NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: Open to any who have participated in the previous thread.

The Devilish War has been over for five years. The uneasy peacefullness following the defeat of the mechanical demons has lulled the UNSSC into a state of complacency. The Kerrich brothers, Talen & Tylas, fled the UNSSC Special Forces ranks shortly after their homeworld, Argonia, was permanently crippled by a UNSSC nuclear missile. Nearly a quarter of the planet's lush surface was irradiated beyond repair.

Somewhere along the way the pair became seperated from their Special Forces A-Team, and Tylas was apprehended by UNSSC Patrol personnel. Convicted of warcrimes & sentenced to die, he now currently resides in a triple-maximum security center on Gravus Prime, an asteroid mine/prison complex constructed to house the most dangerous criminals.

Talen, however, evaded capture & seeks to free his younger sibling...

Gravus Prime

The air was thick, clogged with rock dust & the ever-present stink of unwashed human. The triple-maximum area was deceptive in its design. To the casual observer it looked like a large, open grotto, with catwalks & cell doorways lining the walls. There where no stairways leading up to the guard tower, which was actually a room situated above the main grotto. The trap door lay closed as the prisoner above was made ready to enter his new home for the remainder of his life. That prisoner was Tylas Kerrich, former Special Forces soldier & veteran of some of the worst fighting in the Devilish War. His crimes: Desertion & Aiding the Enemy. He'd commited those crimes, but he'd also been sent on constant suicide missions in order to eliminate any loose ends on the Argonia nuclear attack that the jumpy-ass captain of the UNSSC starship had ordered against his homeworld. The 'enemy', had been a former UNSSC Marine Tylas had known only as 'Hans', whom the Devilish had captured & made the first subject in their EXOmophically-armored super-soldier program. Desertion had been brought on by the careless use of nuclear weapons against his homeworld. He wasn't a criminal, just a victim of circumstance. The real criminals where the ones who nuked their own allies & sent heroes like his A-Team into meat-grinder seek-and-destroy missions.

Some had called him selfish for his decision to leave after that incident. They'd called himself & his brother cowards, spineless fiends without honor. Murder had very nearly been added to his criminal record after that insult. An Arognian's honor, especially that of a warrior, was not something you targeted in an arguement.

Roughly he was shoved into the small cage, then slowly lowered into the center of the grotto. He was the only Argonian... Not good. Someone was bound to heckle him...

"So THIS is the famous Tylas Kerrich, Special Ops badass & Devilish-killer? He looks more like a queer-ass pantywaist than some trained kill..."

The inmate's sentence was cut short by Tylas' clawed fingers slowly closing around the human's throat. His eyes blazing raw fury, the Argonian tore the man's larynx free & landed a powerful straight jab to the solar plexus that sent the dying man flying backwards. Guards didn't bother rushing medical attention to the man whose throat had been torn out, instead they pelted Tylas with electrified barbs as he sought cover in his cell.

He'd proved his dominence, his control over whatever situation he was put in. Murder would be added to his record now, and it wouldn't be the last time, either...

Six Years Later...

Talen Kerrich stared at the weapon in front of him in the dim light of the freighter's workbench area. The M4 carbine before him was a relic by modern standards, but it still killed quite well, and that was all Talen asked for. It had been six years... Six long years since he'd seen Tylas. The breakout had been carefully planned, studied, and executed through a series of dry-runs that had typically gone off as planned. He'd need some help, however. One former Special Forces soldier against several garrisons of military-trained prison guards where not favorable odds. He had a pair of S102's for Tylas when he reached him, the UNSSC standard-issue sidearm, and the kinetic energy baton of Anti-Devilish fame. It would be useful in bashing through those reinforced plexisteel bars. A long, bowie-shaped vibroblade lay next to the pistols, Talen's personal weapon for up-close wet-work. Talen hadn't changed much. A few more scars & a little worse for wear along the edges, but he was still as sharp as ever...

Few inmates would start fights with the big scaly bastard in the corner. Tattooed over completely in Argonian tribal markings, Tylas looked completely different than the slim, athletic youth that had fought the Devilish eleven years ago. He'd put on at least fifty pounds of muscle from his twice-daily sessions on the weight bench, giving him a mean, grizzled appearance. The cybernetic left eye didn't do anything to make his features any less brutal, either. Five inmates had died in the past month. Mostly new guys, looking to prove their toughness by taking a shot at the biggest, angryest motherfucker in the prison facility, and had picked the wrong angry mofo to mess with. His execution was still in limbo, the military tribunals that where judging his case where hung up on how he should die, apparently they'd get to when when they damn well felt like it...

Talen pushed the carbine back a foot or so, pulling an open laptop into better view. Slowly, with definite precision, he clicked 'SEND', sending a call for help to his former A-Team's aliases. Tylas would be executed soon, that was for damn sure. If he didn't get some help in time, he'd have to go in by himself...

OOC: Still open for me, even though I had to drop outa the last one?

There were parts of Kaylinde that hadn't forgiven Hans, and might never be able to no matter how much she tried. That's why she didn't tell him when the message came from Talen. Of course she damn well didn't bother to tell the Empress either. As Michiko's heir that would not have been a good idea. She knew that her son, Raven as one and all called him him, would be well cared for. The youngster was the favorite of the Imperial Palace's staff.

It took her two days to subvert the sustem and get her what she needed, but that was time well spent. The modestly sized starcraft that lifted from Midgard was more than it looked, and more importantly scanned, to be.

She'd sent a response to Talen, short and sweet

*I'm coming, Kaylinde*

Junkyard dog was the alias that Hans had been given long ago, and it was an alias few knew of, which only served to protect his true identity even more. Yet, the Tarlachian now looked down at his portable laptop, upon which his secured email sat open to three lines of text.


Junkyard,
Trouble in the lot. Looters trying to steal auto parts. Need assistance.
-Claw

It only took Hans a few moments to muse over the message, before he remembered the cryptical message hidden within. It was simple, yet would look harmless enough to avoid most scanners.

One hundred and seven minutes later, a transport merchant ship rocketed off from Rossover and settled into interspace lanes, cruising for a preprogrammed set of coordinates. Hans sat at the controls, staying only long enough to ensure he was on the correct path, before locking into autopilot and retreating to a sleep pod. As he settled in and made himself at home in the pod, he thought of Kaylinde, and their son, Raven, wondering how his son was doing in the care of the Tanaraan Imperial court.

Undoubtedly, he was prospering under proper supervision. He thought to the message and wondered if Kaylinde had too gotten the same thing from Talen.

Probably, knowing her capabilities and connections. he thought, as the gas hissed inside the pod and he drifted to sleep.

