He had forced himself to change a running route that had been his for years on board the ship. The morning after Jack's accident he had run as usual, and stopped at the door to her lab. He had forgotten and the empty lab struck him in a way he hadn't expected. Was it strange that he spent a lot of time mapping out a new path just to avoid one corridor" It wasn't even the corridor that he was avoiding but a single room on that corridor.

H.K. sat in his ready room contemplating just that when the intercom toned and Mabelle his Head of Security spoke. "Admiral"I have an encrypted communiqu" from Admiral Forsche." H.K. drew a breath through his nose holding it for just a moment before letting it loose. He had been expecting this for the past few days.

He pressed the comm. Button with a forefinger and addressed Mabelle. "Thank you Commander, put it through here, and make sure the channel is secure." Mabelle didn't respond, the view screen just lit up, it held a face he knew very well. He had known Markaal Forsche for most of his career. They had run more missions together than he cared to try and count without hours to spare. He pushed deeper into his plush desk chair and considered the face on the monitor. "Mark"it has been quite some time since we last spoke. To tell the truth I half expected that Drexie would be the first to contact me, and I expected that several days ago."

The face in the monitor was also young for his rank. The war had been generous to a favored few, and brutal to all of its victims. Mark still wore his dark hair in a spiked out permanent wave. He smiled at H.K. and began to speak with that severe Aussie inflection. "Haitch Kay"good to see you?you magnificent bald topknot wearing bastard. You're lookin" a bit on the tired side though mate." H.K. couldn't help but smile and shake his head at the other man. This had been an ongoing line of elbowing tongue in cheek between the two of them for years. "Good to see you too Mark, you still looking at the universe upside down and backwards?"

It was Mark's turn to laugh now. "I wish I could say no worries buddy, but truth is you got us all a bit on the worried side. We've read your report; this incident has been ruled accidental. This side trip to Rhy"Din isn't really necessary; a simple subspace message would fulfill the protocol." Mark leaned into the frame of the monitor more as he spoke. His elbows came down on the desk before him and the fingertips of both hands bent towards each other to touch.

H.K. kept his face schooled, there was more to this than Mark was letting on. "Since when do my reports need to be scrutinized by the Legions entire panel of Imperators" Wait, you don't have to tell me what this is about"It is Drexie isn't it?" H.K. slid his own hands into his lap, best for his friend not to see how agitated he was becoming. He tried to clasp his hands against the rising ire, but instead just found himself making fists.

Mark just pressed forward; he knew H.K. as well as anyone alive ever would. He could read him like a book, and H.K. knew that. "You know Drex, it was all we could do to stop her from coming after you herself. She was finally convinced that we should at least talk to you before we send out a search party. This is your chance bud, come back or we won't have a choice." The sour look on Mark's face told H.K. how much he hated to say those words. They had been young trouble makers together when this war had come to the sector in which they were assigned. H.K was fairly certain that Mark in his position, or even sitting next to him would have given the bird and closed communications. H.K. had other plans though.

"I see, I guess when you see Drex again, you need to tell her that H.K. said for her to remember when the Demon was trapped down on Otho and she was days away from that system. Who was it that broke away from his squadron and rescued Demon?" If he had more to say he wouldn't be allowed to because a decidedly female voice began to yell just out of view of the monitor.

"That is a low blow H.K., you told me that I would never owe you for that. You said it wasn't a favor because we were fleet and fleet is family. D*mn you for lying to me! Besides I never left the sector when I knew I had a mission coming, you know that Task Force Javelin is crucial to this strike. How can you leave them leaderless?" Mark's image held fingers to ears; Drex was in full voice tonight it seemed.

"About time you showed yourself Drex. This is not me calling in a favor; it is me helping you to understand how important this is to me. That accident as you put it would never have happened had I not killed K"tor. You of all people should know how responsible that makes me"and you of all people should know that when I feel responsible nothing will stop me from doing what I think is right. There is still a price on my head in the Otho system."

