Yttri holds the teal armored wrist in her hand, twisting and turning it around to get a better look at the glowing sword. It isn't an ideal set up, of course. She's already made the man holding the sword wince several times by turning his arm too far. Still, it's the only way for her to study the alien weapon while it's still active.
"I could spend years studying this thing and still never know all its secrets," she marvels, scanning the device once again.
"The ladies have always been pretty impressed with my sword," Tucker says, waggling his eyebrows. He adds a quick "bow chicka bow wow" under his breath so Yttri can't hear.
Yttri ignores the comment, either oblivious to the innuendo or too focused on her work to care. Simmons, however, hears the comment from where he's standing behind Yttri and recognizes it for all it's worth. He glares at the teal clad soldier from over the mechanic's shoulder. Tucker just grins at him. In his opinion, it's even more fun to flirt with the mechanic when he knows it also annoys his former-enemy-turned-ally.
"Of course, energy swords themselves aren't all that impressive," Yttri continues, unaware of the silent exchange between the two men. "What's really amazing is the way it's imprinted to you." She taps the back of Tucker's hand with her fingernail, creating a metallic clang against the armored glove. "See, it can't be a genetic lock, otherwise it wouldn't work while you're wearing gloves. It may be able to sense some sort of molecular harmony, or it could be a quantum lock…" she trails off as she thinks through the options.
Yttri spends a few more minutes studying the weapon, trying to look at the handle while it's still held in Tucker's grip and scanning it from every angle with various tools, before finally giving up. "I'm not going to figure this out in one day," she sighs, admitting defeat. She turns away from Tucker and starts typing out her observations in a holo-pad.
The moment Yttrium's back is turned, Tucker takes the opportunity to let his eyes roam up and down her figure, lingering in a few choice places. After a few moments he notices Simmons still glaring at him. Tucker just smirks and goes back to staring.
Eventually Yttri glances over her shoulder at the teal soldier, who quickly looks down at his feet. "Did you need anything else?" she asks, an unspoken 'feel free to leave' present in her tone.
Tucker shakes his head no.
Yttri waves the holo-pad vaguely. "It's going to take me a while to analyze this, so you might as well get back to whatever you were doing before I dragged you in here," she suggests.
"Sure," Tucker says, backing toward the door. "But, hey, let me know if you need my help for anything else. Or, y'know, if you wanna see my sword again."
Yttri's only response is to turn back to her work table. Tucker takes one long last look at her before winking at Simmons and leaving.
Yttri waits until she hears the door close before speaking. "That man is extremely annoying."
"So you did notice." Simmons had thought she'd been completely oblivious to the other man's advances the whole time. "Why didn't you say anything?"
Yttri chuckles slightly. "Because, if living with Tinu has taught me one thing, it's that annoying is best left ignored. If you ignore it, then there's a chance it will go away and leave you alone, but if you acknowledge it, it'll just keep being annoying." There's a moment of silence as she lets a thought sift through her head. "Although, Tinu's level of annoying is nothing compared to that guy. At least Tinu isn't disgusting."
Simmons' face heats up with a blush. So she really hadn't been oblivious to what Tucker said. If that's the case, then maybe she isn't oblivious to my own interest, either, Simmons thinks. Yttri glances back and catches his eyes with her own, and Simmons glances away, realizing he'd been staring. He really hopes she doesn't think he's creepy or annoying too. He wants to tell her that he isn't like Tucker. He wants to say that he thinks she's smart and interesting and he really wants to keep working with her the way he has been. But when he looks at her again, the words die in his throat.
Yttri's eyes narrow slightly as she watches the fidgeting man. "Are you going to get over here and help me, or not?" she asks impatiently.
Simmons is glad for his armor as he steps closer to the mechanic. It means she can't see the nervous smile on his face. It looks like, for now, nothing's changed between them. He's still not sure if she knows how he feels, but it doesn't matter. He just hopes it can stay this way for a while longer.
"Silver," a computerized voice whispers.
I jolt upright in my chair, reaching out to catch the holo-pad before it slides off my knee.
"You dozed off," Rho states. Her arms are folded across her chest as she paces across the table, studying me.
"Mmf, what time is it?" I ask groggily, setting the holo-pad next to her and rubbing a hand across my face to wake myself up.
"A little after midnight," she answers.
I take a moment to force some math through my sluggish brain. "That's… three hours," I finally conclude. Rho nods her head once in confirmation. "Three hours isn't dozing off, Rho. That's, like, a full fledged nap."
"I was thinking more along the lines of 'you need some actual sleep'," Rho counters. "I just didn't want you to stay in the chair all night. It's not good for your back."
I stand and look at the map on the table again. Potentially useful vehicles and weapons are highlighted, as well as good points of cover. I see that Nick's also spotted out a few good snipers' nests. I then look at the holo-pad beside Rho. Somehow I managed to finish revising the list before falling asleep. I glance over the names and the tasks they correspond to. A few slots are left blank; I'm still not sure who will be filling those jobs. I have candidates in mind, but I need to talk to them first. Still, I'm happy with my options. I'm just not sure if Nick will approve of some of the changes.
"Where's Nick?" I ask.
There's a moment's hesitation from Rho as she searches through the base's records and her avatar dims slightly. Then, she answers. "He logged into the training room a few minutes ago."
"Okay," I say, stretching out a yawn in the process. "Then that's where I'm heading next."
"Oh, no," Rho says, waving her arms in an unmistakably negative gesture. "No no no. You are going to your room because you need to sleep."
