Icarus (Sci-fi/Time-travel|IC|Open)

[Grenartia]

Elizabeth/Athena, Icarus bridge

Elizabeth did nothing as Apollonia and Rebecca hid behind her (a familiar experience at this point), except squeezing Apollonia's hand in reassurance. Meanwhile, Athena decided to seize an opportunity. "You mean like Martians? No sir, just as my friends have said, none of those here."


Phoenix, Icarus bridge

Before Phoenix could give her thoughts, the problem seemingly solved itself, before morphing into a completely different problem entirely: the intruders demanding to know about an alien.

"Well, Ziggy did go rogue before you showed up, so perhaps your information is incorrect?" she helpfully suggested.

The leader looked between everyone on the bridge before homing in on Phoenix, "You were a crew member on the Destiny, were you not?" he asked, but didn't give time for a response, "In the 32nd Century, in my timeline, humanity is becoming displaced on our own planet by a species known as 'dhasath'. In my timeline they emigrated openly, however, it is believed that they may have deliberately infiltrated human society in your timeline. When the Ragons came they found 'cuckoos' hidden amongst the human population but we don't know much more than that. The Icarus was tasked with finding evidence of a deliberate dhasath conspiracy."

Which probably meant something to Phoenix, but few if anyone else, "Have you seen any signs that one of your crew might be dhasath?" he asked, before turning to the others, "They appear human, though there are a very limited range of phenotypes. They will appear Middle Eastern or perhaps Southern European. If they appear adolescent they might be considerably younger than they seem. They will be unusually resistant to temperature fluctuations. They are capable of enthralling people and might have an unusually subservient companion."

The way the stranger talked about the Dhasath irked Phoenix. It reminded her too much of historical events that should not be repeated, and of movements in her own lifetime that were trying to repeat them. And quite frankly, her experiences with the Dhasath told her a different story altogether. The ones she had known on the Defiance had been desperate, but entirely dependable and honorable. Phe put on her best poker face to hide her disgust for the man's rhetoric.

"I was on the Destiny, yes. And I can assure you, all the xenos on the Defiance either died or left of their own volition before we re-entered the wormhole. At the moment of my death, the only personnel onboard were those of us who were originally on the Destiny. And I've heard enough from the people from my timeline that came after me that nobody could find the damned thing again until the Ragon showed up. So your info must be wrong." Phe stated, matter-of-factly.

[Europa Undivided]

Jean-Luc Lafayette
The Bridge

"And to add to that, we never got through the wormhole again," Jean said to whoever the hell was behind that helmet, pointing guns at him and the others in here. "That breach in the fabric of space remained closed after the Defiance crossed it, and humanity never managed to access the other side, which means that no one from Andromeda got in. At least until the Ragons came in and... uh, ate and domesticated 95% of the population. As for subservient partners... no, everyone here dont fit the description. There aren't even any... partnerships in here."

The xenophobia was very strong in here. Even in the past/future that he had come from, mankind feared and hated the alien, and the fact that Earth's second contact with xeno life resulted in the total destruction of human civilization certainly did not help that.

Just what timeline are these people coming from, though? Humanity being displaced by the Dhasath in their own homeworld? Why? How...?

---

Alexei Olegovich Chernenko
The Engine Room

Even as she spoke she was slithering into a hiding place behind a particularly large piece of machinery. There were some advantages to being small.

Alexei sat on his own spot, his gaze direct and uncompromising. It was as if he was looking right into someone's soul. "How many of you have been in combat situations before?", he asked with a hissing whisper in his voice. "Other than myself and Hannah, that is, seeing as she's the one that had to constantly run from alien monsters."

Stalingrad, Kursk, Kiev, Berlin... he's been in all those places, fighting the fascist pigs and putting them into the ground. Now he's in a timeship, hiding from unknown hostiles from another time travelling vessel. It was a familiar feeling, yet it felt so alien at the same time.

"Just stay calm, and we'll be fine. I hope. How's the machine spirit going, by the way?"

---

Leona Helstrom
The Engine Room

“I’d like that too, Leona. Sounds like a date.”

Although he only had a small smile on his face, his mind was racing. Where would it be? Would this mean more than just two friends that may or may not like each other passing the time together? But that would have to wait.

"A date it is then," Leona shrugged then and there. "After all, we will need all the downtime we could get once we're done stumbling through this catastrophe of a voyage..."

Unfortunately, there wouldn't be any more space for such talk, because they had been boarded, and some rather unpleasant figures were now in the ship. They were the crew of the Themis, then. No gunshots or screams, meaning that they come in peace. Kind of.

"So what are we going to do?", Leona asked quietly. "Wait for the AI to boot and hope its not out to burn us out?"

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Zoey Wessel
Pod Room

Zoey felt the frown tug at her lips as she stepped back and looked over the door again.

"So much for the future." She wondered if it was an outside operated door when her eyes caught the large red button mounted around average chest height right beside the door. Zoey reached for the button with trepidation wondering what else the button could possibly door in a spaceship.

'Suck out all the atmosphere? Sound an alarm? Make hot coffee'

Indecision weighed on her for a brief few seconds before she reached out and depressed the button.

Josepg Foley
Icarus Bridge

Foley remained silent as the armored intruders continued their interrogations. A human looking alien that influenced their partners with somehow and were all part of a grand conspiracy to supplant humanity from Earth.

He began to tune out the conversations and began to make plans. He would have to be quick on the draw; and he would have to go for headshots. Their armor might stop it but it would hurt more then body shots; after that he would play it by ear.

These people were paranoid; too paranoid for a good outcome to come of this. They were more then likely kill the entirety of the bridge to prevent potential allies for these "dhasath" then let them leave in peace. Just to be sure.

Or maybe that was just Foley's cynicism shining through?

Regardless, Foley made his plans and searched among the four intruders for the one he would take first.

[Mediama]

Apollonia of Athens
Icarus Bridge

Apollonia could not begin to comprehend what fate beheld mankind in the distant future. The near total end of human civilization? She could barely take in that her home, Athens, had been the home of an empire that fell to the might of Sparta due to its hubris. It didn’t surprise her regardless, each and everyone of them had their time on Gaia’s domain before they became a subject of Hades, whether it be due to fate or hubris.

What frightened her was how these warriors had described their foe. Though she barely had the idea of modern geography down, she understood what they meant when they mentioned that their foe held the look of someone with Southern European descent. And though that accurately described those such as the Roman, she was the one in their immediate sight.

She was in danger.

And so a shiver ran down her spine as she trembled and shrank behind Elizabeth even further, and squeezed both her and Rebecca’s hands in sheer terror at what these warriors had threatened. She whispered a prayer for Zeus’ protection that the visitors would return their hospitality and that she would be protected from being outright killed.

---

Hans Dietrich
Icarus Bridge

Hans couldn’t believe it.

Beings from outer space that had the capability to infiltrate and disguise themselves as one of their own, set to topple civilization as he knew. It sounded like the ravings of a madman.

A madman not to dissimilar to the one who he and Admiral Donitz had worked under.

The U-Boat captain glanced towards the Greek woman, noticing how she shrank in abject fear at the description. Another glance at the soldier next to him gave him a good idea on he had intended to do, he remembered having a similar look when he was gauging tonnage in a convoy.

It was true, their guests had weapons that fare surpassed whatever they had, and none from their group were visibly armed. He himself was not even of the Heer, and thus he did not have adequate training for land combat.

But they had the element of surprise.

And so along with the American, he decided to gauge who he would go after if anything went wrong, and decided to let the members who knew what they were talking about do the talking,

[The African Emirates]

Ted Jackson


Ted thanked the Icarus’s engineers for creating a silent keyboard, or else he would have been a lot crispier by then. He’d been able to avoid the black-clad intruders due to his exceptional stealth skills, honed by years of evading Ragon capture in both urban and forested environments. If anything, Ted was more worried about the AI possibly turning against the crew once again.

"How many of you have been in combat situations before?", he asked with a hissing whisper in his voice. "Other than myself and Hannah, that is, seeing as she's the one that had to constantly run from alien monsters."

“Hey,” Ted whispered with slight indignation, “I’ve been in pretty much the same situation as Hannah, just a few hundred miles apart.” Once again, he began to wonder whether they would have ever met each other in their old lives, but snapped back to his task at hand after hearing heavy footfalls.

