The Phase Out
(Compiled by Jhiri and Ice Queen)
A quintet of beings entered the HQ through the main door. Four of them had been there prior of course, Averno, Arae, Ten, and Ten's bond, Saedare. The fifth held onto Saedare's hand and was decidedly not Feien sized.
Rebecca, Sajhiri's young daughter, looked around wide-eyed. "Sae...what's this place?" she asked curiously. In her other hand she clutched, of all things, a rubber duckie.
Arae landed on the child's shoulder and murmured "Its the Headquarters of the Imperial Fleet on Gaia. It's where Ten came to Gaia, and I guess it's where we report to if needed. It's also just a good place to meet other feien."
Saedare smiled and nodded at Arae's explanation. "Yes, it's an interesting place, Bex. I think you'll like it. Ten wanted us to drop by and see if there was anything that needed doing."
Ten leapt from his bond's shoulder excitedly. "Oh yes! I do hope there is lots to do and people to help. I've run out of things to do in the tower really. I'm sure the fleet must have SOMETHING for us to do, or at least some of the other Feien or their bonds."
Averno snorted at the back of the pack. "If you think I'm doing manual labor, kid, you're out of your mind."
The long tailed ancient male stumbled up the steps, looking a bit down and tired. For some strange reason he was soaked to the skin, save for the spots his leather trenchcoat covered. Even then his shirt was soaked. His coat had been open when it started to rain.
He stopped at the top, glancing over at the quintet for a brief second to smile. But the smile didn't quite reach his eyes. "Hey. Um..." He opened up his trench, reaching in and offering his hand to the small feien that crawled out of his pocket.
"Your hand is cold." Callisto complained as she took to the air as soon as possible. "Go get dried off."
"Will do, Calli!" He said, the smile finally reaching his eyes for his feien before he headed for the bathroom. Callisto looked over at the strangers, hesitating. The last feien she had met had threatened her bodily harm.
Saedare nodded to the strange man as he passed by, but Ten leapt up to assist him. "Can I see about getting someone to bring you some towels or something sir? You're very wet, you might catch cold. Miss Arae is very skilled at healing if you'd like to see if she can stave off sickness for you."
Averno looked Callisto over curiously. She hadn't met this one. She perched on the arm of a couch and folded her leathery wings behind her.
Arae smiled after Ten and shook her head. "He's quite the helpful one, isn't he, Rebecca?"
The girl frowned a little. "Yeah, if he doesn't cut it out, he's gonna get mom on my case about cleaning my room."
Shade looked up, looking at the small feien blankly. So far all of his experiences with feien had him being the one that served... "Sure. If you want to, that is." He said with a shrug as he entered the restroom. He took his trench off, revealing several different weapons, a few blades, a gun or two, even a chain hanging loosely around his waist like a belt.
"I'm Callisto." Calli said, shoving her slightly damp hair over her shoulder and strengthening her stance. "My bond is a--" She bit back the word "Killer." "He's Shade. And you are?"
Before any of the five could answer, the door again opened and a tall, dark-haired woman strode through, absently unzipping her leather jacket as she came. Seeing others there first, she paused and studied them cooly. Then, without a word, she parted her jacket and a little purple-marked feien fluttered out. "Thank you, sir," the juvenile murmured as she performed a little bow in the air. When she turned and saw the others, her cheeks flushed and she quickly moved to land on the nearest table. Delicately, she bowed again. "Hello, everyone," she announced. "I hope I am not interrupting."
Her bond half-rolled her eyes and shrugged out of her jacket. It was only slightly damp and she carefully hung it on a nearby peg. "Galatea, I'm sure they are used to people interrupting in this place. Check your notes and then we can go."
The darkness Feien quirked a brow at the new arrivals before looking back to Callisto. "Averno. Sajhiri's my bond, and Arae's, but she's not here." She gestured towards the green haired ancient. "The big one is Saedare, she's the bond of the crazy helpful one, Ten. And the squirt is Bex, my bond's rugrat."
"I am NOT a rugrat!" Rebecca pouted and hopped onto the couch, swinging her feet.
