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[color=#FFCC77]Fleet Admiral Wainwright of the Legion will be ordered to arrive aboard Ames Research Station at 1200 hours tomorrow and remain there for 24 hours afterward. If the Alliance wishes to confer, your biological selves will be sought out there by the Fleet Admiral should they be present. If the Alliance wishes to pass up an opportunity to improve the well-being of Liberty, the Alliance may refrain from making an appearance there, but the Fleet Admiral will be present regardless. The 'I' would like to note that is a one-time opportunity, and that it would be only logical to send a delegate to confer with the Fleet Admiral as the information he will unveil could be the key to a, speaking from a human perspective, better future for both our organizations. If your biological selves wish to hear details, consult the Fleet Admiral aboard Ames Research in the near future. If not, refrain.
Fleet Admiral Richard Wainwright yawned and stretched. The incessant beeping that had awoken him continued. Rubbing his face, he slid out of bed and staggered over to his terminal. There was a message from Incursus actual. He sighed. GRACE had little care for human sleep patterns at the best of times. Shed been much the same in life, come to think of it. He tapped the terminal, accessing the message. The beeping ended, and he relaxed slightly.
As he read through the message his eyebrows raised. Leaning forward to place his head in his hands, he took a deep breath, before standing. Moving quickly through his quarters, he showered and dressed, before heading for the docking bays, and the shuttle he knew awaited him.
Four hours later he stood at the entrance to the bridge of the Incursus. He looked at his watch. 07:59. He smiled briefly, before running his fingers through his hair. Moving forward the doors to the bridge swept open. He hoped GRACE would appreciate his punctuality, but he doubted it. He cleared his throat, softly
Lord Commander. Fleet Admiral Wainwright reporting as ordered.
[font=Courier New]An Artifical Intelligence by it- or herself, "Grace" as 'she' was called lacked an actual body. She was present everywhere and nowhere, her core, or rather artificial brain as some may call it, deeply integrated inside the Incursus for now. If so much as a physical presence was necessary, be it to emphasize the importance of an order or otherwise, then she would appear as the holographic projection of a vaguely-human, female face, no more and no less, as she did now on the Incursus' bridge, directly in front of Fleet Admiral Wainwright.
"Good morning Fleet Admiral. As expected you are on time, and that is noted.
Time is something your biological self has little of right now, so I'll cut to the chase.
Once we're done talking you are to get to hangar bay A where you will board an Armored Transport that is waiting for you there.
Said vessel will transport your biological self to Ames Research Station in the Kepler system immediately once the Incursus has jumped from Ontario to Colorado.
The pilot has been given precise instructions regarding time and pathways, so those are not of your concern.
Your vessel will be escorted by two Prosecutor fighter wings which are on stand-by already.
Said escorts will break off once you've reached the Kepler system in order to not compromise the covert status of your mission."
[font=Courier New]Her holographic eyes maybe weren't real, but she still eyed Richard as if expecting a reaction - something to give away his thoughts - for a moment, even though that wasn't necessary.
"This particular mission is as follows.
Your biological self is to arrive at Ames on 1200 hours today where the 'you' will wait for a delegate of the Xeno Alliance to arrive.
Possible persona who may arrive include the leader of the Xeno Alliance himself, Squadron Commander of the Serpentis Jonathon Jones, Wing Leader Richard Steiner, Jack Tar and Adam Greerson.
You will find all necessary details regarding their biological selves in the documents waiting for you aboard the vessel you will commence your journey on.
Arrangments for proper quarters on Ames and everything else have already been made, and you will be staying there and awaiting the Xenos' arrival for 24 hours.
If none of the above-mentioned persona nor a designated delegate make an appearance, your biological self will be retrieved and taken back to your former post immediately.
However..."
[font=Courier New]As if to make sure that Richard didn't misunderstand and to keep his attention focused, her voice took on a more threatening and commanding tone.
"...if any of them arrive, you will confer with them as per the instructions laid out in the aforementioned documents.
And this, Richard, means that your mission is to forge a pact with the Xeno Alliance.
Everything else you can read up on during your flight.
The 'I' rarely makes assumptions, but it seems rather evident that you understand that this mission is of utmost importance to the Legion, something you surely did already at the time you saw my holographic visage appear before your material one.
So if your biological self has any questions and the burning desire to have those answered, it may state them during the next five minutes.
