Larry Gets Screwed Date: June 27th Characters: Larry, Jordana Larry had never been on an interstellar flight before, not really. Sure, he'd shipped out on a IYS capable Frigate before, when they were getting ready for the Atropos drop, but Incident Command had been nice enough to put them in the Sleep so they wouldn't stagnate during the three and a half week journey. Some of the guys had complained about it when they woke up, saying it gave them strange dreams and beastly headaches, but he hadn't had that problem, himself. Even if he had, though, better a headache that lasted until you got some stimulants in you and a mouth that tasted like trainport carpet than weeks of absolute, mind-numbing boredom. Too bad that Confederate authorities had decided that the Sleep was too dangerous for civillians. It sure hadn't done the grunts any harm. He sighed, resting his head against the port next to him. The view was the same as it had been yesterday and the day before - stars obscured by the violet aura that the shift into Yamada's version of not-space caused. At first, he'd found the constantly moving stars and oil slick effect of the aura fascinating. Now, after more than three weeks of it, he was about ready to scream. "Passengers, please, take your seats." A calm voice said over the ship's PA. "We are preparing to decelerate into normal space, T-minus fifteen minutes, twenty-two seconds." "About time," Larry muttered, "I just hope the Lieutenant knows what she's doing..." * * * "Sergeant McCormick. Please come in." "Thank you, sir." Larry snapped off a salute, then walked into the room, stopping in front of the woman's desk. "At ease, Sergeant." "Thank you, sir." Lucrezia Noin regarded Larry, no though betrayed on her face. "You're bored, aren't you, Sergeant." she stated without preamble. "Sir?" "Be candid with me, please. I won't take offense at anything you say." "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir." Larry rubbed one of his uniform jacket's cuffs with his thumb, the only sign of his inner turmoil. "I don't feel as if I'm useful any more, sir, not since the Defense Minister disbanded Crazy Wolf." "We transferred you to Red Fox, didn't we?" "Yes sir, but if I may be frank--" "Permission has all ready been granted, Sergeant. Continue." "Red Fox doesn't have anything on Crazy Wolf, sir. They're good men and women, but the duty's light and I feel as if my skills aren't being utilized fully." "I see. You realize that Red Fox is only designated as a patrol squadron." "Yes sir, I do. That's the problem, if you don't mind me saying." Larry licked his too-dry lips, attempting to sum up all he'd been thinking about for the past week. "Crazy Wolf was a pure veteran combat squad, sir. I guess y'all thought I was one of the best out of us all, since you promoted me. What I learned there is wasted if all I'm doing is patrols." "And that is why you're applying for a transfer." "Yes, sir." "You realize that we have no combat units left?" "Yes, sir. I'm hoping for a transfer to the training station. I figure the least I can do is beat some skills into the recruits." Lieutenant Noin shook her head. "The Preventers are no longer directly involved in combat, Sergeant, but I happen to know of someone who is in the market for good soldiers." She smiled. "You would be wasted on training patrol squadrons. What say you?" "Can you tell me a bit more, sir?" "Unfortunately, no. You'll just have to trust me." Larry considered for a long moment, thinking about the next two years of boredom he'd be forced to endure until his tour ended. He could almost feel his spare tire expanding with just the thought. "Yes, sir," he said, "I trust you. What do I need to do?" * * * The shift into normal space made his stomach do a slow flip, like it always did, but the view was worth it. Their particular Y point had been made by using the gravitational oddities caused by Yggdrasil's three moons. It was only useable on certain dates, and the movement of the moons tending to make some re-entries rougher than others, but it was all small price to pay for the convenience of being able to skip the in-system travel time. Larry looked out the window in wonder at the planet stretching out blue beneath them. It was the closest thing he'd even seen to Earth. The blue of water stretched everywhere he could see, interrupted only on occassion by spatterings of clouds or the occassion lushly green island. It was about the furthest thing from what he'd been expecting; the only other planets he'd ever seen from space were Mars, a dusty red wasteland at the time, thought with a slight misting of green from the terraforming, and Atropos, blackened with conflict and covered with the glowing fissures of active volcanos. This, though...this was like the original vision of paradise. He didn't look away from the window once as they swung in on approach and landed. When they landed, the gravitational difference was noticeable, but didn't do more than make his movements a little sluggish as he collected his single duffel bag from the luggage compartment. Larry figured that he'd get used to it, given time...and what a difference it would make when he went into space, or even any of the other planets. Eager to get off the transport, he hurried enough to be first in line to disembark...not that he had much competition. Yggdrasil, while beautiful, was apparently still considered the ass end of the allied systems, and wasn't attracting too many visitors yet. The only non-crew, business or military he'd seen for most of the journey had been a fairly rich looking family consisting of two parents and their young daughter. They arrived at the hatch five minutes after he did. The little girl had a bright pink jumper on that matched the barettes in her hair. She waved solemnly at him, but didn't say anything - her parents had established early on that they thought the military were all leeches, and told their daughter not to talk to the uniformed man that spent a lot of time making silly faces at her. Larry waved back to her when he parents weren't looking, his expression just as serious. The