That information had Mark wearing that goofy grin of his again. "Haitch"that is because you decloaked and disabled The Afterburner"the Ninth Core really doesn't appreciate you doing that to Zarian's flag ship." It was true; the Afterburner was upholding the blockade that Demon, Drexanna's husband, had been attempting to circumvent. H.K had been able to make it to the surface undetected and get Demon, his ship was lost"occupied by Ninth Core lackeys. Something in that didn't sit right with H.K. He figured if the Ninth was one ship fat, he would trim it down"and what better ship to cut out than Zarion's own. The encounter had happened so quickly that the Afterburner's escorts hadn't even gotten the chance to get a fix on the Unimatrix before it hit evasive maneuvers and gotten far enough away to cloak once again.

"Look, I'm hoping that I find someone there to continue the refit. Eight and Jeceko have been looking at what Jack was doing to the engines, and they think they can improve on it even more. We are still a week out of Rhy'din, but I am doing this. If it means resigning my commission and giving up my place in the Legion, I am doing this." For a moment there was silence from the monitor. Mark looked to his left, presumably where Drex was seated. Before he could respond though another voice broke through.

"Don't even joke about that bull stuff brother." The voice had a decidedly southwestern American accent to it.

"Are you kidding me" Momma always told me that the only thing from Earth worse than an Aussie came from Texas"Where'd you say you were from Stylo?" H.K. now wore an atypical grin. The three musketeers were together again. The laughter off screen was genuine and delighted.

"That's just wrong H.." Stylo started but Mark interrupted him.

"Oh stop Stylo"the only reason that hurt you is because your neck is so red." Mark couldn't hold in the laugh that accompanied the jibe.

"Why don't you go to the outback and wrestle the croc that ate your mother you Aussie hillbilly." H.K. could hear Drexanna start to loosen up as the three of them fell into their old game. It had been her that had recruited him, not fully aware that by recruiting one she would get all of them. She also found that once she had the three of them working on a mission, any mission it would be handled without question. There would be the silliness, but there would also be success.

"Wait"H did you say you were a week out' How is that possible, last report had you in a position three weeks from that system?" Leave it to Drex to pick up on that angle, also leave it to her to throw a wet blanket over the other three. "You've already made some modifications haven't you?" "Let's say some have been made. It now becomes more important that the refit continue yes" I am not comfortable transmitting the design changes even on a secured line. Not that far I am not; you will have to wait til I come in to get your hands on the designs."

H.K. knew he had her now; the increased speed to the warp engines was enough to make the strategically advantageous side of Drex override any concerns. "Go then, but we need to discuss the task force. Who will replace you if you don't make it back before we strike?"

"Give it to Gil, he knows the plan as well as I do. Hell he helped for them." H.K. had relaxed visibly. The monitor that had once held just Mark now had Drex and Stylo as well in split screen fashion.

"Are you sure he's ready?" Mark wanted to know.

"He's been ready for the last several missions; you guys just keep holding him back. I was going to let him lead anyway"he is always saying that he should be the tip of the spear. Let him be the tip of the Javelin".my Javelin"my choice." H.K. held his voice firm; he looked at the three of them until they relented.

"Roight then, we'll have him come in to bring us up to speed".and Haitch' Good luck buddy, she must've been something if you're willing to give up the Legion even after she's?" Mark stopped realizing what he was about to say. "Good luck bud."H.K. nodded at the three of them. "Hunter Killer".out." He had nothing to say about the matter to them. He knew if anyone understood it was them, but in truth he didn't understand and couldn't put it into words for them either. He pressed one last button on the comm. Unit and disconnected from the call. Perhaps it wasn't too much to hope that there might be one more person there who could pick up where Jack left off with the ship. H.K. didn't want anyone picking up for her where he was concerned.

He opened the channel one last time. "Lacha"have counselor Lang come to my ready room please.? He closed the channel without waiting for a response and waited for Lang to show herself. Mark's comment on how he look had been taken as intended. Perhaps it was time to talk a little about those few weeks.