“Ah, and to answer both of your questions,” Ted said in a low voice as he turned to the hidden group, “I’m currently running diagnostics on good ol’ Ziggy over here to make sure they won’t be able to cut off our air supply, artificial gravity, all that good stuff. The diagnostic subroutine is just loading now, and it should be done in…”

He turned to the terminal, now ready to display the results.

“Now hopefully, if nothing’s wrong, we can get the AI back online to help us.”

[Dyelli Beybi]

Engineering

Ted Jackson

...

“Ah, and to answer both of your questions,” Ted said in a low voice as he turned to the hidden group, “I’m currently running diagnostics on good ol’ Ziggy over here to make sure they won’t be able to cut off our air supply, artificial gravity, all that good stuff. The diagnostic subroutine is just loading now, and it should be done in…”

He turned to the terminal, now ready to display the results.

“Now hopefully, if nothing’s wrong, we can get the AI back online to help us.”

The computer, it turned out, wasn't doing what it was supposed to do, but not in the way anyone expected.

When the Icarus had contacted the Themis, the Themis had broadcast a code in response that had triggered a hidden piece of code in the AI, turning Ziggy into a hostile entity with a mission to keep everyone contained until the crew of the Themis could arrive to take possession of the ship. It was not supposed to switch off. In doing so it had allowed the Icarus crew a chance to escape detection. It was almost as if the machine was fighting it's programming.

It wouldn't be too complicated to deactivate the piece of code causing the issue, but Ted was out of time...

"Hold it there," one of the black armoured invaders had spotted him, "Step away from the console. We aren't here to hurt you but we require your cooperation."

Traditionally, people who 'aren't there to hurt you' didn't point weapons at you, though that was exactly what the invader was doing to Ted.

---

The Bridge

"I was on the Destiny, yes. And I can assure you, all the xenos on the Defiance either died or left of their own volition before we re-entered the wormhole. At the moment of my death, the only personnel onboard were those of us who were originally on the Destiny. And I've heard enough from the people from my timeline that came after me that nobody could find the damned thing again until the Ragon showed up. So your info must be wrong." Phe stated, matter-of-factly.

"Perhaps you had a stowaway," the man replied, "Or perhaps you deliberately allowed one or more xenos on your ship knowing they could pass as humans. I find it difficult to believe that none of you have identified the creature, however, we have a simple means of doing so. Every replicant was named on the cargo log, in accordance with SITR protocols. The xeno was labelled 'extra-terrestrial subject'. Not everyone is awake from the pods, but the dhasath's name will not be on here,"

He took a moment to touch a button on the side of his helmet before beginning to read from a Head's up display, "Bean, Alexander..."

Joseph Foley
Icarus Bridge

Regardless, Foley made his plans and searched among the four intruders for the one he would take first.

---

Hans Dietrich
Icarus Bridge

...

And so along with the American, he decided to gauge who he would go after if anything went wrong, and decided to let the members who knew what they were talking about do the talking,

The four were keeping a good eye on the crew though with the exception of the leader they looked a little jumpy. If someone provided a distraction it would be possible to close the distance with one of them and try to recover a weapon though their suits looked pretty well armoured.

---

Pod Room

Zoey Wessel
Pod Room

Zoey felt the frown tug at her lips as she stepped back and looked over the door again.

"So much for the future." She wondered if it was an outside operated door when her eyes caught the large red button mounted around average chest height right beside the door. Zoey reached for the button with trepidation wondering what else the button could possibly door in a spaceship.

'Suck out all the atmosphere? Sound an alarm? Make hot coffee'

Indecision weighed on her for a brief few seconds before she reached out and depressed the button.

"Well I never!" Eleanor remarked as the doors slid back, "There must be quite the mechanism in that door frame."

The corridor outside was empty. Suspiciously so. Eleanor had expected to see plenty of people about. She pursed her lips, peering cautiously one way, then the other, "What do you suppose is going on?" she asked, turning back to Zoe and Crassius, "I get the feeling something isn't quite right here. It also looks a lot like we are on an airship or perhaps a submarine, though I understand those are quite cramped. I don't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't this."

"Either way I think we need to find someone to give us some information," she concluded, nodding to herself as if not quite sure of what she was saying, "But we should probably be careful since it seems rather odd that nobody is here."

[Grenartia]

The Bridge

"I was on the Destiny, yes. And I can assure you, all the xenos on the Defiance either died or left of their own volition before we re-entered the wormhole. At the moment of my death, the only personnel onboard were those of us who were originally on the Destiny. And I've heard enough from the people from my timeline that came after me that nobody could find the damned thing again until the Ragon showed up. So your info must be wrong." Phe stated, matter-of-factly.

"Perhaps you had a stowaway," the man replied, "Or perhaps you deliberately allowed one or more xenos on your ship knowing they could pass as humans. I find it difficult to believe that none of you have identified the creature, however, we have a simple means of doing so. Every replicant was named on the cargo log, in accordance with SITR protocols. The xeno was labelled 'extra-terrestrial subject'. Not everyone is awake from the pods, but the dhasath's name will not be on here,"

He took a moment to touch a button on the side of his helmet before beginning to read from a Head's up display, "Bean, Alexander..."

"Olorisa may not have been as cutting edge as Ziggy is, but she still would've detected a stowaway, and as for deliberately allowing them on, that's absolutely absurd. They all wanted to stay and fight rather than tuck their tails between their legs and run. And I know you're from the future, and that you'd have a historical record of who all came off the ship when it arrived. How stupid do you think I am that I would knowingly lie to you about a fact that would undoubtedly have been in your high school history textbook? Besides, don't you guys have anything better to be doing? Like, apprehending the motherfuckers who are messing with the timeline? We had to do your job for you this time, by the way. But do any of us get a thank you for correcting the damage to the Battle of Leuctra? For insuring Alexander the Great wasn't remembered as Alexander the Mediocre? Or is this interrogation our thanks?" Phoenix retorted, obviously irate.

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Joseph Foley
Bridge

The four were keeping a good eye on the crew though with the exception of the leader they looked a little jumpy. If someone provided a distraction it would be possible to close the distance with one of them and try to recover a weapon though their suits looked pretty well armoured.

Despite their featureless visors and unadorned armor; Foley had gotten a good read on their body language. And it was equal parts good and bad noise.

Only the leader, the speaker at least, held himself like a fighter. His movements were measured and controlled, his weapon traveled with his sightline and always in a steady grip. His feet were planted firmly for both shooting and sudden movement. He would be the biggest threat.

His companions were less inspiring. They shuffled their feet every now and then. Constantly adjusting the grips on their rifles. The weapons themselves were held in seemingly practiced grips but their constant shifting of the weapons betrayed a lack of experience to go with their obvious training. In fact the longer the situation dragged on, the more the fidgeting increased. Now they were swinging their heads almost constantly; as if to see the alien they were seeking appear on the bridge.

Foley felt a grin tug at his lips as he waited for the swinging heads to begin again and for the leader to speak the latest name. Then he adopted what he hoped was a horrified expressions as he raised dropped his cap and pointed his left arm at the still open bridge doors.

"ITS RIGHT BEHIND YOU!!" Foley swore one of them jumped as the three nervous boarders turned in mass to the empty doorway. The leader instead turned to Foley, his weapon tracking to the man even as the operator drew his Kimber.

Foley didn't bother sighting the pistol. He fired the Kimber gunslinger style from the hip as he moved. Trusting in muscle memory, luck and whatever else would help the trio of bullets on their way. The angle was bad, the distance was far enough and Foley was moving fast. Yet, the first round sparked off the man's helmet and snapped it back like he had been hit with a fastball. The second round ricocheted off the leader's weapon and jerked the man's weapon horribly off course. The third round missed entirely ricocheted off the ceiling and embedded itself into the shoulder of a crew member, one Marcus Lennox.

Not that Foley knew or cared about that last part as he turned fully and leveled the Kimber at the recovering boarders. The farthest one stumbled as a pair of aimed forty five calibre bullets slammed into the back of the helmet and sprawled them onto the deck, alive but dazed. The second farthest one received the last round of the Kimber; the boarder had turned around in time to receive the round at mouth level. They dropped their weapon, the rifle dangling on a sling as they rocked back on their heels and brought their gauntlets to their head as if to shake the concussive effects out.

