Empyrean Iris Story Collection

Psychological Apocalypse

Sunny was glad to hear the silence.

Raised voices and angry yelling had characterized much of the past thirty minutes as Adam made a call to the UNSC. She didn't know what he was talking to them about because, despite his voice being raised, the walls were too thick to really make anything out. Down the hall Krill peered out from the medical bay where he was tending to the injured.

Sunny shook her head at him, and he returned to his work.

Neither of them knew what was going on, and Adam wasn't talking, all they knew was that he had a plan they weren't going to like. The only person on the ship who truly knew what was going to happen was Conn, and the one thing about him is that he never gave away secrets, though the twisting of his expressions were enough to say that he was not particularly pleased about the idea either.

That made her worried.

Conn was usually into most things that caused other people emotional anguish.

He was an asshole like that.

Just then, the door next to her slid open, and commander Vir stepped out into the hallway. He was pale, white as a sheet. She would have said he looked sick, if she didn't know better. Behind him, waffles, his service dog, followed after her head looking up ears pricked in concern.

He didn't speak to her, but turned and walked down the hallway. She followed after him, and Krill, peeking his head again, from the medical bay gave sunny another look . She could only shrug and continue following him down the hall and towards the cargo bay.

When they reached it, he almost immediately sat down burying his head in his hands suffering silently and refusing to speak to her. His dog sat in front of him nudging at his hands and face with her nose incessantly until he began to pet her. She crawled into his lap forcing him to pay attention to her as she did. It had been a while since Sunny saw that sort of behavior from either of them.

It was almost hard to remember that Adam had post traumatic stress sometimes. Hard to forget that he wasn't actually cured of his demons.

Though what would be making them flare up now?

The war?

The atmosphere of combat?

The people?

She worried for a moment that it might have been her before dismissing the idea. No, her and Adam were reconciled. There was no hard feelings between them, and no matter what she did, she couldn't scare hi or even get him to flinch despite being the one who had done this to him.

It hurt her every day to think about it.

The dog's tail beat against the ground.

They were there what seemed like an hour before red lights around the room began flashing, and crew members rushed to prep the airlock for an incoming ship. Adam took a deep breath and took to his feet looking pale but focused as the airlock doors slowly began to open.

A small ship rolled onto the deck.

It was a human ship, though the distinctive pulsing noise was clearly GA in nature.

She stood up, curious to see what was going to happen.

Commander Vir walked forward just as the doors were opening.

A man stepped onto the ramp and then onto the floor pulling a hover cart behind him, with a large, dusty crate marked with the UNSC seal.

The two men stopped to face each other.

Adam did not offer to shake the man's hand, instead inclining his head, "Amidral."

The other man, who sunny had never seen before looked like a person hounded by his own inner demons. He was thin and scruffy, with unkempt grey hair and an outgrowth of stubble over his chin and cheeks, which were sunken and discolored.