Otherwise you are to carry out your orders as per standard procedure."
Jonathon was sitting in his office going over the recent pilot reports, when his communicator flashed. While not unheard of, it doesn't happen often. Intrigued, Jonathon answers.
"Yes, what is it?" he growls. The voice stammers at the other end. "S-sssir, We have just received a very odd communication. It is f-ffrom the Hhhell Fire Legion." Jonathon notes that this has shaken the communications officer a bit. " Bring it to my office and purge the databanks " commands Jonathon.
After the communications officer leaves, Jonathon reads this unexpected message. What he read was something almost unheard of. Someone who wanted to work with the Xeno Alliance, instead of destroying it.
This is something that cannot be passed up. Jonathon then composes a message to Fleet Admiral Wainwright.
Greetings Fleet Admiral,
I won't say that this didn't take me by surprise. It did. Not often does ANYONE mention a beneficialopportunity to us. I am interested. Well, truthfully, very interested. To this end, I will meet with you there at Ames. This seems to important for me to leave it to a subordinate. I will also be bringing along one of my Royals, Anette Patrick. We will be there at the agreed upon time. As you will know, This message will be hand delivered to maintain secrecy.
I am looking forward to this Admiral.
Signed.
Jonathon Jones
Commander
Xeno Alliance
Jonathon calls one of the couriers to his office.
"Take this to Ames and give it to Fleet Admiral Wainwright of the Hellfire Legion" Jonathon shows him a hologram of the Admiral. "Do not, under any circumstances fail in this mission. secrecy and discreetness are of the utmost importance." Jonathon orders.
The courier salutes, " It will be done Sir" and exits the commanders office.
Jonathon sits back and thinks.."I truly hope this will benefit Liberty......."
He didnt know quite where to look. As the eyes of the holographic projection before him bored into his, his mind raced. An alliance with the Xenos! What was GRACE planning? He knew all sorts of equipment would be monitoring his breathing rate, perspiration levels, posture, everything that might give away his feelings to his new Lord Commander.
Understood, Lord Commander. I have no questions at this time. None thatll get me anything but sarcasm, he thought. If that will be all, Ill head for the hangar bay immediately.
No response was immediately forthcoming from the face that floated before him, GRACE merely nodded. He stood to attention and snapped a crisp salute.
You can depend on me, Lord Commander.
With that he turned on his heel and strode from the bridge. As the doors closed behind him, he leaned up against the walls of the corridor.
Fleet Admiral! He jumped guiltily as GRACEs voice crackled from a speaker concealed nearby. Now is not the time to think. Youll have plenty of opportunity to do that aboard your transport. I suggest you move with alacrity.
He ground his teeth as he hurried to hangar bay A. Dealing with the Lord Commander of the Legion was never a comfortable experience, but at least with those that had gone before, once he was out of their immediate company, he knew he was alone. Now, as he hurried along the corridors of the Incursus, he felt GRACEs eyes following him. He breathed a sigh of relief as he entered the hangar bay, and climbed aboard the transport that awaited him.
Settling himself into his quarters, he reached for the paperwork laid out for him.
*********
The intelligence on the Xeno Alliance proved interesting reading. He barely noticed as the transport transferred to Cortez, then California, then Ontario, then Colorado space. The Xenos had a bad reputation with most ex-navy officers. Many years of conditioning and propaganda were hard to break down, but if the Legion taught one thing, it was that certain groups were not as they first appeared. The data GRACE supplied him with showed them to be idealists, much like the Legion itself. While their technology was limited, consisting mostly of rescued hardware, patched together to be barely fit for purpose, the people themselves were dedicated, hardworking and loyal. The more he considered what he was reading, the more sense an alliance would make. Their goals were basically the same, and while the Legion had all the finances, technology and firepower, what they lacked was political ingenuity, popular support and manpower. The Xenos could provide this and more. He looked up at a knock at the door to his quarters.
Yes?
The captain of the transport stepped in, saluting smartly
Sir, were on our final approach to Ames. Well be docking in approximately ten minutes.
