fanfic_name = The Sit. Room Incident

author = Dwparsnip

Rating = AP15

Type = Angst

fanfic =

Rick woke up on the couch surprised to find that someone had put a blanket over him. He was even more surprised to find that he wasn’t alone on the couch. He looked down towards his feet and found his son sleeping soundly at the other end of the couch.



Rick smiled at the sight. Sometime during the night Roy must have came out to find him asleep on the couch, got a blanket out of the closet and got up onto the couch. ‘Wow’, thought Rick ‘I must have really been wiped not to feel him get up here with me.’  Rick slowly and carefully sat up, trying not to disturb his son. He succeeded and he just sat there for a while watching his son, his and Lisa’s son, sleep peacefully. ‘Lisa.’



Rick got up off the couch carefully as to not wake Roy. He covered his son with the blanket and went to the bathroom and looked into the mirror, as had become his habit. ‘I’m sure there’s more gray there than there was yesterday’, he thought as he ran his fingers through his hair. A few minutes later he was sitting in the recliner, just watching his son sleep.



‘What now, Roy?’, he asked silently. ‘What do we do?’ Rick had no idea, other than the obvious get on with their lives. But he just couldn’t think of a future without Lisa…it just wasn’t possible for him. He leaned back and closed his eyes.



He had done a lot of remembering in the last five days, but he had done an equal amount of thinking about his future as well. Like his past was inexorably linked with Lisa’s, so too was his future. He still thought about them growing old together; he still thought about them at Roy’s wedding; he still thought about them playing with their grandchildren; and he still thought about them retiring and living a peaceful life free of responsibility and the stress…just the two of them together.



‘Together’, he thought with a stab of despair.



He looked to Roy again. The little boy seemed to have such a better grasp on his feelings and his grief, and Rick had to admit that he was a little envious of Roy and the strength he seemed to have. Of course, he knew where that strength came from. Lisa had shown limitless strength over the years in the most dire situations. When most other people would be giving up, she would just be beginning the fight. It was the same strength that Roy was showing now. When everyone else was struggling and falling apart, Roy was a rock.



‘Just like you, Lisa’, he thought for what must have been the hundredth time.



Rick got up and quietly headed to the kitchen. As he started the coffee maker he wondered what to do with Roy. He would keep him on the ship with him as long as Roy wanted to stay, but there would come a time he realized, when he would have to go back to work. Lisa told him the ship and crew needed him, and she was right.



Not today however. Today, Rick had something else in mind…something he hoped Roy would have some much-deserved fun with. He looked to the clock. 0740. He went to his bedroom and used the communication unit to call Max, then the flight deck and finally the commander of Base Delta.



Rick walked out to look at Roy and thought, ‘Time for you to have a little fun, my son.’

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Lieutenant Angela Marques pulled up the zipper on the front of her flight suit. As the zipper slowly ascended, she let out the breath she didn’t even realize she had been holding in.



She used her index fingers to tuck her short hair behind her ears and then used a hair band to keep her hair from coming out into her face. Often when she put on her helmet strands of hair would move to the front of her face. It would get in the way and itch like hell, and the last thing she needed for this flight was for something as trivial as her hair to get on her nerves. There were more than enough bigger issues to do that.



She put her hands on the counter and leaned forward to get a good look at herself in the mirror. When she did she got a fright. Instead of her own brown eyes looking back at her she saw the now all too familiar blue eyes of Rick Hunter in the reflection…the intensely suspicious eyes she saw from him the day before on the observation deck.



Angie closed her eyes tight and summoned all of her inner strength to force the apparition away. She waited as she took in and exhaled three calming breaths, and when she finally opened her eyes she was very relieved to see her own mahogany colored eyes.



She lifted her right hand to the back of neck and rubbed her knotted up muscles. She continued to work on the knots as she stood up straight and walked out to the living room. The clock read 0750. She didn’t have to be on the hangar deck until 0830. ‘Great’, she thought sarcastically as she sat down in her recliner. ‘All this time to just sit around and think about everything.’ As if she hadn’t done enough of it.



Despite her desperate need for sleep, she had gotten very little of it. She kept thinking about Lisa and Rick Hunter and how she had hurt them so badly. It wasn’t just that though. Angie didn’t mind hurting someone who deserved it...not at all. In fact she was a big believer in dishing out justice yourself if the need was there. But what did Lisa and Rick do to deserve the misery that she and her cohorts had brought upon them? Absolutely nothing. Both were honorable, loving and intelligent people who never hurt anyone, except of course during battle. They were more than worthy of her respect, admiration and gratitude. And how did she show it? By letting herself get caught up in a plan to destroy them.



‘That’s not true, Angie’, she thought. ‘You went into this with your eyes wide open. You have no one to blame for this but yourself.’ That perhaps more than anything drove her to the brink of tears. She had the option to not be a part of this, but she chose to be involved. She knew what was going to happen and she knew that she would be one of the main players in the whole affair. She knew and yet she still went along with it. What did that say about her?



Angie got up and began to pace around her living room. She realized she was in way too far to just drop out now. Besides the fact that she was culpable for the deaths of fours REF officers, there was kidnapping, lying to officials and a number of other offences. It’s not like she could just go to Rick Hunter and say ‘Your wife’s alive, sir…sorry’ and expect for there to be no consequences. Indeed not. No matter how much she helped the Hunters now, she would still incur a severe penalty. No matter how much she knew she deserved it, her instinct for self-preservation kept her from doing anything.



