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Year 3233

Discoveries

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Keith slowly trudges down the hallway to his room. *This is not good. My first mission and they're already not telling me everything they could. I thought I had more time. I knew my missions would be harder than anyone else's. But they’re escalating matters faster than I hoped they would.* In front of his door, Keith waits a moment, savoring the knowledge that Lance is inside -- someone who cares if he comes back or not, and what shape he’s in. *It's nice to come back to Lance. I never knew anyone like him before... It’s going to be hard, not seeing him for long stretches of time...* Quietly easing the door open, he slips in the room without disturbing Lance. Sliding into his bed, Keith freezes as a sleepy voice calls out to him.

"Keith? Izzat you?"

"Yes. Go back to sleep." *He’s getting better -- this time last year, he wouldn’t even have woken up. And now -- I didn’t even catch his breathing changing...* Keith smiles proudly into the darkness. *He ought to be able to handle anything they’d throw at him... Especially with that charm of his.* Keith’s smile fades as the ramifications of Lance’s abilities sink in. *I should have manufactured a fight with him a long time ago...*

"Sure, Keith. I'm glad you're back..." Turning over, Lance falls back asleep immediately.

For a wild moment, Keith almost wakes Lance up again, this time for comforting, to talk more. But his hard-won lessons kick in. *He’s not my father, but people don’t like being woken up in the middle of the night just to talk. And he probably has tests of some kind tomorrow as well -- or he’d have slept enough to stay up and talk with me...* Disturbed, Keith frowns into the dark, amazed at how deep his disappointment is that Lance is too tired to talk. *When did I start expecting him to always be there for me to talk to?*

Turning over smoothly, so as not to awake Lance again, Keith tries to fall asleep. *I really should have broken away from him long ago -- for his sake. Why haven’t I?* Feeling himself tense up at the thought of not seeing Lance, Keith forces himself to relax and think things through. *He’s my friend. He’s the first real friend I’ve ever had, and I don’t want to have to even act like he’s an enemy. But there’s more...* Frowning, feeling the tension sing in his body, Keith shifts carefully over again, looking toward the dark lump that’s Lance. *I watch him all the time. When I was still taking classes, I always knew where he was and what he was doing. And.. I touch him.* Startled, Keith feels the tension inside rise another notch. *That’s what’s different. Even when I dance with a female, I do it more because she wants to dance and I feel safe with her than for any particular joy in being that close to her. But in Lance’s case, I touch him even when I don’t have to. There’s this.. tingle...* Staring blindly, heat rising inside of him, Keith also feels a bone-deep panic... *I don’t know very much, but most guys don’t like other guys like this... And -- I’ve seen Lance flirt with females. Even though with his Gift, he’s extremely uncomfortable around them, he still flirts with them, and they flirt right back... I don’t remember him doing anything similar with a guy...* Determined to focus, Keith buries those feelings deep inside. *Whichever Lance wants in his bed, it doesn’t matter. He doesn't want me.* Pushing the hurt of that thought deep inside, Keith accepts that as unchangeable. *But I do want him. Maybe I even.. love him. That’s why I’ve not broken from him before now. But that isn’t a good enough reason to cling. And it just might get him killed...* The ice-cold horror of that thought overwhelms the heat inside him. *If I’m not here as a distracter, being my friend is much more of a danger than a protection...* Face hardening, Keith buries his feelings even deeper inside, calling up all of his detachment. *I’ve delayed matters much longer than I should have, just because I’m attracted to him...* Ignoring the small voice wailing inside, Keith consciously draws on his Warrior’s Gift. Implications and possible courses of actions flash through his mind, until he settles on the one that fits best with what he wants the most. Lance alive and well. *I have to break with him now, before we become inseparable in their minds... At least it’s not too late to explain things to him...* Closing his eyes, Keith feels the tension inside ease, now that he understands what’s going on and what he’s going to do. Forcing relaxation, Keith finally sinks into sleep.

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Year 3234

The Feint

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“Ishida -- you’re not a bad sort. But I’m going to give you some advice. You have got to be careful who you’re friends with. I mean, that Shimada guy -- you can tell a mile off he’s going nowhere. He’s clearly a loner and that sort just doesn’t rise very high. I know he was your roommate, but... He’s going to get himself killed, and if you’re not careful, you’ll be buried with him...”

