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The Beauties on the Beast - Neraxon - 10-12-2018
12.10.825 A.S on Board of the Abomination, Omega 52
![[Image: RLogbNT.png]](https://i.imgur.com/RLogbNT.png)
Mary woke up aboard the Abomination. She had not slept here for a long time, and felt guilt towards her crew. While she was able to move freely, her crew had to stay on the ship most of the time. She quickly swept away the thought of giving them leave when she saw her reflection. "Damn it, I can't go out like this anyway!" she said. "I like you that way." chirped a voice from the bed. "Shut up down there!" Mary barked curtly, before slipping into the shower. She thought of what lay before her today. Theinterrogation for Rachel Sloane. Clothed only in a towel and with hair dripping, she went to her closet. "Don't you want to go back to bed?" came a second voice. "Get out of here, now! You both are more than unwanted right now!" Mary's tone was tense, she hated distractions. "Oh, come on ...", Mary turned quickly and pointed her guns at the two women in her bed. "Piss off or I'll give you both a second asshole!". In a single fluid motion she loaded both weapons simultaneously. The two women hastily dressed and ran out of the cabin in a panic. Satisfied, Mary nodded and lit a cigarette before selecting her outfit. A variation of the standard coalition uniform for agents, theirs was black with red stitching. When she had squeezed in, she checked the fit and was satisfied, tight but not constricting.
"Coffee!" She bellowed again far too loudly, and immediately the cabin assistant started the coffee machine. Slowly the smell of freshly brewed coffee spread in the cabin. Should she bring Sloane one too? Before the thought of whether Sloane would prefer with or without sugar or milk bothered her, she decided to simply ask her later. After lighting another cigarette, she reached for her data pad. "Attention! Four guards to the airlock to receive Sloane when she arrives. Security guards on all stations. Arm the explosive charges!". There was a knock at the door, and Mary finished the announcement, shouting, "In here, what the hell do you want damn it?" Her first officer saluted and glared at her. "Explosive charges, are you lunatic? You know that's unnecessary, right? Drop that nonsense!". Before Mary could correct him, she heard a voice in her ear. "Lieutenant Dross, she is here." She silently holstered her guns and approached the officer. "Out of the way, Marcel!" He lowered his eyes and let her pass. Mary turned to face him again in the corridor, he looked at her blankly. "You idiot." Mary said sharply, before pulling her guns and shooting him in the head. Then she continued her way to the meeting room to receive Sloane.
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Aaron_Cianci - 10-12-2018
Rachel had arrived to Mykolaiv well in advance of Mary Dross's deadline, and had been assigned temporary quarters aboard the facility. After a brief nap to reinvigorate herself, she'd risen from the bed and moved with the efficiency of a scientist. Never willing to waste any more time than necessary on personal affectations, the terraforming specialist had cleaned her teeth, showered and put on a minimum of make-up. She wouldn't have bothered with the last bit, if she wasn't at least partially suspicious that looking good would make whatever was going to happen aboard the Abomination go better for her.
Dressed in a comfortable pair of jeans and a tank top with a high neckline, Rachel stopped at a full-length mirror near the door of the cabin to inspect herself. Her ebony hair cascaded down past her shoulders, and her jaw was set with determination. She smirked. "You have no idea what you're getting yourself into, Mary Dross. I will not be intimidated by you." As a young woman, Rachel had learned the value of verbal repetition for instilling inner confidence, and she used it to great effect whenever possible.
Stepping out of the cabin, she was met immediately by two guards. It wasn't unexpected - they'd been there hours before when she turned in as well. Rachel acknowledged that she was an unknown, and she'd have to prove herself. As they began walking down the hallway, she patted the pocket of her jeans, confirming the Planetform data chip was still inside. It wasn't a treasure trove - she had limited access, and the information was nearly two years old - but it would be a first of many gifts she would give the Coalition. "If only Planetform's secrets included some way to knock the chip off someone's shoulder," she thought to herself.
Despite the guards, Rachel could have found the way from her quarters to the Abomination's mooring fixture without any company. Like any military organization, the Coalition was extraordinarily efficient in making sure people and things could get where they needed to go. When she stepped through the long tunnel that connected Mykolaiv to the Abomination, her guards stopped short at the entry. The woman paused, turning to glance back at them, and then grinned outright. Taking a few steps forward, she realized why they had not followed: There were four more guards waiting for her at the opposite end of the walkway. Clearly the Coalition was not leaving anything to chance.
