February 22, 2150
Jarin examined his face in the mirror, something he hadn't done in nearly a week. He quickly realized why Jenn wasn't too keen on getting intimate lately. For the first two months, he'd kept his beard mostly in check, but the last few weeks, going out to hunt with Luna's teams, he'd let it run wild, far too much for the lady's liking it seemed. He held up the scissors from the medical kit and started lopping off the thickest part of the beard, using a comb to gauge the hair length as he got it trimmed down. He kept the neck the shortest, but decided against shaving it all off. After all, without any razors or his trimmer, this was the best he could manage. For a half a second he wished he was like the rest of the men on the team, either too young or just unable to grow more than a paltry amount of stubble. He ran his hands along his cheeks, making sure hairs weren't too particularly out of place before sweeping up the mess he'd made on the floor.
Once he was done and back in uniform he made his way out on the rig's top deck. Slamming the door closed he braced against the cold wind blowing off the open water. He was very glad he'd had his team pack some cold weather gear all those months ago. He jogged across the open platform where Carver had the soldiers from the outpost paired off with one of Luna's warriors. Jarin slowed to walk just in time for Carver to start this morning training session. Taylor nodded to his own men when they saw him approach and he noted how the local's eyes were glued to Sam as he walked back and forth across the deck.
"Now it's no secret that most of you don't want to go out on the mainland and do any fighting. And that's fine, each and every one of us has seen more than enough bloodshed. But that doesn't mean your leader wants to leave this place undefended. Now you've managed to run a half decent patrol and night watch during our stay here, and you know how to hold and shoot a rifle. But Luna has given me permission to show you how to paint with one." Sam signaled Trent, who relayed an arm signal to a boat waiting in the water below. Sam continued with the men's attention turned back to him. "On the water, we'll be releasing a series of targets, some closer, some farther away. You'll each practice with taking down those targets with different weapons, from pistol" He gestured to his sidearm. "to taking down targets scaling the rig, to a sniper picking off targets 300 meters out on the water. You've already been paired off with our people, each an expert, or close to it, with their particular weapon of choice."
Jarin rubbed his freshly cut beard as watched the teams begin taking up positions around the shooting stations. Just on the periphery of his vision he saw a flick of curly brown hair. "Come to watch the show, Luna?"
Luna removed the scarf from in front of her face. "More to make sure my warriors follow orders."
"They'll be fine. I think training on hand-to-hand with Sam a couple months back kind of broke down the last barrier. Last week's little joint hunt was the smoothest in the three months we've been here."
Luna nodded. "That's what Derrick tells me." Luna looked over at Jarin. "I like the trimmed beard. It suits you."
Jarin subconsciously rubbed his face. "Thanks, mostly I just cut it to get Jenn off my back."
"Listening to your woman is certainly a wise choice."
"Oh, I don't think ever claim she's 'my' woman. Besides, she probably kick my ass if I tried."
Luna laughed. "She does seem the type. And I mean that in a good way. You and her work well together."
Jarin turned and motioned for Luna to walk with him. "I could say the same about you and Derrick. So when you two getting hitched?"
Luna eyed him, confused. "Hitched?" The she saw what he meant. "Oh, marriage. Trent explained that concept to me when I first asked him about you and Jenn. My culture doesn't have anything like that. One of the many difference between your people and mine."
The two turned right at the northeast corner of the deck, putting their backs to the northerly winds. Jarin let the lull in the conversation go for a few paces before continuing. "Speaking of our cultures. I just want to thank you again for agreeing to the deal, and hold up your side of things so far. I know it's not easy letting outsiders into your home. Hopefully in a few months our people will be ready to start the new settlement on the coast. And given our population issue, that's gonna be a big relief."
"I will admit, your leaders desire to form a settlement on the mainland gave me pause at first. But if Lexa is true to her word, I believe our people may finally be turning away from the mindless conflict that has defined us for generations. If the last months have been any indication, there may yet be hope for our two peoples, assuming your leaders keep their promise to not force us to join your people.
"You don't have to worry about that. We aren't conquerors. Sure, we might ask you to join us, but that's entirely your choice. And if our leaders tried to force you, there are a lot of us in the military that wouldn't carry out that order."
Luna nodded. "Good, there's far too much violence in the world. It is nice to hear of people outside of my own group who do not wish to see it spread."
"Exactly. I'm more of the mind that humanity needs to move past their violent past, and we're at a point in time where we could get rid of a lot of the old world's problems for good."
"Meaning?"
Jarin paused as they had reached the entrance to the rig's interior two-thirds of the way down the side of the deck. He opened the door for Luna and the two stepped inside to get out of the cold morning air. "What I mean is that the world before what you and I know today wasn't exactly a good one. Don't get me wrong, it had some incredibly cool technology and a lot of people actively trying to make things better, but it was too little, too late. The old world's problems started thousands of years ago. Ever since humanity started sprawling out in the world they always divided themselves. And it always ended in conflict, each and every time. And as the bombs got bigger, so did the wars."
"But you would do something different?"
