Episode Nineteen: Succession

[Nolen "Dragon" Syaira]

1032
Nolen's F-302

"Nolen we have a lock, but that flak is very heavy. I don't think the missiles will get through" Lisa said as the weapons system beeped to reinforce her point. Nolen nodded "Lisa we have to try, I don't think Odyssey can take another hit" Nolen replied. As the fighter dodged and weaved through the incoming fire Nolen fired off two of his missiles at the cannon. He watched and waited just to see both missiles destroyed by the incoming flak fire. Nolen pulled up and tried to get out of range again. Then Lisa spoke up again, "Nolen yo....". Nolen interrupted, "Lisa I don't need a 'I told you so'". Lisa spat out "Nolen we have a second 302 on radar, and I wasn't going to say that you stupid flyboy". Nolen looked at the radar and saw another 302 entering the battle yet the craft wasn't flying the best. Nolen flicked on the radio just to receive a flood of message from the Odyssey.

"Hawk to Dragon, what's your status?"

"Dragon to Hawk, Status is saving your ass. Although that just became harder as I can't get closer without the risk of being shot down. That Flak is just too heavy, How is thiongs over there?" Nolen replied as another message came over.

"Laboy to Captain Andre, I'm the CMO here and I need you to tell me if you have a head ache, feel dizzy, nauseous, or if you have blurry vision. It could be vital, you should have come to the Infirmary as soon as you got back instead of launching again, seeing as you RIO was hurt there is a chance you are also hurt."

Nolen's eyes went wide as he realized who was in the other 302. He hit his radio and steered on a interception course with the other fighter. "Des, What on Earth are you doing out here, God I thought I ordered you to stay with your RIO and get fixed up. Des, respond..... Silverwing Come in...... DES!" It was at that point Nolen feared the worse. He was now in position at the front of the now lazy fighter. He was taking the hits while trying to find out what was going on. "Dragon to Silverwing's RIO. I need to know what is your status?"

<Tag Hawk, Des>

[Destiny "Silverwing" Andre]

1025 - 1032
Destiny's F-302

So the voice in the back on Destiny's head was saying this was one of the stupidest stunts to pull, but what was she going to do? Sit in the Infirmary while Nolen was out here on his own? Heck no! People should know this captain better than that. No one gets left behind was the motto that this female lived by. Even if this might be a suicide flight, Destiny didn't care. She was going to remain out here until Nolen was safe back in the Hanger too.

Hearing Kevin come through the radio the pilot winced. This was only a start to what she was going to get from him once this was all said and done. There was truth in his statement, but he should know by now that he was basically talking to himself. This pilot was far too stubborn to let up now. "Silvering to Hawk, I'm out here saving a friend, something I know you would do the same if you were in my place. I am fine" called back just as another wave of dizziness came along with nausea. The fighter shook and weaved a little bit as Destiny fought to keep it in control. Come on Des don't let them prove you wrong. You can do this and are strong than that. Pull it together, thought finally fighting off that wave.

< Tag Kevin >

"Captain Andre, maybe you should turn around," the young RIO called from the back. With gritted teeth, the captain shook her head. "No can do. I have a friend out there who needs my help and I'm not about to abandon him," stated trying to get her to see. Charisma was the only RIO who could really tell her, Des you are making the stupidest mistake ever, and get away with it. That was the kind of friendship they had, but when another one that did it was their first time working with her? Nah don't think so, they needed to respect their position. "Alright, I want missiles up. We need to take those cannons down," ordered just as another person came on over the radio.

The new doctor on aboard was now after her. A guilty feeling came over her as he stated exactly all the symptoms, but being stubborn, Destiny would never admit to any of it. "Silverwing to Laboy, I hear your concern Doc and thankful that you are doing your job, but I also have a job here. I am doing fine. When this is all said and done, I will step into the Infirmary," replied back then clicked off the radio.

