Crisis Break [Private Roleplay]

[[.Nero.]]

"I should have told you. I'm sorry, Gabe."
"Ah, don't be, man. You just wanted to protect me because you knew what she meant to me."
"Did you do it for her?"
"Who?" He smirked and raised an eyebrow. I laughed, and rubbed my eyes with my thumb and index finger.
"Alright, alright, you got me. You know me better than I do, man." He gave me a friendly slap on the shoulder, and stood up from the seat Vicky had previously been in.
"So, what now, captain?"
"I dunno. Uh, Al left some files on the computer, so I'm gonna check those out. I want to know where we were really headed in the first place."
"You really think he had a destination in mind?"
"He said Earth, right? Can't hurt to check." Re'ton laughed and began walking down to the sleeping quarters.
"If you say so, Gabe. Don't hold your breath. Don't forget to check on Lav'vi."
"Ah, shut up."

I smiled, and loaded up the main console. It came up with Alfred's name, and asked for a password. On a whim, I tried "Vicaria". To my surprise (or indeed, lack of), it worked. A long list of code shot up the screen, and eventually the main menu appeared. There were a lot of files. I sighed, and spoke to myself. "This is gonna be a long night."

[Fraulein Sophie]

I laughed until tears streamed down my face, and then I fell back onto my bed. I snuggeled into the sheets, feeling suddenly lightheaded. My eyes began to droop, and I fell asleep in a matter of moments. I was quietly snoring when dreams began to plague me again.

It was the face of my Mother, with her deep blue eyes. Her skin was tinted with gold, and her hair silver like the stars. She was glowing, her perfect features beckoning me. Before me was a planet, and there, it looked like devestation...but little sparks remained. Life forms? I turned to my Mother, and she pointed to my eyes. I looked back to the planet and then to her, but she had already disappeared. I moved, only to see a black hole before me...

I woke up with a cry of alarm, and after a moment of wide-eyed staring, I put my face in my hands.

[[.Nero.]]

"What were you looking for, Al? Why won't you tell me?"

It'd been at least 4 hours since I first started looking through the files. I couldn't find anything, except an audio recording of Al and Deekon talking and a bunch of reports for our previous missions. Nothing. Nothing at all. I put my face in my hands, and let out an annoyed groan. I didn't feel tired at all, just irritated. The others were in bed, and it was my duty as Captain to take charge.

I wasn't doing a good job. I was about to close down the console, when suddenly something caught my eye. A video file I hadn't opened, named 'gabwal-00'. Gab wal? Gabriel Walker? I opened the file, and the video began playing. On the screen, Alfred's face appeared. He moved away from the camera and sat down. He sighed, and waited at least 10 seconds before talking.

"Gabe, if you're watching this, then it means I'm dead, and you know everything. First of all, don't take it out on Vicaria too hard, you know how women can be in arguments. Anyway, uh....look. Chances are, you killed me. And, heh, that's fine. I wouldn't have it any other way. We were always too different, you and I. I was never a nice guy, was I? The thought of being rich enticed me too much. It was the opposite for you. You didn't care about money, did you? It wasn't the thrill, it wasn't the killing and it definitely wasn't the massive workload. You were looking for him, weren't you? When we finally found him, I never wanted it to happen that way. I arranged the gang to rob that place, because I knew he was in on it too. I, uh...." He sighed, and looked to his left. "I can't bring your brother back. But what I can do is take you to the people who knew him. The second this video ends, it'll activate a command I've placed in the video and take you straight to the planet your brother was living on all those years: Earth." He stopped again, and looked at his hands. He looked up at the camera, smiling. I felt a lump building in my throat as I looked into his eyes. I missed that smile. "I'm gonna miss ya, buddy. Look after the crew for me." With that, the video ended and closed.

I sat there, staring at the screen for what seemed like an eternity. The ship shuddered slightly, and I heard a beeping coming from behind me. He'd kept the promise.