Ten nodded enthusiastically to Shade then he flitted back to tug on Saedare's hair. "The gentleman needs towels, and I can't pick them up. I'll show you where they are if you can carry them for me, Miss Saedare?" He noticed the new arrivals and waved. "Why hello! I'll be back in a moment if you are in need of anything."
Saedare shrugged helplessly and followed Ten to wherever towels were kept.
Arae settled next to Averno and drew her knees up to her chest, folding her wings around herself.
Callisto glanced from Averno to Galatea, to Arae. Then she glanced over at Ten, almost rolling her eyes. "He's perfectly capable of getting towels for himself. He's a grown man." She told him, shaking her head. "A very old grown man, at that." Very, very, very old from what she could tell. Of course she was only a few months old, herself.
"I'm afraid I'm not used to Gaia. Could any of you tell me where we might find someplace cheap to sleep?"
Galatea frowned, thinking hard. Her hands knotted in front of her, a familiar habit to anyone who knew her. Finally, she shook her head slightly, sadly, and looked up towards the Captain.
"There are a couple of places," Serafima answered, filling in the blanks for her feien and addressing Callisto just as if she were a full-sized human. "The Triple Tree on Main is reasonable and clean." She raised a dark eyebrow, though, and glanced in the direction of the noises coming from the bathroom as Shade dried himself. "If your definition of clean is more flexible, there is the Calder Motel on Firefly Way and Valley View on Lexington. If you are looking for cheap rather than clean, The Court on Alexander is the least expensive you can find." She glanced at the other feien and the child. "My name is Captain Serafima Rabik, by the way."
Saedare grabbed a small pile of towels out of a closet at Ten's behest, and knocked on the bathroom door. "Mr. Shade? I have some towels here for you." she called through the wall.
Ten hugged her neck then zipped back into the area the others had congregated in. "Captain Rabik!" he called, saluting formally, screeching to a halt in mid air. He dropped a bit then fluttered back up. "Good to see you, sir!" He tried to remember who she was, but nothing much outside of that came to him. Darn those wipes they did.
Averno twitched a bit at Seraphima's title. "So you are part of this Fleet then? Can't say that I know much about it."
Arae looked up curiously. "Yes, neither do I. Can you explain a bit to us, perhaps, Captain?"
Rebecca clapped her hands. "Are you like Captain Kangaroo? Or Captain Caveman? Or Captain America?"
Callisto blinked, but waited for the answer, only having heard a few small things about the fleet. She wasn't even sure they had anything to do with her, actually. That and she needed to remember what names the Captain woman had suggested. "They don't have cockroaches as big as I am, do they?" She asked after a second. "Those things are so disgusting..."
Shade opened the door, revealing the fact that he had taken both his trench and his shirt off. There were a few scars over his chest, but one couldn't live as long as he had, doing what he had done, without getting scars. He was wiping at his face with a paper towel, but he reached out, taking the towels. "Thanks."
"The last place does." Serafima obviously had given up on the idea of accomplishing whatever Galatea's mysterious errand had been quickly. She moved to sit in one of the available armchairs, long legs folding in a surprisingly demure manner as she set her folded hands atop her knee. "If your bond has any consideration, he will not take you there." The barest flicker of a smile was then directed at Ten and she nodded, a bit warmer than anyone would have expected.
Galatea beamed in Ten's direction as well. She hadn't met another Fleet feien since the Bratpack and they were hardly suitable examples to her mind. She bowed to him. "Hello. I think I remember you a little bit," she ventured. "But I am sorry and I cannot remember your name."
"They were both with the Fleet as well," Serafima explained, inclining her head in Ten and Galatea's direction. "The Fleet is..." She shrugged. "It is the Fleet. Benevolent, powerful, orderly, large. It is hard to explain it adequately. I was... I -am- a captain with them."
Saedare's white face turned scarlet at the sight of the shirtless man in the bathroom. The museum librarian averted her eyes and mumbled a hasty "You're welcome," before beating a retreat back to where the feien were. She slumped onto the couch and opened a dusty book, sticking her nose in it to conceal her embarassment.