Then there was Sue Graham...her friend and family. Sue was determined to get Rick to be with her, and God help anyone who got in her way. Angie knew that even if she could blow the whistle on the whole mess, Sue wouldn’t hesitate to use any means necessary to stop her. Angie’s only source of immunity right now was that Sue needed her, and needed her badly. Her visit to the moon was the perfect example of that. Sue could only trust and count on two people: Angie and Andrea. With Andrea Grace gone to Tirol, Angie’s usefulness increased dramatically.



Angela stopped her pacing and looked at the bag she had packed to take to Admiral Hunter. She had been in that cave now for close to a week, and knowing Sue and the contempt she had for Lisa Hunter, Angie was sure that Lisa hadn’t had much in the way of amenities. It was only because Angie had insisted that Sue even left a SCLU in the cave. The Self Contained Latrine Unit was one of biggest examples of how technology had sterilized the sometimes untidy art of field combat. No longer would complicated waste systems be constructed and maintained. The SCLU was a portable, lightweight and easily maintained waste unit. After initial setup, all you had to do was change the filters. There was no mess, no smell and no fuss. Every Alpha had one in their emergency resource compartments, and every field combat unit had several in their stores. Angie had even figured out how to get the extra filters without raising suspicion.



She went over the items in the bag she had to take with her for the third time. Angie had everything she could think of that Admiral Hunter might need, from food and water, to fresh clothes and various hygiene products. She picked up the bag, pulled the strap up around her shoulder, and after taking one last deep breath she headed for the hangar bay.

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Between her bleeding lip, tender ass and the thought of Angie going to the moon, Sue Graham had a restless night as well.



Twice she had to put a towel on her pillow to keep the blood from her lip from staining the pillowcase. It just kept bleeding no matter what she did or what she put on it. To add to that annoyance was the fact that because of her sore right butt cheek, she couldn’t sleep on her right side or on her back.



‘The universe is conspiring against me’, she thought bitterly.



Of course the biggest reason for her restless night was Angie. No matter how much she tried to make herself believe that all would be well, she still felt a nagging doubt. Angie was one of the strongest willed people she had ever met, and if she really put her mind to it she could do almost anything. Sue had seen many examples of it over the years. This time however, she really wondered if Angie had it in her.



‘She has the strength, but do she have the desire?’ Graham’s question to herself was at the very heart of the matter in her opinion.



The clock read 0750 and she wondered if it was too early to go to the Infirmary and see what Dr. Pullman had to say about her lip. She took a new tissue from the bathroom and put it to her lip, only to once again find a hint of crimson on it when she took it away a moment later. The bleeding had slowed just enough so that she wasn’t leaking all over everything, but it was still bleeding.



She wiped her lip and after tossing the tissue on the garbage she headed out the door. She didn’t have to be in Fleet Intelligence for a little while, but she didn’t really have enough time to go to the Infirmary anyway.



‘I do have enough time to catch Angie on the hangar deck’, she realized. As she put her hand on the door handle she hesitated. ‘The question is would it be a good thing or a bad thing for Angie to see me?’ There was the possibility that Angie wouldn’t take to kindly to Sue’s presence. She might take it as Sue checking up on her. While that wouldn’t be untrue, it would possibly piss Angie off or shake her confidence in herself. Still…



She opened the door and headed for the hanger bay. She would just have to make sure that Angie knew that she was there for support, not as a threat…

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Angie got her aircraft assignment and headed to her ship. Alpha 217 was at the very far end of the hangar bay, far away from the normal hustle and bustle of the flight crew and most of the pilots. When she reached the craft, she placed her hand on the fuselage and felt her heart race just a little, as it always did when she was about to go flying.



“We launch in half an hour, Lieutenant Marques”, came the cheerful voice of Lieutenant Jenson.



Angie turned to face the leader of the Griffin squadron. “I’ll be ready, Lieutenant. Just need a few minutes to check everything over.”



“Don’t forget to check everything, Lieutenant…you never know. Flight plan is already entered into all Griffin Alphas. When we get out there we’ll run through the recertification drills, although from what I read in your file you shouldn’t have any problems.” Jenson stepped up close to Angie and lowered her voice. “If you ever decide to leave the Infirmary, I’ll find a place for you. See you out there.”



As Jenson walked away, Angie was dumbfounded by the generous offer and compliment just paid to her. She shook herself out of it and began her preflight check. She put her bag into the port storage compartment and left it unlocked while she finished her check, deliberately leaving the emergency stores compartment on the starboard side until the very last. She was just about to check it when a gentle tap on her shoulder and someone speaking her name nearly made her jump out of her skin.



She turned and exclaimed in a harsh whisper, “Damn it Sue! You nearly gave me a heart attack!”



As Angie looked around to see if anyone noticed the episode, Sue smiled and let loose a little laugh.



“It’s not funny!”, exclaimed Angie angrily as she turned back to her Alpha.



Sue held up her hands in a gesture of surrender. “I’m sorry, Angie. I just wanted to come by and make sure you were okay.”  She put her hand on Angie’s shoulder and gently turned her so they faced each other. “Angie…are you okay?”



Angie regarded her friend for a moment and tried to figure out if she was genuinely concerned or if it was part of her burgeoning acting career. She decided Sue seemed to be sincere, so Angie answered her in kind. “I’m fine, Sue. Sorry for snapping at you. I guess I’m a little more on edge than I thought.”



Sue offered a knowing smile and said softly, “If there was another way Angie, I wouldn’t hesitate…”



“I know, Sue, and I don’t mind…really.” She gently slapped Sue’s shoulder. “I’ll let you know how it goes. You should get to work, and don’t forget you’re supposed to go and see Pullman this morning.” At Sue’s unenthusiastic reaction Angie added, “It’s for your own good, Sue.”



