Fallout 2 Navarro

"You did what, maggot?!"

Sergeant Dornan Mackay, looked to Raul, as if he were going to blow a gasket. That was a somewhat normal look for Dornan though.

"Sir, I-"

"I am not a sir! I work for a living, you moron. You will call me Sergeant or Sergeant Dornan. Do you understand me?"

"Sure Sarge, it's just th-"

"If I like you, you can call me Sarge. But I don't like you! Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Sergeant!"

"Now where the hell is my armor, maggot!?"

"Your Nav system had a glitch in it that I just couldn't figure out, so I ran it down to Doctor Taylor," Raul said quickly.

"You gave my armor to one of the eggheads," Dornan asked quietly.

Raul automatically took a step back. Dornan yelling was a common thing. But when he got quiet like that, a person better take care to say and do the right thing.

"I couldn't fix the glitch. It-"

Dornan grabbed the front of Raul's uniform and effortlessly hoisted him up in the air. Even without his power armor Sergeant Dornan Mackay was a force to be reckoned with. He was six foot six and had the build of a professional body builder.

"If anything's been fucked with on my armor, I'm going to come back and put you down like a rabid Bramin!" He let go of Raul's uniform and the scrawny man dropped like a sack of potatoes.

"Asshole," Raul said under his breath as he picked himself up.

Of course Dornan heard this but decided not to pursue the matter; he didn't want to damage the bases only decent vertibird mechanic. Damn man was a prick, but if it flew, he could keep it purring. He still wanted to wipe the floor with him though. Raul should have known better than to give anything, let alone a set of power armor, to any of the techs. They didn't hesitate to "improve" anything they could get their hands on.

Dornan made his way into the base and headed for the base commander's quarters.

"Tell the old man that I need to see him," he told the soldier, Ian Ruff, standing guard in front of the base commander's door.

"What can I do for you today Sergeant Dornan," asked Jason Smyth, the base commander, as Dornan walked into his office.

Dornan and Jason were close friends even though they were twelve years apart in age. Dornan loved to needle Jason about being an old man even though he was only forty-two.

"Raul gave one of your damn eggheads my armor," he told Jason, not pussy footing around. "A doctor Taylor, I believe."

"So go to the labs and get it back."

"You need to come with me."

"Jesus, Dornan you're a big boy and you don't need me to hold your hand."

"Last time I was in the lab I tried to strangle one of your eggheads and you got pissed."

"Oh, yeah," he dropped his chin to his chest, trying to hide his smile.

"Yeah, and if one of them has fucked my armor up, I'm gonna go ballistic."

"Can't have you killing my techno geeks," Jason said standing up and heading for the door. "Let's go get your armor."

Navarro was not only a military base but it served as a laboratory for quite a few scientists. The two men walked down the hall, speaking amicably to each other about base life and duties. They found Doctor Kalianna Taylor in Lab D. She was sitting on the floor surrounded by tools and parts of a power armor helmet.

The first thing that Dornan noticed about the good doctor was that she was very tiny. When you towered over almost everyone, you noticed things like that, but she couldn't have been more than five-one at the most. She had short brown hair that spiked every which way but right and she was rail thin, like she ate every couple of days instead of three squares a day.

"Kali," Jason said trying to get her attention.

"Base commander," she said, not looking up from her work.

"On your feet soldier!" Dornan barked. "Show some respect for your commander!"

Kali was on her feet faster than Jason could fathom. She saluted smartly and stood waiting patiently, like a grunt waiting for orders.

"Hmm, hmm," Jason cleared his throat and then introduced them to each other. "Sergeant, this is Doctor Kalianna Taylor. Kali, Sergeant Dornan Mackay."

"Sergeant Dornan," Kali said and nodded respectfully.

"Doctor Taylor."

"I believe you may have the Sergeant's armor," Jason said nodding ruefully at the pieces of the helmet on the floor.

"Oh yes." She bent down and picked up one of the pieces to show them.

"Fuck me," Dornan said running a hand over his face.

"Oh, you don't have to worry Sergeant Dornan. I just finished replacing the navigation system. I was putting it back together now."

"What else did you do," Dornan gritted out.

"Nothing, I swear," she said smiling. "I know that you boys don't like to have your gear messed around with."

"How long before you have it done," he asked trying not to picture himself strangling the egghead doctor.

"Probably an hour all together. You can come back then." She sat down and went back to work as if she were oblivious to everything around her.

