, the Control Brains don't care. Even right now they would look at you and see a defective. So we'd all have to trust the Vortian to do...whatever it is he needs to do."
Then her tone turned dark as she looked him dead in the eyes, "The second is that you know this, and you're going to wait, and your hesitation is going to get us all killed. Or, for all I know, you've already had the Vortian do the same to you." She paused for a few moments, "Which is it?"
"I wait because not everyone among us thinks the same as I. You are starting to realize it, but the others do not. Speaking of it will only serve to cause derision because of how we are programmed to act and react." Vult explained calmly despite Volx's cold, black gaze and harrowing words. "The last thing I want is for tension to grow to the point we cannot work side-by-side or even turn on one another. There is a time and place for things and now is not it."
He paused, relaxing somewhat with a small sigh. His cybernetic right hand left from behind his back, flexing and articulating between them as a point of focus.
"Had I not been in this unit with the resources at our disposal, this would have saw me deactivated for being forever scarred and unable to remain combat effective. Useless by Empire standards. Dead weight. Were it not for Sula after ID1 tending to me, I would have died then. Twice I have narrowly avoided it. Three times including what happened on Vort were it not for Kazak."
His artificial hand fell to his side, looking back to Volx.
"I do not claim to be immune to the fear of death, but having come so close so many times...and knowing the fate that awaits me despite my loyalty and service to our people...I would much rather see you and the others safe from that."
The Lieutenant sighed, lessening her glare, running her hand over her face. "Then I suppose what I'd like to know, who can we tell? Who can we potentially spare of this right now? I don't think we can afford to wait anymore. It would be best to remove as many of us from the threat as possible, yourself included. I'd much rather have all of you still standing here than risk losing anyone for an insane reason."
"Actively pursuing this will only serve to attract unwanted attention," Vult reasoned, wary of his tone to not sound against the idea. "If it could be done yesterday, it would have. The same reason why I have not addressed the others about what happened in the infirmary. There is a time and place for that and now is not it."
"Then what of those who do?" There were a handful of those who did, after all. Sula, Vard, and Corr, not counting Vult and herself. "There's five of us who know. Combine that with Aero, that's six of eleven that could have had this done. It seems I needed time to come around, but what was stopping you from doing this with the others while I was in a state of self-confinement? I don't think we can hesitate right now."
"The same reason why I hesitate now: the team. Were I to do this, as your commanding officer, what becomes of you and the others? As of now, with what authority I do have, I can mitigate. I can keep prying eyes away and fend off anyone suspicious. That is difficult to do if I am among those "compromised" in their eyes." The blue-eyed Irken reasoned.
"If not now, then when? How soon? What if they find out about Aero? This is what's worrying me...and not being in the know about what's going on in your head is making me doubt not just myself, but if I can reliably follow you. If it weren't for speaking to Haxx several minutes ago, I'd probably be asking you to pull me from going out with you right now."
"I have told you nothing but the truth and hid nothing, Volx," Vult dictated clearly. Not so much upset or angry, but sternly in spite of what she was implying. "If you are not getting the answers you want, ask different questions. I understand how difficult all of this is. How complicated it has become. I am doing what I can within my power to benefit us as a team. The alternative is reporting our "growing pains" in the most literal sense and start over from scratch as anyone involved is deactivated, myself included likely. If you have another solution, I'm all antenna."
"I don't think you have," that stung her inside to say. As far as everything goes, she still sees herself left in the dark. "You're right on one count, this is complicated. I'm starting to think that some of what you've done is going to do us more harm than good." She sighed, shaking her head, "I'm starting to wonder if I can trust you. I'm pretty sure after what happened, I know you can't possibly trust me like you have before." A quiet stare followed for some time, almost a glare, cutting to a rather difficult question, "Maybe you just don't trust the others to trust you? Think they'd do what I nearly did?"
"It isn't a matter of trust. It's programming. Indoctrination. Look at how you responded to what was going on in the infirmary even after I explained what was taking place." Vult began, trying to appeal to logic and reason. "Had it been one of the enlisted in your place, we wouldn't be having this conversation right now. Corr would be taking over and you filling the role as his second. All of this goes against convention. Against PAK programming. Aero and Hesa are exceptions and I still do not understand how it is even feasible or possible. Vard's hypothesis seems to be our saving grace of security clearance allows much of what we do to go unnoticed until we attract attention to ourselves. Being discreet is key."
"Then you may want to consider growing eyes in the back of your head. Haxx knows." Volx plainly laid out. She already filled him in on what happened, may as well warn Vult. "He wants me to stay around. I still wonder if I can. You're trying to bide your time for the others...your selflessness is admirable on one hand but on the other it makes me want to smack you across the face." The short Lieutenant sighed and closed her eyes briefly, "I don't know if we can trust each other again. For what it's worth, I think you need to act now for those you can. Vard proved himself back there, otherwise he'd have shot you. As for me...I don't know what you should do with me, or if there's anything stopping me from shooting you later if things continue to mount."
