Impact

[Asmus Janes]

“I think one of those snouty six legged things came snuffling about for a minute. That had my heart going for a minute,” he said with a smile. He'd been close to waking her then, his hand laid across his blaster.

“Going to be chilly out there for an hour or two,” he added. The air coming through the vents was still cool. As the woods had stayed warm into the evening, so too would the sun take time to penetrate them with its heat.

He took a long swig of water and pulled free another few ration wafers and pushed them towards the tent entrance. They could have breakfast on the go.

With that he seemed content with the state of the gear, ready to back out the tent and pack it away.

“Where's the worst?” He asked of her muscles.

 

[Kaile Vera]

“Huh?” it took a second for Kaile to register what Asmus meant. Kaile had just lifted her back, set to grab a quick sonic toothbrush. Her large brown eyes caught his. Unable to help herself, she gave a half smile and a shake of her head.

“It’s alright.” she assured him, although a voice in her head did murmur the slight bit of longing at that offered massage.

“We still need to get to the city.” she tugged at the strings of her bag. “Also need to check to see if we received any news back from the Subversion.” her eyes shone with mild mischief.

“Odds that the Captain would have Vo send the message or do it himself?”

 

[Asmus Janes]

“Captain will be fretting,” Asmus replied, but not answering the question. “He likes to micromanage any situation. Half the time he interferes with my level of command when I'm only looking after three to six fighters. There's be some of the Captain in the message either way.”

The Rogue knew it wasn't really right to speak ill of his superiors. A small shrug of the shoulders showed he was considering this. But it was true. In any military the senior officer took time to build the larger plan, the next level down took less time to apply it to their unit and tweaked the implementation. In the GADF that had all worked well enough. They told him 'attack that cruiser's engines’ and he sorted out the specifics, normally with assistance from Flight Command as they could do things like calculate optimal trajectories based on remaining defensive fire.

Amadgener liked to try and have control of every tiny facet of an operation. Down to which decks his pilots when jogging on.

“Mind if I borrow that after?” He asked of the toothbrush. He didn't have one. He pulled his jacket tight about him and prepared for the bite of fresh morning air.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile couldn’t help the slight snort at the descriptor of Amadgener. Well, it was true. The Captain liked making sure he was in control of just about every facet. While he certainly had a bone to pick with Asmus - and it irked her - the Captain was also a relatively good guy. Just he didn’t play well with folk much like Asmus. Kaile could see why.

“Mm? Ahmn.. uh hmm.” she’d stuffed her sonic toothbrush into her mouth and ended up responding in a jumble of mumbled jargon. Sitting cross legged, Kaile braced herself for the chill of the cold as Asmus unzipped the adiabatic seal at the entrance of the tent.

That cold shiver ran down the nape of her neck to the top of her spine. Yup, COLD! Moving the sonic toothbrush over to her molars, she gave them a quick swipe. It would be quick and fast. Just a few passes and she’d be done.

Placing the self cleansing cap back on her toothbrush, she gave it a quick go to sanitize it. At the small green beep, the brunette extended it over to the pilot.
“Here.”

 

[Asmus Janes]

“Ta,” he replied. He took it and popped it into his mouth without switching it on. Then he used both hands to crawl backwards, pulling his bags along towards the entrance.


“Tha's cold,” he grumbled. One hand slipped on his socks and boots, whilst the other gave his teeth a quick once over. It left his mouth feeling far more pleasant.

Boots done up he slipped out of the tent, finding somewhere to pay out his bags and rifle. Once he was done with his teeth he found a flat rock to put the plate down to rehydrate the wafers.

“Breakfast is served,” he called with absolutely all enthusiasm removed from his voice. His legs felt much better, but his back would be aching before they reached the city limits.

 

[Kaile Vera]

“The breakfast of champions.” Kaile’s quip came from within the folds of the tent. She was busy trying to warm her socks between her hands by giving them a good rub. Her toes wiggled in the cold, trying to curl up within themselves as if to hide from the chill. After the fabric had warmed up to Kaile’s specifications, she slipped them over feet.

The soft hum of pleasure at the warm socks on her decisively cold toes was a mild highlight of the day. Granted, there were still a few sore spots on her feet. Her legs felt a little bit tight, but nothing to the point of being concerned. Likely she’ll see if she could spent some time with a heating pad or two once they were back on the ship to deal with it.

A quick check of her dataterminal confirmed the message. It was at least three fourth’s Vo with one fourth of it Amadgener. Continue on with the mission. Alright.

“No changes. Proceed to extract the asset.” Usually how it went. She sent an encrypted confirmation via the holonet and then shut down her terminal. A quick pack and then the agent was able to crawl out of the tent with her own pack backwards, one swaying pert bum in the air as she scrambled back.