< Tag Laboy >

Destiny flew in closer to the ship, firing the missiles, only to shoot out a few curses when they ship basically ate it up. "Get a few more missiles up. We're going back in to try again," told Mary Alice as this time an even stronger wave of dizziness came. She tried to shake it off, but this time prove to be a challenge. Black spots started appearing in her line of vision as everything around her started spinning and become blurry. "Captain Andre, I said everything is ready. Captain are you OK?" Mary Alice called from the back. Destiny just shook her head again, but only seemed to make things worse. "Yeah..I'm...." but the sentence never got finished as Destiny collapsed.

Mary Alice just stared wide eyed stunned for a moment as Dragon's voice came through on the radio. She didn't know what to do at first, but hearing him call for her now seemed to pull her out of things. "This is Captain Andre's RIO. She just passed out sir! Her gash reopened and is bleeding once more. What should I do sir?" asked back trying to keep calm but noticed one more thing. If something didn't happen soon, they would crash into the enemy vessel. Talking about the worse timing for doze on Destiny's part.

< Tag Nolen, all >

[Samantha "Thumper" Armstrong]

1032
BC-303/4 Odyssey
Hangar Bay

Somehow, the warrant officer wound up in the hangar bay. She was ordered to be part of a strike team which boggled the computer geek’s mind. Sam felt best fitted at the center control making sure all the weapons, shields, and life support were sustaining adequate supplies. Even the hacker needed to yet be caught and she was about the only one to her knowledge of having some form of contact with the hacker. Nevertheless, her body stood there holding a data pad ready for the upcoming mission.

Just what are we doing? Aren’t we about to be boarded? During her train of thought a weapon was handed to the young woman. She held it as though it was some sort of disease. Weapons and here became something of a mixed feeling. One of these killed her younger brother so long ago. Yet, being able to have some form of retribution every time another individual was out of line enough to cause her to react with gunfire….you have no idea what hostiles await us super sly.

Basically, Sam waited for the orders wondering just exactly was going through the mind of their current CO, Mitchell. What were his true intentions?

<Tag: Anyone>

[Kevin "Hawk" Phillips]

1032
BC-303/4 Odyssey
Hangar Bay

After receiving his orders Kevin made his way to the Hangar Bay rather quickly and suited up in a matter of seconds. He was used to doing Rapid Response sort of missions so the amount of time it took him to get geared up wasn't too long at all. He was still boggled by the fact that Destiny had decided to go back out like that, it wasn't right. He couldn't see her get hurt but he knew it had been her decision. When she had passed out he wanted to throw something, to hurt something, to do anything to get her back on the ship but he knew that he had to focus on his job and hope that other's would be doing their job as well.

"Have you ever been on something like this before, Samantha?" Kevin asked, his Southerner accent thick in his voice as he finished strapping his Rifle to the strap around his neck and checking how many extra rounds he had and stuffed his pockets with a bit more along with some extra grenades. He quickly climbed into the puddle jumper and took a seat in the back, waiting for everyone else to climb in and gave Samantha a small smile. "What do you think about all of this?" So he was one to make small talk, maybe it was an okay thing because she was also a Marine.

<Tag Samantha & All>

[Aleksandr Kamarov]

1032
BC-304 Odyssey
Bridge

With Chief's Hansford and Armstrong both called to the hanger bay to join the strike team destined to infiltrate the asteroid, the vessel was severely lacking in technically minded personnel. Leaving in charge the highest ranking and most qualified remaining engineer in his place in charge of the engineering hub, Alek ascended his way through the American warship, making his way to the bridge. While he preferred to work from the depths of the engineering hub and not have to be face-to-face with the commander when he had bad news to deliver, he knew now was no time for cowardice.

Striding onto the scene of chaos that was the bridge, Kamarov assumed the console usually occupied by Chief Armstrong, and gave himself an overview of the vessels vitals. Engines were still long gone, and would be until spare parts could be sourced. The shields were looking promising, and slowly climbing into levels that would offer protection for the vessel, though he doubted they'd survive another energy blast again. Weapons systems were slowly coming back, though were still a long way from returning fire on the asteroid base. Thankfully, life support was stable, and the hull was holding. For the time being.

Yes, the vessel was in bad shape, but at least she was in some shape, and not a pile of molten metal floating deep in space. Cracking his knuckles, Alek mentally prepared himself for his next course of action.

"Orders?"