Lance absently nods and looks interested as he remembers his last spoken conversation with Keith...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Lance.”

“Hmm?” Lance doesn’t bother looking up from the book he’s reading. By this time, he’s figured out that Keith’ll be comfortable whether or not Lance is actually looking at him. Keith just seems to know when people are paying attention to him, and when that attention wavers.

“If I was sent away on a long term mission, leaving you behind, would you be here to greet me when I returned?”

“What! Of course! Are you going somewhere?” Startled, Lance drops his book and spins to look in the corner where Keith’s reading _his_ book.

“No. But I think it’s time we stopped being friends.”

Keeping the hurt from seeping into his body movements or voice, Lance manages to ask, “Why now?” * I should have asked. Even though he’s never given any sign, at least I’d _know_, one way or the other... Though I suppose this is an answer of sorts...*

Calmly, as if he wasn’t talking about taking apart a friendship that began the first moment they met, Keith still doesn’t bother to look at Lance. “You can take care of yourself, now. You’ve got enough skill so that whatever mistakes your superiors make, you’ll survive, even if I’m not there to help.”

“What does that have to do with us not being friends?”

Suddenly realizing that Lance misunderstood, Keith looks up and meets Lance’s eyes. “You’re better at hiding your differences than I am. Whatever I do, I can’t hide myself enough so that they’ll accept me. I’m so different from them, they don’t understand me and they don’t trust me. But you -- even now, openly my friend, they still think of you as one of them. Misguided, but one of them. If we have a falling out -- your place will be secure. You won’t have to worry about people moving a bit too slow when you call for back-up. Or superior officers ordering you to do things they’d never order anyone else to do. But -- you have to break with me now. If you leave it much longer, they’ll associate you with me forever. And once they do that, my fate is yours.”

Parts of him deep inside unwinding at the realization that all of this wasn’t because of a lack of concern but because of a great deal of concern on Keith’s part, Lance keeps his sigh of relief from becoming audible or visible. “I don’t see what the problem is with that...”

Keith glares at Lance. “I didn’t expect a friend like you. I’m not going to waste you. I’m not going to let you throw your life away that easily.” Abruptly, a mischievous gleam lights his eyes. “I’m going to use you. We’ll still keep in contact -- it just won’t be obvious to anyone else. You’ll be able to tell me where the shit is aimed at. You’ll be able to tell me the *full* mission reports, rather than the reports I get with the ‘accidentally’ missing pieces of vital information. You’ll be my hidden weapon deep inside their hierarchy.”

Flopping back on his bunk, Lance stares at Keith in amazement. *The Warrior’s Gift. It’s got to be that. I didn’t realize he was that strong in it... He tricked me into admitting I didn’t need him anymore to teach me how to fight. And now, he’s giving me all the reasons that’ll convince me that what he wants me to do will help both of us.* Lance frowns, slightly and unhappily. *And my sixth sense agrees with him. This is the way we have to do it, if we’re both going to survive.* “All right. I’ll do it. But I don’t have to like it.”

“Just so long as you do it, I’ll be satisfied.”

For a moment more, they look at each other. Then, they turn back to their books, savoring the ease between them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Ishida! Are you listening? I’m trying to give you some good advice, here...”

“I’m listening, Matsuda. But it’s sort of a moot point.” Lance manages to look embarrassed. “Apparently, Shimada could only take being my friend for so long...”

Matsuda snorts. “It figures.” Slinging an arm over Lance’s shoulder he guides the more slender man to the dining area. “It’s for the best, really...”

Lance looks away, apparently in distress, but actually to hide a grin. *If only you knew...*

=======================

Year 3236

Fighting in Formation

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With a snarl, Keith corkscrews his fighter impossibly to avoid a hit. Twisting and turning, he fires and manages to take out five fighters before getting back to where his squadron was... *Hells. They got themselves shot to bits again...* Weaving his way in a looser pattern, now that he doesn’t have to worry about the rest of the squadron, he proceeds to decimate enemy fighters around him, until they back off to take stock.

“Commander Shimada. Gryphon 1 and 2 coming in.”

*Bloody -- can’t they leave a person to work in peace for three bloody seconds?!?* “Stay back and clear.”

“Shimada!”

“Don’t push me, Matsuda.”

“I’m--”

“Going to get us _killed_. Captain -- he’s still alive while the rest of his squadron is in those capsules. Can’t you give him credit that he knows what he’s doing?”