Very well, Captain. he returned the salute, and the captain retreated from the quarters. Taking another quick look at the paperwork, he then collected everything together. As they entered the final docking sequence, he began to hear the grinding of bay doors, and the internal workings of the station, echoing through the transport. He moved to the mirror and looked at himself. This was going to be extraordinary. He was negotiating the future of the Legion today. Thinking back to his days at Westpoint, he smiled and shook his head. You never could tell where your life was going to lead you. Gathering himself, he made his way off the transport and into the bustle of Ames. A short time later he was about to walk into his quarters on the station when he spotted a young man heading directly for him. As the man approached he held out his hand, proffering what appeared to be a letter.
Richard raised an eyebrow as he took the envelope. The man simply nodded, and moved away. Not particularly subtle Richard thought, but the personal nature of the delivery of the letter warmed him to the writer. Entering his quarters he opened the envelope and read the message it contained. He smiled, and settled down to await the arrival of the infamous commander of the Xeno Alliance.
Coral was already awake when the noisy announcement siren of Ouray made her almost fell out of her bed.
The Boss wanted to see her. "It's a little early for the weekly Duct Tape delivery.. what the frakkin' hell is this about?"
As she shuffled through the corridors of Ouray she met a few very busy looking Pilots running down the way to the hangar.
"Yo, Snake what the hell's this about? Someone attackin' us?"
A younger Pilot finally turned his head. While still running, he yelled "Hellfire Legion!"
Coral didn't listen to his words anymore, her sleepy face already disappeared and she began to ran aswell.
"The frakkin' hell was this about? Hellfire Legion?"
She thought of a chat she once had. She met a Legions Pilot next to Baltimore, they didn't want to listen, but Coral was pretty damn sure they had almost the same goals.
Were they attacking them? Why?
Finally arriving at Johns Office, she listened to his story and laughed. "God damn Anette" she thought "Did you really thought of an attack for a second? There was a time you weren't that stupid."
And she was right. Back in the days the Alliance picked up her shuttle in the debris field, around Manhattan, she was rather naive.
What just happened to her. A few months in space and there was an attack, an ambush, a huge conspiracy behind every planet, every lane and every Asteroid they passed.
When did she became that paranoid?
Coral noticed Johns angry face when he catched her, daydreaming.
"Sorry John," she laughed. The atmosphere was relaxed. They drank a cup of coffee, tasting like old hydraulic fluid.
"So, you want me to guard you down to Ames. Right?" she looked a little lost when she noticed that there was no more sugar she could add into her so called coffee.
"Fine then, John. Let's do that. But be aware! Last time i met the Legion.. well, they didn't care 'bout us. But they were not that friendly!"
She sips at her coffee. "Now, i won't run unto gunfire, while smiling John. And hell i'm sure you won't, too. So here's what we do!"
Amused by the fact that someone brought some sugar, after she finished her "coffee", she put on a strict face.
"John, i'm not going to say that i'm not happy, too. We're looking for Allies since more than 200years. And hell, with the Legion i could get my father out of Jail aswell!"
A fact she didn't think about yet. Her father was still in one of the LPI's prisons. And she looked almost surprised when she started to speak about a thing she didn't spend a thought about yet.
"I want our best Pilots at Nome. We're doin' this fast, and we're not usin' the lanes. This could still be a trap!"
"We're goin through the hole at the Copperton Field. I know i know, you don't like that area, but i'm pretty damn sure they don't know bout that hole.
And Hell, even IF they know about it, we're jumpin right into the dark matter cloud, few klicks away from Nome. We'll be fine. I'll set up the Transport."
Noticing Johns face, having a few concerns, she added "I WILL guard you. No worries. I'll see if i can find Sidewinder and Harrier somewhere. They can escort us to Nome.
We'll be on our own from there. If these guys are serious it would look odd if we go there with an entire platoon on our back. The Snakebite got enough armor to get us outta there alive, if they're joking with us."
She opened the office door. "I'll set her up, nice and warm, just the way you like it. I'm ready to go in 20 minutes. Need to get a shower and fix my hair, first. You think they'll like.. blue?"
Amy connected camera to her Talon's powercore.
Connecting to channel ...
Authentization required ...
Amy took her Xeno dog marks and pointed them to camera.
Authentization approved ...
Opening channel ...
Channel ID: XA-Viper
Hello Boss, this is Amy aka Viper here. I haven't see you long time. But you look still young *wink* I had to disappear for some time. Haven't chance to send you message. That cops had marked my comms. I will be at Ames and look after Annete *smiles* You can expect my Raven there soon.
with love
Amy
Jonathon chuckled at Anette's last remark. "Blue..what will she think of next..?" He wondered. One thing he didn't worry about was the efficiency in the way she handles things. The trip to Ames will be uneventful.