Walking the grounds it still felt wrong. Glowing green eyes double checked the blue prints and the house for what felt like the thousandth time as they floated in a projection. If it would have been perfect it would have been a dead give away that she was trapped somewhere and this was just her brain trying to makes sense of something crazy. Yet nothing was perfect. Every little miss step was noted in the print and even then it wasn't spot on.

"How could this have happened?"

Searching her mind again, the last thing she remembered was reaching for him. Feeling something crawl over her skin, burning like a graze from a plasma gun. The look on his face...It tugged on her heart and made her distracted, the whole world seem hollow. With a tap of her wrist the floating prints were gone. The first day replayed over and over each time she fell asleep. There was no escaping that day.

Jack had woken up with C.A.M standing over her, checking monitors. Being told there had been another explosion in her lab. That she was really lucky this time. Day after day of being confined to that bed, she questioned them. Backwards and forwards. Still the answers were the same. Consistent data made the probability high that it had all been a dream. That she had always been in Rhy'din, helped build alchemy house and became leader, but the earring was here with her. It all felt so wrong.

"To hell with this!"

Shutting down the wrist computer that kept her connected to the house and C.A.M, Jack stormed to her lab. Nothing was off limits to her! She wasn't crazy! She hadn't lost track of time! It was real!

Barreling down the stairs and into the blackened walls, she could see how they claimed her to be lucky. Tossing scrap in all directions hoping for something through the anger, there it was. Glinting in the low light, her com badge. The circuits were fried and no power source, but it proved she hadn't been here.

The collision between particles and the weapons of the Klingon's must have acted like a temporary wormhole. Sending her through time and space. Possibilities for placement were endless if you really laid out the math, but that...

Jack slumped on the floor. Fingers curled around her badge as her emotions coiled around her heart. Sorrow and hate playing tug of war. For the first time she hated the thing that drove her. Chaos had betrayed her. If the coven had never known her leaving then how could he have ever know her.

Tears started to roll down her cheeks and more anger came. Clipping the com badge to her shirt, Jack knew no matter what she did it wouldn't work again. Even if it did, what would she say. Hi are you missing an engineer and by engineer I mean me. Yeah that would go over great. Especially if the math was right. The odds stated that Hunter would never know of her and to make such a call would only embarrass him. Jack was left with the memories burning her alive from the inside out and no one to believe her.

Hand wrapping around a steel hammer, she wandered to the scrap pile in the corner. Glowing green eyes came to sharp focus even with the tears. Each time the hammer landed it echoed like the scream caught in her throat. Blindly she continued to swing. His face, the feel of his hand tracing her jaw only made her hit harder.

Jack's injured knee gave way. Still lacking strength forcing her to slump over the now mangled metal. It was so cold, giving her only the truth. She was alone.

"Why!?" She finally screamed. Head hanging with exhaustion.

"Hunter, please." Choking on sobs wrenched from her grieving body, barely making their way out. Collapsing on the floor Jack shivered and wept. Wanting to be entombed to escape the living hell just up the stairs.

(Taken from live play by H.K. and Miranda Branson, thank you Miranda's player.)

Things had been rather peaceful till Angel came bursting into her mother's office about a space ship. Taking it to heart with the large about of rattling from the windows, Miranda sent Angel off to the kitchen for an afternoon treat with her friend and walked out crossed the plush grass of Mage house. Mint green eyes looked up and sighed. "Of course the one person who is low tech get's to greet the high tech." Taking a deep breath she smiled and waved not sure what to expect.

The back of the shuttlecraft opened, the floor lowering making a ramp to the ground below. H.K. emerged with Jek, the Breen who was piloting the shuttle. "Stay with the shuttle, this shouldn't take too long." He spotted the waving woman and made his way towards her. Clear blues took in the red head; his expression remained passive at best. He smoothed his tunic before speaking. "Hello..my name is Hunter, I am looking for the head of a place called Bristle Crios. Can you assist me?"

