crew could trust that order could be maintained and in the last few days you've managed to circumvent that chain of command and-”
“You have no right-” Frost interrupted, shaking his head and taking an awkward step forward.
Alice raised her voice and finished; “-not only damage that trust but cause the crew to break into open brawling once. Thanks to you there is a line dividing two of the most dangerous segments of this crew, gunnery and security.”
“If Stephanie could control her people we'd have no problems at all! Gunners an' their mates run aggro, hair on fire like and if anyone stir them up there's gonna be trouble! She's got to get her people ta steer clear lass!”
“Funny, from all the accounts and playbacks the fighting only starts when your name comes up, that's including the five fistfights that have broken out over the last twenty hours. I'm not going to argue with you Frost. I'm telling you-”
“Be careful what ye say next lass,” Frost glared menacingly.
“Telling you that you're reassigned until you can show that you can handle more than a deck full of guns.”
“You mean until Captain's back. I'll be back on the deck lass, you bet your ass.”
“Do you really think he'll go back on one of my decisions?”
“No one runs that deck like me!” Frost burst, thrusting his finger up towards the gunnery deck above.
“Command is about people first Frost! You know who said that? Jonas Valent! You'll be lucky if you ever see the command deck after he gets back!”
“Last I checked Jonas Valent punched outta an airlock an' never made it back in.”
Alice stared at the shorter, squat man, furious. Her teeth were clenched so tight they were near fracturing, her head felt tight, the cage of her chest felt too small for her rapidly beating heart and as she realized her palm was resting on the hilt of her sidearm everything seemed to slow down. “Don't test me,” she heard herself say through a grimace that shook a tear born of rage from its shelf under her good eye.
“Just a confused little girl,” Frost chucked and started to turn away.
Her sidearm cleared the holster, the safety deactivated then brought to bear and fired in a fraction of a second.
He could feel the heat of the thermite shot screech past his ear and stopped.
“The Samson or the brig,” she growled. “And you tell your people it was your decision.”
Frost nodded curtly. “I'll be on the Samson.”
Alice flipped the safety of her sidearm back on and dropped it into the holster. It felt heavy against her leg, she hadn't fired it in so long it seemed. She spun on her heel and strode for the exit at the other end of the mechanic's bay.
It took forever for her to make it to the small elevator car that would link up with the main express tubes then take her to the command deck. When the door closed she let loose with a deafening, frustrated scream and bashed her fist into the side of the small lift car. How the hell can I let myself come apart like that? If I had both my eyes Frost wouldn't have a head! The crew is barely holding together as it is without Jake, God knows what would happen if I killed Frost, and with his back to me no less! All because he wasn't listening. I knew he'd make a scene, say something to make me doubt myself and it wouldn't be an easy conversation, that's why I did it out of sight. I knew I should have talked to him in the ready quarters, even an empty briefing room would have been better.
Alice closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Just get control of yourself and you'll have the ship in shape in no-”
The lift door opened to reveal a group of four crewmen.
“Taken!” she snapped as she slapped the door close icon on the control panel.
As the lift continued on its way and she took another slow inhale and let it out whispering; “This mission better bring the crew together.”
The Hollow City
Whether under the sporadic light of artillery and missile fire or the artificial light of day provided by Jake's visor, Damshir was nothing but vertical desolation for as far as he could see. Evidence of weapons damage, an active fight against automated machinery, civilians and soldiers alike littered the narrow streets and tall alleyways. The criss-crossing walkways overhead couldn't be trusted, even the ground underfoot held surprises. Transit tubes for group and individual vehicle travel extended between, through and above the hollow buildings were everywhere. Uncountable vehicles left abandoned where traffic jams that extended for kilometres rendered the primary transportation method of the lower city utterly useless. I hate Omnitube transit. Just convenient and big enough to give everyone who can afford their own vehicle the feeling that they have the freedom to move about however they like whenever they like but all contained in transparesteel tubing so most crashes are contained and people actually have to pay parking and roaming tolls to move from the tube to the streets. Always reminded me of the gerbil gym tubes people buy for their pets.
Not many machines in this section of the city though, that's something. He couldn't help thinking as he ran from one darkened street to a narrow walkway, jumping over a fallen road repair bot. It's heating elements and rough paving tools were still half upraised, as though ready to re-activate and resume its rampage. The rear casing had been damaged, however, and he could see that the power cell had been destroyed, bludgeoned by someone barely armed but committed to the act of defending themselves and others. After taking a look around to ensure there was nothing watching he retracted his faceplate. His instinct was to inhale, to get a breath of non-recycled air and he nearly retched. There it was, the smell of burning corpses. Somewhere not far off androids and bots made for other tasks were clearing and destroying bodies.
Jake's appetite shrank away but he forced himself to eat a compressed ration bar. Vacsuit won't cloak, it's a second behind in countering impacts so I've either got to keep the armoured layer up or risk taking impact trauma and half the soldiers I've seen are wearing thermal suppressive armour. Their combat armour is better than I'm used to seeing. Someone's actually spending money on protecting their soldiers. I just hope they're not as experienced. He sighed as he chewed through his second bite, the bar was half gone. The shield I keep seeing around sections of that mountain is twenty kilometres away and most of the bots I've seen are headed that way, I don't think they'll be able to hold out for long. Question is, how do I contact someone behind the shield and join them if I manage to get there while they have containment? Every land line I try is blocked or dead.
He finished eating the bar and brought his faceplate back up. It's black non-reflective outer surface didn't betray what was happening underneath. His thermal sensors were picking up a short, well armed security bot. Inhuman and armoured, it moved along in near silence, its padded treads rolling over the most solid parts of the terrain just outside Jake's small safe haven.
Jake quietly drew his sidearm and used the link between himself and the weapon to set it to full intensity and its highest firing rate. The weapon was already warming up in his hand, threatening to break through the thermal shielding that coated the weapon and shielded the barrel end.
The machine detected him, or his weapon, which exactly didn't matter. Jake tapped the control panel to the door on his left and stepped inside. A pair of rounds struck just behind him and he peeked out just enough to brace himself as he let loose with a long burst from his heavy sidearm. The darkness of the alley was lit for two seconds as over thirty shots peppered the thick forward armour of the law enforcement bot. A sickening pop followed by an even brighter flash burst from the sides of his sidearm as he stepped back behind cover. Two more rifle shots rang out as though in punctuation of Jake's flurry of gunfire as he quickly examined his handgun. “God dammit!” he cursed as he saw that the chamber had burned completely through on the sides, just forward of the grip. It almost cost him his hand, but more importantly, he was without a firearm. “Come on, that thermite's gotta burn through!” he said to himself as two more rifle shots shattered the concrete just centimetres from his shoulder.
The bright light of the thermite rounds covering the bots armour, squealing, crackling and sparking as they burned through lit the alleyway. One rifle shot rung out instead of two. Jake smiled and nodded to himself. Looks like I hit something important, hopefully those thermite rounds find their way to something a little more delicate.