Talen's features took on a look of discontent... One response...

'Kaylinde seems to have gotten my request... I'd expect her to show up, with all that technological nonsense her people keep around she'd be easiest to catch up with...'

The freighter Talen had stolen was docked at Mobius IV, a mobile spacestation & sort of interstellar truck stop for the thousands of freighters that came & went from the nearby Gravus Prime prison facility, hauling ore & processed goods to marketplaces across the UNSSC. Hangar 422, he thought...

'Or was it 224?'

Mobius IV was well, not much more than a junkyard. Shabby, under enviromentaled, over populated, barely maintained to any reasonable safety standard. It smelt like a barely covered midden, and Kaylinde's hand refused to leave the butt of the slender, and oh so misleading, Forcelance. Madras, the AI of her starcraft, the Black Heart, rode along as a spy eye sensor jewel concealed among the blaze of faux gems and starstones that decorated the broad collar at her throat.

A perfectly fitting midnight blue phospider silk jumpsuit showed every curve. Her weapons belt was broad, and well used, and held more weapons than just the Forcelance. Most were not as obvious, but just as lethal. A scarf of bright gold silk serving to highlight the slenderness of her waist wound over the weapons belt. High boots of darkest blue leather came to just over her knees, and held sheaths filled with vibro-knives. Her bright auburn hair was pulled back from her face with several jeweled combs, and the discrete make up just heightened her stern beauty.

In short she was dressed like hundreds of successfull, often flamboyant, independant merchant captains, though few were as easy on the eyes. And she was armored, in the latest version of PALADIN armor, though it lay invisible against her skin, only the starstones at her throat any clue to the psi armor.

She'd traced the origins of the message from Talen to this waypoint, now she just had to find him.

"Come one oh finny eared one, where are you in this maelstrom of miscreants?" She spoke almost to herself as she moved along the main concourse.

"My infiltrations into the Mobius IV's laughably simple cyber systems says that there are only a very limited number of ships with owners of record being Argonians." Madras spoke into her mind through the starstone link.

"However the one I believe you want, based on an standard aging pattterns, from the picture you provided, Hangar 242. One the completely other side of the station from your present location" The AI added.

((Late in posting...))

Aidyn gulped down the rest of his drink and sput his glass back down on the bar as he glanced at the laptop he had in front of him. He was reading over a message he had recieved from one of his old friends back on Earth when another popped up. At about the same time, a loud shout sent two people beside him scurrying away. Aidyn looked up from his laptop and glanced behind him to see three, rather angry looking men stomping towards him.

"Can I help you gentlemen?" Aidyn asked as he quickly sized up the three men. What I do this time?

"Don't give me that shit punk! What the hell were doin' with my sister at that club the other night?!" One of the three shouted angrily.

Oh, that's what I did... Aidyn casually drew his right arm back, balling his hand into a fist. "It was perfectly innoccent man, nothin' happened."

"Bullshit!" The first man threw a punch and Aidyn sidestepped, the man's fist smashing into Aidyn's laptop. Aidyn brought his right arm in an uppercut and sent the first man sprawling backwards. Aidyn ducked as one of the others punched at him and low kicked him in the knee. A loud, gruesome crack sounded through the bar and the man fell to the ground, holding his leg in pain. Aidyn grabbed the third man and threw him as hard as he could into the first, who was getting up, and sent both to the ground.

He siezed the few seconds he had earned to usehis laptop. He groaned as he saw the cracked screen and was barely able to make out the message and who it was from. Not to far from Mobius IV... Aidyn felt an arm grab him from behind and a fist slam into his back, between the shoulder blades. Aidyn winced and sharply brought his elbow back into the gut of his attacker and heard a satisfied Whoompf! as the wind was knocked from his lungs.

He had a split second to send his reply. He typed two letters, kk, and turned away from the laptop and bolted from the bar before the three men could grab him. He grabbed his bag, his old rucksack, from the base of a coatrack and burst through the door of the bar.

"Wish I could stay for your ass kicking, believe me," he shouted behind him as he left....

*****************************

Aidyn walked through the hangars, not too sure of what sort of ship he was looking for so instead was looking for any familiar faces, particularly reptilian. His own appearance had not changed much since the war. He had abandoned the old marine uniform and armor and hid from the eyes of the law for a few years until he deemed it safe to re-emerge. He had put on more muscle weight and he seemed to have a permanent 5 O'Clock shadow. He had put on his old attire, a short sleeve and blue cargo pants. Two years before, he had revisited his old Druidic homeworld. There he had found that he was the last of his family, the rest having been killed off in the world's usual guerilla wars, and he had picked up an old family war helmet, and grabbed a pair of Druidic combat knives, sharpened to an extreme point so they can pierce most armor far easier than a bullet could. The Druids preferred to bring the fight in close...

In all, he seemed to blend with the usual crowds of the dirtier spacestations: Mercenaries, crooks, and captains....


((Aidyn (http://img200.exs.cx/img200/57/free6x16x10x03xps2c2zi.jpg)))

Kaylinde had a near perfect memory, and given the circumstances of their pasts together she'd never forget the men and women she'd served with in the UNSSC Special Forces...especially not one such as Aidyn, the young and so ruthless Druidic clansman.

She went on past him, then worked her way back to him unobtrusively, falling in at his side as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Her voice was soft, not for overhearing beyond him

"You're going the wrong way Aidyn. It's 242 and back the way you came."

Kaylinde (http://www.atddm.com/Kay.jpg)

Talen had been wedged in the workdesk area of his ship for the past four hours, and his feet where beginning to tingle. The low growl that escaped his mouth as he squeezed out into the corridor echoed in the empty confines.
He brought the carbine with him, along with the vibroblade. The knife was typically the only weapon he carried, in a shealth under his left arm, angled down so he could cut as he drew the thing.

The exit ramp was next to the cockpit, in which was a leather holster containing an old-school 9mm Beretta. Most of the UNSSC gear he'd sold to the black market to pay for the ship, with the exception of the baton. Talen buckled the holster around his waist, securing the holster low on his hip.
The co-pilot's seat held the M4, exchanged for the 9mm. He punched the ramp switch with a scaly fist, narrowing his slit-pupiled eyes against he harsh, artificial glare of the station's lighting system.