“I know. I’ll go there on my lunch break.” Sue put both her hands on Angie’s shoulders and looked into her eyes. “Be careful Angie”, she said with deadly seriousness. Sue lowered her voice to a whisper and said, “She’ll try everything to get to you.”



Angie smiled meekly and tried to reassure Sue, and herself for that matter. “I know. I’ll be on my toes. Now get out of here so I can finish my preflight check.”



Sue smiled. She turned and walked towards the nearest entrance, stopping for just a moment to cast one more worried glance in Angie’s direction. She went through the door and headed to Fleet Intelligence. ‘She’ll be fine’, thought Sue as she walked, still not all that convincingly.



Angie watched Sue leave and opened the emergency stores compartment and took out the SCLU filters. She quickly looked around to make sure there was no one watching, and poked her finger through the top filter. She took another quick look around and then moved to the front of her ship.



A young flight crewmember walked by. “Crewman!”, she called out to him.



He turned and looked at Angie with a look on his face that was akin to fear. “Yes, ma’am.”



She held back the smile that was coming, held up the filter she had tampered with and said, “The SCLU filters in my emergency stores are damaged. Could you get me a new set please? I’m supposed to launch in a few minutes.”



He nodded eagerly. “Yes, ma’am.” He started off and then stopped and looked back to her. “Did you want me to get rid of those for you, ma’am?”



She shook her head. “That’s fine crewman. Just get me the new filters. Fast.”



He took off in a hurry and Angie finally let the smile show on her face.



While the young crewman was off getting the new filters, Angie carefully hid the undamaged filters in the storage compartment where she had put her bag. She just locked the compartment when the crewman returned.



“Here you go, ma’am. Is there anything else I can do for you, Lieutenant?”



“No, crewman. Thank you very much.” He saluted, and when she returned his salute he left.



She put the new filters in the starboard compartment and secured the door. She slowly walked around the Alpha, looking over every little detail again. She stopped at the ladder and was about to climb up when she felt a hand gently touch her shoulder.



“Damn it!” As she turned to face whoever had interrupted her she added, “I told you not to scare me like that S…”, Angie’s eyes opened wide and she stammered, “…sir! I’m so sorry, sir, I thought you were someone else!” She came to attention and felt the blood move with all due haste to her cheeks.



Rick held up his hand to stop Angie from saying anything else, but more importantly to get her to calm down. He smiled and said, “Stand easy, Angie. It’s my fault for sneaking up on you like that. I’m sorry for startling you.”



“Thank you, sir. I’m so sorry, Admiral Hunter.”



“Forget about it, Angie. That’s an order.” Rick walked to her side and placed his hand on the port wing, taking a second to remember what it was like to board an aircraft and soar through the wild blue skies. “I take it you’re heading out?”



Angie hesitated for a moment to calm her voice. “Yes, sir. Recertification flight. We should be leaving in a few moments, sir.”



“You’re going out with the Griffins?” When she nodded Rick smiled a smile that said he knew something she didn’t. “The Griffin squadron flight has been delayed by half an hour.” When he saw the confusion on her face he elaborated. “I’m taking my son down to Tirol for the day. In light of…well, because of…with what happened to my wife, General Sterling, Captain Forsythe and Captain Grant have insisted on having the planet’s airspace and the area around the planet cleared of all air traffic. They also insisted on some escorts.”



As he spoke the last sentence he nodded in the direction behind Angie. She turned to see General Miriya Sterling walking towards them, garbed in a flight suit and holding the hand of Rick Hunter’s son. Roy Hunter was wearing a wind suit that was reminiscent of the flight suits that Rick, Miriya and Angie were wearing.



“How are you doing, buddy?”, asked Rick when they reached him.



Roy was very busy watching the hustle and bustle of the flight deck and only mumbled his response of, “Fine, Daddy.”



Rick, Miriya and Angie smiled, and it was seeing Angie’s smile that made Rick think of something.



“Angie”, he said as he looked at her. “You haven’t been formally introduced to my son have you?”



Angie’s eyes opened wide. “What? Ah…no, sir…no I haven’t.”



Rick knelt down and brought Roy close to him. “Roy, this nice lady here is Lieutenant Angela Marques. She works with Auntie Jean.”





The darling little boy held out his hand, and as Angie took it he said to her, “Nice to meet you, Lieuten…”



When he looked over to his father for help, Angie got down on one knee and said, “You can call me Angie. It’s very nice to meet you, Roy.”



A pleasant smile washed over his face, the same smile she had seen a number of times on the face of his mother, and said warmly, “Nice to meet you, Angie.”



She couldn’t help but return his smile, even as the thought of how she had hurt him catapulted into her mind. She stood up and instinctively took a step backwards, just in case any of them had a sixth sense capable of detecting the palpable guilt she knew she had to be emitting.



“We’re ready when you are, Admiral”, came the voice of the new Skull leader as he walked up to them. “General Sterling is satisfied that the area is secure, sir”, began the newly promoted Lieutenant Commander Jack Baker, “We’ll take it nice and slow, no wacky maneuvers…just straight in and land while we cover you. The Skull will be in the air at all times over your position, and Security and Medical teams at Base Delta are on ready alert standby.”



Rick stood up and screwed up his nose. “Isn’t this a little much, Baker?”