Averno noticed and she grinned at the Aduthule. "See something interesting, Sae?" she asked mischeviously.
Saedare cleared her throat and stated "No," tersely.
Ten beamed at Galatea and flitted over to her. "I'm afraid I have no recollection of your name either, but I am sorry I don't. I think it a crime not to remember such a lovely face." He bowed. "I'm Ten, a pleasure to re-meet you!"
Arae quirked her head to one side as she listened to Seraphima. "You make it sound like an entity in and of itself. I was of the understanding it was an organization. Some sort of...milita?"
Rebecca fiddled with the rubber duck in her hands. "That lady knows really big words, so it must be like Captain Kangaroo. He's smart!"
"There's a kangaroo that's a captain?" Callisto finally asked, flushing as she realized how naive she sounded. So she shoved her hair over her shoulder again. It was a nervous habit. And she didn't like how she wasn't the center of attention.
Shade stepped out of the bathroom, the towel over his shoulders, his shirt and trenchcoat hanging off of his arm. He didn't want to put his wet top back on until it was a bit dryer. He was completely ignorant of how many weapons he was leaving revealed that way.
"They've got a kitchen in this place, right?" He asked, leaning into the main room. "I'm starving."
Serafima had already flowed smoothly even before Shade finished his third word, unfolding like a delicate origami. Without a single concious thought, her hands were free and her posture was alert. Years of training made such things as easy as breathing when one was confronted with a stranger who looked to be in peak condition and was wearing weaponry. Her mind processed the scars, the muscles, the way he moved. But she did nothing but answer, "There is a kitchen, yes. However, I'm not sure there will be anything edible in it. There has been a phase-out."
Galatea sobered and knotted her hands in front of her again, head dropping. She had forgotten about that. How horrible of her to make the Captain bring her to the Headquarters when they had no proper right to be there, anymore.
Rebecca moved over to study Callisto curiously. "No, he's a man, but his name is Captain Kangaroo. He's friends with a farmer named Mr. Greenjeans." She smiled. "You're pretty. All swirly and purple. I like purple."
Saedare went a shade redder and slid down a bit on the couch, hiding behind her book.
Averno snickered. "Yeah Shade, there's a kitchen. This way." She stood and flapped her wings, heading towards the kitchen area. "I'm sure Saedare would show you but she's too busy BLUSHING at your chest."
She paused as Seraphima mentioned the phase out. "A what? What the heck does that mean?"
Arae sat up as well. "Phase out? What do you mean?"
Ten blinked in confusion at Seraphima. "Captain?" he asked, encouraging her to explain. He set a hand on Galatea's shoulder gently.
Shade looked around, completely ignoring the blushing comment. (Ice had done that when they were first dating, as well. He figured at least some females did that.) He had had to mess with the water to get it going, had finally wound up using the back part of the toilet, as unsanitary as that might sound. And now he was being told the food was bad? He sighed and headed from door to door, checking to see if they were the kitchen. At least half of them were locked.
"Found it!" He called over his shoulder as he walked into the darkened room. The lights came on reluctantly as he went in further. And he headed for the fridge, making a face at how bad it smelled when he opened the door.
"Are Mr. Greenjean's jeans green?" Callisto asked blankly.
Galatea had started at Ten's touch but then forced herself to relax and smile shyly up at him. "Yes," she replied quietly. "A phase out."
"The Fleet has restructured," Serafima answered shortly. "They will no longer be having a presence on Gaia." Her dark eyes lowered, eyelashes masking the flickers of uncertainty that -still- insisted on coming. She was furious. Why could she not just move on? "The Headquarters here are abandoned and there will be no more direct contact with the organization. Feien will stay with their bonded and things will... Go on," she finished and even the words sounded lame to her ears.
Gently pushing Ten's hand from her, Galatea fluttered up to stand on her bond's shoulder, one hand tangling in the woman's dark hair. "This explains the current state of the building," she explained and her voice was soft and gentle. She tried for a faint smile. "It is usually much more pleasant and functional. Or it was, at least."