hatch opened. Humid, tropical air rolled over them like a nearly solid wave. Despite all of his good intentions to be graceful, Larry half stumbled down the ramp, blinking furiously at the sudden onslaught of natural light flooding in through the starport's many windows. He was on solid ground again, though, blessed solid ground. For a moment, he imagined himself running outside, throwing himself down and kissing the dirt, like he occassionally saw in older movies. It wasn't going to happen, but it was an amusing thing to think about. Now, if he only knew what to do next. The Lieutenant has said he'd be met by someone, but he didn't see anyone around. "McCormik?" a voice off to his right asked. Larry turned to face a woman who was about his height. The first thing he noticed was her hair, which was a bright, true red. The next thing he noticed was her uniform; she wore a standard planetary militia jacket that was a bit too big for her, with the tabs for Lieutenant. Wondering what he was getting in to and hoping to God that Noin hadn't pawned him off on to a regular militia, he snapped a smart salute. "Yes sir." The woman seemed vaguely amused by that. One of her eyebrows twitched. "At ease, and follow me. You're my last collection for the day." Growing more puzzled by the second, Larry did just that. The presence of the militia woman smoothed his way through customs and final security check, so they were outside quickly. It was even hotter and humid than it had been in the star port, with all sorts of interesting smells, from flowers to greenary to hot machinary, mixing across the runways. Doing his best not to be distracted by the frantic activity going on around them, Larry followed the woman to an open ground transport. She hopped behind the wheel. They didn't speak at all, even after they got moving. Larry spent most of his time watching the woman, while trying to appear like he wasn't. She was definitely easy on the eyes...heck, any woman at all was nice to look at after the long journey, but this one was definitely a bonus. He didn't entertain any thoughts other than simply enjoying the view, though...wouldn't be proper, otherwise. Once they were a fair distance down a deserted road that was headed determinatedly away from the starport and all signs of civilization, they pulled over. "Just a moment." the woman said. She climbed out of the transport, and then pulled off the uniform jacket. Underneath, there was another jacket, this one black and red, with a lot less rank sitting on the sleeve. She turned to Larry and smiled. "That's better. I'm Senior Ensign Jordana Sevayin. I apologize for all the cloak and dagger - it's standard procedure." "And let me guess, sir...cloak and dagger is what you...or we rather, do." Larry crossed his arms in front of his chest. "I kind of figured, when Lieutenant Noin wouldn't give me any details." "I can't give you too many more either, unfortunately. You need to meet the Commander first." "Great." Larry muttered. "Follow me," the senior ensign said, "I've got a skimmer hidden a little way into the jungle...it'll get us to base a great deal faster than driving and taking the boat." Larry didn't argue. Feeling a bit like Alice down the rabbit hole, he followed, attempting to reassure himself that things couldn't possibly get any stranger. Because the world was a contrary place, they did. The moment he set foot on base, an enormous affair that seemed to spring out of nowhere, he was swept off to the Commander's office. While he waited for the Commander to have a free moment, he tried to strike up a conversation with the rather pretty seceratary. The nice lady was quite friendly and willing to talk, but the conversation didn't last too long, mostly because there was something about her that just didn't seem quite right. He couldn't put his finger on it, though. Then he saw the Commander...and instantly understood why Noin hadn't told him anything. Duo Maxwell. The Gundam pilot. Larry saluted, standing at his most rigid version of attention. The Commander raised an eyebrow at him. "Is there something you'd like to say?" he asked. "If you don't mind me saying, sir...shit...I'm screwed, aren't I, sir?" For a long moment, the Commander stared at him, not quite sure what to think. Then he started laughing, leaning back in his chair and wiping his eyes. He brought himself under control quickly, though. "Don't be offended," he said, waving a hand, "I just forget that I sometimes have that kind of effect on people. No, Mr. McCormik, you're not in trouble...or at least not with me." his eyes glittered with barely controlled mirth, "But, if I remember what Lieutenant Noin told me, you're here looking for trouble to get in on, aren't you? We have a ready supply of that. At ease." Larry tried to relax, but he found that he couldn't. The man in front of him, though younger than he by serveral years, exuded so much personality that it seemed impossible to not stand at attention. Commander Maxwell leaned back in his chair, steepling his fingers. "I think you've already guessed what kind of organization we are. You're a bit of an experiment for us, as most of our soldiers are pilots. I personally feel that we have need for people who are used to ground based operations, though, which is why I was quite happy when you were referred to me. We apparently need each other." he leaned forward, suddenly serious. "So I suppose the only question we have left, Mr. McCormik, is if you can keep a secret?" It was a deceptively simple question, but Larry knew it for what it was. The Commander was warning him, in his own way, that if he said yes, there was no going back. But...to be useful again...that was the only promise he needed. His parents and the rest of his family would understand, even if he couldn't tell them, and he didn't have anyone else he needed to worry about. The rest, in his mind, was details. "Sir, I think my decision is evident. I'm here, aren't I?" Commander Maxwell smiled, not surprised in the least. "Then welcome, Ensign McCormik. I have a feeling you'll make an excellent addition to the Black Lions."