“Not as far as I’m concerned, sir. I wanted to do more but General Sterling said something about it being a minor miracle if you let me get away with this much.” Baker let a small smirk form on his lips. “I’m guessing the General was right, sir.”



Rick glanced to Miriya and smiled. “All right, Baker, let’s go before it’s time to come back.” He looked down to Roy. “All set, buddy?” When Roy nodded eagerly Rick picked him up in his arms. He looked to Angie and said sincerely, “Good luck out there, Angie. Though I doubt you’ll need it. Lisa told me that your flying record was superb.” A sad light flashed in his eyes, but just for a second.



Angie saw the light and heard the genuineness in his voice. It felt like a small stab wound to her chest. “Thank you, sir.” She avoided looking directly at him and turned to Roy. “I hope you have fun down on the planet, Roy.”



Roy smiled, as did his father, and after Angie returned their smiles Rick Hunter turned and started walking towards a training Alpha.



Rick looked over to where Miriya was standing next to Baker having what seemed to be a rather animated, and one-sided conversation. Her back was to Rick so he couldn’t see her face, but from the way her hair green locks flew about when she shook and nodded her head at Baker, Rick knew she was giving him the riot act about something. Rick couldn’t help but be amused when he noticed that Baker was sweating profusely all of a sudden. ‘Was that a cringe?’, he asked himself amusedly. Without warning Baker stood up as straight as he could and gave Miriya a crisp salute. When she returned that salute a moment later, ‘Did she hesitate on purpose?’, he stood at attention for a moment and then took off like a scalded cat towards his Alpha. Miriya watched him go and Rick watched her. When she turned around to come towards him there was the oddest grin on her face and a slight swagger in her step.



When Miriya reached them Roy held out his arms for her to take him, which she did gladly. Rick adopted a suspicious look and asked, “General Sterling…what did you just do to that poor boy?”



Miriya’s grin widened into a full-fledged and slightly guilty smile. “I just made sure that the young Commander understood the seriousness of the situation.” At Rick’s dubious look she added quietly, “I also told him that if anything happened I would be very upset.” When Rick raised an eyebrow at her, she looked down to her feet and said quietly, “And I mentioned that when I get upset I…sometimes lose my temper, which has been known to lead to acts of physical violence.”



She slowly raised her eyes to look at him and it took all of his will power to keep from laughing. As it was, all he could safely do was shake his head in amazement and turn to walk towards the Alpha. His control didn’t last however, and as he took his second step towards the aircraft he broke out in a very loud laughter.

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Angie watched the Admiral as he got into his Alpha. He was still laughing about whatever it was that he and General Sterling were talking about. It felt really good to see and hear him laugh, though it did precious little to alleviate the tremendous weight of the guilt on her mind and soul.



She watched as Miriya Sterling, who was also laughing at whatever, helped the little boy up into the Alpha. Roy seemed like the kind of boy she would like to have….



She shook her head to clear the thoughts from her mind. ‘Focus, Angie!’, she berated herself. ‘Focus on the job. Clear your head and focus!’



Angie took the extra time she had as Admiral Hunter and the Skull launched to recheck her Alpha and go over her plan to get onto the moon. She had just rehearsed it to herself when the announcement was made for all Griffin pilots to board their planes.



Angie took a deep breath, grabbed the ladder and climbed up into the Alpha, all the time muttering to herself, ‘Focus, focus, focus…’

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Sue decided not to wait until lunch to go and see Pullman. After checking in with Woods and telling him that the good doctor wanted to see her, she reluctantly made her way to the infirmary.



When she reached the main entrance to the Infirmary she stopped and looked at the doors. ‘I so don’t want to go in there’, she thought apprehensively. She laughed to herself and added, ‘That’s an understatement if there ever was one.’ Finally, after several failed attempts and several deep, calming breaths, she opened the door and walked in. She told the nurse on duty who she was and why she was there, and a few moments later she was seated in the same examination room that she had been in the day before. Thankfully there was no sign of Jean Grant.



Sue sat on the bed and waited. Fortunately, she didn’t have a lot of time to sit around and think about the unfairness of it all. She had just gotten comfortable when Dr. Pullman threw open the door and charged in.



He stopped when he saw her and narrowed his eyes as he tried to place her. He took a deep breath as though he was about to speak, but he abandoned whatever it was he was going to say and looked over to the chair that Angie sat in the day before.  He pointed to the empty chair and then looked to Sue.



“Shouldn’t there be someone there?” Before Sue could say anything he took a quick step towards her and announced, “I know you.” Suddenly he turned towards the table and began looking for something.



Sue could hear him mumbling something as he continued to look for whatever it was he was looking for. Finally she heard what he was saying-”Chart.”



She closed her eyes and said through clenched teeth, “In your hand…sir.”



He stopped and looked at her for a moment, and then turned his attention to his left hand where Sue’s chart was firmly clenched.



“So it is”, he said nonchalantly. He opened it and looked inside. As he read what was inside he mumbled to himself. After a moment he looked up and said, “Your lip isn’t bleeding.”



As he leaned in for a closer look Sue said uncertainly, “No sir, it hasn’t stopped totally, but it has slowed down a little.”



Just as suddenly as he came towards a minute earlier, he backed away several steps. He adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose and began reading again. After another couple of moments he closed the folder.



“Your lip’s inability to heal properly is a result of a nasty infection you picked up.” He focused on her lip and continued, “I am uncertain as to whether you picked up the infection when you injured the lip or afterwards.” He looked into her eyes and ordered, “Tell me where, when and how it happened.”



