Chapter 3-A: Calm before the Storm

=i continue testing the thrusters, I end up burning a hole in the floor. I get out and go looking for some cleaning supplies. I wander into what I thought was the supply room, but i find out it was the engine room= Oh gods, I must still be hungover from the blood loss. How the hell do I get out of here?

=i find my way out of the engine room and find the supply closet. I grab some soap and a bucket of water and head back to the hanger bay=

=i clean up the wound i made to the ship, trying not to think of Jay and the others. I run a simulation dogfight against an endless number of enemy ships. The weapons are disabled, as are the main engines, but the thrusters and flaps still move=

I grab my armour on the way down and put it on outside the engine room door. I breathe deeply and enter the room. Spotting the slipspace drive area, i head on over. My radiation counter flares as i enter the room.

Okay gotta be real quick in here Jay. Radiation isn't too good for you.

I quickly head on over to the slipspace drive core, typing in a few console commands to power it down. I feel the ship come out of slipspace.

Forgive me guys.

I knock all of the discs out of place and scatter them throughout the room before leaving the zone.

Heres hoping the radiation didn't hit me too badly.

=i am oblivious to the ship leaving slipspace, but I accidentally launch the Dream of Luck. my weapons and engines come online, accepting commands from something that should be a simulation. i begin dogfighting and destroying phantom targets in the vastness of Empty Space=

=my simulation detects a squadron of stealth fighters as a phantom escort launching from the nearby cruiser. i turn and engage, destroying 7 of the 10 fighters=

I notice Dormii's ship firing at nothing.I whisper to myself

What the hell are you doing? I hope you can forgive me when you find out. I'm sorry for what i said to you.

I hit the thrusters and leave the area, following my ships co-ordinates of a UNSC ship.

=i notice a seraph leaving the target area, i turn and engage=

The ships console beeps and i initiate a roll to dodge the incoming missiles. I ready my hand over a button and lock onto Dormii's ship.

Sorry. But this will be for your own good. At least you won't spin off into space.

I hit the button and my Sabre launches an EMP which hits Dormii's ship.

=my ship gets knocked out by an EMP. my console still shows it as seraph= What the hell? New Covie tech? Fine.

=i reboot the systems and reengage, launching cannon shots after cannon shots at the target=

=my engines sputter and die, the thrusters failing= Dammit, dammit, dammit, dammit! At least I'm going to take you down with me!

=i launch my remaining missiles at the seraph before all my engines fail= Great, now how are you going to get back Dormii?

=my engines come online, and i fly back to the Trophaeum= Now what the hell do I do? That seraph is long gone, and.....I have no idea.

Wait a second...when did we drop out of slipspace?

=i open a ship-wide comm= Hey, when did we get out of SlipSpace?

I hail the UNSC frigate

This is Jay-297, need assistance. I have just escaped from rebel forces.

=as i wait for someone to tell me what happened, i notice something. Jay's Sabre is gone= Dammit! I hope she wasn't taken out by that seraph. I wish I would've at least said good-bye.

=i realize a horrible truth, that i could have killed Jay= If I was training in real space, that means my weapons could have been in use. =i check the ammo count of the DoL, it reads almost empty on cannon ammo, along with no missiles in storage. i punch the side of the DoL, denting the armor, and collapse leaning against it=

Dammit, dammit, gods. Why? Why me? What did I do to offend you?

I receive the response call and head to dock with the Frigate. As i set my Sabre down and walk off of it, i'm surrounded by UNSC marines. I feel glad that i was wearing my armour as i engaged them, ripping their guns out of their hands and firing point blank. I feel almost alive again and make my way to the bridge, wiping the ship clean of any marines as i do so. In the bridge i take the captains head between my hands and snap his neck.

Rest in peace friends.

I manoeuvre the Ship and start to make my way back to the Tropheaum

=i see a Frigate on it's way to the Trophaeum= Oh, hell no. I am not going out without a fight! =i board the DoL, with all of it's low ammo count=

=i broadcast at the frigate a low-frequency banshee scream= =banshee altered= YOU WILL DIE! YOU CAN NOT HAVE THIS SHIP WITHOUT COST!