There was a cantina across from his hangar, a small stroke of luck he'd been quite pleased with when they'd hired him as a bouncer. Talen was dressed pretty simply; A dirty black tank-top he'd washed to the point of appearing gray & matching spacer's pants, which where a bit darker hued than the shirt. The pants had come with a jacket, which was hanging in his small cabin back on board. Fingerless gloves on his hands where torn & ragged, smeared with grime. He wasn't clean by any standards, there really wasn't much point. His one obsession was freeing his younger brother, which hadn't left time for a full-time job or any female associations. Whatever funding he could scrape together from underworld employment as an enforcer or his paycheck from the cantina went towards supplies and weapons for the coming mission. Afterwards, if either survived, they would be able to take on some longer-term mercenary assignments. Then the top-of-the-line military-issue gear & fast ship would be work-related nessecities and not the idle wants of a spacestation bouncer.

Talen's usual table was in the back, where he had a good view of the doorway. He seated himself there, back to the wall as usual. The cantina owner was aware of his paranoia & reserved behavior, but he did his job well & that was all that was asked from him. The glass of Argonian 'hist' in front of him would have cost him close to thirty-five credits, but free drinks were one of his few perks...

"You're going the wrong way Aidyn. It's 242 and back the way you came."

Aidyn turned on his heel, his rucksack hanging from one shoulder spun with him, and he paused. He knew that Talen had likely sent the same message to the others in the old gang, but it still came as a surprise when he suddenly heard Kaylinde's voice. He gave a quick grin.

"Hello to you too, Kaylinde, been awhile," he said. "But I suppose the catching up can happen later?" Aidyn began walking back the way he came. Now, I wonder who else has arrived...

"But I suppose the catching up can happen later?"

Kaylinde shrugged slightly as she matched his turn and stride.

"Not much to say. I have a son, left him at home."

He hadn't seemed to have changed much she noted, but then again outwardly neither had she. With access to the Empire's finest medical available to her, all her wounds were on the inside. The scars went deep and some of them hurt every waking moment.

You see me now, a veteran
Of a thousand psychic wars
I've been living on the edge so long
Where the winds of limbo roar
And I'm young enough to look at
And far too old to see
All the scars are on the inside
I'm not sure that there's anything left of me

The music drifted out of a rowdy cantina as the pair passed, and the bit she overheard caught her breath in her throat. Then the moment passed as she was as she always was in public...an apex predator striding along ostensibly at her ease, but everything about her noted, catalogued, and threat level determined

Soon berth 242 was visable, and Kaylinde inhaled deeply, but unobtrusively, as they reached the freighter filling the dimly lit bay. Her genetically enhanced senses enabled her to tell that a none too clean Argonian had been present recently, but with the other miasmas in the air she couldn't tell how recently or for certain if it was Talen.

The ramp was up, but the annunciator was lit so the ship had power active. She reached out and keyed the intercom.

*We're looking for the Captain*

While she and Aidyn waited for some reply, she subvocalized to Madras, requesting that he bring up a schematic for that particular manufacture of freighter.

Still somewhat sedated, Hans was sitting at the controls of the ship, waiting for clearance to dock at the Argonian space station. Finally, he got the confirmation message, and he was soon docked and walking through the sectioned gate.

It was then, he heard a familiar voice down the hall.

"We're looking for the captain."

Cloaking himself, Hans stole silently down the corridor, until at last, the voice he heard and recognized was seen to the person whom had believed in him. He stopped, remaining invisible as he watched the woman patiently waiting for her audience to arrive.

ooc: jeez, had no idea this was going on. I will toss up a post for Mikkel saying what has been going on for him. So, I will post more later or if someon e wants to contact Mikkel, that is cool

Mikkel (http://www.moviesonline.ca/movie-gallery/albums/LotD110605//LOtD010805-13.jpg)
IC:

Sparks flew past the black face mask as the torch touched the metal frame. In one of Mobius IV's vehile chop shops named Roscoe's Mikkel Norgaard worked. After the Devilish Wars had ended, Mikkel had packed his things and arrived at Mobius IV, probably because he did not have the money to return home to the Golden Simatar. He found work at a grimy shop as a mechanic, but outside of that his life had been a complete hell. At best he had ten dollars on him at any one time.

"Norgaard!" A ring came through the intercom.

Mikkel shut off his torch and looked across the floor choked with vehicles from cars to small aircraft to the office sitting high above. The red rusted iron cage held his boss. Through the grease covered window, he saw him.

Putting down his work, Mikkel cleaned his hands and walked up the stairs. His boss was a short, fat man. A scraggly beard and greasy hair tied back in a pony tail and sweat covered clothes made the man even more loathsome. Mikkel took a seat in an old plastic chair and stared at his boss across a battered wood table.

His boss lit an importe Havana cigar and sucked on it for five minutes before turning to Mikkel. "You're fired you ****, get out."

Mikkel looked at him. "What? Fuck boss, I am the best goddamn man you got."

"You're a little ex-army shit who demands a bit much."

"My work is damn good."

"Then find someplace else you fucker and get out of my place!"

Furious now, Mikkel had gone from job to job for the last few years, barely holding one down. He was fired for all sorts of reasons from punching other employees to drinking. He had changed since he was in the military. Laser eye surgery negated the need for glasses and at best getting a meal every other day had hardened him.

Mikkel stood and leaned over the desk and slammed his fist into the fast man's bluging face. He walked around the desk and opened a drawer to reveal a dozen sealed, stainless steel cylinders. Boss likes imported Havana...nice and fresh. Should get me a couple of bucks. Mikkel grabbed them and jammed them into his pocket. He collected his things and left the shop.

Currently Mikkel lived under an old abanadoned bridge. He made his home inside a rusted bus. He kept a transmitter and laptop to keep in contact with his old military buddies, but the batteries had long since died and he couldn't pay to replace them.

He sat down on a weathered matteress and relaxed. Mikkel could do so much better, he had gotten offers to run guns and be a mercenary. Now his boss was probably calling the cops to hunt for him, so getting off Mobius IV would be a good thing to do.

Right now, Mikkel lay back and tried to sleep.

OOC: MobiusIV isn't a planet, it's a space station,a mobile spacestation & sort of interstellar truck stop for the thousands of freighters that came & went from the nearby Gravus Prime prison facility, and it's not in the Argonian system.

******************************************

Kaylinde waited patiently for some response from within the battered freighter. She looked at Aidyn and shrugged with a wry grin.

"I'm half inclined to let Madras hack into this heap and open it up for us, but if it is Talen's ship you can bet money that he has something innovatively primitive set up as a man trap"

"But then again we could be the last to arrive and every one else off getting smashed together"

She didn't bother to wonder alsoud if the getting smashed was to forget or remember. She prefered to forget the horrors of her own eighteen months of capitivity on Hell. There were pain and betrayalls later that she longed to let go but found herself unable to do so

Aidyn shrugged and glanced around the hangar, quickly growing bored. He sighed and slipped his ruck off his shoulders and walked across the hangar for a few steps before dropping it behind some crates. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small bomb and attached it under the flap, so that anyone that gave the bag unwanted attention would find a nasty surprise inside..

