Microcosm

[Sombs]

---

July 27th, 824 - Omicron Kappa

"When do I need to be back?"

It was Leon's room on the Apahanta. He still never got to decorate it. The room was just functional, although it had, other than Ezrael's room, a big bed, as he got him and Nancy this one when she was sharing the room with him. There was a journey bag on the bed, Leon was currently preparing it for a trip. "You're the Chief Engineer, that's something you need to know better than me," Ezrael said quietly, smirking at him while stood at the wall next to the door, watching him doing. "Have your fun with Nancy and as soon as you two are done, come back here. I just want to know my Chief Engineer is around when we do the tests."

"I see. I guess then I'll be back tomorrow in the afternoon?" Leon offered, wanting to hear if that was alright while stuffing a staple of clothes into the journey bag. "I mean, IRG double-checked everything, we double-checked everything. The previous tests were all successful. Everything will be fine," he explained.

"I'm not worried. What are your plans with Nancy? Hotel?" Ezrael asked, grinning at Leon, knowing when he and Nancy came together it would result in a big bang of a non-cosmical kind. "Remember the lube."

"We didn't make any plans yet. But I guess it'll be something along those lines. A nice evening together, a hot night, and then I won't see her for another bunch of weeks. But at least she's happy about her new job." Zipping up the bag, he turned around, looking at his mentor. Knowing he was about to say something, he answered it already. "I'd prefer having her here, yes. I know why we can't. Still a shame. And are there any news from Bretonia?"

"No. Nothing since the report I filed about the jump holes. Will need to create a catalogue about it, tho. No special operations so far, nothing scheduled. Good for us, bad for Nancy," Ezrael told him, a bit more serious. "You're ready to go?"

"Yes."

"Well, then don't waste your time here and get to the liner before they start without you," Ezrael told him, refering to the heavy armed convoy that was about to leave Livadia, heading over to Corinth, then Freeport 9, Freeport 5, Freeport 1 and then Gran Canaria, where Leon would meet Nancy. "Give her a slap on the butt from me," he added, smirking before hugging his best friend. "Remember to get some wine when you come back. Sombra brings the next supplies in a week."

"Will do," Leon simply replied, breaking the hug to get his journey bag. "Don't blow up the ship while I'm away."

"I'm usually on the receiving end of the blowy", the Captain gave him back, leaving the room with him. "Have a good one!" And with that, their ways split, with Ezrael heading for the bridge and Leon to the airlocks. A big passanger liner and a pilgrim liner were moored with Livadia, escorted by a wing of heavy fighters, a gunboat and an Aquilon carrier. Leon always felt more comfortable joining those convoys than using his own ship. Space still was a deathtrap to him, a horror he learned to live with. However, it was worth it. Thinking about Nancy and how they would spend the day together, he couldn't help himself but to smile.

---

While the Zoner convoy had departed hours ago, it was time for the next test on the Apahanta. The new cloak upgrade by the IRG was working perfectly well, and the Apahanta was able to cloak for an indefinite amount of time. The longest time thus far was three entire days, which was more than enough to stay hidden somewhere, spy, scout, move through a house or leave a battlefield. The charge-up tests were also successful, as thanks to the IRG AI add-on for the Apahanta, the cloaking device was charging within nominal parameters even when started multiple times after another, as for example, when a cruise disruption field hit the cloak. This test about about the energy diversion from cloaking device to weaponry after decloaking.

The bridge was almost empty, with only Sherry and Ezrael here, together with Kishiro Service Robots to replace the other bridge officers. As usual, the ship was sort of evacuated for the test series, shrinking the crew from 23 to eight people who were absolutely necessary. The others were on Livadia, with the exception of the Chief Engineer, who by the time was with the Zoner convoy in Omega-3. "You know, you don't need to be here, Sherry. It's bad when in case of the ship blowing up both the Captain and the Commander die," Ezrael said, standing behind the Captain's seat, leaning against the backrest with the arms folded ontop of it while looking over at Sherry in the seat next to his. She was monitoring the systems, triple-checking everything on the various screens all over the bridge and at the console very next to her seat. He knew everything was alright, as everyone else also had triple-checked everything, as well as the Apahanta itself via various diagnosis systems. Even the IRG personnel triple-checked everything. He was relaxed. It would be fine, as usual. To a certain degree, he liked the idea of this upgrade being Finn McCool's legacy, as he was the one approving and initiating all of this, as well as providing shelter and immunity for the Apahanta. Ezrael owed him much, yet from what he had heard, McCool was dead, killed by the Core. He never got to get drunk with McCool. One thing he had on his To-Do-List. In the perfect scenario, he also wanted Maria Calvo and James El Harady with them as well, just to watch a bunch of brilliant heads getting shitfaced.

"If the ship blows up, I wouldn't have anything to command left," Sherry gave him back, smirking slightly while typing on the console at the armrest. "Apart from that, in a case of emergency, I should be on my ship and try everything to fix it," she added before raising her head to look at him for a moment. "You know more about biology, I know more about engineering, Captain."

"I know about biological engineering," he replied, grinning. "Wait, your ship? Did I miss something? Did I die and didn't notice it?"

Looking back the main screen infront of them, she just smirked. "No, Captain. You're annoyingly alive."

"Annoyingly," he just repeated deadpan, following her look at the mainscreen, which was right now showing the engine room in a big window. Before he got to say anything to counter her, a kusarian, Asato Toru, moved closer to the camera.

"We're ready down here. Everyhting alright, Commander. Shall we begin?" the young kusarian asked, directly after it blowing his black front hair to the side to uncover his eye.

"Yeah, Commander, shall we begin?" Ezrael asked Sherry amused, shaking to the left and to the right with the Captain's seat. Asato looked at his Captain for a moment, feeling like he just blundered as he didn't address the Captain with this and talked to the Commander instead. He then grinned awkwardly at the Captain as he noticed how Ezrael took it.

"Yes. Apahanta, open the announcement channel," Sherry ordered the ship's AI to do, and after a beep, it was done. "Bridge to all decks. We're starting the test in one minute. Get ready. Report any anomaly, no matter how small and insignificant. Same procedure as usual. Use your consoles to send a ready signal to the bridge."

Nodding, Asato moved over to a console not too far away from him, pushing a button, then turning around to look at the people in the distance at the other consoles. The smaller screens on the bridge where showing red spaces which in a few seconds, with each signal, turned green. Ezrael's heart was beating with an increased pace by now. Everyone on the ship knew the high stakes. One mistake and they all could be dead. "You know, I don't regret having asked you to join us. You're doing a great job." Sherry looked at him for a moment, and once more her usually expressionless countenance got hit by a genuine smile.

---