"I would be one of the leaders. I fear you have missed my fianc"e, Morgan. What can I help you with?" Miranda glanced at the contraption and felt her skin crawl. There was no way anyone could talk her into that. She didn't like to use a cell phone. "Would you care to talk about it over a cup of tea?" She gestured back to the sprawling house behind her. People wandered about staring in awe at the ship.

"Tea would be welcomed; do you have a mint tea?" It would also give him time to go over in his head what he had to say one more time. "I'm sorry to have missed him, the news I bring is...most unfortunate." He fell into line with her letting her set the pace of their advance. "May I have your name?"

"My name is Miranda Branson and you are?" She walked through mage house and the occupants skirted out of her way. The kitchen was warm and inviting in tones of honey wood and green. Angel looked up from her seat with a cookie in hand. "Mommy! Is that the alien?" The little girl giggled with her bright blonde curls and eyes shifting from purple to the same ice blue as his. "Angel, this is our guest. Why don't you go up to my office and play for a while please. I am sure Brenna's daughter is looking for you." Angel glanced from her mother to the man behind her. Wiggling off her seat she handed over a cookie to H.K and scampered out of the kitchen. Chuckling, Miranda started to work on the mint tea. "I am sorry about that. She tends to be overly excited. Now that we have some peace, what bad news do you bring?"

He took the cookie from Angel and watched her excited exit from the kitchen before turning back to Miranda. "I am Admiral K'lar, of the starship Unimatrix." He turned and laced his fingers behind his back. It was that or he would start tugging at the tunic again. "I am afraid I must report of an accident involving...Ja....Miss Absinthe. She was working on an experiment in her lab when we were attacked." He cleared his throat and took a deep breath for the next part, his eyes closed for a moment and Jack's face came to him. "I'm afraid she is missing, and presumed...presumed dead." He managed to get those few words out, though the volume had sunk to nearly a whisper.

A strange look of confusion came over her face, as Miranda poured the tea. Handing a cup over to H.K she offered him a seat. "Admiral are you sure you are in the right place" I saw Jack this morning and she was just fine. As far as I know she has never left the coven grounds." Mint green eyes studied his face. Miranda knew that pain and wondered what was not being said.

"I assure you Miss Branson, I am in the right place. Jack was with m...us on ship for months working on upgrading our systems." He took the offered cup and drank a quick sip to cover over any outward signs that talking about this might give. "She arrived on orders from...Well from high enough to make an admiral acquiesce." H.K. reached forward to grab the back of a chair, he needed to think. If Miranda were telling the truth then Jack might still be alive. He gripped the chair a little harder than he intended to at the thought. Why didn't she contact me, if she is here" It must be a mistake.

"I could be mistaken, but C.A.M will be here soon and can answer your questions better than I. She was built by Jack to help with Alchemy house. Especially in light of her last accident the explosion had her unconscious and me worried for at least a week. That girl has a talent for getting into trouble with machines." Miranda watched his body language and wished she knew more about the tech end of things. An elegant Android walked through the kitchen with hands folded in front of her. "Good day. How may I assist you both?"

He looked to the left, and nearly smiled as Miranda talked about accidents and Jack's talent for trouble. When the new voice entered he turned bodily to look at C.A.M. The look was quick and started at the floor and worked its way up. It was not a look of man to a woman, more like a soldier to a new piece of armor...appraising and curious how it works. "Jack has real talent for creating the impossible...if that comes with a few mishaps, the end result is flawless." Had he said that out loud" Another sip of the tea as much to keep his mouth closed as to mask his own reactions.

"I couldn't agree with you more Admiral. This is C.A.M. She can answer your questions." Miranda smiled trying to hide it behind her tea. It was interesting to hear him talk about Jack. Most would say run the other way.

