A man and two others at his side were walking down the hall in a silent mood, you could see they've been throught a lot just by looking at them. The man in the middle, Markus Brass, on his left his second in command Daniel Rou and on the right the mysterious man Jason Mustang. They were onboard Fort Leniex to attend to the new Lord Commander's ceremony and his re-instatement to the rank of Fleet Commander with Polyphemus still under his command.
"I'm glad this is finally over", he thought to himself. As they were walking down the hall, he couldn't keep his mind from recalling the recent incident and it's consequences.
It hasn't been long since he was captured and imprisoned for weeks by a traitorous bunch within the Legion, suffering at their hands in what seemed to be for him endless tortures to break his spirit. After grueling efforts, Illaria Serbanu and the men under her command managed to apprehend the culprits and release Markus from captivity. With fury overwhelming him he ordered their severe punishment but there were those who fled to avoid capture after their plans were falling in ruins.
Filled with disappointment and confusion he knew he couldn't fill the role of the Lord Commander, throwing him to deep thinking for days during his recovery time. When he made a decision, he called the remaining High Command and Serbanu to a meeting, proposing her election as the next Lord Commander. By throwing a number of her accomplisments and the recommendation of the Lord Commander, they agreed without hesitation.
A faint smile formed on his face from the thought the burden will soon be lifted from his shoulders, but the sad feeling of what was waiting for her would not go away. He offered a last bit of advice before retreating to his quarters while he waited for the ceremony. His series of thoughts were disrupted by a voice back in the real world.
"-Hey Markus, you're silent. Thinking again huh?" said the man on his right with unserious tone.
Markus gave him a mean look as if he were saying to buzz off. Daniel laughed at Jason's unchanging spirit despite the harshness of the missions he went through.
"-So uh, this whole thing means you're back as commander of the Polyphemus as your main job now right?" Markus's face loosened up after being reminded of his semi-freedom from now on. "-Yes, that means we can get back to booze and women without limiting ourselves. Polyphemus isn't going anywhere eitherway after the restrictions on deployments."
Jason suddenly burst out laughing as he never imagined him saying that. The three men were walking towards the hangar bay where a shuttle was waiting for them.
The three men had reached the shuttle bays which were the primary entry or exit point for anyone who wanted to visit or leave Leniex. Shuttles were going on many routes daily, transporting essential personnel from and to every stations in Vespucci. Markus was going to America station while the other two were staying on Leniex.
"-My shuttle's over there, it's about to go. See you around."
Daniel gave him a pat on the back as goodbye and Jason just smiled at his friend, letting him off without harrasment.
"-Stay safe Markus! Don't forget what we're doing next time!"
He laughed from inside at the immature nature of Jason as he was getting on his shuttle.
Markus sat on a seat close to a window so he could look outside as he always liked to do. The shuttle left the Leniex's bay, he saw Polyphemus slowly moving into the shipyard for maintenance and it's temporary deactivation. Abord the shuttle were other passengers aside from Markus, mostly supervisors from all over Vespucci to requisition materials for their projects or update status from mission reports. It has been some time since he last used this and started to feel nostalgic, in a good way.
The trip wasn't too long. As soon as the shuttle reached America the security was alerted. America was the "Charon" as it served as a transit point to various locations in Vespucci and if anyone wanted to visit, after receiving clearance from Ravager, they moved to America for security checkups. Markus looked around the hangar observing everything. A man that was tampering his data pad, recognised him and immidiately rushed to greet him. "-Greetings mister Brass. I'm Jacob Collins, a mechanic in these parts. Anything I can do for you?" His observation of the hangar worried him, believing he was here on High Command's orders. "-Relax Jacob, you're being obvious. I'm not here for that sort of thing." Upon hearing his words, a faint sigh was let out. "-Tell me, where can I find the administrator?" "-The administrator? She should be at her office right now." A swift response from the mechanic satisfied him. "-Got it, thanks."
Markus met the administrator before he ascened to Lord Commander. That day when a xeno convoy arrived, bringing light arms in exchange for hull panels, he was the escort that welcomed them into Vespucci and made sure the deal went smooth. He had decided to relax by going to the station's bar and have a drink, whiskey was his prefered drink for its sensation afterwards. He saw her sitting and offered her a drink as she seemed awfully stressed. The two of them chatted untill new orders came for Markus and had to leave. And now after a long time, he was going to meet her again, hoping that she'll be the key to solving his issue.
Markus with a big smile on his face, walked to the administrator's office. He was a bit surprised that she was relieved of any obligations for the time being, which made it easier for him to achieve his goal. He sat on the leather sofa which was very comfy but made some embarrasing sounds each time he tried to move. Amanda was sitting at her desk, watching Markus getting comfortable, wondering if he is trying to be or is a natural idiot.
"-Hello Amanda, it's been a while." Amanda was still looking at him in an inquisitive manner. "-What? I'm being polite and so should you." She stood up and smiled at him. "-Hello to you too." Suddenly the smile disappeared and another question was fired at him. "-Now tell me, what are you here for?" Markus was delighted with her being straightforward. Unwilling to change the subject he stood up and took a seat to the chair on the opposite side of hers. "-Can't I just visit a friend?" He looked her in the eyes while she remained silent. "-Fine, I'll avoid small talk. A few months ago while I was still Lord Commander, I ordered a large shipment to arrive and be stored on America. I think it's about time for it to be used." Amanda was curious about his intentions. After she checked on her data pad if the cargo was still there and intact, he looked Markus in the eyes, as if she was trying to get into his head. "-It's still here. What do you want to do with it though? I'd say there's enough supplies there for a month for a wing's outside operations, a little less if we're talking about sending out an Arbiter." Amanda looked her datapad again, making sure of her calculations. "-You can't possibly be thinking of re-routing resources just to keep your ship operational.. Are you?" Markus smirked to confirm her speculations.
"-Great." Amanda was annoyed by his response turned around, facing the windows and gazed at the endless space, watching the occasional patrol being lost at the distance. "-However, Polyphemus is a key role to what I have in mind. That's why securing it's operation is important." Amanda turned around in a swift move, suprised. "-I underestimated you. I was thinking that you wanted to remain on your "horse" to remind you of your former glory. Then tell me, why did you come to me? I don't think I can be of any use to you."
"-You've already been very useful. I came here to make sure the supplies are till here and to see you." Amanda once again smiled and nodded as if she was telling him to leave. "-Someone will come later to pick it up." Markus got up and walked towards the entrance. Everything was going exactly as he had planned.