< Tag Crew >

[Leon "Wild Fox" Fox]

1032
BC-303/4 Odyssey
Hangar Bay

Leon walked into the hanger bay already suited up holding a Benelli M4 Super 90, Leon's current weapon of choice. Once inside the puddle jumper he checked his sidearm and radio. This was his first strike team mission, it had been so unusual not being in a fighter. Spinning through the sky's avoiding missiles, now he had to walk around avoiding bullets the size of dimes and finding spies like a real detective. He couldn't complain about that latter that much cause it made him seem really really cool.

A few familiar faces, some he didn't know so well. "Where's Skeie?" He asked fixing his vest before taking a seat, also noticing one of the techies were on board besides Hansford. He dug into his memory banks for the name to go with the face, Leon was tasked with remembering every crew member by name, rank, and affiliation. "The name is Armstrong right? You a marine aren't you?" He could tell she wasn't sure about what she was doing on this mission. "Time to take the hard as nails crap to heart. Trust in us, because we are here trusting in you..."

He looked over to Phillips who he barely knew, he didn't have time to memorize them all.

[/b]"You're uhm... A marine too... Name escapes me. Ethan? No offense friend."[/b] He smirked, all the coolness he had just turned into douchiness.[/blockquote]

<Tag Strike Force!!>

[Samarra Blackwell]

1027
BC-304 Odyssey
Communications

Upon receiving the order from Col. Mitchell, Samarra closed her eyes and relayed the order to surrender to another communication officer who would establish the connection with the station on the planet. Handing over command of the Communications Hub to the next highest officer, who by some miracle was still left standing, she started towards the exit, only to stop as she heard a familiar voice at a passing console. An empty one. She felt a pit in her stomach at the conversation between Captain Andre and the other officers became heated. It took her a moment to catch the jist of what was going on. Were they trying to take out cannons on the base? Uh-oh!

"Captain Samarra Blackwell to Dragon and Silverwing, an order for the surrender of the Odyssey has been issued by Colonel Mitchell. Do not fire upon the station. I repeat, do NOT fire upon the station. A team has been issued to report to the station for negotiations. There should be a ceasefire in effect. Report back to the ship and seek medical attention for those who need it. Copy that?"

[/i]

<Tag Dragon or Silverwing>

Glancing down at her watch, she cursed silently. Her eyes shot across the room to find someone to monitor this situation. She had to report down to the Hangar Bay ASAP. Should she run by the armory first? Right now, she was in nothing but her BDUs. Her head throbbed slightly and she was still slightly winded from her impact with the console. A marine from the security team was standing in the doorway, staring like a lost puppy at the chaos of the control room.

"Marine, give me your weapons," she ordered as she strapped the rifle loop over her shoulder and the pistol to her leg. The young gun looked a bit shaken up but obedient nonetheless. Ah, security officers. They always acted like they were stripped naked if they weren't carrying some sort of weapon. Samarra tried to resist rolling her eyes. "Thank you. Make sure someone monitors this station. I want communication between those F-302s and this ship to stay online at all times. Do you understand?" With a slightly confused 'Yes, Ma'am', she was off towards the Hangar, dashing down the corridors at breakneck speed.
[/blockquote]

1032
BC-304 Odyssey
Hangar Bay

The lift stopped on the Hangar level, she spotted the jumper as it was starting up. Jogging across the bay, she stood on the jumper ramp before the others, recognizing Warrant Officer Armstrong before the others.

"Armstrong," she acknowledged with a slight smile and nod of recognition. Glancing around, she knew the names of each officer, even though she did not know each one personally. Either way, she addressed them.

"Phillips, Fox. Captain Samarra Blackwell. It's a pleasure to finally meet you both. I've heard a lot about you." She left it at that.

<Tag Fox or Phillips>

Her attention was directed from the soldiers to the cockpit, where the CMO was attempting to communicate with the F-302s. A slight feeling of hope filled her..until it all came shattering down when the RIOs panicked voice crackled through the system. Horror began to tear through Samarra's chest, but she did her best to remain calm.

No, no, no, no, no. C'mon, Des...don't do this!