Ten gaped at Seraphima. "No...no contact? But... but I was here for Fleet purposes, wasn't I? Why? Why would they abandon me here? And what about you, Captain? And Miss Galatea?" He looked thunderstruck, and his whole form seemed to shrink a little.
Saedare put her book away and stood, cupping her hands around her little Feien and cradling him. "It'll be all right, Ten. I'm sure there's a good explanation for everything. But for now we'd best get home. It's Rebecca's bedtime."
"He has green overalls and he's an old...." Rebecca scowled at Saedare, her sentence to Callisto going unfinished as she yowled, "But I'm not TIIIIIIRED, Saedare!!!"
Arae smiled "That right there is proof you are, little miss, Hollering at you sister like that. Come now. I'm sure Captain Rabik can fill us in on this phase out another time."
Averno was scowling herself, her arms folded over her chest. She'd need to talk to Silva about this, see if he could find out what state the HQ was in, if it could be reclaimed to what it used to be. "Right, lets get home. Sajhiri will have our hides if the rugrat gets to sleep late."
The quintet headed out, Ten visibly shivering in the hands of Saedare, his shock apparent. Saedare murmured to Seraphima, "If you could send him some sort of explanation...he had so many aspirations of fleet service..."
With that, they were gone.
Galatea looked at her bond and Serafima finally shrugged. Somehow, the little feien had the trick of making her feel guilty over things. It was a new and uneasy development amongst a whole host of new developments. "Of course, Galatea," she murmured. "I will find their home and we will talk to Ten about what has happened."
"Thank you, sir." Then Galatea turned her attention to Callisto and she bowed. "I'm sorry, miss. I did not introduce myself properly. I don't think. My name is Galatea. Pleased to meet you."
"I'm Callisto, my bond is Shade, and--" She stopped as Shade came out of the kitchen, carrying a box of crackers. It was almost empty.
"This is all I could find." He said as he dropped down on one of the chairs. "They drank all the alcohol, too. You want one, Calli?" He asked, offering the cracker to his feien. She broke off a small bit of it, taking a bite. "So you're out of a job, huh?" He asked Serafima, a little too bluntly. "So am I, actually."
Serafima's jaw tightened, lips thinning, and she nodded brusquely. "In a manner of speaking, yes," she answered. "Though it does not make much difference. I was between assignments, anyway."
"The Captain was waiting for new orders when the Conference was held," Galatea provided hurriedly, lying ever so slightly as she recognized the increasingly frequent signs of emotion in her bond. "But we enjoy Gaia and the Captain is kind enough to plan on staying here so I can be with my friends."
Shade shrugged. "Hey, it happens. I was just thinking... you being a captain--"
"I don't believe she's like the kangaroo, though." Callisto added, slowly shaking off her confusion. Feien confused her, she had decided. And so far none that she had met changed that fact. She really wondered how she had survived in her past life.
"Right." Shade agreed. "That means you can fight, right?" He went on.
"No, Shade." Callisto said, finally jerking. "I will not let you go back to that! You almost--"
"Not that, Calli." He said. "I mean... oh, I don't know... bounty hunting or something..."
Serafima raised a dark eyebrow. "Of course I can fight," she responded, the control back in her voice. A bit of stubborn pride leaked in, though. "I was a line captain in the Intel Division. Field operations, combat."
"She is wonderful!" Galatea dutifully chimed in, face beaming. "The Captain lets me exercise with her."
"See?" He asked. "Now if both of us can fight, and you can gather information, I think we've got a decent job perspective going. Just--" He stood and looked around, frowning slightly. "I need a place to live. Ice won't let me live with her, and she'd probably be even more pissed if I asked to live with you..."
"You asked Ice if you could live with her?" Callisto demanded. "With that no good b*****d Silva??" She moved so she was shouting in his face. "I REFUSE!"
Shade blinked. "How about that Jack guy?" He asked, figuring it would be best not to get her going.
"Jack?" Galatea blinked, trying to place the name.