She stopped, looking down as she paused, "I think you may either need to remove me from the team or throw me in with the prisoners, still. If I'm being completely honest with myself, I think you don't trust me right now, and you have no reason to aside from our past. Even with that, I don't think you can...not now."
Vult's metal fist slammed into the wall near Volx's head, startling her. The man was typically placid on the surface, but calm waters ran deep.
""I think", "I can't", "I'm not sure"," He threw back at her, wary of the volume of his frustration. "Get over yourself, Lieutenant. This isn't about me. It isn't about you. We are leaders. We lead by example. Our actions and how we carry ourselves is what matters. Not how we feel. I get it, you're confused. You think I've betrayed you. That I've manipulated your trust. Because I saved our subordinate from certain death? The one we all collectively overlooked and refused to speak the truth about?"
Pausing to calm his temper as his artificial limb returned to his side, a small indentation in the shape of his fist in the metal plating of the bulkhead visible in the light.
"I selected you for this unit based on your experience and knowledge as a member of Spec Ops. The fact you survived ID1 despite being at the front spoke volumes of your ability to operate under pressure and remain collected at all times. Yet, you stand before me, rattled to the core like a freshly-activated smeet...over what? Because I didn't kill Aero myself? That I didn't kill Hesa myself? That I took prisoners that can potentially lead to a quickened end to the bloodbath we almost drowned in on Vort? I'm not lying to you, Volx. You're lying to yourself and projecting it onto me."
The initial shock to the table subsided as she placed her hands on the table, rising to her feet. "You think I'm lying to myself? You see what you did as saving Aero. Even Haxx saw that it was pointless to kill them. I think maybe you're lying to yourself. You know what I was seeing when I almost put a hole in your head? I'll tell you."
Her tone since turned dead serious, that fire from before starting to well back up once more. "What I saw was a man committing treason. Maybe you are. I don't know that, only you do. Yes, we complain about our lot, that's what soldiers tend to do. You, on the other hand, now have a position to do something. You have a stealth ship, you have means of rebellion sitting in the brig, you even have a high ranking enemy officer as a rather strong contact."
She leaned in, getting right in his face, eyes narrowed. "You say you lead by your example, if you think I saw that, imagine what someone else might say." One of her hands balled into a fist as she considered slugging her commander. It remained in place, for now, "Prove otherwise, if you can."
Surprisingly, a humorless huff of a laugh escaped Vult as he shook his head, his remaining hand of flesh drawing down his features.
"Prove...you keep coming back to that and I have told you each time to suggest how. You criticize and accuse while offering no solutions or alternatives. That is complaining."
That last remark saw her fist raising from its position as she delivered a right hook to her commanding officer's face. "Then I'll say what you're not able to bring yourself to say! 'Lieutenant Volx, would you consider undergoing the procedure?'" Her tone shifted to imitate Vult briefly before switching to her own, "That'll alleviate a lot of my personal fears, sir. Sure. Maybe you should also talk to the Captain, Sula, and Vard to see if they might be amiable to it too? They know what happened. Maybe they're thinking the same thing." She glared right back at him after her rather spirited response.
"I'll do it, for you, for Haxx, and so I can operate with some peace of mind that I'm not going to get killed for someone else's mistakes, intentional or not."
Not expecting to be struck so suddenly, Vult caught himself before tumbling out of his seat into the floor by the edge of the table. Despite her short stature, she was strong for her size. His face throbbed deeply from the point of impact and the faint taste of blood in his mouth was present.
Instead of rising up with wrath and fury at being struck by his subordinate, the Commander settled for regaining his composure in his seat. A hand rose to adjust his jaw, looking back at the simmering rage in Volx's onyx-black eyes glaring holes through him. It was hard not to be the tiniest bit proud.
"So long as that is your decision to be made. I will not force you or anyone else to undergo it."
She nodded once, "I mean it about talking to the others. They'd be among those are agreeable by my estimate." Then, like nothing happened, she sat back down. "I know you haven't been through as much with him yet, but Kazak is also one you should talk to. A lot of similarities between you two. If there's anyone I think you could also convince, it's bound to be him. Especially considering his own mistreatment just for surviving and following orders."
"I'll keep it under advisement." Vult addressed, releasing his jaw. "For now, worry about yourself. I will notify Vard and Sula to prepare for another procedure."
Volx heaved a sigh of relief, "I meant it about Haxx, by the way...I told him the details of what transpired. May be wise to talk to him." She rose from her seat following that, "I should go wait in the medbay…but maybe I should talk to him again before you do." Despite her acceptance, she was still nervous about this whole ordeal.
"As I said, I will take it under advisement." He reiterated, watching as she made to leave. "...and before you go, Volx...welcome back."
The Lieutenant stopped before unlocking the door, looking over her shoulder at him, "Thank you, Commander." With that, she unlocked the door and went back down the lift. She looked around for Haxx while Vult made the preparations.
She found him at the ship's range. Haxx and Hesa both firing away with their machine guns while Tuu sat nearby reading a datapad. There wouldn't be anything for him to shoot with two machine gun nuts hogging the range.