"Kali, when was the last time you ate or slept," Jason asked taking in her thinness and dark circles under her large brown eyes.

"I'll have lunch when I'm done with this," she said distractedly.

Jason motioned Dornan towards the door and both men left. Jason plopped down in his desk chair and let out a sigh that told Dornan that he was mulling over a problem and he wasn't quite sure how to go about fixing it.

"She look sickly to you?" Jason finally asked Dornan.

"Yeah." He shrugged. "You know eggheads though. They get caught up in whatever their doing and forget things like eating and sleeping."

"I can't believe she moved that fast. And that salute!" Jason laughed a bit.

"That was pretty funny," Dornan chuckled. "She's had some military training."

"She was a soldier." Jason told him seriously.

"Really?"

"Yeah. She showed the brass she could make it. Passed every test they threw at her with flying colors. Including the physical ones."

"Wouldn't know it to look at her," Dornan said sarcastically."

"Not now, no."

"So she started out as a grunt and ended up an egghead?"

"Yep. Thing is they didn't know about her brains because she wasn't really letting on. Guess she got made fun of a lot in the town she came from. Anyway, they didn't have power armor small enough to fit her."

"Damn. We know what that's like," Dornan said remembering how he'd had to have special armor made because of his large size. Jason had gone through the same thing previously because he was the same size as Dornan.

"Yeah. Well, I guess she made her own armor."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Not only that, but it was more advanced than any that had been made before."

"She's the one that created the Nav systems for the armor last year?"

"Yep."

"Damn." Dornan whistled in appreciation. He loved having the Nav system installed in his armor. "She's one smart cookie then. She can't be more than twenty though."

"She's nineteen. She'll be twenty next week, I believe."

"Let me guess," Dornan said. "You're worried that with the way that's she's going, she isn't going to make it to her twenty first."

"That's it exactly. And if we lose her, the enclave loses one of its best scientific minds." He pulled at his shirt collar. "And I could lose my rank."

"So what are you going to do about it?"

"She jumped when you told her to jump."

"So. Most soldiers will jump when a sergeant yells at them. It's conditioning."

"True. And I'm thinking that she needs to be treated like a soldier more often." He smiled wickedly at Dornan.

"God, I don't like that smile! I know what you're thinking and the answer is no."

"Come on Sarge. The good doctor obviously needs a keeper and you're perfect for the job."

"No." He shook his head emphatically. "I already have enough on my plate."

"Don't make me pull rank on you soldier."

"You're an ass," Dornan said throwing himself down on a chair.

"So that's a yes?"

"Yes." He sighed as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders.

"Great," Jason said rubbing his hands together gleefully.

"I do things my way though."

"Sure."

"I mean it Jase, the minute she comes whining and crying to you, you send her right back to me."

"Word of honor," Jason said.

"And she only gets three days a week in the lab."

"What!?" Jason sat bolt right up in his chair.

"And only eight hours at a time."

"What part of best scientific mind didn't you understand?"

"My way or the highway," Dornan said not backing down.

Jason sat back and stared straight at Dornan who stared right back at him, not cracking one bit. This was the Dornan Mackay, he knew best. The one who never backed down, no matter what the situation was. The one who had watched his back for the last twelve years.

"Okay," Jason finally said. "But if the situation hasn't improved in one month's time, then we re-evaluate."

"Done," Dornan said nodding his head.

Jason grabbed a couple of bottles of water out a small fridge, neither of them had ever been one for booze, and they sat in companionable silence for a while.

"Well," Jason said checking the time. "Should we go see if the good doctor is done with your armor?"

"Let's," said Dornan and they both headed back to lab D.

"Armor's on the table," Kali pointed with a screwdriver, not looking up from whatever she was fiddling with. "I replaced the right panel on the chest, too."

"Lunch time, Kali," Jason said.

"I'll get something a bit later," She told him still not looking up at them.

Jason nodded to Dornan. Dornan reached down and plucked the project and screwdriver out of Kali's hand, sat them on a nearby table, and hauled her to her feet.

"What do you think you're doing," she screeched at him.

"Lunch time, Doc."

"You can't tell me what to do, Sergeant Dornan."

"Actually he can," said Jason getting her attention.

"I don't understand."

"You see, I feel like you can't be trusted to look after yourself, so I'm going to have someone do it for you."

"And that someone happens to be Sergeant Dornan?" she asked him sarcastically.