The last boarder was the closest to Foley. His weapon was swinging with him, his whole body language screamed surprise as he tried to back pedal. The operator had dropped the empty Kimber with a pang of regret his now free gun hand reaching out to seize the barrel of the rifle and jerk it up to the air. His other darted for the weapon's pistol grip and squashed the boarder's finger's there. Then they began grappling for the weapon, Foley's legs and the boarder's interlocked as it became a measure of upper body strength and physics. Which Foley was winning slowly given the progress he was making in inching the weapon toward's the boarder's head.

Foley was aware of the chaos on the bridge. With the more aggressive crew having rushed their now stunned boarder's. All it would take would be-

"Don't worry brother. I got you." Foley, and the boarder for that matter, barely had time to react as the now shot crew member Marcus Lennox came into view. The man's shoulder injury was still weeping blood but he seemed intent on helping Foley with this fight. But rather then grapple the boarder from behind or perhaps make use of some makeshift weapon like Foley expected; Marcus grabbed the rifle with both hands and pulled it towards him; like a giant lever. The warning was just leaving his lips when the boarder's finger's and Foley's, awkwardly jammed into the trigger guard and grip, pulled the trigger at the sudden shift in positioning. The barrel was chest level with Marcus as it went off.

Marcus collapsed backward with only a slight gasping sound as Foley and the border stared in morbid fascination at what had just happened.

Foley recovered his wits almost instantly. Turning back to the still stunned boarder as he twisted the weapon fully out of his grip and kicked the man away with a firm boot to the abdomen. His opponent stumbled to a stop and seemed to realize his sudden reversal.

"Wa-" Foley didn't care about the upraised hands or the plea. He pulled the trigger with the weapon's integrated sight leveled at those featureless visors. The boarder collapsed bonelessly to the deck, a loud clang of armor on metals marking their death. Foley turned his attention to the bridge.

The two nervous boarders were consumed in their own fights; being overpowered by either sheer numbers or skill. Foley couldn't make out too many details of the melee. Only that the leader, by luck or skill, remained unfought. The leader was rising to his feet, his weapon tracking unsteadily over the fighting; trying to figure out if he could make the shots and not risk his forces. Then he caught sight of Foley's newly acquired rifle. The leader didn't hesitate as he snapped off a quick pair at Foley. The operator dove for the deck in kind; the searing plasma bolts passed close enough to feel their heat. Foley grunted at the hard deck plates, sliding for a bit along the smooth metal as he sent his return fire. The handful of Foley's bolts missed the leader by a hairsbreadth as he abandoned the bridge. The leader had obviously decided to find somewhere else to hole up; probably with more boarders and better circumstances.

The dark armored figure passed through the open door just as Foley's last bolt slammed into his recently vacated space.

"Damn it!!" He hissed under his breath as found his feet and charged after the figure into the halls. His companions should be able to handle the two boarders still on the bridge. All he had to do was hunt down the leader before he rallied with whatever other troopers he had on board.

Foley paused as a corner was hit by a smattering of bolts. He turned the corner a split second after the fire ended; catching a glimpse of the leader as he turned his own corner just as Foley's return fire once again slammed into his recently vacated space.

Foley let out the grunt of frustration as he charged forward again.

'Should be easy'

Zoey Wessel
Pod Room

"Well I never!" Eleanor remarked as the doors slid back, "There must be quite the mechanism in that door frame."

The corridor outside was empty. Suspiciously so. Eleanor had expected to see plenty of people about. She pursed her lips, peering cautiously one way, then the other, "What do you suppose is going on?" she asked, turning back to Zoe and Crassius, "I get the feeling something isn't quite right here. It also looks a lot like we are on an airship or perhaps a submarine, though I understand those are quite cramped. I don't know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn't this."

"Either way I think we need to find someone to give us some information," she concluded, nodding to herself as if not quite sure of what she was saying, "But we should probably be careful since it seems rather odd that nobody is here."

Zoey exited into the corridor cautiously as her companion, Eleanor, wondered on where they were. The scout wondered that herself as she looked over the deserted corridors and wondered the last part of Eleanor's line of thinking.

"Well there were a bunch of China in the vents ja? Maybe they all locked up somewhere. Prob-"

Zoey paused as familiar string of pops reverberated of the walls.

"Gunshots?" She sounded bewildered. As if hoping her companions could confirm that she wasn't going crazy.

[Europa Undivided]

Jean-Luc Lafayette
The Bridge

The two nervous boarders were consumed in their own fights; being overpowered by either sheer numbers or skill. Foley couldn't make out too many details of the melee. Only that the leader, by luck or skill, remained unfought.

All this time, Jean had been looking for an opening. In his eyes, it was painfully obvious that though these boarders were trained with aiming, shooting, and loading weapons, they had absolutely no combat experience whatsoever. They constantly fidgeted, putting their guns from their left hand to the right, and so on. These witless time travellers were so very unlike the trained and experienced soldiers in the Icarus crew; the likes of Jean himself, Foley, Marcus, Alexei the Soviet, Hans, and if the history books were accurate, Phoenix would have her own fair share of fights as a crewmember of the Defiance. The latter was quite irate at the boarders, and told them that they were lavishly incompetent.

Foley would ultimately prove to be the catalyst to action, distracting the boarders still present in the bridge. They fell to the feint, of course, and were immediately rushed.

Jean was quick to the action, surprising even himself as he found his hand grabbing the wrench that was in the repair kit, and swung it hard against the side of one of the boarders' helmeted heads, sending the man sprawling to the floor, dazed. Without wasting any second, he kicked away the rifle that the dazed boarder once wielded.

"Hold him dow," he called to no one in particular and hoped that least two others would hold the bastard's arms down as he tried to forcefully take off the helmet. There were more than enough of them to subdue those two, anyway...

---

Alexei Olegovich Chernenko
The Engine Room

"Hold it there," one of the black armoured invaders had spotted him, "Step away from the console. We aren't here to hurt you but we require your cooperation."

Traditionally, people who 'aren't there to hurt you' didn't point weapons at you, though that was exactly what the invader was doing to Ted.

Unknown to the invader currently stepping into the room, there were three more people in there, hiding. As Ted stepped away from the console, and the boarder slowly got nearer and nearer, Alexei watched, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

He didn't need to get through the armor to inflict pain and bring them down. None of them did. From the appearance of the armor, it probably was metallic, and from the experience of being inside a big metal box on tracks, solid objects being slammed against armor was often no big deal for the armor itself, but it would be for the person inside. He was told that the Germans sometimes had to clean out the dead crew of a perfectly functional tank because of the fatal overpressure of the Stalin Tank's gun... or the fact that some crews were deafened or worse, killed by shells sending critical reverberations throughout the inside.

Not that whatever they had at hand would be enough. And as such, as soon as the boarder got deep enough, Alexei would emerge from the shadows right beside the doorway, bodily tackling the boarder towards the floor in an attempt to separate him from his weapon. He would try to forcefully pin the boarder's hands, but it might have been enough ruckus to catch unwanted attention...

[Westeastern Dicantia]

Jean was quick to the action, surprising even himself as he found his hand grabbing the wrench that was in the repair kit, and swung it hard against the side of one of the boarders' helmeted heads, sending the man sprawling to the floor, dazed. Without wasting any second, he kicked away the rifle that the dazed boarder once wielded.

Rebecca, watching the others attack the boarding party and succeed, finally concluded that she'd have to fight too. With considerable force, she pushed through the two women in front of her and ran full speed into the last boarder as he was coming back around to face them, hitting him square in the chest with her shoulder and bringing them both to the ground. She had never done any fighting before, and evidently, neither had he - his weapon clattered across the deck towards Jean as shots rang out in the hallway.

Half on her feet, she lunged for his discarded weapon. While she didn't necessarily know what to do to subdue him, she could at least try hitting him some more. From the corner of her eye, she saw him make a move just after her. The gun was out of reach for her still, so she tried to swat his arm away with a kick. It didn't fully connect but she had just made plenty of time to close in and grab it.

Rebecca, now armed herself, swiftly sent the rifle's stock into his head and sent him back to the ground. Bringing the gun around the right way, she pointed it at his face and yelled, "Take off your helmet or I'll shoot it off!" Which sounded like the right thing to say.