=i fly at the bridge on a suicide run and engage the cannon, i do not alter course=

My hands shoot across the console tapping in commands and directions as i try to fly an entire frigate by myself. i snap on the shields and put all the power to the front. i have just enough time to flick the comms open.

DORMII DISENGAGE!! DISENGAGE DAMMIT I scream as something explodes next to me BACK OFF. THERES ONLY ME IN HERE!

=i pull off to the side, missing the bridge by feet= Jay? That better be the real you.

I yell down the comms at him

Noooo! It's some other random UNSC marine with my voice who knows your name.

Get the hell in here and help me pilot this thing.

=i land= Plenty know my name. As for your voice, you did snap my arm so, you know, making sure.

=i pass hallways filled with dead marines= Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.....

I groan down the comms at him

Just get up here.

=i barely make it to the bridge= Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit, oh shit...

=i stumble over to the console= Never again, never again, never again...

I glance at him while still running all over the place hitting buttons

Okay you are so not helping right now.

=i gulp= Trying not to fall here, as in, physically and mentally. Where do you need me?

Never again, never again, never again...

I look at him like he is completely stupid

Wherever there's big warning flashes?

Everywhere. Hold on, idea.

=i take control of the ship through my helmet. i see every security camera on my HUD, as well as the navigation cameras= Where are we going to park this thing?

=i try to block out the sights of dead marines, blood everywhere, bodies piled high=

I pull my helmet off, noticing im getting far too hot inside my armour

Just alongside the Tropheaum would be good. I thought i'd make it up to you guys by getting us a ship that actually works.

I'll...try.

=my words are strained. I'm trying not to slip, to go back. i emit a scream, trying to drown out the images by pure sound=

I walk over to him and pull his helmet off.

Come on, you can do this. Stop focusing on the cameras.

I kiss him and put his helmet back on

Thank...you...Meo...Amo.

=i try to ignore the cameras, focusing only on the piloting and Jay's kiss. i bring the ship in, lining the docking bays up for a relatively short zero-g jump. I match the speeds, and disengage my helm link to the ship=

=breathless= Now...can we leave this gods forsaken place?

I smile at him.

GO ahead, i'll clean this place up for you.

=i make the smile gesture= I'm not leaving you again, ever. Besides, you owe me for my arm.

Don;t be stupid, you can barely hold it in. And anyway i got you a whole ship in return for your arm, what more do you want?

Don't forget: Sudo iuvo et protego tu.

=i give her a quick hug= I'm glad you're back. and I can think of several things.

Was i ever truely gone?

I push him back

Go on, someone needs to tell the others not to blow us up.

I walk out the room and start stacking the dead marines up in piles of 5

=i walk back to the hanger bay, trying not to look at the bodies. i jump across to the Trophaeum and comm the others=

Hey, guys. You won't believe what Jay just caught for us.

=to Jay= You sure you're back? Usually the people in my life don't break my arm or arms unless I did something to piss them off. =I switch to helmet to helmet camera feed=

I grunt as i throw the last few bodies into the mound.

Doing fine. Go get me a lot of cleaning stuff from the store cupboard and bring it over to the ship, then start moving everything we have over there.

I jump back across the gap

Got it. =i jog off to the cleaning room to get supplies=

I glance around at the blood everywhere.

God this is going to take time.

=i comm over= I can always get you a flamethrower. I heard those work (saracsm)wonderfully(end) with cleaning up stuff. You left your comm on.

Just bring me the cleaning stuff.

I sigh and switch my comm off

=I awake from sleep to find I am covered in blood..=

Me: What the.. Oh yeah, Ja-

=I glance over to the table housed Jay. Use to=

Me: Damnit..

=I begin to load my pistol and collect my things to search for everyone=

=i come back with the cleaning supplies. I run into Snow= Where are you going? Didn't ya hear? We got a new ship.