"Yes."

"You can't do that."

"Sure I can," he said with a shrug. "I'm your commanding officer, and this is my base. I'm God here, and my word is law."

"But-"

"No buts. You will do everything the Sergeant tells you too."

"Commander-"

"That's an order soldier," Jason barked out in his best I'm in charge voice.

"Yes, sir," Kali said sullenly.

"Let's go, Doc."

"I can just nuke something, than get back to work."

"Nope." Dornan grabbed her arm and started walking. "Let's head for the mess."

"What about your armor?"

"I'll send someone for it."

Dornan started walking, keeping hold of Kali's arm and she had to run just to keep up with him. After about a minute and a half of running, she knew he wouldn't listen to her protest so she grabbed the nearest door jam and pulled Dornan to a halt. She nearly pulled her arm out of socket, but she got his attention.

"Problem, Doc?"

"I'm willing to join you in the mess, but you need to walk a bit slower because my legs are quite a bit shorter than yours are."

Dornan slowed his pace but still made it to where she had to walk fast. She was breathing hard by the time that they got to the mess. Too hard to put up a fuss when he piled her plate way too high for her to possibly eat everything on it.

"I'm kind of out of shape," She said picking at the food with her fork.

"We'll remedy that soon enough," Dornan said when he'd finished what he was chewing.

"Maybe."

"No maybe about it," he said glaring at her. "Don't pick at it! Eat!" He barked at her.

"I think it's moving," she said poking at the food again.

"Close your eyes."

"What if it wiggles in my mouth?"

"Chew fast. Think of other things." He shoveled more food into his mouth. "Eat!"

When they were finished, Dornan ran roughshod over her protest about needing to get back to work.

"We're headed out for target practice."

He pushed her out the door of the mess and practically hauled her to the practice range. She was breathing hard again by the time that they got there, but Dornan was right about remedying the being out of shape situation soon. If he kept hauling her around at his pace she would have the legs of a champion runner in no time.

Most of the soldiers who were on the range practicing gave respectful nods to Dornan and sent curious glances Kali's way. Of course the Sergeant had them all well trained and they refrained from making any comments about the Sergeant draging an egghead around with him. Dornan walked the range and critiqued the soldiers and then turned his attention to Kali.

"Okay Doc, it's probably been some time since you've used a weapon of any kind."

"Hold my coat," Kali said to Dornan, unbuttoning her white lab coat and handing it to him.

To the astonishment of Dornan and every other soldier on the range, Kali had a YK32 Pulse Pistol strapped to each leg. Anyone who knew anything about pulse pistols knew that these ones had definitely been modified. She took a quick aim at the farthest target and blew it away. Not put a hole in it, but blew the entire target away, with one shot.

"If you think that's impressive, then you should see my plasma rifle," she said to Dornan suggestively.

"Well, Doc," Dornan said when the other soldiers stopped snickering, "I bet mine is bigger than yours."

It should have been funny. It should have gotten a laugh out of the soldiers. But it didn't. There were ten men and women standing on the range with their mouths hanging open, flabber gasted at the thought of the Sergeant Dornan, having a sense of humor, let alone cracking a joke.

"Guess you don't joke much." Kali said.

"Back to practice!" He barked at the soldiers.

"Is it a power trip to have everyone leap to obey you?" Kali asked as she watched all the soldiers jump back into their tasks.

"Yep." He smiled an evil smile. "And you'd better learn to jump too."

"And if I don't?"

"Oh, little girl," he said leaning down to whisper in her ear. "You really don't want to go rounds with me. You can't even begin to imagine the misery I could put you through."

"I'm shaking in my size five boots," she said rolling her eyes so far back in her head, Dornan was sure she saw hair growing. "I'm a brilliant scientific mind."

"That's not going to work with me," he said hauling her close to him by the front of her shirt. "The Nav system in the armor is great, but I can live without it."

"You know, this might be uncomfortable if I was a little more busty."

"More than a handful is a waste," he said letting her go, trying very hard not to stare down at her chest. Of course he couldn't help it and he realized that she wasn't wearing a bra and that her nipples were rock hard.

"But Sergeant Dornan, you have really big hands."

"I can't believe that we're having this conversation."

"You should hear what's said in the lab," she said nodding sagely.

"It's getting late," he said checking the time. "It's time for you to get some sleep, Doc."

He escorted her back to her quarters and pushed her in telling her to get eight hours.