Good day, Admiral. What questions would you like to ask me" I have complete access to the electronic data base of Bristle Crios and the experiments run by all members of Alchemy house, including my creator." C.A.M looked at H.K and the structure of her was eerily close to Eight.

"Right then...Good to meet you Cam. I am here regarding Jack Absinthe. Approximately ten days ago she disappeared from her lab on board my ship. We have no evidence that she survived the explosion that preceded her disappearance. I would also submit, that this event was witnessed by me. I have been informed however that Jack has been here the entire time. How can this be possible?"

"Jack Absinthe had not left the coven grounds so far as we are aware. Our current understanding of time as it pertains to space and heavenly bodies rotations is still lacking so there is some margin of error that the Jack you speak of could be ours. For example the explosion that injured her had no source. Neither her nor I can place what caused it. Explosions do not appear out of nowhere. This incident did cause her to create some interesting data." C.A.M's tones were calm and crisp eyes boldly staring at him.

He set the cup aside and held that gaze as though he had seen it before. "Do you have access to this data" Perhaps my engineering crew could look it over and compare it to what we have. The explosion left physical evidence in the lab. There should have been burn marks at the very least. All I saw was a light to bright to look on...and then she was gone." A small tug to the uniform was the only sign of his discomfort. "We established that the Transphasing torpedoes used somehow interacted with the particles that escaped from the containment field, but there were no resultant debris or evidence that would have been the logical outcome."

One hand held out palm up a light appeared and soon the data and theories of Jack's one more complex than the last. "My creator theorized that the explosion in her lab was due to particles that were excited in an instant and in an attempt to reach balance the energy and all with its reach were affected. A basic wormhole is the general idea. From there her theory expands into proving that there are not alternate timelines. That would mean we are only particles a part and as such easily undone. Jack believes that there is only one timeline. In her theory the particles merely sever a link and replace it with another. I.E the past of present. However her work stops not long after contemplating this theory as it pertains to space and the vacuum it exists in."

"Would it be possible to see the accident site?" He turned to Miranda with that question; the chain of command here was somewhat strange to him. He knew Miranda had rank and therefore he submitted his query her way. "Are you opposed to me taking my own data on the site?" What would he do if she said no' Worse what would he do if she said yes...What if Jack was here and didn't want to see him' Did she blame him for this" Questions always Jack brought him questions. He couldn't hold the interest from those blues.

Smiling softly, Miranda nodded to him and the android. "Yes. Jack is currently away from the coven so she can't make threats per usual. C.A.M can take you."

C.A.M bowed." Follow me please. Did you have any more questions pertaining to the data or Jack?" Turing sharply, the android marched from the kitchen heading straight for Jack's bunker.

Questions about Jack" He followed along after the android trying to find a sufficiently scientific inquiry. All he could come up with was. "Do you have a recent image of her" Was she injured in the explosion' Where is she now?" As far as the data was concerned, he had at least one question. "If you have had Jack here for the entire time that she was with me, then why when she was taken did we not forget her as well?" He suspected it might have something to do with the shielding she was modifying...it would almost make sense that in the few seconds that t took for the shield to change Jack would be gone, and the shield remodulated against those excited particles.

"I have an image of her today in my archives. Yes she was injured. She was thrown with multiple bruising and breaks. She suffered a concussion which is what the doctor attributes to her ramblings and diving into the data I showed you earlier. She is currently with Yasmin goated into helping set up the D.J. and light equipment for Yasmin's speed dating event. Yasmin has even requested that I make Jack show up in a dress. I highly doubt Jack will let anyone get close to her. She hardly tolerates me." C.A.M continued behind the house and down a narrow stairway into the ground. It was clear from the walls how bad the explosion had been. Scorch marks the embedded themselves into the steel and concrete on a particle level. Never to be removed. It was lower tech, but it was so similar to the space Jack used on the ship. "I believe she was out for no less than a week before waking to ask where she was. Jack started to ask for things I had never heard of. Once again the doctor thinks it is from the blow to her head. As far as the shields go that would explain the isolation in addition to the density of the particles when excited."