"Well, I don't know about you, but I need a drink." Aidyn nodded to the cantina across from the hangar. "Comin'?"

Mikkel walked up from under the bridge and onto the street. There was a catina that he knew about near some flight hangers, so he thought he might drop in and get a drink. He stopped and looked in his coat pocket, a few crumpled bills and dirty coins. Though, he did have the fresh cigars. He knew he might be able to get something, maybe even a bit to eat somewhere with them.

Heading into the back alleys he found a black door and knocked on it. There was a pause before a hidden viewing port opened and Mikkel saw a man's eyes staring at him.

"Oh...Norgaard, decided to start running guns for me?" a husky voice asked.

"No..." Mikkel handed one of the cylinders through. "How much can I get for one of these?"

The port closed and Mikkel waited for ten minutes before the eyes appeared. "How many do you got?"

"How much are you willing to pay for one?"

"Hmm...twenty."

"Fifty, not a penny less."

There was a grumbling and a fifty shot through the port. It was then closed and Mikkel heard the voice again. "Fuck off Norgaard, until you get your head right. I might buy a few more later."

Mikkel grumbled himself and picked up the bill and rammed it into his pocket. He walked back out into the street and walked for a few more minutes before finding the cantina. He walked in, looking around, he did not see a bouncer anywhere, so it was all good.

He took a seat at the bar and the bartender shook his head. "Your money is no good hear Norgaard. Don't think the other bars haven't told us about your..."

He paused as Mikkel lay the fifty down. Mikkel looked back at him. "Give me a shot of whiskey."

The bartender noddded and poured Mikkel some of the amber liquid, made change, before moving off to others.

Mikkel looked at his drink. While he had the cash, might as well buy as many drinks as he could. "Down the hatch."

"Well, I don't know about you, but I need a drink." Aidyn nodded to the cantina across from the hangar. "Comin'?"

Kaylinde stood another minute, then toggled the message feature. Then she flipped it off. She wasn't positive that this was Talen's ship, and definitely didn't want to leave a message at the wrong place.

"Yeah, that sounds good." She followed him slowly with one last look back at the freighter.

Hans followed Aidyn and Kaylinde, keeping to the shadows and having removed his stealth functions. Instead, he employed natural skills of stealth. He moved to the bar, and tapped the counter with a light knock.

Hearing him, the barkeep turned and smiled to him. "What can I get ya?"

Hans raised a hand, beckoning for the man to lean closer. He whispered, "Give a glass of your finest," he turned slightly, gesturing with a partially hidden hand toward Kaylinde, "for her..."

Glancing in the direction indicated, the barkeep finally nodded and accepted the money slid under Han's hand.

"Oh, one more thing. I'll take a shot of whiskey."

Kaylinde was not comfortable in the cantina. She was not much of a drinker, and though she may have been keeping busy by working with Lady Omega in places one couldn't talk about, they generally weren't shabby dives where...'That is Talen back in the corner, and he looks like shit' she thought to herself as genetically enhanced eyes took in every corner of the bar. Her mood lifted with a spike of impishness. 'Lets see if he recognises us! Kaylinde thought as she settled on the best of the bad lot of tables available. She'd have far prefered something where she could claim the proberbial corner, but others had those corners occupied.

She waited until Aidyn had chosen his seat then murmured low. "That's Talen back in the corner, but don't do anything just yet, I want to see how long it takes for him to recognise us."

A frousy waitress arrived with a drink tray in hand, a single frosted stein of a rich dark ale in the center.

"From him..." She flipped a thumb at a man sitting at the bar.

Kaylindes heart contracted, and for a split second pain sat naked on her face and filled her eyes. The her expression went blank and her eyes shuttered, as she wrenched them away from Han's features. It took all her will power to resist the impulse to go to him.

Wether to kill him or kiss him she wasn't sure, and wasn't sure she wanted to know. Their last massive arguement had left devestating wounds on both sides. And Kaylinde knew that he didn't care about her.

"Return it, thank you" Her voice was clear and cold as she looked up at the waitress.

"Excuse me sir?" called the voice of the waitress. Hans turned his head to her. "The young lady has asked me to return your drink."

Hans furrowed his brow, turning to look toward Kaylinde. She was not looking his way, but down at the table in front of her. "Thank you." he answered to the waitress, taking the glass in hand and stepping away from the bar. He approached her table, as if unsure. He knew she was purposely avoiding him, remaining cold, even when he stopped next to her.

"I'm not perfect you know." he finally said slowly. He set the glass down in front of her and indicated to the chair across from her. "May I?"

Kaylinde didn't dare look at him, she'd meet his eyes, those ever so dangerous pools of limpid cobalt blue, where-in she would fall forever.

"I'm not perfect you know."

"Never expected you to be." The words were non comittal but her tone held a universe of accusation, if one knew how to listen.

"May I?"

Finally she looked at him, though she was careful not to meet his eyes. Her heart contracted again, as for a second a wash of concern swept over her. Hans was fully ten years younger than her, but he looked older, so careworn. Then she deflected that worry, beneath a bitter internal comment...'Why's he here? He'll come help Talen, but he wouldn't bother keep his word to me?' Armored by fresh pain to old, unhealed wounds of the heart she met his eyes with a sarcastic "Whatever"

Hans took the seat quietly, and several moments of silence filled the space between them. At last, he spoke quietly, so that only she heard.

"Do you remember what happened in the cave? The inhibitor, in which you specifically helped me get rid of?"

Kaylinde nodded slowly, still refusing to meet his gaze. "What's your point?" she said icily.

Like trying to drill through ice with a spoon. Hans thought sadly to himself. "I was given a new life, a chance to live as I really should. You showed me how to live, and in return, I tried to kill myself over my sorrows. And then..." he paused, swallowing hard, "You came for me again. After that kidnapping event, I left you, because you were pregnant, and you were injured. I didn't want to see you die and never get to see you ever again. That was why I loved you. That was why I did what I did in hopes of securing a safe future, a new life."

He fell silent, tapping his hand slowly on the table in front of him. His voice was nearly silent, yet the words still came, "I still love you."

"Obviously leaving me, and -once again- not coming back, was what was right for you. Thats fine, I hope you are having a good life." She kept her eyes on the table, her voice as low as his. The 'grief counseler' that Michiko insisted that she see, hadn't left her alone until she was willing to parrot the mantra of 'If you love some one you want whats best for them.' She'd done it to be free of their interminable prying and patently false sympathy. No one seemed to care about her hurt, her fears, her loneliness, and feelings of worthlessness. Weaknesses she hid deeper than all else.

