A Couple Wrongs Makin' it Alright

Posted on Fri Jul 30th, 2021 @ 4:00pm by Alden Loxley & Alison Bliss

Mission: I Ain't Fraid of No Ghost...
Location: Ghost - communications channel link-up
Timeline: November 1st - 1 hour after Alden leaves Echo

He had a moment or two in all of the chaos, a moment or two to really think about the here and now, the whys and the when and the whatever in amongst all the deceased folk and the carnage that set his heart rate high and constant.

So when the chance came to make a call, while he waited on Jonas, Whit and their quarry, Alden reached out with a private channel direct to Alison's personal cortex. His voice, he thought, sounded clear and strong, but she'd see through that, she'd hear that underlying shake well enough. He pretended otherwise.

"Ali? You there?"

Alison finished washing the puppy from the blood and now watched him finishing the third saucer of water. She was sitting in the pilot chair on the bridge. She shook her head slowly, the Black was not the place for animals. She would have to give it to someone first chance she would get.

The crackling of the personal communicator make her wince.

"Yeah? What's up. are you ok? Because it looks like we have Reavers here."

"I'm okay," Alden replied swiftly, knowing that if their positions were reversed that would be the first thing he'd want to know. "Not sure exactly what's going on, but Whit's tracking a person. And yeah, definitely looks like Reavers were here." A big sigh followed. "So far no live ones still about, and a lot of dead folks." Worry coloured his tone as he asked his own questions. "You safe? Any sign of trouble out on the surface? You'll take off if you need to, right?"

"No." Alison said softly. "You know it, same as you wouldn't leave without me. So you come back all right?" She finished with reproachful tone. "We are safe for now."

He flashed a smile, because she was absolutely right. Was kinda nice to hear that though. That she still wouldn't leave without him despite the whole XO/pilot thing. "I'll come back," Alden promised. "Nothing killing us just yet." And long may that remain true, he told himself. "Just wanted to know y'all were alright and t'update ya on my lack of any real grasp on this current situation. Everyone doing okay?"

"So far so good." Alison said leaning over the comm and hesitated. "Unless... what's with Tristan? He just vanished. Did you sent him on another secret mission?" She asked accusatory. "He was one moment and was gone the next and I haven't had time to look for him. I am hoping that it's you behind this."

"Huh? He vanished?" There was muffled cursing with enough of a worried edge to the tone that implied this was the very first time Alden was hearing anything about Vanishing Tristans. He came up for air after exhausting his Chinese for the moment and made a point of enunciating clearly as he answered Alison directly. "Nothing to do with me, I swear on my life," Alden stated. "Why was he outta the ship in the first place? You let him leave?" There was more concern than accusation in that last question.

"Someone had to go outside and check what was banging at the hull. He was the only one willing to help." Alison replied calmly. "He vanished when we were coming back."

This story was going rapidly downhill. Alden closed his eyes and exhaled before he responded again. "James didn't help?" He asked, first. "He still on board at least?" Worry rose up and iced his insides with its cool fingertips. "And you can't reach Tristan on the radio?" The thought of Tristan wandering around on the planet, or in the battle-torn settlement... it filled the Echo's Captain with dread. "You sort what was banging on the hull? Something about a puppy?"

"James was there, but no, he didn't help." Alison replied. "And no, I don't think Tristan is onboard. I haven't seen him." She said with a sigh. "It reminds kindergarten more and more. Like if you couldn't hire people that are reliable and normal." She sighed. "It was a head... well it was a box with a head and a puppy inside. We took the puppy, James threw out the head." She shook her head even though Alden couldn't see it. "Weird stuff. Who would put a head in the box? It seems like something that happened before Reavers as Reavers would rather eat the head, right?"

"Wong Ba Duhn," said Alden, with as much emphasis as he could put into that curse. It applied to both James and Tristan in that moment. Then there was the rest of Ali's complaint, which he truly didn't want to address right here and now, in this little oasis of calm, clear radio reception Ghost had granted them both for a moment. "None of us are normal," Alden pushed back with levity. He didn't want to fight now, he was worried. For himself, for Jonas, for his crew back on the surface, and for Whit's missing friend.

"I dunno," he returned, honestly and with a demonstrative shrug. "If you hear from Tristan let me know k. I'll do the same, but we're going deeper in, not sure how much longer I can stay connected. We can talk when I get back." When, right. Not if.

"Yeah... watch out for yourself." Alison concluded not happy to hear that Tristan case was unresolved.

"You too," Alden said. He could hear that edge to his friend's tone, but nothing he could say right now was going to help that.

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