 

[Asmus Janes]

“Ta,” he replied. He took it and popped it into his mouth without switching it on. Then he used both hands to crawl backwards, pulling his bags along towards the entrance.

“Tha's cold,” he grumbled. One hand slipped on his socks and boots, whilst the other gave his teeth a quick once over. It left his mouth feeling far more pleasant.

Boots done up he slipped out of the tent, finding somewhere to pay out his bags and rifle. Once he was done with his teeth he found a flat rock to put the plate down to rehydrate the wafers.

“Breakfast is served,” he called with absolutely all enthusiasm removed from his voice. His legs felt much better, but his back would be aching before they reached the city limits.

 

[Kaile Vera]

“The breakfast of champions.” Kaile’s quip came from within the folds of the tent. She was busy trying to warm her socks between her hands by giving them a good rub. Her toes wiggled in the cold, trying to curl up within themselves as if to hide from the chill. After the fabric had warmed up to Kaile’s specifications, she slipped them over feet.

The soft hum of pleasure at the warm socks on her decisively cold toes was a mild highlight of the day. Granted, there were still a few sore spots on her feet. Her legs felt a little bit tight, but nothing to the point of being concerned. Likely she’ll see if she could spent some time with a heating pad or two once they were back on the ship to deal with it.

A quick check of her dataterminal confirmed the message. It was at least three fourth’s Vo with one fourth of it Amadgener. Continue on with the mission. Alright.

“No changes. Proceed to extract the asset.” Usually how it went. She sent an encrypted confirmation via the holonet and then shut down her terminal. A quick pack and then the agent was able to crawl out of the tent with her own pack backwards, one swaying pert bum in the air as she scrambled back.

 

[Asmus Janes]

“Oh we are going on a camping trip,” he murmured softly to himself. Only the sound of birds broke the silence so he might have whispered on the edge of her hearing. The fresh, crisp air would have brought out a different side of Asmus. The tent would have been their own private shelter against the world. Not a soul close enough to hear the noises they made.

With a quick of his eyebrows he packaged that thought away for another time. Instead he broke off a piece of rations and stuffed it in its mouth. He busied himself with the tent to stop the fantasy from sneaking out of its box.

Asmus unpegged the tent and touched a particular square of fabric. The small thing folded itself up in half a second.

“Handy little thing,” he reflected.

 

[Kaile Vera]

“What about a camping trip?” yup, Kaile had some very keen hearing. A solid thump came as she set her bag in front of her, Asmus already folding up the tent with a press of a button. Chocolate brown eyes swept over to catch him setting the folded tent away.

Two brows rose up in curious inquiry while Kaile took to sliding into her boots. A quick tie and then the smoothing down of the securing strap finished it. She wiggled her toes and felt it to be a little bit tighter than the day before. Her feet had swollen in the wake of the lengthy hike. Odds were they would protest the last few kilometers before they reached the city too.

“What, you’ve never been on overnight missions in the wild? SEER training not included.” she asked, thinking he had meant that.

 

[Asmus Janes]

“Oh nothing,” he replied a little too quickly. He averted his gaze but the corner of his mouth gave him away. He decided to try and cover.

“Like I said last night, maybe I don't get out enough. Camping somewhere like this under different circumstances would be nice.” An honest answer that left out the more sordid aspect of the thought he'd been struck by. Once more the light was cutting through the canopy. Shards of light picking out the landscape in glorious detail. A flat light would not have made the woods so vibrant.

Asmus rolled up the tent and stowed it away, beginning to get everything strapped onto himself once more.

“Actually might be an easier walk in the cool air.”

 

[Kaile Vera]

“Oh.” Although there seemed to be more to it than just by what hed said. Swinging her arms through the straps of her bag, Kaile set it snugly on her back. They still had several kilometers to go before they ditched some of their gear. Taking too much might be a flag that they want to avoid.

“I reckon you'll find a few within alliance space,” she decided to keep it focused on him. “Shore leave and all.”

Turning east the agent searched for their heading. Yet she took a moment to appreciate the early morning light dancing across the leaves and branches around her.

It is quite beautiful.

Yet responsibly called. Finding their direction to head towards, she set to work in cleaning behind themselves. The less tracks they left behind the better.

 

[Asmus Janes]

“That would be nice for u-me some time,” he said. Asmus sat on the box he'd locked in his mind. It would have been a simple thing to share the innocuous idea. Kaile, he knew, was most comfortable keeping her mind on the present when it came to them. Literally one night at a time. This was her mission to complete, orders confirmed.