[The African Emirates]

Ted Jackson

Damn. He’d been so close! Ted had finally found the piece of code that had been causing Ziggy to turn against them. As he’d thought, it had been beamed over by the Themis before they had invaded the ship, which had become blind as a result of their tampering.

Not that it mattered. He was being held at gunpoint by an unknown intruder. Luckily, the three crewmates that had arrived with him were still hidden.

“Hey, hey, can’t we talk about this? Why are you holding me at gunpoint anyways?” Ted said while raising his hands behind his head.

He moved slowly so as to not startle the boarder, who seemed to be very much on edge. So when gunshots and clangs echoed out of the vent, and Ted’s capturer looked up, he knocked the gun out of his hand, took it, and ran.

Ted heard another thud as Alexei took down another soldier. They seemed to be overcoming the boarders, but one was bearing down on him.

He tried to take a shot with the gun, but it nearly hit the ceiling.
Damnit, that’s what happens when you never learn how to shoot, Ted.

So he took a more innovative approach. He tackled his pursuer, pressed the gun’s barrel to his neck so it couldn't possibly miss, and fired.

Falling onto the ground next to his now-deceased attacker, he thought, Hey, first shot I’ve made! He turned his head to see Leona doing a fantastic job at fending off a soldier. He didn’t know why, but he liked watching her a lot.

A moment later, he snapped out of watching Leona, and went to look for a terminal. Fixing Ziggy would go a long way to helping the crew of the Icarus to regain control of their ship.

[Dyelli Beybi]

The Engine Room

Hannah wriggled out from her hiding place and tackled the boarder whom Ted had tried to take a shot at, which left the other one wrestled with Alexei. She was a small woman and could probably have been overpowered had the boarder tried to fight back, but he didn't. Perhaps they knew they were outnumbered, but they didn't seem in the mood to keep on fighting, "Everyone, calm down!" she yelled, the tone of her voice suggesting she would brook no nonsense, "Nobody needs to get hurt today. Now who are you and what are you doing on my ship?" she asked, turning her attention to the boarder she had pinned under her.

He didn't answer, though there was a beeping in his helmet like some kind of alarm was going off. The one Alexei had overpowered did though, "This is a SITR ship which has lost it's crew and been taken over by... you people. We might have handled this differently, but there's an alien infiltrator on the ship as well," he blurted, "One that looks human."

There was a brief pause. Hannah glanced between the people in the room, it was hard to read what she was thinking exactly, though it looked a bit like... "It's her!" the person she had pinned hissed fearfully.

---

The Bridge

...

Half on her feet, she lunged for his discarded weapon. While she didn't necessarily know what to do to subdue him, she could at least try hitting him some more. From the corner of her eye, she saw him make a move just after her. The gun was out of reach for her still, so she tried to swat his arm away with a kick. It didn't fully connect but she had just made plenty of time to close in and grab it.

Rebecca, now armed herself, swiftly sent the rifle's stock into his head and sent him back to the ground. Bringing the gun around the right way, she pointed it at his face and yelled, "Take off your helmet or I'll shoot it off!" Which sounded like the right thing to say.

The Boarders seemed to have rather quickly gone to pieces when the crew attacked, offering little in the way of meaningful resistance. The one who Rebecca had a gun trained on pulled off their helmet with shaking fingers. It was a woman, rather than a man as Rebecca had expected of some kind of East Asian descent. Rather than a toughened soldier, without the helmet she just looked terrified, though she did manage a defiant, "Murderers!" spat at the Icarus crew.

They certainly weren't soldiers.

---

The Pod Room

Zoey exited into the corridor cautiously as her companion, Eleanor, wondered on where they were. The scout wondered that herself as she looked over the deserted corridors and wondered the last part of Eleanor's line of thinking.

"Well there were a bunch of China in the vents ja? Maybe they all locked up somewhere. Prob-"

Zoey paused as familiar string of pops reverberated of the walls.

"Gunshots?" She sounded bewildered. As if hoping her companions could confirm that she wasn't going crazy.

"Why would anyone put chinaware in a vent?" Eleanor asked, looking rather confused by what Zoey had just said, though the gunshot saw her duck for cover, hugging the doorframe. It was a quick reaction. The kind of instinctive one you got from someone accustomed to danger but more accustomed to hiding from it than trying to face it down.

"That sounded like a pistol!" she risked a glance around the corner, in time to catch sight of someone in dark armour sprint out then turn down a side corridor, "And that man was dressed like a knight!" he wasn't quite dressed like a knight, but it was the closest thing she could think of, "This is an awfully strange place Miss Wessel. I feel a little like Alice stepping through the looking glass."

[Europa Undivided]

Jean-Luc Lafayette
The Bridge

Rather than a toughened soldier, without the helmet she just looked terrified, though she did manage a defiant, "Murderers!" spat at the Icarus crew.

They certainly weren't soldiers.

"Ah, damn it." Jean turned his attention away from boarder that he had pinned down towards the floor with both hands behind their back and looked towards Marcus, who had been just shot dead with one of their own weapons. He clearly wasn't happy that yet another member of the crew, no matter how obnoxious or stupid, is dead.

Jean then goaded the boarder to stand up, pointing the rifle that had clattered towards him earlier towards them. "I don't like doing this, but you're the ones that messed with the AI, boarded this ship, and pointed weapons at us while telling us that there is an evil alien among us. It seems your leader skimped off but... you lot don't seem to be the type to sacrifice each other. Now walk, slowly. Tell your friends to stand down. Otherwise we'd have to treat more people in the medbay, and maybe space way more dead bodies. More of yours, probably. None of you are experienced, while we have soldiers from history's most brutal wars. Am I clear? Now move your sorry ass, and hands up in the air."

Jean pointed the gun at his back, prodding him to go forward towards the corridor.

---

Leona Helstrom and Alexei Olegovich Chernenko
The Engine Room

Falling onto the ground next to his now-deceased attacker, he thought, Hey, first shot I’ve made! He turned his head to see Leona doing a fantastic job at fending off a soldier. He didn’t know why, but he liked watching her a lot.

A moment later, he snapped out of watching Leona, and went to look for a terminal. Fixing Ziggy would go a long way to helping the crew of the Icarus to regain control of their ship.

Leona was taken aback. She had never seen anyone die, not in this kind of situation. Sure, she had patients expire from illnesses that even the advanced medicine of her era could not cure, but certainly not someone getting shot and killed at the hands of another. But what choice did they have here...? If it wasn't that random boarder, it would have been Ted, or perhaps Hannah now lying on the a pool of their own blood.

Still, she went down and examined the man's pulse. Dead, almost instantly.

Alexei, at the meantime, nodded at Ted, as if congratulating him. "That was an excellent move. Maybe you would have survived Stalingrad as well."

There was a brief pause. Hannah glanced between the people in the room, it was hard to read what she was thinking exactly, though it looked a bit like... "It's her!" the person she had pinned hissed fearfully.

"Wai, wait, what?" Leona looked at Hannah from head to toe, studying every detail that she could see in the lighting of the engine room. "Are you saying that Hannah here is a Dhasath? Certainly not a Kiellar, not without those knife ears."

Of all the people currently in this room, Leona would have the most knowledge of aliens. Well, out of all the Icarus crew members, that is. Hannah and Ted only ever met the vicious Ragns, and Alexei never met any alien in his lifetime. She didn't just hear stories about aliens; she had met them, spoke to them, and even lived alongside them. The Dhasath were the most interesting, nonetheless, as they were so genetically compatible to mankind that they have been able to intermarry and produce hybrid offspring. Those were rare, because humans tended to be proudly xenophobic, but a few were allured by the apparent sweet aroma of the Dhasath. It is ironic that their most captivating quality was also their bane, with the Ragons devouring almost all of them.

"What the hell is a Dhasath?" Alexei asked as he kept the face of the other boarder stuck to the floor.

"An alien species that looks just like humans, but with a lot of nitrogen in their system, which came as a result of adaptation to their desert homeworld. They also give out a boatload of pheromones because of that nitrogen content... which apparently gives their flesh, um, euphoric properties," Leona replied, though she was loud enough for the rest of the people inside the engine room to hear. "In my timeline they were nearly driven into extinction, but they eventually pulled off and formed the New D'oo'natay Republic, composing both of themselves and rogue Ragons. Ironic, prey and predator living in harmony."