"What kinds of things was she asking for?" H.K. produced a scanner, its size and shape could have doubled for a cellular phone. He tapped his combadge and talked to the air. "Admiral to the bridge....Eight lock into my tricorder and add the data to that taken from the lab the day miss Absinthe disappeared. I believe we are close to a solution to the questions we had." He turned then and activated the scanner, going over the blasted walls, and the pattern of the scorch marks. "I bet she refused to stay off her feet for more than a couple of days too. She can be quite persistent when it comes to learning something new." He left off how he had managed to get her to do that on ship. He did think fondly on that time though.

"If my archives are correct, Jack requested transport to a certain section of space. When that was not given to her she wanted a communication device that had never been part of the coven. When nothing seemed to keep her still she reached for her ear and leapt out of the bed breaking her leg further. She demanded the doctor give her piercings back or she would beat the doctor to within an inch of his life. It was after they were returned that she cried, demanding that we leave. She has not been the same Jack that created me since. Her eyes have changed. I can only mock what humans would call emotions, but it looked like heart ache."

Sir, the scans you just sent share the signature of the Klingon's Transphasic weapon. Should we run a scan for cloaked vessels" Eight's unemotional voice filled the air around him. H.K. had put his hand to his own earring. He had known before Eight had said anything what the result would be. He knew the moment C.A.M. had mentioned Jack's piercings. "Don't bother commander. There are no Klingon ships here." He closed the connection with the ship. "Do you have an image of her piercing?" He waited for her response, his own eyes showing a little of that heart ache she had spoken of.

"I have images of all of them." C.A.M laid her hand flat, palm up once again. The image of Jack hovered in the air. Glowing green eyes sharp with focus and aggravation at being stopped from her work. Grease marks marred her cheeks, but with her long black hair pulled back the right ear had three and the green rook. On the left was just one; two links hanging down from on large one, repeated three times, the sphere shimmering in the light. "Does that help you sir?"

"C.A.M. What are the odds that she would have the earring I gave her if she were here all along?" He reached out to the image of in the air; he ran a finger through where he was certain her hair would have fallen a moment after the image was taken. "Where is this event you spoke of? Speed dating I think you called it."

"The odds of her having something of your Jack is more than a billion to one according to her calculations and that anyone in space would know of her is even smaller, but that is just theoretical data, sir." C.A.M stared at his actions and then to the image of Jack. Lost by what was passing unsaid. "The speed dating is to take place in the great hall in Rhy'din city proper. Yasmin intends to find someone to make Jack tolerable. A thought by my calculations is impossible."

He tapped the combadge once more this time he called to Jek over at the shuttlecraft. "K'lar to Jek...take the shuttle back to the ship, I will arrange for alternate transportation, there seems to be more to do here than I had initially anticipated." Jek gave an affirmative response, and the air hummed when the shuttle's engines started up. "Is there some type of transport I could take to get there C.A.M." I really think that in order to complete this investigation I need to speak with Jack personally." That sounded passable to him anyway. He wasn't sure what you did at a speed dating event, but he was sure that he didn't want anyone else making Jack tolerable. She was already tolerable.

"Of course. There is a spare room for you here to use till the event. Jack will be there all day. Yasmin has a habit of adding extras." Closing her hand the image was gone. C.A.M looked at H.K and started to guide him to alchemy house. A room would be waiting for him if he felt the need to shower and such. The speed dating was only hours away there was so much to be done. C.A.M smiled as the house communicated with her. So that is who Jack had created in the holo-deck earlier today.

He was grateful for the offer of a space to freshen up. He was a mess as far as he could see. He would need some clean up, a trim...had he really let himself go so badly since this journey started" It would be over soon; at least that was the hope. "Thank you, please lead on." He let C.A.M guide him through the compound and into his room.