After gathering up the recent reports to read on the trip to Ames. There was only one thing left to do he thought. That was to find the communications officer and shoot him. While the invitiation to talk from the Hellfire Legion was almost to good to be true, wild speculation from the base personel and pilots could ruin everything.
Jonathon steps into the communications room and confronts the comm. officer. The one who recieved the message from the HellFire Legion. "Son, how many times have I told you to keep your mouth shut!" Jonathon growls. "This could ruin everything! How the hell do you know what they want? You've got everyone uptight and speculating like crazy. And most of it is wrong! Do you hear what is happening out there?" Jonathon motions out to the passageways. "This is too important to screw up!" Jonathon then motions to the 2 security guards to take him. " I should have shot you here and now but I am a little pressed for time. Maybe some time down in the lockup will put some sense into your head" and with that said, Jonathon heads on down to the hangar bay.
"Can't keep Anette waiting" He chuckles, "She just might change her hair color again, given enough time. Maybe to Chartreuse or something like it" He shudders at the thought.
The trip to Ames was as uneventful as Annette had promised. They had docked with a minimum of delays. Now, all he had to do was find out where the Admiral was staying.
Coral was walking down the long main corridor of Ames, leading from the Hangars to a large cafeteria. Was that real meat? Coral tried to not look like a hungry wolf, but everyone had already noticed the blue haired young lady, almost drooling while looking at the food.
"The soup's great!" an old weird looking man in a white dress, standing right behind her, said. "Come on, take a seat, i'll pay!"
Coral was surprised. Apparently they didn't know her uniform... or didn't care. While staring at the old farts bionic eye, she asked for the rentable offices. "We'll have a meeting. Unfortunately noone told us the 'where to' and we're kinda lost."
"The elevator at the end of this hall. There's a map. Anyways, little Xeno. You're looking for the big one.. Level 6, the right corridor. You'll notice the room once you see it."
Suddenly Coral felt a little trapped. They DID recognize the uniform, they knew who they were. They were just.. She heard about Zoners, trying to be neutral to everyone, but these guys.. Suspicious.
She went the way, the 'robot-eye-man' told her. As she stepped out of the elevator she noticed the great wooden double-doors at the end of the hallway. While keeping an eye on possible bombs and sentries, she tried to get a sneak through the doors when the angry looking face of a Zoner Guard looked straigt into her eyes.
"You wish?"
"Uhm.. Roomservice?"
Apparently the guard did not like jokes at all and became a little more harsh.
"You're not alone Xeno aren't you? We're told to make sure that nothing unexpected disturbs this meeting. You're on the list? Your name!"
"Co.. Anette! Anette Patrick."
"Your ID please! . . . Fine. You may enter. The gun please!"
Coral's face went red. How did he... Then she turned around. "Turn around! I'll melt your face if you take look!"
A few seconds later the she turned around again. "I'd like to have it back after this. It's a gift!"
"More like a relic of old times?"
"PAH!" While trying to look angry she went back to the Elevator. "I'm going to get the Boss here!"
Old relic.. these were the best firearms they had! Coral sighed.
Back at the Hangar, where Jonathan was kneeing next to the ship, a cigar in one hand, a roll of duct tape in the other.
"I know where. Looks clear, we can go! Oh and keep that old relic there away from the guards. They don't like it!"
He looked up at the sound of raised voices outside the door. One he recognised as the Zoner provided security guard that had introduced himself a half hour earlier, the other he didn't recognise. He moved to the entrance to better hear. Pressing his ear to the door, he caught the tail end of the disagreement......
"PAH! I'm going to get the Boss here!"
Footsteps stomped away from the door, and Richard eased it open. He caught a flash of blue hair as a woman entered the lift at the end of the corridor.
"Trouble, Dave?" he asked, looking at the slightly bemused expression on the guards face.
"Ummm, no, I don't think so, sir. That was one of the Xenos you'll be meeting." A slight twitching of his lips betrayed his amusement. "I hope for your sake her boss is less .............. umm ............. yes, just less."
Richard closed the door. He'd negotiated before, but only ever with military personnel. This was definately going to be interesting. One thought raised itself to the forefront of his mind.
Blue hair?