0-SA (The Last Ship Series)

Chapter Twenty-Four: Studying

"It spoke English? Fluently?" Professor Jewel was looking over her work. Jacques and the team had returned back to the Sphere after their encounter with Osa and Raven, "I didn't think they could even speak." The woman thought to herself, "You're certain she was protecting the Irinaut? How did he act with her? Did they have anything from the inside of the ship?"

"I'm certain. She was helping it in the shipyard when we first saw them. When I came up on them and Sage took the second shot Raven jumped in front of it. She tried to tell me the thing wasn't bad, and she meant it, but for all we know it's got some bullshit implanted in her brain now and she's just his slave." Jacques groaned, "The Irinaut had a case on its back, but I don't know what was in it." Jacques rubbed his face, "I don't really have anything else to tell you except that. He definitely had no intentions on leaving her there once she was hit herself."

"Interesting." Professor Reed looked over his notes, "I wasn't expecting it to even attempt to talk. Any infected Irinaut we've encountered has lost its mind. They are just much more intelligent than the human infected." The doctor turned on a screen, "We managed to get the security footage from the ship yard. Take a look at this." He hit play, and fast forwarded through the video, "They were there all day, going ship to ship. I believe it's trying to find some of its own resources. What, I don't believe any of us would be certain of. No one has ever been able to get into those ships. The more you blow them up, it seems that metallic fluid just consumes them. They really don't like their things to be messed with." Reed adjusted his glasses before pausing the video, "It seems the aliens themselves have a connection to their tools. We wouldn't be able to open one of these without it."

"That's easy then! You just cut off the fuckers hand, and shove it on the button." A man in his late twenties sat with his feet propped in a chair. His hair was short and blazing red, rather muscular.

Professor Jewel rolled her eyes, "Bruno now not I don't have time to listen to your rambles."

The man glared at the woman, a grin ran across his face, "Oh come on beautiful you know I'm right. Anything these things touch, it works for them but not for us, but you slap some of that leech juice on the trigger, you're golden."

"So disgusting.." Jewel threw her hand up, "Could you go bother someone else?"

Jacques tilted his head before pointing at Bruno, "Who's this guy?"

Bruno spun around off his seat before putting a cigar in his mouth and lighting it, "The names Bruno. I'm in special ops and I deal with these ugly fucker's machines. I take 'em apart and put 'em back together, no problem. Getting them to work without their guts is another story."

"What Bruno is trying to say, is he was brought here to help with the research on our Irinaut friend. Bruno might seem naive but he's quite skilled in the weapons department. What weapons we've managed to find he's made human operable to some extent." Reed adjusted his glasses before glaring at Bruno, "He'll be helpful, so long he goes over the footage like I asked and stops smoking cigars in my office." Professor Reed's brow raised, "I told you to stop doing that."

Jacques rubbed the back of his head. Truthfully these people made him uneasy. Bruno wasn't exactly a great looking character, Jewel seemed only focused on what Osa was doing with Raven, and Bruno, he just wanted to shoot things. "Look, I just wanted to tell you guys Raven isn't a bad person. I don't know what's wrong with her, but even if she's out there she's still part of my team and when we find her I don't want her being part of some science project. You can have the Irinaut but Raven's coming back with us."

Professor Jewel was quiet, but a calm smile ran across her lips as Jacques spoke, "Captain Jacques you have nothing to worry about." The woman nonchalantly threw up her hand from her desk, "I understand she was a new addition to your team, and obviously important. The most Professor Reed and I...and the Faction will certainly have questions to ask. You know as well as I do some things just can't go unanswered now can they?" The woman twirled a strand her coffee colored hair.

Jacques listened, but he didn't know how well he believed it. Professor Jewel studied their reproduction, which Jacques had just assumed was the spores, but the questions she asked rather easily gave Jacques his own questions he wanted answered, "You're right." He clapped his hands together before pointing at Jewel and then Bruno, "Nice meeting you, I need to go rest and check on my wife. We'll be heading out again in a few days."

"Wife? That fox that was with you earlier? Woo!" Bruno clapped his hands together before nodding his head, "Yeah, you go check on 'er. I'll be in here harassing the doctors."

"Bruno you don't even have to speak and you'll manage to find something to annoy me I'm sure." Jewel complained as she rubbed her temples, "Could you just go work on something else?"

On that note, Jacques smirked before giving a quick wave of his hand and walking out. Bruno certainly was a character.