InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "It's just like Sister Ray said"

Lt. (jg) Colton Nathaniel West (colton_west) wrote in kobols_legacies,
@ 2008-04-18 23:33:00

Current location:	Avalon - Hanger Bay
Entry tags:	( a completed scene), (c) colton west, (c) jake mackenzie, (l) avalon

A New Arrival
The heavy echo of combat boots on the metallic flight deck carried across the hanger bay like the opening beats of some annoying song that gets stuck in the brain. A few working mechanics turned to see who was bothering to make all the noise.

He was lithe and lean and carried himself with the swagger of someone whose abilities were only outmatched by his ego. An athletic frame was wrapped in the gray-green flight suit of a viper jock. He was a short man, with an almost elfin sparkle in his dark brown eyes. The thin, well trimmed facial hair an loose cascade of brown hair only added to his mischievous aura. A duffel bag was held loosely in his right hand while an old fashioned guitar case was slung over his shoulder. Both were beaten and patched in several places.

He nodded to the few who made eye contact with him. His air of cool arrogance gave those who saw him the impression that this rogue believed himself to be perfectly at home in spite of the fact that everyone of the crew on duty at the moment regarded him as a complete stranger. Finally, he turned and made his way towards a seemingly random wrench turner.

"How goes it?" His tone was light and casual, as if he knew this man.

The mechanic didn't look up from his work, regarding the strange pilot with only a grunt of recognition.

The pilot raised an eyebrow and paused for a moment. "Right," he said with a sigh. "Well, if you'll direct me to the Captain of the Black Hydras or the poor bloke charged with running this bucket I'll be out of your way."

The mechanic glanced at him for only the briefest of moments before jerking his head towards the aft of the hanger, where the exits were visible.

"Right," the pilot said with a nod. He turned away from the fellow and began to walk away. "Let it never be said that the crew of the Avalon weren't a friendly bunch."

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jake_mackenzie
2008-04-20 09:27 pm UTC (link)

Jake stared at the other man, wondering what his game was. That's exactly what it was to him, Jake realized, a game.

While still angry at the insolence in the other man, Jake decided to get some answers that might get to the root of the problem.

"Why are you here? I mean, seriously, why are you still in the fleet? You obviously have no love for the military life and your service commitment was up years before the attacks."

Jake turned and picked up the personnel folder that had been sitting on his desk, Cole's folder. "You see this folder? You realize that it is thicker than average for someone of your rank and experience, which indicates you've been in trouble more than once. If you don't like the life why stick with it?"

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colton_west
2008-04-20 09:33 pm UTC (link)

Cole winced for a moment, as if he words struck him like a physical blow. Few he'd met were so quick to cut straight to he heart of the matter. For a few seconds his wall of bravado and ego seemed to give way. He quickly composed himself, his face going rigid.

"I don't see how that's relevant, sir. I'm here. I'm a good pilot and I can help blow a few toasters out of the sky." His words were even, almost strained.

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jake_mackenzie
2008-04-20 09:45 pm UTC (link)

"It is relevant," Jake insisted, seeing that he'd gotten behind the mask if only for a moment. "There's more to being a pilot in the Colonial Fleet than being a hot stick in the cockpit. If all I was looking for was natural talent this discussion wouldn't even be happening. You can just as easily be a good pilot shuttling civilians back and forth between ships rather than take up a slot in the military that could be filled by someone who wants to play well with others."

He put the file back on his desk. "I repeat: why are you here?"

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colton_west
2008-04-20 09:50 pm UTC (link)

Taking his eyes away from the thousand-yard stare of a man at attention, Cole locked his eyes on Colonel MacKenzie. His words were forced, harsh, and hard. His fists were clenched and quivering and his knuckles were white.

"Colonel," he said, "if you're going to pull me from behind the stick, then I respectfully request you get on with it. Otherwise, I'd rather you stop crawling around inside my head and let me do my job - even if it means I have to 'play nice' with others."

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jake_mackenzie
2008-04-20 09:59 pm UTC (link)

"I'm trying to do my job," Jake shot back, "which includes making sure that my command runs smoothly. If you're going to mouth off and act like a twelve year old the minute someone says or does something you don't like, then I have no use for you and I will pull you from flight status and start the paperwork to have you removed from the service."

Jake held the other man's gaze for a moment to make sure the Lieutenant understood, then let his gaze soften a bit.

"I'm not asking for you to be a model officer. Given your service record I'm not sure you're capable of it. I do expect you to show the proper amount of public respect to those in the chain of command who have shown the ability to accept more responsibility than yourself, and I don't want to hear about you starting any fights. Anything else is between you and Captain Tarix."

He returned his gaze to the other man's eyes. "Are we clear?"

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colton_west
2008-04-20 10:03 pm UTC (link)

"Crystal clear, sir." he said. The strain in his voice relaxed, but he no longer seemed as casual as before. There was a kind of detached respect in his tone.

"Permission to freely, sir?" he asked. It was a tiny gesture of compromise and after a moment he received the Colonel's nod.

"As far as fights go, I want to make one thing clear: I've never thrown the first punch."

His eyes twinkled for a moment, and with a single shift in posture the arrogance of his demeanor returned.

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	jake_mackenzie 2008-04-20 10:19 pm UTC (link)
	Jake nodded. "That may be true, but that won't save you if that happens. Not without a damn better excuse than that." He moved to sit back down behind his desk. "You're on thin ice Vagabond. Don't let it crack under you. Now go on, get out of here and report to Captain Tarix to get settled in." (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

colton_west
2008-04-20 10:24 pm UTC (link)

He offered a stiff salute and cracked a thin, fey smile. "Yes, sir."

Turning on his heel in an about face he made his way out of the Colonel's office without another word. His reviewed the encounter in his mind, playing it back several times. As he closed the door to MacKenzie's office he realized that the Colonel was either going to be the biggest ally he had here on Avalon or the biggest pain in the ass he'd had to deal with since his father died.

Putting it out of his mind before he thought to much about it, he made his way towards the office of Captain Tarix.

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	jake_mackenzie 2008-04-20 10:38 pm UTC (link)
	End Scene (Reply to this) (Parent)

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