He gave a bob on tip toes, setting his bag and rifle on his shoulders. He have a final, cursory check of the camp. They'd left a few foot tracks in the muddier ground that couldn't be helped, but they stuck to the moss and thicker grass on the way back up towards the city.

“A hard march and we'll be there in no time,” he said pleasantly as they set off. But as they fell silent he opened that box again. Just to give me him something to take his mind off the mechanical action of putting each leg forwards.

“Get transport to one of the hotels we listed?” He asked a few minutes into their journey.

 

[Kaile Vera]

“There should be a few shuttle taxis. That won't be hard.” Kaile admitted. Pebbles and twigs crunched under her boots as she hiked up. Yeah, he shoulders were not so happy with her this morning.

“The difficult part would be the enhanced security due to those Rebels.” That meant that guards and patrol men were going to be on the look out for anything remotely suspicious.

“We will have to be quick.” With luck they wouldn't ring any alarms. Once inside the city she would also be able to gather a more up to date sitrep on what was going on. That should up the odds in their favor.

 

[Asmus Janes]

Asmus made a positive noise in response. A city was a big place to get lost in, especially as prepared as Kaile was. If she told him to stay put, he would probably stay put. Though he would almost certainly try and convince her to let him help in some way. But this was her game now. If she'd asked to help him fly and he couldn't find something she could practically help with then that would be that.

For a while he was quiet again. They moved into deeper woods. He could hear the sound of a landspeeder freeway in the distance. No one would hear them easily here, he decided. A grin broke on his face as he barely murmured the first words in tune.

“I tried to discover…”

 

[Kaile Vera]

I tried to discover…

It would have been better if Asmus didn’t have a great singing voice. However, the Eriaduian was blessed with not only good looks, but an excellent voice. The sort that was equally infectious and prompted anyone to want to sign along. Already her mind was going back to the Quinessence. To when they would work together in the cargo bay, in the cock pit, listening and singing softly to music.

The brunette had gone through a rollercoaster of emotions then. It hadn’t been at her best. Yet Asmus had managed to make it one of the most memorable moments of her life.

Trudging along the hike, Kaile felt her head fall forward. The tiny strings of her heart were tugged. And at the corner of her mouth, the slightest of upward quirks grew.

 

[Asmus Janes]

A little something to make me sweeter…

He shouldn't have. He knew he probably shouldn't have. But once he'd starting softly singing it was too catchy to stop.

That you gimme no
That you gimme no
That you gimme no
Hum dee hum dee hum

He sung a quiet nonsense line before the chorus, realising that he was inappropriately starting to raise his voice. How did they catch you? I was singing a catchy tune loud enough for my voice to carry, he imagined the conversation with a red-faced Amadgener.

His pace quickened and his spirit soared. Asmus sang so softly through a wide smile.

 

[Kaile Vera]

“That you gimmie no, that you gimmie no, that you gimmie no…”

Catchy tunes were a sneaky weakness. Kaile's own quiet voice soon joined the Wraith’s, much to his joy and growing brightness in his eyes. Maybe even the cause to the extra pep in his step, as both SIS members weaved their way across the deeply forested path towards the city beyond the range before them.

Minutes turned to hours and one song turned to the next. Both at least had the situational awareness to maintain their voices at a minimum, although there was a time or two when perhaps the chorus was sung with a higher octave or two.

The bubbling sound of water along with the distant sighting of an antenna brought that all to a halt. Instead Kaile pressed a finger vertically to her lips, motioning after to lay low. They had managed to reach a small outpost just about two klicks away.

 

[Asmus Janes]

His voice fell silent and he dropped low. It had brightened his day to sing through the morning. On a few occasions that had shared an almost embarrassed glance after getting a toucher louder than was appropriate.

Asmus reached back to the side pocket on his pack and slid the small spotting scope free and offered it to Kaile. He'd witnessed how much more quietly she could move than him when she'd dealt with the probe. There was no shame in knowing his limitations and allowing her to take the lead.

Perhaps now would come the job he had most been looking forward to. Using the small, fold away hand shovel to dig a deep enough hole to bury the rifle and other gear.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Asmus Janes"]

Kaile's fingers went curling around the macro binoculars. Through the slight grid lines, she zoomed in. A small gathering of figures. Nothing out of the ordinary. By all intents and purposes, appeared to be little more than an outpost. Security was high, but Kaile was relieved to see that it appeared as if the local population there would allow them to blend in.

"It's an outpost. Likely for trade before it goes into the main city." this was good. Also a bit of a risk.

"We could go in and see if we could find some public transportation into the city." she brought down the binoculars, handing them back to Asmus.

Would beat having to hump out the rest of the kilometers there.