Rachel wasn't impressed. Being surrounded by guards didn't make her uneasy, but it certainly wasn't comfortable either. Her thoughts played through and analyzed her brief interactions so far with the Coalition - the Commissar and Mary mostly. Her scientific mind pulled apart every little piece, looking for her path of least resistance. Rachel's confidence came from her knowledge and her ability to win wars of intelligence. Any battles to be won would have to be won with her mind. She was not a physical fighter.
The doctor was abandoned again after being escorted into a meeting room. The loud hissing sound of the hermetic seal on the door was enough to tell Rachel that guards weren't necessary here - there was no escape. "Fine by me," she said to herself, one corner of her mouth pulling up in a smirk. "I have no intention of escaping you, Ms. Dross. But I will show you what I can do." Another verbal reminder of her own power as Rachel set herself down gently in one of the chairs around the table.
She knew she had to show Mary Dross exactly the woman she was, without fail, right from the beginning. There would be no room for dishonesty, or for mistakes. But she would not let the woman demean her either. So she took the seat right at the head of the table. "It's time to get started," she thought as she turned her emerald gaze on the door, waiting for her interrogator to arrive.
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Neraxon - 10-12-2018
"She's in Lieutenant Dross, meeting room two." Mary carelessly threw her cigarette into the hallway, someone was about to take care of it along with his body, she thought. Then she was there, when the door opened she saw Sloane, stubborn, intimate, dazzled, attractive so much Mary already knew about her. Instead of greeting her, Mary took a seat farther away and leaned her feet against the table. She didn't paid tribute to Sloane. But she repeated what Sloane had stated in the recruiting office ...
"... Planet Los Angeles, Liberty." Mary's voice sliced through the room. So really a Libertonian.
Now she fixed her eyes on Sloane. "Let's get rid of the inneficent politeness, we both know why you're here and we both know what's coming now." Mary thought for a moment that she had been told not to be too hard. She smiled like a diabolic lunatic. "Coffee, water, vodka? Maybe a cigarette or Cigare, Rachel? I'm allowed to say Rachel?" The door opened and a woman came in and put Mary a cup of coffee on the table and a fake with greenish liquid in it. She returned to her data pad. "Tell me more about this accident."
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Aaron_Cianci - 10-12-2018
Rachel had to work to hide the involuntary surprise from the door hissing open suddenly. She'd been sitting long enough waiting that her attention had wandered from the door to more mental pursuits. She managed it, though, and her eyes locked to Mary the instant she walked in, and never left her.
"Good," was the first word out of Rachel's mouth. She sat forward in her chair, her arms resting on the edge of the table and her fingers clasping together. "I think I've made clear how much I hate inefficiency." There was a clear tone of approval. Rachel knew she had to find common ground with Mary Dross or her induction into the Coalition would be all the more challenging. "Though, we both know you're going to call me whatever you want, so why waste energy on asking?" Rachel's tone turned a little cocky with those words.
Rachel didn't even bother acknowledging the offer for a drink or tobacco. It was just another inefficiency for her to even contemplate. Mary's question, however, relaxed her despite the grim expression she wore as memories of the past flooded her mind. This was the type of question she was expecting, and she was ready for it.
"My terraforming expertise is focused on the use of microorganisms to convert harmful gases like methane and carbon monoxide into oxygen. It does it three times faster than any technology or other biological that's ever been created," she said. Pride slipped into her voice the more she spoke. "Planetform is a beaurocracy. They were happy with their process, and didn't care for a 'girl'...," Rachel said the word with distaste, "...telling them how to do it better. I made the decision to do it myself."
There was a long pause before Rachel continued. Despite her knowledge, abilities and skill, she still had regrets about Planetform. She still sometimes wondered if there would have been a better way to prove herself. "I introduced my bacteria into a planetary atmosphere without clearance. I had accounted for all of the variables, except for a gas conversion unit that was installed by another scientist that included biological filters. It was added at the last minute, and my level of access didn't give me any warning about its presence."
Another long pause. Rachel's voice was emotionless now. She was just relaying facts. "The effects of the combination were catastrophic. The biological filters in the gas converter were new tech that wasn't shared with me. My organism ate through them like they didn't exist. The loss of the filters resulted in a massive release of toxic gases into the planet's atmosphere. It not only destroyed all the biosphere work that Planetform had already done, but actually made the planet even less habitable. By the time they were done with my review and termination, it was a dead project. The damage is so severe that even Planetform's current technology can't undo it."