<Tag Anyone>

[Samantha "Thumper" Armstrong]

1033
BC303-4/Odyssey
Hangar Bay

Others began entering the bay. Phillips was the first to respond giving words of encouragement after asking if this was her first time out in the field of battle. ”Let’s just say, I’m usually chained to a desk and this wasn’t exactly the kind of task I was expecting. But I know, duty is duty and will accommodate the needs of the commander to the best of my abilities.” Continuing to figure out the weapon (which took only a few moments), another figure walked in giving off the impression of some badass in need of a good ……

"The name is Armstrong right? You a marine aren't you? …Time to take the hard as nails crap to heart. Trust in us, because we are here trusting in you..."

The warrant officer only offered a nodded response. Turning to no one’s view but the wall, a figurative roll of the eyes commensed. It wasn’t time for any smart alec remarks although a few were already formulating deep within the vortex of her creative and speculative mind. As another female entered, it lifted her spirits slightly. At least I won’t be the only woman around. Blackwell seemed quite anxious and extremely professional in her demeanor, much like Des.

Her mind wondered to the cockpit of the pilot’s ship. Please be ok. A silent prayer continued for a dear friend and the hopes that this little sidetracked rendezvous was going to go as planned.

<Tag: Anyone>

[Aleksandr Kamarov]

1033
BC-304 Odyssey
Bridge

"Keep working on those shields Mr. Kamarov," order one of the command personnel on the bridge. "If that weapons fires again we need to be able to defend ourselves." "It will be done," Aleksandr replied, and turned back to his console to begin his work on the shields. All around him the bridge was a scene of chaos, with crew members and technicians alike trying to patch up the plethora of systems damaged or destroyed by the enemy beam weapons. Closing his eyes, Kamarov took a few deep breath to calm himself, then began his work.

Thanks to the timely work of Chief Armstrong, the shields were slowing starting to build themselves back up. Alek opened a communications line down to the shield modulators, and spoke to the engineer in charge. "Lot of physical damage down here Chief," the engineer replied. "Don't know how much rerouting you'll be able to do from up there." Concerned by the news, Kamarov wished the engineer good luck with a tradition Russian prayer. "Ummm, yeah, thanks Chief," came the reply from the confused engineer before the line closed, The thanking had seemingly been lost in translation.

While maintaining all essential systems, Aleksandr run a list of non-essential services and work his way through them in order, rerouting power where he could. Non-essential lighting was the first to go, following by small things such as the cookers in the galley, and hot water serves in the change rooms. They were all tiny amounts of energy, but greater than the sum of their parts when it came to shield generation. Once he'd isolated each flow of power, he redirected it into the struggling shields, and watched their power levels slowly creep toward maximum levels.

< Tag BRIDGE CREW! >

[Abi Ely]

1015
BC-304 Odyssey
Infirmary

Someone was screaming. Then it stopped. How lovely. Something smelled funny. Kinda a musky smell - like one of those that just sticks on to the back of your throat and you basically taste all day. Yum. Finger-Lickin'-Good.

Eyes slowly opening, Abi cursed under her breath, as a bright light overhead quickly caused her eyes to slam shut once more. Raising one arm to cover both her eyes, a cord caught her attention. Now with something to distract her from the fact that she didn't know where she was, how she got there, what the frak that smell was...and of course, why the lights were so frakking bright - Abi's other hand followed the random cord. Or maybe it wasn't a cord. A tube? At the end of the tube lay a baggie thingy. With clear stuff. Abi half-heartily groped the bag, having the feeling that maybe that wasn't the smartest thing to do...especially when the clear baggie-thingy was hooked into her arm.

Finding the source of the connection, Abi groaned as she slid her other arm's finger over the lump of tape-ish-stuff. Carefully looking around before looking down at herself, the girl couldn't help but wonder how the hell she got here. So far, all clues pointed to this place being the Infirmary.

It was never a good sign to wake up in an Infirmary. It was really not good to wake up there without any memory of getting there, either. Or what happened that landed her there, in the first place. There were vague memories that washed around her mind, like a bad flashback on a television show. Bad lighting. Bad sound. Tsk, tsk. Whoever was doing the production of her life should be fired.

