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Part VI: Aftermath
After being discharged from the hospital, Doc confined Sylia to her quarters; she needed at least 3 to 6 months to heal and a couple additional months of physical therapy. Sylia was not happy, she was bored out of her skull; there not much she could do beside read, sleep and occasionally watch TV. What was really frustrating was with her entire left arm immobile inside the cast, which made even the smallest task impossible. It was also very difficult for her to get comfortable; she was aching all over, especially her injured knee. However, there were some high points, Roadblock made most of her meals; the regular food could make her condition worse. From time to time Hawk stopped by to keep Sylia up to speed of work related matters and play a couple games of chess; one game would last for hours since the two were quite adept at strategies and tactics; and took careful examination of the overall situation.
Over time the stitches in that back of Sylia's knee could come out and she was allowed to walk, but with a cane. Even though this slowed her down, but it was a start. With prior experience as a PT and gym instructor, Linna helped Sylia through her physical therapy, but the downside was Linna was insufferably supportive and had a habit of acting like a mother hen.
One thing Sylia did find odd was every time she was around, Priss would avoid her. Did Sylia offend her in anyway? Was she blaming herself for Sylia getting injured? She had learned there is only one thing more dangerous than Priss when she was loud, when she was dead silent.
"You wanted to see me Lt.?" Priss asked, puzzled that the Lt. would call her to her office at 1800 hours.
"Yes, I do. Please sit down," Sylia offered, but she wasn't sitting behind her desk, but in an easy chair, her office was big enough to have 3 comfortable chairs surrounding a small coffee table usually for informal meetings and private conversations. "Care for some coffee?" Sylia asked as Priss sat down.
"Sure,"
Sylia poured her a cup and gave it to Priss. "Priss, I was wondering if I've done anything to offend you? I noticed you've been avoiding me."
Placing her cup back on the coffee table, she looked straight into her CO's eyes, she could tell Sylia was concerned about her. "No, you've done nothing to offend me. There are just some issues I'm trying to deal with."
"About me."
Priss sadly nodded.
"Priss, if you have some issues concerning me. I would like to know."
"It's kind of personal,"
Sylia gave Priss a warm smile, "I promise you it won't go outside this room. Anything you have to say will be kept in the strictest of confidentially."
"The night you got injured," Priss begun, letting out a heavy sigh; trying to sum up the courage to open up, but Priss was never used to this "talk everything out" crap, unless she had ample amount of beer on hand. "Seeing you lying on the ground, nearly on the brink of death stirred some feelings within me."
"What kind of feelings?"
"I'm not sure."
"That's an honest answer," Sylia said, "Concern?"
"Yes,"
"Fear?"
"A little."
"Love?"
Priss shifted her eyes from Sylia to the floor, "I'm not sure if it's love between friends or is it something more."
Sylia calmly took this one step at a time. But Sylia couldn't help but feel touched, Priss was telling her that she cared for her CO. It was possible, Priss did give her loyalty to Sylia during their first meeting in LA, then confronted her after Snake-Eyes injured Nene. "I never realized you might be developing these feelings. I would have figured you might consider me a boring person?"
"No, I don't find you boring, Sylia," A small smile came to Priss, "Actually, I'm willing to bet after a few drinks you could be quite a party animal."
Sylia couldn't help but give off a light chuckle at that statement, "Don't press your luck, Sgt." That little light hearted moment help ease the mood in the room, but there was still the underlying problem. "Priss, do you know how I could to a decision in a difficult matter like this?"
"No?"
"Well, it isn't what my brain tells me, it's what's in my heart and a gut feeling. What's your gut feeling, Priss?"
Priss thought about it for seemed like hours before she could answer Sylia. "My gut feeling is to explore these feelings, see where they go."
Sylia took Priss' hand into her own, "Priss, we forged a friendship, something I never found easy to do sometimes, but I think when I got injured only strengthen our friendship. Perhaps something more will develop between us, probably we'll become more than friends, maybe family, I don't know; there are questions I can't answer."
Priss didn't really know to say, in a way to Priss, Sylia would seem to be closest to a mother in a sense. "Sylia, I never said this to anyone before, but thanks for listening to me. In my life I never had anyone talk to, even when I felt like talking."
"Why?"
"In the orphanage I grew up in, they didn't care about me, all they saw me as was a failure, never will amount to anything. I became a very angry individual, then up to high school, I had to put up with the same crap from my teachers, until I dropped out, just to get away from that hellhole, Sylvie and I joined the Army. After our tour in Kosovo, we came back to that dump for personal affects; With our combined life savings, Army pay and combat bonuses we managed to get ourselves an apartment. When we did return to that dump, they still considered me a failure, even I though I received the Medal of Honor. Like I said, no one gave a damn about me."
Sylia gave Priss' hand a gentle squeeze, "Priss, you're only a failure if you fail yourself. To put it in another way, you're too damn stubborn to fail. You may take a punch that sends to you to floor, but you get back up, ready to kick someone's ass." Sylia said with a smile, she was well aware that Priss was a fighter and she will fight to win. "Also, Priss if you ever feel like talking, I'll always be there to listen to you."
"Sylia, when you said that we may become close as a family?"
"Yes,"
"Does that mean I can call you, Mom?"
Sylia just laughed.
The two women continued talking and learning about each other. Much to Priss' surprise Sylia did possess a large dirty joke repertoire, not as large as Priss', but some she never heard before. The two discussed their careers in the military; of course Priss had a few misadventures for example Fort Campbell's infamous Saturday night Marine massacre; a group of Marine's visited the base for training, 5 drunk jarheads had to pick a fight with Priss and Sylvie; then 10 more joined in out of respect for the Marine motto 'Semper Fi,' when the dust cleared Priss and Sylvie were the only ones left standing and the Fuel Depot was closed for repairs.
"Sylia can I ask you a question?"
"Of course,"
"When do you think we're going after Cobra again?"
"Ah! The Wolf's hungry for combat, I see," Sylia said with a sly smile.
"Nah, I just want to kick Cobra Commander's sorry ass straight to Mars!"
"Well, you'll get your chance again Priss. Who knows what that bastard's planning," Sylia told her Sgt., "but that's something I'll worry about some other time." Right now she wanted to enjoy Priss' company and just enjoy herself
On Cobra Island, Cobra forces were assembled in a meeting hall, Cobra Commander stood at a podium with a huge portrait of him hung from the wall behind him. "With the groundbreaking development of the Battle Android Trooper; we must direct our energies towards enhancing the line or developing new combat machines based on the BAT and our power over the world will be renewed. With this technology at our fingertips, our enemies will understand resistance is futile. Take your sorrow of failure, and turn it into anger! Rise, my soldiers rise! Cobra thirsts for our organization to rise to greatness! To conquest!" Cobra Commander thrust his black-gloved fist into the air, "SIEG COBRA!"
SIEG COBRA!
SIEG COBRA!
SIEG COBRA!
SIEG COBRA!
Original Fanfic Idea by Starscream.
This has been a Starscream production.
In association with the Zeonic Corporation, GENOM International, SCHAFT Industries, Extensive Enterprises and Decepticon Incorporated.
*Note: SOS is chipped beef and toast, not a favorite meal among military personnel
*Note: A clearing team is much different than a sentry. Because a sentry is just a look out, will notify if back up is needed, while a clearing team actively searches for the intruder(s), and are heavily armed.
*A rude gesture involving one's middle finger.
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