“...” *What the hell? How can Ishida defend him?*

“Too late.” Keith pulls all the command that he can into his voice. “Ishida -- break up and right. Matsuda, mirror him. Fire at each other after two seconds. Now.”

Without thinking, both obey...

And the circling enemy fighters seem to dive right into their fire. Meanwhile Keith travels a convoluted path, collecting and then towing lifecraft out of the battlefield.

“Matsuda -- take the chain. Ishida and I will guard.” Even more abrupt than his norm, the command is still strong in Keith’s voice.

“...” Matsuda almost protests, almost tries to pull rank. *How the hell can he think they can work together? They haven’t even been civil to each other for years now...* But, in the end, he obeys wordlessly. *My gut better not be wrong this time...* And watches in amazement, as Shimada and Ishida dance protection around him. *Why the charade? They can’t be this good together without practicing... right?* Shaking off the questions, Matsuda concentrates on piloting the unwieldy chain of lifepods as smoothly as he can.

Circling lightly, even smoother than most squadronmates manage, the two of them move around Matsuda’s fighter with its cargo, and manage to decimate a hole straight through the cloud of enemies that block their way back to base.

------------------------------------------

Frowning deeply, General Hammond watches the recordings from Matsuda’s, Ishida’s, and Shimada’s fighters. *Damn it. I can’t let this sort of insubordination pass. This Shimada _is_ good enough to carry it off, but if he gets off without punishment, some idiot will think he knows better, and get himself and a great many other people killed... But.. _Shimada_ was clearly justified -- _and_ he got everyone out without so much as a scratch. Damn it. What the hell do I do now?*

“Hammond. You look like you’re having problems.”

Looking up, a wry smile lighting his face, he greets his friend. “Hawkins, maybe you can help me. You have more than your share of troublemakers -- maybe you can suggest something I can do to mine.”

“Mm?”

Snorting, Hammond cues the vids to the beginning. “Just look at what he did this time...”

Blinking, Hawkins’ eyebrows rise in surprise as he watches the events. “Impressive...” *Both of them.*

“Yeah. Very. But if I let this slide, people will die because they think they know better than their COs. I follow the letter of the law -- and I look like a complete idiot. Besides the fact that if I do that, Shimada’s even less likely to do anything I tell him to.”

Hawkins shakes his head. “Well... Considering the way they fight together, perhaps Ishida can be used as a sort of control on Shimada?”

Hammond snorts. “I don’t know. A look in their files shows that they were roommates in the Academy. They _were_ close. Shimada’s peculiar ideas of proper tactics and strategy kept showing up in odd places on Ishida’s tests. And the first year out, Shimada didn’t seem to have a problem going back to the Academy to room with Ishida in between missions. But, from what I understand, they stopped even speaking to each other soon after Shimada graduated. Even though it’s been a couple of years since Ishida graduated and was also placed under my command, they still haven’t talked. There isn’t any sort of tension there, they just ignore each other when they happen to meet.”

Hawkins looks at Hammond in amazement. “You mean, they fought like this and they don’t even speak to each other?” *Come on, come on, make the connection. It’s right in front of you, old friend...*

Hammond blinks. “Well, yes. Though, I suppose it is rather odd now that I think of it...” Startled, he straightens abruptly in his chair. “Shimada has the Warrior’s Gift. And there’s no way someone with the Warrior’s Gift could _not_ know how everyone else feels about him... My God. They’ve been tricking everyone with their ‘fallout’... No wonder Shimada’s still alive...” *He is _good_. When I found out Shigure was deliberately deleting information from the mission notes that Shimada was sent, I thought for sure I’d sent him to his death...* For a brief moment, a cold hunter’s smile flashes on his face as he remembers his old aide. Shaking off the memory, he refocuses on the present situation. “Now I really don’t want to reprimand him, but if I don’t, it’ll just get worse for him...”

Hawkins smiles slightly. *Finally, he gets it. Sort of. He’s still ignoring Ishida...* “I’ve got an idea. There’s this mission I’d like to have done, but for your average fighter pilot it would amount to sending him to his death. However, in Shimada’s case --”

------------------------------------------

Glaring down his nose at the officer in front of him, General Hammond shows his displeasure. “Commander Shimada. The only reason why you are not stripped of your rank and drummed out of the service for insubordination is the fact that somehow, you managed to keep everyone alive and well. Had even one person been harmed, you would have been out. Have I made myself clear?”