The cab dropped him off at the Great Hall in Rhy'din proper. The music from behind the door told where he was supposed to be. It had taken some research to know exactly how to act tonight, or at least how he thought he was supposed to act. He stepped up in his full dress uniform; the ribbons took up much of the left breast of the navy blue jacket. Matching dark pants stopped just above the highly polished shoes. Pulling off the white hat as he entered with white gloved hands, ice blue eyes searched the hall as though looking for someone specific.

The heels and toe of the dress shoes clipped across the floor as Admiral Hunter K'lar made his way to the bar. For a moment, he had thought his eyes had seen a pair of wings flickering in annoyance at the end of the bar, but had lost what made his heart jump in the jostle of the crowd. He kept his head on a swivel hoping to spot her. If C.A.M. were correct she would be keeping to herself as much as possible...Trying not to worry that C.A.M could be wrong; it was a fair statement that computers made errors; but the thought of it made him search even harder. He stopped at the bar and look to Christine's fedora clad head as she dashed along behind the bar in heels no less..."Excuse me, Miss!...Could I have a long island please?"

Hunter gave a nod of thanks to Christine while taking up the blue long island ice tea. A new one for the record he thought only to scold himself. He wasn't here to keep a record for fleet, but old habits die hard even with this mission being so personal. He passed some coins across the bar, this had been another thing the admiral had needed to study, and then acquire the cash.

"Keep the change miss."

He gave her a half smile, but his ice blue eyes drift down the bar in search of those wings once more.

Sliding away from the bar, he finally spotted the person he had been looking for. Slipping along the few empty spaces behind the others standing at the bar, he hoped not to lose her again. Remembering just how quickly she could move when she wanted to.

Feet falling into a natural march, he rounded the end of the bar only to find that she had disappeared again. A sip was taken from that blue long island while leaning on the bar. It was still warm. He knew she didn't pass him. That strange feeling crept into the admiral's stomach. It was a kind of internal warning bell that had saved him more than a time or two. Looking back across the hall towards the doors, she wouldn't have gone already would she? Another sip of that glass was stolen, like a fevered prayer of a priest on the verge of breaking his vows.

Snickering as a flying platform shoe is spotted out of the corner of his ice blue eyes. An uncharacteristic response from him, but the loft and angle of flight sent his heart racing. Tracking it back to the source Admiral K'lar noticed that the speaker has a hand over the top of it. The skin pale with nails that still carried a bit of dirt and grease. Another practice he was used to seeing as each finger tapped its way along like a spider. He slid the tape towards the searching hand as he had so many times in the past. Waiting was no matter just the same as always.

"Do you need an engineer back there?" He fixed Jack with those blues, looking at her as though he had never expected to see her again. "I know a really good one, though she is a little out of uniform right now...and more beautiful than I have ever seen her." He had to make himself be heard over the music blaring from the speaker.

He lowered his drink to the top of the speaker and closed the scant distance between them.

"I was always kind of partial to the stolen lab coat look, though the tank top had its advantages too. And of course no uniform would be complete without hair that can't seem to stay in a ponytail...and a little grease used for blush."

He spoke softer reaching into his breast pocket. Hunter pulled out a card with edges worn from tracing them over and over again. The paper itself so frail it was more like soft cotton with ink. A few water stains plagued the old world craftsmanship, but from what only he knew. He held it out so that Jack could see the figure in the center, the jack of hearts.

A little closer and the smell of her perfume flooded his mind with memories, hopes and banished dreams. Admiral K'lar leaned forward whispering into her ear.

"Something I heard you literally broke your leg to retrieve." His free hand went to her cheek his thumb caressing the piercings he had put in her left ear. "I'm sorry it took me so long to get here."

The links of chain and bead brushed the end of his nose hovering just above the outer portion of her ear. Chuckling as the logical part of his mind tried to interrupt pointing out the fact he had made record speed getting there.