"I can explain..." he started.

"Oh, I'm sure you damn well can!" she suddenly snapped, her eyes at last locking with his, blazing in rage. "Just like every other time!"

Hans merely lowered his head. It was clear her words bit deeply into him. At last, he just shook his head and looked back up to her. Strangely, there was a new look in his eyes, one that silenced her growing ammunition of words ready to fire at him.

"You cannot run me off this time. I won't go of my own accord either. I want you in my life, Kaylinde Apollon-Moore, and I'm going to do everything I must to get you to see what I see now."

"And just what is it you see now Hans Balran? I don't believe that you want me in your life. If you had you'd have come back from your little break and enter jaunt!" she demanded, almost daring him to not answer.

"I was planning to return, goddamit! I just was forced to make another trip back to Earth, for an emergency council with Sigrun on international relations regarding the Devilish and their potential allies, whom might find it favorable to attack Tarlachia. So, if being concerned about the well-being of over three billion citizens is being concieted and irresponsible, then I'm guilty!"

He got up abruptly and stormed out of the cantina, giving Ayden an apologetic nod. Outside, he went to a nearby window looking out into the vast onyx void of space.

Damn it, Kay! he growled silently to himself. He punched into the wall, making sure he restrained his strength from causing damage to the structure. His hand lowering again, he stood in front of the window, silence overtaking him.

Mikkel heard an arguement happening behind him. The mirror behind the bar was too covered with dirt to see what was going on. He heard snippets of information, not enough to form any idea what they were arguing about. In a place like this, anywhere from who screwed who last night to gun shipments were contenders. By the sound of it, the man and the woman obviously had some old feelings but that had errodded away.

When he heard footsteps and looked over to see the man walk away before punching the wall. That will give him a busted finger or two. Mikkel waited for a few more minutes before turning his head over his shoulder and as he looked at a man and a woman at a table. Something deep in his banks of memory clicked and files were thrown open. His eyes widened as he pivoted on the seat.

Speaking in a stunned, raspy voice, the remembered names came back.

"Kaylinde...Aidyn?"

Kaylinde was fighting the impulse to deck Hans and discipline was beginning to lose when he flung the last accusation at her and stormed out. Her throat hurt with repressed sobs. And he was lying again. He never once tried to contact her during the several years of assissting Tarlachia. 'That's fine, no... you are not guilty of being a good man, Hans Balran, just not a good man for me to love. I was there for you, but you weren't and haven't been there for me. I can't trust you in that, I have to look out for myself, cover my own back. I grew up alone, and I just have to go on alone.' Her thoughts flashed after him in the solitude of her own mind.

"Kaylinde...Aidyn?"

Kaylinde blinked a few times, wondering where the tears had come from. She never cried, not even in her sleep when the nightmares of her time on Hell woke her shaking and drenched with sweat.

Looking up she wrestled with memory for a few seconds, before being able to match memory with current reality.

"Mikkel?" Oh the years had been unkind. She remembered the earnestly naive and idealistic young man, so shaken by the realities of the battlefield. This was a far different person, especially with his heavy eyeglasses.

Mikkel and Kaylinde stared at each other. Mikkel could not believe his eyes, he had thought everyone was either dead, in prison, or out in the far corners of the universe. He had always thought he had more chance of winning the lottery and becoming a millionaire then seeing Kaylinde or any of the old gang again. The thing that surprised Mikkel the most was that she recongized him without his glasses. Mikkel stared at her and took a sip of whiskey before attempting to break the ice.

"So...what ya up to?"

Kaylinde shot Aidyn a brief surprized look, then gave Mikkel a very though once over

"The same thing you're here for...right?"

She didn't like what she saw. The old Mikkel wouldn't have been caught dead with alcohol, and despite the slenderness of youth had been fit and healthy. The man before her was slender...'No thin...poverty thin. Danm it, these are my friends and none of them should have ended up like this' It was better to be angry for others than it was for herself.

Mikkel's eyes drifted past Kaylinde and he immeditaly spun around on his chair and slouched over. Kaylinde turned to see a pair of policemen stand in the doorway. One walked in and looked around. He scoffed and spoke into a small walkie talkie before leaving.

"Na, he ain't in here. Keep looking. I think his boss said he lived in a brothel or something like that."

Mikkel stiffened, but the police didn't see it. They just left the catina to continue their search for him. He looked into a small, filthy mirror behidn the counter before turning back around and finishing his shot and ordering a second. He took a sip of the new glass of amber liquid before speaking again.

"I am here...first time in a long time I have had a drink. Will get something to eat afterward...hadn't had a meal in...two days I think. What are you here for?"

"I am here...first time in a long time I have had a drink. Will get something to eat afterward...hadn't had a meal in...two days I think. What are you here for?"

His disjointed reply and general hangdog air of furtiveness had her frowning, and giving Aidyn a speaking look.

"Mikkel, Aidyn, we're going to dinner, my treat. Lets go hijack Talen from his darkened corner." Kaylinde nodded slightly towards the barely visable Argonian.

Before rising she subvocalized to Madras, requesting that the AI hack into the stations security system and remove any problems that one 'Mikkel Norgaard' might be having.

The state- of -the- tech AI was a 'descendant' of ShadowDancer, an AI designed and created for the cracking of other cyber systems. And considering that Mobius IV wasn't even UNSSC state- of- the- tech, Madras had already infiltrated and surepetiously controlled most of the systems of any import. He's waited on the security system save for a information tap until it became necessary. Now Kay had decided that it was necessary.

With her usual flowing movements Kaylinde had stood, and looked at Aidyn and Mikkel.

"Coming?"

"Hijack who?"

Last Mikkel had heard the Kerrich brothers had been taken prisoner, or was it only one? He leaned on his chair and sure enough, sitting the corner was Talen. He blinked several times, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him. With Kaylinde confirming it was Talen, he slid off his chair and slowly walked over, glass in his hand.

"Hey Talen, remember me? Mikkel Norgaard."

((Phew, I'm out two days and the thread picks up... Sorry all, had some things to patch up with my old man...))

Aidyn shrugged, having already finished his drink during that rather spiteful arguement, and stood from the table. He had sat silently during the entire exchange, not planning on getting involved in that sort of conversation. He glanced at Kaylinded a moment. I sure missed something important over the years... Mabye it's a good thing I didn't keep in touch with anyone over the years...

He had barely noticed when Mikkel had approached them, his thoughts trailing off to what he had been doing himself over the years since the war and had only given a slight nod in greeting when Mikkel stopped at the table.

