And here she was at the helm again, this time of the big ****p, Falcon. They
were back on their way to Admiral Cutail's starbase, mission accomplished,
no forseen obstacles in the way. None forseen, but Osprey still flew shot-
gun for them, semi automonious, linked to Aurora through her tactile
implants.
And if something should happen that required them to go past warp 6, there
was an open shuttle bay waiting for it to dash into.
This helm, that helm. It had been leaps back and forth between them, leaps
in and out of her pressure suit. Now, she was back in the standard uniform
though she still wore her basic flight gloves. Not only was it im****tant
for the tactile comm link but it reduced the lightning time she had
refined
getting suited up even more.
Here, there, and back again. It was the kind of life that was expected of
her,
as a pilot, as a Marine, or at least one in the eyes of the rest of the
crew.
At the helm, to anyone observing, Aurora was focused, concentrating on the
tasks at hand, the one in front her and the one elsewhere. While the nymph
of
the helm officer looked the same as she always had, delicious, seductive,
yummy, there was now something else about her, at least when at work. The
face was still soft but the eyes had taken on a directed concentration.
They
weren't threatening, but then again, they were no longer playful, at least
on the job.
And, for better or worse but probably the better, they were proud. In her
time in Starfleet, Aurora had been through four ****ps; the Galileo, the
Phoenix, the Orion, and the Falcon. She had fought with Marines, both as
pilot and directly part of an assault force. In all that time, things had
not been uneventful for she had been harassed as a *** toy, seen death,
been
tortured, used as a Nemesis, and seen, experienced other things where a
lot
of the time, the enemy, direct and those indirect who disquised themselves
as allies, saw to use her a pawn, a toy.
But this last mission had rammed it home to realization. She may have been
bred, from an historical standpoint, to be a whore, but she wasn't. She
was
an officer and a lady with excellent skills that made her the best that
were of vital im****tance to any mission. And with this mission, she knew
it, she felt it, she was it. Mercy from the Gods was all that awaited
anyone
who tried to tell her differently.
And yet, Aurora was also a Marine. Granted, a rather sophisticated and
cultured one though with her family's background, the training, she was
equally at home drinking vat wine from mugs in the bar with the troops or
enjoying finer vinages in goblets in a grand dining room. But still a
Marine
who would always be relentlessly ready.
But as a Marine, Aurora was a beat and exhausted one. And yet, she
knew that she was still capable. As long as she could feel the burr, the
noise, the vibration in her bones that said that she wasn't completely
drained, she knew that she could always do one more battle.
Osprey signalled over her nerves ****ps on forward sensors, the anticipated
starbase picket vessels in their assigned patrol slots. She gave her
Preybird
permission in a thought for it to advance and verify them. She watched on
the
screen as the Marine assault craft flew on and then felt the verification
codes as Osprey transmitted them, heard the duty comm officer annouce that
they
were correct.
"Officer of the deck, permission to release the Osprey for automated star
base
docking?" Aurora levely said, not even looking back at the bridge officer,
her concentration still on maneuvering the Falcon. Permission was granted
and
in another thought, she told her craft so. While Osprey was so much to her
and
she to it, it was still just a sophisticated machine. Programmed to care
for
her, to respect her, and to fight for the Federation, they were not lovers
and
neither was a pet of the other. Osprey acknowledged the order, she "heard"
the starbase computer cut in and while she still listened to her craft,
she
released the control to the starbase, but she could alway yank it back, so
Osprey could dock.
Aurora had the Falcon's docking to occupy her attention. Crisply going
thru
orders, she aligned the ****p for starbase access and brought its long trip
to an end.
------------------------
nrpg: got us back so we can start again. Been exercising and feeling a
little
bit Marine.
-Traci
("Yeah, things are not so rosey but,"--The Blur, being interviewed, looks
up
sharply. "Excuse me!", BLURRRRS out of the room, BLURRRRRRS back into the
room. "Had to stop a flood from taking out Bangledash. Were there any
calls?", (w,stte), Milky Way Commercial)
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