Spark in the Dark

[Admiral Hart]

Jo sat against the wall in her usualy place, almost asleep, but not quite. The comm kept waking her.

Someone was sending her an incoming call and was not taking no for an answer. Every time the beeping stopped, it started up again the very next second.

"Comm, open. Voice only." Jo said at last, after an hour of unanswered calls.

"Jo, oh thank God." It was Aphrodite, her cool a bit shaken.

"Go away Aph. I'm not taking calls." She replied.

"This is an emergency Josetta. Annabelle is losing control. She's torturing Thorn and Lyra for information, but soon it's going to stop being about information and Lyra's going to turn into another girl Anna's mutilated and molested in the dark. Please Jo. Please, you have to help her. She'll give up the quest to find you, and her ship. She wants you to stop her. Go back to skulking after you've saved your little sister's soul." Aphrodite blurted out. "I'm transfering her coordinates now. Please Jo."

The voice faded. Josetta sat in the dark for another hour before standing and walking to the bathroom. She took a long shower and walked out on deck, her sword at her side, missing both her hat and her coat, her shirt only partially tucked.

"Crew. This is Hart." She said in a dismal voice. "We are going to rescue Scarguard and Lyra from United Earth custody. Get ready for ship to ship combat. We are leaving immediately. Hart, out."

The crew was looking at her with surprise, joy, shock, and sympathy. "I said move out." Hart said more insistantly as she slumped into her chair. "Xiao, Jane, you have the coordinates. Get a move on."

[Willie Barbary]

Willie eyed her lover in disbelief, an exasperated growl rolling out of her chest.

"Miller. You have got to be kidding me."

But Miller wasn't kidding. He never kid, after all. He really was fighting his way into his black jacket, grimacing somewhat as the action aggravated all the cuts and lacerations striping his chest and back. Despite the fact that his face was still wrapped in gauze, swollen and half-torn up from that bastard Mage kid Christian. He was going to join the mission, despite the fact that he was damn near dead on his feet already.

"Please don't be difficult about this, Willie," he heaved softly, somewhat pained. The small pilot growled again.

"You're being a stubborn jackass trying to get yourself killed, and you don't want me to be difficult!" she snarled.

"I'm not trying to get myself killed. I'm trying to put this jacket on." He gave her a hopeful stare. "You wouldn't mind giving me a little bit of a hand, would you? This arm is really stiff."

"Randolph!"

Miller sighed again, shaking his head slightly and going back to trying to put his bandaged arm in the sleeve. Willie watched him struggle for about another minute before she finally stepped forward--muttering obscenities under her breath the whole time--reaching out and helpfully pulling the oddly heavy black material up and over his shoulders. Then she reached for the fastenings before he could, doing them up with sharp, angry gestures.

"I swear to Christ, if you get yourself any more fucked up than you already are, don't you dare come looking for sympathy from me. You wanna get busted up to hell and back, that's your own damned business. I'm not gonna keep tearing my hair out over you, Miller. Your son drives me insane all on his own, he doesn't need any help, thank you very much."

She finished with the fastenings of his jacket, jerking it into place and sniffling the wetness out of her nose with a determined scowl. Miller reached out to take her chin in his hand, forcing her to look up at him.

"I love you, Willie," he murmured then. The pilot just gave him a stubborn, watery glare.

"Whatever."

The former Mamba smirked a little at that, bending down to peck her on the lips. "Yah, I know. You love me too."

"Hah," she sniped as he turned away and stepped over to where Joey was laying in his makeshift crib, though there wasn't any heat or venom in her tone anymore. Instead she watched him sadly as he bent down and feathered a gentle kiss to his son's head before he started for the door. "That's what you think. I'm not gonna be here when you get back you know," she yelled out after him. As it wasn't the first time she'd made the empty threat, Miller wasn't fazed, just kept walking. "Me and Joey'll be long gone to Mars by the time you get back, and you'll be too busy playing homicidal moron to notice!"

The door slid shut behind him, and Willie immediately slumped. She curled her arms around her middle, trying to chase away the cold terror in her gut, and without much success.

[Dane]

We are going to rescue Scarguard and Lyra from United Earth custody.

Captain Harts words echoed through Danes mind, torturing him as he entered the bridge, his face was etched with worry and anger. Jane from the pilots chair Jane gave him a cautious look, he nodded before stepping next to the captain. He stood at attention with his arms behind his back. He took a deep breathe before bringing his chin up and spoke.

"Captain." Josette's eyes shifted to his, he had her attention so he continued. "Orders?" She stared at him for a moment before speaking.

"We are rescuing Thorn and Lyra. I am going to fight Annabelle one last time. Then Annabelle and her officers are going to escape in a shuttle back to UE space and we're going to take the Heart Breaker." she spoke in a deadpan voice, void of emotion. Dane nodded, cussing to himself in the back of his head. Can't blow my way through, can't be violent and leave gaping holes.

"Anything else Mama?" her eyes flicked back to his, she studied him for a moment, knowing the captain she was reading his expression before speaking further.

"Don't kill any officers." she turned away again. Dane nodded again, turning on his heel he strode away.

"I'll prepping Elsa for launch." once clear of the room he strides purposely toward his quarters, to gear up.

*** Sometime later.***

Dane sat inside his battle suit prepping it for launch, the sprite herself sat on the control panel, keeping a close eye on the weapons expert. His face a cold mask of anger.

He was currently dressed in a neck to toe black combat suit, his matching crew issued coat over it, otherwise currently he was strapped down with enough weapons and gear to level a city block.

Lyra...I'm coming baby...I love you...Please, don't die...I won't live beyond this day otherwise....