Head injury? she pondered, feeling for a bandage around her head. There was one by her right temple - but that seemed too small of an injury to warrant the clear-bag-o-goo that she had seen so many times growing up, hooked into people that weren't doing so hot. So...why wasn't she so hot? Examining herself as nurses and doctors and whatnot passed by, since she didn't appear to be bleeding out of her eyes, Abi soon discovered a brace on her left arm. Damn. Why couldn't it not be her dominant side?

Wishing that they just cut off her arm so she could have an epic bionic arm instead of this lame human one, Abi carefully used her unbraced fingers to painfully shimmy out the IV. Even with two tattoos and several piercings...needles were just wrong.

Free from being wired into the system, Abi carefully played dead until it appeared as if no one was watching her. Quickly escaping out the door, the civvie made her way down the corridor.

First rule of living on a spaceship - if all hell breaks loose and you don't remember a frakking thing on how you ended up in the Infirmary - head to the bridge. Probably someone there knows.

1035
BC-304 Odyssey
Bridge

Noticing a severe lack of people (maybe they were all in the Infirmary?) Abi - now upon the bridge - pounced on the first person she saw. Aleksandr Kamarov. And she was probably the only person on the ship that could speak to him in his native tongue. Sure - she wasn't pro at Russian; but all languages were pretty much all the same. Step one - what type of alphabet? Step two - verb agreement? Step three - string 'em all together. Sure, it wasn't really that simple, but growing up in a household where several languages would be spoken in one conversation, it was a miracle that Abi didn't speak in clicks and awkward motions. Though...she did get confused with the various dialects of sign language. Shouldn't there just be one? But no. Everyone needs their own frakking version...

Glancing down at her own braced arm again - not even sure how frakked up it was under the bandages and brace - Abi pet it slightly, before finally pouncing upon Alek. Not Alex. Alek. Why no 'X'? Well - he was cooler than the x. Just like how his name ended in a 'dr'. Too cool for the e. Plus...that's just how it was spelled if directly translated from the Russian alphabet. It was nice to see someone not completely English-ify themselves just so they didn't stick out like a soar thumb.

"Alek..." she began in her native South African accent - which a few found hard to understand, "<What's going on here?>" she asked in Russian, simply because she should. Why not? Also, she was testing her brain damage. She had already mentally complained about the production value of her life, so it was nice to just take some mental inventory.

<<TAG: BRIDGE & ALEK>>

[Aleksandr Kamarov]

1035
BC-304 Odyssey
Bridge

From his seated position at his console, Aleksandr watched the the power he had rerouted slowly pushed the shields back. From the 75% level established by Chief Armstrong he'd been able to slowly reach the 86% mark, but at that point they would go no further. Considering the first energy blast and torn the ship to near shreds on full power, Kamarov would have preferred levels in the 130% and over mark, but he could only do so much. He'd have to hope that the engineers down below deck could do the rest.

Without realizing he patted the back of his seat, and could still feel blood slowly seeping out. He should look at getting a bandage; hell, he shouldn't have left the infirmary in the first place, but his place was here on the bridge. Besides, even if he did bandage himself up the staff would relieve him of his duty due to the nature of his injuries, and he would be good to no one if it came to that.

For the first time in months, Alek heard a Russian voice, and turned to see who it was. "What's going on here?" Miss Ely, the ship's resident cryptologist, inquired. Kamarov couldn't help but contain a half smile at hearing and finally being able to use his native tongue. "< A enemy beam weapon has struck the vessel, doing us much damage >"

[/i] Kamarov replied in Russian, glad to not be messing about with poorly translated English words. < A strike team is on their way to infiltrate the asteroid as we speak. Further more, there is an enemy agent on board, hacking into our computer systems, although they seem to have halted their attempts. This troubles me >"[/i][/blockquote]
< Tag Crew >

[Xavier "Doc" Laboy]

1031 -32
Odyssey
Hanger

"Silverwing to Laboy, I hear your concern Doc and thankful that you are doing your job, but I also have a job here. I am doing fine. When this is all said and done, I will step into the Infirmary,"

Xavier was happy to hear that she sounded fine, for now. "Okay, I guess as long as you think your alright. After all I can't check up on you from here..." Xavier said waiting a response, but it never came. Shortly after his response Xavier heard Nolen try to speak to Captain Andre only to be responded by her RIO. 'Damn' Xavier thought, he almost felt like slamming the Radio down. After all this all happened because Captain Andre didn't report to the infirmary.

