Ok, so it's another filler chapter. Even though you guys didn't seem to mind the last one, I still want to apologize. These past two chapters have pretty much been me buying time while I plan out something for later on in the story. More stuff with the plot should start up soon, I just want to make sure I know where everything is going before I get started.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this week's chapter!
"Get ready to eject." I feel the gradual withdrawal from my mind as Rho transfers her programming to the unit at the base of my skull. Once she confirms that everything is accounted for, I remove the chip. I plug her into the receptacle in the table, and a moment later her hologram appears.
"I'll get started sorting through the information Spore gave us," Rho says before flickering out of view.
I nod before turning and leaving the room. I know hanging around and waiting for her is useless. She gets nervous if someone watches her work like this. She'll be busy with this for at least the next couple of hours, though most likely she won't be done until morning. I guess I have the rest of the day to myself.
My stomach growls embarrassingly loudly, and I glance around quickly to make sure no one heard it. Luckily, this section of the base is pretty much abandoned. I remember my meager breakfast, as well as my use of the speed unit earlier. Food begins to sound like a wonderful idea and I start to wander in the direction of the mess hall.
Grif stares at the beautiful, rectangular object on the table before him. Light glints off the blue wrapper like a beacon of hope. Grif reaches out tentatively. His fingertips brush gently against the wrapper, producing a delicious crinkling noise. He draws his hand back, not wanting to rush things. He has to be deliberate about this, he knows. It's not every day that he gets an opportunity like this. He wants to make sure everything is perfect.
"Are you still staring at that?" Simmons asks as he sits next to Grif. "You've been here since I left to get my arm fixed."
"I need to prepare for this, Simmons" Grif explains reverently. "I need to savor the moment."
"Grif, they're just Oreos" Simmons says, exasperated.
"These are not 'just Oreos'" Grif counters. "They are the pinnacle of human achievement. They're also brand new, unopened, and they haven't gone stale from sitting in the back of some storage room."
"They're also deathly poisonous" a small voice pipes up from behind them. Grif and Simmons turn to see Silicon eyeing the box of cookies suspiciously. "At least, they are to Sangheli."
"Really?" the two Sim-Troopers ask in unison.
"No." The boy's face literally splits in half with a grin and he steps up to the table. He reaches around Grif, quickly opens the package and snatches three cookies.
"Hey!" Grif shouts in protest and tries to swipe the Oreos out of Lico's hand. The boy dances out of his reach while popping a cookie into his mouth. "Those are mine."
"No they're not" Lico mumbles amidst a spray of crumbs. He swallows quickly before continuing. "They're everyone's. That's the rule here."
"In that case…" Simmons says as he too grabs a cookie.
"Hey!" Grif shouts again. He looks at his teammate like he's been betrayed. "You don't even like them" he accuses.
"Yes I do" Simmons corrects him. "I'm just not obsessed like you are."
Grif continues to stare at Simmons in shock for a moment. He opens his mouth to speak, but Lico beats him to it.
"You'd better hurry if you want to eat any of those" Silicon tells Grif.
Grif covers the package with his arms protectively. "Are you going to steal some more?"
"No" Lico shakes his head. "But some of the people here have a really good sense of smell. They'll know that box is open, and they will swarm like sharks." Grif looks like he thinks the kid is exaggerating. Lico raises his hands innocently. "I've seen it happen before."
At that moment, as though to make his point, Franc and Rubi run into the room. They each grab a small stack of the cookies before running back out, Rubi dragging Silicon along with her. "I told you!" he shouts as he disappears around the corner.
Grif quickly shoves an Oreo in his mouth, barely taking a moment to chew it before swallowing. He then devours a second just as quickly.
"What happened to savoring the moment?" Simmons asks in disgust.
Someone Grif doesn't recognize walks by and grabs a few Oreos without even glancing at the Sim-Troopers. "That was before I knew about all the vultures," Grif says, managing to sound venomous with his mouth still full.
I step into the mess hall and see the two Sim-Troopers sitting at a table. Lico, Franc, and Rubi run out through another door, Lico shouting something as he leaves. I stare at the two soldiers for a moment, trying to remember their names. It's difficult, since they're not wearing their armor. Project Freelancer's files didn't have pictures of the soldiers they recruited, just names, armor color, and some basic background information. I do recognize one of their faces, though, since he'd removed his helmet during yesterday's fight with Gold. So the tan one's Grif, I think, cementing the name to the face in my mind. Which means the redhead must be his teammate, Simmons.
I wave to them as I walk by, on my way to the kitchen. A smell stops me in my tracks before I reach it. It's the deep, rich smell of chocolate, and my stomach growls in response. I glance back at the soldiers and see a box of Oreos sitting in front of them. For a moment I consider grabbing some of them, my mouth watering at the thought. However, I deliberately turn my head away and continue toward the kitchen. I know that with my empty stomach, as well as the residual effects of the speed unit, eating anything that sugary is a bad idea.