Meanwhile, Serafima's normally blank expression had been tested to its limits and she stared at Shade in outright disbelief. Was he seriously considering inviting himself into people's homes? Drawing herself up slightly, she regarded him cooly. "I have not yet decided what to do now that my position in the Fleet is defunct. Though I would suggest both of us choose carefully since, should we die, our bonded feien die as well."
He looked up at her, blinking for a moment. Then he shrugged. "If I was going to die chasing after thieves I would have kicked the bucket long ago. But you're right." He added as Callisto turned even paler than before. "I'll have to think of something less... um..." He couldn't say the word "Dangerous" with a straight face. Which made him feel guilty because Callisto had started to glare at him.
"We'll find an apartment." Callisto said coldly. "You have enough gold for THAT at least, don't you?"
Shade reached into his pockets, pulling out plstic disks. "I've got creds. Oh, about sixty thousand on me. But no gold." He added with a shake of his head.
Serafima looked at the discs curiously. "Can't you find anywhere that will exchange them?" she asked. "I should think they would have some sort of shop to do that here. Any well-run society that believes itself global does."
Stepping off the Captain's shoulder, Galatea returned to the table near Callisto. "I am sure there is something he can do that will not endanger you, Miss Callisto," she said. "If the Captain doesn't mind, I would like to invite you to visit our home some day. We feien need to make sure we all stay safe and healthy."
The thought sounded almost hysterically like she pulled it directly from her much-admired Hadrian's brain.
"I would appreciate that." Callisto said with a smile. "But I'm fine. Really. I can take care of myself."
That earned her a strange look from Shade, but he shrugged it off quickly enough, glancing back at Serafima. "It depends on if they ask how I got them." He said with a shrug. "But you've got a point." He added, looking at the creds thoughtfully before pocketing them. "I'll have to find a map of this place..."
"Of course." Crossing to the abandoned secretary's desk, Serafima dug in a drawer until she found a piece of pater and a pencil. With a few quick strokes, she began laying out a neat map of the streets directly around the Headquarters. "I would suggest dividing up that amount of credits and exchanging them at different locations," she suggested. "Places will only ask if you do large amounts at once. Several smaller transactions always raise fewer suspicions."
She penciled in the home where she and Galatea were staying... For the moment.
Galatea smiled shyly at Callisto. "Oh, I didn't mean to imply that you couldn't," she replied. "I was just... That is, I wish to be polite."
"Then.. thank you." Callisto said. "I appreciate it." Purple and polite seemed to go hand in hand. "I'll be sure to visit, then."
Shade got to his feet, moving closer to watch her draw, a slight frown of concentration on his face. "And Ice would be..." He pointed to a blank spot on the paper, not too far away from their house. "Here."
"Of course." She added the square and its name. "Galatea often visits that house. She is friends with the feien there." She glanced at Shade out the corner of her eye. "I take it you often have business there?"
Emboldened, Galatea knotted her hands in front of her and added, "I can show you my house."
"Oh, I could show you my room, if you wanted!" Callisto said, warming up to the subject. "It's through Shade's pocket, but it isn't IN his pocket... it's um... well, it's rather hard to explain. But I do have a jacuzzi and a rather comfortable bed." She paused. "I'm afraid finding posters that are small enough has been a problem, though."
"That red one... Silva, and the purple one, Aleric?" Shade asked. "Yeah, Ice has a few of those." He shrugged at the business comment. "Somewhat. She's an old friend. I thought I'd check up on her."
"Silva, Aleric, and Ruby Soho." Serafima bent her attention to adding in a few more streets on the paper. "Galatea and Ruby Soho exchange gifts sometimes and I believe Silva is teaching her how to handle herself physically in a fight. Some sort of training better suited to feien than what I am able to give her."
"Oh, is his pocket some sort of dimensional portal?" Galatea tilted her head, interested. She was not aware that anyone outside of the Fleet had such technology.
"It's a rift, at least that's what he calls it." Callisto said. "Shade, open my pocket, please."
"Oh, sure, Calli." He said, not really paying attention as he held the pocket open for them. "Silva teaches fighting? Guess I shouldn't be too surprised..." But his mind was rushing. Ice was letting a fighter live in her home? Even a small one?