"So, not much to catch up on?" Aidyn said as he began to move towards Talen. He gave a slight, halfhearted laugh in attempt to help make light of what he had just witnessed.

"So, not much to catch up on?"

Kaylinde's voice was little more than as whisper, totally flat, emotionless as if she were reciting a laundry list. Her face empty as her eyes. "Just the same old, same old. Capture, interogation, torture, rape, eighteen months on Hell, another year in a trauma tube, having to have nearly ninety percent of my body cloned...and just holding on to the hope that some one would keep their word."

She shrugged slightly, disillusionment and old pain now darkening her eyes.'All the scars are on the inside, I'm not sure that there's anything left of me' her bitter thoughts tumbled the snatch of song back at her.

"I'm sorry Aidyn, just didn't expect to ever see someone again."

She turned to follow Mikkel, posture errect, face composed

"Like I said, dinner, my treat." Her smile never reached her eyes

Someone called out his name, a distant whisper over the background roar of the other patrons. More out of habit than any suspicion, that right hand of his slid down his leg, grasping the grip of the old 9-mil & thumbing back the hammer. With his left he upended the glass before him & downed the hist in a single extended gulp, setting it down on the pitted tabletop with a sharp whunk.

Against his better judgement, Talen stood & looked around. The buzzer on his hip had been living up to its name for several minutes now, stammering 'We are looking for the captain...' over and over. Talen's shipboard AI was around the level of the typical short-bus-riding special-ed student who'd been into their parents' booze chest. He'd nonchalantly dismissed the call as some sort of minimal emergency or some thugs wanting some back-up on their next collection call.

This call had felt different, a feeling he really couldn't describe with words. One had to expeirence it to truly do it justice. The woman at the bar was familiar somehow, yet dressed so differently he'd hardly have recognized her...

'Kaylinde... So someone did get my call...'

The sexy curves the SF body armor had shown off over a decade earlier were still present, the absolute best of female figures as far as the males of the species where concerned, Talen believed they called her a '10', or something like that. Personally, females with a bit of padding in the rear appealed to Talen's tastes, at least as far as humans went.

Slightly behind her stood someone else he thought familiar... That fierce Druid he'd fought beside, blade for blade against their foes...

'Aidyn? Odd that he'd show up unless I'd mentioned there'd be something for him to kill...'

Mikkel eluded his observations. Humans typically look all the same to most Argonian eyes, Mikkel's glasses had gone a long way to making him more memorable...

'Where the fuck is Hans? Surely he's here with Kaylinde...'

Talen had been somewhere under a rock during her prison break, out of contact on the far reaches of the Outer Rim. It was about that time that Tylas got hooked & Talen was left for dead on a backwater excuse for a planet, more of an asteroid with an atmosphere than anything.

The crowd parted, as they'd learned to do. If Talen stopped at you, you'd fucked up somehow. They didn't know he wasn't on station, just that you avoided those angry emerald eyes...


The cell was warm, humid. Condensation ran down the walls like rain water, collecting in little puddles on the rocky floor. There was a bucket in the corner, opposite the toilet. Condensed water collected heaviest in the corner, and Tylas' bucket collected most of it.

There were no clocks for the prisoners' use, but Tylas still reported to the weight bench at the same times each day. With his usual brusque manner, the massive Argonian slid four hundred-pound weights onto the bar, followed with a fifty on each end. His usual starting set was five-hundred pounds, typically consisting of at least fifteen reps. He'd do at least five, then add another hundred pounds.

The young Argonian had changed considerably, his arms thickening to the height of a human head. Herculean strength was his newfound ability, he'd adapted to weight training better than he'd expected. The speed he'd developed from the Special Forces had remained as sharp as ever, honed by countless hours of practice & application within the main grotto. Prizefights to the death for cigarettes where held weekly, and Tylas was a regular. It wasn't that he smoked, just that he traded his earning for whatever could help increase his physical abilities. It was all the distraction he had for now, until it came time for him to die...

OOC: I apologize for having dropped the ball on my RP's. Real-life has been kicking my ass this weekend.

Kaylinde spun away from Aidyn, as the outer edges of a primal force touched her senses. Hands on hips, golden eyes used to showng nothing met the angry emerald ones

"So...you still think you can kick ass, Snake Eyes?"

There was a distinct sardonic gleam in those eyes now and the tone just enriched the taunt. She wondered for a split second if he would remember her nickname for him. Kaylinde had always been completely at ease around the Argonians, for while she may have been female she was as much a warrior as they.

Talen might have grinned if his anatomy had allowed him to do so...

"Snake-eyes? I thought that died with my oldest brother on Sepulcher..."

A warmer hue light his reptillian features as she mentioned the ass-kicking...

"It's been something of an occupation since I arrived..."

The Argonian cast a wary set of eyes around the cantina's main area, deeming it unfit for any conversation relating to freeing Tylas...

"I'm sure you already know where my rusty heap is located... We'd better talk there..."

Talen went for the door, aware that the others would probably follow. Their help would make things much easier than he'd expected, four guns where always better than one. He reached his ship a few minutes later, keying in the access code in a few quick keystrokes. There was no man-trap within, at least at the doorway. There were, however, a string of daisy-chained Claymore mines attatched to the ceilings of the corridors around the ship. Talen had gotten them on sale, along with the 9mm and the assault carbine. The pair of clackers had been saudered to the front control console & to Talen's bunk, ready for deployment at a moment's notice.

The Argonian entered, seating himself on a packing crate in the small sleeping area. Two bunks sat on opposite sides of the room, the room itself stocked with a myriad of weapons crates & ammunition boxes...

"Sit, and I will explain what I've called you all here for..."

OOC: LOl - I looked it up - Kaylinde used to in speaking to Talen...Tapping Talen on the shoulder to gain his attention, she leaned close to his fin shaped ear and shouted "Back to the barracks, Snake Eyes. Move it Marine!"
*************************************

Kaylinde followed Talen without a word. She took the time to look him over carefully, pleased yet displeased with what she saw. When Hans joined them, seeing the four emerge from the cantina, she ignored his presence, busying herself inspecting the interior of Talen's ship as he led them to the berthing area.

"Sit, and I will explain what I've called you all here for..."

She found a spot at the foot of one of the bunks and sat, her attention solely on the Argonian.

Hans took a position leaning against the wall, watching Kaylinde, as well as listening to Talen.

Her gaze was purposely away from his, refusing to even acknowledge his presence. It annoyed him internally, and if she even cared to look at him even once, she would see that reflective emotion on his face.

You, he thought silently, are really not easy to deal with. I'll win you over, one way or another. You'll see, Kaylinde, you'll see who I am again.