Leona turned back towards the boarder that had pointed towards Hannah as the alien. "So what if she's an alien? She's kinder than most humans I know."

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Zoey Wessel
Pod Room

"Why would anyone put chinaware in a vent?" Eleanor asked, looking rather confused by what Zoey had just said, though the gunshot saw her duck for cover, hugging the doorframe. It was a quick reaction. The kind of instinctive one you got from someone accustomed to danger but more accustomed to hiding from it than trying to face it down.

"That sounded like a pistol!" she risked a glance around the corner, in time to catch sight of someone in dark armour sprint out then turn down a side corridor, "And that man was dressed like a knight!" he wasn't quite dressed like a knight, but it was the closest thing she could think of, "This is an awfully strange place Miss Wessel. I feel a little like Alice stepping through the looking glass."

Zoey was aware of her companion ducking for the walls. Something she didn't imitate, not because she wasn't high strung but because the rounds were distant enough her mind didn't label them as danger yet. Side effects of battlefields; you tended to react to the imminent threats rather then the potential battle a hill over. But her companions sudden reaction probably meant that all of her encounters were imminent-

The clatter of something broke Zoey from her thoughts as she caught a glimpse of someone sprinting. All she saw was dark armor and a rifl-

Zoey ducked back and joined Eleanor in her doorway redoubt as the dark armored man spun into a side corridor without breaking stride.

The so called "knight" hadn't even glanced their way. Which meant he was either moving somewhere fast or away from something fast. Zoey felt a headache come on as she processed this latest piece of information.

' Resurrections, jumpsuits, distant gunshots, armored soldiers sprinting through halls, understanding languages she had no background it.'

Zoey found herself agreeing with Eleanor. "This place is gek.... So we stepped through the looking glass, right?" Where do go now then?"

The clomping of running boots barely reached Zoey's ears before a rifle barrel swung around a corner. The rifle was the same unfamiliar shape the "knight" had been toting. Though the man behind it was not similar the armored figure at all. They were unarmored, dressed in grey utilitarian, combat clothing festooned with pockets. Tall too, close to two meters, with hair shaved in an aggressive buzzcut with a coating of stubble on the jaw.

And he was aiming the weapon at them.

Zoey instinctively began to duck farther back; trying to get-

The new arrival jerked his rifle barrel as he peered around the corridor as if searching for someone; a frown taking shape on his face. The frown was fully formed by the time he let out a sigh and lowered the rifle so he held it at the low ready.

"Ya'll see anyone come through here?" Zoey frowned at the English. The man spoke with an American accent; tinged with a drawl that she couldn't place. However she frowned more for the man's tone; he sounded resigned.

"Someone in black armor. Ran that way." Zoey stepped out from the shelter of the doorway to approach the corner and wave in the direction the man had gone. The American frowned even deeper as he brought the rifle back up and pointed in the general direction of the armored figure's retreat.

"Not safe for ya'll here. I'll drop you off with the rest of the crew." Zoey was about to protest. A speech about trust, strange people and following others blindly- The American simply stepped to the side of the hall and motioned with his off hand back in the way he came; other hand still clutched around the weapon's pistol grip. His gaze was piercing and the implications were clear. 'I'm in charge for now'.

Zoey's words died in her mouth. She huffed and grabbed Eleanor by her arm; tugging her newfound companion reluctantly out of cover.

"Come on. Safety in numbers and all that right?" Zoey was aware of of their third member, the Mediterranean featured man tagging along. The man regarded the American warily but followed Zoey and Eleanor as the pair began to make their way in the indicated direction. Zoey caught a flash of color on the American's otherwise unadorned clothing; a vaguely familiar red and gold patch of an eagle, globe and anchor. Zoey snorted and made sure to whisper to Eleanor as the pair turned the corner.

"China back there is a Yank. Marine too. Not great odds if this goes to kak." Zoey wasn't sure why she was trusting Eleanor so fast; perhaps it was the fact she had met such a rapid succession of characters that she was gravitating towards one of the few people as lost as her. That and the other man seemed even more lost then them.

Joseph Foley

Foley had taken too long in the latest exchange of fire with the leader. He had emerged from cover a few seconds too late and had lost sight of the man. He had tried to pick up the trail but all he found was a trio of new arrivals. A man and two women in the form hugging jumpsuits everyone thawed out in. Their eyes were wide and they had been hunched down when he arrived; either spooked by the gunfire, the surroundings or both.

As soon as he saw the lost looks he felt a sense of resignation and frustration. They were crew and he couldn't leave crew, no matter how new, alone with hostile boarders running amok. And the leader had probably been running back to his next intact unit anyways. So Foley would have been outnumbered.

At least that's what he told himself as he ushered the new arrivals in front of him and set off; with occasional glances behind them for any sign of the boarders. The return trip to the bridge was uneventful; the only signs of battle being the occasional blaster scoring from the running gun battle Foley and the leader had fought. Foley occasionally gave directions, making sure to keep a respectable distance back just in case all three of them decided he was the enemy.

No fight broke out at least as the trio came to a ragged halt at the bridge's still open hatch and Foley head Jean's voice.

-alk, slowly. Tell your friends to stand down. Otherwise we'd have to treat more people in the medbay, and maybe space way more dead bodies. More of yours, probably. None of you are experienced, while we have soldiers from history's most brutal wars. Am I clear? Now move your sorry ass, and hands up in the air."

Jean pointed the gun at his back, prodding him to go forward towards the corridor.

The operator frowned as he lengthened his stride and pushed past the new arrivals. Jean was prodding a still helmeted boarder, hands hanging uncertainly at shoulder level, towards the hatch. The last surviving boarder on the bridge stood off in a distant corner, Foley could make out Asian features and a glare that seemed to harden at the Foley's return. One of the crew held them at gunpoint too. Not that Foley cared as his attention returned solely to Jean and his prisoner.

"Hold it." Foley held out a hand and shoved the prisoner to a halt. The operator glanced down at the prisoner's visor, which armor and all, was still shorter then Foley. "Helmet off. Now."

While the prisoner tried to pull off their helmet with fumbling fingers, Foley turned to Jean.

"What the hell do you think you're doin'?" His voice somewhere between a loud whisper and regular conversation level; the other alternative would have been yelling. " Goin' by yourself to make them all drop their weapons? Because you have this guy?"

The boarder had removed his helmet by then. Swarthy skin and dark hair in a short, styled cut. Sweat coated the boarder's young face and worry was visible as in every facet of the man's features. Foley had jerked the man around by the collar of his armor letting Jean get a get look before he brought the man around to face him again.

"Go stand by your friend. Either of you try anything. Both of you die. Slowly. Got it?" The boarder nodded furiously and the female boarder looked an interesting mix of sick and defiant. Foley shoved the prisoner away and watched as the man stumbled before catching himself. The prisoner glanced nervously back at Foley before sliding into place next to his companion.

Foley saw his Kimber still lay unclaimed on the deck, slide racked back, empty but still functional. He ignored it in favor of squaring off with Jean. The man might have been a warship commander and survived aliens; but Foley bet he forgot more about small unit fighting and warfare in this setting then Jean had ever learned.

Still Jean held a rank of sort on the ships and Foley had just challenged him openly. Only one thing to do right now but commit.

"Their leader is not going to put themselves at our mercy because we have them. He isn't going to surrender based on their word either. Look at them." The boarders were dividing their time glancing at the argument and at Rebecca, who's muzzle was shaking and wavering from a dangerous mix of adrenaline and nerves. The situation was a reverse to the boarder's entry but they seemed perfectly inclined to wait under the guns of a nervous civilian.

[Mediama]

Hans Dietrich
Icarus Bridge

Hans was about to make his move, time slowed down, and before he could even react, one of the women hidden behind them had rushed forwards, overpowered one of the guards, and took their weapon. At the same time, the American, and the rest of the group had made their moves, and soon the bridge was retaken. Hans admired the initiative and bravery the woman had at overpowering and taking their captor's weapon, but it appeared she was trembling in fear at what she had done.

The worst threat to an operation was oftentimes someone who lost their nerve.