[Fraulein Sophie]

I felt the ship shudder, and slowly let my hands fall from my face and into my lap. What had my Mother been trying to tell me? I could nto quite grasp it, but my Star Gazer blood was bubbling. I was emitting that celestial glow again, and I felt like a light in a dark room. I sighed, my conciousness opening up, as I gazed out the window and saw the patterns and the pulses of the life in space. The stars told a pattern...whatever had created the universe had had some sort of plan. It was far beyond me, with a human mind intertwined with the ancient race of Star Gazers.

I shook my head, and then slowly exited my room. I went to the bathroom, and ran a hand through my long, white hair. It was soft, falling over my shoulders and curling slightly at the bottom. I wondered if Gabriel thought I was as beautiful as he had found Vicara. Maybe I didn't want to know the answer to that. I turned away from the mirror and made my way to the control room, where I found the boys.

Without a word, I took a seat in an empty chair.

[[.Nero.]]

"Teka, can I ask you something?" The old man grunted, which in turn told me that he was happy to answer. "How long have you been a pilot?"
"'Bout 45 years."
"That's.....quite a while. Say, uh...you ever been to Earth?"
"Every planet but."
"EVERY planet?"
"Pretty much."
"Ever seen it?"
"Sure. Plenty o' times." Re'ton piped up from the North-East side of the cockpit.
"Earth's just a myth. The planet was destroyed hundreds of years ago." I shook my head, still focusing on the controls.
"Nah, man. Al said it exists, Teka said it exists, that's good enough for me."
"You're taking history lessons from a man who tried to kill us?"
"That's not the point; point is, we're headed there now. I guess we'll find out, huh?" Re'ton sighed and shrugged.
"Guess so."
"How long until we get there, Re'ton?"
"Uhh...about 7 hours."
"Argh. What can we do for 7 hours?" I twisted in my seat, and found Lav sitting in one of the seats behind us. "Oh! Hey, didn't hear you come in, sweetheart. You okay?"

[Fraulein Sophie]

I walked in just after they said they were going to Earth, and so I sat and listened. I was shocked, to say the least, and that was what initially kept me from spouting out questions. It made sense now, my dream. My Mother, she had wanted me to go to Earth, something was waiting there for me. I found myself shaking, with the eerieness of it all, as well as the anticipation. Seven hours was a very long time to wait, and I was already feeling fidgety when Gabriel turned to me.

"Please don't call me sweetheart." I murmured, before looking past him and to the course the ship was taking. "We're going to Earth?" There was a crack in my voice as i said this, and my eyes began to light up. "Really?"

[[.Nero.]]

I smirked at her first comment, and turned back to the computer. "Alright, alright, forget I spoke. Yeah, we're headed to Earth now. Why, have you been there or something?"

I couldn't help but feel irritated by her initial comment, because she'd been fine with it all those other times. It was just the way I spoke to women, and none of them ever minded. I shrugged it off, and thought nothing of it. I just hoped she wasn't the whole "leave her, leave me" trick I heard of so many times.

[Fraulein Sophie]

"No, but I've dreamed about it." I said softly, and looked out the window to the blackness of space. I looked at my hand, and my glowing skin, and wondered if the dream had triggered the Star Gazer in me. I smiled to myself, feeling the pulse of the universe within me. It was something no one but another Star Gazer could understand. I looked at Gabriel, and was suddenly tuned in on his irritation. My eyes narrowed, and slowly I wondered...

What bit your a**? I thought, and then suddenly froze.

The thought had been thought by me, but now it echoed in Gabriel;s direction and into his head. I could feel the pulse of life, his mind, and I had unknowingly tapped into another ability.

[[.Nero.]]