1032-35

Xavier then went into 'Doctor' mode(even though he's always in Doctor mode) before turning his radio on again, "Captain Andre's RIO, can you check Captain Andre's pulse for me? And if you have some sort of light please check her Pupil response."

(Tag: Andre (RIO))

Xavier then turned back to the task force speaking to no one in general. "I really hope you guys don't do this often..." his voice trailed off as he listened to the radio chatter.

(Tag anyone)

[Cameron "Shaft" Mitchell]

1034
Bridge

With Chief Hansford having gone with the strike team, Mitchell saw the Russian engineer enter the bridge and take a vacant station. Walking over and setting a hand on the man's shoulder, he said, "Keep working on those shields Mr. Kamarov." He has the utmost confidence in the engineer's abilities. Stepping over to the command chair, Mitchell pressed the comm button and said, "Someone give me a status update on our two pilots. In the meantime, patch me through to the hangar."

When the link was open, Mitchell spoke, "Alright boys and girls, you're headed to the station. While we buy time with our so-called surrender, you're to infiltrate cloaked and attempt to commandeer the station. IF that fails, eliminate the threat using any means necessary. Chief Hansford, you've got the gene, you fly the bird. Any questions?"

<Tag Strike Team>

1035

While waiting for a response, Mitchell noticed another crewmember come onto the bridge and converse with Alek in Russian. "Miss ... Eli I believe?" the Lieutenant Colonel inquired. When she turned to him, he said, "You've got a background in cryptology if I recall, so see what you can do about getting on that hacker problem ... take Armstrong's station."

<Tag Aby and Alek>

Just then, someone came up and gave him a status report on the pilots. "Aww hell," Cameron began. "Open me up to their frequency." When that was ready, he began, "Dragon, what's the current status of your bird? And Andre's RIO, what the hell is going on?"

<Tag Everyone>

[Abi Ely]

1036
BC-304 Odyssey
Bridge

Confusion was part of life. Like breathing, eating, sleeping, and at least chewing upon one pencil to the point of tasting graphite - confusion was always present. Though Abi accepted that sometimes she would be in the dark, it still was a bit irritating. Her naturally hyperactive nature caused the civilian to miss things, sometimes; though not in her work. Of course, this led to more confusion, and an unhappy Abi. Waking up in the Infirmary with no memory of getting there really wasn't the best way to start a day...or end it. Hell...what time was it?

Winding a lock of her nearly black - though it was legally still brown (or that's what her driver license said) - around a finger from her right hand, Ely allowed the strand to curl off her finger, falling back to her shoulder twice as curled as it was before, as she scoped out the diligent workers upon the Bridge. She wasn't a 'hair-twirler' - sometimes she just enjoyed playing with her natural, random, curls within her hair. Especially since it smelled like strawberries. Yum. She still owed her sister for sending her a bottle of that amazing shampoo before poofing out to this flying hunk of metal. Hopefully very sturdy metal.

Dark blue eyes locking onto Alek - who looked like hell at the moment (that man needed a cookie) - Abi inquired about the current situation in his native tongue. Why? Well - because she could. Would she force a deaf person to read her lips, or make life easier by signing back to them? It just seemed like a common cutesy...though his 'looking like hell'-ness was a bit disconcerting. Possibly he had pulled a stunt similar to Abi, and had gone all Russian-Ninja and escaped from the screaming cesspool, that was the Infirmary? Haha. Russian Ninja. Abi's own mind amused her.