"Pretty sure I've got more of these things than you, Haxx!" The Corporal placed her weapon down on the bench, barrel glowing despite firing in bursts.
With weapons quieted, the Lieutenant cleared her throat, "Haxx, I need to speak with you, privately, it's about earlier."
Sneering at their "guest" and about to respond in defiance to her remarks of scoring higher, Volx garnered his attention. She held it fully after he listened to her in full.
"Uhh...sure thing, Ma'am." He answered, picking up one of the spent power cells sitting on the table next to his weapon before tossing it at Tuu.
The empty, albeit hefty, plasma container hit the marksman in the arm unkindly.
"What was that for?!"
"Watch the "tourist"," He thumbed over his shoulder at Hesa. "The Lieutenant needs me."
"Good riddance. I may get some practice in yet today."
Hesa smirked, drawing her revolver and fitting the rails atop it with a small pistol scope. "I'll not hog the range for you then."
As they walked somewhere private, Volx spoke to her subordinate, "Be nicer to her, would you? The Commander wants to make her part of the team. The last thing I want is two meatheaded gunners I need to occasionally slap upside the head." Once in a more private room, she locked the door behind them.
"Look, Haxx, I just talked with the Commander. Aside from slugging him in the jaw...I'm going through with what they did to Aero. I'm going to have the Vortian disconnect me from the control brains. I'm not sure about the hormone control thing yet. I'm still personally leaning against it. I'm iffy about going this alone, though."
Once again, she caught him off guard with the verbal tirade unleashed. He stood there in silence, mentally processing what was just laid out for him to purvey.
"That's...a lot to unpack," He finally began, blinking. "One thing at a time...you...hit our commanding officer...why?"
"I...was getting frustrated. I thought he was still hiding something. In the end, I just had to plainly lay out what I wanted: freedom from fear of the Control Brains."
"You're afraid of the Control Brains...so you hit the Commander." Haxx logically reasoned, still confused. "Okay...I...guess that makes sense. Not really, but I'm gonna pretend it does. Anyway...you wanna get unplugged too...an' you're telling me. Why?"
"It's complicated, Haxx, but it's not about that." She huffed in some slight frustration borne of anxiety, "I don't want to go through this alone. I'm still anxious...I'm actually hoping you'd go through it with me."
He furrowed his brow at her in confusion.
"You're not doing it alone, Aero and Hesa already di-...wait...me?" He queried incredulously, shaking his head. "Oh, no...nonononono. You're crazy. Absolutely not. Is this a trap? It feels like a trap. I feel like I'm being trapped."
"Haxx, you know me, if this were a trap, I'd already have a gun to your head or a knife to your throat." She responded with a stern face before placing a hand on his right arm. "I know part of you thinks this is better for us. If you didn't, I'm pretty sure you would've gotten up and went off to go shoot our commander once I told you what transpired."
"Look, I don't know who is right an' who is wrong here. I said it before, I'll say it again. Above my rank." He reasoned with a shrug. "...but you're asking me to jump with you into...whatever this is. This is coming from a guy who gets shot at. A lot."
Haxx sighed, running a hand down his face in exasperation, attempting to collect himself.
"...Aero I can get. If she didn't, she would have been deactivated. Eventually. You an' I both know that. Even Hesa. Same reasons...but there's nothin' wrong with you...or me! Why fix what isn't broken?"
"You don't think the Control Brains are gonna come knocking one day and see what we've been up to? See what we've done? Pretty sure those things can read our thoughts, Haxx. We're all dead eventually unless we do this. Face it, we work for an Empire where even a sniper with several hundred kills to his credit thinks one wrong thing, and they deactivate him as defective."
"So? We haven't done or thought of anything worthy of being punished for that. That's part of life an' we accept it. You can't take the thing off, it's a part of you." He referred to their PAKs. "What happens after you go through with this insanity then? What then? What happens when someone outside of this unit figures out what you've done?"
"You say that, but remember when we let that drone Tak go and haven't told anyone about Hesa or the prisoners?" She knew that much by intuition that Vult never told anyone. Very hard questions would arise from a literal dead woman walking aboard their ship, not to mention two Vortians Grimm would want his grubby hands on. "Simple, Haxx, if it's me or them? I'm choosing me. You'd be surprised how quickly a slash to your throat will do you in once you sever the vocal cords and make them unable to scream."
She sounded crazy, but just the right amount of crazy...or at least someone who had a breakthrough and wants complete freedom.
"...you're startin' to scare me. More than usual." He admitted, raising a hand with great concern. "I'm not disagreeing with you, but there's good reasons why all that stuff happened...except for the prisoner thing, but that's only happening because of the hocus-pocus technobabble magic that he worked on Hesa and Aero."