He turned his attention back to Talen, pushing those thoughts aside for now.

Aidyn walked in a little after the others, having to pause and get his rucksack and war helmet before stepping into the ship. He leaned back against the wall opposite of Hans. He studied the man, who was gazing at Kaylinde, and then looked up at Talen.

He shifted as he dropped his ruck on the floor.

Talen did a mental inventory of everyone on board, then began his speech...

"I'm sure you're wondering why it's just me on this ship... Why there are two bunks and one occupant..."

The Argonian paused for dramatic effect, flicking the safety on his Beretta back into the 'on' position...

"Tylas and I were ambushed by a UNSSC military police unit out in some backwater asteroid field. In short, they left me for dead & carted Tylas off to a military prison. If your situational awareness is still intact, you'd know which one I'm referring to..."

Again there was a pause for the words he'd uttered to sink in...

"I need help to get him out. If I go in alone I'll most likely get cut down fifty feet down the first corridor, I simply can't watch every angle by my self until I get to Tylas. That's why I've called you all together again, to aid a fellow warrior in getting his much-deserved freedom.

I've got this 9mm, my vibroblade, and an M4 carbine for myself and a pair of S102's for Tylas. There are a few other items in these crates, but it's nothing like you're used to. I sold most of Tylas' equipment to get the ship, and mine was scarp from that encounter with the Devilish. Given time, I can probably scrape together enough funds to arm all of you, but it will take some time. There's an arms dealer a few hangars over..."

"Talen, don't worry about arming us, or funds for other ...things. I got that covered." She owed Tylas her life several times over, and he had been one of the first friends she had made in basic - one of the first friends she ever had period. She remembered how her captivity had been, she'd be damned to let a friend go through anything resembling that.

She din't want to hurt Talen's pride, but she had funds, supplies, and an AI that was smarter than your average genius by two or three times.

"I'm in"

Mikkel listened to Talen quietly. He had been suprised by what he had heard. He had never expected the brothers to be captured, not in a million years. All of this was new information to him. He had never recived any emails or any communication from Talen due to his state of finance. Mikkel remembered his suit, it was rusting away inside a secret compart of his brothel room. His only weapon was an old Uzi machine-pistol; though he had few bullets for it.

Though confused by the recent events, he felt obligated to help his old comrade.

"I'm in too."

Hans digested the information, thinking carefully over the facts stated. Something bothered him about it all though, and it had nothing to do with any of them. Rather, his thoughts were on the prison itself.

Something was amiss if Tylas couldn't free himself. He was known to be a rather resourceful Argonian, and if his memory served him correctly, then a simple prison wouldn't have been too much trouble to break out of. Narrowing his eyes slightly as he stared at the floor, he took a deep breath quietly and looked up to Talen.

"I think you know my answer. However, I've got a feeling there's more to this prison than we are aware of right now. Have you done any recon?"

Aidyn didn't put too much thought into his own decision. "Shit, count me in, got nothin' better to do anyway..." He knelt down beside his ruck and lifted the flap.

"I can arm myself alright," he said as pulled a pair of SMG90s out of the filled rucksack, then a black case that took up most of the room. He flipped open the case to reveal a disassembled AS12 that looked like it hadn't been cleaned in years. "I had intended to get around to cleaning a while back, but somethin' always seemed to come up... I think that's all I got though, next to some ammo. No, wait." He reached down his shirt and pulled up a HG39 hanging on a dirtied, formerly silver chain. "Got a few of these in there too. I got enough to keep myself covered in a raid, and a pair of new combat knives, but that's about it..."

"I think you know my answer. Howe-"

"No rations though..."

"-ver, I've got a feeling there's more to this prison than we are aware of right now. Have you done any recon?"

Aidyn looked up from his ruck back to Talen. He hadn't thought of that.

Talen nodded...

"Approximately one-hundred fifty-thousand inmates, and twenty-five thousand guards. Most pack the BR99, the AS12, and SMG90. S102's are standard issue as well, in that everyone from the janitor up has one & has been trained pretty well in its use. There's a Special Riot Response Team, armored a lot like we were back in the day, carrying the BR or the AS and the S102. There's a military garrison on-planet which also includes an SF A-Team. The garrison is about ten-thousand strong, consisting mostly of UNSSC Marines with nasty dispositions & itchy trigger fingers. A wing of space superiority fighters are also stationed on the asteroid, to deal with hijacked transport freighters and attempted prison breaks. All facilities are underground and climate-controlled, with the exception of the mines. The outer surface is barren, and the atmosphere unbreatheable. In short, it's supposed to be escape-proof..."

Talen's look had gone a bit less sullen. He finally had some support, and well-armed support by the look of it...

"The problem isn't breaking out, it's getting in."

Kaylinde spoke the truth, for to get in they'd have to do so much damage that getting back out would be easy.

"However, I'm confused, ...is the prison on planet or on the asteroid?"

Talen nodded at the second option...

"It's a complex within the asteroid, you probably saw it on your approach to the station... The giant one with the little clusters of lights on the exterior. The garrison is on-planet, which works in our favor, since they'll need to shuttle troops up to it to deal with us."

His gaze returned to the others...

"Considering those numbers, we'll have to be silent and quick, otherwise we'll be overrun and either killed or imprisoned ourselves..."

Kaylindes face went very cold when Talen informed her that the garrison was on the planet. The planet would cease to be a problem with in twenty four hours once she gave the word. That it might start a war didn't factor into it for her. And done properly it would also keep the fighter squadron too busy to pursue.

"Would an incapacitting agent in the environmental system be worth looking into? And how were you thinking of getting in?"

Kaylindes face went very cold when Talen informed her that the garrison was on the planet. The planet would cease to be a problem with in twenty four hours once she gave the word. That it might start a war didn't factor into it for her. And done properly it would also keep the fighter squadron too busy to pursue.

"Would an incapacitting agent in the environmental system be worth looking into? And how were you thinking of getting in?"

Talen's eyes took on a playful gleam...

"Either kicking in the front airlock & shooting everything that points a weapon at me, or doing it like we used to, slipping in through an airshaft and cracking some poor bastard's neck, then using his uniform to fake a prisoner transfer and slip off in a prisoner transport. Then again, if it was that easy, Tylas would be here with us and we'd be talking in the cantina instead of in my pathetic excuse for a home..."

Another one of his annoying dramatic pauses...

"Your thoughts? And don't do anything drastic like slag an entire UNSSC garrison. Technically we're, at least I am, still UNSSC Military Personnel..."

It was an irony he could resist pointing out. Until he eiter was court-martialed, executed, or signed the release papers, he was still First Sergeant Talen Kerrich, Second Special Forces detatchment Bravo, assigned to UNSSC Battlecruiser 'Steadfast'...