There was a slightly heavier-than-normal breath which escaped Rachel when she finished, but she still didn't break eye contact with Mary. "Truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," she thought repeatedly. Nothing else would satisfy Senior Lieutenant Dross.
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Neraxon - 10-12-2018
"So you have disobeyed orders or violated better instructions. Let me tell you, such a behavior is not tollerated here and will be punished severely."Mary let her words stand in the room with a little break and then continued. "That chip, why did you take it with you then and how did you get that data?" Mary had hoped Rachel would fall for the trick with the drinks or the cigarettes, prepared with a truth serum given to her by Major Grachov. She had hoped to elicit some embarrassing secrets from her. "Furthermore, I'm interested in your sexuality, or rather, are you currently in a relationship with anyone inside or outside the Coalition?"
While Mary waited for Rachel's answer, she took a long sip of her coffee, only to pour in some of the greenish-shimmering liquid. "Prost!" She lifted the cup in Rachel's direction. Mary did not take her eyes off Rachel and tried to imagine her secretly in her bedroom, but quickly brushed away that thought as she thought of the major's admonitory words. He would definitely show up here sometime.
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Aaron_Cianci - 10-12-2018
The dark-haired woman grinned at Dross's assertion regarding command structure. "It won't be a problem. The Coalition will learn what I can do, and I won't have to go behind anyone's back. I can follow orders, Mary." It was a risky decision, to address the fiery redhead by her given name, but it had the chance to build rapport. Rachel was not afraid of risk.
The question about Planetform returned Rachel to her natural, withdrawn expression. She tilted her head slightly and kept eye contact. "I didn't originally intend to steal the entirety of Planetform's database. The original data load on the chip was only my research, my projects and my personnel file." Rachel paused for a moment. The details here were the most likely to set off alarm bells with the Senior Lieutenant. "When I realized that Planetform was going to fire me, however, it was a betrayal. Raw betrayal. My father served that company for years, and my mistake was not malicious. I should have been given a second chance, not thrown to the wolves. So, I betrayed them in return."
All sense of self control was wiped from Rachel though at the second question. As prepared as she was for talking about her background, her sexuality, sexual experience and relationships had been assumed to be off the table. She couldn't hide the reaction the question brought out in her, either: A combination of confusion, embarrassment and a mild bit of annoyance for even being asked. She also broke eye contact. The fair skin of her cheeks turned red, but she answered - with far less confidence than her earlier words.
"I've never been in a relationship. With anyone," and then she thought about it a little more, and her eyes glimmered a bit. She met Mary's gaze again. "Especially not in the Coalition. I hope you don't think I'm easy, Mary. That is not the case. I've been here less than two days." Rachel had to get the upper hand back, and directly challenging Dross might accomplish that goal. Rachel wanted to dismiss the question as another irrelevance, but from a scientific perspective, she understood how a person's relationships could influence their loyalty and decision-making processes.
The beverage offered gave Rachel pause. It could be filled with any number of things. However, she was in an entirely new world. She knew nothing about Coalition culture. Refusing an offered gift could be the highest insult. She took the offered cup, brought it to her nose, closed her eyes and inhaled deeply of the scent, and then took a sip while waiting for Mary's next question.
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Neraxon - 10-12-2018
Mary did not think that Rachel would dare to drink it. She had a feel for people like Rachel, hard shell soft core. Stubborn at first, but careless. "What you just drank was poison." Seeing the expression on Rachel's face, Mary continued. "Do not worry in small doses like this one, it is safe and the only side effect is that of alcohol, but just in these small doses it unfoldes its taste. I did not think you would drink it." As thought Rachel would do anything to get into the Coalition, by herself Mary wondered how far she could go."Follow me, I'll show you something." With these words, Mary jumped up and waited until Rachel had caught herself.
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Aaron_Cianci - 10-13-2018
All of Rachel's values of professionalism and appropriate behavior went out the window the instant the word poison reached her ears. She threw the cup away from her hand like it was on fire, the metal clanging hard against the top of the conference table, splashing the liquid across it's surface before the cup itself rolled across the wood, reached the edge and then fell to the floor. On instinct, one of Rachel's hands reached for her throat, as if she could reach into it to stop the liquid from descending her esophagus. As logic set in, she contemplated spitting, but the liquid was already gone from her mouth.