As the two men continued to argue on the next course of action, he decided to walk up to the woman, Rebecca, and offered a hand out to her to turn over the weapon, "Fraulein, I can see you are not in the right state of mind to be watching these people. I can take over from here." He had muttered these words to prevent the other prisoners from catching on in their instability, yet kept his firm tone, as a father would to a wayward son.

[Europa Undivided]

Jean-Luc Lafayette
The Bridge

"Their leader is not going to put themselves at our mercy because we have them. He isn't going to surrender based on their word either. Look at them."

Jean didn't answer at first. He just stood there, first glancing towards the boarder that he was going to goad into a living shield-hostage, then at Foley. Through all the time that these temporal misfits had spent together in this ship, it was quite well known that Jean was usually as chill as an autumn breeze. The guy that usually had his cool on, no matter what.

Right now, though, he might have been slightly unnerved by the recent death of yet another member of their not-so-merry troupe. It even looked that he was going to shout down the bulkier, taller Foley. But alas, he did not. The Frenchman simply slung the rifle around his shoulder, and nodded. "Well then, Foley, if you have a plan or a set of suggestions, we'd like to hear them. It would seem you're the expert, if all the things I've heard are right."

Very chill.

[Grenartia]

Elizabeth/Athena

There was an argument between the invaders and this Pheonix person about the Martians. It was heated. And then the fighting broke out. Elizabeth instinctively ducked down, and dragged Apollonia with her, while Rebecca shockingly joined in.

Phoenix

The fight seemed to be over as quickly as it had began, and so Phe had stood off to the side, to avoid 2 people going after the same target, and acting as a barrier to protect the 3 women from any stray blaster shots. This was probably for the best, as winning the struggle came at a cost: Marcus, one of the people from the future where the Ragon invaded Earth.

As of now, the situation was tenuous. One of the civilian women with no training and visibly shaking was guarding the prisoners, the German was trying to take the blaster from her, while Jean-Luc and Foley argued over a plan of action. They'd be lucky if the boarders didn't turn the tide once more.

"Well then, Foley, if you have a plan or a set of suggestions, we'd like to hear them. It would seem you're the expert, if all the things I've heard are right."

"Alright, boys, how about this? Foley, you help the rest of our crew repel the boarders. Jean-Luc, get some blasters from the armory, and distribute them to any of our friends who can handle a weapon, then help Foley. The rest of us will stay here, guard the bridge, and I will interrogate the prisoners, or eliminate them if they get any smart ideas." she said, making sure to say that last part loud enough that the prisoners would hear (after all, showing weakness in front of prisoners only makes them think they can take you on), before bending down near one of the bodies and appropriating its blaster.

[Westeastern Dicantia]

Rather than a toughened soldier, without the helmet she just looked terrified, though she did manage a defiant, "Murderers!" spat at the Icarus crew.

They certainly weren't soldiers.

Rebecca, coming off the highest adrenaline rush of her entire life and clearly broadcasting that to the rest of the room, pursed her lips in half-frustration at the now helmetless boarder. Why were they being attacked by such a badly coordinated force? She wondered if they had been coerced into attacking the ship. Jean seemed to have the best control over the situation so she stood her ground and decided not to interrupt him.

When Joseph arrived and started bickering with Jean over exactly what to do next, she did her best to stay stoic, only briefly glancing at the pair as the other boarder was shoved towards her. Her act would have to continue.

and offered a hand out to her to turn over the weapon, "Fraulein, I can see you are not in the right state of mind to be watching these people. I can take over from here." He had muttered these words to prevent the other prisoners from catching on in their instability, yet kept his firm tone, as a father would to a wayward son.

Not entirely catching on to his intentions, but thankful to put the gun in someone else's hands, Rebecca nodded and handed it off. She was slowly becoming accustomed to the members of the crew she knew she had to concentrate a bit more to listen to, Hans being among them. She stepped off to the side as he took her place, trying to hide the work she was doing to control her heart rate.

"Alright, boys, how about this? Foley, you help the rest of our crew repel the boarders. Jean-Luc, get some blasters from the armory, and distribute them to any of our friends who can handle a weapon, then help Foley. The rest of us will stay here, guard the bridge, and I will interrogate the prisoners, or eliminate them if they get any smart ideas."

Phoenix was trying to take charge now, and from the way she spoke, Rebecca sensed that she had maybe done something wrong. It was out of her control now, but she figured handing off the gun to the German was the issue. At the moment, she was unwilling to resist any of the crew who knew more about combat than her.

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Joseph Foley
Bridge

Foley watched Jean's face.

It held the bearing one expected of the military but the tells were there. Jean's face held an expression of anger for a split-second before the Frenchmen's expression became stony again. The man slung his rifle and seemed to give in to Foley.

"Well then, Foley, if you have a plan or a set of suggestions, we'd like to hear them. It would seem you're the expert, if all the things I've heard are right."

The words were slow and concise. Foley wondered if he was being patronized. If it was just veiled-

"Alright, boys, how about this? Foley, you help the rest of our crew repel the boarders. Jean-Luc, get some blasters from the armory, and distribute them to any of our friends who can handle a weapon, then help Foley. The rest of us will stay here, guard the bridge, and I will interrogate the prisoners, or eliminate them if they get any smart ideas."

Foley regarded Phoenix and wondered if he should confront her now. Tell her he had returned to the bridge because he was probably going to stumble into an ambush and didn't know how many more boarders were still active. That the bridge group might have been their weakest and smallest unit on the ship. Instead, all he could see was the non-combatants of the group. How they switched their attention to the dead bodies, the still alive and visibly frightened prisoners and the three way argument. He had stopped Jean from going off and probably getting killed but had caused a fracture of their very fragile chain of command. The threat was still ongoing and Foley was probably the best choice at the moment for fighting outnumbered.

Which meant they would have to sort this all out later. After they retook the ship.

"Alright." Foley's response was gruff as he nodded. He had started the conflict but he knew better then to finish it here. Instead, he turned to the bodies of the boarder and Marcus. He retrieved the Kimber from its resting place near the bodies; reloading it and returning it to its hip holster. He shuffled over to the dead boarder. He rifled through various pouches attached to the armor, sealed for zero-gee and hostile environments, discarding unknown items and equipment before finding what he was looking for. A pouch full of magazine like objects that look like they fit Foley's commandeered rifle. He stuffed the ammunition into his pant's pockets and made to get up when he saw a familiar object almost hidden by the armor's bulk and the shadows beneath the body.

Foley gripped the corpse by its armor and heaved it onto its side. The corpse rolled with a clank and Foley reached down to claim his newly revealed prize. The knife popped free of the sheathe and he held it up to the light to examine. It was a flat black blade, mean looking and ergonomic. The knife looked an odd-mix of a K-BAR and karambit; a big double edged knife with a slight curve to it's spine. Foley gave a few movements and found the knife was decently balanced. He pulled the sheathe from the armor and attached it to his web belt; re-sheathing the blade.

Foley made to leave the bridge but stopped besides Jean, coming astride the man for a brief second.

"Best of luck froggy." His tone was joking but his expression was grim. A shallow attempt by Foley to raise an olive branch. The operator didn't stop to hear a reply though. He left the bridge without another word. His pockets filled with ammo and the damage from his brief confrontation done. He felt a tiny bit of regret that he squashed down. Instead, he shouldered his rifle instead and adopted his preferred combat stance. There would be times for regrets later. For now he had to get to engineering.

That's where Hannah said she was taking her team. The crew needed their numbers to retake the ships. And definitely not because a small part of him was worried about a pint-sized captain. Though if she was hurt...

'Focus Marine! Firefight first'.

Foley dragged his mind back from the distracting thoughts. Instead, focusing on the empty halls and doorways that could become the site of a firefight in a second. Corners that could host deadly crossfires. Tripwires-

The list went on but nothing impeded Foley's cautious trip. He stopped as he reached the stairs that would take him to the lower deck. He peered over and found nobody waiting for him. He shifted his rifle into his opposite shoulder to adjust for the awkward angle and set off. Booted feet clanging softly on metal as he descended with a rifle leading the way.

[The African Emirates]

Ted Jackson

Ted kept his eyes down as he propped himself on the floor, looking at the body next to him

I’ve just killed a man. I should be feeling something.