"Well..."

Mikkel started and went quiet again. It had been a few years since he had done any kind of military like action; breaking noses, drinking, and trying to survive to the next day had replaced that.

"I like the idea of stealing a guards uniform. Though...though they are probably smart enough to have fingerprint and renta scans. I left the UNSSC shortly after the little 'incident' so I have lost much of my shit. Since you are still in the service Talen...is it possible you can get a pass to see your brother for a visit and while you're there gather one or two more points about thier security?"

"Well..."

Mikkel started and went quiet again. It had been a few years since he had done any kind of military like action; breaking noses, drinking, and trying to survive to the next day had replaced that.

"I like the idea of stealing a guards uniform. Though...though they are probably smart enough to have fingerprint and renta scans. I left the UNSSC shortly after the little 'incident' so I have lost much of my shit. Since you are still in the service Talen...is it possible you can get a pass to see your brother for a visit and while you're there gather one or two more points about thier security?"

There was that weird Argonian laugh again...

"I'm still in the service, yes, but my ID is blacklisted as 'Shoot or Detain on Sight'. You'd be better off going, since you legally retired. The rest of us deserted..."

He wasn't particularly proud of that fact, and if he had it to do over again, he probably would have done things a little differently, but the past couldn't be altered, the same way the dead couldn't be made members of the living...

"We can fake retinal scanners and fingerprint ID's, that was part of the standard infitration training back in the day. Argonians don't have fingerprints anyway. A little recon doesn't sound like a bad idea, though... Any volunteers? I can't go, my fake ID might work for a job interview, but not a military-grade DNA scanner..."

"I can't go, they still want me..." Kaylinde spoke slowly unwilling to look at Hans. She'd deliberatly never asked what he and Lady Omega had done, she'd been too angry.

And what Talen didn't know...well she could always ask forgiveness later.

Hans listened as the others conversed over their plans. He remained silent for as long as necessary as some thoughts churned over in his mind.

"Well, I think we can all say it's safe to assume that I'm a legitimate enemy of the UNSSC, considering some...actions I undertook a bit of time ago."

This recieved a snort from Kaylinde. Hans ignored her for now.

"However," he continued, "There is an option I think would work. Some time ago, Peregrine and I did a bit of non-preservation techniques to the rogue element because of the said actions. As far as I can tell, all evidence of Kaylinde having ever served with us, or at any time in the UNSSC are erased. I'm sure if we asked Peregrine," he gave a glance to Kaylinde, "she'd be glad to help take a good look at the protocols and security detail...right Kaylinde?"

He turned his eyes to Kaylinde, his eyes directly questing for her own to lock with his. He had put her on the spot, and he knew it. There was also some silent communication between the two, unspoken comments that were clear to both of them.

For the briefest moments utter bitterness shown out of Kaylindes eyes, then they were shuttered again. Her voice was coolly remote as she replied

"Yes I am certain that Lady Omega would assisst you. Please excuse me I'll be back later."

She had some orders to send. She wasn't going to be sidelined again, especially not by Hans

Hans watched her leave, then glanced to the others. He gave a shake of his head, then followed Kaylinde's path out. He caught up to her, then grabbed her, shoving her toward the wall and pinning her there. An anger had risen in his eyes as he glared into her own. His voice snarled with anger, and yet, his touch was firm, but not too painful. It was for good reason too.

"Damn it, Kaylinde Moore!" he spouted to her, "Why won't you give me a goddamn chance to prove myself to you? I asked if you'd have Peregrine give us some technical help in dealing with the marines. Obviously, you misunderstood me...so you know what? I'm going to fucking do this myself."

He released her, then began to storm away, but calling over his shoulder,

"Tell the others they're going to get their recon. I'll make sure of it!"

He hadn't gotten two strided before Kaylinde had caught up to him, and her pinning was no where near as gentle as his had been.

Her voice was low, but filled with rage, they were too close to the entrance of the bay that Talen's ship was berthed in. And the last thing she wanted was curious bystanders.

"Damn it Hans Balran, I'm tired of you putting me on the sidelines, especially when you say you want me in your life. Hells you confuse - me half the time you're a wuss who can't keep his word and tries to off himself, the other half of the time you're the man I love."

To her utter shock she realised that she wasn't just pinning him. The length of her body was pressed tightly against his and she was falling into his eyes...again. And she was so afraid, so lost, and so dangerously close to tears

She couldn't bear to be hurt again.

Then her lips were claiming his in a kiss she had dreamed of so often, and woken up rageing against...or was it for?

Hans broke out into a smile as Kaylinde reacted in a similar physical fashion as his, but stronger. At last, she was giving him the attention he wanted from her, and he didn't mind the pinning to the wall.

The kiss however, caught him off guard. It was then, his built up defenses, his protective persona seemed to disappate all at once. His eyes glimmered with an old fire, an old life sparked anew once more in full force.

His hands held her face as they kissed for a long moment, neither wishing to part for a while. He finally pulled her back so he could speak, "Let's go get that recon. Together. You and me. Let's show them once again who we are."

His forehead touched forward until it met hers, and he spoke quietly for her own ears, "I've missed you so..."

"Mi Corazon...My Heart" She whispered in return, aching for his touch once more. He made her whole, just as he always had.

"And I you." She wanted nothing more than to lie in his arms forever, he'd keep the nightmares at bay. However they had work to do. And it'd take far more than this to make her healing complete, but it was a beginning. If both of them would let it be

"Together" She stepped back, relcutantly releasing him then falling in by his side.

"I have a ship and one hellacious AI. Lets go do what Talen asked us not to and then get that recon"

Talen watched the display with a combination of amusement and disgust...

"Humans..."

He muttered, shaking his head slowly from the left to the right. Emotionally charged & motivated, they'd do nearly anything for the sheer sake of entertainment or pleasure. His head still shaking, Talen rose from his seat & adjusted his thigh holster to a more comfortable position, then stretching in preparation for returning to the cramped workdesk. There were still a few modifications he had to do on the M4, and a few secure files he'd hacked from the prison database to decript...

((Eesh, sorry for the delay, no real good excuse....))

Aidyn turned away from the pair and made a short laugh as Talen muttered "Humans". He stood from his rucksack and leaned back against the wall. He had been getting his equipment ready by loading his SMG90s and hiding them in his jacket and reassembling his AS12 shotgun. He left his hand grenades in the ruck.

He pulled out one of his two knives and twirled it in his hand as he waited to see what else was next.

"I suppose they'll be the ones doing the recon then?" Aidyn said looking over to Talen, not really expecting an answer.