Even with the 'I just ran a marathon at 3am' look in his eye, it cheered Abi up a bit to see him get a kick out of her addressing him in Russian. Ah, how the simple things could remove that dead look from their eyes. Or at least a little. A cookie would definitely help.
"< A enemy beam weapon has struck the vessel, doing us much damage >" Alek responded in his own native tongue, "< A strike team is on their way to infiltrate the asteroid as we speak. Further more, there is an enemy agent on board, hacking into our computer systems, although they seem to have halted their attempts. This troubles me.>"

"<That does explain a lot,>" Abi replied, fiddling with her arm brace slightly in thought, "<For instance, my waking up in the Infirmary with no prior knowledge of getting there. And the apparent lack of personnel working about the space ship,>" she continued, amused with the translation in her head. Sometimes the translation sounded so formal in one language, yet it was just normal speech in another. Plus...speaking Russian was a hell of a lot easier than reading it. That alphabet was...pretty. It made reading and learning the language more of a puzzle than say, French, or any variation of Spanish.

"Miss ... Eli I believe?" an American voice broke Abi's mental Russian trance, causing her to jump ever-so-slightly. It was so tempting to reply in Russian. Or French. Maybe a language she picked up while in the more rural parts of Africa which actually had no real written form. Hand movements and clicking was involved.
"Ely, actually," she corrected in a light tone, through her heavy accent, "And you're Lieutenant Colonel Cameron "Shaft" Mitchell, I believe," she rattled off, smiling at her own natural way with names. It probably came from memorizing too-many words in other languages. Most of her time was spent memorizing words, so why should names be any different?
"<Your nickname or callsign, 'Shaft', is such an odd addition to your name, though. Makes me recall people 'getting the shaft'. Or an elevator shaft...>" she rattled off in Russian for Alek's amusement, while turning towards the Lieutenant Colonial, himself. He'd probably flush her out the airlock for saying that in English. Maybe he'd just slide it off as her saying 'excuse me a moment', to Alek.

"You've got a background in cryptology if I recall, so see what you can do about getting on that hacker problem ... take Armstrong's station."
"Oui, monsieur," she replied, accepting his suggestion - or rather order - with two fingers upon her bandaged temple pulling out into a mildly pathetic salute. She wasn't trying to be a prick, it just happened that way. Hopefully the American-bloke would have a bit of a sense of humor.

Wandering towards the station that previously was occupied by a woman with one of the coolest last names of all time, Abi poked through her work carefully - not wanting to frak anything up...and since she wasn't as computer-ee as Samantha was. That was her deal. Abi just decoded stuff and spoke too many languages. Let Samantha deal with the electronics.

As Abi tried to make sense of what Samantha had accomplished before poofing off to wherever the hell she was now, she couldn't help but peek over her shoulder a bit at the rest of the people upon the bridge. They had all been here awhile. She could almost feel the frustrated, tired, and grumpy feeling that just permeated in the air, like a bad perfume. It was tempting to run down to her sleeping area and grab her ukulele and liven the mood - but some part of her shot down the idea. Probably the part that kept her working in the first place. But if she randomly acquired some cookies...

<Tag Bridge>

[Samarra Blackwell]

1034
BC-304 Odyssey
Hangar Bay
Jumper One


Doctor Laboy's reponse to Des's lack of response sent a chill down Samarra's spine. It almost sent her into a flurry of panic and worry. She always got like this, worrying about things over which she had no control. His exasperated remark bounced off of her as if she were stone, an attempted callsign someone had once tried to give her. It never stuck. She wouldn't allow it.

She snapped out of her distraction when the Colonel's voice came over the Jumper's communications.

"Alright boys and girls, you're headed to the station. While we buy time with our so-called surrender, you're to infiltrate cloaked and attempt to commandeer the station. IF that fails, eliminate the threat using any means necessary. Chief Hansford, you've got the gene, you fly the bird. Any questions?"

"Yes, sir. I have one quick question. Could you define 'fail' for me? I believe I've never heard the word before," Samarra replied, a slight grin crossing her face. She had to do something to get the crew's and her own minds off the dire situation they were in. Too much stress causes early aging, and Samarra would be damned if she was going to die with even one wrinkle on her face. "Other than that, we are a go, sir. Everyone is aboard. Chief Hansford, fire her up. We have a station to commandeer."

<Tag Hansford, Mitchell, Team, ANYONE! lol>