Bain sat down and swiveled his seat to face Kurok. "Not a good situation, DJ."
"No." Kurok agreed. "And I"m not sure we're going in the right direction in solving it."
"Hm."
The doctor glanced up at him. “Been a damn long time since the last time I was called that.”
Bain smiled briefly.
**
Jess steered her slightly rabid sounding followers into the caffeine station. “Look.” She held a hand up. “You’re not telling me anything I don’t know.”
“Jess, how can you even consider going out with one of them?” Elaine asked. “Why not just find a cat outside and let them drive? You’re going to get your self killed. No one wants that.”
“Maybe I do.”
Utter silence fell for a long and uncomfortable moment. Jess fell back to lean against the wall. She rain her hand through her dark hair, avoiding their eyes. “It’ll be fine.” She said. “Worse comes to worse I can drive the damn thing.”
“What if they catch you?” Jason asked. “You heard what he said, they want you, Jess. Why put yourself in their hands? Tell these guys no. You can. I’ve heard you.”
Jess studied them both. “Because it’s not the right thing to do.” She said. “We’ve got four people trapped there.”
“Who could give a crap about you. They went. We didn’t.” Elaine said, bluntly.
“Doesn’t matter if they give a crap about me.” Jess said. “Doesn’t even matter if someone dumps the plan. I’m not going to sit here in my ass while four people are out there getting shot. If you two don’t want to go out – don’t. I’ll be the decoy then figure out how to get over to them and get them out.”
“Jess.”
“So I’m an asshole and its impossible.” She shrugged. “Who cares?” She pushed off the wall. “Now I’ve got to go prep. Hell if I know what’s secure around here… if you’re interested, I’ll let you know when I’m ready and we can meet in my quarters.”
Jason sighed. “Do we bring Tucker and Brent?” He didn’t even look at Elaine, obviously sure of her answer. The two had been in training together, were several years older than Jess was, and were frequently paired in the field.
“Do you?” Jess turned the question back at him. “They’re your partners.”
Elaine went to the dispenser, and requested a bottle. “I hate this.” She turned around, holding the bottle between both hands as though warming them. “How in hell do we know what’s safe and what’s not?”
“Tucker and I have worked together for ten years.” Jason said. “Brent’s been part of the team for twelve. “
“And Joshua was for nine.” Jess shrugged. “But if what you said in there was right, Jace, and he was turned recently then time in service doesn’t matter.”
Both senior agents looked disturbed. Then Jason scratched his scalp at the back of his neck and looked at Jess. “Shit. Maybe your damn bio alt makes sense after all.”
Elaine snorted softly. “Until it drives you into a cliff wall.” She studied her bottle. “I say you and I meet with Jess, Jace. We can fill them in later. This sounds more like an in and out anyway, no hard tech.”
Jess nodded. “Deal.” She reached around Elaine and requested her own bottle. “Let’s hope the weather clears and we can get this done.”
“Let’s hope the weather clears regardless.” Jason followed them out and down the hallway, heading back towards the residential corridors. “We don’t need any more floods.”
**
Jess cleared into her quarters, glancing around as she entered and spotting the evidence she’d been re provisioned in her absence. She could see the uniform module in service, and her duffel had been delivered back and was sitting next to her bed.
She dropped into the chair at the workspace and swung the pad around, reaching over to trigger her console and freezing as she heard a slight noise beyond the sliding portal to her right.
For a moment, she’d forgotten. “Ah.” She studied the door with a frown. Then she got up and went to the inner door, pressing the annunciator chime and waiting.
After a very long pause, the door opened, and she was facing the bio alt.
Dev had changed, she noted, into the dark green field service kit. “You get settled in?” She asked.
“Yes.” Dev said. “They brought everything I needed.”
“Good.” Jess said. “Okay, so.. “ She held her hand against the door so it wouldn’t close. “Um.”
Dev tilted her head a little to one side. “Is this where you live?” She pointed behind Jess.
Jess turned, then turned back. “Ah, yes.” She said. “It is.” She watched Dev nod thoughtfully. “We’re going to have a planning session later on in here. We have to go and get some people out of some trouble.”
Dev’s body posture altered, as she straightened up a little and her chin lifted. “We?”
‘That’s what you came here for, right?” Jess asked. “Wasn’t it?” She looked curiously at Dev. “They did program you to do this, didn’t they?”
“Yes” The bio alt responded. “They did.”
“Okay.” Jess said. “So I’ll call you when we’re having the session. “ She watched the woman nod again. “Did you get a meal?”
Dev turned and pointed at the refrigerator. “They left water and crackers there. I had some.”
Jess winced.
“I liked them.” Dev went on. “Were they not for eating?”
“Let me show you where the mess is.” Jess exhaled. “C’mon.” She motioned the bio alt forward. Once Dev cleared the door she let it shut, then she led the way to her own outer door. “You can eat those. Not sure why you’d want to, but they’re survival rations.”
“Oh.”
Jess led the way down the corridor and around the bend towards where the communal area was. She passed a number of people, most of whom did a double take on seeing her, and then a second on seeing her companion.
Mild entertainment. They crossed the large central hall and paused, as Stephen caught sight of them and hurried over.
“Jess, here’s the weather.” Stephen glanced at Dev, then at the film. “Nothing good. Don’t think you can.”
He stopped talking as Jess put her hands over the report and stared at him. “Thanks.” She said. “I appreciate your checking.” She folded the film and put it in a pocket. “We’re going to the mess.”
Stephen glanced again at Dev. “Oh.”
Jess circled around him and continued on down the corridor, moving past the operations desk and down the left hand turn that would take them into the operations dining hall. “Only field ops in here.” She commented briefly, scanning the door open and motioning Dev to precede her.
Dev stepped inside, and looked around. The room was large, with many different levels to it, the same dark gray at the rest of the facility but with somber splashes of color in the fabric of the chairs arranged around the small tables.
In the back, on the highest platform, there were several large tables arranged near the wall, with seats behind them. They were empty. Two of the smaller tables were occupied, and the people at them had turned to stare at her and Jess when they entered.
Dev was used to being stared at. It didn’t bother her. She returned there gaze with a mild neutral expression, waiting for Jess to instruct her further on what they needed to do.
“C’mon.” Jess indicated a food line in the back. “We line up for everything but dinner when we come in here. That they serve.”
“All right.” Dev followed her willingly as they passed through the tables. She watched what the other woman did, and picked up a tray, putting it down on the railings as they moved down them. “We had facilities like this in the crèche.”
Jess glanced at her. “Did you?”