Her next thought was to forcibly evacuate her upper GI tract. Mary Dross had decided to openly offer her a drink full of poison five minutes into their first in-person meeting, so her assertion that such poison was 'safe' and 'just like alcohol' rang false in Rachel's mind. With such behavior, Dross had annihilated any trust that Rachel might have had that she made the right decision, and doubt filled her mind. Mary's last words were lost to her as, instead of following Mary, she shoved her left arm hard into Mary's shoulder, pushing her out of the doorway and moving past her. Despite the fact that the Abomination didn't have the convenient signage of Mykloaiv, Rachel found a restroom.
Once isolated inside a stall, Rachel swept her hair back behind her head with one hand. The fore and middle fingers of the other joined together, she braced herself, and then inserted them into her throat. She may not have been a medical doctor, but she had worked with dangerous toxins enough to know that, no matter the quantity, leaving them inside the body was a risk. As she expelled the contents of her gut into the toilet, her mind raced. "What the hell am I doing here? Clearly this was the wrong decision," she thought. She finished purging herself of the poison, made sure she'd gotten nothing on her clothes or body, and walked to the sink.
As she washed her hands and face, staring into her reflection in the mirror, Rachel's confusion and concern turned to anger. She was infuriated. Yes, she may have stepped into the idea of the Coalition a bit quickly, without all the facts, but she did it with the best of intentions. She came to help these people, and they were clearly willing to risk her death. "Maybe they aren't any better than Planetform. At least Planetform didn't have guns pointed at me and poison...," she thought. Refreshed from the water splashed in her face, Rachel kept thinking. And kept thinking. She stood there for nearly five minutes, just looking into her own green eyes in the mirror, letting her thoughts wash over her.
Eventually, Rachel made a decision. "I will not let you treat me like some rat in a lab, Mary Dross," she said, out loud this time. With her jaw set and her anger written across her face, she stormed out of the bathroom, heading back toward the conference room. Senior Lieutenant Dross was about to get a piece of her mind.
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Keller - 10-13-2018
The Field Marshal's gunship neatly swung itself into place alongside the ship with an ill name. The mooring ports would connect and after a cacophony of hisses and a brief exchange of life support, the Field Marshal and his two most loyal guards had boarded the abomination, his purpose here was rather simple really. Meet the person of interest and find a way to confirm their intentions to serve the Coalition, while also making sure the Commissariat did not spoil this opportunity with their incessant paranoia and personal agendas. "When we arri-"
Before he could complete his sentence a very angry woman yelling something about rodents had charged out of the restroom and took the turn at full speed, narrowly bumping right into Keller had his reflexes not been as quick as they were for him to reach out and grab her shoulders, halting her charge. He took a sigh when he realised who this was. "Frau Sloane I presume?"
Before he could complete his sentence a very angry woman yelling something about rodents had charged out of the restroom and took the turn at full speed, narrowly bumping right into Keller had his reflexes not been as quick as they were for him to reach out and grab her shoulders, halting her charge. He took a sigh when he realised who this was. "Frau Sloane I presume?"
RE: The Beauties on the Beast - Aaron_Cianci - 10-13-2018
Despite her rage, the sudden and unexpected impact startled Rachel out of her angry moment, though not for long. Her deep moss-colored gaze had been directed at the floor as she used the metallic patterns embedded in the plating to remember her way back to the conference room, so she didn't see Keller's face at first. When she lifted her eyes and she met his, a flash of recognition crossed her expression. She didn't know the man's name, but she recognized the posters from Mykolaiv that featured his visage.
And in that moment, he became the personification of everything that she regretted about coming to the Coalition in the first place. "You!" the woman growled, pulling her body violently away from the man standing in front of her, taking a step back. Her heels dug in like an animal preparing to strike, and all the emotion she'd intended to direct at Dross erupted. "I don't know who the hell you think you are, but what kind of operation are you running here!? I come here to help you people and the first thing you do is offer me poison!"
Rachel's rage grew as she yelled. Her voice echoed down the halls and was loud enough to catch the attention of anyone passing by. Every syllable reinforced her emotional state even more. "It's no wonder that you people are confined to these worthless Omega systems and you can't manage to actually get control of some real territory!" Rachel had no idea what she was talking about: she was just letting the anger escape with guesses. Her hands were balled at her sides, fists, like she was contemplating decking Keller in the jaw.
And then, she just stood there, staring at the man, primed for a battle of words and minds. She was beyond caring how he would respond to her outburst.