"Commander, message from your wife! It's time!""
Papers and pens cascaded from the side of the desk as the man went from sitting to sprinting before the last syllable of time exited his aide's mouth. The man had to take a moment to admire how fast a man with purpose was, before cleaning up after the Commander. After all, this once, the man had a kid on the way. He could give him the small grace. Of course, it wasn't really his grace, but the grace of the Captain was what he needed. Grace he already had gained. The Yukon was a quiet post, never leaving Los Angeles' orbit. Almost the perfect assignment for a LA native whose wife was going to give birth. And with pirate activity on the downward trend this past week, it seemed as if the stars aligned for Thomas.
He was getting older, but he was no less spry. His legs carried him towards the locker room, where he began tugging on his flightsuit. He was going to cut it close, that was for sure, but his Defender would carry him well. He had flown it for years, after all, and now it would carry him to the start of one of his next chapter - parenthood. The prospect both excited and scared him. Being in the Navy was dangerous, a job he was unsure was fit for fathers at times. But he had married his high school sweetheart, and while they both entered the Navy, she had transferred to groundside duty at LA's Fort Hunter Ligget. She was there right now, and he had to make it. He nearly clipped the hangar doors when they opened, gunning out of the Yukon at full speed, aiming straight for the docking ring. He was going to make it. He was going to be there the moment he became a father.
Thomas had a knack for cutting it close. And as he came around the corner, a nurse looked up. "Commander -"
"Yes, is my wife inside?"
"Yes sir. There's some scrubs and a mask over there. Quickly, contractions have been getting steadily closer."
He barely got in when his wife, the red-haired firebrand she was, grasped his hand in a deathgrip. "Stop - cutting it - close!" She admonished him, another fresh cry of pain. He winced, her grip finally crushing his hand. He was there, and that was all that mattered..
They thought it was one. But no...the universe blessed them with twins. And has he held one, and his wife the other, he looked down with such wonder. He was a father...of a beautiful baby boy, and a beautiful baby girl. He was all smiles. "What will we name them?" He asked, looking at her. Alexis finally looked up.
"Ellie Marie." She said, nodding to the girl in her arms. "It's close to Amy."
Thomas looked down. "Jeremy. Jeremy Tobias." He said, smiling. "Jeremy Tobias Hunter...my son."
Natsumi Hideyoshi (The Order) | Alexis Hunter (Liberty Navy) |
LSF Substation JULIET NOVEMBER
November 23rd, 800 AS
Thomas didn't know what the hell was going on. All he knew was that he had been assigned for joint op duty with the LSF, and now he was sitting across from a man in a sharply pressed suit. it felt like a very, very bad movie...that Thomas had to chuckle. "Going to, ah, put on some sunglasses and complete the look, pass me some papers to sign my fate?" He said, looking at the man. No smile. "Gee, tough crowd."
The paper was slid to him. The usual stuff. Sighing, Thomas began signing away. He frowned to himself, finishing the stroke of the pen. "There. So, where's the unicrons? My daughter'd love them."
That's when the epipen was pressed to his neck, and he face-planted the document. The man removed his sunglasses, soft purple light emanating now. "Welcome to the Liberty Security Force, Commander Hunter."
Alexis Hunter was currently making dinner, Jeremy and Ellie trying to catch up on the years of schooling they missed. Both quick, she barely had to turn around as, apparently, Ellie already had looked up programming and made a special search engine. She was shocked at how fast the girl was at everything, a real genius...she smiled as she put a hand to her belly. Only a few months pregnant again. Seth was barely two, her eldest, while finally out of cryo, were better...nothing could go wrong. She began to set food down around the table, glancing at a picture of her mother. She smiled a bit. The Kusarian didn't really come out much - honestly, she was more Libertonian than anything. But as she was about to sit down to have dinner with her kids, the doorbell rang. She sighed and got back up - thankfully it was only three months, she was perfectly fine. heading off, she opened the door.
"Captain Alexis Hunter, LNS Los Angeles?"
"...what happened?"
The Lieutenant saluted. "My name is Lieutenant Adam Grassman. I served with Commander Hunter in the 343rd, out from Zone 21." The man stressed. "Unknown vessels assaulted the Commander's wing during a joint LSF training exercise. They came fast and hard, and...we didn't make it. I'm sorry Captain. He was a personal friend of mine."
"Mom?" Jeremy had come up. "What's going on?" Always inquisitive. She would never be able to stop that part. She backed away, nodding to the man. "This is Lieutenant Adam Grassman. He...He..." She couldn't look Jeremy in the eye. Adam stooped a bit down, and offered a flag to him.
"...I am sorry. He was a friend, and he will be missed." On top of the flag was a Silver Star. "He didn't go down until we nearly arrived. He fought them off bravely."
Jeremy held the medal. His hand clenched. "Who....who did it?"
"We didn't see them."
"HOW!" Jeremy shouted. "You nearly made it, how could you not see!" He roared. "How can you not even know who took him from us!"
"...we didn't see." Adam's voice changed, but not enough that Alexis noticed. But to the inquisitive Jeremy, to Ellie as she came up, something didn't feel right.
They both turned and left, Adam standing. "Captain, I'm sorry. I'll see if we can't make sure you'll be cared for, I promise."
"Thank you, Lieutenant." Alexis took a moment. "Have a good night." She closed the door, and quietly sat down at the table. As the food got cold, she sat there quietly. The silence in the house was deafening, before the cries of Seth split the night. Alexis quietly stood and went to comfort her child.
The silence that would follow would be forever remembered.