I find some cold eggs left over from breakfast and nearly inhale the food in my haste. I do the same to some left over pancakes and the last piece of fruit. Once I'm done I try to convince myself it's enough, but my mind keeps drifting back to Grif's Oreos. I suppose one or two wouldn't hurt, I think eventually.
I walk past the table quickly, reaching down and grabbing two cookies without looking. Grif shoots me a hateful glare while Simmons looks like he's trying not to laugh. I wave at them as I leave, ignoring the muttered curses from the Hawaiian.
I make my way to the Box, hoping to get a chance at some training while I have the time. When I get there, however, Tinu and Nick have already started. It's not surprising. Tinu's probably bummed out that she didn't get to do any fighting during our mission, so she'll be blowing off steam. Nick, of course, is never too far behind his partner, nor would he miss the opportunity to further sharpen his skills. I climb up to the catwalk and see that Wash is already there.
"You know," I say as I walk up next to him, "this used to be my spot. It was the one place where I could sit and think and be alone for a few minutes. Now it's like there's standing room only. Everyone seems to be spending their time up here."
"Sorry" Wash says, eyes still fixed on the training floor.
"I was joking" I point out, but he doesn't seem to hear me. I follow his eyes down to the floor where Tinu is training. Nearly a dozen practice bots are on the ground around her as she faces off against the last one.
Tinu lunges forward and bites into the bot's arm, hard plastic shattering and stabbing into her gums as her teeth break through armor. She grabs its shoulder, wrapping her hand around a metal coil to secure her grip. The robot struggles to break free for a moment, but it's no use. Once Tinu knows she has it immobilized she begins to shake her head fiercely. With a groaning of stressed metal and a tearing of wires, the robot's arm tears away from its body.
I look at Washington again. He looks slightly pale. "Don't worry" I assure him. "She only does that to robots, not people."
"Still," Wash says, "I think I want to stay on her good side."
Our attention snaps back to the floor at the sound of a gunshot.
Nick is practicing at the opposite end of the room, shooting down holographic targets with his sniper rifle. He pauses for a moment, hitting the release to drop an empty clip and snapping a new one into the gun. Three humanoid holograms surround him while he's reloading. Nick smiles. The first opponent charges toward him and he sends a high impact round between its eyes. The second attacker gets a little closer before receiving a round in its throat. Nick kicks the third in the chest to knock it back before firing, using his boot print as a bull's-eye.
The next wave forms in front of him; eight this time. He takes out the first few with three quick shots before the gun is once again empty. Nick has no time to reload before the others are on him. He turns the rifle around in his grip so he's holding it by the barrel and swings it like a bat, knocking down four of the holograms. He knocks the fifth's legs out from under it with a sweep of his leg. He then brings the butt of the rifle down on its face, causing it to disintegrate.
In a moment the other four are back on their feet. Nick drops the gun and raises fists to meet them. The first hologram lunges at him. He sidesteps to avoid the attack then slams his fist into the side of its head. The hologram stumbles for a moment before disappearing. The final three opponents charge at once. Nick dodges and weaves between them, expertly ducking under swinging arms. He drives his elbow into the back of one's neck as he comes to stand behind them. The hologram falls forward and disappears.
Nick turns and kicks one of the last two, knocking it into the other. They both fall to the ground for the second time. Nick finishes one off with a powerful kick to its head, then ends the last by stomping on its chest.
"Training session complete" a voice announces to the room as the last hologram disappears. "Seven point six percent increase in efficiency. Well done."
"Okay, that was impressive" Wash says after a moment of silence.
"He's pretty tough for an old guy" I confirm.
Wash shakes his head for a moment and looks at me. "How can you joke like that? You told me about his aging. How can you treat it so casually?"
I look down at Nick, who's still smiling after his fight. "Because he told me to" I answer. Wash looks surprised, so I explain. "He doesn't want people to treat him differently or to pity him because of this. We all know what's happening and we also know that we can't stop it. He just wants to enjoy his life and try to be normal with the time he has. So, I do my best to make that happen. I make jokes so the rest of the family will think it's not a big deal. I wish there was something more I could do for him, but…" I sigh. "I just want him to be happy while he's still here."
After the training session ends, the doors to the training room open. Wash and I turn our attention back to the floor to see what the commotion is. Yttri storms in with a scowl on her face, glaring between Tinu and the destroyed robots at her feet. "You broke them again" she says, voice icy and dangerously quiet. "Do you have any idea how long it takes me to fix those?!" she shouts while running toward Tinu.
"Sorry sorry sorry sorry!" Tinu squeals, fleeing before her sister's wrath. Nick edges toward the door, hoping to stay out of this fight.
Wash grins, noticing the smile hidden behind Yttri's scowl. "I take it this happens a lot?" he asks.
I laugh. "I would definitely call this a common occurrence."