"And he could pull said technobabble magic on us. Maybe the commander's being a bit more level headed about this, but I'm seeing the writing on the wall. We've only got a limited amount of time as it is. I'm trying to save as many on the team as I think we can. If I didn't care about you, I wouldn't be asking. I don't think we have to have that...hormone mess done. From what I'm guessing and from what was revealed of Turb'Zharic's files, these changes are separate. It's also completely non-invasive. He just hooks into our PAK and does some stuff on a datapad and...we're free."
"If it's so easy an' simple, why isn't it mandatory?" Haxx reasoned to his immediate superior. "What you're talking about doing is playing with some serious fire. Everything is fine right now. Today was the same as yesterday and the day before it. No one's in danger. Why risk everything over the possibility of something happening that may or may not ever happen?"
"Because, Haxx, he doesn't want to divide the team. It's the Commander's take that if it were Rha or any of the others, he would've been shot. Corr would now be the commander and I'd be the Captain." She stopped and sighed, loudly, "Starting to think he's right. If Hesa didn't shoot the wall back there, I would've shot him. Why I risk it now? I don't want that to happen again. He wants to have this done willingly, slowly. He wants it to be our decision at the end of the day...I can get his caution. He's really playing with fire. In my case, I'm willing to take that risk. I'm sick of the looming fear. I can think of some others that are too, but that's another conversation."
She stopped, taking a breath, "Look, if you're not comfortable with this right now, I won't force it. Will you at least think about it?"
Haxx didn't immediately answer her. Instead, he stood there, mulling over mentally all that had been laid out. What she was proposing. What it would mean for her. What it would mean for him. The risks involved. Most of all, the consequences that could befall them and their allies.
"...why me?" He finally asked earnestly. "Out of all the others, you come to me with this...wantin' me to be there with you, by your side. Why?"
"...I see a lot of promise in you." She hesitated, but there was still some truth. "I wish you would take things a bit more seriously, but you're all right to have around. You just need to learn to use your brain more. I'm thinking maybe this might help with that." She gave him a poke in the chest for emphasis, "Completely up to you on this. I won't force it."
Promise? That was a new one. He did his job and followed orders...most of the time. A little heavy-handed, but the intentions and effort was there. Her words soothed over concerns and raised more questions.
"Help with that…" He reiterated with a faint nod before returning his attention back to the black-eyed woman before him. "You mean change who I am."
"I mean just take things a bit more seriously. Remember what I told you about Norb?" She thought back to their mission on Vort, when Vard was ambushed by that sniper, "Also that time when Aero modified your MG? You could've done a better job keeping an eye on temperature at least. I'm not telling you to do a complete about face on your personality, I just don't want anything getting in the way of you being unable to make it home." She would've said that he was starting to grow on her, but now wasn't the time to stroke his ego.
"I didn't forget...I don't know," Haxx sighed, running a hand back over his antenna in contemplation. "...you really that worried 'bout someone like me? I'm just as easily replaced as the next guy if I catch a plasma bolt or somethin'."
Volx shook her head, "Let me tell you something about Spec Ops. The sort of work we do? You've seen how Kazak works? It takes a special type of Irken to do that sort of work. Soldiers like him, like myself, like you, now, are far less replaceable. Think of it this way, with just three of us, we can do a job that would take sixty Elites minimum to do. So, yes, I'm worried about someone like you."
Haxx nodded slowly in understanding as she spoke. A decision of great importance now rest on his shoulders. His superior officer, ally, and friend came to him in a time of need. She needed him. Volx needed him. What she asked was great. Greater than any order before it. Potentially greater than any that would ever follow. A request of absolution and loyalty. A point of no return to be crossed. A threshold, if discovered by the wrong party, would result in deactivation. Execution if he was lucky.
After several moments of deep consideration, the Heavy Weapons Sergeant finally lifted his eyes to meet Volx's once more.
"I'll do it...me an' you. Together."
She gave him a firm smack on the shoulder, smirking in joy, closest Haxx might get to seeing her smile. "Well, come on, I think they're gonna be waiting for us." Opening the door, she led the way to the medbay. Once inside, they found Vult, Vard, Sula, and Turb within. Turb and Sula in the middle of an interesting conversation on Irken biology before Volx and Haxx entered the room.
"Ah, Lieutenant, greetings-" he looked at Haxx and blinked, "I hope he is not going to punch me again."
"If he does, I'll knock his clock. Plenty of padding in this skull of his that he can take it." Volx gave Haxx a light jab with her elbow. "Commander, Haxx also wants to undergo the process with me."
Vult looked to the shorter female briefly, gauging the validity of her words before looking to Haxx.
"Is this true, Sergeant?"
"Yes, Sir."
"Lieutenant Volx did not order you against your will to undergo this?"
"No, Sir. My decision. My choice." Haxx nodded with conviction.
"Did she explain to you the risks and consequences of doing this?" Vult pursued, ensuring everyone was on the same page.
"Yes, Sir, she did in detail. I know what I'm getting myself into."
The Commander nodded, looking to their captured Vortian scientist.
"This...procedure. Does the fact he is male change anything about it? Can it be performed the same without incident?"