He wiped those tears from her face, and leaned in to kiss those brilliant eyes. It was bolder than Admiral Hunter K'lar had been before, but not that long ago he had thought she was lost forever to him. Now that his engineer was in front of him, Hunter couldn't stop himself. Rules and regulations be damned.

"I was so glad to find out that you had survived...I have missed you as well, Jack."

It was a guilty pleasure feeling at saying her name, being this close to her again. The warmth of her skin flooded his senses. Nerves tingling on edge like a soldier itching for orders. The great Admiral K'lar was finding his mouth suddenly dry and nearly wordless.

"My Jack"

Hunter whispered close in her ear.

"I won't leave here without you."

He put both arms around her gently being careful of those wings and held his Jack close. Closing the distance between their lips throwing caution to the wind when it came to that gift her mother gave her...if he was lucky there would be no delusions.

Feeling her body so close to his, Hunter's mind raced. He had re-evaluated what proper was in her absence, but would he; Admiral Hunter K'lar; be so demonstrative in front of the crew" He couldn't be sure, there was always the possibility that order would break down if the rules changed for the man at the top. One thing was clear in the jumbled wreck of thoughts as Jack's intoxicating kiss took hold of him, he wouldn't deprive himself anymore though, and perhaps he would increase his civilian gear...that would help.

"What am I thinking about that for?? Hunter was scolding himself as his fingers become bolder, lost to that tingling sensation.

"I am going to need her to refit a certain admiral and make him ready for duty. I warn you though, he is stubborn and set in his ways. Are you sure you want the job?"

Blue eyes twinkled as they lingered on her glowing greens, lost in her breath on his skin. Hunter was not going to linger over the thought of her staring down the emptiness alone. It had been driving him all the hard to memorize the customs, currency, even the speech patterns and common phrases. Nothing was going to keep him from making it to her.

"I lost you once Jack, I won't do it again. It only makes it worse that it was an attempt at vengeance for something I had done long ago. It is time for me to consider moving on; Lacha deserves his shot at command too."

"I think though that the fleet may wish to establish a shipyard close by though." He leaned into those tracing fingers, having waited a long time to get this close. That last sentence was said more to keep her from reaching for that wrench. Jack knew better than anyone what fleet had meant to him and she had been willing to pay any price for him to keep it even at the expense of her own feelings, but no longer. Hunter would make sure of that.

"I haven't wanted anything more in a long time. Isn't exactly customary to do so, but I had added you to my history."

Had she noticed the little blue black beaded link that hung from one of the larger links on his earring? Would she remember what it meant' Hunter found himself chuckling to her. This was Jack he was talking to His Jack. Of course she would remember.

"I didn't have much time between my arrival and this event, would have taken it off otherwise. But in its place I wouldn't mind starting that second chain now, something to be completed eventually. If you're willing to try that is."

He could feel the blood hit his cheeks and the flush cross his face. Had he really just asked Jack to start a life with him' At least his wits were about him to phrase it like a challenge. That was one thing Jack never backed down from.

He got lost in that kiss once again, it was more than he felt he deserved from her. Hunter would enjoy every moment the two of them had. The little idea of what running a house at the coven would entail was lost on him, but he was willing to bet that a number of the duties would be similar to what he was used to while running a fully loaded crew on the Unimatrix.

"I think there will be some very disappointed people calling me over the next several days."

The severing of his ties would be an involved process but it was a very small price to pay for Jack.

"Shall we continue this.....reunion elsewhere Jack?"

He nodded towards the door; there were a lot of stolen moments lost to them that needed to be made up for. The corner of his mouth pulled up realizing that all those moments could now be public if they so wished it.

An eye towards her as she gathered her shoes, wicked glint in those ice blue eyes. He took her hand as she offered it and stepped towards the exit. Hunter hadn't taken time to memorize any faces here, but he did give a nod to those who remained behind.

"So what shall we wager first...my Jack?" Hunter glanced at the earring dangled down from her left ear when she brushed that long black hair back. It forced him to smile openly just for her.