Callisto reached out, offering her hand to the other feien.
"Come with me." She said. "I haven't been able to show it off properly yet!"
Galatea hesitated and looked up at Serafima. "May I, sir?" she asked.
Pausing, Serafima looked over at her feien. Then she looked narrowly at Callisto and then at Shade. "You may," she replied finally, her eyes still focused on Shade. Clearly, the message was - and she better return back safely or ELSE. "Come back soon, though. We need to go home and start dinner."
"Yes, sir!" Taking Callisto's hand shyly, Galatea waited for the other feien to lead her.
Callisto stepped onto the lip of the pocket, then dropped inside, pulling the smaller feien with her with a smile. There was only a slight twisting feeling before they looked around. It was like a pale playboy bunny suite, not that Callisto realized that.
A large round bed stood on a slight platform to the right. It was actually a small throw pillow with cloth over it and a piece of thin plastic around it, but she adored it. next to it was a small set of mirrors that showed from all directions once you stood in the middle, and last was a jacuzzi, made from a deep plastic bowl and a heated fishtank piece to circulate the water.
The colors were pale purples and blues, and the wall behind the bed was a sheet of glass, looking out to space. The room was lit by starlight. Callisto never had figured out exactly where he had set the room up to get that affect all the time. She wasn't sure she wanted to know.
"So... what do you think?" She finally asked.
Galatea's reaction was satisfyingly impressed. She stood, hand still in Callisto's, and started around the room with wide, pink eyes. She hadn't seen the stars so close in ages and the elegance of it all... Galatea sighed softly. "It is very lovely, Miss Callisto."
Callisto smiled. "He's not the best bond..." She admitted. "He's done some bad things, and he needs to be yelled at once in a while... I'd actually rather have someone like Ice... but..." She shrugged. "He's very good when he puts his mind to it."
She shook her head, tugging at the girl's hand. "We should get you back to your bond." She said as she pointed to the hole in the ceiling. The sound of Shade's heart beating was now recognizeable, a constant in that room, no matter how far away it was in reality.
"I should, yes." Again, the dark-haired feien tilted her head as if listening to something inside of her. Then she smiled lopsidedly and obediently followed Callisto out again. "The Captain has done many things, too, I know," she admitted, "and some of them are considered wrong by society. But I know she is still a good person and she takes very good care of me. She only wants me to be strong. Perhaps Mr. Shade wants you to be strong as well."
Callisto almost laughed at the idea. "No..." she said, shaking her head. "Shade prefers to keep me close to his heart." She pulled them both out of the pocket with a touch of flurish. "Your bondmate, safe and sound." She looked over at Gala. "you'll have to try out my jacuzzi sometime! It's a lot of fun, even if you're not a water feien."
Shade grinned, not saying a word about the close to his heart comment. It was true. He had messed up with Ice, but he wouldn't mess things up with Callisto. Not when she didn't have a choice. "We should get going. We need to find a money exchanger or six..."
"It was good to meet you, Galatea. Captain." Callisto said. "Next time I might be talked into singing for you."
Shade just shook his head. "She's a bit of an exhibitionist." He said with a shrug, as if he wasn't still walking around shirtless.
"Sometimes they are," Serafima agreed dryly. Galatea blushed. A small laugh escaped the Captain at the reaction and she held out her hand. "Come along, Galatea. We have our own business to handle."
Stepping onto her bond's hand, Galatea turned to bow at both Shade and Callisto. "It was very nice meeting you both," she said. "I hope we can see each other again. I will show you my home next, Miss Callisto."
Serafima shook her head slightly, amused at her feien's manners. Then she turned and retrieved her coat, managing to shrug into it one-handed before transferring Galatea to her shoulder and slipping the other arm into the sleeve. "Riding inside?" she offered.
Galatea beamed at the offer and slipped down to curl up in an inner pocket. Close to her bond's heart. It made sense. Oblivious to the juvenile's thoughts, Serafima zipped up the jacket and nodded at Shade. "Good luck with the exchanges. Hopefully, the map will help."
"I'm sure it will. Thanks!" Shade said as Calli waved.