"I'll need to have a look. Provided your code is the same for the deactivation...I'll be able to conduct that with no issue. Are either of you going to undergo the changes to your hormone control unit as well?" Volx blinked, "Aside from the changes you have likely seen in your friend Aero physically, you could see a growth spurt."
Volx kept a completely straight face, but inside she wanted that. Her size was always one thing going against her. It would make things much easier being at the height of her commander...even if it came with funny chest bags. "I'll go for it."
Turb's attention turned to Haxx. "I would need to have a look at your PAK's unit more closely. I do have some of my notes I can reference...but I believe I can change yours as well, if you so desire."
He nodded, swallowing his uneasiness. "Sure. You've already done this magic trick before...can't be that much harder, right?"
"We won't let anything happen to you, Haxx." Sula assured him.
"Exactly." Vard nodded. "I just need to beat the Control Brains before they figure out anything is amiss."
"You make it sound so simple. Why haven't you done it yet?" Haxx queried of them both.
"I...don't know." Vard earnestly responded. "I have been more focused on helping than thinking about myself in that regard."
"I was...worried about the Lieutenant or Captain Corr's reactions, to be honest." the Medical Officer sheepishly admitted. "Seeing as one of them is about to undergo this...that is subject to change?"
"Really?" Vard looked to his squadmate, eyes wide with surprise.
"Really." She nodded, her curled antenna bobbing once. "...if that is okay with you, of course, Ma'am."
"Actually," Volx gestured to both Sula and Vard, "I suggested earlier that you two should consider undergoing the procedure as well. You've both seen amiable to this whole thing, and we especially need your expertise. Without Vard, we have no tech genius. Without you, Sula, our only doctor on board is a Vortian."
"I'll have you know that I'm good at my job!"
Volx let out a slight chuckle at Turb's retort, "I'm sure. I should get this started."
Turb gestured to a stool in the room, "Have a seat, the test is completely non-invasive PAK modification." As Volx sat down, Vard handed Turb the datapad and the doctor went straight to work. Just like with Aero, he first swapped the code to her killswitch, rendering her incapable of being deactivated. After that, he modified the hormone control unit, integrating the false positives to the sensors to allow for natural development. It was several tense minutes, but once Turb had performed the work and double checked everything, he closed things out and disconnected her PAK. "There you are, Lieutenant, free as can be."
Volx rose from her seat, turning to face him and giving an appreciative nod. "So, are there any side effects?"
"From what I'm told, you're all familiar with what happened to Aero, even with her damaged unit. I've given Sula my notes from Hesa on what happens with a more natural and gradual change. You may experience some changes, but nothing major. I must say, the tall one is much hardier than I anticipated running around with a damaged unit as she has. What she must have went through...not healthy. Good thing we fixed that."
"That she is," Vult nodded in agreement to Aero's resilience before looking to Haxx. "You're up, Sergeant."
Haxx nodded, exhaling shakily to calm his nerves. He was actually doing this.
"Alright. Let's do this."
Once Haxx sat down in front of him, Turb went right to work. Confirming everything matched up, as Haxx was his second male subject and he didn't want this to go as badly as his last one. He moved with purpose but meticulously. The killswitch, thankfully exactly the same, was an easy switch. The hormone control unit proved more interesting. Males had a somewhat different code. He pulled up his notes from his deceased subject's unit, as well as his success with Hesa, opening a window and began typing.
It was a new code, one that would work to bypass an Irken male's hormone control unit. He followed the same lines as his previous success and was sure it would work. After rereading the code, and running it through Vard to double check for syntax, the Sergeant made a few minor adjustments. With the datapad back in hand, Turb made the change. It lasted much longer than Volx's procedure, or Aero's, but still wasn't time consuming. Once everything was closed out and Haxx unhooked, he heaved a sigh of relief. "There you go, Sergeant. Not the first for the killswitch, but you are the first to have your hormone blocker adjusted. Aside from being free from deactivation...I'm looking forward to seeing how you develop."
Haxx rose to his feet from the seat, his PAK sealing up once more with the scandalous changes made, forever altered.
"I don't feel any different."
"You won't feel anything right now," Vard reasoned with his taller squadmate. "Unlike Aero, your going to change more naturally over time. Albeit, somewhat accelerated, but nowhere near the rate she suffered through and it will be steady and uniform. As it should be."
"Well...what kind of changes are there gonna be? I'm not going to get funny bumps like Aero or Hesa, right?"
Sula resisted a snicker to the best of her ability, trying to remain composed and professional.
"N-no, Haxx. No funny bumps. That is a female-only thing. You will, however, see an increase in height, bone density, muscle density, among other things."
"Meaning…?"
"Taller. Stronger. Faster." She deadpanned, keeping it as simple as possible for him. "...among other things-"
"What kind of things?"
"Well," Turb started then rubbed his chin, "how do I put this?" He paused as he tried to think about how to explain this. "You see, males have certain organs that, speaking from a Vortian sense, are used in reproduction. To put it bluntly, you as a male insert Tab A into female Slot B. Should everything work as intended, you get a child." He blinked and looked around, "I am probably going to have to write down the basics of what all of you are going to go through. I hope you are all fluent in Vortian. I do not think Irken has the words I need to describe this."