"Part of my people's mission is quite literally to do things better than the people who sealed us in that bunker nearly a century ago. My grandparents remembered a time before the bombs, and their experiences helped shape how to do things differently, but it was their children, those born in the new world that started us on the path we're on now."
"And where does that path lead?"
"Unity." Jarin let Luna enter the main hall in front of him. "A unified humanity working to be better than the people who came before us."
Suddenly a weight struck Jarin's back, latching on to him from behind. The blonde hair falling over his shoulder told him all he needed to know.
"Is he getting all philosophical on you Luna? Should have brought a pillow with my good news you could take a nap while he drones."
Jarin turned his head to the side. "Jenn, would you please get off my back?"
Luna couldn't help but laugh at the two grown adults acting like children. "Oh we're just having a discussion about where this alliance might lead someday. But what is this 'good news' you mentioned?"
Jenn hopped off Jarin's back. "Oh, that. Remember that radar thing I explained a few weeks ago? Well, I got it working if you want to come take a look."
"Well god damn." Jarin looked only slightly surprised; he learned a long time ago that if Jenn said she could fix something, she would.
A quick elevator ride in the command center below and the trio were at the main console near the center of the room. Jarin looked around at the room, still a little stunned his girlfriend had managed to get the defunct bunker operational almost by herself. He turned back to the radar display and was almost as shocked as Jenn to find that it was picking up an incoming craft.
"Uh, I swear to God that wasn't there when I left like five minutes ago."
Jarin quickly took over. "Luna, you didn't have any boats in the water today, right?"
Luna cocked her head, thinking through the different groups on the mainland. "There's only one teams still ashore, but they're not due back for several days."
Jarin turned back to Jenn. "Then we assume they're not friendly. Range?"
Jenn studied the display before responding. "About a kilometer to the west and closing."
"Keep an eye on it and keep your radio on. Me and Luna are going topside."
"Luna and I."
Jarin froze, turning to glare at Jenn, as if to ask, "Are you serious woman?" Luna pulled him along toward the elevator and the duo bolted through the interior and ran across the deck, flagging down Sam on the way.
"What's up LT?"
"Hope your target practice went well, because we might have something real to shoot at soon."
"Sir?"
"Radar's up and not a minute after it's live we got an inbound bogey. Pushing 800 meters from the west, maybe closer by now. Get your men ready and meet us on the west side." Before he and Luna turned to leave he held out his hand. "I'll also need to borrow your binoculars."
Binoculars in hand, Jarin and Luna tore across the top deck of the rig, only stopping once they'd reached the western rail. Jarin scanned the water for the inbound craft, barely noticing Sam and the men take up positions on the rail. He stopped, spotting the blurry outline of one of the boats.
He handed the lenses to Luna, pointing the direction she should look. "That one of yours?"
The gunmen all tensed along the rail, waiting for confirmation from Luna one way of the other. In a few moments they had an answer.
"It's Derrick's crew. They're three days ahead of schedule. Something must have gone wrong." She motioned for her people to head to the docks before turning to Jarin. "Find your healer and send them to me."
Jarin nodded as Luna and her people crossed the rig and headed toward the shipping container turned elevator.
Several hours later Jarin, Sam, Luna, and Derrick all made their way across the deck, the moonlight the only thing illuminating the path in front of them. Luna went over the details once more with Derrick.
"And you're certain they said 'safe passage'?
Derrick nodded. "I don't know how outsiders would have known to say those words, but they did, without question."
"And the signal fire?"
"Green, the same as we tell our allies on land."
The group stopped in front of the container, and Luna's men slowly opened it at Luna's gesture. Four haggard looking individuals stepped out of the elevator turned holding cell, shocked to see rifles pointed their direction. The lead one, or the one Jarin assumed was the lead one, seemed to hone in on Luna, slowly stepping forward while reaching for her pocket. Sam quickly drew a pistol and trained it on her, stopping her in her tracks.
"We came here for help, and to give Luna something." The blonde reached into her pocket and pulled out some kind of container. When she slid off the top and held up its contents everyone recognized the symbol on it. "This is the Flame, and Luna has to take it. She's the only one who can."
Jarin and Sam both caught on of the container's guards eyeing the thing, whatever it was, a little intently. When he pulled a knife lunged at Luna the two men put four rounds in him before he moved two steps. Luna was shocked, but couldn't look on as Jarin and Sam trained their weapons on Derrick and his crew.
The shaggy haired taller man in the back was as shocked as Luna, but not a quiet. "What the hell is going on?"
Jarin pointed to the container. "Everyone who wasn't on board on this rig yesterday is going back in that container. No one is going to step foot on this rig until we're certain you're clean."
When no one moved, Sam fired a round into the air, startling the group. "Move!" He trained his pistol as they all slowly filed in. "And if anyone so much as moves the wrong way, you'll end up like him." He gestured down to the ground where the guard's body lay, bleeding out on the deck. Sam held out his hand to the blonde. "But I'll take that thing, whatever it is, until we're sure you're not infected."
Jarin and Luna shared a look, as he helped Sam and Derrick slammed the door of the container, both realizing how badly the last few minutes could have gone, and how far sideways they could still go.