From the first moment that she met Pullman she assumed that he was a bumbling idiot, but his tone of voice and the way he looked into her eyes so powerfully forced her to see that she had been wrong about that. “As I said yesterday, sir, it happened almost a week ago, five or six days now. I was getting into my Alpha when I slipped and hit my lip on the plane’s fuselage.” Sue hesitated a moment when his eyes took on a contemplative look. “That’s it, sir.”



“Where were you when this happened, young lady?”



“On the hanger deck, sir”, she said more carefully than she meant to. She watched the look on Pullman’s face take on an air of skepticism. ‘Damn. He’s not buying it’, she thought.



Pullman let loose his own little sigh and looked at her with a mixture of compassion and sympathy. When he spoke his voice was concerned and very clear. It surprised her.



“The truth would help me to figure out how you became inflicted with this infection and would facilitate your treatment, Commander. I would also like to know so that further infections of this type can be prevented.” He lowered his voice and added, “Anything you tell me is confidential, Commander.”



‘Not that confidential’, Sue quipped to herself. “I don’t understand what you mean, sir.” She hoped her tone of voice would ensure no further comment from Pullman.



Pullman looked to the chart and sighed as he said, “Very well, Commander. I’m going to create a profile of the infection and check our database for any other instances of this type of infection. In the meantime, I’ve ordered some potent medication for you…please be sure to keep an eye out for any of the side effects that may occur. The nurse will provide you with a comprehensive list when she brings in your medication.”



Sue squirmed a little. “Sir…I’m not particularly comfortable with needles.”



For a moment he looked confused. “Needles? No more needles, Commander. The nurse will be bringing in some pills for you to take.”



Despite the fact that a tremendous weight was lifted from her shoulders, she remained stoic and watched as Pullman wrote something in her chart.



“Very well”, he announced suddenly. “Come back if you have any problems.” A moment later he was out the door.



Twenty minutes later Sue Graham sat at her desk in her office in Fleet Intelligence and took the first of what appeared to be many pills. As she leaned back in her chair she thought of Angie and she looked to her clock. Any minute now Angie would land on the MED moon and check on their guest. All her doubts, fears and expressions of faith in Angie screamed through her head. It was then that someone knocked on her door.



The door opened a second later and Major Woods walked in. “How’s the lip, Sue?”



“On the mend, sir”, she responded as cheerfully as she could.



He nodded. “Good. I only have a minute before the Tirolians arrive to help me identify some residue we found on the shuttle wreckage.”



He sat down in the visitor’s chair and began to tell her about the surveillance operation in the Gormun Cluster, totally oblivious to the fact that his announcement had caused all the blood to drain from the face of Sue Graham.

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Lisa woke up, and for the first time since she had been imprisoned in the cave, she had a relatively peaceful night. She did have dreams and her thoughts were still littered with nauseating images Sue Graham, but the dreams were pleasant ones this time, with normal and happy endings instead of the shocking and hurtful ones to which she had become accustomed.



She stood up and stretched the kinks out of her sore and tender body. The thermal blanket on which she slept helped, but it was still a very uncomfortable bed. Her lower back was killing her. ‘Oh Rick’, she thought longingly. ‘I could sure use one of those magical massages right about now.’ She continued to stretch until the aches in her muscles abated to a tolerable level, though she knew the only thing that would get rid of them completely would be getting out of the damn cave.



She walked around the cave for a few minutes, at least as far as she could with her leg chained to the wall. The shackle still hadn’t budged so much as a millimeter. It was imperative that she stayed loose and limber in case an opportunity presented itself to her for an escape. She needed to be ready.



Lisa used one of the towelettes Graham left to clean herself up as best she could. ‘I could really use a nice hot bath.’ She forced the thought away. The last thing she needed was to start lamenting the little things in her life that she missed…she had more than enough emotional distress to deal with when she thought about Rick and the many ways in which she missed him.



She looked over the remaining stores next to her, for lack of a better word, bed. She still had plenty of water and rations. The amount of water left surprised her; it seemed as though she were drinking a lot judging by how often she visited the portable waste unit.



‘Now what?’, she asked herself. It was the part of her day that she feared the most. Her nightmares were cruel and incredibly painful, but she could rationalize them out. She didn’t have any control over the nightmares. They would start out so pleasant and so warm and then turn into something so dark it hurt her immensely. It was her subconscious. Simply outside her power to control.



During the day however, it became worse. She had given up on the restraint. The only thing left to do was plan for an escape. Her logical and analytical mind went over all the situations and possibilities, and she had the most likely scenarios ready to implement at a moments notice. It was then that she turned her attention to Rick, Roy and her friends. She would think of them, remembering each and every detail about them. She would revisit her memories of them and laugh. After a while though, a sense of realism would set in and remind her that she may never see any of them again. It told her that she may never again be with her husband. She may never again feel his warm and gentle touch, taste his sweet and passionate kisses or feel his protective embrace.



Her heart would try to intervene and hold out hope, but Lisa couldn’t really fight against logic. She knew the situation was grim and that Rick was in terrible danger. She also knew that there was precious little she could do about it.



She wiped the tears from her eyes. Her heart gave one final push to replace the hopelessness with faith that all would turn out for the best, and it finally succeeded. Her determination to return to her family rose above all the gloom and despair.



Just in time too…because it was then that she heard an Alpha come in for a landing not far from the cave.

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Angie finished the last of the maneuvers for her recertification and smiled. She flawlessly executed every maneuver.



Lieutenant Jenson’s visor covered face appeared on her comm. screen. ‘You nailed it Lieutenant…well done. It’s my pleasure to recertify you for active flight status.’