Face and posture unchanging throughout the tirade, and the hours before, Keith still appears as remote as a statue. “Yessir.”

Mouth tightening at the obvious lack of fear, the general nonetheless continues. “Someone who cannot obey the chain of command is useless to us here. You will be assigned a long range penetration mission.”

“A suicide mission.” Keith’s calm gaze abruptly focuses intensely on the general.

Glaring harder, still, General Hammond breaks first -- after only a few seconds. *This sounded so much better when Hawkins was pitching it to me...* Blustering he tries to regain some face. “Being such a good fighter pilot, you have a much greater chance of succeeding than any one else.”

Lidding his eyes, now that his point has been made, Keith again reverts to a statue of a perfect subordinate. “Yessir.”

Completely off balance and very irritated, Hammond makes one last parting jab. “Oh, since the two of you work _so_ well together, you’ll be taking Commander Ishida with you.” And the General stalks off, nursing his battered pride. *That’s it. If they make it back alive, I’m shipping them to Hawkins. I don’t _care_ what I have to pay him back with...*

Swallowing hard, Keith manages to salute the general as he leaves.

------------------------------

“Keith? What’s wrong?”

“Lance... General Hammond’s sending us on a suicide mission.”

“So what? Anything new?” Lance yawns carelessly.

“Lance!”

Lance rolls his eyes. “Keith, they’ve been trying to kill you off or get you to resign for years now. Even back in the Academy, they were trying to ‘convince’ you to leave. What’s special about now?”

Keith’s mouth thins. “They’re involving you. And they’re associating our names together. All the work you’ve done to try to blend in -- it’s already almost completely canceled out by this one time of fighting with me.”

Lance meets Keith’s glare fearlessly. “Good. I keep telling you, I’ve got a Gift -- a sixth sense. And right now, that Gift is telling me to stick by you. Whatever happens.”

Keith stares at Lance, who shivers faintly at the intense scrutiny. Eyes narrowing, Keith nods his head sharply, once. “Fine. Your choice.” Handing over a data disc, Keith continues. “We leave tomorrow at 0200 shiptime.”

Lance snickers. “You tried your glare out on the good general, didn’t you?”

Keith’s eyes gleam.

Lance laughs once, sharply. “No wonder he wants us out of here as soon as possible. Why the heck did you go to the Academy, if you have such a problem following orders?”

Eyes still glittering, Keith just laughs silently at Lance’s often repeated question, and leaves with a wave.

Sighing, Lance shrugs philosophically. *Someday, you’re going to trust me with more of you...* Turning his attention to the data disc, he starts studying the information about their new mission.

----------------------------

Thoughtfully, Lance starts the preflight diagnostics on his fighter. “So. What'd you get out of their report?"

Not looking up from his own preflight checks, Keith’s lips curve up faintly. “Long or short version?”

Lance snorts. “You do the long version, then I’ll do the short version. We’re working on our weak points, remember?”

Keith’s faint smile deepens. “Just checking... So. Long version. Somehow, they tracked the development of almost every innovation the Drules discover to one specific area deep in Drulian territory. The actual manufacture of the weapon may happen in many different areas, but always beforehand, there’s an increased burst of communication from this one area to the area where the manufacturing occurs. All we have to do is sneak out from under Alliance patrols, sneak past the Drule patrols, navigate our way into this area undetected, neutralize whatever it is that is the source for the new weapons undetected, make our way past the Drule patrols undetected again, and get back to this base, undetected. In three years.” *And this doesn’t really sound like a mission that Hammond would think to send us on...*

Lance nods. “Find and neutralize Drulian R&D in three years.” *Though, how Hammond thought this up, I have no idea...*

“Yes.” Keith flashes a brief, true smile at Lance.

Lance’s eyes light with mischievous laughter, face carefully under control. “Piece of cake.”

Keith snorts softly, lips twitching.

Lance breaks out into a grin.

Rolling his eyes, Keith makes a shooing motion with his hands.

Lance grins even wider, bows, and trades places with Keith.

In harmony, they finish checking their fighters for their mission.

Any comments or suggestions for JoAnn should be sent through me with either the story title or JoAnn in the subject line. I'll forward them without peeking. Really I will.

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