"Woah, excuse me?" I said, twisting in my seat to face Lav. Re'ton and Teka looked at each other, and shrugged. Re'ton was the first to question.
"You say something, man?"
"Wh-did you not just hear her?" I asked, gesturing an open hand to Lav'vi. Re'ton looked at her, then shook his head.
"You're hearing things, Gabe." I frowned and smiled at Lav, before turning back to the front of the cockpit.
"I'll bet I am." I replayed the thought back in my head and laughed. The best things come in small packages.

I began thinking to myself, because I didn't feel comfortable to bring it up with the others yet.
What else did you have planned, Al? There's no way this was all for me. If it was, you wouldn't have tried to kill us all. And what about Lav'vi? There's no way she'll want to stay with us for the rest of her life, as much as I'd love that to happen. Whatever, I'll ask later. No time now.

I stood up from my seat, and started walking to the stairs. "I'm gonna go and train. You guys do whatever it is you want."

[Fraulein Sophie]

I went pink as I realized he had, indeed, heard my thought. Could I do it again? I was tempted, but stayed calm as the exchange between Re'ton, Teka, and Gabriel. I gave him a calm glance, but still felt the tension coming from him. I sighed softly, to myself, and then looked down at my boots. They were bright white, like my outfit, and only accentuated my muscular legs. My father had said I would have a dancer's legs...I smiled, momentarily, and the thought of the scruffy man who heled make me. To be paired with such a beautiful woman...it was love.

I moved from my chair as Gabriel mentioned training. I waited for him to be half-way up the stairs before I trailed him. Once to the training area, I knocked softly on the doorframe.

"Gabriel?"

[[.Nero.]]

"What's up?" I asked loudly, not turning to the door. I aimed my pistol, and managed to shoot 2 out of the 5 solid holographic targets from a distance of about 30 feet. I rolled my eyes, and moved them closer by typing in a command on the console on the wall beside me. Shooting was the one of the few things I still enjoyed about the line of work, so I practiced it whenever I had time.

[Fraulein Sophie]

I managed a meak, "I wanted to talk" as the doors slid open. I moved, slowly, and gracefully towards Gabriel. I paused a few feet behind him, as the door shut again. I frowned lightly, watching him shoot, and found myself at a moment's loss for words. My hands were shaking as I moved forward, and I took a moment to admire him...how he was so intense as he shot at the targets. I felt a tinge of a smile forming and slowly came closer.

"I heard what you said to Vicara..." I said softly, and paused about a foot away from him. "I never...expected you to do that. I thought, I almost thought you'd say yes to her." I bit my lip, and searched for what I wanted to say. "I guess...I finally feel like I can trust someone." I looked up at him, hoping he would turn and look at me.

[[.Nero.]]

"Heh. I promised you it'd be fine, didn't I? I don't break my promises." With the targets at least 10 feet closer, I was able to hit all 5. Proud of this achievement, I pressed the small red button and switched off the holograms. I turned to her, and smiled. She looked beautiful, something I'd always noticed about her. "You can always trust me. Heh, I'd hoped you'd have trusted me before then, but I can see what you were saying. I'm happy to talk about whatever you want."

[Fraulein Sophie]

I paused, looking at him a long moment before smiling. The first genuine smile since...well, ever. "Thanks, Gabriel. It means a lot." I then strode over to him, and gently leaned against him. "I had a dream, and then this ability to send a thought to you...there are things I will uncover when we reach Earth...but I'm not sure I want to. It might be horrible..." I looked up at him, my eyes watering. I needed someone to understad, to support me.

"I'm confused." I admitted, and sighed as I leaned closer to him. "But...crazily enough....not about you."

[[.Nero.]]

"That so?" I asked, smirking. To tell the truth, I had no idea where this was going, as much as I'd have liked to have thought. Having little to no success in terms of women, it was impossible to read their signals or tell when they were just being friendly or if they really were interested. Either way, I kept up my act, and hoped for the best. Part of me was glad she was making most of the moves, because I sure as hell wouldn't for fear of rejection.

I might have seemed like I was confident with women, but I really wasn't.