Angie couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride. “Thank you, Lieutenant…and thanks again for letting me come out here today.”



‘My pleasure, Lieutenant’, came Jenson’s voice. ‘But if you really want to thank me, you’ll call me first if you ever take up flying full time. You’re a natural.’



Angie was uncomfortable with the praise being given to her, especially in light of what she had done, and what she was about to do. “Thank you again, Lieutenant. I’ll do that.”



Angie looked to the flight plan and her present position. She still had a few minutes before they were in range of the moon. She rehearsed her lines a few more times and opened the channel.



“Griffin Eight to Griffin Leader”, she said as confidently as she could.



‘Go ahead, Lieutenant.’



Angie took a deep breath and spoke as she slowly let it out. “I wondering if I could impose on you for another favor, Lieutenant.” She glanced over her instruments and continued. “I haven’t set foot on Terra firma in a little while…well, since we lost Admiral Hunter. Would it be okay if I landed on the MED moon and stretched my legs? I could really use some fresh, natural air.” Angie crossed her fingers and waited.



‘Go ahead, Angie. We’ll finish our perimeter route. We’ll be back here in about half an hour. Take your time. Just be careful. The last thing either of us needs is for something to happen and the brass to go crazy on us.’



Angie smiled at Jenson’s comment. “Roger that, Lieutenant. I seem to be thanking you a lot lately.”



Jenson’s laughter filtered through the channel. ‘No problem, Angie. We’ll see you in thirty minutes or so. Griffin One out.’



Angie breathed a sigh of relief and vectored away from the patrol route towards the moon. She breached the atmosphere and entered the coordinates of the cave that Sue had given her into the navigational computer, and a few moments later she could see the cave and the small clearing. As she switched to Guardian configuration she could feel her heart beat faster and beads of sweat pop out all over her body. She had never been more thankful that flight suits were designed to keep perspiration from staying against a pilot’s skin.



She set the Alpha down and opened the canopy. Angie looked up to the cave, forcing herself to keep her eyes open and not to close the canopy and take off. Her heart refused to slow down and she squirmed in her seat, suddenly very uncomfortable. ‘Well’, she thought sullenly, ‘I guess there’s only so much the flight suit can do.’



She reached over and engaged the encrypted locking system for the Alpha so that only she could fly it off the moon…just in case. A moment later she was on the ground and she took in the opportunity to take a deep breath of the natural air. There really wasn’t a difference between the manufactured and recycled air of the SDF-3 and the naturally produced air of a planet…but it was just better.



Angie opened the compartment containing her bag and filters and slowly …reluctantly… walked up to the cave. When she reached the entrance she took out a small flashlight and pointed it inside. After several attempts to calm her breathing and slow her heartbeat, she took the plunge and walked inside.

----------------------------------

Rick and Miriya were watching Roy from underneath a rather large tree that sheltered them from the Tirolian sun. Rick was lying down on the grass on his right side with his right arm propping him up watching his son play in the playground at what had been his home for months: the Summer Camp. He faced Miriya, who sat cross-legged observing the goings on as well.



“He looks so happy”, he said quietly.



There was sadness in his voice as well, and Miriya didn’t miss it.



“I just feel so helpless, Miriya”, he said unexpectantly. He closed his eyes and continued. “So many times over the years I was able to do so much. Win a battle, or save an innocent civilian, or whatever. I was even able to save her a number of times.” He shook his head as he remembered. “Alaska Base…I mean I plucked her out from almost the center of a dying planet.” He opened his eyes and looked to his friend with watery eyes. “Why couldn’t I save her this time?”



Her heart ached for him. She knew that he would be able to answer that question if he were able to think without the interference of his emotions…without the burden of his terrible grief. She had been with him several times when he was still Skull Leader when someone asked him that very question. She drew on his very own words.



“There comes a time when no matter what we do, no matter how hard we try and no matter how much we want to help, it simply will not be enough. Just as wonderful and happy things happen in life, bad and terrible things will happen. We can only try our very best to help, and if we can’t we have to try our best to deal with them.” She looked into the blue eyes of Rick, the blue eyes that had become so dull and faded since Lisa’s death. She watched as he processed what she had said, and after a minute he smiled.



“I actually said that, didn’t I?” As she nodded his smile faded and he turned to watch Roy. “It’s so much easier telling that to someone else than hearing someone say it to me though.”



“Rick”, she whispered. He turned back to her and she looked at him with all the sincerity she could summon. “I will tell you that I would have done anything to save Lisa. So would Max. It is who we are. I would even say that almost every member of the REF would have done anything to protect her life.” She leaned over and put her hand on his shoulder. “There was nothing that you or I, or anyone, could have done. Nothing.”



Rick reached up and patted her hand in appreciation. “I know”, he said as she withdrew her hand. “It just doesn’t make me feel any better.”



“Nor I.” Miriya turned her attention to Roy. He did indeed seem to be very happy.



 Rick saw her look at his son. “I think I’ll take him back to the ship, and tonight I’ll ask him if he would like to come back down tomorrow for a few days. He likes it here so much with the other children. Max and Vince have already worked out some new security details for the camp, so he’d be safe. I’ll see what he says.”



“If he wants to stay with you?”, she asked.



He smiled again. “Then he’ll stay. I’ll do whatever it takes to let him have some sort of happiness in his life.”



“I know you will”, said Miriya. They both paused for a moment to take in the sight of the Skull flying above them, looks of envy gracing both their faces. When they passed over Miriya got up and held out her hand to help Rick up. “Come, it is getting close to lunch, and I know that you have not yet eaten.”



