Hobbes hasn't been back on Oublie in almost ten months, but breaking orbit is always hard. Yeah, the dampeners are going on the old Sarajevo, and yeah, by then he's almost always beary eyed from sleep. Auto pilot went the first six months out from HQ and since then, he's had to make the trips between planets without sleeping, more or less at the helm the whole time.
But through all that, the bumping and rocking and itchy eyes, all Tom can think about was that the first time he broke orbit with those glaciers spread out below him was with Sophie in the co-pilot seat, watching her laughing with her head tipped back and her hair down, tipsy on strawberries and champagne.
'Love you, Tommy,'When he lands, his name is Zachary Paulson and he's in town on business and his eyes are only damp from recycled air
( ... )
There's this thing that happens to him sometimes. He doesn't have a name for it. He's heard of people kept in military facilities, stuck in tanks with wires running into their open brains. People who can see a little further than they should be able to. He's not one of those people, he knows that, but still, sometimes someone fires at him and he's not there, because a split second before the shot came he knew to duck. Sometimes he's rounded a corner and the guy waiting for him has ended up down on the ground and bleeding, because he was ready for him, because he already knew he'd be there. It's not a regular thing, and if he thinks about it directly it disappears, but it's part of him.
And he feels it now. Looks up at nothing and feels a tiny vibration in the back of his mind, like someone tapping a guitar string.
Get out.He drains the glass in one gulp, because that looks less suspicious, slaps down ten credits and pushes back from the bar, turns and scans the crowd without looking like that's what he's doing. Switches to
( ... )
There's something he's able to hold on to through the white noise. Part of him his thinking Peace Keepers and justice and a hundred other things from an out dated rule book and a code of morals that had already failed him, once. Once was enough.
So now, he's not really thinking about anything except that if he shoots this man, Mike Pinocchio, badge 4358, location unknown (known now, now, jesus fuck, right now), then he probably won't make it out the door. He buys a pack of cigarettes out of a machine to offer up an excuse for coming in and doesn't take his eyes off him. The fuck was already making for the door.
Fuck, fuck, already, now, finally, too soon, don't, and Sophie.
The clearest thing in his head is the cool hilt of the gun.
He makes it out into the night and once he's there he lets himself take a breath, exhaling in a cloud of steam into the cold air. He pulls his jacket closer around him and starts to walk, not too fast and not too slow, in the direction of the docks.
He sees a shimmer and looks up. It's the Aurora, green curtains across the sky, and for a second his breath is clean gone. He remembers being a kid, standing outside his family's cabin with all the lights on and blazing, looking up and wondering if they were solid, if he could get in a shuttle and fly up and touch them.
It's too long ago. He shivers and starts walking again, passing the occasional person, but it's late and cold and there's not many people around.
The tugging in his head is gone, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. He can't afford to stop again. He wishes with a little twinge of annoyance that he could just jump offworld, but he's Zuu's ride back and it wouldn't be a great idea to get one of the better contacts he's had annoyed at him.
Comments 19
But through all that, the bumping and rocking and itchy eyes, all Tom can think about was that the first time he broke orbit with those glaciers spread out below him was with Sophie in the co-pilot seat, watching her laughing with her head tipped back and her hair down, tipsy on strawberries and champagne.
'Love you, Tommy,'When he lands, his name is Zachary Paulson and he's in town on business and his eyes are only damp from recycled air ( ... )
Reply
And he feels it now. Looks up at nothing and feels a tiny vibration in the back of his mind, like someone tapping a guitar string.
Get out.He drains the glass in one gulp, because that looks less suspicious, slaps down ten credits and pushes back from the bar, turns and scans the crowd without looking like that's what he's doing. Switches to ( ... )
Reply
So now, he's not really thinking about anything except that if he shoots this man, Mike Pinocchio, badge 4358, location unknown (known now, now, jesus fuck, right now), then he probably won't make it out the door. He buys a pack of cigarettes out of a machine to offer up an excuse for coming in and doesn't take his eyes off him. The fuck was already making for the door.
Fuck, fuck, already, now, finally, too soon, don't, and Sophie.
The clearest thing in his head is the cool hilt of the gun.
Reply
He sees a shimmer and looks up. It's the Aurora, green curtains across the sky, and for a second his breath is clean gone. He remembers being a kid, standing outside his family's cabin with all the lights on and blazing, looking up and wondering if they were solid, if he could get in a shuttle and fly up and touch them.
It's too long ago. He shivers and starts walking again, passing the occasional person, but it's late and cold and there's not many people around.
The tugging in his head is gone, but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. He can't afford to stop again. He wishes with a little twinge of annoyance that he could just jump offworld, but he's Zuu's ride back and it wouldn't be a great idea to get one of the better contacts he's had annoyed at him.
Anyway, it's not far. ( ... )
Reply
Leave a comment