A small Spatial ship landed in one of the bays of the Gryphon as people rushed around. The rear hatch opened and a lithe woman with auburn hair stepped out. She glanced around the bay with a subtle smile on her face. She noted the man clad in powered armor walking towards her with another man in tow.
"Dr. Emery. Thank you for coming." said the man. She noted the logo emblazed on his chest alongside the SLRC logo.
"The Pathfinders, I see Sailas' dream came to fruition." she motioned to the logo. It was very subtle, but the man behind Dante flinched at hearing the name Sailas. She glanced to the man briefly before returning her attention to the man. "Mr. Flintlocke, I take it. Who is your companion?"
"This is Pathfinder Liam." It was Roses turn to flinch at the name.
"Liam, eh?" she briefly snarled at the name. The Pathfinder behind Dante remained frozen, his hands behind his back. "Nice to meet you both. I didn't come here to stand around and socialize though. Take me to see my Uncle."
Dante nodded curtly and turned to lead her to the office. As she walked by Liam, she eyed him suspiciously. He took up the escort from behind and they were off. They walked for a time before she leaned over to Liam.
"A bit on the nose with Liam, isn't it?"
The man turned his head slowly to look at her as they walked and returned his attention forward without a word.
"Figured so. Whatever you're doing here, don't screw this up."
The man remained silent as the trio reached the conference room where a myriad of individuals were pouring over plans.
"Dr. Wright, sir. I have brought a surprise guest who has offered to help with our retrieval."
Rose took one last look at Liam, who did not move a muscle, and entered the room.
"Surprise Uncle Brad! I changed my mind...you weren't seriously going in there without me, were you?" she said with a smile.
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Brad's eyes widened in surprise as Rose entered the room. A mix of emotions flashed across his face - relief, joy, and a hint of skepticism.
"Rose," he exclaimed, his voice filled with astonishment. "What are you doing here?"
He turned to the assembled team. "Everyone, this is Dr. Rose Emery..."
A murmur rippled through the crowd as they recognized the name. Some were skeptical, others were intrigued. But all were curious about the sudden appearance of this enigmatic figure.
"Now, Rose," Brad continued, gesturing to the various plans and tablets spread across the table, "as you can see, we've been hard at work. But every pair of eyes is welcome. If you see anything that needs adjusting, now's the time to speak up."
It was two days after the announcement, the day of the meeting, and she was not going to be there on time.
“I bet Mister Efficient would find something to complain about. Damnit I’m late already…”
Emily sat herself up and glanced over the datapads one last time before picking them up. Key personnel. The people who needed to know would be there anyway. She felt an unusual tingle down her spine as she made her way to the door. A tingle that she attempted to shrug off. Something big was happening.
She left her quarters and made her way through the corridors towards the meeting room. Even walking briskly, it wasn’t enough. It had already started, and the door was closed. She knocked, wondering how to explain herself. Datapads handed over first, there were recent edit logs anyway, and that final “once over” would help. She opens the door, slips in and closes it quietly, slinking over to the side.
”Sorry I’m late, Here’s the fuel and maintenance reports you asked for. We gotta somehow find a fifth of our fleets fuel consumption along the way, or lighten our load.”
Emily placed the reports in front of Brad, then made her way over to the corner of the room where she could see all of the people present. She recognised some faces, others she didn’t. Her arms folded across her chest, hoping she hadn’t missed anything important.
Brad picked up the datapads Emily had just placed on the table. A smirk crept across his face as he glanced at the title. "Well, well, well. Looks like someone's been hard at work. Brad turned to Rose who was seated near him. "Since you missed the fun of the initial planning, why don't you take these and see if you can find us some fuel efficiency, You know, turn lead into gold, that kind of thing."
Someone in the back, sounding suspiciously like Sean called out ""Maybe a little dark matter infusion, a pinch of hyperspace dust..."
"Liam" stood silently as the Starlight team reviewed the data presented to them for their upcoming mission. He smiled behind the anonymity that the helmet provided. This was the kind of thing he missed. He was tempted to remove the helmet and scream surprise much like his wayward daughter had done moments before but he fought the urge to do so. This was their moment.
He was only here to ensure that they recovered the ship and that all data related to his research was either preserved or erased to prevent it from falling into other hands. He wasn't clear how long the influence of his mysterious benefactor/manipulator had hung over him and how much of his designs were influenced by whatever it was. He wasn't about to see his friends and comrades become influenced by that same force. He wasn't about to see Starlight, his creation, become a tool to be wielded by it.
Brad had grown into the position of Director. Clearly he was meant for leadership. If "Liam" had to reveal himself, would he offer the Directorship back? Or would he punch him out? Probably the latter. He watched as the man he had considered a brother work with the various teams to dictate the plan moving forward as the entered Earhart. He smiled again despite himself, he was proud of his friend for what he had achieved in a short time.
His daughter, Rose, knew that he was standing here yet she did her best to ignore him either to not give him away or because she hated him. Again, no doubt the latter. He had thought she was dead and he had wept when he discovered that she yet lived . He blamed himself for running away instead of doing all he could to save her from the experience she had endured in Alberta and Earhart. Though, he noted the change in her. No longer was she the ignorant starry eyed child who he had once called his Starlight. Now, she was a force to be reckoned with. A brilliant mind with a penchant for combat to boot. She had become him, something he had wanted to shield her from...though children often took after their parents, if you wanted them to or not.
Leo had finally got his doctorate. "Liam" nodded subtly only briefly gaining the attention of Dante next to him. Leo had long since been a brilliant mind within SLRC and he was pleased that he had come back at Brad's request. He was an intelligent man who understood the nuances between engineering and science. It was good he was here.
Then there was Dante, the ever present enigma. "Liam" had recruited him before his departure with the express note that he reported only to him. While he would report to Brad as well, the lions share of the information gleaned was given to "Liam" instead. This was due to his prior influence but now it was a case of protection. He snorted, Raven had been right. Be careful the information you give out to others, the deep dark is dangerous. He hated himself for agreeing with the Technocrat, but she had been right after all.
There were various other faces in the meeting that he did not recognize. No doubt Brad had recruited more brilliant minds in the intervening years. Good, they would need it for the trials ahead.
"Liam" continued to be a statue, standing next to Dante. At one point during the conversation, Brad had mentioned Sailas in his musings, leading Rose to look his way with a shadow across her face. No doubt she would never forgive him, nor would any of the others if it came to light of his involvement in this operation. He just had to hope if it came to that, they would understand the reason for his disappearance...eventually, anyway.
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