He took her hand and when she pulled him up he asked, “How did you know that I skipped breakfast?”



She flashed a brilliant smile and started walking towards Roy, saying over her shoulder, “I am a woman”, followed by a brief laugh.



He stood there for a moment with is mouth wide open in surprise. Then he laughed as well and ran to catch up to her.

------------------------------ ----

Lisa waited for her company to come into the cave. The last time she had a visitor she could almost sense the evil in Sue Graham as she approached. Lisa knew it was her.



Not this time though.



The first thing Lisa saw was a silhouette against the light spilling in through the cave entrance. She could see that the person was female by the way she carried herself and the athletic looking curves underneath what had to be a flight suit. As Lisa’s eyes moved up the athletic figure however, she realized that the person before her wasn’t the woman who through some sort of mental deficiency had become her nemesis. This person had shorter hair that hugged her face for starters.



‘Angie?’, Lisa asked herself.





Angie stepped farther into the cave and into the illumination provided by the lights Lisa had powered up.



Lisa sized up the young Lieutenant who she realized had been a fairly important figure in the plan to remove her from Rick’s life. Lisa could see that Angie had a grimly determined look upon her face, a look that said she was trying very hard to do something that she wasn’t particularly fond of doing. When Lisa caught sight of Angie’s eyes, she saw something that gave her a little ray of hope: compassion. ‘Then again’, Lisa remembered, ‘I used to think Angie was a good and honorable person.’



Angie had in her possession a large gym bag and a small stack of what Lisa recognized as SCLU filters.



“Admiral Hunter”, came Angie’s voice. It was so forced that she almost didn’t recognize it as her own.



Angie’s voice sounded strained to Lisa, and she realized that the look of compassion in her eyes was genuine. It was a chance. “Angie”, replied Lisa in a courteous voice. “It’s nice to see you.”



Angie swallowed hard. Her grip tightened on the strap of the bag she carried, though she wasn’t really aware of it. “I…I have some things for you, ma’am.” Angie hesitated at the absurdity of talking to Lisa in such a respectful way after what she had done to her, but she couldn’t help it. “Admiral, before you try to escape, I would like for you to know that I don’t have a key for your restraint, and the Alpha’s security system is engaged.” As she spoke Angie couldn’t look at the face of her Admiral.



Lisa had expected the security measures for the Alpha, and she suspected that Graham slept with the key to the shackles underneath her pillow. She clasped her hands behind her back and stood tall, much as she had when Sue had visited. She may have felt somewhat defeated, depressed and saddened, but she would be damned if she would let them know it.



Angie tried to move towards Lisa, but her legs refused the command from her brain. She closed her eyes and tried to reel it all in - her guilt, remorse and overwhelming need to fix the grievous wrong that she had helped to perpetrate on the woman standing before her – but she couldn’t. Her eyes were watery when she opened them and looked at Lisa Hunter. She could see what Sue meant. Even days after her imprisonment, despite a dirty uniform and only barely ruffled appearance, Lisa Hunter still looked regal. She still looked every bit the Admiral to whom she swore an oath to obey and protect.



Angie’s eyes fell upon the SCLU sitting in the corner and she focused her thoughts and energy on the task of servicing it. She walked slowly to it and knelt down. As she activated the filter incineration cycle, she noticed the power usage indicator to the right of the panel. ‘Wow’, thought Angie as the cycle continued, ‘She’s been using this a lot.’ A moment later the cycle finished and Angie opened the compartment to install one of the new filters. Her task completed she closed the small door and stood up, leaving the extra filters by the unit. Her brow furrowed as she thought about the SCLU. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Lisa wince a little as she gently rubbed her back.



“Are you feeling okay, Admiral?” Again Angie questioned the ridiculous nature of her question. She was about to apologize for it when Lisa answered.



“I’ll live…if Sue lets me”, said Lisa tersely. She saw Angie grimace and knew that she had scored a point. Lisa now knew that Angie was the key. She softened her tone and said honestly, “I’ve had a bad back for a little while. I guess the thermal blanket isn’t exactly what Jean would recommend for a bed. My stomach has been acting weird, but I guess being torn from those you love and locked in a cave on a dead moon will do that to you.”



Angie swallowed the lump in her throat. When Lisa mentioned Jean Grant she nearly fainted. Jean meant so much to Angie, and the thought of Jean was almost enough to make her go and get the plasma rifle out of the Alpha to shoot the chain off of Lisa’s foot.



Almost.



Angie, still avoiding looking into Lisa’s eyes, walked to where the supply of water and food was situated. She took out the extra ration packs and water she brought, as well as the new supply of hygiene items. She stood up and finally looked into the eyes of Lisa Hunter. Angie was surprised to find kindness and sympathy in her green eyes. She had expected to find anger, fury and resentment there. ‘But then, that’s why she’s to respected’, realized Angie. ‘She thinks of everyone else before herself.’



“I brought some fresh clothes for you, ma’am. I hope they fit.” She looked down to the items and then stopped to listen as Lisa shook her leg so that the chain rattled. Angie looked to Lisa’s leg and cursed on herself. Lisa couldn’t change her pants if she had a shackle on her leg. Angie looked up to see an odd smile on Lisa’s face, and she couldn’t help but laugh at the morbid stupidity of the situation. “I’m sorry, Admiral”, was all that Angie could manage.



Lisa gave Angie a dismissive wave and the smile vanished from her face. “Angie”, began Lisa nervously, “can you do something for me?” When Angie nodded Lisa went on. “Can you tell me about Rick? How is he? How’s he taking all of this?”