"We are all capable of understanding most of your language." Vult informed, gesturing to Vard. "He holds expertise over it. I am sure it could be translated."
"Tab A?" Haxx furrowed his brow in confusion.
"Let's...one thing at a time," Sula awkwardly interrupted with a nervous smile. "There is no shortage of time or information at our disposal...just don't...panic and run to me when you start noticing these gradual changes. They will feel awkward and strange, but it is natural."
"Yes. Simply go see Sula. I think I can help explain some things. I must admit ever since Hesa my intrigue in Irken biology has been piqued. I think there's much of your species we don't know." Turb then turned his attention to Vard and Sula, "Are we doing either of you today or is it just the Lieutenant and the Sergeant?"
"May as well while you're here." Vult reasoned, looking to both of them. "What's it going to be?"
"I'll go first, Commander." Vard nodded, already preparing the tablet for another procedure. "A little surreal making these changes to myself, heh."
The changes for Vard and Sula went well enough. Vult himself continued to abstain. With Turb returning to his cell and another four members of the team freed of the Control Brains, there were other matters to attend to with the Tallest's ship due to arrive shortly. There was still plenty of time before it came time to meet the two inept leaders once more
Vult entered the ship's briefing room, Corr was already inside reviewing Hesa's performance in the simulator and her rather brief service record. He rose from his seat once he noticed his superior walking through the door, saluting, "Commander, everything's in order here. Continuing to look into Corporal Hesa's performance."
Returning the Captain's salute, the door closed behind him, locking as he approached his terminal at the table itself.
"How has she been doing?"
"She's the only one among us who isn't a veteran of the first Impending Doom, I have to say...she does show promise." Corr began as he displayed her scores. "She's performed immensely well in combat. Level headed, highly aggressive, I'd trust her by my side with a machine gun any day. Great control of her weapons, strong physically. I hope Sergeant Haxx doesn't feel inferior in some ways." The scores for Hesa were much lower in the realm of stealth.
"Though, as you can see, even if she was Spec Ops, she's not the best in stealth. I can see why. Her personality would see her preferring to solve problems with concentrated fire. She's not the best with sneaking around." He pulls up one particular exercise ran recently. "This one was particularly damning. With five simulated squadmates, their position was compromised. She had excellent sense to relocate and knows how to fight her way out of a situation, but it ended up costing us three of ours. Half the squad dead."
The Captain took a breath, "I like her attitude, but she wouldn't be my first choice for stealth. As a heavy gunner? I think we found our second if that's what we need her for."
Looking over the collected data presented on his terminal, he brought up the exercise in question that she failed spectacularly for closer review. The objective had been completed, but losing the element of surprise at a critical moment cost them dearly. Hesa managed to extract with the remnants of Team 1...at the cost of Vard, Sula...and his own life in the simulator. Kazak assumed command and led the rest of the team for the remainder of the exercise in the virtual world.
"A situation that could have been avoided had she not given away the team's position through impatience." Vult observed, breathing deeply. "...and I am not saying that because she managed to get my simulation counterpart killed."
Looking up from his terminal to Corr, he continued.
"What was her response after the exercise? Did she have an explanation for her actions?"
"She was...particularly mad at herself, actually." Corr started, thinking back to what he witnessed. "There was a lot of yelling...she punched the wall once, accepted blame for it. Wondering what could've been done differently." He paused to swallow, wondering how to put the next part. "She seemed particularly upset with herself that you were killed in such a situation."
The Captain thought for a few moments, "I think she's capable of improvement. She's still not the best in stealth, but recent exercises to show small improvements each time. I think under our guidance in the field, she should fare far better. She's trying, that much is sure."
"Simulations allow for these mistakes and shortcomings," Vult observed, adding his own personal notes to her file. "So long as she understand discipline is of the utmost importance around here and the threshold for making the same in the field is non-existent. I have no objections to bringing her onboard officially. All that will be required for that is minor changes to her PAK encoding at Vard's earliest convenience."
Signing off and approving Hesa's selection for the team, he closed out her personnel file before looking back to the Captain.
"I did have one more matter of importance to discuss with you. Confidentially."
Corr had one concern about modifying Hesa's PAK. She was, after all, technically dead. Not just a KIA stamp as far as the Armada was concerned, but by deactivation from the Control Brains. He thought it might not be wise to mess with her accessing certain files. But, whatever Vult had in mind was far more pressing. No doubt Hesa was smart enough to bring up the same concern. She was an intuitive one, as he saw first-hand many times. "Go ahead, sir."
"This ongoing...saga involving Dr. Zharic and our personnel." Vult opened with, trying to find the best way to put his thoughts and what it would lead to. "As you and I are both aware of, Aero and Hesa were both modified by him. We both are very much aware of the reasoning behind it and why. In doing so has ensured their protection from the Control Brains should their state ever be made aware to them."