But instead of the expected pangs of guilt, there was something even worse.


Nothing.


It may have been because of the amount of death he had witnessed in his old life, or maybe something else. The compliment that Alexei had given him felt more like an affirmation that maybe he wasn’t such a good person. Ted decided to only acknowledge it with a nod. But he was surprised when one of the soldiers revealed their captain as a “Dhasath”, whatever that was. He stopped to listen to the ongoing developments. Lucky for Ted, Leona was well versed in the functional definition of a Dhasath, so he just absorbed what she said.

“Well,” Ted said after looking around nervously, “I definitely don’t smell anything sweet around here.”

Ted’s hands had always wandered a bit when he became stressed. The soft surface under his fingertips helped to calm him considerably, so he regained confidence and turned to face the remaining armored intruders.

Leona turned back towards the boarder that had pointed towards Hannah as the alien. "So what if she's an alien? She's kinder than most humans I know."

“Exactly, and what gives you the right to invade this ship? And don’t think I don’t know about that signal to our A.I.”

The room seemed to stand still as Hannah, Alexei, Ted, and Leona all looked expectantly at the crew of the Themis as the two of them remained silent. As Ted surveyed the room, he glanced at Leona, who seemed to have a hand stroking her hair.

Huh, that’s weird, is that my-

Mortified but trying his best to hide it. Ted quickly withdrew his wayward hand, hopefully before the Tritonian could notice. The soft surface had been Leona’s hair!

Stupid, stupid, stupid!

Not that he’d done it consciously, Ted recognized that it’s not exactly intimidating to give headpats to one of your crewmates as you’re doing an interrogation of attackers from another spaceship.

Ted heard some footsteps coming towards the engine room. Soft, but still audible and slicing through the tangible silence in the room. He dashed to the terminal, and opened the view outside the room. He breathed a sigh of relief, and turned back to everyone else.

“It’s Foley outside, so the bridge is likely safe as well. Let’s see if he has any more answers than we do.”

[Europa Undivided]

Jean-Luc Lafayette
The Bridge

"Alright, boys, how about this? Foley, you help the rest of our crew repel the boarders. Jean-Luc, get some blasters from the armory, and distribute them to any of our friends who can handle a weapon, then help Foley."

Jean-Luc let out an audible sigh, closing his eyes as he took in the words of Phoenix. He had just lost his cool just a few moments ago, nearly going into a deathly incursion into the rest of the ship using a hostage as a meat shield. That wouldn't have gone well, now that he had taken the time to think about it.

"Right... the armory. I got access to that, if the protocols of the AI of the Icarus still holds..." Jean-Luc looked across towards the hallway, unslinging the rifle and advancing cautiously. He had actually never got into a solo mission before; salvage excursions during the years after the Ragon invasion always had him and at least one other person with him, and there were usually more of them. Before that, he was a captain, and captains certainly went off on their own. Not without a retinue at least.

This was new to him, but he'll pull through, nonetheless. Jean quietly stole through the corridors, peaking over corners to look for patrolling boarders. None yet, so he kept walking towards the armory, hoping to not encounter any hostile in the way. That would be a problem.

Alexei Chernenko and Leona Helstrom

Mortified but trying his best to hide it. Ted quickly withdrew his wayward hand, hopefully before the Tritonian could notice. The soft surface had been Leona’s hair!

Of course, headpats was something Leona would certainly notice, but she didn't mind. Not that she cared that it was happening right in front of two other Icarus crew members as well as the hostile forces that had boarded their ship. If anything, she thought it might make someone or sometwo jealous, perhaps irritated. Either conclusion was funny for her.

"Don't worry about it," Leona whispered to Ted, while Alexei peered out of the doorway. "It's normal to be stressed in situations like these. Especially now that you've... uh, killed someone."

Alexei turned towards them, motioning with his head. "Comrades, let's go." The Russian then picked up one of the guns, pointing at another one that belonged to the deceased boarder. "Oh, and we gotta hide the body..."

[Dyelli Beybi]

Hannah Brown

...

"An alien species that looks just like humans, but with a lot of nitrogen in their system, which came as a result of adaptation to their desert homeworld. They also give out a boatload of pheromones because of that nitrogen content... which apparently gives their flesh, um, euphoric properties," Leona replied, though she was loud enough for the rest of the people inside the engine room to hear. "In my timeline they were nearly driven into extinction, but they eventually pulled off and formed the New D'oo'natay Republic, composing both of themselves and rogue Ragons. Ironic, prey and predator living in harmony."

Leona turned back towards the boarder that had pointed towards Hannah as the alien. "So what if she's an alien? She's kinder than most humans I know."

Hannah didn't immediately respond, to the chatter but instead pursed her lips before popping off the helmet of the boarder she was sitting on, putting it on her own head experimentally. The HUD was flashing something while speakers blared an alert sound. It took her a moment to focus on exactly what was being flashed at her 'xeno pheromones detected'. Well that wasn't polite. She wondered how it worked, then remembered the trip through the vents; she must have been sweating and the suit had picked up dhasath chemicals when she'd jumped the occupant! Very fancy... though also rather inconvenient.

With all the open chatter about man-eating ragons, and most of the crew never having met another sapient species before, she hadn't felt confident telling them what she was. She'd thought there would be a better moment in the future, but now it was out in the open. She glanced at Ted, Leona and Alexei, gave a small sigh, then explained, "Dhasath look like humans and can breed with them, which is pretty bizarre and probably not something my great-grandmother had imagined was even possible."

"I am... well was a hybrid. Practically it just meant that I couldn't take a blood transfusion but otherwise was perfectly human. Then the Ragons got me and they did things. I am close to certain that they had been using DNA harvested from other hybrids they had taken, who were all my relatives I might add, to develop some kind of gene therapy to change humans into dhasath. They did something to me, it sucked and then one of them secretively turned up a drip they had on me and I died," she paused for a moment before adding, "And then I woke up. I used to always feel the cold badly, but now I barely notice it, same with the heat. I hardly ever break a sweat... I think their experiment worked."

"You can't trust it," Alexei's prisoner hissed.

"Oh do be quiet," Hannah threw the helmet at the wall next to him, letting it clatter down onto the floor. She gave the group a wry half-smile, "There is one other test we could try that doesn't involve cannibalism."

Ted Jackson
...
“Exactly, and what gives you the right to invade this ship? And don’t think I don’t know about that signal to our A.I.”

The room seemed to stand still as Hannah, Alexei, Ted, and Leona all looked expectantly at the crew of the Themis as the two of them remained silent. As Ted surveyed the room, he glanced at Leona, who seemed to have a hand stroking her hair.

Huh, that’s weird, is that my-

Mortified but trying his best to hide it. Ted quickly withdrew his wayward hand, hopefully before the Tritonian could notice. The soft surface had been Leona’s hair!

Stupid, stupid, stupid!

Not that he’d done it consciously, Ted recognized that it’s not exactly intimidating to give headpats to one of your crewmates as you’re doing an interrogation of attackers from another spaceship.

Ted heard some footsteps coming towards the engine room. Soft, but still audible and slicing through the tangible silence in the room. He dashed to the terminal, and opened the view outside the room. He breathed a sigh of relief, and turned back to everyone else.

“It’s Foley outside, so the bridge is likely safe as well. Let’s see if he has any more answers than we do.”

Ted, meanwhile was getting disbelieving backchat from the boarders, "Invade?" one asked incredulously, "It's our ship. You stole it! You're lab rats who have somehow taken over the laboratory!"

"Shut up!" Hannah called angrily, standing up, directing a glare at the boarder she had been sitting on. He didn't seem like he wanted to keep fighting. The boarders didn't seem like the most courageous sort, "Okay, don't worry about hiding the body, but don't treat it with disrespect. We might be lab rats, but we aren't animals," she concluded before turning to the plan that she had been coming up with, "Okay, from what I can see, the most helpful thing we could do would be to get HAL to turn back into Ziggy so we can use the internal sensors to figure out where people are on this vessel. Also if you can do something to stop any similar attacks happening in the future, that would be swell."

"One of you, make sure these lads are looked after and don't try to mess with Ted, the rest of you, look after the door and make sure no angry guys with guns get in here to screw up what Ted is doing. And if it looks like things aren't going to well, we can use me as bait since they seem to be mostly interested in my extra-terrestrial ass," she directed at Alexei in the hope it might make him blush (and since Ted, the more obvious target, was so overtly flirting with Leona) "But who can blame them for that really?"