Angie turned away from Lisa as she remembered the look on Rick Hunter’s face the day she visited him in his quarters; the pain in his eyes that day and the hollowness of his voice. “He’s…he misses you, Admiral. He’s hurt, and he misses you. The Sterlings and the Grants are almost always with him, but it’s easy to see that he misses you.” She turned to face Lisa and found some strength to add to her voice. “But you should have seen him yesterday at your service, Admiral.” At Lisa’s surprised look Angie added, “Yes, ma’am. Your memorial service was yesterday. He was so strong, Admiral. At the end he got up and talked about the pilots who…”, Angie stopped as she realized what she was about to say. Instead she said, “He said you would be angry if he didn’t do it. He never wavered, ma’am.”



Lisa felt a tear leave her left eye and she turned so that Angie wouldn’t see it wind it’s way down her cheek. “And Roy?”, she whispered.



Angie nodded. “He’s amazing, Admiral. He was the strongest of them all. He never cried and he seemed to be the one helping everyone else. He’s a very brave little boy.”



Lisa turned to face Angie, straightened up and nodded once. “Thank you for that, Angie.” With that Lisa turned and walked a step to where her water was being kept. She knelt down and opened up a bottle of water and took several sips.



Angie looked to Lisa with confusion in her mind and on her face. “Ma’am…aren’t you going to ask me to help you? Tell me that I’ve done something horrible? Yell at me? Anything?”



Lisa smiled inwardly. She kept the bottle of water in her hand and stood to face Angie. “No, Angie. You know what you’ve done is wrong and hurtful to so many.” She shrugged her shoulders slightly and continued, “What could I possibly say to add to that? Besides, I know you’ll help me when you build up enough strength and courage to face Sue.” Lisa allowed her eyes to soften, and when she continued her voice was gentle. “You’re a good person, Angie…I’ve seen it in you. I’ve seen how you talk to people and how you get along with everyone you meet. I know you have a helpful soul, or you wouldn’t have become a medic. It must have been very hard for you to go along with this, especially now knowing that people, your comrades, have died…not to mention the suffering of my family and friends. It must really be hurting you.”



“You have know idea, Admiral”, mumbled Angie. She looked towards Lisa, though she never actually focused on her. Lisa never asked, but Angie felt compelled to explain why she took part in her abduction and imprisonment. “I…I’ve been trying to justify this ever since it happened, Admiral.” She found Lisa’s eyes. “I can’t. I can’t look at you right here and right now and tell you that you deserve this. I know now that you don’t.” She took a deep breath and found a small sense of determination to explain it as best she could, though she had to look away from Lisa again. “I never had much of a family, Admiral, at least not until I met Andrea and Sue. They’re all I’ve got. I can’t put into words how much I owe them…how much I owe Sue.” She chanced to glance at Lisa, and was again surprised to see understanding in her eyes. “When Sue asked me to do this, I wasn’t sure if it was the right thing to do. But then I thought about her and what she’s done for me, and I couldn’t say no. I wish I could have, especially after seeing Rick so distraught and you like this.”



Angie closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them and spoke again her voice was reverent. “I never realized how important you are to people, Admiral, to people like Dr. Grant. Did you know she’s the person in the universe I admire the most? She tutored me and encouraged me to go into medicine, and showed me a way to do it so I could still fly. I owe her as much as I owe Sue. Dr. Grant told me that she will never be the same without you, that with you gone so is a piece of her. I didn’t like the sound of that, Admiral.” Angie took a moment to hold back the tears that formed in her eyes again. “I wish I could take it all back, Admiral…I really do.” She smiled a sad smile. “But I can’t, can I? There’s no way to do it. No matter how many times I run over it in my head, it all turns out badly.” She brought her hand up held it beside her head around where her nose was. “I’m in it up to here, Admiral.” She brought her hand down to rest by her side and waited.



Despite Angie’s important role in her abduction, Lisa couldn’t help but feel sorry for Angela Marques. She suspected that Angie did feel some sense of obligation to help Graham pull this off, but she also suspected that Angie’s remorse and regret was a sure sign that Graham had done a fair amount of manipulating as well. “Angie, there’s always a way out”, she said softly.



Angie grunted and smiled sadly. As she shook her head she said, “It’s too late, Admiral.” Her watch alarm went off. “I have to go, Admiral.”



Angie started to leave when Lisa called out her name. When she turned to regard her Admiral, she saw not the Admiral she saw before, but a very worried and concerned woman.



”Angie, think about what I said and…and don’t let Sue hurt Rick or Roy.” Lisa took a step towards Angie and willed the young Lieutenant to look into her eyes. “I don’t care what she does to me, but promise me you will not let her hurt my husband and little boy…please.”



The desperate concern in Lisa’s voice was heart shattering for Angie.



“I promise”, whispered Angie as she looked at Lisa. “I’m sorry, Admiral”, she blurted out, and before Lisa could see the tears rolling down her cheeks Angie ran out of the cave towards her Alpha as though the cave were going to swallow her up and send her to the deepest depths of Hell.



As Lisa heard the Alpha power up, she let a small flare of hope go off in her heart. She could almost be certain that Angie would come around eventually and help her. Failing that, Lisa was absolutely certain that Angie would keep her promise to not allow Sue to hurt Rick and Roy…and that was the most important thing. She took a long sip of water out of her bottle and rubbed her back again. ‘I wonder if Angie brought anything for a bad back’, she said to herself.



State = Continuará/To Be Continue

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