He paused, sitting up straighter with a sigh to get a better look at Corr to gauge his expression and body language.
"That being said, Lieutenant Volx is not incorrect in her observations of the potential fallout of this. While I am in agreement with Vard's hypothesis as to why we have not come under scrutiny as of yet...it may only be a matter of time. When that time comes...I do not know what will become of us."
The Captain leaned back in his seat, not relaxed but contemplative. "You're thinking that if the Control Brains themselves eventually get curious, or if someone from outside our unit notices...that this could potentially get us deactivated and would have Aero and Hesa shot? That is where you're going with this, correct?" At least that was his assumption.
"What are our options? The safety of the team is critical. I just never thought we would have to begin looking into developing protective countermeasures against our own side."
There was a reason he selected Corr as his second-in-command. The man was sharp and astute as ever.
"That is correct. I will admit, events have taken place in quick succession to lead us down a path I never could have imagined," Vult began, standing from his seat to slowly pace the perimeter of the table.
"Our options are limited as most would lead to deactivation simply for dereliction of duty. Security clearance level may be our only saving grace at this point in time." He reluctantly admitted as he moved. "...I have been forced to take drastic measures and the events of the other day in the infirmary have expedited those measures greatly."
He stopped, turning to face the Captain.
"As of this point in time, Hesa, Aero, Haxx, Vard, Sula, and Volx have all underwent the same procedure to be disconnected from the Control Brains and be given the recurring infinite loop programming that negates the deactivation signal. They have all had their hormonal inhibitors removed and dispersion accelerated to reach full maturity."
Another breath. Hesitation.
"...for their sake and my own...it is becoming clear I must do the same or I will certainly pay the price for all of this. I realize what I speak of is much to take in and what it could mean, but it is not only Hesa or Aero that have passed the point of no return, Corr. We all have...and I do not know of any other way to protect us."
Corr had since rose from his seat once Vult did. His superior's estimation wasn't far off from fact. They'd all likely pay the price. Even someone mostly unaware of the further cases and the details like Rha or Tuu would be suspect. The whole unit would be deactivated. Not even their latest inductee would be spared. His own thoughts saw the same ends playing out.
"Are there added benefits to you undergoing this, sir? What of the others? I'm certain as you are that the entire team may not be so inclined to have this done to them. The last thing we need right now is division in the ranks. Is there anything in Doctor Zharic's work that can spare them?" What was taking Vard so long on cracking those files… "Have we even managed to crack his encryption yet?"
"Sula has more details on the matter, but at a glance, there is an increase in height, muscle mass, bone density, and a myriad of other changes inside and out. Puberty, she called it." Vult responded to the best of his knowledge. "I did not want to force this on anyone and at a glance, I realize it appears nefarious. I only wanted what was best for my people and did what I thought was necessary to protect them...but in doing this, it must be all or none. I have not informed the others of what happened that day between Lieutenant Volx and I. Only those who were witnesses, all of whom have now underwent the procedure. Doctor Zharic has perfected the procedure and can perform it with Vard and Sula's assistance in a matter of minutes."
"Word has gotten around on something happening...some saying it came from you, even though I have seen Lieutenant Kazak make emphatic denials about that and that he heard it from Corporal Rha. I'm not sure what spilled, but none of the details had. Though, a hole in the wall is hard to miss…"
He paused, "If you think this is of the utmost importance, I'll go through it as well, sir. However, I urge caution. I'm not sure how Sergeant Tuu, Corporal Rha, or Rem will react to the idea of this. I have my guess about Kazak...but I have had my suspicions for some time that the man has something of an independent streak about him and would jump on this opportunity."
"As I said before, Captain, I do not want to force you or the others yet to undergo this into something they are not comfortable with. I just fear that my best intentions have become our undoing and it is only a matter of time." He sighed with great reluctance. "Whatever happens is because of me. It is one thing to bear the burden myself for accepting that responsibility...another entirely whenever it involves those that have placed great trust in me."
The Commander ceased in pacing, turning to face Corr.
"I do not want to unintentionally turn loyal, competent soldiers against their fellow squadmates over this...or worse. I am simply at a loss of how to handle it moving forward without playing my hand in full for them to see and be optimistic we are all of a like mind."
"Perhaps we should investigate an alternative, sir. There has to be something we can do in the interim." He paused to think of potential ideas. "Perhaps a jamming system to block access of the Control Brains to the goings on with our ship? We would also need something added into our armors…"
That...was an interesting thought. Far from ideal compared to what was already taking place, but discreet and subtle. Even more so than what Turb had done to most of the unit already.
"I like that," Vult pointed out, nodding. "Sounds like something to get Vard working on at his earliest convenience. The data decryption takes priority, however. Until then, we just need to maintain unit cohesion...and a valid explanation as to why the others underwent the same procedure as Aero willingly despite having no visible issues of their own to justify."
"Ideally we should have a serious talk in a few days, about what happened and this on top of that. This meeting with the Tallest and...whatever it is they have planned for us takes precedence in the moment."