She skipped over an exposed pipe, pressing the door button, "Hey Joseph, it's me! Please don't shoot me because that would be super-awkward over dinner tonight!" she called, before stepping out into the open.

---

Eleanor Martin

Eleanor had not had any plans to follow the gruff American, though she had been swept up by Zoey, who was about the only person she had had time to form an opinion of. The American had then left her on the bridge with a whole lot of strangers, including some more people wearing armour who seemed to be prisoners. People were giving instructions and talking about things but Eleanor had no idea what was going on or who here s "What exactly is going on?" she demanded, her voice perhaps a little on the shrill side, "Who are all of you people and what in heavens is going.... oh..." she trailed off as she caught sight of the planet earth hanging in the void of space, "Well I never.... I never thought it was possible to be this high, it must have taken a phenomenal amount of gunpowder... It is just like a blue marble!"

[Europa Undivided]

Alexei Chernenko and Leona Helstrom
The Engine Room

"You can't trust it," Alexei's prisoner hissed.

Alexei promptly responded by audibly pressing his prisoner's face even harder against the floor. The former Red Army soldier stooped down, and whispered to the man's ear, sounding as threatening as a below average height guy (for these times) could get. "Be quiet, unless if someone asks you a question," he muttered to the boarder, his mind going back to the time when he was tasked to interrogate a prisoner of war right after the battle of Kursk. That felt so long ago, it might as well have been a dream. It wasn't something he particularly proud of, either.

He would just watch as Hannah put the helmet on, which pretty confirmed what they wanted to know. She's an alien alright, though the only people who were worried about that were the not-so sinister figures that barged their way into the ship. They seemed to try to make it sound like Hannah was going to transform into a monster from hell and eat everyone in here.

"One of you, make sure these lads are looked after and don't try to mess with Ted, the rest of you, look after the door and make sure no angry guys with guns get in here to screw up what Ted is doing. And if it looks like things aren't going to well, we can use me as bait since they seem to be mostly interested in my extra-terrestrial ass," she directed at Alexei in the hope it might make him blush (and since Ted, the more obvious target, was so overtly flirting with Leona) "But who can blame them for that really?"

Alexei wasn't used to slightly flirty gestures, and he looked away. He chuckled, but he was obviously trying to hide his expression at the moment. Was that a blush? A smile? A bit of both, maybe. The one thing that was sure is that Alexei is a bit embarrassed that it was directed towards him. He wouldn't have imagined that it would have been something that would ever happen.

"They somehow think you're a demon or something..." Alexei shrugged, holding on one of the rifles that he looted from the boarders that came across them in the engine room, taking a peek into the hallway with his eye on the scope. "It seems to be clear for now, though. Just Foley there..."

At the meantime, Leona sat in front of one of the tied up boarders, taking a look at her face. "Oooh, that looks painful," Leona mumbled to point that anyone could hear her. "But it's not bad. If only the engine room has some spare ice in it..."

Taking a moment away from examining the beat up prisoners, Leona stood up a little bit to the side of Ted, watching his fingers fly across the keyboard like a maestro in a concert. She seemed to admire his typing skills, at least.

Leona spoke up to Ted, her voice a bit nonchalant, as if seeing people get punched in the face was a thing she saw a lot. "They should be fine, even after taking a tackle and being pressed against the floor like cheese in a burger. It would have been better if we had an ice fridge in here, though."

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Joseph Foley

Foley encountered no resistance on his way down the stairs. Only the light clanging of his boots accompanied him. The way to the engine room was similarly situated. Empty corridors as pristine as they were on Foley's patrols earlier in the day. No signs of anyone or anything. The lack of evidence, for Hannah's group or the boarders, did set Foley slightly on edge. His more emotional side of his mind was acting up; much to his annoyance. And he didn't squelch it down like normal; instead focusing on his movement. The heavy door of engineering was in sight now; closed but undamaged. Foley approached it with caution; rifle trained on the door while his mind ran wild.

'Did they not make it? Were they captured on the way? Is there a squad of boarders camped out? Is Hannah alright?'

Foley was puzzling over why he had been prioritizing Hannah in his thoughts lately when the door slid open. The rifle was already trained on the door and he peered down the sight-

"Hey Joseph, it's me! Please don't shoot me because that would be super-awkward over dinner tonight!"

Joseph wasn't sure why he lowered his weapon so fast or the thrill of relief that shot through him as the familiar shape of Hannah stepped out from the cover of the door. He closed the distance a little faster then usual as he took stock of the captain. She looked just the same as when she had left the bridge, excusing the thin sheen of sweat coating her forehead or a few errant strands of hair plastered there. Joseph might have let a small grin escape that mirrored his relief and anther feeling he didn't need to dwell on.

'Still looks go-'

'Enough!'

Foley's grin faded from his face and he gave an internal groan of frustration. He was acting like a teenager and not the trained operator he was. He slipped his stoic mask back on and gave Hannah a professional nod; though he had to crane his head all the way down to do it.

"Good to see Ma'am. Bridge is secured." A brief pause as he tried to figure out how to broach the subject and figured blunt would work the best. " One of ours is dead and one of the theirs. We have two prisoners but their leader's in the wind."

Another pause.

"They aren't very.....capable. Most of the enemy that is. Leader's different though. Very ....professional." Foley settled on a vague description for the leader's capabilities. If not for Hannah's sake but for his own to establish the man was a wildcard that was somewhere near Foley's level of skills.

He stood awkwardly in the corridor before he glanced at Hannah and then their surroundings.

"You have a plan?"

Zoey Wessel

Zoey had watched the drama play out. The initial American had argued with a Frenchman over what do do with a pair of black armored figures. They looked similar to the "knight" from earlier; sans helmets. Another American, blonde had interjected and the drama had seemingly resolved itself. The first American left to regroup with another group, the Frenchman left to raid the armory. That left Zoey on the bridge with her fellow new arrivals and an interesting cast of characters.

The pair of prisoner's were being held at gunpoint by a man dressed as a sailor; speaking German or a similar language by the snippet's Zoey caught. A dark haired woman stood by the German's side, shaking from adrenaline as she looked around the bridge lost. A slight woman wearing a toga like garment huddled besides a tall, slim blonde lady dressed in an old-fashioned dress.

And to top it off, Earth was visible out the window. Asia dominated the the view at the moment as the planet slowly spun on its axis.

'What the hell is this place?'

Zoey was vaguely aware of Eleanor talking. She clued in however when something jumped out.

...it must have taken a phenomenal amount of gunpowder... It is just like a blue marble!"

A few things clicked into Zoey's mind as she turned to her companion.

"What year is it?"

[Grenartia]

Phoenix

As Foley and Jean-Luc left the bridge to follow through on their tasks, Phoenix pointed her newly-acquired blaster towards the prisoners. Before she could ask her first set of questions, however, two of the newly-awoken spoke up.

Eleanor Martin

Eleanor had not had any plans to follow the gruff American, though she had been swept up by Zoey, who was about the only person she had had time to form an opinion of. The American had then left her on the bridge with a whole lot of strangers, including some more people wearing armour who seemed to be prisoners. People were giving instructions and talking about things but Eleanor had no idea what was going on or who here s "What exactly is going on?" she demanded, her voice perhaps a little on the shrill side, "Who are all of you people and what in heavens is going.... oh..." she trailed off as she caught sight of the planet earth hanging in the void of space, "Well I never.... I never thought it was possible to be this high, it must have taken a phenomenal amount of gunpowder... It is just like a blue marble!"

A few things clicked into Zoey's mind as she turned to her companion.

"What year is it?"

"The current year is 371...BC. You are on the timeship Icarus. Everyone in this room is from a different time and place in human history. We lived, we died, and we were resurrected here. Everyone that is, except for these fine, upstanding individuals, who are from the Sol Institute of Temporal Research. My name is Phoenix, and no, the irony of dying and being resurrected is not lost on me." Phe said, without taking her eyes (or her weapon) off the prisoners.

"Now, why don't you two introduce yourselves, and explain to my new friends here what it is SITR actually does?" she asked, directed at the not-so-friendly guests.