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Fort Ramsey; Ontario System; Independent Space
It was a fairly busy afternoon at Fort Ramsey at this time, though in the small space town dug out inside a giant space rock, the time of day was simulated only by the tinting and dimming of some of the lights. Although conditions at Fort Ramsey had improved considerably over the past few years, it could still be quite chilly, and the oft-recycled air had an aftertaste all its own.
Virginia took a deep breath and gave her long blonde hair one last raking before stepping out of her suite on the top floor of the Xeno Alliance tower at Fort Ramsey. She wore her white and red uniform with thin black gloves and the light black lines around her blue eyes emphasizing her formal image.
She closed and locked the suite door behind her and strode with light steps in her polished black boots towards Morreti's office. She paused for a moment outside the door as she listened to see if anyone else was there and knocked carefully on the door. She folded her hands behind her back and waited patiently for him to open it.
The moment she knocked, the sound of a chair budging and footsteps followed. It was clear that upon the door being opened that his office was in fact empty, so he held the door open for her and invited her in with a casual nod, promptly closing it behind her. "Before you say anything, I want you to have something." His tone was polite, quite kind as well considering how volatile their last conversation had been and overall his posture and attitude seemed to suggest he was fairly relaxed at the moment but tired from what must have been a lengthy day's work.
Walking past her and to his desk, he retrieved what looked like a small silver box, the most noticeable feature about it from the current distance being the fact that it was topped with a warm yellow light. As he approached details became clearer, the light was coming from a small and fairly simple emitter, neatly housed with a concealed compartment and the base of the box itself seemed to be covered in the decorative pattern of broken chains. The precision of everything about the design suggested it was likely cut by a precision laser, something the workshops here typically used in production, but with significantly greater attention to detail and care.
Rather than saying anything immediately, he first presented it to her.
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Virginia took the box in her black glove clad hands and examined it carefully with her eyes before turning to him with a question on her face, "Good afternoon, for... what occasions are you giving me a gift?". Her attitude was formal and even somewhat cold, though not outright hostile or unpleasant, but she was here clearly as the captain of her ship and commander of her crew now.
She cleared her throat slightly and brushed a strand of blonde hair away from her face, "Actually, I'm here to report to you how the whole situation around Roanoke is right now.", she pulled her lips into a tight line and added shortly, "If that's what you want to hear.".
He shook his head for a moment and then continued to explain. "It's a promise that I'll always be your friend and that I'll always be here for you. But inside that box is the potential for us to be more than that, and if day ever comes that you're ready for that to happen, all you have to do is open it and I'll know. That light will burn for as long as I'm able to keep that promise - to wait. Either way, it's a choice that's in your hands now and I'll respect what you decide to do." Having explained what the sentiment behind the token was, he took a breath and put on an equally formal facade before gesturing for her to join him at the table. He was obviously going to let her just brief him on the situation and respond as necessary.
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Virginia looked down at the box in her hand and blinked in surprise, "This is... quite a surprise after our rather heated last debate... argument, actually... with personal attacks. What's changed?", she raised a questioning eyebrow and looked at him. Her stance and expression were still the same - proud and without any significant signs of emotion, though her surprise was quite clear despite her best efforts.
After a brief moment, she just shook her head and sighed weakly. She was obviously going to ask him an another question, but changed her mind at the last moment and just shook her head, "Thank you for the gift - any idea where I should put it? Something that valuable just can't be on Roanoke, my quarters have taken a few hits in the past and had to be redone. I don't know if a thing like that would survive.".
Letting go of the professional posturing in order to answer her, his face adopted a soft smile for an expression. "What's changed is that I had time to think. And I think you do need something in your life, but if what you need right now is just a friend, then that's what I'll be. Rather than us ever having to argue about it again, it just comes down to the box and if you'll ever be ready to open it." It was definitely an eccentric way to encapsulate the situation between them, but he felt it was a good solution and it greatly simplified how the choice was represented.