"Of course. I had intended to address everyone in full about what has happened when the time was right. I needed to be sure of the Lieutenant and what her decision was going to be regarding the matter."
Vult lifted his right arm, his artificial hand clasping the Captain's shoulder in camradire.
"I have been hesitant to undergo this myself for reasons I've already stated, Corr...but if Volx and yourself have underwent it as well, I believe that will instill some faith in the idea to the others. It is ultimately your decision to make, but should you do it, I will as well. I know it is a lot being asked of you, but I would not if there was no other way."
Corr placed his own hand on Vult's shoulder in the same manner, giving a firm nod as well. "I believe it's necessary for your survival, sir. In my case…" there was some hesitation as he went over the brief analysis in his head. "Lieutenant Volx's break over this very fear, the possibility we are all doomed if we do nothing, and that none of us will be spared if we were discovered. I believe it's in my best interest, and that of the unit, to go through with it as well."
Vult released his comrade with a nod.
"Then it's settled. The sooner you and I undergo the procedure, the better. That will leave Rem, Tuu, Rha, and Kazak as the unaltered. From there, we will determine the best course of action."
Corr lowered his own hand shortly after Vult. "Understood, sir."
A crack came over the ship's PA system. Rem's voice on the other side, "Commander, their ship has just entered the system. Initiating docking procedures now. We'll be on board in half an hour."
The Captain paused for a moment before speaking up, "I think we should tell Corporal Hesa the good news." Corr moved to a terminal, pulling up a microphone, his voice coming over next. "Corporal Hesa, report to the briefing room immediately."
With Vult unlocking the door shortly after the announcement, Hesa and Tuu, serving as her escort during the time both entered the room. Hesa seemed nervous, but relaxed, one hand behind her back as she stood upright. "I'm not in trouble, am I?"
Corr blinked, "What would you be in trouble for?"
"Haxx and I were on the range earlier, and I think I outdid him. He didn't seem happy about it."
"No, no," Corr said reassuringly, "this isn't about that. In fact, we have some good news for you."
Hesa's shoulders dropped slightly, relieved that this wasn't disciplinary. "Oh. Well, Captain, Commander, what's to be the good news?" Corr looked to Vult, wondering which one of them should be the one to tell her.
"Corr has informed me of your progress and performance in the simulator over the past several days." Vult opened with, gesturing to the man beside him. "He's spoken highly of you in review. How do you feel you have been performing?"
Her visage suddenly soured as she scratched the back of her head. "Honestly, happy to be up and moving around but if I'm being honest, I suck." Her tone changed as well, overly critical of herself other than what was shown on her reports. "Aside from the two Lieutenants, from what I've been able to gather the rest of you were Elites before this? I'm the third from Spec Ops here, but they seem to have more experience with stealth and operating behind enemy lines."
A sigh followed, "I'm a sledgehammer. If they needed something cleared and didn't care if everyone died, I was in the squad they sent...which I guess is why Supreme Commander Grimm sent us up to that station back on Vort. Our lead wanted to try and do it quietly to avoid raising the alarm instead...look how well that turned out." She stopped for a few moments, taking a breath after closing her eyes and then opening them once more, "I don't want to go through that again."
"You won't have to." Vult began, earning a perplexed expression from Hesa. "While there are areas in need of improvement, none here are free of the same claim. Myself included. Perfection is impossible, but to strive for the next best thing will ensure our success...and survival."
The Commander extended a hand to the Corporal.
"We would like to welcome you aboard, Corporal Hesa. Be the newest addition and asset to the Shadow Strikers, should you accept."
Though dumbfounded for a few moments at what he was offering, the Corporal's sour face turned into a grin once it hit her that she was getting a second chance at life thanks to Vult. A real second chance, not one spent as a guest she was sure some of them didn't want aboard. She took Vult's hand firmly. "Gladly. I got nowhere else to go. I sure won't let you down either, Commander. Happy to be here, really am." She let his hand go after she realized she was still holding onto it for longer than she had to and scratched her neck. "I'm just worried what some of the regulars might think if they find out...especially if we run into anyone from my old unit. A literal dead woman walking is going to bring up a lot of questions…"
"I wouldn't place too much concern on that. Anything and everything can be summarized with "It's classified." in most cases. Otherwise, point them up the chain of command to Kazak, Volx, Corr, or myself. We'll take care of it."
"If you say so," she still seemed concerned for everyone involved. "Thank you. There may have been a few bumps I guess from being an outsider, but you guys have been great since I've gotten here. I greatly appreciate your generosity, and for giving me this. I never expected you guys would want to take me in like this."
"This has been as much a learning experience for you as it has us," Vult assured her. "Report to Vard as soon as possible to have your PAK encoding properly adjusted. As you were, Corporal." He concluded with a short, crisp salute.
She returned the salute after snapping to attention. Even so, she couldn't hold in her smile, she was just glad to receive another chance. Rem's voice cracked over the PA system again, "Docking now, Commander. The Tallest will no doubt be expecting you post-haste."