"No time," I tell her. "I'll sleep when I'm dead."
"That is not even remotely funny," she says, arms folded and tone highly offended.
"Sorry," I say, not really meaning it but wanting to end the subject. "Look, I promise I'll turn in once I'm done. I just need to talk to Nick about something."
She stares at me, and I know that if she wasn't programmed to appear in armor her gaze would be critical. "I want to believe you," she says eventually.
I lift my hands slightly in mock surrender. "I swear, Rho, I will take my medicine, go to bed, and get some rest. I just need to do this first."
She stares at me for a few more moments before sighing in surrender. "Fine," she says unhappily.
I roll my eyes at her sullen attitude and step closer to the table. "Ride along?" I offer, hand hovering near Rho's interface in the table.
"I think I'll stay here," Rho says, shaking her head. "Being connected to the base's computers helps me keep track of the bugs we left back at that city, and I want to go over this plan a few more times." She looks down at the map where she's standing as she finishes.
"Alright," I say, stepping back reluctantly. I look at her for a few moments before asking "are we okay?"
Rho's face snaps up to meet mine. "Of course," she says confusedly.
"I know I put you in danger during that last mission," I start to explain.
"Si, stop," Rho says, holding up a hand. "You know me. You know that if I'm upset about that mission, it's not because I was in danger. I'm worried about you."
"I know," I sigh.
"You should have told me if you weren't a hundred percent, Si," Rho scolds. "The mission was dangerous enough. If I had known that, I would never have let you go."
"That's kind of why I didn't tell you," I explain.
"You can't keep doing that," she says. "If you want to risk your life, then that's fine. I can't stop you. Just don't lie to me about it." Her voice has turned angry, which catches me of guard. Anger isn't a trait I normally associate with Rho.
"Sorry," I whisper weakly.
"Just… just go," she says, sounding far too tired for an AI of her age. "The sooner you finish talking to Nick, the sooner you can get some rest. Hopefully by morning you'll have recovered from today's ordeal."
I nod, unsure of what I should say. In the end I simply step around the table and leave the room.
I find Nickel in the training room, exactly as Rho said I would. He's nearing the end of a hand-to-hand combat simulation, so I wait for him to finish. Once the last holographic opponent falls, I stop the program and enter the room.
"Late night work out?" I ask.
Nick turns to face me. He's sweating, which is odd. The room isn't overly warm, and he wasn't using one of the advanced simulations. It shouldn't have been that difficult for him. I notice for the first time how… worn he looks, like he hasn't slept in days. It doesn't fit the mental image I've had of my little brother.
"Shouldn't you be in bed?" Nick asks.
"I could say the same," I counter. "You look tired."
He shrugs. "I spent all day sitting around writing up that plan. I wanted to do something physical before going to bed."
I nod. It makes sense. Nick's always been concerned with the balance between mind and body; he's always strived to be both smart and strong, to have full control over himself. Part of me has always wondered if that desire comes from the fact that there are parts of himself that he can't control, like his aging. I don't bring this up, though. Neither of us like to talk about it.
I push these thoughts away and choose to focus on what I came here to discuss in the first place. "I finished checking that list," I tell him.
"And?" he asks.
"Your choices were good," I say. "The reasoning behind each person makes sense. I really only made one major edit." Nick waits quietly for me to stop beating around the bush and tell him. "I'm leaving you behind," I finally say.
I expect him to get angry. This is, after all, his plan. It's not fair for me to be cutting him out of it. If he is upset, though, he's not letting it show.
"Why?" Nick asks, face unreadable.
"Your main purpose on this mission would be to act as a sniper," I explain. "Snipers are great for providing cover, but only if they're actually willing to shoot." Both of us know we're not going to kill Gold.
"I could help in other ways," Nick offers. "I may not be as good as you or Tinu, but I'm still a good fighter. You might need me to bring down Gold."
I shake my head. "Tinu, Wash, and I should be enough for that. Besides, I need your armor for something else. Yttri's going to come with us, and she'll need protection."
"Yttri isn't a fighter," Nick points out.
"No, she's not," I agree. "But she is a genius. We don't know what kind of modifications mom's made to Gold's chip. I might not be able to safely remove it. Yttrium will know how, so I need her there. The armor's an added precaution. She won't be a part of the fight, but it should keep her safe if anything goes wrong."
"Can't you get armor for her from somewhere else?" Nick asks. "You're not bringing all the Sim-Troopers. She could borrow one of their suits."
I shake my head. "Their armor is different from ours. Yttri won't know how to use it. Besides, those guys have practically lived in their armor for years. They might not be willing to give it up."
Nick opens and closes his mouth a few times, trying to form some sort of argument. After a few moment of silence, he asks, "can Tinu stay?" It's so soft that I almost miss it.
"I need her with me," I answer almost apologetically. "She and Carbon are the only people here who are actually stronger than Gold, and you know why I can't bring Carbon." I know my younger brother sometimes has problems remembering who he's supposed to be fighting. Putting him in a situation where both his opponent and his allies are family would be too confusing.
"I don't like it," Nick says, shaking his head. "I'm fine being left out of a mission, but I don't like the thought of Tinu going off somewhere I can't protect her."
I understand his fears. I understand that he might not trust me to take care of her, considering my track record. I know this probably isn't what he's thinking. He's never blamed me. Still, I can understand how he wouldn't think she'd be safe with without him.
"Tinu will be fine," I try to assure him. "I won't let anything happen to her."
"I know you won't," he says tiredly. "But sometimes, there are things even you can't prevent. No matter how hard you try."