"It's pretty sturdy, can be magnetically attached to a metal surface. Keeping it in the quarters of whatever base you happen to be using is probably the safest bet, but I'm not really too sure. As long as it stays with you I'm happy." The fact she was even considering where to keep this because she didn't want to risk losing it seemed to melt away his facade, replacing it with genuine satisfaction in response to that sentiment. This obviously meant something to him and it wasn't insignificant.
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Virginia shook her head and carefully placed the box in the pocket of her uniform and readied her datapad in her hand with a slight clearing of her throat, "I have to admit... I was already worried about how we should treat each other after what happened last time, this makes the situation a lot easier." she smiled slightly and looked briefly out the window of his own office.
"Repairs on my ship will hopefully begin soon - Bristol will be handling the actual repairs, we helped them evacuate several capable ship engineers from the collapsing Liberty Insurgency before high command halted most of the evacuations.", she curled her gaze back to him and tapped her finger on her datapad, "They should have the know-how to do it, hopefully the Order itself will still help us with it, and... The Corsairs are willing to deliver us the high quality materials Bristol lacks.".
A brief smirk appeared on her face, "I'll still have to tweak the funding, the officials at Fort Ramsey have been more helpful than I expected, but they can't fund everything - I'll have to make some sort of special arrangement with Bristol to pay them back later.", she took a few steps towards the window in his office before turning to look at him again, "Any questions, Boss?", she addressed him with a title so familiar from his own comrades. She maybe even dulled her voice a little to sound more like a thug.
When she called him "boss" it prompted him to shake his head and correct her. "If you have to address me by position, then please use Commander. I'm sure a Captain of your stripe will find it preferable, and it'll set an example for the rest when it comes to public image and professionalism." The way in which he delivered those words was so utterly formal and perfect down to the tone, it sounded authoritative but polite at the same time, but yet when he'd finished saying all of that it was topped off with a casual wink to suggest that while he'd been perfectly serious he wasn't actually offended.
"If you'll consider integrating the ship into the Alliance's structure then I can justify us covering the balance expenditure. This obviously means you'll lose your absolute autonomy as a distinct taskforce, but it does give you access to more resources." This was a purely professional suggestion and something for her to consider as time went on, he expected that she'd take some time to think about it and then eventually get back to him.
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Virginia ruffled her long blonde hair and looked up at him from her datapad she had been staring at for a moment, "It is too early for any integration, the grievances between your people and mine are still too strong to serve side by side. Besides...", she paused for a moment, a stray smirk appearing on her face, "... Besides, I could use some independence and flexibility after all.".
It was a fact that she had already considered this option of integrating her ship and crew more, but so far she did not feel comfortable around the other members of the Alliance, and it was not just that she did not know them, but she also did not approve of all their methods to achieve their goals. Terrorism had never impressed her, quite the opposite, and the rest of her crew was no different. Their original identity was too strong in them and she was not about to give it up.
"I think I'll be able to work something out, I'll owe a few favors at most.", she added after a moment of silence between them. There was no depression or despondency in her tone, or rather the opposite - she was rather optimistic on the matter.
He didn't waste any time trying to argue or in convincing her to reconsider, she'd made her choice and he accepted it with a brisk nod. "Understood. I can postpone the more significant restructuring in that case." It was almost like he was secretly glad that he could put off what was going to be a herculean task, especially since it involved trying to bring a disparate group of people under a structure with more of a focus on actual service to a nation instead of raiding and idle banter.
"Let me know how it goes and when it's all finished, I'm going to need that ship in the field eventually, there's blood in the water now that the Navy's left and we can't afford to look weak or tolerant of the people we share this place with." It was remarkable how much he actually sounded like a strategic officer in a more legitimate navy when the situation called for it, of course the key difference between him and an actual salaried professional was a deep seated enjoyment of all the conflict and rebellion. It was part of his nature and something he hadn't been able to alienate, even with recent circumstances being what they were.
