Kajira stood silently in front of the metal doors, waiting for the elevator to arrive. An eerie silence surrounded her – although she was on deck 2, she could hear herself breathe. Only the almost inaudible hum of the lift kept the deck from total soundlessness.
The cage arrived, and the doors slid open smoothly. She stepped inside and pressed the display bearing "Deck 1".
As the elevator made its way up, she examined the data pad that she held in her hand, containing the report on the mission that had taken place 2 days prior.
On paper, the mission was a success. They cleared the refinery of hostiles, the damage to structure was in an acceptable range, and soon production would supply the fighting forces with fuel again.
But their victory was not unpaid for. Their first evac-shuttle had taken a broadside and barely made it back to the Poltergeist. Until it was repaired, their capabilities to deploy would be severely hindered with only one shuttle available.
Peter had taken a shot to the stomach, just before the air-strike hit. They took him to the med bay, along with Emmerding, but Kajira was shuffled out shortly after so the medics and doctors could do their work.
She cringed at the thought of Emmerding. Kajira had seen her share of dead humans, but somehow Him still being alive inside a body that looked like it had been dead for days gave her chills. It was a miracle he had survived this long.
The elevator stopped, its doors sliding open moments later, revealing a corridor that led to Commander du Pont's chambers.
As she made her way towards the door, Kajira reflected on her own experiences on the planet. It was now that she realized that she had speared a Brute with her rifle, forcing the Omni-blade into the skull of the monster. Looking back on it, she didn't know what she had been thinking. So much could have gone wrong. The beast could simply have swatted her away mid-jump, or worse, snapped her in two with its giant claw. She thanked the spirits that her adrenaline-crazed plan had worked out.
But there had been something different. A strange moment had happened with Dvorak, when they were trapped inside a tube. Her mandibles twitched involuntarily when she thought back. Somehow the biotic confused her, sending her thoughts into disorder. She raised her hands, restraining her mandibles from twitching any more, pushing back the memory.
When she reached the door, she stopped for a moment, straightening her posture and collecting her thoughts. When she stepped inside, the Commander was facing away from her, drinking something from what looked like a metal flask. When the human realized someone had entered the room, she hastily stashed the object away and turned around.
"Commander." Kajira began in her usual, professional tone. "My report on the last mission." She handed the other woman the data pad.
"Ah, thanks Kaj. Just what I needed."
Kajira wasn't sure whether that was sarcasm or not.
"That'll be all, Lieutenant." Du Pont muttered as she flipped through the report.
Kajira lingered. She wanted to ask the Commander something, but was unsure how.
Du Pont looked up from the data pad, finding her still standing. "Something on your mind, Kaj?"
"Permission to speak freely, Ma'am."
"Granted. Now at ease, we're not in basic training." A smile hushed over the Commander's face, vanishing as quickly as it appeared.
"How are Peter and Emmerding?" Kajira asked to delay the actual question she had. But the moment the words left her mouth, she wished she could take them back.
Du Pont's mouth tightened as she clenched her teeth. Her fingers dug into the data pad, turning them white.
"Peter was lucky the shot didn't puncture any organs. He'll be fine, as long as he doesn't overextend himself. Emmerding …" She hesitated.
"Emmerding wasn't so lucky. The wound got infected, and the docs say he'll be out for at least a few months."
Kajira opened her mouth to say something, anything. She didn't find the words. Du Pont continued, as she picked up another pad from her desk.
"Which means that I get to pick a replacement." She grinned tortured, chuckling breathless.
"Elina, are you alright?" Kajira finally asked, breaking command structure.
Their eyes locked, and for the fraction of a second, she could see the despair in the other woman's eyes. Then, the human's look hardened, and the slender Commander straightened up in her chair.
"I'm fine. Thank you, Lieutenant Iryn, that'll be all." She said, and returned to the report.
Kajira lingered again.
"If you want to talk, you know where you can find me."
Then she turned around and walked out of the door.